Overcoming Fear (Growing Pains #2)

by K. F. Breene

  “I’m glad I finally got the balls to ask you out,” he said.

  “You didn’t. You just went straight for the punany!”

  He smirked as his soft eyes looked into hers. “Oh yeah.” He kissed her on the forehead and made to get out of the shower. “Rain check,” he said as he closed the shower curtain.

  “Humph.”

  Sean dressed and was laid on the bed with an ease of comfort when she emerged from the bathroom in a towel. When he saw her coming out, he got up leisurely to make his way over.

  “I have to run. Tee-off in thirty minutes. Shall I meet you back here?”

  “I only have the room until one. I don’t think late check-out goes any later than that.”

  Sean looked at his watch. “Okay, well, I’ll call you around one, then. Worst comes to worst I will leave early.” Sean shrugged, as if the whole affair was no big deal. He was only having golf with the CEO of a major company and their client. Yup, no big deal at all.

  He gave her a wink with a twinkle in his eye and walked to the door, his khakis never looking so good on his tight butt and shaped thighs. Suddenly she was ready for a serious romp. Which was unfortunate, because he was out the door and out of sight. Damned unfortunate.

  Luckily, she was a woman of improvise. When a woman went through periods of needing sex like it came out of a dispensary, she had to get creative. She might just take matters into her own hands.

  Although, masturbation wasn’t all that creative, but whatever.

  She was halfway to bliss of her own making when there was a knock at the door and Sean’s muffled voice. Krista hesitated, then swore and peeled herself off the bed, still only in a towel.

  When the door opened, Sean stepped in leisurely as he said, “I forgot my wallet--”

  His speech cut off when he noticed Krista’s messy hair, the flush on her face, and the heat in her eyes. A devilish grin lit up his face when he realized what she’d been in the middle of. He cocked his head to the side as his eyes ignited with fire, “Am I interrupting something?”

  Krista was suddenly, intensely embarrassed. She fidgeted. “Oh, no. I was just getting ready.”

  “Ah,” Sean said, looking at her intently. He stepped closer, his eyes getting hooded and his body heat sending warmth through Krista’s groin, which was already revved up.

  The result was both unexpected and a bit surprising. She immediately started tearing off his shirt. As she slid her hands over his naked torso, feeling the muscles bunch under her touch, she was lifted and carried into the room, her towel dropped along the way.

  All too soon, and yet not soon enough, they were writhing on the bed, entangled in each other’s arms and legs. She was crying out her orgasm as he hit that crescendo right behind. Fire erupted between them, burning along their skin before it settled into an electric hum of sedation.

  She sighed in the aftermath as Sean regretfully got off her.

  “We could always skip the day and stay here?” she asked, lying back in the mountain of pillows.

  His eyes raked her naked body. His fingers stopped working his zipper up for a fraction of a second, and then he shook his head.

  “Can’t. I need to talk to Tory and golf is the best way. But tonight I will make it up to you. Promise.”

  Krista sighed loudly and moved to get up as well.

  “And we’ll talk about that other means of protection issue,” Sean said through his shirt.

  She got goosebumps. “You mean, you want me to take your virginity. Is that it?”

  Sean chuckled, “We’ll see. Safety first.”

  “Yes Captain.” She ran her hand up his chest.

  “No. No more. I am already late. Off me you wench!”

  Krista laughed as she let Sean go. He gave her a slap on the butt and headed out the door checking his watch. She turned back to her pre-arranged day, got loosely dressed, and headed to the spa. If they could relax her any more than she was right then, she’d eat her hat.

  Chapter Thirty

  “Nice hit, Sean,” Tory said from behind him. “You didn’t tell me you played often.”

  Sean didn’t. He didn’t feel inclined to say it, though.

  “So,” Tory said in a conversational tone. It had been like this the whole day. Tory would bring things up as if he’d just thought of them, but it was clear they’d been on his mind. Each “conversational topic” was a well-orchestrated subject. “Krista seems to have insightful friends.”

