Backing You Up

by Weston Parker

  “I left a note,” I offered.

  “Oh, that will make it so much better.”

  “I’m sure he is going to feel the same way I do about the situation.”

  “And how do you feel?”

  “I feel it happened one time and it cannot happen again.”

  She nodded. “And he will feel the same way.”

  “I hope so. I can’t have a thing with him. It would be too weird. I just hope we can work together.”

  “You’re going to be thinking about the big D every time you see him,” she teased.

  “Stop!”

  “I can tell you have a little thing for him. You are going to get all twitterpated when you see him. Try to be cool. Don’t turn into a fangirl and drool all over the guy.”

  “Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem. I’m going to avoid him.”

  “That’s mature.”

  “I don’t care. I don’t think I can look at him again.”

  “You’ll be fine. Just set some boundaries. I’m sure he is going to be feeling just as awkward as you are.”

  “I seriously doubt Rogan has ever felt awkward a day in his life. He was always a cool kid. He’s gorgeous and confident. He just has that thing, you know?”

  “That thing that makes you all hot and bothered?”

  I closed my eyes. “I’m so screwed.”

  “No, you were screwed, and now you are not going to screw anymore. Well, you can screw but not him.”

  “You are so vulgar,” I told her.

  “I just find it’s so much easier to say what I’m thinking. I get too confused when I have to censor my words.”

  “I’ve missed you,” I said with a laugh. “Your honesty is refreshing.”

  “Glad I can be of service. How is it living back at home?”

  “Weird,” I told her. “Very weird. I miss my condo. I know it isn’t as big or as fancy, but it’s mine.”

  “It’s no wonder you are sleeping with your subordinates. You are going through a lot of changes all at once. I would normally suggest you take a few days, go somewhere, but I know that isn’t possible with the new job. But you really do need some time for yourself. Why don’t you come for a spa day next weekend? I’ll hook you up with all the treatments.”

  “I might just take you up on that offer,” I told her. “I could use a day of pampering.”

  “I think after the next week of work, you are going to need that spa day,” she said with a laugh. “A spa day or a rent-a-stud. I have a feeling you are going to be primed for just about anything if you have to work alongside your Mr. Sexypants all week.”

  “Thanks for that encouragement.”

  “Just remember to keep your hands off the merchandise,” she warned.

  “I have a feeling you would be singing a different tune if you actually saw him.”

  “That good, huh?”

  I wrapped my lips around my straw. “So much better than good. The man is anything but average.”

  Chapter 21

  Rogan

  I walked into the office earlier than usual. I was hoping to slink in, close my office door, and hide for the day.

  I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to say to Cora. I wasn’t used to feeling weird after having sex with a woman. Then again, I’d never had sex with a woman like Cora. I’d never had sex with my boss before either. That was a new one. I wasn’t sure I liked it.

  I closed my office door and took a seat before letting out the breath I had been holding. I made it in and no one said a word. I had convinced myself everyone was going to know I slept with the boss. After all of Granger’s teasing, I was beginning to believe it.

  I heard a knock on my door a second before it pushed open. It was Beau. Fuck.

  “Good morning,” I said, trying to sound cool and casual. I couldn’t imagine Cora would go running to Beau and tell him we’d slept together, but I couldn’t know for sure.

  “You are here early,” he commented.

  “I wanted to get a jump on things.”

  “Do you have a full schedule today?” he asked as he took a seat.

  “Not that I’m aware of. Do I?”

  He grinned. “I was hoping you could come with me to talk with a client. A potential client. You have the magic touch when it comes to securing these hard-to-get clients. It could be a good one for us, but he needs a little push.”

  “Sure, I’d love to go,” I said with a little too much eagerness. I would do just about anything to get out of the office and avoid a weird encounter with Cora.

  “We’ll take my car,” he said and got up.

  “I’ll meet you at the elevator.”

  I grabbed my things, and before stepping out of the office, I looked left then right, making sure I wouldn’t bump into her. The coast was clear.

  Beau showed up a couple of minutes later and we made our way to his car. I let out a sigh of relief. I would have to face her eventually but not right now.

  “Tell me about the client,” I said, wanting to be prepared.

  Beau gave me the rundown as he drove toward the industrial part of the city. I nodded, making mental notes as I searched for the company on my phone. I didn’t usually do a lot of cold calls. I liked knowing what I was up against. I needed to know the best way into the client’s mindset.

  We got to the offices of the paper manufacturer and were shown to a conference room. “I feel unprepared,” I said in a low voice to keep from being overheard.

  “I know all the details,” he replied. “I only need you to use that famous charm.”

  I flashed him a megawatt smile. “I can do that.”

  I heard a voice and looked up. My eyes widened when I saw Cora walking toward the conference room with another man. They were laughing and talking like they had known each other for years. I looked at Beau who didn’t seem the least bit surprised.

  Did he know? Was this a setup?

  “Hi,” Cora said, looking at Beau. She barely looked at me. Yep, there was an awkward tension in the room that I doubted anyone could have missed.

