“I can get one of my roommates to look after her overnight. I don’t want to impose on you. Besides, I won’t be having overnight fun.” I’m sure I blushed at the mention of “overnight fun.”
“You’re a beautiful young woman; you shouldn’t have to give up your fun or your private life if you have someone to help you with your sweet little babe. I can tell you’re a good momma. There will be no judgment from me.” Her smile was genuine and endearing.
“I will definitely keep that in mind, and thank you again for today.” I kissed little Arianna’s head as Mrs. Effleman put her in my arms.
“It’s my pleasure. So, when do you start work?” she asked as she stepped into the hall and walked me to my apartment.
“Tomorrow at nine.” I gave her a confident smile.
“I’ll pick Arianna up at eight,” she said.
“Perfect.” With that, she waited as I opened my door. “See you tomorrow, little one.” She kissed Arianna’s head. “See you tomorrow, Reyna.”
“Thanks again, Mrs. Effleman.” She smiled and went back to her apartment leaving Arianna and me alone for a few minutes before my roommates got home from their jobs.
“Well, kiddo,” I said as I closed the door and sat on the couch and offered Arianna my breast which she suckled sweetly. “I’m not sure what Momma’s gonna do, but as long as we have each other, I’m sure everything will be just fine.”
I told her this but didn’t really believe it. I was so nervous my stomach was in knots. What was I getting myself into? When Charlynn got home, I was reading a book with Arianna sleeping in my lap.
“So?” Charlynn whispered. “How’d it go?”
I gave her a half-smile as my stomach catapulted with butterflies. “I got the job.”
“I knew you would, and…” She pulled a bottle of chardonnay out of a linen sack. “I brought chilled wine to celebrate. Do you think you can pump and dump for the night? I ordered Taiyoko too. Sushi, Teriyaki, Sashimi… those cute little bento boxes.” She was so sweet, and her enthusiasm was infectious.
I loved Charlynn, she was my crunchy granola roommate who was all heart. Last year her luck at the Halloween party was exactly the opposite of mine. She’d actually gotten a text that night from her long-distance thing. They’d been together for two years. He broke up with her over a text proving he was the lame-ass I knew he was. I knew this time of year was particularly painful for her, so the Japanese smorgasbord, which I’m sure would be way too much food for any of us to eat in one sitting, was more for her solace than my celebration.
“Sure, I can pump and dump,” I told her. “Little Ari almost sucked me dry just now anyway. I’ve got tons on ice… we’re good.”
“Yes!” Charlynn ran to the kitchen, grabbed a wine opener, and popped the cork.
Her red hair shined under the recessed lighting of the kitchen island, and I thought to myself as she struggled to pull the cork out of the wine bottle, her ex-boyfriend was an idiot. Charlynn was gorgeous, smart, loving… the asshole didn’t deserve her.
Our party started. I lay Arianna down in her crib and let Charlynn pour me a fat glass of wine. She had no idea how much I actually needed it. By the time Melody came home, we were halfway through the bottle. Luckily, she brought backup.
“Oh man, you two started already? Guess this means you got the gig eh, Reyna?” Melody was even more casual and laid back than Charlynn.
While Charlynn was a bleeding heart environmentalist with a solid agenda, Melody was our rock star. She was one hundred percent rock and roll diva extraordinaire.
“I got the gig!” I said raising my glass and feeling just a little tipsy.
Luckily Arianna was fast asleep. It hit me; I hadn’t even had a drop of alcohol since I found out I was pregnant with her. No wonder the room was floating.
“Right on! Well, I booked a gig for next week that is gonna P.A.Y. like butt loads, so we are gonna be good, girls,” she said as she poured herself a huge glass of wine. “What’s for eats?”
“Taiyoko!” Charlynn and I both answered.
“Sweet!” Melody planted herself on the couch, and we spent the night eating expensive Japanese food and drinking wine.
It was then I realized no matter what happened between Sinclair and me on this insane journey, I had my girls… all of them.
