Love in an Elevator

by Cassandra Cole

  LOVE IN

  AN ELEVATOR

  By

  Cassandra Cole

  Copyright © 2016 Digital Hearts Publishing.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. While, as in all fiction, the literary perceptions and insights are based on life experiences and conclusions drawn from research, all names, characters, places and specific instances are products of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously. No actual reference to any real person, living or dead, is intended or inferred.

  WARNING!!

  This book contains explicit content and

  is intended for mature audiences only.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  This book contains a large collection of new stories and a wide variety of bonus stories. Including:

  Love In An Elevator

  Maid of Honor

  Dream Girls

  Best Friends

  LOVE IN

  AN ELEVATOR

  By

  Cassandra Cole

  CHAPTER ONE

  Phoebe Monroe somehow knew, as she woke up to the early morning sunlight filtering in through the half-closed curtains of her hotel room, that this day was going to be something special.

  She was young, and new to the world of business conferences, but her boss had entrusted her with the task of making the company look good during this weekend-long event.

  She had arrived a day ahead of time to ensure that everything went off without a hitch.

  If she played her cards right, there could be a promotion in this for her—or at least a significant bonus at the end of the year. Either way, it was worth it to show up for this all-expense paid weekend in a hotel in the middle of nowhere.

  She had hoped, when she had first heard about the trip, that it might take her somewhere fun, or at least somewhere warm and sunny.

  The longer she thought about it, however, the more she realized that the destination was not really the point. No matter where she ended up, she was not going to waste her time out partying like many of her peers likely would.

  This was an excellent opportunity to show her boss what she was made of, and she was not going to ruin that by letting her wild side show.

  She agreed without so much as a second thought, and the weekend of the conference arrived quickly.

  Arriving a day early was just one of the many ways Phoebe had planned to impress her peers.

  Unfortunately, she had not accounted for the fact that many of them probably would not be showing up until the last minute, and likely did not care at all whether or not she was there a day early or a month early.

  She had arrived after a late flight the night before, to find that she was the first person aside from one guest speaker to check in to the conference hotel.

  After a few quiet drinks from the hotel bar, she had gone to bed early, and woken with the sun the next day.

  “I’m going to do great,” she said to herself, before she ever got out of bed. She laid there among the comfortable, clean white sheets of the king-sized bed, and relaxed for a while as the sun slowly rose.

  Phoebe was always the kind of person who had to talk herself up before she could make a move in life.

  She was a driven, professional kind of person, to be sure, but she got nervous, just like anybody else.

  At only twenty-five years old, she was the youngest employee at her office who was not a college intern.

  She had moved up the ranks a little bit since her entry-level job a few years ago, and she showed a lot of promise.

  Her boss frequently liked to give her small chances to prove herself.

  This was the first time she had been sent on a bigger, more important mission.

  CHAPTER TWO

  The conference itself was not one of the biggest events of the year, but it did give Phoebe the chance to discuss some upcoming projects from her office with a handful of important people who would be in attendance.

  She was expected to summarize these projects at a small discussion panel on Sunday afternoon, and to answer any questions that might arise in response.

  She and her boss both agreed that there probably would be no questions, but that simply making the presentation on her own was great experience.

  Phoebe was excited to have this kind of chance after just a few years with her company.

  “The day won’t start itself,” she told herself after lying in bed and thinking about the upcoming weekend for a little longer.

  Finally, she rolled out from between the sheets and stumbled to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

  Most of the events were not scheduled to begin until later that night, but she thought she would spend some time getting a little work done in the lobby in the meantime.

  If nothing else, it would give her the chance to do some people-watching and check out the other attendees as they trickled in for the conference.

  About a half hour later, she was dressed and ready to go. Her short blonde hair was cut into a cute bob that she had slightly curled and styled into the perfect shape, which framed her face in just the right way. She had accented her pale skin and bright blue eyes with just a little bit of natural makeup, to give off the appearance of effortless beauty.

  Although she had not been a part of the conference scene before, she understood how far a little extra attention to her appearance could take her.

  Surrounded by powerful men, she was not afraid to play to her sex appeal, at least a little bit. To complete her ensemble, Phoebe had selected a simple green sleeveless dress in a professional style, cinched at the waist with a brown belt, and a pair of work-appropriate heels.

  She had gone back and forth between wearing pantyhose or leaving her legs bare, but ultimately chose sheer hose for that added bit of maturity. Pleased with her appearance, she grabbed her favorite brown handbag, her laptop, and her paperwork, and scurried out the door.

  When she reached the elevator, she found it occupied by one other person.

  The figure in the elevator belonged to a tall, tanned woman with long, straight black hair and dark eyes.