  I looked from Beau to Cora, wondering what the hell was going on. Beau got to his feet to shake the hand of the man. I realized I was sitting like a dumbass and quickly jumped to my feet. She was throwing me off my game.

  “I’m Rogan Leal,” I said. “I’m the head of accounts and customer service.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Rogan. I’m John Becker. I have to tell you, I’m feeling a little spoiled with all three of the top execs coming to see me.”

  “We wanted to make sure you understood what we can do for your business,” Beau said.

  “And I wanted to meet you personally and assure you I am very hands-on,” Cora said with a friendly smile. “Our company is still promising to deliver the best service, even as we go through this transition.”

  We all sat down. Cora was acting like the perfect professional. I was the one acting off. I steeled my nerves, telling myself to calm the fuck down. It was sex. One time. It wasn’t a big deal.

  It was showtime. We needed to bring on new clients. I knew we were losing at least one of our longtime clients through no fault of our own. The company was filing for bankruptcy. We needed to pick up the lost revenue.

  I jumped right into my usual spiel. “We understand it can be a little difficult to make such a big change, but I can guarantee you your business will save money. Shipping with us is less expensive and we can keep moving. We don’t have to worry about road construction or the weather causing delays.”

  “And we can carry more in one delivery,” Cora chimed in.

  I nodded. “Exactly. You don’t have to hire a crew to handle multiple shipments throughout the day or week. You can schedule your deliveries at a time that is convenient to you. Our yards across the country are clean, secure, and staffed with people who will make sure your loads are handled with care.”

  John was nodding. “I like the sound of that. But aren’t trains less environmentally friendly?
I’m already up to my ears with the EPA and every other organization demanding we shrink our carbon footprint. I can’t afford any more criticism.”

  “Actually, using our company will earn you some positive feedback from those critics,” Cora said and turned to look at me. “Right?”

  I nodded. “Absolutely. Not only can we haul more but you are using about a third of the fuel. That alone is saving the environment and your wallet. I can put together a report that outlines all of the cost benefits. I think you will see that it makes sense. There are some options we can discuss about moving the freight to your warehouses.”

  John was on the fence. I could see it. “That’s my concern,” he started. “To make it cost effective, I would need to ship one large load a week. I would need to find warehouse space and then there is the cost of freight to move it from your yard to my warehouse.”

  I looked over at Cora. She gave me a look that said she wanted me to field the concern. It was like we had been working together for years. I doubted anyone would suspect this was our first pitch together.

  “You would still be coming out ahead,” I told him. “Some clients find they can make room with a little shuffling here and there. We also work with a few places that offer storage of freight containers. Depending on what location you are delivering to, we offer some discounts on storage and delivery. There are options.”

  It was Beau’s turn to chime in. “You can see I brought my A team,” he said with a laugh. “Us old guys have to realize this younger generation is onto something, even if they are using ancient ideas. Rogan and Cora are working on a deal to procure engines that are even more fuel efficient. Once we put those into play, we will pass the cost savings onto our customers. Think of it as you getting in on the future of shipping. It’s time to go back to the way things were done—with a few improvements.”

  He smiled and I knew we had him.

  “I would be happy to put together some numbers and send them to you to review,” I said. “I am confident you will be happy with what you see. The company is strong as ever and we are looking forward to a bright future. Nothing has changed in that respect. We are continuing to provide all of our customers with the top-notch service they have come to expect from us.”

  “And like I told you,” Cora said, looking at John. “You can call me anytime you have a question or a concern. I know all of us are willing to listen and fix an issue. I am always available, and if I’m not, Beau or Rogan will be.”

  “Exactly,” I agreed. “We have a full support staff that will guide you every step of the way.”

  “You’ve given me a lot to think about,” he said with a nod. “I would like to see those numbers. I’ll need to run everything by my board, but I think this could be a great move for us. Now that we are growing our business, the cross-country shipments are becoming more frequent. We need to make a change.”

  “Thank you for taking the time to meet with us,” I told him and got to my feet. I didn’t want to take too much of his time. He was a businessman and had plenty to do. I’d learned early on that they hated bullshitting when they had other things to do. We all shook hands before the three of us walked out of the conference room.

  “Give me a minute,” Beau said. “I need to talk with someone.”

  I wanted to beg him to take me with him. Being alone with Cora made me nervous. “You did great in there,” I told her for lack of anything better to say.

  “You did too. I think we make a good team.”

  We both fell silent. “We do. I look forward to snaring more clients like this.”

  “Me too,” she said with a friendly smile. “We’re good at this.”

  I felt a modicum of relief knowing we were going to be able to work together. There weren’t any hard feelings on either side. “Yes, we are.”

  “I should go,” she said. “I have a few things to do and then I’ll be into the office. Can you copy me on the proposal you send to him?”

  “Absolutely,” I said. “I’ll see you later.”

  “Bye,” she said and walked away.

