Kiss Me
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My Stiff Competition
Book One
Business Enemies. Lovers. Both?
By Sage Alexander
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2020 Sage Alexander – All rights Reserved
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with or sponsored by the trademark owners.
CONTENTS
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
About The Author
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Chapter One
Erika put her eyes down as she walked towards the coffee shop. She was walking almost blindly, not really focusing on where she was going to. So many thoughts were running through her mind, and all of them were about her project.
She sighed and entered the coffee shop. She was getting the usual, a latte for herself and a cappuccino and muffin for Jacob, her second in command in her new start-up business. It was what they did every morning for the past three months since they had settled into a tiny office space downtown, and she was sure it was going to become a long-time ritual.
As Erika struggled to get to the front of the busy coffee shop line, she bumped into someone. She looked up and started to apologize, but the words died on her lips. He was beautiful. There were no other words to put it.
The man standing in front of her was tall, way taller than she was, and he was the most beautiful person she had ever seen in her life. His brown eyes were intense. It seemed like he was stripping her of all her secrets and that he was discovering everything she had ever done or said in her life. And his lush lips, it was almost like she should pull him into her by his broad shoulders and kiss them—even if she had no real idea how the kiss was going to go. Erika blushed as she realized the extent to which her thoughts were going.
The man's voice was amused when he posed his question, "Aren't you going to apologize for bumping into me?"
The color on Erika's cheeks deepened. "I was going to...," she started, but your beauty distracted me, she finished in her mind. She had guts sometimes, but not enough at this moment for those words to come out.
"But?" the man in front of her asked, raising one eyebrow.
"But... ah, I forgot?" Erika faltered, fidgeting with her fingers.
He laughed. He had a deep laugh, just as deep as his voice was. Erika didn't know what exactly was happening to her. Still, at that moment, she felt like sitting in front of the sunset with him, staring into his eyes forever.
"You could buy me a coffee to make up for that," the man said smoothly, looking down at her and not missing a beat. It was almost like they were the only ones in the coffee shop. That was how much he had captivated her.
Erika jumped on the opportunity to spend some time with him, so she nodded rapidly.
They walked to the counter without saying much. Erika kept sneaking looks at the stranger, and from what she noticed, he was staring at her too. Every time their eyes met, she turned beet red then looked away. It was one thing checking someone out, and another getting caught doing it.
He ordered his coffee and asked her to do the same. Erika did so, but not without throwing numerous glances at him. She could not keep her eyes off of him. Every time she opened her mouth to start a conversation so she could hear his beautiful voice again, it was like the words died on her lips.
It was annoying how awkward she was sometimes, especially when she really wanted to get to know the man in front of her.
Erika blinked when he handed her order to her. Had she lost herself in thought so long that she had paid without somehow realizing it?
"You thought I was going to let you pay?" the man asked with an amused look on his face.
"Well, who would turn down a free coffee?" Erika retorted with a small smile on her face.
"Touché," was the man's response, as they walked towards the door of the coffee shop. When they got out, they looked at each, both clearly at a loss of what to say. Or rather, not able to put all the thoughts going through their minds into words.
"I—do thank you for the coffee. It was a very nice thing to do," Erika said, looking up at the man with a smile on her face. Then she facepalmed mentally. Thank you for the coffee? It was a very nice thing to do? Of all the things to say.
"No problem," he said softly, looking absolutely engrossed with her face. Erika paused, waiting for him to say something. But he didn't. And the coffee was getting cold.
"Well then, goodbye," she said, then walked in the direction of her office, letting out a sad breath. Was she not appealing to this man? With the way he was looking at her, she thought he would have at least asked for her number. But nothing. All Erika hoped for was that she saw him again.
HE STARED AT THE GIRL walking down the street and shook his head. He had behaved like a bumbling idiot, that was for sure. He didn't know what exactly had happened, but when she looked up at him with those doe-like eyes, it was almost as if he had been hit by a truck. He had never felt this way for anyone. No one had ever managed to put that kind of feeling in him—especially not right after meeting them.
She was beautiful. Her eyes made him want to discover more about her. She had lips that were just craving his kisses. Her breasts were asking for him to squeeze and suck them. And her thighs were begging for him to slip between them and discover the treasure hidden there. She was the only woman that had made this much of an impression on him. He was sure she wasn't going to leave his mind. And he didn't even want her to. His only regret was the fact that he stood there like a nervous teenager and watched as the shy smiles came on and off her face, sneaked looks at her, then turned his head away when she caught him looking.
She looked fragile and innocent. He didn't want to scare her off by acting like a creep and asking for her number when they had exchanged just a couple of words.
