by Audrey Storm
“Had another accident?” he asked, stepping away from the counter. Danica noticed a shard of the glass she had used earlier on the floor next to his right foot. She quickly bent down to pick it up but in her haste, she bumped into his leg and consequently cut her thumb on the piece of broken glass. “Miss Rayne,” Adam started as he put his cup down and then took her bleeding hand in his. He led her to the sink and held her bleeding thumb under running water for a long minute before he let go. “Don’t move. I’ll get the first aid kit,” Adam said before he walked out of the break room. She was wincing as she looked at the slightly tinged water running down the drain.
When he came back a few minutes later, she wanted to pull her thumb from the cold running water but he stopped her.
“Don’t,” he said in a commanding tone. “Until I tell you to.” She nodded and looked at him as he carefully unwrapped a band aid and then stretched his hand out to her. She turned off the water and put her small hand in his. She winced a little when he dabbed a wet cotton swab on her thumb. “That burning sensation you have is an antiseptic. I had to be sure your cut doesn’t get infected,” he said in a soft voice as he secured the band aid around her thumb.
“Thank you,” she said in a whisper and Adam looked into her eyes. As he did so, he had that almost permanent smile on his face and it was like blinking for him was not a necessity. Her heart began beating faster again as his deep hazel eyes looked into her own.
“You’re very much welcome, Miss Rayne,” he said before he let her hand go and turned around to pick up his coffee. He then walked out of the break room as if it was just another normal morning. Danica picked up her own cup and took a long deep breath before she made her way to her desk. When she sat down, she could feel Adam’s eyes on her and she would have wanted to turn around and confirm if indeed he was looking at her but she just didn’t have the heart to do it.
When she first started working at Keller Enterprises, Danica was almost too certain that she would be posted in the copy room or something considering that she was yet to get her college degree. She was proud of the fact that she was a young black woman who had made it out of a stereotypical bad neighborhood and was working her way up the corporate ladder even though she was a long way from where she really wanted to be.
Matter of fact, the only reason she started working at KE was to get a cushion fund so that she could move to New York for her dream career, software development. She had her eyes set on Google or something of the sort. Software development was her first love but going after what she loved would have to cost her especially living in New York where life was a little bit more pricy than what she was used to in Detroit. But as soon as she set foot in KE, everything changed. Her first surprise was when she was told she was going to be Adam Keller’s personal secretary.
“Me?” she had asked when Estelle, a bubbly woman from the human resources department talked to her about her new position. “But…I just started here and my credentials…” Danica had tried getting her side of the story out but Estelle just shook her head.
“Mr. Keller asked for you personally,” she said.
“Personally? But he doesn’t even know me.” Danica was confused. “I don’t know the first thing about accounts.”
Estelle smiled at her.
“Don’t worry. You will probably mostly be doing a lot of filing and client correspondence,” she said.
“Yeah and probably get his coffee and laundry whenever he asks,” Danica thought as she smiled at Estelle.
But she had been wrong. As she soon came to realize, Adam was not the kind of boss to use his secretary as anything more than just that. In the six months that she had worked for him, he had never once asked her to get his laundry or run a personal errand and she only made him coffee at her own insistence. But the one thing she just couldn’t shake off ever since she began working for Adam was how much attention he paid her. She sometimes felt like he drew his strength from watching her work. She had still not decided whether her second surprise was the fact that her new boss who was painstakingly attractive boss who had been named more than once as one of the sexiest men alive paid her more attention than any man she had ever known or the fact that she was actually being overpaid as a secretary.
She was still sipping on her coffee as she updated her daily report when her phone rang.
“Keller Enterprises. Adam Keller’s office,” she said when she picked up.
“Miss Rayne, would you come in here for a minute?” Adam asked in a polite voice, a little too polite for an employer.
“Of course, sir,” she said before she hang up. She put her cup on her desk and straightened her skirt before she walked to Adam’s office. He was looking over a file on his desk when she got to his desk.
“Please have a seat Miss Rayne,” he said without looking up. She sat down and looked at him as he shut the file and leaned back in his seat. She could not help but notice his perfectly manicured nails as he looked at her. “I just looked over the finalized documents for our new Swiss clients,” he started as he interlaced his fingers. “It is very well written,” he added.
“Thank you, sir,” she said in a soft voice.
There was a long uncomfortable silence before he spoke again.
“Do you always get to work this early?” he asked and she nodded.
“I like to beat the morning traffic and I get a lot more done during the early morning hours,” she said. “It is when I feel the most…fresh.”
Adam smiled.
“Fresh?” he asked and she nodded.
“For lack of a better word.” He looked at her for a long minute again and then leaned forward.
“Do you like working here, Miss Rayne?” he asked.
“Well, yes, sir.”
“Is it what you have always pictured yourself doing?” he asked again. She took a minute and then nodded. “Please be honest with me Miss Rayne. I don’t like being lied to.” Danica felt her cheeks get hot. His face was soft but the tone in in his voice was hard, commanding.
