Unexpected Surprise

by Brooks, Sarah J.

  “Oh shit, sorry I forgot, Sinclair.” He sheepishly exited out of the browser and meandered back to his cube, which was just a few short paces from hers. “Guess I better start work.” He gave me a shit-eating grin, and I wasn’t amused.

  “Why don’t you do that,” I almost growled.

  I could tell it was hard for Reyna to keep a straight face. Somehow I felt like I was the butt of a joke. It was uncomfortable.

  “Are you free for lunch today?” he whisper-yelled from his cube.

  “No,” I answered for her. “She’s working with me at lunch today,” I said sternly letting him know I could still hear his conversation.

  He disregarded me, “What about cocktails after work?” The fucking nerve of that man.

  “She’s staying late,” I answered again.

  “Hey Sin, way to honor your work/life policy. The poor lady needs food and drink, just like the rest of us.” He had the nerve to talk back to me.

  “It’s only a couple of days; she’ll live,” I dismissed as Reyna took a call for me and my fun, terrorizing the stupid male homing in on my girl was over.

  “It’s Don Richards on line one,” she cooed sweetly ending my cockfight with Ken.

  Chapter 20

  Reyna

  It was funny to see Sinclair so jealous of Ken. I was highly amused. Being at work with him was harder than I thought it would be. I was so excited to see him; it was almost like Christmas morning when I was a little kid. I made sure to come into work exactly on time so as not to appear too eager, and then he pulled me into his office, and we kissed. From that moment forward, I could barely concentrate on anything other than Sinclair.

  I wish Ken knew how annoying he was. Even if Sinclair and I weren’t dating, I still wouldn’t have gone out with him. The pissing war between Ken and Sinclair was going to be the end of me. I couldn’t balance both hotheads, so I just focused on my work and tried to ignore them. In Sinclair’s case, unfortunately, that was impossible.

  When he was done with his phone call, he asked me to come into his office again. Even though I wanted him to kiss me, I sort of didn’t want it. I was afraid he might try more than a kiss, and there was no way I was going for that. Even if I were married to the guy, I wouldn’t be fucking him in the office. It wasn’t something I could do. No offense to those who could, hats off to them, but having sex at my place of work, especially with my boss, was not gonna happen. Ever.

  I walked in ready to face whatever he had in store for me.

  I closed the door behind me and just blurted out, “Sinclair, there is no way I am going to have sex with you in the office.” I shot him a fierce stare.

  He laughed. “Ha, you read my mind, but you’re right. I wouldn’t dream of having sex with you here. I don’t have much time. Since the film blew up this weekend, we’re on everyone’s call list. I have meetings all day. I won’t have much time to talk with you today. We do have a working lunch, but I’m the only one working. You can use my office if you’d like to eat and pump and just have some time if you need it.” Ah… he was being him again, sweet, loving—this was the Sinclair I liked.

  “Are you sure? I have to admit, pumping in the bathroom is pretty gross.” I screwed my face to make a point.

  “I know there’s no place for you to pump except for the bathroom. It’s clean, but how awful you have to sit on a toilet. I’m working with HR to ratify this issue, but I need your permission to tell them you have a baby. I’m hoping to turn one of the storerooms into a comfortable space for lactating mothers. It’s not just for you; Alejandra in marketing is pregnant and would also appreciate it.” Wow, he’d given this a lot of thought.

  “Sounds perfect.” I smiled and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “Thanks.”

  “No need for thanks, we should have done it a long time ago,” he said as he went back to his work. “I’ll try and catch up with you tonight.”

  “Okay.” I went back to my desk, still wanting to spend more time with him.

  He had meetings all day and didn’t return until everyone was starting to go home that night. I knew I’d have to leave and pick up Arianna from Mrs. Effleman, but I waited for him so I could at least say goodbye for the day.

  When he finally returned, it was an hour after most people had already gone home. Ken, of course, was still there as was his boss, who returned from the same meeting with Sinclair.

  “Ah, you two are still chained to your desks I see,” Ken’s boss mentioned as she walked up to us.

