by Lynn, K. I.
Sadly I wouldn’t have as much money to put down as I wanted to, but I couldn’t stay in my small one-bedroom.
“Miss Cates,” Richard’s voice called, pulling me from the mess of a nest of papers on my desk.
I held my finger up to signal I needed a moment and continued my shuffling and straightening.
“You’re really going to keep me waiting?” he asked.
I didn’t even look up at him. “You’re really going to ask me that?”
“Ah…”
I flipped through the stack until I found the page I needed, then turned to my computer to input an entry into the system. Once I’d saved it, I turned and looked up to Richard.
“Mr. Bennett, what can I help you with today?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Did you forget we have a meeting?”
I pursed my lips and turned back to my computer to raise my calendar. “Why yes, we did. At two. It’s three-thirty.”
The smug expression slid from his face, and changed to one of confusion before he rolled his eyes. “Fucking time zones,” he hissed.
“You’re in luck that I kinda forgot and have been working my ass off for the last hour and change,” I said as I closed out of what I was working on.
“Am I?”
I nodded. “Yes, otherwise I wouldn’t be nearly as friendly.”
“Friendly, huh?”
I gave him a smile and a wink. “Conference room?”
“Read my mind.”
After locking my computer, I grabbed the document folder and pulled my laptop from the docking station. No sooner did I stand than Marjorie arrived.
“Richard. How nice to see you.”
“Marjorie,” Richard said with a strained smile.
While I had a dislike for the woman, as did most who worked for her, Richard’s level of tolerance was on the ground as he stomped on it.
“What brings you down?” she asked, that fake smile plastered on her face. Why was she always trying to brown-nose him?
“Miss Cates and I are working on budget analysis for an upcoming purchase proposition.”
Marjorie’s mouth pulled into a strained smile, and she aimed her dagger eyes at me. “Really? I wasn’t aware.”
“Of course not, because it doesn’t concern you.” Richard set his hand on my lower back and directed me toward the conference room.
I could still feel Marjorie’s eyes on me when we entered.
“I think Marjorie has a lady boner for you,” I said after the door had shut.
He let out a groan and shook his head. “Don’t say that.”
“Why not? She may be Miss Priss, but she’s still pretty.”
“It’s that lording attitude I can’t stand.”
“Says the king of finance,” I said, pointing out he was a bit of a lorder himself.
He let out a small chuckle as he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me closer. “I guess that makes you my queen.”
“There you go trying to be all smooth.”
“Are you saying my mojo isn’t working?”
I pursed my lips. “Ask me when we aren’t here.”
He ran his hands up my back, then down to my waist. “Maybe we should skip out early to test it out.”
I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. “I’ll make out with you if you focus on the budget for an hour.”
“With groping?” he asked with a quirk of his brow.
“Over the clothes.”
“Before or after?”
“After, but I’ll give you a hello stud kiss before we begin.” I stood on the tips of my toes, straining to reach him.
“Shorty,” he teased before leaning down to meet me.
As we sat, a burning sensation crawled up my throat and I grimaced as I rubbed my hand against my chest. “Crap.”
“Everything okay?” he asked, his brow furrowed as he stared at me.
“Fine. It’s just baby-induced heartburn.”
His eyes widened. “The pregnancy causes it?”
I nodded. “One of the many fun things happening with my body lately,” I said as I shook my head. “I’ve got some antacids in my desk. I’ll be right back.”
“Wait,” he said stopping me. He dug through his computer bag and pulled out a container.
“Aren’t you prepared,” I said as I shook a few tablets onto my palm.
“I love green peppers, but my stomach doesn’t,” he explained. “I always have some nearby.”
“Thank you.” I handed the bottle back.
“Anytime.”
An hour later, the vein was ticking on my forehead as Mr. VP threw his weight around again.
I crossed my arms in front of me and leaned back. “I’m sorry, I thought you needed my help, that I had some voice in this.”
“Ah…” he trailed off, his mouth parted, then abruptly closed. “You do.”
“Then you need to let me get a word in edgewise,” I ground out. “Otherwise I’m just sitting here like a doll you’re throwing words at that mean nothing other than you’re saying them.”
“What does that mean?” he asked, a little affronted.
“It means right now there is no reason for me to be in this room with you. You’re bulldozing right over me.” Spelling it out was the only way I was going to get through to him, and with the way his eyes widened, I knew I had.
He sat back in his chair. “I’m sorry. You’re right.” He held his hand out for me to speak.
“First off, you’re talking about one billion dollars in purchases.”
His brow scrunched up. “And?”
I couldn’t figure out if he was used to talking about such large numbers, or if he really wasn’t thinking about the current state of the company. Things were going well, Annex was the third largest content streaming service, but one wrong move and it could all be over.
“One billion is high risk. We have enough to cover some ventures and can get loans for the rest, but that is all leaning on past performance to remain steady. One of the main reasons this company has remained in such good financial standing is because we haven’t overstretched available means.”