I walked into the office the next day looking fine. I’d shed my baby weight pretty quickly thanks to hiking, breastfeeding, and everything tasting weird after giving birth. I knew I looked amazing. I only wished I felt amazing too. As I approached my new desk, I saw Sinclair sitting in his office. He seemed stiff and tense. I was immediately nervous, well not just nervous; I was so nauseous I almost threw up.
“Hey, boss.” I gave him a small smile.
His face was stern and commanding. He was much more intense without the mask. I preferred him with his mask on. He was playful and sweet when he wore it; now he seemed stern, in charge, and a little intimidating.
“It’s nice to see you’re here early. Most people barely crawl in on time. That’s the film industry for you, late nights, later mornings. Okay. Here’s your desk.” He waved to my desk as if he were a presenter on a television game show. “And if you want, I have a few minutes to show you around the rest of the office since you passed out the last time you were here.”
“I can’t believe you hired me. I passed out in my interview. Who does that?” I giggled, discomfort tickling my nerves.
“There was a very significant reason.” His face transformed from stern businessman to sultry seducer in a heartbeat.
Behind those smoky green eyes, was the man I made love to on Halloween, my dark prince. My heart raced, and my palms moistened with sweat. The memory of that evening and how we had given ourselves over to pleasure still sizzled my brain. I silently hoped he would be the dark prince again. I wished I was his goddess freed from captivity and he’d ravage me on his leather sectional. I always wondered what captivity he thought he’d liberated me from? I guess he must have been referring to Chris’ lurid proposal. Little did he know he only freed me from one captor to deliver me to another; one who stole my heart.
I was now his assistant, playing another role that didn’t quite suit me. In my heart, I was a writer with an incredible imagination and now a mother. Assistant with a life-changing secret to hide felt like a thousand-pound weight; heavier than I’d expected it would be.
“I would love a tour,” I chirped, probably too enthusiastically, over-compensating to hide my fear.
“It’s not a very big office, but it’s a little twisted and hard to navigate. This is an art deco building where the stairs go to weird places. The break room is upstairs to the left. That’s where most of the staff hang out. Everyone brings their laptops and works there. I think it’s because there’s free espresso. Sorry to say, you won’t spend much time there, though. I need you at my beck and call. Are you a coffee drinker?”
“Not really. I like tea.” I made sure to be present and polite, although my insides were melting.
“We have plenty of that too.” The tour of the break room seemed to bring awkward to a whole new level.
“Great.” I smiled as he grazed his hand over my elbow.
I did everything in my power not to flinch.
“The lobby and the company basketball court are on the mezzanine floor,” he said with a straight face, knowing that having a basketball court in the office was probably legendary.
“Are you kidding?” I couldn’t help but be impressed.
“Yeah, we’re a dedicated bunch, so I tried to throw in a few perks. You’ll love Friday at four o’clock cocktails as well. We take shots when we need to brainstorm and throw hoops when we hit a creative wall. As long as we keep cranking out hit movies, I’ll keep doing cool stuff for my team.” He seemed very proud of his work.
“This is completely different than Regency Pictures. That place is a chrome-plated, minimalist dungeon,” I blu
rted out, without thinking of the horrible incident that brought us together.
“And the Evil Overlord there should probably be indicted for his criminal behavior.” He gave me a knowing glance.
“Right, but he’ll never… anyway, this place is amazing.” I changed the subject, feeling my breath hitch. I hated the memories of my time with Chris, more so now in the presence of the man who rescued me.
“Well… anyway. The rest of the offices are on our floor, and Christina will fill you in on the specifics of the job. I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it in no time. And…” he hesitated, “if you have a minute later tonight, maybe you and I can have a conversation?” His voice was a tiny bit shaky as he suggested a private talk. He couldn’t have been as nervous as I was? He was this cool alpha indie producer and me … I was a nervous wreck whose boobs were filling up with milk and making me think of our child who I had hidden away from him at home.
