by Brinda Berry
Well, that wasn’t encouraging. “The correct employee response is yes.”
“And the correct employer invitation doesn’t include, ‘It’ll be fun.’“ Her tone is on the flirty side of scolding.
I grin and tuck my head down to study some papers on the desk. “I’ll make it worth your time.”
“Hmm…” she responds with a thoughtful air.
“There may be something extra in it for you. A bonus.” I keep my voice low and suggestive while I raise one eyebrow.
Our banter has taken a pulse-pounding plunge into something beyond teasing. Veronica holds my gaze but she’s blushing. Her gaze drops suddenly, making me wonder what thought provoked her response.
“I need to know what you expect.” Her gaze meets mine in a steady challenge for honesty.
“I’m not expecting anything, but I want everything. That’s the truth. But the things I want have nothing to do with being your boss. I shouldn’t have made the software training comment. At this point, I’m saying anything to get you there. Even if it means pulling the boss card.”
Her eyes are wide and the color in her cheeks pretty.
I know I’m close to getting a yes, so I grasp for anything to convince her. “If you’re asking me if we’ll have separate rooms, the answer is yes. If you want that. I’d do anything you want. I’ll ask for a room down the hall or on a different floor. I won’t even stay in the same hotel if I have to.” I stop talking and get up from my chair.
The walk from my desk to hers is only seconds, but the air in the room thickens with anticipation. She doesn’t break eye contact. It emboldens me to go with my instincts.
I pull her to her feet and place my hands on the sides of her waist. She doesn’t resist, trusting me in the moment. There’s not much room between her chair and the desk. I’m crowding her space, claiming the right to touch her, choosing to let her know.
Her face is tilted, lips parted, breathing quick. Waiting.
I lower my head and touch my lips to hers. She responds to my light kiss in invitation. The tip of her tongue darts out to wet her lips and I can’t stop my smile.
“Is this okay?” I ask, my lips centimeters from hers, our breath mingling.
“Yes. More than okay.”
“Good.” I bend my head and kiss her deeply, my hands moving of their own will across the small of her back. Her mouth tastes sweet and warm. A dessert meant to savor.
Her hands grip my shoulders, tightening in a way that speaks of her fading self-control. I feel the way I’m affecting her.
I grab her waist and lift her onto the side of her desk. I should be more aware she wears a skirt and that I’ve gone beyond the simple kiss I wanted to take. The fact is I want to look into her eyes and know what she feels. Her heated gaze mirrors my thoughts. Closer. It’s all that matters in this moment. A need to have her body pressed against mine—surrendering her inhibitions, her fears, her doubts.
Veronica’s skirt pulls high, exposing an indecent view of bare skin and I allow myself to enjoy it. The tease of what I can’t see as much a turn-on as what I can.
I step between her knees and she draws in a quick breath. Her thighs part and I move between them. Put my hands on the sides of her head and bring her mouth to mine. She moves her hands to the back of my neck and tugs me closer.
Her mouth is enough. I could die an almost happy man with those lips open to me.
I moan when she slides to the edge of the desk. I can’t stop myself from feeling more skin. My hands glide over the tops of her thighs and I stop with a screeching brake I hear in my mind.
She’s not told me exactly what happened to her in the past and my imagination has been a bastard. Do I stay or back away?
“Collin.” She whispers my name in a blend of moan and praise. I don’t want to imagine her ever saying another man’s name in this reverent way.
I’m torn between backing away with an erection I won’t be able to hide and admitting to her what she does to me. I ignore the edge of her skirt, my fingers itching to cruise forward into that paradise so close.
Veronica moves her hands to my lower back and presses me to her. Her sexy body urges me to forget where we are. She’s responsive to every flick of my tongue against hers, every caress of my fingers, and every move of my lips as I abandon her mouth and trail hot, hungry kisses down the side of her neck.
Her head falls back and I swear her heartbeat seduces me with its rhythmic pound against my lips.
Her head lifts and I meet her gaze. She’s so damn beautiful, in every way. Her blue eyes drown me in lust and honesty.
