When wrong feels so right

by Mia Ford

  Tanner, however, had taken the business all the way to the top. He, as far as I knew, had a wife at one point but chose his company over family. I felt like I was more like him, worried about the future more than I was about other people. Of course, that could also be because I had never actually been in a relationship that lasted more than a few weeks. I was too busy trying to make it to the top of my class to be worried about guys, and their immaturity and inability to decide on a goal-oriented future left me dumping most of the guys I dated after only a few weeks in. A relationship like that just wasn’t something I wanted to consume my mind at that point. Building my future was much more important to me, and it was already paying off. Tanner had given me a job with his company at a time he was getting ready to merge with another large financial firm, and I was going to get to be on the ground floor of it all. It was really freaking exhilarating, to say the least.

  I walked toward his office, excited to get my first day started. He called me in, and I stood in front of him, remembering doing the same when I was in my teens. He looked up and smiled, walking around the desk and embracing me as if I were family. He didn’t speak to my father anymore, but I knew he still cared.

  “Ava,” he said, leaning back. “I am so happy to have you here with us. I heard what an amazing job you did at Design Corp, our sister company, and I couldn’t help but get you here with us to do amazing things and bring the future of MJ into the next stage.”

  “Thank you so much for having me here, Mr. Johnson,” I said, smiling.

  “Call me Tanner.” He laughed. “And please have a seat.”

  I sat down in the chair facing his desk and looked around the room. His office looked like a giant bedroom without a bed. It was decorated in mahogany shelving, the rugs were dark reds and greens, and there were two couches and a coffee table facing the wall of televisions that he’d put up to follow the stock market. To the right was a shelf that had crystal vases filled with an assortment of whiskey and a painted self-portrait hanging above it. The only thing missing was a fireplace with a bear skin rug on the floor. An upper-class hunting lodge came to mind.

  I was nervous to start a conversation, but I knew I had to talk to him about my father. To this day, my father had blamed Tanner for the fact that he was not still part of MJ. I hadn’t told him where I was working, and I needed to be sure Tanner kept that to himself as well. I didn’t want to cause any problems at home, but I knew this kind of experience could catapult my career.

  “Tanner,” I said, folding my hands in my lap.

  “Yes,” he said putting down his file and looking at me.

  “I know that you and my dad, well, you aren’t on the best of terms,” I said nicely. “I wanted to know, well I guess, I more wanted to tell you that I haven’t let him know this is where I’m working now. I don’t plan on telling him either.”

  “I completely understand.” he chuckled. “Your father still has hard feelings toward me?”

  “Well, you know how he can hold a grudge.” I laughed. “I’m pretty sure he’s still mad from the time I spilled grape juice on him, and I was nine back then.”

  “I do miss him sometimes,” he said, laughing hard. “He would have loved where the company went, but his choice was family, and I can respect that.”

  “He’s happy,” I said, smiling. “Sometimes I think he wonders what could have been if he’d stayed at MJ, but then he sees me. We laugh and talk, and he remembers why he made the sacrifice.”

  “How’s your mother?”

  “Grumpy and snobby as always.” I chuckled. “I thought she would soften as she aged, but I was wrong. She’s a brick house now.”

  “She never liked me,” he said.

  I sat back, talking to him about the family, reminiscing about the times he would come over and barbecue when I was a kid and about all the memories he had of my dad and himself. He was really a great guy when you caught him at the right moment. He was also an incredibly handsome man. I had always had a thing for older men, and I could even remember crushing hard on Tanner when I was about sixteen, just about the time he and my father had parted ways. Sitting here in front of him, it was like he hadn’t aged a day. He was almost fifty years old, and I was half that age, but he always had some sweet young thing on his arm. It was no secret he was into the younger women.

  Tanner was never one to slack on his appearance, and from the look of how his muscles filled out the arms and chest of his designer shirt, he was still going to the gym on a regular basis. He had dark brown hair, almost black, with just the tiniest hint of silver when he turned his head toward the light. He kept it longer on top and pushed back, with the sides trimmed perfectly, as if he went by the barber’s every single morning. But that wasn’t the only thing that made him hot as hell. It was the kind of man he was, too. He was ambitious. Surrounded with the future of marketing and finance, he was goal driven, and work was what satisfied him about life. He didn’t take much of anything else seriously, including his relationships, and I kind of felt like I was the female version of him.

  Tanner’s strong will and desire to succeed was sexier than his biceps, and I couldn’t help but picture him close to me as I sat in the chair. I mean, there was no way I was going to have an affair with Tanner. He was too old for me and the head of a billion-dollar company, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t daydream about it. I had to get my kicks somewhere since my dating life was null and void except for the guy my mom had tried to set me up with from the country club. He was the most boring rich boy I had ever met, and I ended up leaving him at the restaurant and grabbing a cab while he was in the bathroom. I really didn’t know what I expected out of someone my mother had chosen.