“Sure, I’d love to.” My stomach rolled.
“Excellent. I have a meeting in four minutes. I’ll touch base with you later.” With that, he walked back to his office and shut the door.
I finally took a breath. I searched the office for a place to pump. My breasts were starting to get really painful. If I didn’t pump some of my milk soon, I’d be leaking. I didn’t want to pump in the bathroom, and yet there didn’t seem to be any other place. I wasn’t ready to tell HR I had a baby, so I just decided the handicapped stall in the bathroom was going to have to be it. I didn’t like the idea of pumping while I was on the toilet, but what else was I to do? I grabbed my bag and went into the bathroom.
As soon as I had expressed all my milk, which took about twenty minutes, I put it in the cooler and returned to my desk. I was ready to get to work.
When I reached my desk, Sinclair was standing there with a frown on his face.
“Did you get lost?” He was being a bit over-lording, but I guess he must’ve needed something.
“No, I was… um, in the ladies room.” I lowered my voice.
“Right, well I want you to join this meeting, please.” He was all work. “And let me know when you plan to be away from your desk.”
Gone was the sexy masked stranger who I’d only glimpsed a few times throughout the day. The real Sinclair was very intense and somewhat scary.
“You bet,” I said, chipper and enthused, trying to lighten his mood as I grabbed my notepad and walked behind him into the office.
Chapter 11
Sinclair
Having her in the office was making me insane. I realized that when I barked at her for not being at her desk. There was no reason for me to go off on her as I did. I was just jealous and territorial. She was thorough and attentive during the meeting and submitted notes about a half-hour after it was done. She was used to hard work, I could tell. By the end of the day, my mood was lighter, and I was feeling more comfortable around my beautiful new assistant who I just wanted to fuck.
Despite being efficient, socially exceptional, and a joy to look at, she did go to the bathroom a lot. She must have had a nervous bladder of some sort. Also, Ken, Molly McGrath’s assistant in development was flirting with reckless abandon. I wanted to strangle him and cut off his cock. I didn’t like men circling around things that were mine. And yet, she wasn’t mine at all. The dashing young man had just as much a right to her as I had. This enraged me. I needed to establish the upper hand. I knew nothing about her other than she was a little shy in bed, sexually responsive… and liked to play. Outside of that, she was just a woman I fucked while wearing a mask, but I wanted her to be so much more.
“See you tomorrow, Rey,” Ken, the asshole encroacher, said as he slung his backpack over his shoulder.
“See ya.” She smiled and gave a little wave.
Oh, if only murder was legal.
“How was your first day?” I asked as people said their goodbyes and filed out of the office. I leaned casually against her cube and stared at her delicious chocolate brown eyes, remembering the way they looked when I entered her for the first time. I was also trying to abate my jealousy, which was tipping towards unbridled rage.
“It was good. Everyone is really nice and fun. I like it here.” Her smile lit up her face, and yet, it didn’t seem completely genuine.
“I’m glad you’re fitting in. I have a very efficient call log here… so detailed. Nice work. The basic administration is just part of what you’ll be doing. I’ll have you into more meetings soon, and I’d love to hear your thoughts about our projects, perhaps bounce ideas off of you.” I was probably being too nice, too overly enthusiastic and eager, but I wanted her to like working for me… desperately.
“That’s amazing, thanks.” Her smile brightened more and finally looked earnest.
“Do you mind stepping into my office for a few minutes? I’d like to have a private conversation with you.” I tried not to sound like a school principal calling in a naughty child, but I’d been waiting for this moment all day.
“Sure,” she said, being tenuous again.
I walked into my office, sat down, and took a deep breath; she did the same.
“What we’re doing here is a little dangerous,” I started, getting right to the point.
“I know. I… um…” she fumbled.
“Halloween night was amazing, but it was only supposed to be one night, and then we’d go our separate ways.” Her eyes drifted to the floor, and I thought she might cry. “I’m not saying this to hurt you.”
