“Cass, I think it’s time we hit the road,” I tell her. “It’s pretty late.” Her head whips in my direction. “Huh?”
I chuckle. She’s so lost in her own head that she didn’t even hear me talking to her.
“It’s late, we should probably call it a night so that you can get some sleep.” “Okay,” she replies, stretching her arms above her head. She makes a slight noise, almost like a moan, and my cock stirs behind the zipper of my slacks. She bends to slip her heels back onto her feet and I get the most magnificent view of her ass. Holy fuck. My mouth goes a little dry, and my body freezes. It feels like she’s teasing me, flaunting her curves. I want nothing more than to slide that skirt over her hips and take her from behind while she’s leaning on the arm of my sofa for support.
I shake the vision from my mind. She’ll take one look at the bulge in my pants and know what I’m thinking.
Within ten minutes she’s ready to go. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she says, giving me small smile.
“Wait, let me take you home.”
“No, that’s okay, thank you. It’s out of your way.”
I frown. “You’re not walking home, Cassey. I’ll have my driver drop you off.” “I’ll get a cab,” she says adamantly. “I don’t want to inconvenience you.” Is this girl insane? What kind of man would I be if I allowed her to hail a cab and travel home alone at this time of night? My mother would skin me alive. “No, you won’t. You’ll let my driver take you home. It’s not up for negotiation, nor is it an inconvenience.”
Cassey bites her lip, and I can tell she’s fighting the urge to argue with me. We’ve done that a lot this past week, and every time she argues with me, I envision what the angry hate sex would be like between us. I’ve wondered if she would like having her hair pulled, and if she’ll bite me. I imagine she would, despite giving off the innocent vibe.
“If you’re sure,” she relents.
I smile, and do a mental fist pump. Small victories and all that. “Let’s go then.” I switch everything off and we walk out, making our way to the elevators. The air between us crackles in the small enclosed space and I clench my fist to stop myself from pushing the emergency stop button, just so that I can have her up against the wall of the elevator, moaning into my mouth. My cock hardens and I shift. Being in a car with her is suddenly a very bad idea. But it’s too late now. The elevator dings and we walk in silence until I lead her to the black town car waiting at the curb.
I open the door or her and she slides in, moving a little further away from me than I would like. As the car pulls way, Cassey gives Charles, my driver, her address. It’s only a ten minute drive, but those minutes feel longer. She fidgets with her hands and I love closer, wrapping both her hands in one of mine. She startles, and I don’t if it’s because she’s surprised or if it’s because she also felt the zing of electricity that passed from my hand to hers.
“You’re going to be great tomorrow, don’t worry,” I reassure her. Her smile is nervous. “I hope so.”
Just then, the car comes to a stop outside her apartment building. My hand holds hers for a while longer, my desire to maintain contact winning out over the need to let her leave. “Um…” Cassey shifts, looking a little uncomfortable. “Thank you, for all your help.”
Her eyes drop to our hands and I see the indecision on her face. She can’t decide if this is okay or not, if this kind of contact between an employee and her boss - although I don’t see her as my employee - is acceptable or stepping over that imaginary line. I make the decision for her, and slowly remove my hand from hers.
“I’m glad I could help,” I reply, moving away. “You’ll have to let me know how it goes.”
Her head bobs, her features tight. “I will. See you tomorrow.”
I’m about to say goodnight, but she’s out the door in a flash, like she can’t wait to escape. I sag back into the seat and watch her retreating figure disappear into the building. She doesn’t look back, and I have no idea why but I wish she would. Instead of over-analyzing our strange interaction, I tell Charles to drive me home. I’m in need of yet another cold shower, and another night alone in my bed.
Chapter 4
~ Cassey ~
“Well, Miss Emerson, we are very impressed with what you’ve shown us,” Mr. Johnson, one of the executive Board members says. “And I have no doubt it will be successful.”
I fight the urge to jump up and down like a three year old who just woke up to find a pink tricycle under the christmas tree. “You’re accepting my proposal?” I ask, sounding as nervous as I feel.
Mr. Johnson looks around at the other Board members, and then smiles. “Yes, Miss Emerson, we are.”
After a few handshakes, and setting up follow-up meetings to start implementing the new Digital Publishing strategy, I stand in the Board room and take a breath. I did it. I’m one step closer to achieving my dreams. The feeling running through my veins is electric, and it gives me a high.
Mr. Knight, Kyler’s father, walks in after saying goodbye to the Board members and immediately pulls me into a hug.
“I’m so proud of you, Cassey. You knocked it out of the park, sweetheart.” My throat tightens, and I blink back tears. I’ve never had anyone tell me they’re proud of me before. “Thank you, Mr. Knight.”
He lets go of me and gives me a look. I imagine if my father was ever proud of me, the look on Mr. Knight’s face is what it would look alike.
“It’s Robert, for the last time,” he chides. “And Estelle wanted me to remind you about sunday lunch next week.”
Grinning wide, my chest warms at the mention of Mrs. Knight. She seems to have taken a liking to me, and invites me to sunday lunch almost every weekend. Not once when I’ve been there did I see Kyler, which is why I never met him before he started taking over the company from his father. “Tell her I wouldn’t miss it,”I say.“I’ll have to bake her favorite chocolate cake.” He kisses me on the cheek. “I’ll see you then, sweetheart.”
He walks out and I start packing up my stuff. I decide to put it back in my office before heading to Kyler’s office to tell him the good news. He texted me a Good Luck before the presentation, and it made butterflies take flight in my belly. I reminded myself it was nothing, which it probably was. After all his help, he deserves to know that it went better than either of us could have expected, and that’s the only reason I’m standing in front of his office. His bitch of an assistant, Nikola, isn’t at her desk so I open Kyler’s door without knocking. The sight before me has me wishing I called to tell him the new good news, or at least knocked before barging in.
Kyler is sitting in his desk chair, with Jessa Price straddling his hips. Thank God the desk hides their lower halves. Her red hair whips around as she looks at me. Kyler looks surprised, but I can’t tell if it’s because I charged into his office or because I caught him doing something he shouldn’t be doing. “Oh, crap,” I say quickly. “I’m sorry, I should’ve knocked.”
I hate the way seeing them so…intimate…makes me feel, and I hate the smug look on Jessa’s face right now too, but most of all, I hate myself for wishing that I was the one straddling him right now.