  “It’s cool. Reyna’s been keeping me company,” Ken interjected with a charming smile.

  It was, of course, a lie. I wasn’t keeping him company. I was working and trying my best to ignore him.

  “Yep, I’m sitting here working. Ooooh, such good company,” I mocked sarcastically.

  Sinclair looked positively evil until he heard me pronounce my innocence.

  “Well, you two should shut it down. We need to go home. Work/life balance, people.” Sinclair looked directly at Ken when he said it.

  “I’m done.” I logged off and closed my laptop. “Just waiting for the boss to unchain me.” I gave Sinclair a seductive wink, and his eyes flared open.

  “Wait a sec, and I’ll walk you to your car.” I wasn’t sure he meant to say that in front of everyone, but he said it.

  “I can go with her,” Ken chimed in. “I parked right next to her.” If you could have seen the rage Sinclair was holding back. I found it truly comical.

  Ken’s boss said, “Since when has the car park become so dangerous? Maybe we should all go down together. Bring our machetes and such.” She shook her head as she walked into her office, leaving the three of us feeling awkward.

  “I just need to grab my bag,” Sinclair announced.

  It took him only a minute before he was ready to walk out. Ken was scrambling to get himself ready when Molly called out from her office.

  “Ken, before you go, can you help me with one thing.” And that was it. Molly killed it for him. Sinclair almost burst into laughter. Ken flashed us a smug smile, and we left.

  “See ya tomorrow,” I threw out as we were leaving.

  As soon as we were in the elevator, Sinclair grabbed me, and we kissed. We tongue fought each other for the duration of the ride, and when the doors opened, he made his move.

  “Can I convince you to come home with me tonight?” he asked, looking like a forlorn little boy.

  “I’m already really late picking up the baby.” I tried to say it as kindly as I could, sympathetic to his plea. I wanted to be with him too, but I couldn’t see it happening tonight. I couldn’t leave the baby again so soon.

  “I understand.” He was noticeably disappointed but had to know I was making the right choice. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

  Poor guy, you could have wiped his face off the floor he was so sad.

  “What about you and I getting together this weekend?” I tried to cheer him up.

  “What? No, I can’t wait that long.” His face morphed into an impatient and angry sort of expression.

  “I’ll be seeing you at work. Certainly, you can go a week without the bump and grind.” I wasn’t sure he could, but he’d have to.

  “No, I can’t pretend to be your boss and not the man who is falling head over heels for you. It’s torture.” He took a deep breath. “Wednesday? Bring the baby to my place after work, and I’ll have Salvatore make us dinner. Then, you and I can chill.” It was weird having him try to sound like a Millennial.

  “Unless you’ve changed completely in two days, I don’t think we’ll be doing much ‘chillin’.’ Sounds fun, though. Let’s plan for Wednesday. You sure you want me to bring Arianna?” It would be an absolute dream if I could, but I didn’t want him saying things just to entice me.

  “Absolutely!” By the look on his face, I knew he meant it.

  Surprisingly, after the brief conversation, he let me go home. He was rather pitiful just standing there as I drove off. I felt for
the guy because if it were me, I’d be standing there too.

  He texted me the whole way home… and throughout the night. If we could barely spend one night apart, how were we ever going to survive working together every day pretending we didn’t care about each other?

  The next day I was excited to see Sinclair but tired. He’d texted me all night long, way past my usual bedtime. He told me stories, gave me play by plays on what he was doing at exact moments in the evening and talking dirty about ways he wanted to excite my body.

  I couldn’t deny he made me hot. I actually masturbated for the first time in forever, thinking about the things he suggested we do on Wednesday. When I came into work, I saw him sitting in his office and felt an overwhelming sense of peace being in his presence again. I was falling hard. The more time we spent apart, the more I wanted to be near him. It was strange. The first few weeks we worked together, I wasn’t allowing myself to feel anything. I hadn’t met the man hiding deep within, and I just pretended it wasn’t him, the dark angel who changed my life.