  “Seems that way.”

  “Birds of a feather, as they say.”

  Sean stepped aside for Tory to swing. When he was finished they started walking to the their balls—Tory apparently thought golf carts were for old men. Too bad, Sean was starting to get sore from all the action he was getting with Krista. Not that he minded. The woman drove him wild. She was easily the best lay he’d ever had. It wasn’t just the emotional attachment, which in itself made things great, it was the way she moved; how she enjoyed herself, the sheer delight she took in it. The woman was a rare treasure. Thank God she was a keeper, or else she would probably have him hanging on just to be a human sex toy even if she treated him like crap.

  “I’ve talked extensively to Marcus,” Tory said in a light tone.

  “Oh?”

  Tory had been hinting about known knowledge all day, but he hadn’t said anything substantial. He’d been hoping Sean would give him more information. Fat chance. Sean wasn’t thrilled about Tory taking his best players.

  “Yes, he is a fountain of information. I didn’t realize your team was so small. From what I understand, your work with Dell had three times the staff.”

  “I was in charge of choosing my team. I chose people who could work solidly together.”

  “Except for Ben, your best-kept secret. It seems Krista found him.”

  “Ben is Krista’s roommate, as you know.”

  “Yes, but Krista apparently had him working for your team long before you did.”

  Sean didn’t know what to say to that. Or where Tory was going with it. He settled for, “Krista and Ben were friends before Krista was brought on to the company.”

  “Yes. As were her two most valuable helpers, is that right?”

  They got to their balls, giving Sean a thankful break from Tory’s poignant questioning. When they’d both hit, Sean getting closer to the hole than Tory, Tory resumed with, “Krista seems to be the crux of your team--besides you, of course.”

  Ah. So that was it. It was an elaborate plan to speak about the person Sean least wanted to talk about. He should have figured.

  “She is the lead researcher,” Sean said vaguely.

  “She is your backbone. She is your most valuable player. And if I’m not mistaken, your most valuable ally. I understand you don’t want to lose her, Sean, but I can offer her what she can’t get at Dexico.”

  “She may have room for growth where she is…”

  “If you are talking about restructuring, then you haven’t heard the latest, I’m afraid. Me granting you business will mean a stopper in the structural change your sales force is planning. Departments will be left as they are, and Krista will be left to a manager who doesn’t have any desire to move.”

  Sean stopped in their walk and stared. “How could you possibly know that?”

  Tory just smiled, continuing to walk. “Apparently the CFO is gay. Marcus and him are…good friends. I hear.”

  “So Marcus is definitely switching from us to you, then,” Sean said levelly.

  “He has given a verbal agreement.”

  “He has no one to decipher his ideas.”

  “I am sure I can find someone to work with him if Krista won’t. Or Ben.”

  Sean stopped up short, “You’re approaching Ben?”

  A shrewd look passed over Tory’s features. “Have approached. I haven’t received an answer yet. It seems Krista’s loyalty is to you, and Ben’s loyalty is to Krista. Which means you and I have business. More business, I should say.”

&
nbsp; “I don’t know what you want me to say, Tory. They are valuable assets. I will try to keep both of them if I can.”

  “I realize that, Sean. But if I am not mistaken, you have feelings for Krista, and Ben is a friend. Surely you must have their best interest at heart? Krista thinks you do…”

  Sean stayed silent. She did. She trusted him. If he said stay, she would. She would stay in her dead-end job until she couldn’t stand it. He still didn’t think he deserved her trust, but since she bestowed it, he would protect it. “I’ll think about it.”

  “Do. Think about it. Talk to her. I’ll try to win her either way, but hopefully you’ll realize that what’s best for her is with me, and you’ll help her.”

  After a while in silence, Tory said, “Emily hopes you have reconciled. I agree. You are a good team.”

