Corporate Lines

by Donna Jay

  “So, call her, give her a chance to explain herself. If you don’t like what you hear, hang up. If you do, go get laid.”

  “Not everything’s black and white.”

  “No, it’s not. But not everything needs to be analysed to death either. Take a chance for once in your life.”

  “I did that.” She sounded sullen and knew it.

  “No, you settled,” Leah said softly, and Simone didn’t argue.

  Her relationship with Renee had been over long before she plucked up the courage to ask her to move out.

  The thought of living alone had terrified her. The actuality had been remarkably freeing. Sure, her work-life balance was a little out of kilter, but it worked for her.

  At least it had—until Nadia wandered into her office and blew that theory to smithereens.

  “Fine, I’ll call her.”

  “Oh, baby, you sound so sexy when you act like you’re five.”

  “Shut up.” Simone chuckled. “I’ll call her.”

  “Better. And if she’s a bitch, tell her I know where she works. I’ll go and slash all her bras. They’re too expensive anyway.”

  Feeling lighter, Simone wandered into the kitchen. “I’m going to go cook something for tea. I’ll let you know how it goes.”

  “See, this woman is good for you already.” Leah’s voice was soft, caring.

  She knew Simone hated cooking for herself. It always seemed like such a chore. But when it came to cooking for others, she was in her element.

  “Who knows, if all goes well, I might have to put my culinary skills to use.” Simone pulled out a pot.

  “I’m sure your cunnilingus skills are just fine.”

  Simone pictured the huge smile on Leah’s face. “Good night, Leah.”

  “Night.”

  Smiling, Simone disconnected the call.

  Chapter 7

  Simone

  The following day, after a restless night, Simone opened the office door and was assailed by the intoxicating aroma of white roses. Her eyes landed on the bouquet that was every bit as beautiful as the gift bearer.

  She pulled out her cell phone and stowed her handbag in the bottom drawer. While waiting for her computer to boot up, she glanced at her phone. Was it too early to make a call?

  Would Nadia be at work yet? Or was Simone the only idiot who arrived half an hour before everyone else?

  She flicked through her contacts. Her finger hovered above Nadia’s name. Should she do it and get it out of the way or make her wait? And if she made her wait, was she punishing herself or Nadia?

  Until that moment, she didn’t realise how much she missed having a lover. That wasn’t entirely true. She hadn’t been able to think about much else since Nadia waltzed into her life and turned it upside down.

  What the fuck she’d been doing at KB Incorporated was anyone’s guess. Simone stared at her phone as if it held the answers.

  Just before eight that morning, she finally caved. Her heart was in her throat as she stared at the newest contact on her phone.

  Chickening out—she wasn’t brave enough to call—she tapped out a quick message. Hi, it’s me.

  There, done. She put her phone down.

  Two seconds later she lunged for it when it vibrated across her desk.

  Who?

  Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. She thumped her forehead with the palm of her hand. Of course Nadia didn’t know it was her. How would she? She didn’t have Simone’s cell phone number.

  She typed Simone then deleted it. This was getting too complicated to send a quick reply.

  Leisa poked her head in the door. “Morning, boss.”

  Feeling like she’d been caught laundering money, Simone covered her phone with a stack of papers. “Morning, Leisa.”

  Leisa continued on her way and Simone retrieved her phone.

  Before she could hit the call button, Alex breezed past. “Morning,” she called out not bothering to stop.

  Why employees needed coffee the second they got to work was beyond Simone. It used to irk her, but she’d learned to pick her battles.

  Aware she had five minutes while Alex and Leisa fired up their computers and made a cuppa, she grabbed her phone and hit dial.

  Her heart hammered against her ribcage as she waited, and waited, and waited. Just when she thought her call was going to go to voicemail, the sexy lilt of Nadia’s voice came down the line.

  “Hello, you’re speaking with Nadia.”

  “Hi,” Simone said. What the hell was she supposed to say next? Her gaze landed on the bouquet on her desk. “Thank you for the flowers, they’re gorgeous.”