“And that has also kept us behind other giants. We haven’t taken large-enough risks,” he said.
“Is that your pitch? What are you going to tell them?” I asked. He was thinking like a financial advisor, but not a VP trying to propel the company. Not that it was a bad thing, but there had to be a balance, and I knew he was well aware of that.
Was he testing me?
“What do you think I should tell them?” he asked, his attention solely focused on me.
What would I tell them? The company had its hands in so many buckets that it didn’t need to add any more.
“Growth has been steady over the past five years. With the addition of in-house productions, we’ve doubled. We should invest in producing the hundreds of story rights we own to bring in new membership to help carry the load of the more risky investments. It does us no good to invest in something that shows limited future payback.”
It was all about ROI—return on investment. And not everything was that beneficial.
“Wow,” he said as he stared at me.
“Wow, what?”
“I’m impressed.”
I quirked a brow at him. “Impressed with what?”
He leaned forward and put his elbows on the table. “That you pulled that information from your brain and analyzed the company’s cash flow without even a hiccup.”
“And?” I asked. I wasn’t sure what he was saying.
“It’s impressive.”
I narrowed my gaze on him. “If you say for a girl, so help me.”
He held his hands up. “How about a ‘you’re right’?”
“Are you about to say you’re sorry?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No.”
I regarded him for a moment, giving him my best side eye. “Okay, I’ll settle for being right.”
“I thought it was very big of
me,” he said as he stood, walking around the corner to my seat.
I turned toward him, my arms still crossed. “There’s room for improvement.”
He leaned over, placing his hands on the armrests. “Do I get to grope you now?”
My gaze bounced between his eyes, noticing how their blue was dark like the deep parts of the ocean. “It’s because we bickered, isn’t it?”
He slammed his lips to mine. “Fuck, yes.”
March
After two weeks, Monday through Thursday became simple stepping stones counting down like a clock until I got to see Richard again. I made them productive, if only to keep myself busy, to keep myself from missing him.
It was hard to believe how much I missed him after only being together for a few weeks. Jenna spent a lot of time with Brent, and they sometimes invited me along, but I hated feeling like a third wheel. Also, the baby was zapping my energy and I usually went home and didn’t move from my couch.
Of course Richard and I talked on the phone, and texted, and even emailed, but all that did was make me long for him more. I felt the need to be physically connected, surrounded by his arms and breathing him in. I craved him. My skin crawled in desperation for him.
The first week I started sending him memes during the day, but he didn’t really understand them, much like the emojis, and it took him a moment to pick up. I had a feeling his office may have been a little too stuffy, and memes weren’t a part of his everyday life like they were with mine. Jenna sent me a dozen a day.
Baby Yoda memes were his favorite, and mine as well.
His office, his life, had been too stuffy, and I was happy to be breathing life into him.
Which was why I left early on Friday.
For weeks he’d come down to see me, but it was only fair that I go see him as well. His more flexible schedule had allowed him to leave early, giving us more hours together, but I still had yet to see the condo I might have spent New Year’s Day in.
The traffic was insane, and I was happy I clocked out at noon though I didn’t tell him I’d left early. The week before he’d given me the pass for his garage and instructions on where to park, and I pulled into a spot right next to his car.
Bag in hand, another passkey for the elevator, and a short walk down the hall to the left, and I was there. Immediately I rang the bell, and my heart thumped with each second before the door swung open.
My heart skipped at the bright blue eyes and blinding smile that met me. He had been working from home all day, and I tried not to linger on the grey sweatpants that were sitting low on his hips, or the white T-shirt covering his chest. It was probably a good thing because I might not have been able to stop myself from dropping to my knees right there if he’d come to the door shirtless.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hi.” He stepped forward and leaned down, pressing his lips to mine as he took my bag from my hand. “Welcome.” He stepped to the side to let me in, and immediately the wall of glass windows exposed nothing but blue. No buildings, no obstructions, just lake.
“So, I was right?” I asked as I stepped through the front door of Richard’s sky-high condo, my eyes glued to the view. It really did overlook the lake.
He chuckled and closed the door behind me. “I told you so. Right down to the meal delivery service.”
I threw my arms around his neck and he dropped my bag as his arms swept around me, pulling me flush to him.
“Hi,” I said with a smile as I stared into his bright blue eyes.
He grinned back at me. “You’re early.”
I gave a small shrug. “You said the sunsets were spectacular from up here, and that you’d be spending the afternoon working from home.”
“I’m just surprised you were able to take off early.”
Another shrug. “On one hand is this boss I’m working hard on a project with who wants me to work all the time, and on the other hand is my baby daddy who wants me to take it easy.”
“I hate that term.”
I smirked at him. I wasn’t fond of the name either. “I thought you might. What would you prefer?”
“There are a lot of things I’d prefer, but number one is your boyfriend.”
I narrowed my eyes on him. “Hmm, boyfriend, huh?”
“I thought that was established.”
