"Eleanor, gotta run," I said, smiling awkwardly up at Julian. I lowered my voice. "Please send pics of the distinguished gentleman!" I ended the call and faced Julian with my best professional smile. "How can I help you on this fine, productive morning?"

  "Well, for starters, Moira needs your response to her email by EOD." His smirk widened. "But more importantly, you're a bit of an office legend, Ember."

  I blinked. "Come again?"

  "No one, and I mean no one, has ever gotten Orion 'Fun is my Kryptonite' Foster to bend on the lunch rule. Yet you just waltz out whenever for your little café rendezvous." He lowered his voice conspiratorially. "And lived to tell the tale. And that’s only the first chapter of your legend. It just keeps going, doesn’t it?"

  The word rendezvous brought an unbidden flash of memory from last night—Orion's hands, his mouth, the delicious weight of him pressing me into the door. I shifted in my seat, pressing my thighs together.

  "Maybe he's not quite the tyrant you all think," I deflected.

  Julian laughed out loud. "Riiiight. Next you'll tell me his sock drawer isn't alphabetized or that his bathroom breaks aren't timed to the second." He mock-shuddered. "We pulled an all-nighter once. The man is a machine. Every single pee break was exactly forty-five seconds. And then he spent longer than that washing his hands."

  I bit back a grin. Around here, every single employee talked about Orion like an Olympian god sitting high on Mount Olympus. It was as if he was untouchable, unreachable, and hardly even human to them. And yet I had a crystal clear image in my mind of how deliciously disheveled Mr. Precision had looked after our heated makeout session.

  I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the secret side of him I got to see.

  "Thanks for the heads-up," I said pointedly. "And hey, maybe keep the duck spreadsheet just between us?"

  "Your fowl secret is safe with me," he quipped with an exaggerated wink. I groaned and shooed him out, but couldn't help smiling. Julian was alright.

  A ping interrupted my duck reverie. An email from Orion.

  The sight of it made my stomach do a nervous spin.

  Miss Hartwell,

  Please see me in my office at your earliest convenience to discuss appropriate workplace conduct.

  Regards, O. Foster

  P.S. "Earliest convenience" means 9:15 AM sharp. Not 9:16.

  I checked my watch. 9:13. Of course. Grabbing a notebook to maintain some pretense of professionalism, I hurried to his office—definitely not remembering what happened the last time we were alone together. Nope. Not at all.

  The door was open, but I knocked anyway, keenly aware of the curious eyes tracking me through the office. For the most part, I was still treated like an outcast by my co-workers. Little by little, I was breaking through the barrier, but it was slow work.

  My best guess was that people worried Orion’s extra focus on me would shift to them if they associated with me too much. Nobody around here really wanted Orion to notice them, and if not for our special circumstances, I’d say I couldn’t blame them.

  "Enter," he called without glancing up from his laptop. I shut the door and turned to face him, my pulse pounding traitorously.

  "You wanted to see me, Mr. Foster?"

  At that, he looked up, his heated gaze searing me in place. "About last night⁠—"

  "You mean our business dinner where absolutely nothing inappropriate occurred?" My voice was a bit too high.

  A ghost of a smile flickered across his lips. "That would be the one, yes."

  "What about it?" I was aiming for breezy and landing somewhere around breathless. I hadn't expected how much the mere sight of him would make my lower belly glow with pleasant but awkward heat.

  "I think we need to establish some... parameters," he said.

  "Such as 'no more mauling your new hire in dark doorways?'" I raised an eyebrow. "Seems fairly intuitive."

  "Ember—”

  "No, you're right," I interrupted, plopping into the chair opposite his desk and primly crossing my legs. "Totally unprofessional. It won't happen again."

  His eyes tracked the progress of my hemline up my thigh before snapping back to my face. I saw the lust and hunger flickering in his eyes. The sight of it made a reckless, sexy little devil on my shoulder start whispering naughty ideas in my ear.

  He wants to fuck me.

  The thought seemed so loud and clear in my mind that I could hardly think straight.

