Corrupt Practices

by Penelope L'Amoreaux

  When she turned around, he was standing close to her. Again, she could smell him, and it took digging into a deep reservoir of nerves to not close her eyes and just inhale his delicious scent. Part of that, though, was avoiding eye contact with him. She knew if she did that, she’d lose her nerve.

  Every inch of her couldn’t stand how her body reacted to him. It didn’t help that he always stood too close to her. She knew he liked to try to cow her with his proximity and his size. Her brain wanted to take a step back and reclaim space, to distance herself from him. Her chest, though, tightened and wanted to lean closer, closing the gap. Fortunately or not, her legs refused to listen to either claim, freezing her into place.

  “Yes. You complained about the coffee. Now people can fix whatever coffee they choose. It also cuts down on the mess and the grossness of the pots. I don’t care if this is a place full of busy staffers; if you are going to insist on there being fresh coffee, the kitchen can’t be left a disgusting wreck at the end of the day.”

  She didn’t want to, but Mariel peeked at him to see what his reaction would be. The hard lines of his face were still drawn tight, his jaw still clenched. There was merriment in his eyes, though. She knew it now. Was it that he liked being stood up to? Or was he devising another new and humiliating punishment for her?

  “And I have you to thank for the lunch, as well?”

  She nodded, afraid to speak, knowing her bravado would fail her.

  “Interesting.”

  They stood like that, eyes locked, neither willing to budge. She felt it, though. His presence bearing down on her, pushing onto her. He wanted her to submit. Like he wanted her to roll over and show him her belly like a dog. The worst part? Some piece of her wanted to. Wanted to let him overpower her.

  It wasn’t until Bill cleared his throat that she realized they had been standing, enthralled, a little too long.

  “Sir?”

  She saw it then, the gulp he took when she said it. It made her feel powerful. Hot. Shocks of pleasure and desire crackled through her nerves. She wanted to say it again.

  “Sir.” Yes. Definitely. He liked it when she called him that. It made her feel funny, tingly to know it. She was gaining ground with him, she thought. Something boiled under the surface, and her feelings about his harsh treatment changed in that moment.

  “Yes?” His raspy voice was lower than usual, tighter.

  “Now that I’ve cleared a lot of my schedule, surely there are some other tasks you need assistance with?” No doubt about it, she added a trace of innuendo to the question. She couldn’t help it. She wondered if he’d pick up the hint. She trembled, afraid he would.

  The blue eyes stopped dancing. They grew tight, shrewd. He knew exactly what she was doing.

  “I’ll let you know. For now, keep up the good work.

  Chapter Four

  Dallas had left her with no jobs. Hadn’t she impressed him? It had felt like he was coming around to her.

  It felt like he was coming on to her.

  Ugh, right. He hadn’t been nice, either.

  Mariel almost regretted the catering and coffee because she hated being bored. She was hesitant, wavering in the hall outside of Bill’s office. Should she just go sit at her desk? Should she find another cleaning task?

  Was Dallas giving her unspoken permission to sit with the interns?

  In their confrontation she had unnerved him. Not nearly as much as he shook her up, but it was something. She was getting to him. Maybe that meant he would let her move into the type of work she wanted to do.

  Maybe, though, he was testing her.

  She hated not knowing. Just to be doing something, she went to fix herself some tea.

  There were two of the interns in the kitchen. She recognized them from the first day. The guys were young and she might have found them cute but compared to Dallas, they felt like little boys. Not wanting to interrupt their conversation, she timidly went to pick out a tea for the new brewers.

  “Dude, I totally brought Linda here last night after hours.” The intern who spoke had longer, shaggy hair. It was unkempt and Mariel felt not professional enough for a Senator’s office.

  “Is that allowed?” The other intern was short and slim with red hair. He had the same problem as Mariel; they could easily pass as five years younger than they were.

  “Who cares? Showing her the Senator’s office was an instant panty melter. She was crazy interested in him. Billionaire politician? All I had to do was show her around a bit and I totally got laid.” his emphasis on the last word piqued Mariel’s interest.