I thread my fingers into her hair and thrust my tongue in her mouth in a deep kiss, matching the slow thrust of my hips against the heat she offers. I haven’t dry humped a girl since I was sixteen, but shit. She wants me.
Veronica pushes at my chest and it takes a second to register.
I pull air into my lungs. “You want to stop?”
“No. But we need to.”
I’m not a dick, but it takes another few seconds for her words to process. My body says another kiss and she’ll forget her reservations. Another kiss and I could slide my hands under her no-man-could-resist skirt. Another kiss and I could get her out of those panties.
“Yes,” I say and nod. Whatever program she’s on, I’m there. My head is in the game. Celibacy for a little while longer? No problem. If I can get my body to join the program, I’ll be coasting. “Sorry. I’m doing a poor job of proving you are safe from me.”
She puts her fingers to my lips and scoots back on the desk. I will my eyes to ignore her bare legs and the bunched skirt, a picture perfect fantasy that’s doing nothing to lessen my hard-on.
Veronica blinks, shakes her head, and gives me a sweet smile. “Do we have a CLOSED sign for the front door?”
My brain is on erotic stimulation vacation. I breathe in the scent of her hair as I look away to stare at the office front door. “I don’t know.”
She pushes me back and drops from the desk onto her feet.
I’m spellbound as she grabs a marker and writes CLOSED on a piece of copy paper. Her hand shakes as she fumbles to put the cap on the marker. “Put this up and lock the door.”
Her words leave me mute, dry mouthed, and as awkward as a teenager. “I don’t want to rush this.”
Veronica strolls to the staircase and stops to glance back at me. “I’ve never wanted anything more in my life. But…” She looks everywhere in the room, her gaze avoiding me.
“No ‘buts’. You have to be sure.” I walk to her and put my hands on the sides of her face, forcing her to look into my eyes. “There’s no pressure.”
“I’ve had some things happen that have scared me. But you do the opposite. You make me believe in something different.” She places her hands on mine.
I take her hands and gently bring them to my lips. She gives a slow blink.
“Do you know what you do to me? I can’t think about anything but you.” I close my eyes and kiss her knuckles.
Veronica lowers her head and looks away as if my gaze is too intense, too probing.
I release one hand and stroke her cheek with my finger. “I don’t want you to think this is a line. You should understand something. If this were just about sex, it would be easy. But it’s obviously not. When I look at you, when I’m with you, everything else that doesn’t make sense in the world fades away. There are things I let get to me. It’s like I can’t please anybody. Not with you … with you, I feel like I do things right.”
She tries to look away, but I tip my head to gaze into her eyes.
I lick my lips, anxious to kiss her again. “I’m warning you. I’m not going to be satisfied with less. It’s you and me. You make me want everything. I want you—body and soul.”
“Go lock the door, please,” she whispers.
Without a backward glance, she climbs the stairs.
Less than sixty seconds later, I stand awkwardly at the doorway to the loft. Veronica sits o
n the futon with her hands in her lap.
“Hey.” I move toward her slowly, as if chasing a skittish rabbit. No sudden movements.
“Hi,” she says, almost shyly. Her boldness from a moment ago is gone. She scoots over and I sit beside her.
I lean in and give her a slow, soft kiss, tracing the bones of her shoulders and back with my hands. “You feel so incredible.”
Her lips form a smile against mine. “You, too.”
“Want to go slow or fast?” I whisper, trailing kisses down her neck.
“Yes,” she says.
I laugh at her response. I pull her onto my lap, the wickedly short skirt pulling up to reveal her thighs. I kiss her deeply and run my hand over silky skin. A groan escapes my mouth as her hands move underneath my shirt.
“I might like your hands as much as I like your kissing,” she says.
“That’s good. Maybe you’ll find other things I’m good at.” I reach for the buttons of her shirt.
Veronica moves from my lap and gets to her feet. She pulls me to stand with her and she unbuttons her blouse while I watch, my heart thrumming. Her shirt comes off and then mine. My pants and her skirt. A pile of our reservations shed on the floor at our feet.