  Orion cleared his throat. "Good. That's...good. We should focus on the Davenport account."

  "Absolutely." I let my legs fall slightly apart as I leaned forward. I ignored the way the motion made my skirt ride up, or how I saw his eyes fall to what was almost certainly a clear view of my panties.

  I bit my lip, ignoring the rush of warm arousal I felt at his attention. "I actually have a riveting update on Eleanor's ceramic duck squadron, if you're interested..."

  "Miss Hartwell." This time my name was a low warning. It was almost a moan, and god, I wasn't sure how much more I could take of this flirtation.

  "Yes, Mr. Foster?" I fluttered my lashes innocently as I pushed my thighs just a touch wider for him. Now he could certainly see my panties. With how turned on I was, I wondered if there would even be a dark patch of arousal for him to admire.

  He just stared, realization dawning along with a slow, wicked smile that made me clench all over. "You're doing this on purpose."

  I widened my eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about." Rising from the chair, I tugged my skirt down with a playful little shimmy of my hips, then headed for the door. "If that's all, I should really get back to work. My boss is a bit of a hard ass." I bit back a smile at the play on words, wondering if he would connect the dots.

  "We're not done here."

  In a flash of movement and rustle of expensive clothes, Orion closed the distance between us and put a single palm on his door, preventing me from pulling it open. It also meant he had me caged in as I turned around to face him, brow arched.

  “Oh?” I asked. “Do you need me to stay because you needed... a better look at me?"

  Orion's eyes slid down my body inch by inch, making me feel completely naked before him. "It would be wise for both of us if I didn't..."

  "No?" I asked sweetly. "What would happen? Maybe I would be more careful if I knew what was at risk..."

  Orion swallowed, eyes blazing with heat as he stared up at me. "I don't get distracted by women, Ember. I don't—" He closed his mouth, took a deep breath. "I would rather not be tempted."

  "Tempted to... what?" I prompted.

  "Ember," he warned.

  Now it was my turn to gulp as a bundle of nerves settled in my stomach. "I want to hear," I whispered. "I want to know what you want to do to me. Maybe we can't actually... do it. But I want to hear."

  Orion touched his tie and seemed to drift closer until my space was completely consumed by him. With the way we were positioned, the door would block anybody’s view of what was going on inside his office. Maybe it would be suspicious that we were standing in one of the few, cramped spaces out of view, but at least we were hidden. Otherwise…

  Orion lifted one knuckle and very slowly, very teasingly brought it from the center of my chest down my body, eyes following its trail as it brushed my breasts and instantly made my nipples go hard as diamonds. He kept dragging that knuckle down my belly and only paused at the waistband of my skirt.

  Finally, his eyes lifted to mine. "If… If we could act on our impulses, then there are some things I would do to you.” Orion’s eyes lifted to mine, as if waiting for me to tell him to continue.

  “Like what?” I whispered, senses laser focused on that lingering knuckle of his and what it was doing to me.

  “I would enjoy watching you come and making you beg for more,” he said, each word punching into me like a warm gush of heat. “I would bring you to the edge with my fingers, my mouth, my tongue. I wouldn't stop until you begged for my cock, and then... then maybe I'd give it to you, assuming you asked nicely enough."

  I shuddered, knees feeling suddenly like they might give out. "Oh," I whispered. "That... is a vivid picture."

  Orion's eyes never left mine. "Tonight... I'm going to send you an email."

  I frowned. Okay. I guess we’re back to talking about work? “Alright,” I said, voice edged with confusion.

  "When you receive the email, the contents will seem innocuous. But the moment you receive the email, I want you to touch yourself. I want you to think about this moment and what I just said to you. I want you to come for me tonight, and you will email me back as soon as you're finished. Have I made myself clear, Miss Hartwell?"

  I bit my lower lip, nodding as I struggled to draw a normal breath. "Okay. I understand."

  "Good girl," he said, lifting his thumb to briefly touch my chin. I saw the way his eyes lingered on my lips. "Now go back to work. We need to maintain professional boundaries."

