by Vi Keeland
“Saw this in the hallway outside of your office. Figured you dropped it.” He handed me a Chapstick.
The glimmer in his eye told me to take a closer look, so I did. He’d handed me a Dr. Pepper-flavored Chapstick, and his eyes dipped to my mouth. I smiled like a schoolgirl at how sweet he was—finding a workaround for his not liking my lip addiction.
My answer was to wait until he sat back down behind his desk and then open the tube and slowly line my mouth. Very slowly. When I licked my lips with as much obscenity as I could possibly ooze, Chase looked like he was a few breaths away from clearing the room.
His stare turned feral. I’d just prodded a bull, and I happened to be wearing a red dress. I squirmed in my seat and attempted to avoid his ferocious gaze. But it was impossible. He was just too irresistible, and when he had that dominating glimmer in his eye, he ambushed all of my senses. That was most likely why when no one else was looking and he mouthed Go into my bathroom and take off your panties, I was even considering it.
But these were my rules—if anyone had to abide by them, it should be me. I sat farther back on the couch and continued to listen from a distance, rather than pull a chair up to his desk and join the three of them. Last night Chase had a business dinner, the night before that I’d had dinner with my mother, and earlier in the week one or the other of us had needed to work late each night to catch up from being gone. Because of our schedules, we hadn’t been together since our trip—hadn’t even so much as touched—and I was feeling as needy as Chase looked.
After a while, Chase glanced at the clock and asked if we’d like to order in lunch with him.
“Can’t. Meeting Bridezilla for lunch so she can show me swatches of something I don’t care about,” Josh said.
Lindsey declined, too. “I brought lunch.”
Chase looked to me. “Hungry? How about I order us the same thing we had in Kansas for lunch both days?”
Josh and Lindsey turned in my direction. I smiled at Chase and willed my blush to stay at bay as I remembered what he’d eaten for lunch. Me.
“Sure, that sounds good.” I offered the first explanation that came to mind. “I have a thing for Kentucky Fried Chicken.”
As Josh and Chase finished talking about mocking up some photo ads, Chase walked to his wall of glass and pressed the button for the blinds, concealing his office from the outside hallway.
Even though no one asked, when they were fully closed, Chase said, “Sam would chew my ear off if she walked by and we were holding up glossies of a half-naked model.” He paused and looked at me. “Plus, I like to eat without being watched.”
A few minutes later, we broke for lunch. Chase shut the door behind Josh and Lindsey. When he stared at me and locked the door, I felt the sound of the audible clank between my legs. This is not going to be easy.
Chase had told Josh to leave the glossies so we could look at them over lunch, and I tried to busy myself examining them as I stood at his desk. My eyes closed when he came up behind me, close enough that I could feel the heat from his body and his breath on my neck, but not touching.
“You didn’t take off your panties like I asked.”
“Is that what you mouthed? I couldn’t make out the words.”
He inched closer. “Liar.” Grabbing one of my hips, he pulled me against him. “You want to know what I think?” he whispered. “I think you kept them on because you’re wet, and you’re trying to hide it from me.”
“I am not.”
“Only one way to find out.” Before I could respond, he’d lifted the back of my dress, and pressed his hand against the damp lace of my underwear.
My eyes closed. “Chase…”
He buried his face in my hair from behind, inhaling deeply, then wrapped it around his hand and tugged my head back. “You’re soaked. How long will you stay mad at me for bending you over this desk and fucking you, Buttercup?”
“We shouldn’t.”
“Your mouth says no, but your body is screaming yes.” Shoving everything on his desk to one end, Chase gently guided me down until my chest pressed against the cold wood. Following, he covered my back with his front, and his erection pressed against my ass.
I was fighting a losing battle, but wasn’t going down without at least one more feeble attempt. “What if someone comes?”
“That’s the point.” His teeth found my earlobe and bit down. At the same time, he lifted my hands over my head and wrapped my fingers around the other side of the desk, guiding me to hold on.
I tried again. “I don’t think I can be quiet.”
“I’ll cover your mouth with mine before you come.” Cool air replaced his body as he stood and unzipped his pants. One of his hands tore at my panties, and he hiked my dress up to expose my bare ass. He palmed it in his hand. “This ass. I can’t wait to take it. But not here. I won’t be able to keep you quiet when you have my cock in your ass and my fingers in your pussy at the same time.”
My eyes rolled into the back of my head as his fingers pressed down on my swollen clit. He turned my head to the side, leaning down for a kiss, and I sighed into his mouth, murmuring his name as he rubbed his erection against my ass.
“Chase…” I was already on the verge of coming, and there was no way in hell it was going to be quiet.
“Okay.” He abruptly stood, and for a second I wanted to kill him—until I heard the loud tear of the foil packet. I looked back over my shoulder, and, I swear, if I hadn’t already been wet, I would have been after catching a glimpse of Chase. The condom package he’d ripped open was still between his teeth, and he was sheathing his fully hard cock using both hands. I was already weakened and shaky…it was a good thing I was leaning on the desk because my knees almost buckled at the erotic sight.