  We nearly rushed into each other’s arms when we saw each other that next morning. Luckily we didn’t. News had just hit the press and was all over the internet. Of course, it was Ken who announced this juicy bit of gossip as soon as we came in. He was reading from the Variety website. Christopher Regent had been indicted on sexual-harassment charges by a former assistant.

  “Hey, didn’t you work for him?” Ken asked, his eyes piercing.

  I could hardly breathe. “Yes,” I whispered.

  “According to this article, he did some very fucked up stuff.” Ken sounded almost disbelieving.

  Every single nerve in my body froze. I was not the person who launched the lawsuit against Chris, but just the mention of his name and the lewd acts he’d committed against this woman were enough to paralyze me. I remembered every horrible thing he did. Things I’d never mentioned to anyone, but kept bottled up inside, still haunted me almost every single lewd act mentioned in the article had also been done to me. Ken read about the invitations to dinner that became forced fellatio. He also mentioned how Chris threatened a person’s job if they didn’t attend an event as his date. He was accused of sexual harassment and misconduct as well as three counts of rape.

  While I never allowed him to get too far, dinner conversations were always sexually inappropriate. I’d usually have to shove him off of me to escape untouched. The things he did get away with, that I couldn’t easily fend off, were times when he copped a feel of my ass, pussy, or breasts. I’d pinch the skin just under his arm, near his armpit to get him off me.

  He’d laugh and pretend it was some immature joke. “Boys locker room stuff,” he used to say. When his finger pressed hard into my vagina after a notes meeting, I took to wearing lined wool slacks. Even in the summer, I wore them to avoid him ever getting into close contact with that sensitive region of my body ever again. Despite everything I did to thwart him, the constant nagging and pressuring was relentless.

  By the time Ken had finished reading the article, tears were welling in my eyes. I had to sit down to stabilize my shaky insides. I knew Chris had raped women. He talked about sex all the time. He always alluded to the acts being consensual. Because he was such a maverick in the bedroom, women flocked to him, he’d say. I nearly choked when I heard that the first time.

  He was obsessed with sex and told about countless encounters which seemed more like rape to me than unbridled passion. He also used to boast about how many bastards he had out there he wasn’t paying for. The slutty bitches spread their legs so easily for him, why should he have to pay for their promiscuity?

  Remembering all of it sent me into a scared and fearful place. I hadn’t realized how bad it all was. Being away from Chris and having time to heal helped me understand that what I dealt with day after day was sexual harassment and abuse. I literally went into battle every day to save my integrity and emotional well-being.

  As soon as Ken stopped reading, his voice was snide and judgmental. “Everyone in Hollywood knows what an asshole Christopher was. If anyone was stupid enough to take a job with him, they should pretty much have known they’d be ‘spreadin’ their legs.’” What the hell?

  “Are you making light of this?” I couldn’t believe how insensitive he was.

  “No offense, Reyna. Rumor has it you kicked the douche’s ass.” He gave me a fake smile.

  “I was fired because my bathroom breaks were too long… but it was hell.” I looked at him dead on.

  Rape and sexual misconduct were absolutely no joking matter. I saw the look in Sinclair’s eyes. He was barely holding his temper. I hadn’t realized he was staring at me, but the compassion in his gaze melted my heart. We never spoke about my time with Chris. He saw us on Halloween and saw Chris briefly at the premiere. Sinclair really didn’t know how much I had to endure with Chris, but I think he understood without knowing the details.

  Chapter 21

  Sinclair

  “The article asks for women who have witnessed or been a victim of Christopher Regent’s actions to come forward.” Ken gave Reyna a cocky glare. “They have an email address and a phone number where people can get in touch with them. Maybe you should call, Reyna.”

  Reyna looked pale. “I’m sure there are plenty of people who have experienced far worse,” she dismissed.

  “I hope more women come forward because that man needs to go to jail for the rest of his life for what he’s done,” I said, making my opinion clear.

  After that uncomfortable start to our day, we moved on. When the dailies were delivered an hour later, I asked Reyna to join me in the office to watch them and take notes. She seemed more like herself when she bounded into my office.