I had to admit, I liked to see him sweat a little bit. Honestly, I’d considered him mine since that first weekend. Probably since he wrote it in that text to mystery texter.
“I like the sound of that. So, are you gonna give your girl a tour?”
A groan rumbled in his throat, and he ran his lips up the column of my neck. “I’m sorry, did you say something? I was highly distracted.”
I pulled back and rolled my eyes. “Says the man in the grey sweatpants.”
“What about my sweatpants?”
“Lift up your shirt.”
He followed my instructions and exposed his muscular abdomen and the oh-so-enticing V that disappeared beneath the waistband.
“Damn.” I blew out a breath and fanned my face. “Those are totally hot.”
“Wait, my sweatpants are hot?”
“Oh, hell, yes. You didn’t know that grey sweatpants are the male equivalent of lingerie?”
“You’re kidding me.”
I shook my head as my eyes moved down. He still hadn’t released the hem of his shirt, and I couldn’t help but lick my lips at the outline of his cock when it twitched.
“Total aphrodisiac.”
He quirked his brow and pushed down on the waistband, a wicked gleam in his eyes as he stared me down.
I blew out a breath and turned. “Plenty of time for that later. Right now, I want to see that view you’ve teased me about for weeks.”
“Tease,” he said with a groan, his shirt thankfully covering his skin again. He took my hand and pulled me down the hall, showcasing a half bath, laundry closet, and a bedroom that held his home office and much of his sports memorabilia, with an attached full bathroom.
As soon as we entered the main living area, my mouth dropped open. I saw nothing, none of the room, just the wide expanse of Lake Michigan. I made my way around the furniture until I found the door that led to a balcony. It was cold out, the wind brisk, but I could barely feel it.
“Wow. That’s a million-dollar view.” It was breathtaking, and the view from the doorway was a pale comparison to the deck.
There was a chuckle behind me, then warm arms encircled me, pulling me close.
“Right on the money.”
“That wouldn’t surprise me.” The noise of Lake Shore Drive floated up over eighteen stories.
“Having this view makes living in the city bearable. I feel less like I’m in a concrete jungle.”
“I always thought you loved the city.”
He hummed in agreement. “I do, but it’s so crammed with people. Sometimes I just want space. All I have to do is put on some headphones, playlist on random, drink in hand, and stare out. Just watch the boats come and go, the sun sparkle on the water.”
“So calming,” I said. It was much like when I described my favorite color.
He nodded against me and placed a kiss on my shoulder.
I looked to the left down the shoreline, noticing how it curved in the distance. To the right a very familiar sight stuck out into the water, complete with a Ferris wheel. A small giggle left me. I didn’t think he heard it.
“Are you going to tell me?” he asked.
“The pier. Where it all started. Where we made a baby.”
He hummed against my skin. “Possibly the best night of my life.”
“You know I was staying pretty much next door to where you live?”
“Don’t tell me that,” he said with a groan.
I turned in his arms. “The W.”
A growl of frustration left him and his forehead fell against mine. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”
“Yeah.”
“Yeah,” he said wi
th a shake of his head. He turned me slightly. “You can’t see from this angle, but on the other side of the second tower of this complex is the W. It literally is right next door.”
I leaned into him, my head resting on his chest. “If only…”
“I should have gone with you.”
I shrugged. “Yes, it was lost time, but it was weeks, and now we’re together.”
“But it was weeks of misunderstanding and not knowing if we would ever see each other again.”
I smacked his stomach. “No getting moody on me. I’m here, in your home. Finish this tour, and let’s break in that kitchen table.”
His hands swept around my back, cupping my ass, giving it a squeeze. “The table, huh?”
“Well somebody’s grey sweatpants got me all worked up.” I gave him a wink.
A chuckle left him and we moved back inside. There was a nice large living room that was open to a dining room with a fireplace. Around the corner sat the kitchen.
“This kitchen is beautiful.” While normally I wasn’t fond of galley kitchens, his was nice and wide, and beautifully appointed. A gas burner and double oven, granite counters, and lots of cabinets. “This kitchen is so wasted on you.”
At the end sat a large window that almost went from the floor to the ceiling. The dimming of outside light allowed the shine of indoor lighting to be seen, and suddenly the second tower of the property was a full-on peep show.
“Okay, I’ve lived in apartments for years, but I don’t know about this.”
“About what?”
I waved at the large pane of glass and the lack of any type of shade. “There are windows, other people, so close that there is no privacy unless your curtains are closed. And I’m not seeing a curtain on this window.” I turned to him. “Do you give your neighbors a peep show?”
He stepped forward and hooked his hands around my waist, lifting me until I was sitting on the counter. I drew in a breath as his fingers swept across my panties.
“We could give them a peep show right now.”
I bit down on my lip as I wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him closer. “Mr. Bennett, oh my.”
He chuckled before leaning forward and crashing his lips to mine. My whole body lit up as I clawed at him. I reached under his shirt and pressed my hands to his abs and then slipped my hand under his waistband.
