by Keys, Hazel
Tempted At The Office
Book 1
Hazel Keys
Table of Contents
Also By Hazel Keys
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Chapter 1:Bradley
Chapter 2: Rachel
Chapter 3:Bradley
Chapter 4: Rachel
Chapter 5:Bradley
Chapter 6: Rachel
Chapter 7:Bradley
Chapter 8: Rachel
Chapter 9:Bradley
Chapter 10: Rachel
Chapter 11:Bradley
Chapter 12: Rachel
Chapter 13:Bradley
Chapter 14: Rachel
Chapter 15:Bradley
Chapter 16: Rachel
Chapter 17:Bradley
Chapter 18: Rachel
Chapter 19:Bradley
Chapter 20: Rachel
Chapter 21:Bradley
Bonus Books
Obsessed With My Best Friend
ALSO BY HAZEL KEYS
BEWITCHED SERIES
Crazy About My Best Friend (Free Prequel, get it now!)
Obsessed With My Best Friend (Book 1)
Attracted To My Best Friend (Book 2)
Smitten By My Sister’s Best Friend (Book 3)
Tricked By My Best Friend (Book 4)
Seduced At My Best Friend’s Wedding (Book 5)
Bewitched Series Box set 1 (Book 1-Book 5)
WORKING DESIRES SERIES
Tempted At the Office (Book 1)
Note: All the books above can be read as standalones even if they belong to a series
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Copyright 2016 by Hazel Keys - All rights reserved.
In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.
Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher.
Chapter 1
Bradley
At 5:05 the old school brass alarm clock let out its shrill cry. Bradley, waking with a jolt, reached out a large hand and slammed down on the tiny hammer, stopping it. Without opening his eyes he lifted his hand from the off switch and moved it over to the large round power button on his stereo and turned it on. Rock music blared through the surround sound speakers, making it impossible to want to go back to sleep.
“I’m up,” Bradley mumbled to himself, throwing the covers over him. It was a loud start to his day, sure, but it always put him in a good mood. After a quick shower and an even quicker decision on his suit, he had his shoulder length golden blonde smoothed and parted, pearly white teeth brushed, and his bright blue eyes glittering with excitement over the percolating coffee pot.
Coffee. He needed it like he needed the blood in his veins. Maybe even more so. He drank it black and strong, much to the chagrin of his co-workers who preferred a more medium blend. So, to make it easier on them, he started bringing his own in a large black carafe. With his briefcase in one hand, his carafe in the other, and an uncut, untoasted, and unshmeared bagel in his mouth, Bradley made his way outside of his small one story house to his car. He smiled around the bagel as he looked on proudly at his new 2015 Honda Civic. It was bright red, full of beautiful edges and curves to make it look speedy, and best of all, and it was fuel-efficient.
After divorcing his wife nearly five years ago, she had left only after destroying his credit and taking all of his savings. It had taken him several years before he could get his credit score back up to par, but he had done it. Now, after working nearly four years at RushIt, and being meticulous with his purchases, he was finally able to trade in his old beat up Subaru and get his new baby.
Bradley ate the bagel as made his fifteen minute drive to work, slowly chewing on it one giant bite at a time. As he stopped at the final light before his office building he happened to glance over to the right as his mouth was at its fullest. There, looking right back at him, was a carful of co-workers. Rachel, Bella, and Isabella were all staring at him, wide-eyed and laughing as he was caught trying to munch down on the massive bite.
“He looked so helpless.”
Bradley could hear Rachel laughing and telling the other women in the office as he walked in just a few minutes later. Just as he thought, he had found them all, along with his friends Tristan and Amun, gathered in the break room to gossip. He took a deep breath, and strode right in.
“In my defense,” he said, heading for the coffee cups. “I was actually eating a healthy breakfast.” He turned his head and made a point of glancing up and down Rachel’s tall, thin figure. “Maybe you should try it some time. I hear that people aren’t so angry when they’re not hungry.”
Tristan, Bella, Amun, and Isabella all choked down their laughter as the usual slinging of the insults began. This happened, it seemed, every day. Bradley would jostle Rachel, or she would jostle him, then they’d spend the rest of the day trying to embarrass one another.
Rachel huffed as she flipped her long, curly brown hair over her left shoulder, trying to think of a come back. She smiled wickedly, and lifted a dark, well- shaped eyebrow.
“Well honey, you eat enough for the both of us now, don’t you?”
Bradley laughed this time, more than the others. He was often confused with being on the doughy side. He shrugged out of his suit jacket, rolled up his white sleeve, and made an impressive muscle with his left bicep. The other women stopped laughing, and instead ogled in amusement at the impressive show of muscle. They had always pictured Bradley the introvert of the group. As the design/marketing manager of the office, and the only member of his team, he was often left to do his work alone in his office, interfacing with people only through the Internet.
He was a pleasant man, and talked to people regularly when he saw them in the break room. For the most part though, most had never seen him do something as simple as remove his jacket to reveal the thick layer of muscle that was now easily seen beneath the shirt. Smiling, he rolled his sleeve back down as he basked in the silence of what was supposed to be Rachel’s comeback.