  “Fitting, don’t you think?”

  “Huh?” She scrunched up her face.

  “Gorgeous flowers for a gorgeous woman.”

  Nadia’s voice felt like a caress. If she’d been standing before Simone, she probably would’ve swooned. But she wasn’t, and Simone wasn’t that easy.

  It was going to take more than a bouquet of flowers and a compliment for Simone to let her guard down. She’d been easy once and that left her confused and disorientated.

  “Is that how you charm your way into everyone’s pants?” Simone leaned back in her chair.

  “Not at all. But I can’t give away my secrets over the phone.”

  “Yeah, about that. You seem to have a few.” Simone fiddled with a pen, flicking it between her fingers.

  “Don’t we all?”

  Simone wasn’t going to answer that. “You asked me to call, I’m calling.”

  “Oh, sassy.” A chuckle echoed down the line.

  It thrilled and irritated Simone at the same time.

  “I’m sorry for running out on you—”

  “And for snubbing me yesterday,” Simone interrupted.

  “Yes, and that. It was rather unfortunate. Let me make it up to you.”

  “When?” Simone watched her good intentions fly out the window. So much for making Nadia work for it.

  “Tomorrow night at six. Do you know where Zebras is?”

  Dammit.

  Tomorrow was payday. She wouldn’t make it out of work before seven, and that was only if everything balanced the first time.

  “I can’t tomorrow.”

  “Better offer?” Nadia’s voice was playful.

  “No. Just work.”

  “You have staff, don’t you?”

  “Of course.” Simone wondered where she was going with this.

  “Delegate.”

  That one little word worked its way under Simone’s skin and erupted like an angry pimple. “Are you telling me what to do?”

  “Not at all,” Nadia said. “You have a choice.”

  “Oh, yeah. How so?” Simone asked, equal parts intrigued and irritated.

  “Meet me at six tomorrow or work late. Your choice.”

  “You’re infuriating, do you know that?”

  “You can tell me all about it tomorrow night.” The smile was back in her voice. “I’ll meet you out front.”

  The phone clicked in her ear.

  How rude! She hung up without so much as a goodbye.

  After an hour of brooding, and not being able to get Nadia off her mind, Simone yanked open her office door.

  “Leisa.” She painted on a smile. After all, it wasn’t Leisa’s fault Simone was going out of her mind. “In my office, please.”

  Alex shot her a look, then hunkered down behind her computer screen.

  The second the door closed behind them, she met Leisa’s worried gaze.

  “Have I done something wrong?”

  “No.” Simone motioned to the chair in front of her desk. “Sit.”

  Leisa did as she was told, uncertainty knitting her brow.

  Simone took a deep breath, the aroma of the flowers teasing her senses just like the infuriating woman who’d sent them.

  She rested her elbows on her desk and steepled her fingers. “Remember last week when you asked for more responsibility?”

  “Yes.
” Leisa’s voice was tentative.

  “I’ve decided to grant your wish.”

  Joy lit up her features. “Really?”

  “Yes.”

  Oddly, Simone felt lighter. The worst thing that could happen was someone getting overpaid or underpaid, and they could fix that up the next week.

  “If you’ve got some time today, we’ll do a dummy run together, then tomorrow it’s all yours.”

  “I can skip lunch and we could do it then,” Leisa said, full of enthusiasm.

  “No.” Simone shook her head.

  She didn’t want her employees to do what she did. Eat at the desk. It suddenly hit her, if she wanted to lead by example, she probably should stop doing that too.

  What had she read? Keyboards had more germs than a toilet seat? She shuddered.

  “How about we reallocate the bank reconciliations to Alex to free up some of your time?”

  It was time Alex picked up the slack, and offering her a new job would ward off being accused of playing favourites.

  “I like doing the daily bank rec. It helps me keep on top of overdue accounts. But—” She chewed her lip, fiddling with her hands.

  “But?” Simone prompted.