  I went through the rest of the day following either Tanner or the head of finance around the building, learning what my role would be. The learning curve was steep, but I had enough education between college and my internship that I was only slightly overwhelmed. When I left that evening, I waved at Tanner, and I almost thought I could feel him staring at my legs as I walked. Maybe all the times throughout the day when I thought he’d been flirting, I might not have imagined it all. I put the thought out of my head, trying to keep myself on task, and took the elevator to the lobby where I walked outside and grabbed a cab to Pier 49, the bar where I was meeting my best friend, Brianna.

  Brianna was my voice of reason, the girl who kept my ambitious feet firmly planted on the ground. She didn’t let me get too far ahead of myself when I was running toward the edge. She was sassy and smart and always had men falling all over themselves for her, though she never really noticed. She was athletic with curvy hips, a tiny waist, and huge tits. Her long brown hair spilled out over her shoulders, and she hadn’t needed anything more than a touch of blush and a smile since we were in college.

  When I walked into the bar, I looked over at her and laughed as two guys were leaning against the bar, smiling at her flirtatiously. She had obviously gotten them to buy us our first round but quickly disposed of them as soon as I sat down. She was too funny, telling them I was her soon-to-be wife, and I was a man-hater so they should probably run off. She used that excuse every time, so I knew what face to give them as I walked toward them. They moved faster than I thought two drunk idiots could go.

  “Hey, beautiful lady,” I said, sitting down and kissing her cheek.

  “So.” She turned toward me. “How did the first day go at MJ?”

  I sighed with a bit of satisfaction. “It was awesome. A lot of information to take in.”

  “Was it weird working with your dad’s arch nemesis?”

  “No.” Her terminology cracked me up. “It wasn’t that bad actually. And it didn’t hurt that he was still hot as hell.”

  “You and older men.” She laughed. “But seriously, I remember him from your dad’s cookouts. He was pretty damn hot, even from a sixteen-year-old’s perspective.”

  “I know, right?” I stuck a cherry in my mouth and looked up at the television. “I mean, he w
as flirting with me, and when I left, I was pretty sure he was checking me out.”

  “Oh, my God,” she said, eating her cherry and staring at me. “You need to jump him.”

  “No,” I said with feigned shock. “I can’t do that. He’s my father’s old best friend and my boss for that matter.”

  We went off into a conversation about him more, but my mind lingered on that thought. What if I did jump him? What if I had the nerve to start some kind of sexual adventure with Tanner? I was being crazy, though. There was no way I could start my first professional job by fucking my boss. And God, if my father found out about that, I might just send him to an early grave. I needed to stay the course and focus on the job at hand, no matter how many times I imagined him naked.

  Chapter 3: Tanner

  I could still remember Ava as a young girl with awkward braces, beautiful eyes, and a slightly abnormal wit to her. When I came around back then, she had been just a little girl, running, playing, and gossiping with her friends. I was pretty sure the last time I saw her, she was about sixteen, but I never really thought much of it since she was so young. She was literally just my best friend’s kid that I’d been around since she was a baby.

  Now, though, she was so fucking hot, I couldn’t get her off my mind. Her thick thighs, perfect curves, and long, sexy hair were driving me nuts. She had these dark eyes that cut right through you, and her lips were so pouty, I couldn’t help imagining them wrapped around my cock. It was almost insane how much she had been on my mind. She was flirty when we’d met in my office the day before, and though I kept telling myself to relax, I thought it was pretty arousing. Bending her over my desk and fucking the hell out of her wouldn’t take a damn thing away from my day. If anything, it would make it a hell of a lot less boring.

  Ava, though, she worked for me now. It wasn’t like I’d run into her out at the bar. She was an employee of mine, and a young, ambitious woman. Her goals and drive reminded me a lot of myself, and I think that was part of what was attracting me to her so much. She wasn’t like her father, and she hated the way her mother was, dependent on her father’s wealth. I could see that resolve inside of her to succeed and make her own way.

  There weren’t very many women out there who weren’t looking for a man to take care of them, and she was one of them. I needed to remove those thoughts from my head because they were dangerous, both personally and professionally. I had made the mistake of screwing a girl from the office before, and it did not end well for either of us. Women, no matter how tough they are, always want more than I’m willing to give them. I didn’t know what Ava was looking for, but I knew for damn sure I wasn’t the guy to give it to her, even if I wanted to.

  I sat up in my chair, realizing that I had lost all track of time sitting there thinking about Ava. I glanced out of the office and saw her sitting at her desk, working diligently across the hall. She was biting her bottom lip and twirling her pen through her fingers as she concentrated. I was going to have to start working with my door closed if I didn’t want a fucking boner every five seconds. I needed to get control of myself around her, and that was the point of it all. I couldn’t afford distractions at such a crucial time with the merger, and I needed her to be on the same page, even though I didn’t want to say it like that. Maybe if she knew more about the company and where it was headed, she would understand our need for professionalism. Of course, at the same time, she had already been more than professional. Maybe I was the only one who needed that talk.