  She was wearing a dressy black business suit with smart heels, which led Phoebe to believe she was probably a part of the conference as well.

  The two of them rode a few floors down in silence, until the other woman disembarked on the second floor.

  “Love the dress,” she said to Phoebe as she exited the elevator.

  Phoebe caught herself blushing. She had not been complimented like that by another woman in a long time, and this had come so suddenly that she had been completely unprepared for it.

  “Thank you!” she said, unsure if the other woman had heard her or not.

  She might not have known it at the time, but Phoebe was destined to run into the same woman again, in the same elevator, just a few short hours later.

  CHAPTER THREE

  There wasn’t a lot going on today, either, but at least the conference hotel was a little bit more active than it had been the night before.

  Phoebe parked herself on one of the large sofas in the hotel’s lounge, and spread her work out in front of her. She was determined to get ahead of the game by not missing out on any valuable work time while she was away at the conference.

  Although she was positive most of the other attendees would be happy to have a few days away from work, Phoebe was dead set on keeping up with her work anyway.
<
br />   She was determined, and she wanted that to show to her boss when she returned from her time away without missing a beat.

  Unfortunately, she could not quite seem to focus on the work in front of her as she let her mind drift casually back to the woman in the elevator.

  She had been the picture of beauty, dressed in stylish work clothes and poised as though she could take on the world. She was everything Phoebe wanted to be, and more, and it was a little bit of a turn-on.

  Phoebe had always been attracted to women who seemed like they had some power, whether that be over her or over someone else, and this mystery elevator woman was no different.

  Although it was a little self-indulgent, Phoebe let herself think about the woman for a while longer, imagining what she must be like in her work environment.

  She was probably the type who would raise her voice if need be, but get most of her goals accomplished with her beauty and prowess alone. Phoebe liked that kind of woman.

  She let herself think about her personal fantasies for just a little bit longer, but as she felt her heart beat faster she realized she was getting a little too excited, especially for a public place.

  She had to get back to work. She stood up and took a quick walk around the lounge before settling back down, forcing herself to think about her work instead of the woman in the elevator.

  Time passed quickly, and soon enough Phoebe found herself thinking about some lunch. She gathered her work and decided to go back up to her room, drop everything off, and then head back out to grab a bite at one of the little bistros that lined the street surrounding the hotel.

  With her bag slung over one shoulder, she boarded the elevator, and rode it to the second floor before it dinged and came to a halt.

  The woman from before joined her. Phoebe felt herself turning pink just remembering the thoughts she had indulged in about this woman not too long ago.

  She looked at her own feet, pretending to be lost in thought about something, as the woman pressed the button for the floor of her choice.

  They rode in silence together for a few more floors, until suddenly, the elevator came to a grinding halt, and the lights blinked out.

  “What the hell?” the other woman said. Phoebe was too shocked to say or do anything.

  A voice came over the intercom in the elevator’s control panel and warned the two women that there was something wrong with the elevator. Duh, Phoebe thought.

  “Please remain calm,” the voice said. “Do not attempt to leave the elevator. Maintenance has been alerted to the problem, and advise that the elevator should be up and running within one to two hours.”

  “One to two hours?” Phoebe said. Her voice sounded very thin in the dark elevator. The voice on the intercom had already disappeared, leaving the two women alone to think about what they had just heard.

  It looked like they were going to be stuck, and stuck for a long time.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Phoebe leaned against the wall, then slid down to sit on the floor, hugging her knees in spite of the fact that she was wearing a skirt.

  Things were looking pretty bleak, and she wasn’t too worried about the other woman seeing up her skirt at this point.

  The backup generator lights inside the elevator kicked on then, bathing everything in a strange blue-white fluorescent glow that some how made her feel even worse than she already did.

  “Cheer up,” said the other woman as she slid down to sit beside Phoebe. “I’m sure they’ll have us moving again in no time.”

  “You heard them,” Phoebe said bitterly. “They said it could be a couple of hours.”

  “We might as well get to know each other, then.” The other woman held out her hand and smiled. “My name is Zoe Allen. I’m thirty-four years old and vice-president at my office. And you are?”

  “Phoebe Monroe.” Phoebe returned the handshake and felt herself loosening up a little bit already. “I’m twenty-five, and I haven’t gotten very far at work yet. I’m still climbing the ranks.”

  “Good for you.” Zoe leaned back to rest her head against the wall of the elevator. “I hate these conferences, don’t you?”

  Phoebe shrugged. “To be honest, this is the first time I’ve ever been to one. I was supposed to give a presentation on Sunday, too.”