“Okay,” she straightened up in her chair as her lower lip quivered the way it seemed to when she was really stressed.
“When you left the next morning, I was a little crushed,” I said, allowing her to see my more vulnerable side.
“You said it was all just for one night… a fantasy.” Her eyes were wide and confused.
“Don’t worry. You were perfect. Leaving a note was a sweet touch. However, I didn’t think you’d get under my skin, but you have. You working for me adds some complication, but I’d still like to explore what we’ve started. How do you feel about that?”
“Um, I’d like to explore it too. But… I work for you.” Her voice was small and tentative.
“I know, and I’m not really anybody who does long-term relationships. This is why you working for me is dangerous. I’m afraid you might get hurt.” Now I was feeling off-center and nervous. Fuck my honesty sometimes.
“I understand.” She was pulling away.
“As I said. I don’t want to hurt you, but I’m an asshole. You’ll discover that soon enough. I’m not a monster like Christopher Regent, but I’m still formidable. If you want to back out now, I’m giving you a license; you can say no. Just because I can’t seem to get through a day without thinking about fucking you doesn’t mean you have to agree to this.” Well, now it was out there.
She bit her lip and stared at me for a beat. I honestly thought she might walk away.
“I think I’m okay with it, just be gentle. I really haven’t had that many relationships. I’m not good at getting my heart destroyed. And… just fucking? That’s gonna be tough.” Her wide eyes were so innocent and earnest.
“I don’t plan to destroy you, love. You’ll probably tire of me first. I’m not an easy man to reckon with, sadly. I can’t deny my attraction to you, and I’m selfish enough to tempt uncharted waters to explore these feelings. And… yeah. Fucking. Why did I say that? I want to do way more than just fuck you. In fact, I really want to kiss you right now,” I asked, while not really asking.
“Perhaps it’s best we did not explore this in the office,” she so reasonably said.
“Right, we shouldn’t.” Damn her for being so sensible.
“I want to have sex with you again. Is there a chance of that happening someplace else?” What the hell was wrong with me?
She laughed. It felt good to hear her laugh.
“I loved our night together, Sinclair, and I want to make love to you too. It would be amazing, but now th
at you’re real, I think we should take it slow. You were my dark prince before; now you’re my boss. Reality can be a little stifling.” Her voice quivered, but she was being honest.
“Right. Well, I’m starving… how about I treat you to a sausage.” She burst into laughter.
After a moment I got the joke, “I mean… there’s a place… a stand downstairs.
Her face shifted into a smirk as she stared at me.
“Ah, forget me… I’m a mess.”
“I’d love a sausage.” She continued to laugh. “This is gonna be so hard.”
“So just fuck me.” I flashed her a spectacular grin. “Right, I know. I’m being too primal.”
“If only I could.” She stood up. “But I have to work in the morning, so I’m just going to eat sausage with you. Not to be confused with eating your sausage.” She winked… there she was.
“Okay.” I was disappointed, but I understood.
“For tonight.” She gave me an encouraging smile.
I helped her put on her coat, and we walked downstairs to the hot dog stand on the corner.
“We can go to Morty’s across the street if you want, they’ve got better food.” I didn’t want to take my goddess to a hot dog stand; this was ridiculous. Morty’s was a nice place. But work people went there, and seeing us together, especially after her first day of work, may look a little suspicious. I was losing my mind.
“Hot dogs are fine,” she said as we walked out of the office and down to the little stand in front. “This place actually has like fifty-five-star reviews on Yelp, it’s famous,” she encouraged as she slid onto one of the dilapidated bar stools surrounding the hot dog shack.
“You sure?” I slid in next to her.
“Positive.” She grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze.
I scooped up a menu, even though I knew what my order would be. I always ordered the same thing, Italian sausage with onions and mayonnaise, disgusting but delicious.
We placed our orders. She had a veggie dog with ketchup, and then we sat there staring at one another.
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