Red Hot Crush: A Steamy Older Man Office Romance

by Mia Madison

  But his mind was on the company. “Thank you, Kait. You saved my reputation—and the company’s—and I can’t thank you enough.”

  “Just doing my job,” I said.

  “I apologize for not seeing earlier exactly how well you do the job. But you’re going to get your shot starting Monday.”

  “Thank you for the promotion,” I said.

  “It comes with a raise,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll put it to good use.”

  The twinkle in his eye made me sure he was thinking about the many repairs my home needed. But then his expression turned serious again. “How’d you see it?”

  He was talking about the bug in the app. “I didn’t, at first.”

  “Neither did we. In fact, none of us had ever heard of that kind of code being a potential vulnerability.”

  “One of my professors in school mentioned it. Well, mentioned the possibility. But it was just a theory at that point. I don’t think he’d ever seen it in a program, and I hadn’t either until the morning of the trade show.”

  Tyler steepled his long fingers together, looking at me thoughtfully. “You know, I’ve been thinking that someone who’s fresh out of school is inexperienced. But maybe it also means that they’re more familiar with the latest happenings in our field.”

  “That’s a nice way of looking at it.”

  He tilted his head to the side. “I can admit it when I make a mistake.”

  “Just the one?” I asked.

  He grinned, thinking I was teasing him. “I guess you’re right, there were two. Underestimating your ability and making the app vulnerable in the first place.”

  “So you admit you made two mistakes.”

  Tyler cocked an eyebrow at me. “You’re really enjoying rubbing this in, aren’t you?”

  “No,” I said, not responding to his teasing tone. “I’m not. I’m pointing out that if you’ve made those mistakes, you may have made others.”

  “In the app?” he asked with a frown. “You of all people should know, we’ve pored over every inch of it in the past week. There aren’t any bugs anymore.”

  “Not with the app. With us.”

  Tyler’s mouth snapped shut, and I met his eyes, my pulse quickening. After a long pause he spoke. “Look, Kait, I realize that you might not—”

  “No,” I said, cutting him off. “I’m not interested in hearing your rationale again. I’m appealing to you as a friend. As my boss. And as a man. You were wrong about two things. You’ve admitted it and corrected it. I’m asking to you to please consider that you were wrong about us, too. To consider that you’re making a mistake by keeping me at arm’s length. I’ve told you want I want, and you feel you know better than I do what’s best for me. I’m asking you to think, really think. Because it’s clear to me that this is another mistake. I’m asking you to please consider that possibility.”

  The silence in the room bore down on me as I stared him in the eye, holding my ground. He’d heard all my arguments and reasons before. Now all that was left to do was to ask him to reconsider.

  At last he spoke. “All right, I will.”

  18

  Tyler

  Work kept me very busy for the next few days, but my mind kept returning to Kait’s words. And the way she’d looked in my office. And just… everything about her. I wanted her more than ever, but I couldn’t get past the idea that I wasn’t good for her.

  I didn’t see any way that this could work out for her. If we started dating, there’d be no way I’d ever let her go—unless she wanted to end things. But if it were up to me, she’d be mine forever, and then how would she have a chance to grow into her own person? She’d be like my mother, trapped in a relationship far too young, unable to be the person she was meant to be.

  There’s no way I could do that to Kait, no matter how much she meant to me. Looking out for her was part of who I was. In some ways, I was like Alex, though my feelings for Kait weren’t at all those of a sibling. Far from it. But I wanted what was best for her—even if it came at the cost of my own happiness.

  I sat at my desk, at a loss for what to do both in terms of Kait and work. It was Friday evening, and most of my employees had probably already left by now. But my day hadn’t been very productive, mostly due to thinking about Kait, so I didn’t want to leave yet.

  If only I had someone to talk to about this. Hmm… maybe I should talk to Ian Callahan? He was the CEO of his own company, and he might have some insight into the ethics of dating an employee. I actually needed to contact him anyway to see if he’d gotten the resume from Kait’s friend Sierra.