We stand unabashed, inches apart. Veronica in her lacy purple bra and panties. Me in my boxers. I trace her curves with my gaze.
“You’re good at stripping too,” she says.
I can’t stop the wolfish grin. “Wait until we get to this next part.”
And then I pull her body to mine.
20
Veronica
Malerie stands in her white kitchen waving around a wooden spoon in dictator fashion. Aaron, lead singer of Toledo, is on the other end of the line as I listen on speakerphone. Although Jelly Bean Queen signed Toledo on their label only last year, they’re on a fast-track to stardom. Namely because of Malerie and Collin’s marketing skills.
I stir pecans into the bowl of brownie batter and grin to myself at her tone. She motions with her spoon and I push the bowl over to her. It’s our second cooking session and Malerie acts as though I’m a culinary arts professor instead of a girl using a brownie mix.
Malerie stirs. “I told you I don’t have anything to do with your fan club. Get yourself a secretary or a fan club president or a groupie, but don’t look at me.”
Aaron Delaroix has the smoothest voice in music according to Malerie, but he’s not smooth enough to escape her attitude. “Calm down. All I said is that I thought you were taking care of getting them the passes won on the web contest.”
She smiles at the phone. “You know I love you guys, but I’m not your mother.”
“Or secretary,” he mutters. “What about the new girl you hired. Can I borrow her?”
“Veronica is Collin’s assistant and there will be no borrowing.” Malerie rolls her eyes at me.
“Just until I find someone to do this fan club stuff. When Collin put it on the website, it exploded. Mason’s mom says she won’t do it anymore.” Aaron’s voice is pleading.
I dip my finger into the batter and taste it. “What does he need done?” I whisper to Malerie.
“Hey, who’s with you?” Aaron asks.
“Nobody,” Malerie says and shakes her head no. “Send an email to me with a list of stuff you need and I’ll see if Veronica has time for any of it. But there’s no guarantee. This is not in the contract. Bye, Aaron.”
“Bye, Malerie. Bye, mystery girl.” He laughs and disconnects.
I grab the rectangle cake pan and hand Malerie the non-stick spray can. “I could help him. Collin doesn’t give me enough to stay busy all day.”
“You are not a secretary. And I’m not having anyone treat you like one.”
“What’s the difference between secretary and assistant?” I smirk at her and point to a spot on the pan she’s missed with the spray.
“You shouldn’t be either one. You should be in college.”
I flip through one of ten cookbooks Malerie’s stacked on the counter. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m not meant for college.”
“Why not?” She steals another taste of batter.
I shrug. “I was going to save and go, but I don’t even know what I’d study.”
She snorts. “No one knows that the first year. Wait. Ace knew. He’s not normal though.”
“And you. You know.”
“I think I do now. But until I started, I thought I was going to be at some Ivy League school majoring in comp sci.”
“Computer programming doesn’t seem like you.”
“No. But the point is we’re young and can change our minds. This is, like, when we’re supposed to be finding ourselves.”
“I think you know what you want. Look at you. A business, a home, a soon-to-be hottie husband. Maybe a baby soon?”
She puts the can of non-stick into the cabinet and turns to grin at me. “No babies for a while. I do good to feed our dogs.”
I glance up, surprised. So much for my speculation.
She returns to the bar and pulls the mixing bowl to her, and then pours the chocolate batter into the pan. “What did you do before you moved here? Or was this your first job?”
“Worked at a convenience store.” A stab of homesickness slices my heart. Gunner and the store are never far from my mind, but I’ve thought of them less often in the past days.
“Did you like that?” Malerie’s tone is neutral as a referee calling a penalty.
“It was okay,” I answer without looking at her. “It helped my brother. He could trust me to balance the register every day, keep the books, that kind of thing.”
“Gunner?” she asks. “He’s your brother, right?”
“Um-hmm.” I turn the oven to 350 degrees. “Preheat the oven first and then you put the pan in and start timing.”