  I let out a long breath. That had gone much better than I thought it was going to. We were going to be okay.

  It was like we both had an itch to scratch, and now that it was over, we could be civil toward one another. Working with Cora would be interesting. I wasn’t going to lie and say I wasn’t going to think about that night with her. I would still look at her and remember the look on her face when I exploded inside her. I wouldn’t forget the way she felt when the walls of her pussy clamped down on me and her nails dug into the flesh on my arms. I could almost feel it.

  I snapped myself out of the dangerous daydream. I did not want to be sporting wood while I stood in the offices of the client we were trying to bring on board. I put myself in check and decided to wait outside for Beau. Cora’s little red Porsche went by. She gave me a little wave before pulling away.

  Damn, she was fucking beautiful. I considered myself to be a very lucky man to have had the one night with her. With the initial meeting out of the way, I felt a hell of a lot better about the coming week. We were going to be fine. Things weren’t going to be weird or tense.

  “Ready?” Beau said as he walked out.

  “I am.”

  “You did great in there, just like I knew you would.”

  “It wasn’t all me,” I said. “Cora did very well. She’s a natural.”

  “Yes, she is. She asked if she could come along and I thought it was a great way for her to learn the ropes. Plus, with the way things are right now, people need to know the company is being led by someone capable. The more she is involved and putting herself out there, the better it will be for us.”

  “We’re going to be all right,” I said, more for myself than him. “It’s going to be okay.”

  He clapped a hand on my shoulder. “It will be. You just keep doing what you do, and things will just get better and better.”

  Chapter 22

  Cora

  Things were going so much better than last week. I was still learning the ropes, but I felt like I had found my groove.

  I rarely saw Rogan. He was either in his office on the phone or going out to the railyard. I didn’t think he was purposely avoiding me, and I wasn’t really trying to avoid him, but we weren’t going out of our way to see each other either.

  I stared out the window, thinking about everything. I thought about the business. I thought about going out to the graveyard to visit my dad, even if the headstone wasn’t up yet. Mostly, I thought about Rogan and that night. I didn’t want to think about it, which was probably why I was thinking about it so much.

  I tried to remember when I had so thoroughly enjoyed a sexual encounter. Being with Rogan had been different. It had been hot and fiery. Everything I felt seemed to be heightened. I tried to tell myself it was the situation. My nerves were raw and that was why it had been so much more intense with him.

  I could tell myself that was all I wanted, but it wasn’t accurate. It was him. Something about him just hit me differently. I slowly turned in my chair and looked at the notes I had been jotting down before I got lost in the daydream. I picked up the yellow pad and walked down the hall to Beau’s office, which was in the opposite direction of Rogan’s.

  “Got a minute?” I asked, popping my head in his office.

  “Always,” he said with a friendly smile. “Have a seat.”

  I took a seat and realized how much easier life was when I wasn’t wearing a skirt. I didn’t have to worry about flashing anyone or keeping my legs crossed or closed together. Last night, I’d spent a ridiculous amount of time doing some online shopping to get more pant suits, pushing the skirts and dresses to the back of the closet.

  “How are you?” I asked.

  He smiled. “I’m good. What’s going on?”

  “I wanted to run something by you and get your opinion on it.”

  “Sure, what is it?”

  “Last week, Rogan made it very clear t
hat the guys that worked at the railyards were really the backbone of the business.”

  He chuckled. “That’s true, and Rogan has a particular fondness for the job since it is where he started.”

  “I was thinking they need to be recognized. We give the managers an extra paid day off every month and we are always buying donuts for the staff. We have a breakroom stocked with coffee and water and so on. What are we doing for the guys breaking their backs to keep things moving?”

  He looked thoughtful. “Well, they are given performance reviews every six months with the possibility of a wage increase when office staff only get reviews on a yearly basis.”

  That was not exactly what I had in mind. “I’d like to treat them to lunch once a month.”

  “Treat who?”

  “The yard guys, and women, of course.”

  “You want to take them out to a restaurant? That could be tricky. We can’t halt operations for several hours.”

  He was right. “Bonuses?” I proposed instead.

  “I think your lunch idea is great, but maybe take the lunch to them. There are a couple of different lunch hours. Maybe have it catered.”

  I grinned, clapping my hands together. “That’s perfect. That’s a great idea.”

  “While I think it is a good idea, I think the person that would be best to consult on this would be Rogan. He is far more in tune with them and would know what would work and what wouldn’t.”

  I nodded. “You are right. Rogan should be consulted.”

  “I can talk to him this afternoon,” he said.

  “Oh no,” I answered a little too quickly. “You have enough to do. I’ll run it by him.”

  He smiled and nodded. “Good idea. You two work well together. I’m sure you’ll come up with something that pleases everyone.”

  “Thanks, Beau.”

  I got up and left his office. Now I had a good reason to talk to Rogan. I didn’t want to appear needy or like I was trying to be in his space. We were keeping things casual and that meant being friendly while slightly avoiding one another.