by Cole, Aria
After our entrees were served and only a half of a bottle of wine remained between us, I asked, “So why don’t you celebrate your birthday?”
Ellis shrugged. “Getting another year older doesn't seem like something to celebrate.” But her eyes lit up when the waiter set a decadent slice of double chocolate cake between us.
“I disagree. It’s a time to reflect on all the things you’ve done in the past year, and maybe a few of the things you haven’t done that you’d like to.” I pushed my fork into the rich dessert then held the bite out to her.
Her eyes rose for a minute before she composed herself.
“I’m always a gentleman, and celebrating another year of your birth makes me happy.”
Ellis took the bite off of my fork. With her eyes closed and her lips wrapped around that little hunk of metal, my cock throbbed as though it were caught in a vise. I wanted this woman. I wanted to know her, to be with her, to talk to her, to be everything for her.
“This is amazing,” she finally said.
“You make it look irresistible.” I shifted in my chair, trying to discreetly shift my cock in my pants. “I make it a rule to avoid office romance, but you’re changing all the rules on me.” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them.
“What?” Ellis’s eyes flicked to mine.
“Since the day you started in my office, I’ve been fighting myself. So many things I’ve wanted to say, so many times I’ve wanted to touch…” I traced a fingertip across her wrist.
“T-touch what?” Ellis asked, the pulse in her neck fluttering like a hummingbird.
“Well, for instance, right now I want to lick the hollow of your neck where I can see your heartbeat going wild.”
Ellis covered her throat with a palm before dropping her hand into her lap and licking her lips. Her eyes darted away. “I don’t think this is a good idea…”
“I can’t think of a better one.” I ran the pad of my thumb across her cheekbone.
Her eyes fluttered closed as she shifted beneath my touch.
“I’m not the kind of girl who sleeps her way to the top, Mr. Banger.”
I was shocked by her words—and her insinuation.
“And I’m not the kind of man who expects sexual favors as payment. I don’t take advantage of women, Ellis. I have the utmost respect for you and all of the other women in my office.” I needed her to know that I was a man of integrity. Women weren’t toys to me, they were my equals.
“But…” She sucked her bottom lip between her teeth before looking at me. “Why me then?”
I shook my head, threading her fingers through my own and giving her hand a squeeze. “Because you beguile me. Your mind is one of the most brilliant I have ever come across. You’re loyal, strong, and compassionate. You can put up with my shit, and I know that’s not easy. I admire all those traits. I have never met another person who is as amazing as you.” I leaned across the table and whispered, “And I can’t stop thinking about what your lips would feel like against mine.”
The waiter chose just that minute to interrupt. “Is the dessert to your liking, Mr. Banger?”
“Yes, flawless, just like my dinner companion.” I grinned, enjoying the warm blush that crept up Ellis’s cheeks. I loved making her squirm, probably because every single move she made had me in a constant state of unrest.
“I should get home.” Ellis pulled her hand from mine then rummaged through her purse distractedly.
“I like that you’re always so dedicated to serving me.”
Ellis’s eyes shot up and narrowed. “Listen—”
“I’m kidding.” I shot my hands in the air in surrender as laughter rolled from my lips. “I just like the way your eyes do that sparkling thing when you’re mad.”
Ellis’s eyes held mine for a minute before her smile broke.
“There it is.” I held out a hand as she pushed away from the table.
“I didn’t get the memo that you were such a funny guy.” She purred so sweetly her insult could have been covered in honey.
That mouth.
Those lips.
She had me wrapped around all her pretty little fingers already.
After I took care of the check, we stepped out of the restaurant, and the cool breeze whipped around us before we ducked into the back of my car. She slid across the leather seats, and I got in after her. Suddenly, the air between us felt charged with some sort of unseen energy.
Ellis rattled off her address to my chauffeur, and I was surprised to learn that she lived only a few blocks away—from here and work. Close enough for a quick lunch break at home… or to stop by when I was on my morning jog.
