The two walked out of the store in silence. Aubrey wanted him to say something, anything, to break the awkwardness floating between them. She had no idea what sent them to a crashing halt the other night. But it didn’t matter. She had to just get over it, over him. She didn’t even know his last name, for crying out loud. There was no need to get all bent out of shape over someone who she didn’t even know their last name.
“Aubrey, listen,” he started.
“No, it’s fine, really. You have a good day and thanks again for your help back there.” Aubrey tried to walk away, but he reached out and grabbed her hand, running his thumb over her knuckles.
“Wait,” he said. So she did. “Have dinner with me.”
“I can’t.” She wanted to have him with dinner, but another date thing would just make it harder to walk away. It would be way too much like a date. Hell, he might even consider it a date. No, they were better off parting ways or jumping in the back seat of her car and going at it like bunnies before returning to work. That way they could have a smile in the middle of a bad day (at least her bad day), and they could get each other out of their systems. “But we could pick up where we left off the other night…”
Henry dropped her hand, and his soft expression turned hard.
“No, I don’t think so. You have a good day.” Then he walked off. Aubrey watched him go and was once again left feeling completely dejected.
~*~
Aubrey got back to the office in a fouler mood than when she left. She stalked into Jenna’s office and placed the bag of tampons and the dry cleaning receipt on her very cluttered desk.
Aubrey laughed a little. She was gone for one afternoon, and Jenna’s desk already looked like a war zone. She was lost without her. Maybe she will realize it and apologize for sending her out, or maybe buy her a coffee to thank her for everything she had done.
Probably not, but it was a nice thought.
Leaving the office, Aubrey noticed that most of the offices on her floor were empty. Glass walls were a wonderful thing at times. Bridgette came walking down the hall sipping her own drink. The bosses must be in a meeting that was expected to last a while.
“Hey, Bridgette, when did you get back?” she asked as her friend got closer. She hadn’t seen her since the night at the club when she left with Henry.
“Last night. Where have you been all day? Jenna was going nuts trying to find stuff without you. She told Mike that you never called, but half the office saw you break a cup or something? I let him know you were here before, but I didn’t know why you didn’t check in with Jenna.”
“Are you fucking kidding me? She sent me on errands. I had to walk her dog and buy her tampons. Why would she do that?” Aubrey had never felt so betrayed. What had she done so wrong? She always did her best and made Jenna look good. Wasn’t that what she was supposed to do?
“I don’t know what her issue is.” Bridgette wouldn’t look at her. She got like that when situations became intense. It wasn’t anything she did or didn’t do, but she hated any kind of conflict.
“She told Mike that I screwed up in New York. She didn’t even have any meetings set up except the one that didn’t even bother to show. I got us three meetings in a matter of thirty minutes, all for the same day. I kept Leslie from throwing us out the minute we walked in. Leslie even told me how great I was doing. But no, she threw me under the damn bus to make herself look better. And apparently, she was doing it again today. I don’t know what the hell I did.”
“I don’t know, but it isn’t right. I wouldn’t say anything if you need your job, though. Before you, Jenna went through assistant after assistant. Just know that you won’t be her PA forever.” Bridgette leaned in and hugged her before heading back to her own desk.
Knowing she was on thin ice for a reason she didn’t understand, she thought it best to be busy when Jenna returned from her meeting.
By the time the bosses were all walking back, Jenna’s desk was clean and organized, there was a list of names and numbers that needed to be called by her personally, a stack of messages of clients that Aubrey had called for little things that needed to be clarified, and a cup of hot coffee sitting on the desk. She was really proud of herself.
“Aubrey, this looks wonderful, thank you. Now, here is the next list.” Jenna handed her a paper, and then walked right passed her, sitting at her now clean desk.
“You’re welcome,” Aubrey replied before walking out the door. She had to keep it short and sweet, or she might not walk out with a job. The paper this time had a list of groceries, picking up the dry cleaning she dropped off, setting a doctor’s appointment for Jenna, a vet appointment for the dog, and picking up a package from the post office.