He wasted no time as he lined up the wide head of his cock and sunk into me.
“Fuuuck,” he groaned as he leaned over and again found my mouth. He kissed me long and hard without moving. Now that he was inside of me—that he’d brought me to the brink of orgasm with his fingers but not finished me off—I needed him to move. The feeling of him filling me from behind was incredible, but I needed that friction.
“Chase…can you….”
“Spread your legs wider. I need to be deep inside of you.”
I didn’t question him. I just widened my stance, opening myself up to whatever it was he needed. In that moment, I no longer cared that we were in his office, that he was my boss, what other people thought of me. The only thing I cared about was him. Him inside of me, moving the way I knew he could to make me feel…
“Chase—”
“Say it. Tell me you want me here. Right now.”
“I do. I want you. Please. Please move.”
I whimpered as he reared back and thrust deep. Pulling almost all the way out, he leaned down and angled himself to stroke upward, hitting just the spot, reaching new depths inside of my body. My orgasm didn’t take long to build again, and the second time it came at me with a vengeance—almost as if the first time I’d pissed it off not allowing it to thrum its way through my body. This time, it was going to make sure it was unstoppable.
My body began to shake as he pumped harder, faster, deeper.
“Come, Reese.”
His voice was so strained and gruff, it was enough to push me over the edge. Just as I began to cry out his name, he smothered my sound with a kiss. By the time the last quake had wracked through my body, I felt as if he’d swallowed my orgasm whole…swallowed me whole.
Eventually, my pants became breaths, and the rise and fall of Chase’s chest, plastered to my back, slowed in unison. He kissed my lips gently before going to his en suite bathroom to clean up and bring me a warm washcloth. I breathed out a sigh of contentment, feeling sated and relaxed.
But all that changed when a knock came at the door.
Chapter 24
Reese
My cheeks were flushed, my hair was a disheveled mess, and I looked exactly what I was. Fucked.
I’d scurried into the bathroom so Chase could answer the door to his office. Looking in the mirror now, there was no doubt I’d made the right choice. I was even more certain of that when I heard Samantha’s voice. Great, the VP of human resources had just walked into Chase’s office, and it probably still reeked of sex.
The serenity I’d felt not three minutes ago was long gone—replaced by its evil friend, paranoia.
Were we loud?
Was I loud?
Did the whole office hear?
What was I doing? I’d set ground rules and promptly broken them the first time Chase pushed a little. Had I learned nothing from my mistakes?
Feeling vulnerable, I tiptoed to the door and pressed my ear against it.
“What were you doing in here?” Samantha asked.
“I was on the phone.”
Her voice sounded suspicious. I pictured her squinting her eyes as she spoke. “With whom?”
“A supplier. Not that it’s any of your business. What do you need, Sam?”
Her voice became more distant, and I had to strain to hear. She must have walked to the windows or the seating area on the other side of the room. “Detective Balsamo called me this morning. She said she’s been trying to reach you.”
“I’ve been busy.”
“That’s why I’m here asking the question. It’s not like you to blow off anything related to Peyton. There was a time when they couldn’t get you out of the police station, you were so involved.”
“That was the same time when I blew off my work and spent most nights drunk. Not sure I want to go back to those days.”
“I get that. I do. But I wanted to make sure nothing else was going on. You seem…different lately.”
“Different? How?”
“I don’t know. More jovial, I suppose.”
“Jovial? What am I? A jolly old fat guy who rides around in a sleigh?”
“Something’s going on with you. I can tell. Are you seeing someone new?”
The room went quiet for a minute, and I wondered how he was going to respond. A part of me wanted him to say he was seeing someone, just to hear him declare it out loud to one of his closest friends. Then again, he was talking to the vice president of human resources at my place of employment—probably not the best person to make that declaration to.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but yes, I am seeing someone.”
“Someone you’ve gone out with more than once?”
“I’m not talking about this with you.”
“When do I get to meet her?”
“When I’m ready.”
“So that means you expect her to be around a while?”
Chase huffed. “Did you have any actual business you came here to discuss? Because I was in the middle of something important when you interrupted.”
“Fine. But you love my interruptions, and you know it.”
I heard footsteps move closer followed by the click of the doorknob, but then it went quiet again without the door closing. Samantha’s voice was serious the next time she spoke, and for some reason, I visualized her stopping and looking back over her shoulder.
“I’m glad you’re moving on, Chase. I hope it works out and I get to meet her.” She paused for a second and then spoke softly. “Maybe it’s time you take down the shrine, too.”
I waited a few minutes before hesitantly cracking opening the door. Chase had opened his windows to the outside and was staring at the advertisement on the building across the street.
He didn’t turn to face me when he spoke. “Sorry about that.”
“Things went too far today. We shouldn’t have…” I trailed off.
He was quiet. I assumed his mood shift was because of what I’d overheard. Even though I’d never had one, I imagined talking about a dead ex-fiancée was kind of a buzz kill. So he surprised me when he turned and said, “I want this.”