  ~*~*~*~

  Later that day Krista found her way back in a fog. Surprise her, they did. The spa was filled with masters! From the second she stepped through their doors and gave them her name she was pampered and fawned over. She had a facial, a mud bath and a massage. By the time they were done she had to be poured out.

  Once in the room she noticed Sean wasn’t there, also noticed she had a missed call from him, and laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She should call him back. But she didn’t want to move. Ever again.

  Laziness won out.

  Sometime later, how much time was impossible to say, there was a knock at the door. It didn’t sound like room service, but it was past time for her to have left. She hefted herself to the door, saw it was Sean, smiled, and headed back to lay down.

  “You okay?” he asked in concern.

  “Very okay. They were fabulous. I am exhausted from being pampered. How did it go with Tory?”

  “It went…okay.”

  There was something odd in Sean’s voice. Something on edge. Something very much didn’t go okay.

  “Is the account okay?” she asked, turning to him, trying to read his face. He did look concerned, also sunkissed and glorious. She tried to push his godliness out of her mind, but it was damn hard to be serious when a person was so relaxed. No wonder Marcus was never concerned. She had to ask him his secret.

  Sean studied her for a minute, but she couldn’t tell what the problem was. She got a stab of fear that it was her. Maybe she didn’t do as well as she thought.

  Before she could ask, he said, “The account is great. He is, um, aware of the size of staff we have working on it.”

  Sigh, not her, then. “Is that bad? I mean, we are giving him everything we were asked for. Sometimes more. And fast, too, right? Didn’t John say we are doing everything well and at light speed?”

  “I know. That’s the point. We have a few people churning out large quantities of excellent work. Our company isn’t known to handle large clients all that well, let alone a gigantic client. With a small staff. It has impressed Tory, which is hard to do.”

  Krista nearly went searching in her bag for her dunce cap. She flat out couldn’t see the problem. “But...isn’t that a good thing? I mean...we are doing good work. Isn’t he pleased of what we can accomplish?”

  “Very, yes.”

  “Right. Okay, I am not understanding what the problem is...”

  Sean sat down in the chair in the corner of the room. He leaned back and crossed his long legs. “Tory took his business and made it into the giant it is. Many conglomerates change CEO’s like they are going out of style. Any hiccup, any negative change with stockholdings, and they change leadership. It’s a hard position. Tory has been in that position for over fifteen years, and increased their value every year. Even in a bad economic climate. Many call him a genius at business. It’s hard to impress a man like him. He has seen it all and usually sees through all facades. But we impressed him.” Sean finished and stared out the window in consternation.

  So…that sounded great. Krista would be smiling instead of moping. Her dunce cap felt a little tight. “And why aren’t we supposed to feel good about that?”

  He turned his currently sun infused eyes on her. His blond hair made his tanned skin seem exotic, as if they were in the Bahamas. His arms showed his muscle definition even when he was relaxed. Krista forgot the point and got a pang of longing. If she wasn’t so relaxed she’d try to get some sex orchestrated.

  “To impress Tory is great news, yes.”

  Krista tried really hard to focus. She couldn’t stop looking at his bulge, though.

  Impervious to her stare, he went on. “However, to impress Tory is to open yourself up to more scrutiny. He only agreed to work with us because you blindsided him at that charity dinner. You showed a prowess in your field, and a loyalty to me, that he wasn’t expecting.” Sean’s eyes went soft. Then the troubled expression worked its way back. “Then we danced around him with facts, figures, and original, yet doable, ideas? Tory doesn’t take things at face value. We surprised him, so he had to find out more.”

  “Do we have something to hide?”

  Sean smiled. “Us? No. The company? Yes.”

  Krista’s stomach tightened up. “Oh. Can you tell me what?”

  Sean’s head swiveled to her. “You. Me. Marcus. Ben.”

  Krista shook her head in confusion.