At least there was no dog shit involved.
Aubrey made the appointments first since that could be done at her desk and right away. Then she called to check on the dry cleaning. No sense in going down there if they hadn’t gotten to it yet. Once those were done, she grabbed her keys again and headed to the elevators.
“Aubrey, wait!” Mike yelled as he jogged down the hall. Aubrey stopped walking and watched as he continued to run toward her when he no longer had to. She started in his direction thinking it rude not to. He was her boss’ boss, after all.
“Is there something I can get for you, Mike?”
“No, but there is something you can do for me. We have a huge meeting next week. I have asked that everyone push their travel meetings back a week. We need all hands on deck.”
“Oh, Jenna didn’t tell me. I will change the meeting dates right away. The errands can wait a few minutes.”
“No, no. Jenna can do that, or you can do it later. Either way, that’s not what I wanted to ask you. I need fresh eyes. This new client is some super genius high school kid who designed an entire video game in his basement and won some huge national award with it. Now he is shopping it around. We want it. Hell, we need it, to be honest. I need you to do some market research. Find the perfect target market and the data to support it. Think you can handle that?”
Aubrey couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She wanted to jump up and down but thought that might be a little over the top. So instead she nodded vigorously with a big cheesy grin on her face. “Yes, yes, I can do that. Is there any way to get a summary of the game? Any information on the boy?”
“Ah, see, gender stereotyping. It was a girl who developed the game. And Jenna has all of that. I will let her know that I asked for you to help. If all goes well, maybe we can get you to do more of this… that is if you want.”
“Yes, yes. I want. I mean, yes, I would very much like that. Thank you.”
“You are welcome. Get whatever you have to done now, but first thing tomorrow morning, I want to see you working on this market research. We’ll get a temp for Jenna.”
Mike walked away, and Aubrey watched him disappear into his office. Bridgette turned and gave her a big smile with two thumbs up. Aubrey smiled and did a little happy dance right there in the hallway that lead to the elevators. With a smile on her face, she headed out to do the stupid errands knowing that the next day her real work would begin.
Chapter Six
Aubrey did her errands. She also did the third list that Jenna had waiting for her. And she did them all with a smile. Nothing was going to pull her down. She managed to impress the boss’s boss enough for him to trust her with something as important as market research. Her plans on climbing the ranks in the company were working.
As the last light clicked off in the office, besides her own desk lamp, that is, Aubrey looked at the clock. It was almost seven thirty, and she was still working. If whatever temp they got to fill her shoes for the next few weeks couldn’t decipher the notes or Jenna’s schedule, then she would be pulling double duty to do the research and get the damn coffee.
All she wanted to do was dive into the bright red folder that sat on her desk next to her water bottle. It had all the new games information. But she knew if she o
pened it, all current work would cease to exist, and she would dive in. Aubrey stared at the folder for another moment before shaking her head and going back to work on scheduling for the next week.
After another hour had passed, Aubrey was finally done. She stacked all the papers, all with color coded tabs for each day and activity, on her desk with a note to her temp explaining everything. Then she stood, pushed in her chair, and grabbed the file that could be the key to her future and hugged it to her chest. With a big smile, she clicked off the light and headed out to her car.
She should celebrate. It would be the last night she would get to go out for at least a week, if not longer. It was a celebration kind of night. She did just get handed the key to a promotion, after all.
~*~
The dark bar was overflowing with people. Aubrey had no clue why a Monday night was so busy, but it didn’t matter. The more people, the higher the energy level, and high energy and loud music were the best ways to unwind. High energy, loud music, and a strong drink were perfect for celebrating.
Aubrey weaved in and out and around a hundred bodies to get to the bar. Then she stopped dead in her tracks. Henry sat at the bar surrounded by women wearing half of what she considered decent. And that was saying something when she had clothing that left little to the imagination if the wind blew too hard.