  “You’re not going to be stuck in here till Sunday, don’t worry!” Zoe laughed. “You’ll be ready to give your presentation. I promise that.”

  Phoebe rolled her eyes a little bit, but gave a good-natured smile. “I don’t know how you can promise something like that, but I think I’ll take your word for it.”

  “This is a pretty terrible first conference, though, huh? Getting stuck on an elevator with a complete stranger in the middle of your first day?”

  “Definitely.” Phoebe nodded, then stretched out her legs in an attempt to get comfortable. It didn’t help very much.

  The floor of the elevator was hard wood, and a little bit slippery, which made it even less comfortable somehow. Still, she told herself, she was in this for the long haul.

  No sense worrying about how much her legs were already starting to hurt.

  She glanced over at Zoe and felt herself blush a little bit. The other woman was sitting closer than she had realized, and she smelled so nice.

  It had been a while since Phoebe had been this near another woman in any kind of a close setting, and her lack of intimate contact was beginning to get to her.

  Simply smelling another woman was enough to set her off. She had to think about something else, fast, so she said the first thing that popped into her mind.

  “Thanks for complimenting my dress earlier.”

  Zoe looked confused for a moment, before the realization dawned on her.

  “Oh yeah! I had almost forgotten about that,” she said with a smile. “It looks amazing on you, by the way. I don’t see a lot of women who can pull of that shade, but you do it with a lot of class.”

  Zoe’s kind words did not help Phoebe get her mind off of how attractive she found the other woman. In fact, the conversation was making her heart do leaps in her chest, and she was afraid Zoe would notice.

  They were sitting so close to each other that it was probably very unlikely that Zoe hadn’t already caught her deepening blush as it was.

  Still, Phoebe knew better than to let herself lose her cool. This older woman could potentially be an important peer, and someone she should get to know.

  She might be able to help Phoebe advance her career in some way, or become a useful contact at another office.

  It was definitely not okay for Phoebe to sit there imagining what the other woman’s skin would feel like, or how her kiss might taste.

  Phoebe wanted to shake her head to try to clear those thoughts out of her mind, but that would only draw even more attention.

  It had just been too long since she had been with another woman.

  She had always loved women, and always been positive of that fact, but it had become more and more difficult to meet fellow ladies who were interested in her advances as she entered the working world.

  College had been a different story, but ever since she had graduated, she had found herself more or less alone.

  She felt a little too old for partying, and even if she had wanted to hook up with someone, her devotion to her job kept her from really ever trying.

  Now that she found herself wedged into a stopped elevator next to an older woman who smelled like a goddess, she was beginning to think that she might have made some bad choices in her past.

  She hoped that Zoe would take her silence as simply a pensive mood, and let her be alone with her thoughts for a while.

  She was happier simply thinking about the other woman, rather than trying to talk to her.

  She had been out of the loop for so long that she had no idea how to flirt appropriately anymore. Of course, she could not be too sure whether or not this other woman would even be interested in the first place, although a quick glance at
her hands proved that she was not married. At the very least, she was not wearing a ring.

  Zoe, however, was much more interested in talking than Phoebe was. She nudged the younger woman with her shoulder and said, “So, tell me a little bit more about yourself?”

  “I don’t know what to tell you,” said Phoebe. She noticed how high her voice had become, and hoped that Zoe did not catch that as well.

  “Tell me about your home life? Are you on your own, or do you have a roommate? Boyfriend? Do you live with your parents?”

  Phoebe stiffened at the question. She had definitely noticed the way Zoe casually threw out the inquiry about whether or not she had a boyfriend, and she could not help but wonder if there was more to that than simple idle conversation.

  She glanced back at the older woman, who showed no sign of meaning anything by it.

  Still, it was hard to ignore a question like that, especially after they had just met.

  “I live on my own,” said Phoebe. “Just me. My parents live in the same town, but we’re still nearly an hour away from each other. I haven’t got anyone else in my life right now.”

  She steered clear of the term “boyfriend,” hoping Zoe might notice.

  Whether or not Zoe paid heed to the subtle hint, she did not show it in her face.

  She simply nodded and adjusted her position so that she could sit a little bit more comfortably.

  “I’m on my own, too,” she said. “I don’t live near any of my family, and I haven’t got anyone special in my life right now, either.”

  Phoebe could not help but wonder if the lack of the word “boyfriend” in Zoe’s response had been deliberate as well.

  She met the other woman’s gaze, and searched for some sign in her expression that would give a hint as to what her intentions were.

  Zoe had an excellent poker face, however, and Phoebe could not break through the mystery.

  “Since we’re stuck here together for a little while, I think it’s important to be completely honest with each other,” Zoe said, when Phoebe did not respond to her.