  It was lunch time, so I got up from my desk and grabbed my jacket, sauntering out of the office and looking around. My secretary had taken lunch and would be back any minute, and then I could leave as well. Ava looked up at me from her desk and smiled sweetly, forcing me to push back the flip-flop feeling in my stomach. I walked over and stood next to her desk, looking down at the workups I was having her do. They looked flawless, which was no surprise since she was first in her graduating class and hunted by several companies for her internship. While looking at her notes, I also happened to notice that her lightweight peach sweater hung a bit low, and I could see the edge of her pink bra, holding up her big, firm breasts. I cleared my throat and walked back to the other side.

  “I’m about to take lunch,” I said. “You want to come along?”

  “No,” she smiled. “I should stay and finish these up.”

  “Come on.” I chuckled. “I won’t tell the boss. Besides, I think it's important you know where we’re going in the future.”

  “Okay.” She looked and sounded confused.

  “The company.” I corrected myself, realizing how I must’ve sounded. “Where the company is going in the future.”

  “Right,” she said, shaking her head. “Okay, then. Let me grab my coat.”

  I smiled and watched her walk away in her black, wide-legged pants that hugged her perfect ass just right. I looked away as she turned back to me and smiled, as if I hadn’t been checking out her assets. With my hand on her lower back, I guided her to the elevators. We stood awkwardly next to each other as the elevator made its way down, the tension thick between us. We went to a restaurant about one block away, a nice Italian spot that was quiet and put together. They gave us a seat in the back and to the right, which normally I’d be pissed about, but it gave us a bit more privacy than sitting right in the front. As we ate our appetizer and waited on the main courses, I started by giving her the history of MJ after her father had left the company. She looked at me wide-eyed as I told her about all the trips, all the sacrifices I had made, and how much of a roller coaster it had been.

  “Wow,” she said, shaking her head. “I don’t know how you do it and still look so young. I’d be gray and ready for retirement by now.”

  “You kind of get used to it after a while.” I chuckled. “The highs are good, but you make sure not to take the lows too seriously or you’ll drive yourself nuts. Everything passes. It’s just how you handle it that really decides whether or not you come out on top.”

  “And now?” She looked at me with a raised eyebrow as she took a bite of her salad.

  “Now,” I said, letting out a deep breath. “Now we move forward with a very big step. This merger will potentially collect hundreds of new, large clients. It could put a structure in place that MJ has never been able to execute because I could only handle so much as one man. Our board will be stronger, our management will be stronger, and our services will triple, and all under the strong commitment of service that I built this company on.”

  “That sounds amazing.” She smiled. “And I’m so excited to be part of it.”

  For the rest of lunch, we talked about the details of the merger, how she was going to fit in during that process, and what she had to look forward to in the future in her position. She was going to be a huge asset to me, which made it all the more important for me to keep control of my urges. However, as she leaned forward and listened to me, batting her long eyelashes, I couldn’t help but slide in a few flirtatious remarks. She didn’t even blink when it happened. As the conversation continued, there was quite a bit of flirty banter, and I couldn’t help but watch her face as it flushed several times. It was almost sexy how red her cheeks got, but that didn’t take away from the fact that she was dishing it out as much as I was serving it.

  When lunch was over, I suggested we walk across the street and grab some coffee to take back because the breakroom had terrible stuff. She made a joke about me buying better coffee, and I thought back to when I regularly did that kind of stuff, when the office was small enough that I knew everyone’s names. I had been so obsessed with growth that I’d thought that was a bad thing. Now, I can barely remember my secretary’s name much less the people in the different departments or offices. I knew that was part of the deal of expanding my company larger and larger, but it was still a shame I hadn’t appreciated the personal touch while it lasted. Maybe, though, I’d up the brand of coffee that was delivered to the employees throughout the company, so they co
uld at least have a decent cup while they slaved away in their cubicles.

  We grabbed ourselves some coffee and headed back towards the office, not really walking at a major pace. She talked to me about college and about her internship and how much it changed her way of thinking for her future. She was thrilled to be on the ground floor of the merger, and she felt like there were businessmen and women out there who spent their whole lives in their careers and never got to experience something like this.

  I was glad she was excited. It put me at ease, considering I was a bit nervous about the change. However, I had never been one of those people who easily embraced change. Being in my line of work, I had to accept it, but I didn’t like it at all. Then again, with change came risk, and I had seen companies go through major shifts and never return. That was why I had been in negotiations for this merger for years before actually moving forward with it. I wanted to make sure it was the best possible opportunity and fit what my vision for the future of MJ was.

  It was a considerable challenge getting so many different minds on board, especially since the other company and its CEO was just as picky as I was. In the end, though, I was still young in their eyes and had many years left to run and build the company, while they were ready to retire and play golf. One day, I would be at that point, but for now, I was walking into the lobby of my company’s main offices next to one hell of a sexy, smart girl, and making my way back up to the first leg of changes for the company. I stepped to the side and let Ava go in first, glancing down at her tight ass as we entered the elevator. When the doors shut, we stood close, holding our coffees, one of which was for the secretary. Our shoulders brushed and electricity shot through my chest.