“Software development,” she said in a soft voice. “That is what I have always wanted to do.”
“Then how did you end up at Keller Enterprises?” he asked.
“I differed my final year of college so I could get a chance to graduate from Columbia,” she started. “That way I guess I would have a higher chance of getting into Google…or something.”
He nodded and took one last sip of what Danica assumed was a now cold cup of coffee. He was looking at her intently as he put the cup down on his desk.
“If you don’t mind my asking sir, why are you so interested in my personal life?” she asked.
“I like to have a good idea of who I am working with,” he said. “That’s all.” He leaned back in his chair, still looking at her. “I find it is easier than having to get a background check on someone.”
“Yeah, that wouldn’t be creepy,” she thought as she forced a smile.
“Because that, would be creepy,” Adam said in a soft voice.
“Okay, I am officially in the twilight zone,” she said in a low voice.
“Excuse me?” Adam asked and she looked up surprised.
“Wait, did I say that out loud…I didn’t mean to…I…” she struggled to say but she just couldn’t get the right words. “I’m sorry, it’s just that I thought the exact same thing before you said it. The whole creepy thing.”
Adam laughed.
“You don’t have to explain yourself, at least not to me,” he said.
Her gaze fell as she sat there wondering why she was really there. She wanted to leave but that would just have been downright rude. The only thing she could do was sit there and try not to act like his eyes were boring holes into her.
“Do you have a boyfriend, Miss Rayne?” he suddenly asked making her look at him, more shocked than surprised.
“I’m sorry?” she said.
“Or should I ask if you have a girlfriend? I just don’t know that much about you
,” he said. She shook her head. “Because you get here really early and leave way after everyone else is gone, so I kind of have to wonder.”
“No, I am straight and no, I don’t have a boyfriend,” she said in a low voice. She was almost whispering.
“Good.” She raised an eyebrow over the other.
“Good?” she asked.
“Yes, good. Because I want to have dinner with you tomorrow night,” Adam said.
“Wait, what?” she wanted to pinch herself just to be sure she was not dreaming.
“Me. You. Dinner. Tomorrow.” He said pausing after every word. The way he was saying it made her get the whole ‘what is so hard to understand’ vibe.
“But…” she started before he shook his head.
“No buts. I will pick you up at seven,” he said as he picked up another file.
“My address,” Danica said.
“I’ll get it from Estelle or maybe you can just give me a call,” he said as he handed his card to her. Danica reluctantly reached for the card and looked at it. “I suggest you keep the nine to five notion tomorrow, Miss Rayne.”
When she got home that evening, she looked at Adam’s business card and noticed that it was not the usual card he handed out to people. This one not only had his office and cell number, but it also had an extra cell phone number. He had specifically asked her to use the new cell number.
When she tried calling him, she realized that she didn’t have anything to say. She was so used to being Adam’s subordinate that it just didn’t feel right calling him just to give him her address. After staring at the card for a long time, she settled on texting him. That way, he couldn’t hear her stammer. But as soon as she sent the text, she could feel a sense of panic going through her. It felt like she had just made the biggest mistake of her life.
Chapter 2
All day Thursday Danica had been wondering if it was a good idea to go for dinner with her boss. She had actually made her list of pros and cons and so far she had only one pro and one major con.
Pro: She’d kind of had a crush on Adam ever since she first saw his picture on Forbes magazine and she had always wondered what it would be to be wined and dined by the famous all powerful Adam Keller. Con: He was her boss. If she defied him, she was not very sure she would still have a job.
She sighed as she held an outfit against her body. She didn’t think she had anything appropriate to be in Adam’s company.
As far as she was concerned, Adam was perfect in every single way. Five nine, full head of hair, buff muscular body and piercing hazel eyes that always seemed to look right through you. For her, Adam Keller was the complete package. But she knew that she would never have a chance with him because she was not his kind of woman. She was a few sizes too big for his taste judging by the women she had seen him being photographed with.
“Cursed am I for being a stupid size 16,” she thought as she pulled on a fitting black halter necked maxi dress. It was the only dress she could think of that came anything close to the glamor Adam was used to. “But I guess every black woman has the curse of a big ass,” she thought as she looked at her reflection. She had a pair of silver colored high heeled sandals and her dark curly hair was falling free on her shoulders, framing her face. She had on some light makeup just enough to highlight her brown eyes and full lips.
“This had better go well,” she thought as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. She would have been okay if this was just another office party or if she was going to meet up with one of her friends but this was so much more different. She looked at her phone and sighed. It was a few minutes to seven. A few minutes to the time she was supposed to be meeting Adam. She picked up her purse and made her way to the living room to wait for Adam. Every second that passed felt like an eternity. It was not that this was not what she wanted. Hell, this had been her fantasy from way before she began working at KE. And now that everything had worked out, she was not very sure she wanted to go through with it. In the six months she had been working for Adam, she had attended two company functions and so far she was able to tell that her boss was more smitten by European models and socialites. She had never once seen him in the company of a woman who was more like her, full figured and all. She sighed for the umpteenth time.