  “Way to go! Linda is totally hot. Where did you meet her again?”

  “I met her on my way home from here last week. And man, I don’t think you understand. I got laid. Here. In the office. We had sex on the conference table. Several times. All of the positions.”

  “The table where we’re working?”

  “The very same.”

  “Not cool. I eat there, man! You’re lucky you didn’t get caught. Dallas would have your ass if he knew.”

  “He won’t know.” It was then they seemed to see Mariel for the first time.

  “Shit, she’ll tell him for sure.” The redhead flushed, chewing his lip.

  But Shaggy Hair stayed relaxed. He barely spared her a glance. “Nah, she won’t tell. She’s just Dallas’s little runner girl. You won’t tattle, will you?” He laughed and left her there, the redhead following on his heels.

  Mariel was used to feeling small around Dallas, but this made her body shake with fury. He was right, of course. She wouldn’t tell Dallas. The word “tattle” had resonated and she could just imagine Dallas reacting to that aspect more than some intern banging his new girl in the office. Hell, he’d probably fire her for being a brat and high-five Shaggy Hair.

  She hated being put in the position of knowing something and not being able to say anything.

  She hated more that Dallas’s treatment of her had infected others around the office. Some people, like Ellen and Paige, treated her with respect. But not everyone, it seemed. If the other interns thought less of her, she wasn’t sure she would ever be able to work with them, even if Dallas let her.

  This was his fault. It was one thing for him to treat her like something smelly he stepped in. But now his actions were teaching others to treat her the same way. Others who, in theory, held the exact same position she did!

  Furious, she stalked to her desk, her tea forgotten.

  * * * *

  Mariel’s irritation at the incident in the kitchen was a tiny needle that kept poking at her, even after she had left work. She had tossed and turned all night with dreams of carrying trays overloaded with coffees while everyone in the office laughed at her and Dallas just glared, more and more unimpressed as she struggled.

  When she showed up to the office she had bags under her eyes and her feet were dragging. The office, though, was frenetic.

  Mariel had to wade through worried, frantic bodies to get to Ellen’s office.

  Senator Taylor’s aid was slamming the phone down when she came in, her red nails a stark contrast to her white knuckles.

  “Um, Ellen? What’s going on?”

  “A fucking nightmare, that’s what!” Ellen slammed her phone down a few more times until Mariel was afraid it would break. “Someone leaked to the press that Roger has been discussing partnering with Citizens for Environmental Rights.”

  The CER was considered pretty radical. While Mariel appreciated their position on clean energy, the group was extreme and sometimes obnoxious in their pursuit for legislation. With Senator Taylor preparing to run for reelection, being tied to an extremist group would be a bold--and most likely bad--move.

  “Leaked? So he is talking to them?”

  “About the bill he wants to propose to counter the pipeline. You should know that as an intern!” Ellen’s voice was clipped and while Mariel knew she wasn’t the target of Ellen’s anger, it stung all the same.

  “N
o, she wouldn’t.” The growl came as Dallas stormed into the room, slamming the door to his brother’s office shut. He pinned her with a glare. “She isn’t a part of the group that works on that bill.”

  “I’m not a part of any group, Dallas.” She knew she sounded belligerent, but she didn’t care. She was exhausted and still angry with him. It was this kind of treatment that had made the other interns think less of her.

  “Now is not the time, E.B.” He sounded venomous, but there was a power to his voice that made her shiver. She noticed his shoulders were heaving, straining at the seams of his tailored suit.

  “Ellen,” he barked, “Roger is pissed and he goddamned should be. Get Paige and start working on a press release.”

  Ellen grimaced at his command but nodded. “Got it, Dallas. What are you going to do?”

  But he didn’t answer, he just turned to leave.

  As he stomped out, Mariel followed him. “I still don’t get it. How did this get out?”

  “That’s the fucking question, isn’t it? Every person working here knows better. They know better. To leak a story is committing career suicide. I’ll make sure they never work in politics again.”

  She struggled to keep pace with him. They darted through rows of cubicles and past office doors toward the conference room. “Well, it wasn’t me.”