I imagined her soft and sweet in the morning, hair in a wild mess all over her pillow and silky camisole riding up her thighs.
Damn, I wanted to get my hands on her.
But I was supposed to control myself because of our company policy. When relationships ended, it was nearly impossible for lovers to be civil and work together. But I’d put that rule in place for other employees, not myself. I didn’t let go of the things that belonged to me, and if Ellis was mine, I’d make sure she’d stay that way.
I was a confident and capable man with the gift of achieving whatever I sent my mind to. I’d just been telling myself that Ellis was off-limits. Off-limits until now. She was quiet on the ride. I kept looking at her, and the more I looked, the more I kept wanting more. I could have spent forever and a day analyzing the sweet contours of her face and never get tired. If Da Vinci had seen Ellis first, it would have been her face that was hanging in the Louvre, not the Mona Lisa’s. Every angle was another burst of irresistible radiance. I was already at a point where I would have left the entire world behind just for a taste of her.
The car pulled up outside of her building and stopped at the curb. I opened the door and slid out, holding it for her. When she slipped her palm into my hand, I almost dropped to my knees and begged her to let me come upstairs with her, but I was a man with plans, and I needed her to know that she was my end game.
I gestured for the driver to wait a minute before we took the few steps up to her door.
She pushed her key in the lock then turned to me. “Thank you for an amazing dinner.”
I nodded, wishing I could pull her into my arms in the soft lamplight and get lost in her body.
“Happy birthday, Ms. Ford.” I placed a kiss on her forehead, barely containing the urge to push her up against the wall and shove my tongue past those pretty pouty lips.
With her hand on her doorknob, she looked back at me. “Thank you for a wonderful birthday... Mr. Banger.”
“Tobias. Call me Tobias.” I caught her hand and weaved my fingers through it before placing a delicate kiss on the underside of her wrist. “See you tomorrow morning, beautiful.”
Chapter 3
Ellis
I glanced in the mirror, straightening the neckline of my blouse one more time. Maybe it was a little too revealing to wear to work today. After last night’s surprise birthday dinner with Mr. Banger—Tobias—I felt thrust into a whole new world. I’d always dressed nicely for work, but now every skirt felt a little too short, every top a little too tight, as if his eyes would constantly roam my form as he waited to eat me like a wild animal.
The alarm on my phone rang, signaling that it was time for me to run out the door before I was late. I had a tendency to lose track of time, so I preferred to live a pretty scheduled life. If I wasn’t out by 7:52 a.m. at the absolute latest, I couldn't get to my office in time even though it was only a few blocks away.
I sped down the sidewalk, bag over my shoulder. When I turned the corner, I ran right into the arms of someone impossibly tall, impossibly strong, and impossibly delicious-smelling.
“Oh,” I said when Tobias’s warm palms stopped me in my tracks.
“Late for work?” His beautiful eyes twinkled at me, and I thought I lost myself in them for a moment.
“I might be late now.” I
stepped away to put some distance between us. Admiring him from across the room was one thing, but with his hands on me, sensations of wild lust overwhelmed my system until I thought I might faint.
“Let me take that for you.” He smiled warmly as he took my oversized bag, which contained my laptop and files, and hoisted it onto his shoulder before using an arm to gesture that I lead the way. “Have a good night last night, Ms. Ford?”
I turned, catching his gaze before I replied. “A great night, actually. I curled up with my kitty on the couch and watched a movie.”
Tobias’s eyebrow arched just as I’d figured it would. “Tell me more about this kitty.”
I laughed as we stepped into the empty elevator, and Tobias pressed the button for the top floor. The elevator whirred up, leaving me lightheaded—or was that from his close proximity?
I shut my eyes for a second, wondering what it would be like if this elevator stopped and we were stuck in here all day. What kind of trouble could we get up to then? I thought of popping the buttons on his jacket, smoothing my palms down the curve of that massive bulge…
“Your kitty, Ms. Ford?” Tobias had leaned over and was whispering in my ear.