“This might just be the biggest mistake of my life,” she thought as she waited for Adam to get there. She reached for her phone and looked at the text message thread from last night. It was not long but it was three texts longer than she had expected it to be.
Good evening Mr. Keller. I live at 1242 Woodward Avenue. Apartment 302.
She had been a little nervous sending such a short text but that was all she had to say.
Thank you Miss Rayne. I will see you tomorrow at seven.
Without thinking, Danica had sent him a reply.
Won’t you be at the office tomorrow?
But as soon as she sent it, she felt regret flooding her.
I will be having a meeting in town at around eleven and then a business lunch later. It is all in my schedule, Miss Rayne.
“Of course it is,” she’d thought as she looked at the last text. She had access to his schedule, she actually managed it. She should have known that much.
She was still seated in silence drumming her fingers nervously on the seat next to her when she heard a soft knock on the door. She took a long deep breath and walked to the door before she looked through the peephole. She felt her heart skip a beat when she saw Adam standing on her doorstep.
“Good evening, Miss Rayne,” Adam said with a smile when he opened the door. “You look spectacular.”
“Thank you, Mr. Keller. You look very…um…good too,” she said looking at his crisp navy blue suit and white shirt that blended perfectly with his tan skin tone. Adam smiled at her.
“Are you ready?” he asked and she nodded. She took a shawl and draped it over her shoulders before she picked up her purse. She secured it under her arm and walked out of the apartment. She gasped silently when she felt him secure an arm around her waist as they walked towards the elevator. His hand was warm on her waist. She could feel it through the flimsy fabric of her dress. When they got out of the building, he opened the door of his black Mercedes for her before he walked round and got into the driver’s seat.
“Buckle up,” he said in a soft voice as he started the car.
****
The drive to the restaurant was relatively quiet, a little too quiet for her to be comfortable. She was a little too surprised when he pulled up in front of Vincenzo’s.
“This is where we are having dinner?” she asked when the valet drove away with his car. He slipped an arm around her as they made their way towards the front desk.
“Yes, why?” he asked.
“Well, my friend tried to get a reservation here but she got waitlisted,” she said. “Two months ago.”
Adam smiled.
“Yeah, they have a pretty tight guest list. Booked solid for months on end,” he said in a soft voice.
“Well, it is a five star restaurant,” she said in a soft voice as they approached the hostess.
“Good evening Mr. Keller,” the cheerful hostess said when she saw him.
“Good evening.”
“Your table is right this way,” she said as she led them to a private table overlooking the city. “Your waitress will be with you briefly,” she added before she walked away.
There was a bottle of chilled Pinot on the bottle. He reached for the bottle and poured them two glasses before handing one to her.
“Do you come here often?” Danica asked as she looked at him.
“Yes, the head chef is a good friend,” he said. “Cheers.” She raised her glass and took a sip. She didn’t want to show it but the taste was divine. It was definitely not the kind of Pinot she usually got for thirty bucks. This was the real stuff. And that was not all. The soup was divine and the main course was even better. The restaurant’s special that evening was veal. She opted for
the veal marsala and he had veal piccata.
“So, Miss Rayne, tell me more about yourself,” he started as they ate. “I don’t know much except that you are a secretary at Keller Enterprises and live at 1242 Woodward Avenue.” She shrugged.
“There isn’t much to tell really,” she started. “That’s pretty much it apart from the fact that I have a roommate Pillar.”
“The apartment was relatively quiet when I picked you up,” he said.
“She works late. Most times later than me actually,” she said as she took a bite. “She usually gets home at around eleven.”
“You keep a very busy life even with your friends,” he said and she smiled.
“Living the dream, Mr. Keller,” she said as she took another bite. Adam was looking at her as he took a sip of his wine. She dabbed the sides of her mouth and put her fork down. She then looked at him as she bit her lower lip. “I have to wonder, Mr. Keller, why are you doing this?” she finally asked.
“What do you mean? What are you talking about?” he asked.
“This, dinner at a fancy restaurant and everything,” she said as she looked at him. “What is it you want from me?”
Adam forced out a laugh.
“Miss Rayne, when you say it like that you make it sound very, very bad,” he said.
“Well, I am trying to figure out what is going on here but…I just can’t…” her words trailed off when he reached across the table and took her hand in his. She was dumbfounded as he looked into her eyes. She was like an open book in front of him and he was keeping all his secrets bottled up.
“Six months you have been working for me and you don’t know why you are here with me tonight?” he asked. “Six long months I have been with you waiting to get you to myself and you still don’t know?” She shook her head.