She nods. “You don’t talk about him much.”
I shrug. “What’s there to say?”
She stops licking the batter from the spoon. “You miss him?”
“Yes.” A lump the size of an asteroid sits in my throat. “I do.”
“Can’t he come and visit?” The oven timer beeps and Malerie grabs the pan to place it in the oven. She carefully sets the brownies inside and looks back at me.
I think about this for a minute. He can’t leave the store unattended. He won’t like seeing me with Collin because he never likes anyone I date. More than that, I don’t know if I can stand his sad face. The expression that says he thinks I’ve deserted him. “No.”
“That was sure a definitive answer.” She comes to stand beside my stool and props herself on her elbows. “Why do I sense there’s a story here?”
“There’s not one. I love him dearly, but I can’t depend on him forever.”
My company smartphone buzzes and Gunner’s name flashes across the screen. Collin insisted I give out the new number and quit carrying two phones. “Hey,” I say and hold up a finger to Malerie to let her know I’ll be back.
“Hi. You doing okay?” he asks.
I walk into the living area and peek through the wood shutters. From this vantage point, I barely see Ace and Collin floating in the pool. “Yeah. Fine.” Seeing Collin’s head makes me smile. He’s wearing a cap and dark sunglasses propped on them instead of on his eyes. As if he feels my gaze, he turns the raft around so he faces the carriage house. He probably can’t even tell I’m on the other side of the shutters, but I wiggle my fingers at him through the opening.
“Veronica? You there?”
“Yeah. Is everything all right?”
He doesn’t answer right away. “Sure. Fine. I wanted to make sure the guy’s treating you right. And your work is okay, right? Do you need money?”
“Gunner, stop worrying. I’m good here.”
“Well…” He’s silent for several seconds. “I need to go. I have a lot to do. Call me if you need me.”
“Okay. Bye.”
The line goes dead. I close my eyes and make an effort to breathe deeply, to calm
my racing heart at the thought of Gunner alone.
I turn to see Malerie standing close.
“Everything okay?” She tilts her head, a concerned furrow to her brow.
I pocket my phone and walk past her to the kitchen. “Sure.”
Malerie doesn’t believe me. I can tell by her narrowed eyes, but instead of quizzing me more, she pats me on the shoulder. “Chocolate time.”
* * *
We stand in the kitchen with the guys, waiting for Ace to take the first bite of brownie. If it wouldn’t hurt Malerie’s feelings, I would laugh. No one can ruin a brownie mix. Not even Malerie.
Ace does this ecstasy-in-my-mouth groan. “Baby, this is why I’m marrying you.”
“Yeah. You are such a liar, but thanks.” Malerie smiles around her bite of brownie.
The guys stand in their swim trunks looking tan and relaxed after spending hours in the sun. Malerie’s cooking coup de gras would make the day perfect if not for the phone call from Gunner.
Collin moves to stand behind me and casually puts his hands on my shoulders. He leans near my ear and whispers, “What do you think about heading out?”
“Okay.” I rise from my barstool with a quiet plop of my sandaled feet. “Let me grab my bag.”
“Thanks, guys. It’s been great. We’re going to call it a day.” Collin slings his arm across my back.
“I had fun. See you two later.” I wave at them as we walk to the door. “Malerie, let me know what the guy wants me to do.”
A few minutes later, we are halfway down the driveway when Collin turns to me with a questioning look. “What was that about with Malerie?”
“What?”
“Who wants you to do something?” His tone is not exactly happy.
“The guy, Aaron, from Toledo asked if I could help him with the fan club. Something about managing backstage passes and prizes.”
“That’s unacceptable.”
I glance sharply at him. “Are you telling me I shouldn’t do it?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
I give a slow, calming blink. “I thought doing this would help you. Since the web and marketing business means customer service, right? The band is fairly new and well…” My throat is tight, so I don’t finish. Collin is my boss and he’s ordered me not to do it. Still, I press my lips together to stop myself from saying I think it’s asinine.