Next time—because he would find her—was going to be different.
Chapter Two
"Your boss is an idiot," was the first thing Erika said when she entered the office. Jacob was standing there, tapping his leg on the tiled floor.
"Before you get into whatever story you have for me, could I have my coffee and muffins? Pretty sure it’s already cold because of how much time you spent there," he grumbled, taking them out of Erika's hand, which she remembered to pick up.
"Guess who is not getting his coffee tomorrow?" Erika taunted, before taking a sip of her coffee.
"Guess who is going to
meet with our prospective sponsor tomorrow?" Jacob retaliated, raising an eyebrow at Erika.
"You win," she grumbled, looking away. Erika was painfully shy sometimes. Being in the spotlight was not something she enjoyed, and she also did not want anyone to know that she was the brain behind this start-up. That's why Jacob handled all of the meetings. Besides, she was just 19, and knowing that she was that young was a deal-breaker for some people.
"So now that I am no longer hungry, what did you have to tell me?" he asked.
Erika blushed instantly. It was a dead giveaway. "You met someone? I thought that would never happen," he said, taking a sip of his coffee.
"Shut up, Jacob. I've met plenty of people," she defended.
"Yeah, like who?" Jacob asked, raising his insufferable brow again.
Erika had no witty comeback this time, so she shut her mouth stubbornly and turned her head away. She wasn't really keen on meeting people. It was usually awkward. Either because they were intimidating, and she ended up stuttering out two sentences throughout the evening, or because they didn't understand her wry sense of humor. Besides, most of the people that she
had met were 20-21, and they didn't have the best track history when it came to dating and serious relationships.
"Okay, okay, fine. You can stop with that look. Just tell me what happened to you," Jacob grumbled. He had not been working for Erika long, but they had clicked instantly. When he had seen her ideas and all the projects she had in mind for her little company, he knew that she was someone he wanted to work for. And he was happy that everything had worked out.
Erika beamed as she heard Jacob's words. Their relationship was a fun and relaxed one, and never once had he made some kind of perverse remark towards her. She had to admit that Jacob was attractive with his blue eyes and brown hair. But he just didn't pull her in.
"So I went to the coffee shop. And I met this man. Do you believe in love at first sight, Jacob?" Erika sighed, thinking back to the tall, brown-eyed man. Jacob shook his head. "You falling in love with someone you just met? That's just bullshit," he said, and Erika sighed.
"Okay, maybe it's not love. But I felt some kind of pull to this man. I've never felt like this before. I mean, his eyes. Everything about him. It was all very appealing. I don't even know how to explain this," she sighed again, shooting her now empty cup of coffee into the trash can.
"Are you sure you're not confusing sexual attraction for love? Lust at first sight, sure. But love? Nope."
Erika looked away from Jacob's piercing eyes. It was true that she didn't have much experience when it came to the opposite sex. But she was sure that she could at least recognize the difference between love and sexual attraction. With the stranger, it felt like so much more. It was almost like they had had a whole conversation with each other without bothering to exchange words. It was strange. But in a good way.
"I know the difference... I think. But Jacob, you've got to believe me, this was different. He had this energy around him..." Erika looked up and saw the skeptical expression on Jacob's face. She sighed. It seemed she had been doing a lot of that since she got back from the coffee shop. "You know what? It's okay. Let's just focus on whatever work we have to do."
Jacob instantly felt terrible. "Hey, hey. No. Tell me what happened with this guy. Did you get his number? Gave him yours? Are you going to see each other again then?"
Erika blushed. "He didn't ask for my number. And I didn't have the courage to ask him for his. I just feel so stupid. I mean, here I am imagining some connection with this stranger when he probably thought I was just really weird and awkward."
There's a pause, where Jacob didn't know what exactly to say to Erika to comfort her. She put a fake smile on her face and turned to him. "You know what, let's just forget about me, okay? Let's concentrate on more important things. Like the fact that we have interviews for the secretary position today."
Jacob pursed his lips and looked away. They had had a bad experience with an interviewee the previous day, and it was clear that Jacob didn't want to repeat the experience. So he changed the topic.
"Yeahhh, you got a letter."
"A letter? Who sends letters these days anymore?"
"Pierce Hunter, that's who," Jacob said, watching Erika's face contort in disgust. Pierce Hunter was the CEO of Vision50, a large company in the social media world. Since Erika's project had gained recognition, and she was getting emails from prospective sponsors, the man had made it his life's mission to torment her.
It started from wanting to see her, to sending her letters. He asked her to close her company and stop with her project if she did not want any trouble from him. All his letters, no matter how aggressive the message was, were always signed 'Cordially, Pierce Hunter.'