  “It would be good if she could file the creditor invoices.”

  She fought to keep her voice even. “I thought she did.” Considering Alex was responsible for accounts payable, she damn well should be.

  “I’ve been doing it for her. Please don’t dump me in it,” Leisa pleaded. “We get on really well, and I don’t want her to get angry.”

  “I won’t.” Simone shook her head, disappointed with herself that she hadn’t realised how much Alex had been slacking off.

  Things were about to change for them all.

  “I’ll talk to her next. Subtly.”

  Leisa’s smile returned. “Thank you. I won’t let you down.”

  It wasn’t until Leisa exited her office that the enormity of what Simone had done hit her. She’d delegated payroll to someone more than capable of doing the job. It irked her that one word from Nadia—delegate—had been her motivation, but she was also humble enough to concede she should’ve done it long ago.

  With that said, she wasn’t ready to thank Nadia just yet.

  Her phone pinged, and she ignored it. Nadia could wait. After a minute of staring blankly at her computer screen, curiosity got the better of her. She plucked up her cell and swiped the screen.

  Disappointed it wasn’t Nadia, but happy to hear from her friend, she read Leah’s message.

  Did you call her?

  Smiling, Simone tapped out one word. Yes.

  Made a date?

  She sent the same message. Yes.

  YEEEEEESSSSS!!

  An image of Leah dancing in a circle, hands in the air, made Simone smile.

  What should’ve just been another day in the office felt different. She felt different, lighter somehow. Her office smelled amazing, and the unexpected gift of a dozen roses filled her with hope for a bright future.

  ***

  The next day passed in a blur. Between training Leisa, making sure Alex pulled her weight and Leisa didn’t get any backlash, Simone barely had time to think.

  Leisa had done an amazing job processing payroll and sorting out a few discrepancies. At four-thirty, Simone approved the payment batch with Leisa sitting at her side.

  “Well done.”

  A proud smile lit up Leisa’s face. “Thank you.”

  With payroll done, her mind drifted to the night ahead. She hadn’t confirmed their date which was both exhilarating and terrifying.

  Nadia was either extremely confident Simone would be there or she wasn’t bothered either way. Worse, it could be another one of her little games and she didn’t plan on turning up.

  The thought made Simone’s stomach bottom out. She probably should eat something before drinking, but she felt queasy enough as it was. Anything she ate would sit in her stomach like a block of cement.

  At five o’clock, Simone logged off and exited KB Incorporated. It felt weird leaving the building at the same time as everyone else, but it felt good too.

  “Have a good night, boss.” Hamish gave her a goofy smile.

  “You too.” She returned his smile feeling like he knew far too much. As soon as she was in her car, out of prying eyes, she pulled out her phone and sent a quick text.

  Hi, we still on for six?

  The reply was instantaneous. Of course.

  A tiny thrill ran through Simone. She stared out the windscreen, grinning like an idiot. She had a date for the first time in longer than she could remember.

  With half an hour to spare, she rushed home to freshen up. When she pulled on a pair of clean panties, she laughed at herself. How was that for wishful thinking?

  Chapter 8

  Simone

  Shortly before six, Simone arrived at Zebra’s, a popular bar on Hood Street. It’d been so long since she’d been out on a Thursday night, she’d forgot it was often one of the busiest nights of the week.

  After driving around the block a couple of times, she finally lucked out. When she saw reverse lights come on, she jumped on the brakes.

  The angry blare of a horn made her jump. She glanced in the rear-view mirror and mouthed ‘sorry.’

  The driver flipped her the bird and sped off. She clutched her chest, thankful she hadn’t been the cause of a prang.

  At ten past six, she raced into the bar. Had Nadia waited for her or had she lost her window of opportunity? Simone stood on her tiptoes trying to see over patrons standing around chatting, drinks in hand.

  The whisper of a breath breezed across her neck, just before a familiar voice uttered in her ear, “You’re late.”