  He stopped. His chest puffed as he forced his breathing to slow. “I know, Mariel. But someone spoke to that snake of a reporter, Linda Hughes. She’s been out to get Roger from the beginning, and someone told her this. It was like handing her a new bicycle at Christmas. I just have to figure out who did it.” Judging from his tone, she did not want to be the person who did.

  Linda… the name sounded familiar.

  Oh god. Shaggy Hair. Shaggy Hair had banged a Linda on the conference room table.

  “Um, Dallas?”

  “Yeah.” He wouldn’t look at her. She almost thought he was trying to spare her his anger. Like she was having a calming effect on him.

  “There’s something I overheard yesterday…”

  She told him about the intern’s conversation. As she spoke, his face became calmer, more steeled. When she finished, he looked downright deadly. She shivered.

  “Follow me.” He wasn’t asking.

  He strolled into the conference room with her right on his heels. If she hadn’t just spoke to him, she’d have thought nothing was wrong. His easy demeanor made him even more terrifying.

  “Daniel.”

  Shaggy Hair looked up, his eyes huge. He knew. He knew Dallas knew.

  “Mr. Taylor, I had no idea--”

  “You let her inside this office.”

  “I was just trying to impress her. She didn’t say she was a reporter--”

  “You let a stranger into my brother’s office. Into my brother’s business.” Dallas’s gravel voice was so low it was a rumble.

  “I didn’t know!”

  “I don’t care. That was careless. In this office, I don’t tolerate careless. This isn’t a game, it isn’t some summer job until you get into law school. This is my brother’s career, and you’ve put it in jeopardy.”

  “Please--”

  “Get out. You're fired. If I see you near this office again, I will get nasty. You don’t want to see me nasty. You’ve got zero minutes to clear out. Do not make the mistake of letting the press know anything else just because you’re fired. Me firing you? That’s letting you off easy--got it? Get out of my sight.”

  Daniel spotted Mariel on his way out. His face twisted and he snarled. “You bitch. You went and told him, didn’t you? You’re just his little lap dog! Fetch, bark, shake--roll over! How patheti--”

  He didn’t get a chance to finish. Dallas had grabbed the front of his shirt and slammed him into a wall. Everyone cringed as the crack of Daniel’s body sounded through the office. Daniel made a pained inhale, his eyes wide and his mouth gaping.

  “You don’t get to talk to her like that,” Dallas growled. His face was dark with fury.

  “You treat her like shit, and now you stand up for her?” Sputtering, Daniel struggled against Dallas’s hands, but he was no match for Dallas’s strength and sheer force of will.

  “This is my office. I’ll treat my employees as I see fit. But no one--” Dallas relaxed his grip a little and looked around, pinning several interns and staff with his gaze, “--will treat anyone working here with disrespect.”

  His eyes raked over to Mariel, fixating on her. Her mouth went dry. Fire turns blue when it burns the hottest. Dallas’s blue eyes were scorching, but she didn’t know if it was from the confrontation… or her.

  He jerked his gaze back to Daniel, whose shaggy hair was flopping forward, masking the sheet-white of his face.

  “Apologize.” Dallas pressed Daniel into the wall a little more, the threat heavy.

  “Y-you’re firing me, and you want me to apologize to her?” While he had brave words, no one was fooled by the trembling voice that uttered them. Mariel thought that if she was Daniel, she’d be close to peeing her pants by that point. Dallas had never been so vicious.

  “Yes, I do.”

  Defeated, Daniel looked at her, hate still written on his features. “I’m sorry.” Dallas released him.

  Daniel rushed past Mariel. The other interns remained frozen. Like her, they were in awe and horror at Dallas. His reaction to Daniel’s attack on Mariel had been over the top. Yet, it had been effective. Mariel couldn’t help but see the curiosity as they looked at her. She didn’t think anyone would treat her poorly again.

  Dallas had fired Daniel so quickly. No hesitation. Mariel had been curious about whether he would fire someone; after all, he had kept her on despite obviously thinking little of her. Now she knew. He would fire someone in a heartbeat.

  So why did he let her stay on, when she was hardly doing anything?