No, she wouldn’t let his presence, and the girls throwing themselves at him, deter her from celebrating. She wouldn’t wallow in the past. He didn’t want her, oh well. She could get anyone else in the entire place that she wanted.
Who wanted a geeky guy with a superhero fetish who couldn’t even dance? Even if he were super hot and really fun to be around, it didn’t matter. She was going to forget about him. Even if the t-shirt he had on did say ‘ask me about my super powers’ and fit him so snuggly it showed off his muscular frame, making her think that his super powers could very well be making her horny as hell just by sitting there. She was going to forget about Henry. Period. No ifs, ands, or buts. He was out of her mind. She wouldn’t give him another thought.
Aubrey pushed her way to the bar and got the bartenders attention. He lifted up one finger, signaling her to hold on. She must be really off her game. First Henry, and then the bartender. Was she losing her touch? Maybe it was because she wasn’t really dressed to be at the bar. She did come straight from work, but she knew she could pull off the sexy secretary look just fine if she undid the top two buttons of her blouse. She wore skirts most days anyway, and heels were her addiction. She had on a white blouse, black pencil skirt, and bright red heels that matched her necklace.
Popping her buttons on her blouse, she cleared her throat. The bartender looked in her direction and his eyes widened. She took that moment to reach up and free her long dark hair from her bun. It spilled over her shoulders in waves, and she smiled at him, batting her lashes. She may be cliché, but she knew it. She owned it. Hell, why would she do anything different when it worked?
The bartender then gave the hold on finger to the half dressed woman in front of him, who went back to hanging all over Henry (not that she cared) and moved directly in front of her. He was definitely cute. But she wasn’t into bartenders. At least not the ones at her usual places. It made things too awkward after the fact. She may be a barfly, but she wasn’t a bartender floozy.
“What can I get you tonight?” he asked, already pulling a glass from the bar.
“Tonight’s a celebration, so let’s go with a long island.”
“What are you celebrating, gorgeous?” His hands moved quickly as he mixed her drink, the alcohol flowing from the bottles at the same time as the mixers. He gave her an extra shot or two, whether he realized it or not, his pour was strong.
“A possible promotion at work. I do this assignment well, and I won’t be getting anyone’s coffee anymore.” Aubrey took the drink and handed over her credit card. It was an open tab kind of night.
“Sounds like the perfect night to celebrate, but doing it alone isn’t fun.”
Aubrey took a drink and sure enough, it was strong. The alcohol burned going down, heating her through to her stomach. She looked up and smiled at the bartender. “Don’t worry. I’m sure I won’t be alone for long.”
Prickles covered the back of her neck, making her feel as if she were being watched. She knew it was Henry. She just knew it. Ignoring the impulse to turn in his direction, she grabbed her drink and walked off. She wouldn’t look back. She wouldn’t.
Aubrey found a table that was small and empty, and surrounded by a group of people. The way it was placed in the room kept her hidden from Henry’s view, but if the stupid guy in front of her would just step to the right half a step, she could sneak a peek at him and his gaggle of girls.
Stupid girls.
The guy in front of her moved. She saw Henry. He had angled himself so he could see her, too. She locked eyes with him from across the bar, and even when people walked between them, she never looked away, and neither did he.
She refused to move. She wouldn’t chase him. But she found that the farther into her drink she got, the less she remembered why she wasn’t pursuing this nearly perfect man. Who cared that he turned her down? That just made it more fun. She should wear him down. She could just picture what he looked like under those clothes, what his hands would feel like rubbing against her skin, what his hot mouth…
She didn’t finish her thought. She couldn’t, because if she did, she may combust into an orgasmic puddle of goo on the bar floor. Aubrey stood and marched across the bar. Henry smiled at her as she approached, and the stupid girls glared at her. Screw them.
