Tied to Him
by
Michelle F. Adams
Tied to Him
Copyright © 2020, Michelle F. Adams
ISBN: 9781949300635
Publisher: Beachwalk Press, Inc.
Electronic Publication: August 2020
Editor: Pamela Tyner
Cover: Fantasia Frog Designs
eBooks are not transferable. No part of this book may be used or reproduced without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations in articles and reviews.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.
Back Cover Copy
Two virgins fighting for control…who will submit first?
Sarah Brownstone has worked for the head of the IT department for six months. During that time, she has strived for professionalism, resolutely ignoring the way Robert’s eyes devour her every inch and fighting her instincts that scream at her to make a run for it. And Robert just might be the one man who won’t let her run away.
Since the first time Robert Klein saw Sarah he’s been obsessed with getting this prim and proper redheaded beauty to lower her walls and let him in. He will do anything to make her his. But what will happen when Sarah’s past catches up to her?
Content Warning: This sweet and in-control alpha knows exactly what his woman needs, and he won’t let anyone stop him from giving it to her. This office romance contains hot, steamy sex scenes, so strap in for an explosive release!
Dedication
To my partner-in-laughs, Marium…you keep me sane. Thank you.
And my lifelines, Arwa and Alifya…to Misar and beyond.
Acknowledgements
This is my third book, and I never thought I’d get this far. So I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to the people who made this journey possible. I would like to say a huge thank you to my wonderful editor and publisher, Pamela, for her attention to detail and her hard work ethic, and to the patient and creative, Tara, for the beautiful cover arts for my books.
Most importantly, I would like to thank all my readers. Thank you for buying my books, for reading them, and for reviewing them. You’ve made my dream of becoming an author a reality. Thank you so much for your love and support. Here’s another love story from my heart to yours. Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 1
Sarah
I knock on my boss, Robert Klein’s, office door and push it open, holding his Starbucks coffee cup in one hand and my iPad in the other. His head snaps up, the strands of his rich, chestnut-colored hair glinting in the rays of sunlight streaming in from the window.
He’s sitting at his desk, holding a sheaf of papers in his hand which he was studiously looking over before I came in. Now he sets them aside, to be lost in the clutter strewn all over his desk, and watches me with his hawk-like gaze as I walk toward him.
I suppress the shiver his intense look causes and glance at the mess on his desk with clear disapproval in my eyes. The corner of his mouth lifts in a half-smile, but he makes no move to straighten the papers, continuing to watch me.
“Here’s your coffee, sir,” I tell him as I hand over the cup, making sure our fingers don’t touch during the exchange.
Then I power on my iPad, open my notes app, and hold my fingers at the ready, deliberately ignoring the chair placed to the right of his desk as I stand on the other side. Far away from him. Or as far as I can get until his patience runs out and he calls me back.
I ignore the memory of what happened the last time he did that and keep my head down, preparing to type as he dictates what he wants to be done for the day.
Five minutes pass. Then ten. And he says nothing.
I look up and see him calmly sipping coffee from his cup, his gaze roaming over the top half of my body visible above the desk.
When he catches me looking back, he lowers the cup and places it down on some papers. I flex my fingers to keep from reaching out and grabbing them. Not my place.
Not my place.
My fingers tighten on the edges of my iPad as I fight for control.
A few minutes pass in silence. I steadily gaze back at him. If he expects me to look away first, he’s sadly mistaken. I was never the meek, submissive type.
A smirk decorates the side of his mouth, and he licks his lips. “Exquisite.”
I don’t think he’s talking about the coffee.
I ignore his statement and look pointedly at my iPad again. “What would you like to begin with, sir?” I prompt.
He leans back in his chair, the picture of indolent grace, and regards me with hooded eyes. “How long have you worked for me, Sarah?”
Is that a trick question?
He knows exactly how long I’ve worked for him. He saw me one day in the accounting department, and the next morning, I received an email from the HR department saying I had been promoted to the position of his assistant.
A position I hadn’t applied for and didn’t even know was open. But the increase in pay was too good to refuse.
“Six months,” I answer him.
His head dips in acknowledgement before he tilts it to the side, toward the right side of his desk where an empty chair is sitting. He says nothing else. He doesn’t need to. I know he won’t start until I go sit next to him. It’s a routine we have. It’s familiar. It’s regular.
But there is nothing I find reassuring or calming about it this morning. Not with the memory of what happened last week in that chair still buzzing through my brain. He has been busy since that day with new updates to our security system, working around the clock to cover for Brandon, the head of security, who’s away on his honeymoon with his wife, Julia.
We haven’t seen each other since that day, and any time I’ve come into his office, I’ve avoided glancing in the direction of that chair.
That chair.
Looking at Robert’s resolute face now, I know I can’t avoid it any longer. I steel myself, pushing my glasses up my nose, and look to the right of the desk at the lone chair deliberately placed there, beckoning me closer.