“I have to get to work now,” he said, smiling. He reached down and grabbed his cup of strong, black coffee. “You guys have an excellent day.” Bradley winked at Rachel as he walked past her, happy to have once again won the Battle of Slurs.
Chapter 2
Rachel
“Stop that!” Rachel hissed, her honey brown eyes bright with annoyance. She cast a look of annoyance over to ‘the Bella’s’, urging them to get back to work. Though RushIt, the Internet startup shipping company they all worked for was doing well, it could still only afford two floors of office space. There were only three main offices and a bullpen, where all the entry-level employees worked. Rachel had originally been put in with Bradley to work, since their departments were so close together. But, after less than a week, Rachel moved her desk into ‘the Bella’s’ office, and had stayed there ever since.
“Did you see those muscles?” Bella Chan asked, ignoring Rachel as her hand went up to fan her face. “Not as good as Tristan’s, but close enough!”
“How do you know what Tristan’s muscles look like?” Isabella Perez asked, cocking a curious eyebrow.”
Bella Chan rolled her eyes. “Well if you’d actually work out with Ra
chel and I you would see them too. He works out downstairs the same time we do.”
“Guys!” Rachel whisper shouted, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “Can we please stop talking about Bradley and Tristan and get to work? I don’t want to hear about muscles anymore.” Rachel grumbled under her breath about her friends not focusing on work, and tried to turn her focus back on her own. After a moment though, guilt set in and she rolled her chair back to the middle of the office, and gave her friends an apologetic look.
“I didn’t mean to be so harsh,” she apologized. “Sorry guys.”
“It’s okay,” Isabella said with a shrug. “We know you hate Brad.”
“I don’t hate him,” Rachel replied as Bella rolled her chair towards the conversation. “I just don’t like him. He’s cocky, and rude. And he smells good, and that drives me crazy.”
Bella lifted an amused eyebrow. “He smells good?” She asked with a sarcastic smile.
“Yes,” Rachel whispered, but she wasn’t sure why. “And it’s distracting! I hate it! Like, we’ll get in to one of our little head to heads and I’ll think of something good to say, then bam! I get a whiff of his cologne or something and I’m immediately distracted. I really don’t like it.”
“Must be horrible,” Isabella said dryly. She winked at Rachel, and then rolled back to her desk. There was work to be done after all, as the Customer Service Manager. Complaints to file, angry people to manage, and giant discounts to give out.
“Don’t be mean!” Rachel flushed, grabbing her coffee cup. She stood up to walk out of the office, but Bella rolled into her path.
“Whatcha doin?” She asked, a feisty grin on her face.
Rachel rolled her eyes. “You know what I’m doing,” she sighed.
“Isn’t that his coffee, Rache?”
“So?” Rachel sniffed, looking everywhere but Bella’s eyes.
“So, don’t you find it a little odd that even though you ‘dislike’ this great smelling guy you take some of his specially brewed coffee because you told him that he brewed the office coffee too strong and now he makes his own at home?”
Rachel’s cheeks flushed a bright pink. “I just got used to the taste,” she shrugged, sidestepping over Bella’s chair and exiting the office. Okay, so it was a little messed up that she got the office to dislike Bradley’s coffee. But was it really her fault that she developed a likeness for it after she found out that everyone else’s versions of coffee were much worse? Besides, she told herself, peering around the break room to make sure no one was watching, it’s unhealthy to drink an entire pot of coffee yourself everyday. By taking some of Bradley’s coffee, she was, as an end result, giving him a healthier lifestyle.
With no one around she poured the dark, rich brew into her cup, no sugar or cream, and quickly screwed its lid back on. She left the break room as quickly and as quietly as she entered, coffee in hand. Bradley may have been her enemy, sure, but that didn’t mean that she couldn’t like his coffee.
Chapter 3
Bradley
Bradley felt Amun’s arm swing around his neck as they walked out of the building’s final set of swinging doors. It had been long day for him. His marketing strategy plans for the new platform had crumbled, the meeting he had with the owner had been postponed, and to top it all off, he was positive that someone had stolen almost an entire half a pot of his coffee.
“Tough break?” Amun asked, his straight, white teeth lighting up a sympathetic smile.
“Bradley rubbed a tired hand over his face. “You could say that.” He sighed, shrugging his shoulders. “Oh well. Tomorrow will be better, right? I’ll see you later, Amun.” He tried to veer right but Amun’s arm stopped him from moving towards his car.
“Um, are you forgetting something?” Amun asked, leading him towards the street.
Bradley suddenly realized that he had nearly forgotten Tristan’s birthday. The three of them had made plans to go for drinks and steaks right after work almost three weeks ago. He even remembered being excited for it that morning. Had his day been so bad that he actually almost completely skipped over what was to be the best part?
“Right, right,” Brad said, already feeling lighter. A night out with the guys sounded great to him actually. A few beers, a chance to unwind, that’s what he needed.
