Office Intrigue

by Nicole Edwards

  But I had this. Fashion was totally my thing.

  “Are you available to start immediately?” Landon inquired, once again taking control of the interview.

  “Yes, sir. I am.”

  His response was a gravelly grunt that sounded like approval.

  Now that I was used to it, I didn’t panic when Landon got to his feet, this time grabbing the folder.

  “If you’ll excuse us for a few minutes, I’d like to discuss with my partners.”

  “Sure you don’t want some water?” Langston offered.

  “I’m sure.” It was a lie. My mouth was parched, but I was too nervous to drink anything.

  “We’ll be back in a minute,” Landon noted, then disappeared into the hallway, his twin following him.

  I kept my eyes on them, which was the only reason I saw Langston wink at me.

  That or he had something in his eye.

  When the door closed, I stared at it for a minute, replaying that scene over in my head.

  Yep. Definitely a wink.

  It got warm again.

  I’m too young for hot flashes, right?

  I tried to relax, but it was nearly impossible.

  Waiting was the worst part. Although, I realized, most of the interviews I’d been on had ended with a follow-up call to let me know I wasn’t selected for the position, so there hadn’t been a lot of waiting. From what I could tell, they were planning to give me the news before I left the building.

  So, was that a good thing? Or bad? Face-to-face rejection seemed like it would be significantly more uncomfortable than over the phone.

  I didn’t have time to think about that before all four men stepped back into the conference room. They were intimidating on their own. Together they were a force to be reckoned with. And it was hard not to stare.

  Ben moved over to me first and I jerked my gaze to his face.

  “Luci, we’d like to offer you the job if you’re interested. Here’s the information on the position,” he said, handing me a small sheet of paper, which listed out the salary information. “It also comes with full benefits, vacation, et cetera.”

  I nodded, smiling as I looked back up at him. “Yes, sir. I’m definitely interested.”

  “Good.” He clasped my hand and helped me to my feet. “We’d like for you to start immediately. Will tomorrow morning work for you?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “We’ll expect you here at seven thirty.”

  I nodded again.

  The next thing I knew, the four men were leading me back toward the elevator.

  It wasn’t until I was on my way down to the first floor that I realized I never did find out what the requirements were.

  Three

  BOSS MEETING

  ——————————————————

  Langston

  “OKAY, NOW THAT WE’VE OFFICIALLY hired her, tell me your thoughts,” Justin prompted when we sat down in the conference room not two minutes after the elevator doors closed behind Luci.

  Truthfully, I would’ve preferred to get coffee before we had this discussion.

  “Before we get to that,” Landon interrupted, “where’s Jordan?”

  “He had an appointment this morning,” Ben confirmed. “Didn’t say where, but I also didn’t ask. Said he’d be in around eleven.”

  Landon frowned. “Didn’t look great that we had no one in the office when she arrived.”

  It was obvious my twin wasn’t impressed by the way we’d greeted our new employee, and I could understand his point. Good thing she’d decided to accept the job. Landon might’ve been the most laid-back of the four of us—well, except maybe Ben—but he was a stickler for etiquette. And he was right, we had failed in that regard.

  Again, coffee would’ve been good right about now.

  Justin nodded. “I agree. However, it’s not like we had anyone to fill in for him.”

  Okay, so Justin had a good point, too. Sort of.

  “And what? We’re too good to come in early or answer the phones?” Landon huffed. “I woulda volunteered if I’d known.”

  Yeah. Not me. I didn’t have the patience to man the front desk. Nor the desire.

  We’d been down a secretary for the past week and a half. Getting someone in wasn’t as easy as it looked. For one, we were looking for someone specific, someone who could manage the office, maintain a certain amount of decorum, not provide a lot of drama, and be open to future possibilities. Not to mention, get along with our remote employees and give our CPA guidance as needed.

  To be fair, we had interviewed both men and women, although we weren’t looking to hire a man. Not for this position anyway.

  Needless to say, it had been hit or miss thus far and every time we seemed to find someone we all four agreed on, she was out the door within a couple of weeks tops. Apparently, we were rather intimidating, or so I’d heard.

  But enough was enough. I was tired of talking about the empty office or who was willing to do what. So I decided to push things along since coffee was my first order of business.

  “She came with a great recommendation from Kristen,” I told them, leaning back in my chair and regarding my partners. It was far too early to be having this conversation—or any, for that matter—but even I couldn’t think of a better time. The girl would be starting in the morning and it was pertinent that we were on the same page when it came to what she’d be doing.

  “I’ll admit,” Landon began, “she didn’t look at all like what I expected her to.”

  Unlike my brother, I hadn’t had any expectations. Five feet two inches with light blue eyes, long, dark hair with a massive amount of highlights, and a heart-shaped ass were all good as far as I was concerned.

  “Good or bad?” Justin’s eyes held the question his lips spoke.

  We all turned to Landon. “For one, she’s younger than I thought she’d be.”

  Justin peered down at the notebook in his hand. “Her application says she’s twenty-four.”

  I frowned. “I thought we weren’t allowed to ask questions like that.”