Like telling someone you wanted them to close their company was anything cordial.
"You can throw that in the trash. If I see 'Cordially, Pierce Hunter' one more time, I swear I'll puke," Erika said, then shuddered as if to add effect to her words.
Jacob burst out laughing and chucked the letter into the bin. It was no use reading it. Most of the other letters had the same goal: frighten Erika into closing her company. It was a shame that someone so eloquent was so... driven, in a very negative way.
"Anyways, are you ready to start the interviews?" Erika asked brightly, laughing when Jacob's expression turned sour. It was so fun to work with someone you actually liked. And Erika sincerely hoped he would always be there for her.
Chapter Three
Erika sighed as she walked into the coffee shop. For two days straight, she had been in this place, trying to bump into her stranger—yes, he was her stranger. But until something significant happened, he was going to remain her stranger. She hadn't seen this man since the first and only time they met, and she was about to give up.
Maybe he was from out of town and just happened to stop at this coffee shop before leaving her city. Perhaps he was going to remain that forever elusive stranger, who she would think about for the rest of her life. "Enough with this mental torture," she thought. She was just going to get her coffee and get back to work.
"So you're just going to ignore me?" she heard someone ask. Her eyes got wide. It was him! That was his voice.
"It's you!" she exclaimed, then blushed. She hadn't meant to be so loud, and it was annoying how her excitement always managed to get the best of her.
"Yes, it's me," the man said with an amused smile. "If you have some time, could we step out for a bit?"
He was asking a question. But the tone of his voice... it made Erika just want to do anything he said with no argument. And besides, she couldn't say no when she had been thinking about seeing this man again for two days straight. So she nodded.
They walked out, and he led her to some seats outside the coffee shop. She smiled at him as they sat opposite each other, then she averted her eyes. She didn't want to say the wrong thing at the wrong moment, so it was just better to look away. Maybe.
As soon as they sat, a waiter came outside and took their orders. It was silent until he went back into the coffee shop.
"You didn't come anymore," Erika said, then blushed when she realized how many ways her words could be taken.
"Come where princess?" he asked with a smirk, clearly catching on to the unintentional innuendo Erika had made.
"The coffee shop," she choked out, then said, "Remind me never to talk again in your presence."
The man laughed. His laugh again. It made Erika want to do things she had no idea about! How ludicrous was that?
"Why, princess? I happen to love your voice," the man said, and Erika blushed. She hated how easily she turned red. Like couldn't she just accept a compliment without competing with the color of a beet?
"Why princess? Don't get me wrong. It's nice and all. But it just feels so generic, almost like you forgot my name," she mused, sipping on the coffee that the waiter had placed in front of them.
"You can't forget something you don
't know," he said, looking at her intently. Erika was tempted to turn her head away. But she returned his glance, looking at him just as intently as he did her.
"Erika. My name is Erika," she said, still looking at the man. No matter how beautiful his eyes were, he wasn't going to intimidate her. She wasn't going to let him.
"Erika," he said, testing the name on his tongue. "I like it."
"Glad you do. My parents would be sad if you didn't," Erika joked. This is what she meant by people not getting her sense of humor. It was a little peculiar, but she thought she was a funny person, and that was all that mattered.
The man chuckled. "I'm Pierce," he offered. As soon as he said the name, Erika tensed a little. She knew that the name Pierce was a common one. But, after the countless letters she had received from the man telling her
what she should do with her company, the name quite literally gave her the creeps.
This Pierce noticed that something was off, though. "Is there anything wrong?" he asked, raising a concerned eyebrow.
"Ah, no. I just used to know someone with the name Pierce," she said and sighed unhappily.
"Ah. An ex, maybe?" This Pierce asked, leaning forward in his seat. It was almost like, for some strange reason, he was daring her to say yes.
Erika almost choked on her coffee but was able to keep it down. It would be quite sad if she sprayed coffee all over this man's white shirt.
He followed her hand as she placed the coffee on the table, then transitioned smoothly up to her face, settled on her lips for a moment, then moved up to her eyes. Erika was flustered.
"Well?" he prompted.
"Not an ex. Never in a million years would I think of dating that... individual. Just someone I used to know," she reiterated.
Pierce watched as Erika grew flustered under his gaze. He had never seen so much innocence mixed with so much spirit in his life. This was the most he had enjoyed talking to a woman. And they hadn't even spent that much time together. He loved how open she was, how you could clearly see what she was feeling on her face. She was an open book. But he was sure she had a couple more depths to her—depths he wanted to discover.
Kiss Me (My Stiff Competition, #1) Page 1