“You forget about me?” Tristan asked, catching up to the group. “I saw you try to veer to your car.” He delivered Bradley a fake punch to the face and attested to the pain of being forgotten.
“Come on man, you know it’s not like that,” Bradley promised. “Drinks on me tonight to make up for it?”
“Now you’re on,” Tristan said with a smile, clapping his friend on the back. The three of them walked the very short distance to their favorite bar, O’Cleary’s. Even though there were at least four other bars on the street that they worked on, O’Cleary’s was their favorite because they serve cheap beer, rare steaks, and a laid back, almost speak-easy style décor. It had a ‘you don’t mess with me, I don’t mess with you’ kind of vibe that all of the patrons, no matter how intoxicated, respected.
Martin O’Cleary, the youngest brother of O’Cleary clan, waved to them from the bar as Brad, Amun, and Tristan walked into the joint. “Hey there boys, got ye booth reserved for ye there,” Martin said, pointing a thumb towards their normal booth with one hand while his other poured a draught of beer.
“Thanks Marty,” Brad called, leading the group towards their table. A few moments later Martin came by to drop off the menus and a round of shots.
“These are on te house, on account of Tristan’s birthday.”
Tristan’s eyebrows went up in surprise. “Thanks man, that’s really nice of you.”
“Och, it’s nothin’, “Martin said, picking up his own shot glass and raising it in the air. “Te Tristan!”
“To Tristan!” Bradley and Amun echoed enthusiastically, bringing their shots in for the toast. All four men clinked their glasses together and poured the liquid fire down their throats before slamming them back on the table.
Martin smacked his lips together and made an ‘ah!’ sound. Normally he didn’t drink on the clock, but when it came to these three, he always made an exception. He looked pleasantly around the table at Bradley, Amun, and Tristan. As per usual Amun and Tristan looked as they normally did after a day’s work. A wee bit tired, but still well put together and handsome enough. Bradley, however, looked a lot worse for wear.
His tie was uneven; his suit jacket looked rumpled, and there was a scruff growing around his usually well-trimmed goatee. On top of that, he was randomly carrying what looked to be a coffee carafe in his left hand. It dangled there like the man had completely forgotten that he was holding it.
“Oy,” Martin said, tapping Bradley on the shoulder. “Ye look like shit. What happened?”
“Don’t ask,” Bradley grumbled, immediately remembering every bad thing that had happened that day. He lifted his hand up, saw that he still had the coffee carafe, and cursed. He had planned on putting it in his car.
“Our man’s had a bad day,” Amun said, patting his friend on the back. “And it’s not about to get any easier.”
Bradley looked over at Amun and raised his eyebrow. “What? Why?”
“Because I invited the girls,” Tristan answered, pointing towards the door. “And they just walked in.”
Chapter 4
Rachel
“I think I should just go home,” Rachel said, her brown eyes instantly landing on the familiar group of men sitting in the corner booth. They already had drained shot glasses and nearly full beer glasses sitting in front of them. “You guys will have more fun without me.” She tried to take a step backwards, and glared at Isabella when her sharp talon like fingernails shot out and wrapped around Rachel’s arm.
“You’re staying,” Isabella hissed, pulling her forward. “After getting the news you did today, you need to try and make nice with Bradley. He may the only reason you have a job at the end of this
week!”
Rachel wished that it wasn’t true. However, after the meeting with the owner today after lunch, it most definitely was. The company was doing great, he had said. But it wasn’t doing that great. There would be no need for a separate editing department- at least not for the near future. If she wanted to keep her job she would have to find a way to work with Bradley. Otherwise, she’d be out on the job hunt once again.
“He does not look happy,” Rachel whispered, her eyes on Bradley. “Do you think he got the news today?”
“Maybe,” Bella shrugged, walking them forward. Though she empathized with Rachel, she also wanted to get to the guys. She was thirsty, and not just for water either. It may have been a Monday but it seemed like forever since she had been able to let her hair down. She wanted a martini or three, and a way to snuggle up to those warm, chocolate muscles of Tristan’s.
“Hey there boys!” Bella shouted out, a wide smile on her face. “Happy Birthday Tristan!”
“Yeah,” Rachel joined in, putting on a smile. “Happy Birthday. If you would have told us earlier we would have all gotten you a cake.”
Tristan smiled genuinely and got up to give warm hugs to all three women. “Thanks for coming ladies, really. But I’m not much for cake, especially the office kind. Beer is more of my party favor.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Bella chimed in, and turned to Martin to give him an order of one martini and two cosmopolitan’s.
“Comin’ right up, Love,” Martin promised, nodding his head. He went off to go make the drinks and as he exited the booth the Bella’s slid in, locking Tristan and Amun in the center of the half moon seat. Which left Rachel and Brad sitting awkwardly across from one another.
Rachel turned to talk to Isabella, but she was already deep in conversation with Amun about astrological signs, or something along the lines. Her eyes went to Bella, but she quickly saw that she also was lost to the conversation of gym talk and protein advice from Tristan.