  “It asks for date of birth.” Justin’s tone was defensive.

  “She certainly caught my attention.” We all knew what Ben was referring to.

  Although we ran a respectable, multimillion-dollar business, there was no denying that we had a few idiosyncrasies. For example, we lived and breathed Dominance and submission. It wasn’t merely a fetish, D/s was a lifestyle choice for each of us.

  On top of that, we were all looking to find a woman we could…share. Perhaps it wasn’t politically correct according to a lot of people, but it was what it was. I certainly wasn’t about to apologize for it and I doubted my partners would either. And considering we spent the majority of our time in the office, we were looking for someone we could interact with in that particular setting. On more than a business level.

  Not that we were solely willing to hire based on that. We had several positions we could fill and should the right person stumble upon us, we weren’t opposed to finding them a spot.

  “According to Kristen,” Landon said, “she’s a natural submissive.”

  “I got that just by talking to her,” Ben noted.

  Hell, I got it just by looking at her.

  “Me, too,” Justin confirmed. “How long has Kristen known her?”

  “A couple of years,” Landon supplied.

  “Are they close?” Ben asked.

  I sighed heavily. “I’m sorry, but we didn’t interrogate Kristen about her friend. She mentioned that she knew someone who was right up our alley and she just so happened to be single and looking for a job. It seemed appropriate to have her nudge the girl in our direction.”

  Justin glanced between the three of us. “As with the others, we’re going to have to give it some time, get to know her a little. Feel her out before we take the next steps.”

  “First and foremost,” I said, drawing all eyes to me, “she has to be able to handle th
e responsibilities. Unlike the last woman you hired”—I glared over at Justin—“who didn’t know how to properly answer a telephone.”

  “Or the one before that,” Landon added, “who didn’t know what email was.”

  “Regardless of our intentions,” I continued, “we need someone who’s competent in the office. I’m not willing to take anything less.”

  Justin rolled his eyes. “Point taken.”

  “Did anyone bother to ask her why she left her previous jobs?” Ben questioned. “Because she has an extensive list.”

  That she did.

  I looked at each man in turn. No one said anything. Appeared as though we’d all been too tongue-tied to really find out the pertinent information. Not that anyone could blame us. Personally, I’d been quite taken by the girl. She was probably the most stunning woman I’d laid eyes on in a really long time. And yes, she had a sweet innocence about her that I’d instantly homed in on. I’d known as soon as I saw her that she would fit in here perfectly.

  “Well, I found it interesting that she didn’t ask about the job requirements,” Landon said, smirking.

  Ben grinned. “No, she definitely did not.”

  I cleared my throat and moved to get to my feet. “Well, I say we give her a month, see how she does. We’ll reconvene after she’s been here for a week to discuss where we’re at. Unless something comes up that needs to be discussed before then.”

  Justin stood. “I’m good with that.”

  Ben and Landon both agreed.

  Finally, we were going to get down to real business.

  Coffee.

  I needed caffeine before I dealt with anything else today.

  Unfortunately, since we still lacked a secretary, I would have to make it myself.

  Four

  AFTER THE MOST UNCONVENTIONAL INTERVIEW I’d been on to date, I headed for the one place that would soothe my anxiety. The mall was my home away from home. Granted, I spent most of my time not buying anything because extra spending money was one of those fictional things I only read about in books, but still. It was nice to be back.

  When I parked, I shot a quick text to Kristen, letting her know they had offered me the position and that I started tomorrow. She responded with a smiley face emoji and asked me to meet her for drinks tonight. I automatically agreed, excited to find out how she knew these men.

  Unfortunately, that was the easy part. Now I had one thing left to do before I went inside.

  I pulled up my contact list and hit the call button.

  “I got the job!” I told my mother, cell phone pressed to my ear.

  “What job is this?” she asked, her tone calm, casual. Slightly uninterested.

  I was excited; she was not. The story of my life.

  “The one at the PR firm.”

  “What will you be doing?”

  “Receptionist.” Or secretary, as they’d called it. Whatever.

  I could only hope she didn’t ask for details, because I didn’t know what it entailed. I assumed I’d be doing the standard receptionist/secretarial duties such as answering phones, scheduling appointments, making coffee. That sort of thing. I didn’t think they’d have me sweeping floors, which was a plus.

  “Well, good for you,” she said, the inflection of her voice never changing, which pretty much translated to, If that’s the best you can do, then I hope you’re happy.

  Considering I’d gone to college on their dime but had yet to do anything with the accounting degree I’d earned, I sort of understood my mother’s disappointment. Then again, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d done something that truly pleased the woman.

  And now I know what you’re thinking. An accounting degree and you’re taking a job as a secretary? I know, I know. But to be honest, I freaking hated accounting. My mother encouraged me to do it and…well, let’s just say I tended to do what my mother wanted because arguing with her was a big waste of time. No matter what, she always got the last word in, which generally left me feeling about as tall as the four-inch heels on my shoes.

  Nonetheless, she wasn’t happy that I wasn’t crunching numbers somewhere, but I wouldn’t be happy crunching numbers, so it was a double-edged sword and I was the type to err on the side of my own happiness. Maybe it made me selfish, but so what.