  "Right," I said shakily. How the hell was I supposed to work the rest of the day like this? I was so damned turned on I wanted to go to the nearest bathroom and get myself off, not wait until his little "email" came tonight. Was he planning to get himself off once he sent that email, too?

  God. It was all so dirty, but so hot.

  Sauntering back to my desk, I couldn't contain the giddy grin stretching my cheeks. This whole thing was certifiable, of course—a gargantuan HR clusterfuck waiting to happen.

  But wow, was it fun to fan the flames with my beautiful, buttoned-up boss. To get under his starched collar and watch him come a little unraveled. Maybe I'd get burned in the end, but oh, what a way to go.

  My stomach clenched as Cole's text from earlier flashed through my mind. He was digging into Davenport, and it was my fault. I'd handed him that lead like an idiot, thinking it was harmless. Guilt gnawed at me. I desperately hoped I hadn't already handed Cole something he could use to hurt Orion or the people who worked here.

  Day by day, the idea of screwing things up for Orion seemed like more of a catastrophe I needed to avoid, and I wished I had just told Cole to stuff it and ran with the job opportunity here at Foster Real Estate.

  I needed to find a way to come clean to Orion soon. But maybe for now, I could just do such a good job with the Davenport account that even Cole couldn’t screw things up for Orion and his company.

  My phone buzzed with a text from Eleanor. It was a selfie of her beaming next to her latest feathered find, a ridiculous mallard in a Hawaiian shirt.

  Eleanor: Meet Duck Norris!

  Chuckling despite my churning conscience, I added Duck Norris' details to my spreadsheet. At least someone's ducks were all in a row. Mine, on the other hand, were scattered across a minefield of my own making.

  22

  EMBER

  Iwas sprawled on my couch in silk pajama shorts and a tank top, half-watching The Great British Bake Off while working on the Davenport proposal. It probably said something about me that I was doing extra work at 9 PM, but I actually enjoyed it. Plus, watching amateur bakers stress over soggy bottoms was oddly soothing background noise. I found myself muttering corrections at the screen: "No, don't open the oven now—and that's way too much cardamom, what are you thinking?"

  "What do you think, Catman?" I asked, glancing at him as I returned my focus to the laptop screen. "Can I do a good enough job on this that Cole won’t be able to snake Davenport out from under Foster Real Estate’s nose? Or have I already doomed myself?"

  Catman licked his paw, blinked his eye, and then began trying to knock my water glass off the coffee table. He did all of this while maintaining eye contact and radiating that special brand of feline judgment reserved for the people who inexplicably feed them and clean up their poop, much to the likely confusion of cats world-wide.

  I plucked the glass away from his destructive little paws and set it on the side table instead. “Thanks for the input, Catman,” I muttered. "Your feedback is noted. Maybe next time try a sticky note?"

  My laptop chimed with a new email from Orion Foster.

  Miss Hartwell,

  Thank you for your diligent work today. I trust you'll give this email the attention it deserves.

  Regards,

  O. Foster

  That was it. Just two lines of completely innocent text, so professionally crafted they'd sail past any IT filter. The man could make "Regards" sound like foreplay. But my whole body was already humming with anticipation, remembering his instructions. I closed my laptop and set it aside with trembling hands.

  Catman took one look at me and promptly left the room, as if he knew what was coming—or who was coming, in this case.

  I leaned back against the couch cushions, letting my mind drift to this morning in Orion's office—the intensity in his eyes as he told me how he wanted to watch me, touch me, taste me... My hands followed the same path his knuckle had traced, down my neck, between my breasts, lower…

  I imagined him in his perfectly ordered apartment, loosening his tie, thinking of me. I pictured him popping the button to his slacks and reaching inside tight boxers to grip himself. He would already be hard—he would’ve been hard just thinking about sending me that email.

  My own hand slid inside my underwear and I began to circle myself, arching against the couch and squeezing my eyes shut.