As soon as my gaze sets upon it, I’m assailed with memories of the incident I’ve been working hard to forget.
I walk into Robert’s office on unsteady legs, my breath escaping me in harsh pants. His office is empty, and I shakily walk to the chair placed on the right of his desk and drop down in it.
It can’t be. It can’t be him, I assure myself furiously.
No way one of my father’s men could have followed me here. I was simply mistaken this morning when I walked into work and found a car parked at the curb, a member of his security team sitting idly behind the wheel. I could feel the man’s eyes on me as I walked inside the building.
But how did they find me here? I thought I had covered my tracks well.
My mind whirs as I try to search for any mistake I could have made.
My hands reach out and automatically start shuffling the papers on Robert’s desk. I straighten up the mess he always makes, putting papers into neat piles and sorting the files according to dates. The menial nature of the work calms me, my panic receding and my emotions settling as I lose myself in the habitual task.
Heavy hands land on my shoulders and I jump, my fingers flying to my throat. I turn and look over my shoulder to see Robert standing behind me, his face a mask of concern, dark eyebrows slashing downward in a clear sign of his agitation.
“S-sir,” I stutter as he releases me and walks around my chair to sit in his own, behind his desk.
Our c
hairs are put so close together, when he turns to look at me, our knees brush. Tingles shoot up my thighs to settle in my core. I shuffle back in my chair and fold my legs underneath the seat, as far away from him as I can.
“When did you come in?” I ask him to break the silence.
He continues to sit there and stare at me. I didn’t even hear him enter the office, and I usually never fail to notice that. The man has a larger-than-life presence. I can always feel it in my gut whenever he enters a room.
I shake my head to dispel my thoughts and move to get up and retrieve my iPad.
“Stop,” he orders.
His firm tone makes me freeze in my half-upright position. I slowly lower myself back down into the chair and regard him with raised eyebrows.
He makes an obvious effort to gentle his tone. “What were you thinking about?” he asks. “Before you saw me.”
The reminder jolts me, and I falter for a moment, trying to gather my thoughts. I don’t want to go back to what I was thinking earlier, and my mind scrambles in a desperate search to come up with a viable excuse.
Robert mutters a curse under his breath and grabs the back of my chair, leaning over me, a thundercloud of restrained fury and apprehension. I look up into his turbulent, dark brown eyes and feel ensnared. I’ve never seen him like this; he is always calm and collected. Unruffled by anything or anyone.
I stare fascinated as he struggles to control himself. His words are gritted out from between his teeth. “Don’t even think of lying to me, Sarah. I want to know what had you so worried your hands were shaking.”
Were they? I look down at my hands. They seem steady and sure to me as I clutch them in my lap to avoid reaching out and smoothing his tie. With his restless movements, it’s gone askew. It’s never askew; he’s always immaculately dressed, every hair perfectly in place. My hands itch to smooth out this unusual imperfection.
“Well?” he breathes out, his exhale fanning the top of my hair.
He’s leaning so close to me now, almost out of his chair and hovering over me.
“I’m waiting,” he says, and the imperious note in his voice suffuses starch into my spine.
I’m not my mother. The thought comes into my mind out of nowhere, but it lights me up. Images of her cowering before my father and bowing down to his every command drift in front of my eyes and inflame me further. I didn’t come this far to let another man control me.
I’m in control of myself. I’m in control of my destiny. The mantra repeats itself on a never-ending loop in my brain.
“It’s none of your business,” I answer in a falsely cheery tone, a fake smile plastered to my face.
I bend forward, intending to get out of the chair and show him he can’t intimidate me. But instead of moving back like I expected him to, he leans forward further. I can’t stop my momentum, and I crash into him, our chests rubbing together. My nipples bead into hard points and scrape the muscular wall of his chest through his dress shirt.
He groans, and the next thing I know, I’m shoved back into my own chair, my back arched as Robert dives a hand into my hair to hold my head up, and his lips come down on mine in a fierce, claiming kiss.
I moan, equal parts shocked and aroused. All thoughts of the man I saw this morning flee my mind as I raise one hand up and grip his tie, pulling him closer to me while I fist his hair tightly with the other, in case he thinks about moving away.
He mumbles something that sounds like, “Fuck, knew you’d be a wildcat,” against my lips and then starts kissing me in earnest, his lips roving over me, tongue sweeping out and tangling with mine. I get lost in a haze of soul-stealing, mind-numbing passion.
Suddenly, there’s a loud crashing sound.
I break the kiss and ignore Robert’s growl, looking over his shoulder to see one of his elbows has knocked into a pile of papers on his desk, making them and his coffee cup that he placed on top fall to the floor.
I blink for a few minutes, trying to make sense of what I’m seeing. The mess on his desk brings me back to the present.
Oh God. I’m in Robert’s office. This is his desk. I just kissed him. I just kissed my boss. Or rather he kissed me, and I let him. Refused to let him get away.