  “Would it be possible to borrow some money?” I threw the question out there because that was the reason I had called and my mother knew I wasn’t one to beat around the bush. “I need to get some new clothes. It’s a business-professional environment. I’m a little short on funds at the moment.”

  My mother sighed.

  “Please. I’ll pay you back, I promise.” Trust me, at my age, it was really hard for me to beg my parents for money, but when it was necessary, I could suck it up.

  Another dramatic sigh.

  I waited.

  I could hear her brain working over the phone. She was probably trying to figure out when the last time I paid her back was. Hopefully she wouldn’t think on that too hard, because I couldn’t even remember.

  “Use the credit card,” she finally said. “But keep it to a respectable amount, Luciana.”

  “Of course.” I loved when she said that, because her definition of respectable and mine were entirely different. I couldn’t be faulted for that. “Thank you, Mommy. Love you!”

  My mother’s sharp inhale reflected the shock my declaration gave her. “Good-bye, Luci.”

  If I had to guess, I would say she had said she loved me fewer times than I’d paid her back in the past five years. But whatever. I was grateful she was loaning me money.

  Sometimes it paid to be an only child.

  I disconnected the call, shut off the engine, then climbed out of my car, straightening my skirt once again.

  I was already at the mall, but I did have the decency to call her before I went inside. It wasn’t like I didn’t know what the answer would be, but in the event my mother wanted to hassle me about it, I wasn’t going to fight with her. Granted, I hadn’t come up with a plan B, so it was a damn good thing she was so predictable.

  “Business professional,” I told myself as I stepped into one of my favorite places in the entire world.

  What you’re wearing is certainly appropriate.

  Yep, I could still recall Landon’s words.

  Personally, I took that to mean they didn’t have an issue with short skirts, provided they weren’t shorter than the tips of my fingers. Granted, I had short arms, so I didn’t think that would be a problem.

  And since I tended to favor skirts, I figured that was the best way to go. After all, they accentuated my best asset. My legs.

  I would admit, I had great legs. Sure, I was short, but thanks to yoga, I managed to keep my body toned. And skirts accentuated my legs while also concealing my larger-than-it-should-be rump. Hence the reason I had decided short skirts were the key to a functional yet professional wardrobe.

  Three hours later, as I was walking out to my car, I wished I had worn more sensible shoes. Nevertheless, I still considered it a successful trip despite the fact that my toes were screaming at me.

  I managed to select sexy yet professional items that could be mixed and matched to come up with multiple outfits and I didn’t go ridiculously overboard. I think my mother would be proud, if, you know, that was her thing. Of course, I’d also picked out some sexy new kitten heels plus a pair of boots that I couldn’t resist, but she wouldn’t see the charge for a little while, which gave me time to get my first paycheck.

  Now it was time for a mani-pedi and then off to have a few drinks with Kristen. I was sure she’d understand that I had to make it an early night.

  After all, I needed to get my beauty sleep.

  Tomorrow was going to be a big day.

  •

  I met Kristen at a bar close to my apartment. It was a little hole in the wall that we came to every now and then. Nothing fancy, but it was cozy and the owner/bartender was nice.

  “Where’s Tim?”
I glanced around, noticing her boyfriend was absent.

  Kristen grinned. “He had something he needed to work on.”

  “Well, that means we can dish about boys.”

  “Boys?” Her dark eyebrows rose.

  “It appears you’ve been holding out on me,” I prompted when Jerry delivered our drinks.

  I went with my usual Sex on the Beach while Kristen had a glass of red wine. Granted, from time to time, I mixed it up and asked for a Blow Job, but only because I knew it embarrassed Jerry.

  “Holding out on you?” She had a serious twinkle in her eye. One that told me she knew exactly what I was referring to.

  I took a sip of my drink. “So, I show up at this fancy office building downtown only to find out no one was there. I was just about to start searching when four ridiculously hot guys stepped off the elevator. Imagine my surprise when I realized they worked there.”

  Her expression didn’t change.

  “You didn’t happen to mention that you were friends with four of the hottest men in town.”

  Kristen chuckled. “I wouldn’t necessarily call us friends.”

  “No?”

  “We just…run in the same circles.”

  “What does that even mean?” I probed, leaning in closer. “Are you members of some sort of club or something?”

  “Or something.”

  I huffed. “You’re always so tight-lipped.” I raised my hand to the bartender. “Hey, Jer. Could you bring her the bottle of wine and a straw? There’s some information I need and I think I’ll have to ply her with alcohol first.”

  Of course, Jerry didn’t hear me because he was at the far end of the bar, but I got my point across.

  “They obviously knew that I knew you,” I admitted. “Landon asked me specifically how.”

  Kristen smiled and she looked like an angel. So sweet, so innocent.

  Yeah, right.

  “I told him about you,” she finally admitted. “He mentioned he had a position open at his office and I immediately thought of you.”

  “Me? Why me?”

  She lifted her glass to her lips. “Because you’re my friend and you’re looking for a job.” She smiled. “I told them you’d be a good fit for the firm.”