  I pictured Orion standing in some expensive penthouse apartment, maybe with one hand on a huge window as he gripped himself in a powerful hand and pumped his cock again and again, his thoughts fully fixed on me.

  God.

  I squirmed against my own touch, shocked to find I was only moments from an explosive climax already.

  My finger moved faster as pleasant, tingling warmth radiated through my body.

  “Oh, Orion,” I gasped. “Oh, God, Orion,” I breathed harder, body pulling in tight as I came hard and fast.

  I licked my lips and stared at the laptop, body still trembling and brow flushed with a light sheen of sweat. The timestamp on the email said it had only been two minutes since he commanded me to finger fuck myself.

  I bit my lip. It was a little embarrassing that I had finished so quickly, but… I wondered if confirmation that I had climaxed would push him over the edge instantly. I imagined the chime of my email making Orion reach orgasm and couldn’t help myself.

  I sent him an email.

  Mr. Foster,

  I gave your email my full attention. It took me barely over two minutes to finish thinking about it. I imagined you were thinking very hard about the email, too. Was I right?

  -E

  I bit my lip as I hit send and felt a fresh wave of warm arousal. This was so damn kinky and more than a little weird, but it was fun and oddly hot all the same.

  His response came almost immediately:

  Ember,

  I admire how quickly you work. I can only assume our joint focus on this topic was the cause of you completing your task so quickly. I concluded my own review of our exchange shortly after receiving your message. I have enjoyed working together on this with you, and trust we will come together on future projects.

  Regards,

  O. Foster

  I read the email with a growing smile on my face. The idea of some poor person in HR ever having to read these emails to look for evidence of our inappropriate relationship was too funny. I was fairly sure none of it was explicitly clear or obvious, but the exchange was so weird it was hilarious.

  He hoped we would come together on future projects. I wondered if that meant I could expect more demanding emails from my boss commanding me to finger myself at his will.

  It was so, so dirty and definitely wrong from a professional level. But I had also never done anything like this before with a man. Hell, I had never even sent a guy nudes of myself or spicy pictures because I felt too awkward about it.

  I bit my lip as I stared at my laptop screen, heart still racing. This was intense and probably ill-advised, but there was something thrilling about it. Even if the arrangement was unconventional, Orion made me feel seen and desirable in a way I'd never experienced before.

  I thought back to how bold I'd been in his office earlier. Hell, I had spread my fucking legs and let him get the upskirt of all upskirts. I had even hoped I was wet enough for him to see it through the fabric of my underwear. Sure, I was a bit of a brat and knew how to stand up for myself, but sexually? This wasn’t like me at all.

  I was relatively reserved in that sense. Maybe it was a confidence issue or body image issues I still harbored thanks to my mom. But whatever normally held me back was nowhere to be found when Orion was concerned. He gave me some kind of confidence I didn’t know I had.

  With a sigh, I tried to shift mental gears and focus back on work. The proposal needed finishing and I would need to meet with Davenport soon. When I did, I wanted to be thoroughly prepared to impress both him and Orion.

  But my mind kept drifting to thoughts of my impossibly attractive boss, wondering if he was thinking about me too. The idea filled me with a pleasant warmth that lingered for the rest of the evening.

  Even as guilt about Cole and the Davenport situation nagged at me, I couldn't deny that something real was developing between Orion and me. I just hoped I could figure out how to come clean before it was too late. Because if it wasn’t for the little fib about why I wanted the job in the first place, I would have said things were shaping up to be great. All we needed was a little time.

  I worked a little while longer, then decided to engage in one of my recently discovered guilty pleasures before bed. I pulled out my phone and found one of the influencers who filmed Orion’s hate note sessions every day.

  There was a video from this morning I hadn’t watched yet.

  To everybody’s surprise, Patricia Rosh herself had started delivering Orion’s hate notes two days ago. Apparently, she was flooded with applications once people found out how much Orion was paying her employees in bribes. People who had no intentions of being real or long-term employees were applying in hopes of winning an assignment to Orion and the subsequent cash payout he’d give them before they got fired.

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24