I sucked in a shallow breath. “I thought we agreed on Ellis? And my kitty doesn’t like strangers.”
Tobias’s laugh filled the small elevator, his full guffaws landing straight in the core of my stomach. Being trapped in this elevator, or anywhere, with him would be a disaster.
The way he made my stomach dance, he’d probably charm the panties right off me.
“You’re quite the comedienne, Ellis.” His lips brushed across the shell of my ear with his last word.
The elevator doors slid open, and like a deer frozen in the headlights, I paused when I saw Victoria standing there, a coffee in each hand.
Her mouth dropped when she saw Tobias leaning against me.
“Lovely having this conversation with you,” Tobias teased then walked out of the elevator, nodding to Victoria as he brushed by her. He deposited my laptop bag at my desk before walking into his office and closing the door.
He’d taken the goddamn air straight from my lungs.
“He’s beautiful in the morning.” Victoria’s eyes were wide and glistening. She’d been caught up in his spell too.
“You’re crazy. He’s moody and gruff and—”
“And it looks like he got under your skin.” Victoria arched one pretty eyebrow.
I snagged one of the cups of coffee she held. Our favorite coffee place was on her way to work, so she brought in our morning drinks and I bought lunch downstairs in return.
“He’s not under anything!” I huffed, taking off toward my desk.
“Oh, but I bet you want him to—”
“Ellis!” Tobias took that moment to swing his door open, and he looked surprised to find Victoria standing with me.
“Yes, Mr. Banger?”
“Can you make a copy of this and deliver it to the design team?” He held out a sheaf of papers.
“Sure thing.” I snagged the papers as Victoria grinned and walked away.
My phone buzzed a moment later with an incoming text.
First name basis, huh? Sure sounds like he’s under something to me…
I shook my head. Best friend or not, Victoria was officially on my shit list.
“Oh, Ellis?” Tobias called. “Could you come see me when you’re done?”
My stomach fell.
I didn’t know if I could get through the rest of the day, listening to his achingly sweet voice say my name like that.
I didn’t know why he wanted me, but I liked that he did.
I nodded at my handsome boss before pressing the papers against my chest as I walked away.
This job was a challenge to be sure, and the biggest part was tall, dark, dangerously handsome, and my boss.
Chapter 4
Tobias
I shoved a hand through my hair as I looked out over the city, wondering not for the first time today if I was in over my head with Ellis.
Scratch that. I knew I was.
Wanting her was probably the stupidest thing I would ever do, but that didn’t stop me. Not when she had come to consume my daily thoughts and now my nightly thoughts as well. Ellis was a huge asset to my company, and losing her would be a blow to my own daily schedule. But even more than that, risking a relationship with someone in the office who could so easily walk away… scared me.
I’d never been scared of anything. Conquering the top echelons of the Chicago business world hadn’t fazed me, but Ellis Ford had. She’d entered my life out of nowhere and now meant the entire world to me. She’d touched some deep part of my soul, awakened desires I’d buried, and made me feel happiness I hadn’t even known existed. I hadn’t been truly alive until her.
At that moment, she walked through the door, and it felt like the sun had finally risen. “Ready, Mr. Banger?”
I nodded, standing from my chair and gesturing for her to close the door. “Thanks for coming in.”
“Sure, what can I do for you?”
Bend over my desk to start with.
That was what I wanted to say, but instead, I did the professional thing and offered her a seat then a drink. “How are you?”
“I’m fine, thanks.” She beamed at me, so eager to please. God, I loved that about her.
“I wanted to talk to you about the charitable giving program I want to start. It’s something I’ve been considering for a while, but I know I can’t take it on alone. I need the right person, someone I can trust, to handle all the details.” I watched her watch me. “I think you’re the perfect person for the job.”