  The husky timbre of Nadia’s voice sent a shiver up Simone’s spine. Her familiar scent was a welcome relief from the sickly sweet vapour someone had just puffed their way.

  Simone spun on her heels and was met by big blue eyes and an even bigger smile. The woman was fucking gorgeous. Long eyelashes, shimmering blonde locks, and kissable lips.

  “Sorry about that, I had trouble getting a park.”

  “Yeah, this place can be like that.” Nadia pulled a credit card out of her phone-case. “What will it be?”

  “You don’t have to do that,” Simone said, unaccustomed to having someone else pay for her.

  “The first thing you need to know about me is I don’t do anything I don’t want to. And, as much as I hope you’ll come home with me tonight, buying you a drink doesn’t mean you owe me.”

  Caught off-guard by Nadia’s direct approach, a myriad of thoughts raced through Simone’s mind. Starting with, ‘Yes, please, take me home with you,’ and ending with, ‘I’m not going anywhere with you until you explain yourself.’

  Someone bumped into Simone from behind and she almost thanked them. Her mouth opened and she said two words, “Wine, please.”

  Nadia stepped up to the bar, and Simone cursed herself. Wine wasn’t as simple as one word. There were so many varieties, red, white, dry, sweet…it would serve her right if she ended up with a glass of pinot, a wine she couldn’t pallet.

  “For you.” Nadia handed over a glass of white wine.

  “What is it?” Simone took a tentative sip. Crisp, fruity flavours exploded on her tongue. If she was to hazard a guess, it was a Riesling.

  “The house white.” Nadia picked up her tumbler and stepped around a group of people talking. “This way.”

  Simone followed behind, turning sideways as they weaved in and out of people, making their way to the far corner of the bar.

  Nadia slid into a booth and looked at Simone, eyebrow arched as if to say your choice.

  What should she do? Shimmy in beside her and bask in her scent, or casually slide into the seat opposite and ask what the hell her game was?

  Out of the two options, only one made sense. Putting her armour in place, Simone slid into the seat opposite and resisted the urge to put her elbows on the tab
le like Nadia.

  If she did that, they would be close enough to kiss. God, those lips. Pink and soft, like her centre.

  Snap out of it.

  Simone blinked hard, feeling like someone had snapped their fingers, but Nadia’s were wrapped around her glass.

  “You okay?”

  “I’m perfectly fine.” She could do this, she was a businesswoman for God’s sake. “How about we start with why I’m here?”

  “Because I invited you, and you accepted.” Nadia’s smile was maddening.

  “You ordered me,” Simone said, even though that wasn’t entirely true.

  “Look, lady…” Nadia held her gaze, a cheeky glint in her eyes. “If I’d ordered you to do something, we wouldn’t be sitting here enjoying a drink.”

  Ignoring the sexual inference, Simone fixated on the first part of her statement. “Did you just call me lady?” The last person who had the nerve to call her that was an irate customer.

  Grinning, Nadia stared pointedly at her chest. “From what I’ve seen you’re very much all woman.”

  “Are you always this patronising?”

  “Are you always this uptight?”

  If she wanted to go toe-to-toe, Simone could do that. She took a slug of her wine, getting into the swing of things. “Do you always hit on people in the workplace?”

  There. That wiped the smile right off her face.

  “Never, and for that, I apologise.”

  “Why did you?” Simone asked, feeling like they were on more even footing.

  A flash of something flickered across Nadia’s face. She looked at the ceiling, then back at Simone. Silence stretched and just when Simone was about to fill it, Nadia spoke.

  “I like certain things…” Her foot connected with Simone’s, and a frisson of desire shot straight to her core.

  The merest touch and she was responding to this woman. It was exhilarating and disconcerting.

  “And if I’m not mistaken, you do too.”

  Pretty sure she was referring to kink, but not willing to reveal her hand, Simone held her tongue.

  After a brief standoff, Nadia continued, “That’s no excuse for what I did, and I’ve been trying to make it up to you since.” She leaned across the table, closing the gap between them.