  “I missed you,” she whispered as she closed the door behind her.

  “I’ve been crazy without you,” I countered scooping her into my arms. “I don’t think I can last until tomorrow night. Is there any way I can get you tonight, tomorrow, and maybe every night after?” I was trying not to sound desperate, but I was.

  She laughed, keeping the mood light. “Um… I do have a life, but I don’t think I can wait until tomorrow either.”

  “I’ve been giving this some thought,” I started, “and I’ve spoken with Lorna, my housekeeper. She wouldn’t mind watching Arianna while you are at the house. There’s not much for her to do there. I think she’s dying for something meaningful to set her mind to. She would love to watch the baby.” I was so nervous, hoping Reyna would say, yes, I could hardly think of anything else. “Tonight when we leave, you can go get the baby and stuff for another ‘slumber party,’ and I’ll meet you at the house.” I was tingling with excitement.

  The idea of having Reyna and the baby home with me was thrilling. She stared at me, and for a moment I thought she might not agree, but much to my great relief, she accepted my offer. Thank God. It was nearly impossible to get through the rest of the day. Daydreaming about making love to her all night long was what kept me going.

  We said our goodbyes at the end of the day, and I almost rushed out behind her; however, with eyes all over the place, I held myself back. She texted me when she got to the house and said she and Arianna were with Lorna and Michael. I walked in and inadvertently overheard a conversation that wasn’t intended for my ears.

  “It’s going to be so nice to have this little one around,” I heard Lorna say. “This place is so big and lonely at times. Sinclair is a quiet man. He has lots of friends, but he doesn’t often have them over. I actually think he’s quite lonely. His brother Sage is the outgoing one, and none of us really see much of Shelton. She’s so beautiful and perfect.”

  Lorna blushed as I walked in. She was holding the baby, and Reyna’s face lit up the moment she saw me. “I hope I’m not interrupting. I got a phone call just as I was leaving the office. Our lead actor for The Morning Star film was having issues. I had to talk him out of the tree, but I’m here now.”

  I walked over to Lorna and outstretched my ar
ms. “Can I hold her?” I looked at Reyna for approval.

  “Of course,” she said as Lorna gave me the baby.

  “She’s heaven, Sinclair,” Lorna said with adoration in her eyes.

  Nerves gripped me as I held Arianna’s tiny body. She was so little and delicate. As soon as she was cradled into my embrace, she looked up at me with her big beautiful green eyes, my eyes. I melted. I was her father, and I’d love and protect her for the rest of my life. I kissed her sweet head. It smelled like baby powder and innocence.

  “She’s everything,” I sighed.

  Reyna walked to my side and stroked Arianna’s wisps of brown hair over her soft head. I think the baby regarded me with the same overwhelming wonder I had for her. I could have sat and held her all night, but I was starving, and I figured Reyna must be too.

  “Salvatore made some delicious vegetarian Greek dishes for you to try. I’ll watch the baby,” Lorna announced, opening her arms eager to take the baby back.

  “Do you want to feed her or anything?” I asked before releasing the child to her, unsure of whether we’d see her again, given Lorna’s eagerness.

  “Maybe I should,” Reyna laughed as two grown adults fawned and cooed over Arianna.

  She took the baby from me and held her to her breast, giving her a nipple. The baby immediately started to feed. She looked perfect in Reyna’s arms. I could see why the Madonna and child became such an iconic image; there was nothing more beautiful than a mother and baby.

  “Here,” I offered, leading her into the living room. “Why don’t you feed her in here, on the couch.”

  “Thanks.” She settled into the seat as I heard Arianna make sweet suckling sounds. All I could do was stare in awe of them. I read an article about fathers supporting breastfeeding mothers. The article explained how male partners could take care of the mother as they nurtured their child. It talked about things like foot rubs, back rubs, getting the mom water or snacks.

  “I’ll get you something to drink. Do you want juice, mineral water, tea?” I knew she probably didn’t want wine while feeding Arianna, but I hoped she would later.