  Then there was Alex. That was a thought. It had been a while since I’d spoken to him—not that I’d ever revealed to him my feelings for his sister. I glanced at my watch. It was Saturday morning in Japan.

  Grabbing my laptop, I hit him up on FaceTime before I could change my mind. I didn’t know what I was going to say to him, but it would be good to talk to my oldest friend.

  When Alex answered, he didn’t look all that surprised. “Good to hear from you, man,” he said.

  “How are Megumi and Yuka?”

  “Good, and I’m guessing that’s not what you called to talk about.”

  I sighed. “No, not really.”

  Alex waited, his American concert t-shirt contrasting strangely with the Japanese-style sliding doors behind him. “Is it about Kait?”

  “How’d you know?”

  “Just a hunch. Are you sure it’s me you should be talking to?” Alex raised his eyebrows.

  “I’ve tried talking to her, and she just doesn’t seem to understand.”

  “Understand what—that you know what’s best for her?” Alex said.

  I shook my head. “When you put it that way, it makes me sound like a jerk. But yeah, basically that’s the issue.”

  “She’s not really fond of it when I try to make decisions for her, either. Nor should she be,” Alex said sharply. “After our parents died, she had to grow up fast. Even more so when I moved here. She’s a competent, capable adult, Ty. She’s had to be.”

  “But she’s so young.”

  “Did you consider yourself young when you were her age? That was when you started graduate school, right?”

  “Yeah.” And, of course, Alex was right. I’d been on my own for years at that point, and I’d already started making plans to start my own company. I wouldn’t have welcomed someone telling me what they thought was best for me, either. I sighed. “So, am I being… ageist or something like that?”

  “Sounds like there’s a little sexism in there, too.” Alex said with a smart-ass smirk.

  I rolled my eyes though he may have been right. “What about you? Doesn’t this bother you? She’s your little sister.”

  “And you’re my best friend. I want you both to be happy.”

  “That’s exactly what Kait said you’d say.”

  “Clearly, she’s smarter than you,” Alex said.

  “Apparently.”

  “And I heard she saved your ass with some kind of app you were developing?”

  “She did indeed. So since she’s so smart, maybe I should be talking to her.”

  “My thoughts exactly. Hold on.” Alex turned away, reaching for something out of sight on the table. It was his phone. He picked it up and tapped a button. “Are you still there?”

  “What took you so long? Is everything okay?”

  It was Kait. My heart skipped a beat at the sound of her voice over speakerphone.

  “Sorry, I was distracted. And actually, I have a couple of things I need to do this morning, but there’s someone else here who’d like to talk to you.”

  Kait’s voice was an excited squeal. “Is it Yuka? How many words is she saying now?”

  “No, it’s not Yuka—it’s someone else who seems to have trouble communicating.”

  My view blurred as Alex turned the laptop to the side. Then he propped his phone up against a pile of books and I could see Kait’s face on the tiny sc
reen. Even from here, I could see her mouth drop open in surprise.

  Alex’s voice came from somewhere off camera. “It’s time you both started talking to each other. It’s your future, not mine, so I’m going to leave you two alone. But Kait, keep in mind he thinks he’s doing the right thing. And Tyler, keep in mind that you’re being an ass.” After that irritating assessment, there was a rustling sound and then footsteps walking away.

  For a moment, the absurdity of the situation hit me. Though Kait was a few miles away, the marvels of technology had us communicating face to face on another continent.

  Well… I suppose it only counted as communicating if one of us said something. “Hi, Kait.”

  “Hi.”

  I couldn’t see her all that well because the screen of Alex’s phone was small, but I could hear her just fine. Except I still didn’t know what to say.

  Apparently, neither did she. But one of had to say something. “Good to see you.”

  That was lame, but she gave a half smile. “Funny how we were in the same building all day but didn’t speak until we both called Alex.”