Ellis didn’t blink for long moments that felt like arrows piercing my insides. Why the hell did my stomach twist around her? This was more than being near a beautiful woman—I’d been around plenty of beautiful women and never spared them a passing glance. But I could have started fires with the passion I felt racing through my veins when she walked into the room.
“It will be a lot of work.” I stepped closer, itching to touch her in some way. “A lot of late nights. At least in the beginning.”
Ellis shifted, her eyes trained on me before she nodded. “I would love that.”
“It’ll only be the two of us working on it, at least until it’s been fleshed out. And I want to be hands-on. Every decision, we discuss together.”
Her doe eyes fluttered for a moment, her rosy lips curving into the smallest of smiles. “I look forward to it.”
Her words nearly fucking undid me. I had to restrain myself from pulling her into my arms and pressing my lips to hers, threading my fingers through her wild, lush locks and delving into the depths of her soul.
Ellis chose that moment to stand and lean across my desk, brushing against my body as she reached for a legal pad and pen. “Maybe we could get started tonight?”
My eyes landed on hers, my heart hammering like a fucking freight train in my ears before I did the very thing I’d been desperate to do again.
I touched her.
Her entire body quaked, her breath a little ragged as I splayed my palm across the dip of her back. Like lightning bolts shooting straight to my balls, frantic energy pulsed at that spot where we were connected. Visions of her in my bed, beneath me, her hair across my pillow as I kissed her, fucked her, loved her throttled my thoughts.
“I’d love to get started tonight.” I slid my palm up her spine, enjoying the shivers that tore through her body. “You’re so responsive.”
She sucked her bottom lip between her teeth, eyes darting to my lips before I couldn’t control myself a single moment longer. Before I could think twice, my hands were in her hair and she was pressed against my body.
“I don’t know what you’ve done to me, but I can’t think straight around you, and at the same time, when my mind is running out of control like a tornado, the thought of you seems to bring me peace.” I murmured before we kissed. Her lips pressed to mine felt
like waves of thunder crashing between us.
“We shouldn’t be doing this.” She whimpered then clutched at my hair before pressing her lips to mine again.
I kissed her back, our tongues twisting together as I tried to understand why everything about this felt so right. “I’ve been looking for every excuse to stay away from you the last few weeks.” I slid a palm down her body, loving the feel of her soft curves. “But I can’t control myself with you anymore…”
“What if someone finds us like this?” she asked, her words ragged and so fucking erotic.
“Seeing you like this, knowing I put this little smile on your face…” I dusted a thumb across her lips. “You’re worth the risk.”
The office phone rang on the desk beside me, and I cursed the fact that I had a phone call with the financial department to get to.
“This”—I cupped her cheeks and brushed one more soft kiss on her lips—“is to be continued.”
Ellis’s dark eyes burned before she nodded. “Let me know if you need anything, Mr. Banger.”
I grinned as the phone kept ringing, and my heart kept pulling me back to Ellis. “Tobias.” I twisted a lock of her hair between my fingers. “I’m trying to convince myself that it wouldn’t be a good idea to cut out of work and take you home to my bed.”
I watched desire course through her body, her thighs shifting and her little nipples budding to attention beneath the tight fabric of her shirt.
I brushed my lip across the shell of her ear. “I love the shade of pink that creeps up your body when you're turned on.” Ellis shifted, her gorgeous tits brushing across my chest. “Your scent draws me in. Makes me crave the taste of you.”
She sucked in a quick breath, her chest heaving.
“I… you should…” She seemed speechless. Maybe my hands on her body did that to her.
“At a loss for words, darling?” I curled my fingers around her neck as my cock bit at my zipper, anxious to get out and into her.
“I’ll make up a list…” She stumbled when my thumb brushed the sensitive flesh at her throat. “I’ll put some charities together…” She closed her eyes and took a breath before opening them again. “You should get the phone.”