I look at him, and his eyes are closed, his breathing harsh and uneven as he strains to exert control over himself.
With a short cry, I push him away from me, and he falls backward in his chair. I leap up from my sitting position and hurry around his desk, heading straight for the door of his office.
“Come back here, woman,” I hear his voice bellow behind me, but I don’t look back as I turn a corner and escape.
The image of him sprawled in his chair keeps flashing in my mind, and I can’t forget one thing. His tie was even more askew than before.
“Sarah?” Robert’s voice snaps me to the present, and I look away from the chair to meet his gaze. His eyebrow is raised in mock challenge.
I break the intense stare and take slow, determined steps around his desk. His chair turns and his eyes follow my progress, shining with amusement and appreciation. If I wasn’t still thinking about what happened, I might have stopped to consider I played right into his hands.
I gingerly lower myself into the chair, and as soon as my butt hits the seat, Robert’s scent surrounds me, like light fingers tracing down my spine. Shuffling aside the papers scattered on his desk, I hoist my iPad up on the now cleared surface and ask him, “Shall we begin?”
“Certainly, Miss Brownstone,” he replies, and a mask falls over his face as his brain clicks into gear.
The next hour flies by as we discuss his upcoming meetings with security officials and update his schedule. I bring up the documents he needs to sign, and we go over his emails together.
Immediately after I determine the work for today is completed, I hasten to get up from my chair. Without looking directly at him, I say, “That will be all, sir,” and make my way with speedy steps to the door.
His voice, smooth as aged whiskey, stops me in my tracks. “I haven’t forgotten what happened last week, Sarah.”
My breath catches in my throat. The gall of this man! To oh, so casually bring up what I have deemed a temporary lapse of sanity, never to be repeated.
“You still haven’t told me what had you spooked last week when you came to the office,” he continues, and air rushes out of my lungs, replaced with relief and, strangely, disappointment.
I ignore the confusing mixture and, without turning back, address him in a quiet, firm voice, “Like I said before, it’s nothing you need to concern yourself with.”
The rustle of his clothing is loud in the otherwise silent room as he gets up from his chair and starts walking toward me. My back tenses, and I remain utterly still, one hand clutching my iPad like a lifeline while the other holds onto the handle of his office door.
The shrill ringing of his telephone cuts through the tense air, and I let out a sigh. Behind me, Robert curses under his breath and pauses in the middle of the room. “We’re not done talking about this,” he warns me silkily.
“Yes, we are,” I reply in kind. After pausing a beat, I look over my shoulder at him standing there, his body in rigid lines of frustration, and add, “Sir.”
Twin sparks light in his eyes, and he takes a step toward me, purpose radiating from him. I quickly turn back, pull down the handle, and flee his office.
“It’s not hiding,” I assure myself as I walk with measured steps toward my desk. “It’s a strategic retreat.”
If only I believed that.
Chapter 2
Robert
I watch with narrowed eyes as Sarah walks out of my office, her auburn ponytail fastened high on her head, swishing with every step she takes away from me. Although auburn is too bland a word to describe the various shades of red in Sarah’s flowing locks. Her hair is the color of a sun setting on the ocean, a brilliant blaze, an explosion of light on the horizon, a kindled flame.
“Run while you can, littl
e wildcat,” I whisper to her.
Of course she doesn’t look back, and I tell myself not to be too perturbed by that. After all, the view from the back is as good as the front. The image of her eyes flashes into my mind, the vibrant green of freshly mown grass. I recall the disappointment that she tried to hide from me, and I grin, feeling jubilant again.
She can run all she likes. I have her in my sights. Always.
I move back to my desk and answer the still-ringing phone, and just like that, I’m immersed in the world of business. I take calls and look over the plans for security updates, noting the changes I need James to approve of. The day passes with lightning speed, but Sarah is never far from my thoughts.
I can still vividly recall the moment I first saw her. I was with James and Brandon as they showed me around the company after I accepted the position of head of the IT department. James is a good leader and a fair CEO, and I’m happy with the direction he’s taking the company in, something that couldn’t be said for its previous owner.
We were on the accounting floor, waiting for the elevator to come down, when this inexplicable feeling washed over me. I turned my head, and my gaze clashed with the most beautiful pair of green eyes I’d ever seen. The woman was sitting in one of the cubicles, her body hidden from view by her computer screen, but that didn’t matter to me. Nothing mattered more than how I felt the second our eyes met. It was only a brief, fleeting moment, then she quickly looked away and continued working, but it was enough for me to know.
I had found the one I didn’t even know I was looking for.
The moment we reached the executive floor, I turned to James and requested that he allow me to replace my assistant with the green-eyed beauty from accounting. I didn’t even know her name yet, but I knew my heart already belonged in her palm.
James was reluctant at first until I told him how I felt. I’d never met a man more obsessed and in love with his wife than him, and I knew he would understand. And he did.
Tied to Him (Alphamen in Suits Book 3) Page 1