  “Yeah.” I wasn’t holding up my end of the conversation, but just seeing her again, even though this not very clear connection, made my heart pound. I wanted her so much, but her happiness was more important to me than my own.

  “Did you… um, think about what I said in your office the other day? About how maybe you’re making a mistake about… us?”

  “How can it be a mistake when I’m just trying to look out for you?”

  “But that’s not your job. Maybe it was when I was a little girl, but it’s not now, and it hasn’t been for a long time. I didn’t even see you for four years.”

  “Kait—”

  “Just listen. In the four years since the wedding, I could’ve decided to drop out of college. I could’ve started taking drugs after my parents died. I could’ve started dating a complete and utter idiot like Sierra is. And all of those things would’ve been my choice. It’s not your job to protect me from my own choices. And it’s not your right to say that I’m choosing wrong. Because I’m not. I want you, and it’s not wrong. In fact, it feels very, very right.”

  An ache filled my stomach. I wanted to believe that so badly. “Sometimes it feels right to me, too—but that doesn’t mean that it is.”

  Kait took a deep breath, seemingly to center herself. “Maybe it’s time you stop telling people what they should or shouldn’t feel. People like me—and yourself. If you feel something, really feel it strongly in your gut, then maybe your brain should stop looking for problems. You should trust your gut… and your heart.” She stopped, and even though the screen was small, I could see that her expression was both anxious and hopeful. “But that’s only if you do truly feel it with your heart.”

  I closed my eyes for a moment, considering my options. Would my answer keep her from the life she was supposed to live? Or guide her to it? Then I looked at her and said, “I do.”

  She exhaled sharply and blinked several times. “Good,” she finally said. “So what do we do now?”

  “We talk. But not like this through cell phone signals bouncing off towers all around the world. Are you at home?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can I come over?”

  “Yes,” she said, and her smile was radiant even through the two screens.

  Suddenly, I couldn’t get there fast enough.

  19

  Kait

  In the space of ten minutes, Sierra and Gabi had cleaned up the living room, helped me decide what to wear, fussed over my hair and makeup, and vacated the premises. It had been a bit like a makeover montage from a movie.

  But now Tyler was here, sitting next to me on the sofa, and I could barely breathe. Everything depended on if he could get past his unreasonable fear that he was bad for me. It took two to have a relationship, and if he couldn’t get on board, then we were sunk.

  At least he’d come here. At least he was willing to talk.

  He sipped the coffee that Gabi had prepared before she left. He looked amazing… his black jeans fit snugly on his long legs. His gray button-down shirt brought out the green in his eyes. The shadow of stubble along his jaw made him look a bit dangerous—and sexy as hell. God, I wanted to be in his arms so badly. But none of that would happen if he wasn’t willing to try.

  Tyler was sitting sideways on the sofa. I faced him, one knee bent underneath me. We were sitting close together… that seemed like a good sign. Every time our eyes met, I felt a sizzle race across my skin, but I tried to keep my expectations in check until I knew what he was thinking.

  Finally, he sighed. “You make it really hard to do the right thing.”

  “Because it’s not the right thing,” I said instantly.

  His voice was soft and intimate. “I wish I could be sure of that.”

  I racked my brains, trying to think of some way to get through to him. “Maybe instead of doing what you think is right, you should do what you want. Because I’m pretty sure it’s what I want, too.”

  “What I want is to do right by you.”

  Feeling desperate, I lifted my other leg up, hugging my knees. “I really think you’re putting too much emphasis on my lack of experience. Would it really be better if I’d had a couple of boyfriends before this? What if they’d been like Sierra’s boyfriend? Or a bumbling doofus like Patrick from the office? Why would that, in your mind, make it more appropriate for you and me to be together now?”

  Tyler’s face darkened at the mention Patrick. But he reached out and took my hand, which seemed like a step in the right direction. “I just don’t ever want you to feel like you’re missing out on life because of me.”