  “Our team, and how poorly we are paid. Basically, how easy we are to steal,” Sean finished with a bitter smile.

  “Well, I am new, so that makes sense for me to be paid low. But I will work on getting more, so there’s that. Ben is new, too. And part-time. And Marcus never really could get his ideas across, so that makes sense. But I thought you--” Krista let her thoughts drift away. She had always thought Sean made a ton, but it was very rude to ask. Even for her. Well, at least until he knew she wasn’t in it for the money. Then, open season, social etiquette be damned.

  “You thought I made a lot? Yeah, so did I.” Sean turned away again. “Plus, I am number one in line for John’s Junior VP position. That comes with a great bump. Also, it comes with leverage if I want to move on. I would be a fool to leave before I had that position.”

  “Right. So... what’s the problem?”

  Suddenly Sean seemed to make up his mind. He jumped up with a graceful, catlike motion. “Let’s talk about it on Monday. This is work stuff and today is Sunday. It is illegal to talk about work on Sunday.”

  The change in direction was strange, but not unwelcome. She had to check out.

  They gathered up all their things and made it home in no time. There wasn’t much traffic and their conversation had no impediments anymore. They talked about all things stupid and noteworthy combined, never a lull for conversation. It was just like the old days, but now there was a new note of intimacy which made everything that much better.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  When they neared their collective homes, Sean got a burst of anxiety. Kate’s repeated calls were weighing heavily on him. She’d called periodically, checking to make sure Krista was in sight, or at least safe. She advised Sean to take her to his house, regardless of how they felt about each other. Given that Kate would’ve rather Krista lost his number altogether for how he’d jerked her around, it was more than worrisome.

  “Why don’t you just come to my house,” Sean said casually as they turned toward the beach. They had about three miles until they were there.

  “I will. I need to get my stuff for tomorrow, though.”

  “We can just stop by your place on the way to work.”

  “Ah but, I have a surprise for you. Plus, I want to get my hair products and razor and what not.”

  Sean felt a tingling at the base of his cock, “What surprise?”

  “If I told you, it wouldn’t be as shocking.”

  He hated how easily she could distract him. “Does it involve your body in some way?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Maybe something flavored? Or a piece of fabric?”

  Krista laughed and reached over to run a firm hand up his leg to his crotch. “I have flavored, but
that wasn’t the surprise. I have a few other toys you might like.”

  Sean gulped. Then, because he couldn’t help himself, he lifted his foot off the pedal to slow down a little and said, “Rub. Please.”

  Krista didn’t. Instead, she unzipped him and pulled him out. The tip of his cock was moist, making the air licking his exposed skin tantalizing. Krista undid her seatbelt and leaned over, sucking his manhood into her mouth.

  “Ohhh, Krissy…” Sean said, trying to focus on driving, but barely able. He cut into the avenues, slowing to a near crawl.

  She pushed her face to his balls, taking as much as she could before gagging. The feeling of her throat muscles squeezing him was the best feeling he could imagine. Until she forced herself lower, gagging, but pushing through it. She was trying, and succeeding, to deep throat him. She was one helluva woman.

  “Have to…stop,” Sean said as he pulled over. It was a mostly clear day in the Sunset, so he hoped no one would notice the scene in the car.

  A few more tries had Krista nearly mastering the practice, now wasting no time exploiting it. His tip hit the back of her throat, then her mouth withdrew, sucking his soul out through the tip of his dick the pleasure was so deep. He fondled a breast, reaching into the bra as she sucked him back in, mashing her face against his base.

  “Close,” Sean wheezed, his balls constricting.

  She pumped harder, her saliva running down his shaft, hard sounds of suction filling the car. His world slowed, all his focus on his cock, feeling the build-up, half-pausing, and then—

  He jerked away from her to finish in a napkin, keeping her face clear and clean of the mess. His head hit the headrest and he closed his eyes.

  “Keep your eyes closed while I clean up.”