When she stood directly in front of Henry, she reached out and took his hand, ignoring the comments being spewed by the half dressed women around them, and led him away. She didn’t speak to him, or respond to the girls. She just took what she wanted.
And she wanted Henry.
Once again she found herself dancing on Henry, but that was fine. She managed to move and rub up against him in ways that had him start exploring her body with his hands. Finally, they landed on her hips, his thumbs kneading into her ass, pulling her tightly against his hardening length,
Aubrey stood straight, lifting her arms above her head to wrap around his neck as she swayed back and forth. When his hot breath caressed the soft skin of her neck, she shivered in delight. When her earlobe was encased in the wet warmth of his mouth, the throbbing between her legs began. When his teeth bit down, she knew she had lost all control.
As soon as he released her earlobe from his teeth, Aubrey whipped around, pressing her body tightly to his, her hands wound into his hair, and she crushed her lips to his. She was done being rejected. She was done walking away from this man a hot horny mess.
Henry did not disappoint. He responded with more fervor than she ever thought he would. His lips parted over hers, and he dipped his tongue into her eagerly awaiting mouth. He massaged her tongue with his own, and then would pull back to softly kiss her and nip at her lips, and then deepen it once again. She had never been kissed that way before, and it was incredible.
When they parted, the two just stared into one another’s eyes for a moment. Aubrey could see so much emotion and desire in his. He wanted her. She knew he did. But would he follow through or would he send her on her way like he already has too many times for her liking.
When Henry slid his hands from her hips, she thought for sure the night was coming to a crashing halt. But then he took her hand in his, leading her out of the bar and toward what she could only assume was his car.
When a man exited the driver’s seat and opened the back door, she looked at Henry in question. He just shook his head and motioned for her to get in. She did.
Henry slid in after her, and that was when she noticed that the windows were all tinted, and there was a privacy glass separating the driver from the back seat. Whoever Henry really was, he was much more than Hot Geeky Guy, who she couldn’t get off her mind.
“Can he see
or hear us?” she asked in a breathy voice.
“Not unless we push the button.”
“Don’t push it.”
Aubrey moved to straddle Henry and slowly worked her hips, grinding her pulsating pussy against his lap. The friction did nothing to help the need that was growing between her legs. She needed more.
Henry ran his hands up her thighs and under her skirt, bunching it at her waist. Aubrey leaned down to kiss him, letting her mouth explore his. When his hands began guiding her movements, pulling her closer to him, her tongue grew frantic. She needed to feel his skin against her own. She pulled back and unbuttoned her top, revealing her lace covered breasts to him. His eyes glowed with anticipation as he reached up, freeing them from her bra. Aubrey watched as Henry leaned in and took her hard nipple into his mouth.
She moaned at the contact and jerked her hips, and he bit down then sucked at her nipple, soothing the sting from his teeth. She could feel how hard he was beneath her. She didn’t want him under her—she wanted him in her.
When he let go of her nipple, she moved herself to the floorboard between his legs and undid his Spiderman belt and unbuttoned his jeans. Henry lifted his hips slightly, and she gave his jeans a tug, exposing his large cock in one swift move.
Aubrey wrapped her hands around him and began to pump up and down. Then she leaned forward and took him in her mouth. She ran her tongue around the head of his dick and then sucked it into her mouth. She moved back to his head and repeated her movements, all the while pumping the base of him that she couldn’t get to fit in her mouth. He groaned in approval and that pleased Aubrey. She wanted to make him feel good. She wanted him to fall apart, and she wanted to see him cum.
Aubrey looked up, without stopping her ministrations, to see his head thrown back and a smile on his lips. She worked harder, working him, humming around his member, and sliding her hands up and down his length. When he looked to her, and their eyes caught, she felt a flutter in her stomach. His gaze held her captivated. He reached out and moved a stray hair from her face and pulled himself from her mouth. She wanted to protest, but he pulled her to the seat next to him and laid her down on the seat.
The Billionaire & The Barfly (Coming Home) Page 4