  “If I miss out on guys like Joe, that’s a good thing. Look how miserable he’s made Sierra. And how is it settling if I date the man of my dreams?”

  He shook his head at that. “I’m no saint, Kait.”

  “Who says I thought you were? You can be sarcastic, and you’re stubborn as hell, and you remember all sorts of embarrassing stories from my childhood, and you’re too tall.”

  Tyler’s lips quirked into a half smile at that last one. “Being tall is one of my faults?”

  I spoke without thinking. “It makes it hard to kiss you when your head is so much higher than mine.”

  “It’s not now,” he said, looking at my mouth. And it was true… because he had sunk deeper into the couch, we were closer to the same height here. He proved that by leaning into me, pressing his chest against my knees.

  I put one leg on the floor so that he could get closer, but just before his lips met mine, I pushed him away. “Stop.”

  “What’s wrong?” Concern filled his voice as he pulled back.

  “I can’t go through this just to have you back off again. It hurt four years ago at the wedding when you vanished after our dance. It was far worse after we got so close the night of the awards ceremony and then you dashed my hopes again. So don’t kiss me unless you’re sure. Because if you kiss me and pull away again… I don’t think my heart could stand it. Please don’t unless you’re all in.”

  Tyler’s eyes were troubled as he stared at me. I could read the desire… the longing… and the caution.

  “Please, Tyler,” I whispered. “You are good for me. Think of what you’ve done lately. Fixed the roof. Took us all out when Sierra needed cheering up. You’ve looked out for me my whole life. You’re a force of good in my life and it’s ridiculous for you to think you’re not.” My words tumbled out rapidly as I tried to convince him. “I want you. I need you. If you feel the same way, please… please don’t hold back out of a misguided sense of—”

  Tyler lunged at me, his mouth meeting mine as he pushed me back against the arm of the sofa. My pulse raced as he parted my lips, devouring my mouth, pausing only to growl, “I’m all in.”

  They were simple words, but I knew they were true. He’d stopped fighting this. He’d stopped fighting himself. We were in this together now�
��I knew it with all my heart.

  His kiss deepened and overwhelmed my senses. His hands were everywhere, squeezing my hair, stroking my arms, holding me as he leaned me back even farther. When we came up for air, I wiggled underneath him and pulled my shirt up and over my head, throwing it on the floor.

  Tyler paused when he saw what I was wearing underneath—the red teddy that he’d seen in my closet so long ago. “I wanted to wear it for you.”

  Slowly, almost reverently, he reached out and stroked the red satin material covering my stomach. I couldn’t breathe as his fingers moved higher and higher until they cupped my breast. He kissed me again as his fingers worked magic, circling my hardened nipples through the thin fabric. “I want to see all of it,” he whispered, and I unfasten my jeans, lifting my hips. He helped, tugging off one side and then the other.

  When I was only wearing the skimpy little teddy and matching panties, the appreciation—and hunger—in his eyes made the blood pound between my legs. I didn’t feel embarrassed. Or shy. I felt wanted. And I wanted him, too.

  He reached for me again but then stopped. “It still has the price tags on it.”

  “Yeah… I guess that since you saw it before, I just wanted to show you that I… I saved it for you. There’s a scissors on the coffee table.”

  “I’m glad you saved it for me,” Tyler murmured, cutting the tags off and then brushing back my hair and nuzzling my neck.

  “And I guess subconsciously, I was saving myself for you, too.”

  He pulled back, looking into my eyes with concern.

  “That’s not a bad thing, Tyler.” I smiled up at him, even as his nearness made my heart pound faster. “Sometimes you just know what you want, and you won’t accept any substitutions.”

  The corner of his mouth jerked upward in an involuntary half smile. But then he grew more serious. “Does it bother you that I didn’t? That I’ve had… substitutions?”

  “No. Of course not. What matters is that we’re on the same page now.” I reached out and clasped the hair at the back of his head, drawing him toward me. “Besides, it’s probably a good idea that once of us knows what we’re doing.”