“Sex in the office?”
The corner of his lip twitched. “That, too. But that’s not what I meant.”
“No?”
He shook his head. “I want this. Me and you. Sam just came in here to talk about Peyton. The lead detective on the case called her, too. It’s time for her annual call where she tells me they’re still working the case but nothing new has come up.”
“I’m sorry. She called you last week, right? That must be hard.”
He nodded. “It was always hard. I’m not saying it’s easy now. But normally I go to a dark place after the mention of Peyton’s case. I pretty much expected to feel miserable after Sam walked out the door—waited for it to hit me even. Took a deep breath while I was waiting, and you know what happened?”
“What?”
“I smelled you on me.”
I blinked a few times. “I don’t understand.”
He shrugged. “Neither do I. But I fucking love smelling you on me.”
He looked so sincere, even though it was a bizarre thing to say.
“And smelling me made you feel better?”
His grin was lopsided. “Uh-huh.”
“Okay then.” I fought a blush. “I really should get back to work.”
“Dinner tonight?”
“I’d like that. How about if I make you something at my place?”
“Even better. Then I don’t have to wait to get you home to get you naked.”
***
Over the years, I’d learned to accept my neuroses. Checking under the bed, behind the shower curtain, and inside every closet had become part of my daily routine. I didn’t try to change it. I’d let it become part of who I was instead of letting it define me. Plenty of women were extra precautious…especially living in New York City. Yet, as I was about to enter my apartment with Chase right behind me, I wished like hell that my compulsions could take the night off. I unlocked the top lock, and my key hovered at the next one. Deciding to just get it over with before going inside, I spun around and confessed right there in the hallway.
“I have a routine when I get home.”
Chase’s eyebrows drew together. “Okay…”
“I told you I have issues with safety. I check behind the shower curtain, open all the closet doors, check under the bed and couch.” I paused and chewed on the nail of my pointer finger. “I have a routine, and I do it in a certain order. And I do it at least twice—sometimes more if I don’t feel calm after the second time. Although most days it’s only two passes.”
He said nothing for a few seconds, his eyes questioning. Finding I was dead serious, he nodded. “Show me the routine, and after you’re finished with the first pass, I’ll take the second.”
I had no idea what I’d expected him to say, but that answer couldn’t have made me happier. He didn’t poke fun or belittle my safety concerns. Instead he was going to pitch in. Pushing up on my tippy toes, I planted a sweet kiss on his lips.
“Thank you.”
Tallulah, of course, was waiting with green eyes glowing in the dark. If I ever had a house, I could put the beast in the window to scare away children at Halloween. I flicked on the lights, and Ugly Kitty stared at Chase as she licked her lips.
I know, Ugly Kitty, I know. He’s pretty delectable.
“Jesus, she’s even uglier in person,” he said.
I scooped Tallulah from the top of the couch and kneeled down to check beneath it, beginning my rounds. Chase followed quietly along. After my last checkpoint, I turned to him. “That’s it.”
He set the bottle of wine he was holding down on the kitchen counter and took Kitty from my arms.
“I’ll be back.”
Watching him go through my routine was comical. He must have thought holding the kitty was part of it. I didn’t bother to tell him because…well, because oddly, I really liked watching the oversized man walk around and check my closets for prospective intruders while holding a hairless cat. It certainly wasn’t a sight you see every day.
Finishing, he bent down, let Tallulah go, and walked into the kitchen where he began
to open my drawers, looking for something. Finding a bottle opener, he spoke as he unscrewed the cork. “How’d I do?”
“Perfect. You’re hired. You can come sweep my apartment for criminals every night, if you like.”
He pulled the cork from the bottle with a loud pop. “Be careful. I might take you up on that.”
Since my refrigerator was even emptier than I’d thought, we ordered in Chinese food. I got the kung pao chicken, and Chase chose shrimp lo mein. We sat on the floor in the living room, eating out of containers with chopsticks and swapping meals from time to time.
“Do you think Sam knows?” I asked.
“About us?”
“Yes.”
“No. She’s not subtle. If she knew, she’d say it.”
“How do you think she would feel if she did know? Considering I’m an employee and all.”
“Doesn’t matter. She doesn’t like it, I’ll make her change the policy.”
“From prohibited relationships to screwing in the office strongly encouraged?”
He grinned. “Absolutely.”
I’d been thinking about the things I overhead in the bathroom all afternoon. While the conversation was obviously not meant for my ears, I couldn’t unhear it. Part of my hesitancy with jumping into this relationship full force with Chase—even aside from him being my boss—was wondering where his relationship with Peyton had left him. Whether he could truly move on. What shrine had Sam been referring to? I’d been in his house, and nothing had struck me as unusual.
I looked into Chase’s eyes when I spoke. “I overheard some of your conversation with Sam today from the bathroom.”
He swallowed his mouthful of food. “Okay.”
“Can I ask you something that’s probably none of my business?”
He set down his carton on the coffee table. “What’s on your mind?”
“Are you…able to move on?”