  “You.” His attention was focused on her and Mariel suddenly felt a need to run away, and quickly. Too bad he wasn’t going to let her. “Let’s go.”

  He walked her to the hallway where her desk was. It was empty. Nowhere to hide.

  “Why didn’t you tell me yesterday?” He had honey back in his voice. Like a carnivorous plant, she was sure he was luring her in with something sweet.

  “I didn’t want to tattle, sir.”

  “Telling me a stranger was in my domain isn’t tattling, E.B. It’s doing your damned job!” It was too much for her.

  “I don’t have a job, Dallas! You won’t give me one! You won’t let me do anything!” Fear gave her courage. If he was going to fire her too, she would go out fighting.

  “You do what I tell you.”

  “Then tell me to do something useful. Let me help!” Without thinking, she reached out, her hand pressing to his chest as she pleaded.

  Dallas stiffened at her touch. She yanked her hand back.

  “I… I don’t know if I can trust you now, E.B.” His breathing was ragged and his cheeks tinged pink. “We have to be extra careful. Extra guarded. Because of our money…” He stopped, avoiding her gaze. Why was he opening up to her all of a sudden?

  “Because of the money, what? So you’re super rich. Why does that matter?”

  “It matters because the only thing people tend to despise more than a politician is someone with money. The wealth makes us--makes Roger--a target. It is hard enough for him to succeed because of his beliefs.”

  “Please give me a second chance. Hell, give me a first chance to prove myself. I helped you, Dallas. With discovering who it was. I can help more. With the reelection campaign.”

  His face relaxed a little. “I know.” Dallas shut his eyes, his brow furrowed. She saw the worry lines disappear as he retreated into himself. She was afraid she was losing him and could already feel the distance growing between them. Mariel was scared.

  “Are you going to fire me next?”

  He reached out and grabbed her hand, shocking her. She noticed how tiny hers was in his, and the rough, sensual feel of
his fingers. There was an electricity between them and she gulped. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze and she felt it in the pit of her stomach. “Not today. Just… I don’t know. Just keep your head down for a while.”

  Right. Because she was so noticeable before. He left her feeling confused and no better off than she had been before.

  * * * * *

  The fear of Daniel’s termination had shaken Mariel’s already weak resolve. She wasn’t sure she had done the right thing telling Dallas. She wanted to work for Senator Taylor, but seeing Dallas’s fury had been unnerving.

  His reaction to her was puzzling. Why didn’t he fire her? He spent all of his time putting her down. But then, when she hit rock bottom, he would soften, if only for a moment. It made her dizzy to think of it. She didn’t want to be worried about her job. Even more startling, though, was her unease at the thought of disappointing him. She had let him down, she knew, by not telling him about Daniel.

  Mariel was wandering. He had said to keep her head down, but she had already been doing so little work. What did he mean?

  “Hey, newbie what’s up?”

  The voice was one from the morning and caught her off guard. Mariel dashed the tear from her eye as she looked at Paige. “Nothing, thanks.”

  Paige’s face was soft with sympathy. “Dallas?”

  Mariel only nodded. If Paige was too kind to her, she was worried she wouldn’t be able to hold it together. She had always been like that; hated sympathy because it made her feel too exposed and raw.

  “Tell you what. Finish what you’re doing for him so you don’t give him a reason to bitch, and then come to my office before you leave, ok? I’ve got something that might make your day a little better.”

  It was just enough. Better than a hug or a compassionate comment. Paige gave her direction and motivation. That was what Mariel thrived on. Also, she was now insanely curious about what the speech writer could possibly offer to make a terrible day any less terrible.

  * * * *

  “There’s a fundraiser in two weeks, and you’re going.”

  Mariel shook her head. “What?”

  Leaning back in her comfortable office chair, Paige laughed. “I have two extra tickets to a fundraiser in two weeks. Roger’s going to be there, so I have to go. That leaves one free ticket. It will be boring, I promise. A bunch of wealthy schmucks dropping checks into Roger’s pocket while he panders to them. But the cause is good, and usually the food is pretty tasty at these things. Also the bar is free.”