In the Eye of the Storm / Catering to the CEO

by Samantha Chase

  “Uh-huh,” Will said skeptically. “So she went home today?”

  Silence.

  “Stephen? Did she go home today?”

  “No. There were trees down in the subdivision, and the roads were blocked. She did leave, but she came back five minutes later. We spent the day together, hanging out and talking, and I swear to you, I never had a single sexual thought about her before. But now, after spending the day with her…something’s different.”

  “No, it’s not. It’s always been there, but you never let yourself think about it because you were so focused on the business.” He chuckled. “You have to understand, being your friend and all, I was a third party watching it all from the outside. Man, you watch her.”

  “Why? Why should I watch her? You don’t trust her?”

  Will snorted. “No, you idiot, I mean you watch her, like when she’s not looking, you are looking at her. All. The. Time. It’s been rather entertaining to witness. I knew that Derek had no idea what he was talking about last night because I knew if you had slept with Holly, you would have told me. Plus, the look of pure longing on your face wasn’t a longing of I can’t wait to have her again as much as it was I can’t wait to have her. So what are you gonna do about it?” Stephen was silent for a long time. He was staring out the big picture window into the moonless night. “Stephen?”

  “I wish I knew.”

  “You have to decide what you want. Do you want Holly as your assistant or as a lover? It never works when you try to have it both ways. Trust me. Which relationship is more important to you?” Stephen was silent, thinking. “You know that Holly runs your office like a well-oiled machine. I think because of her, you have far exceeded your projections for Ballinger’s. Is that worth losing for the sake of sex, or are you thinking of something more serious?”

  Snorting with disgust at the idea, Stephen said, “More serious? You know I have no plans to get serious with anyone. Ballinger’s is my life. I don’t want to do to a wife and kids what my dad did. It wouldn’t be fair. There is too much going on right now for me to put any kind of energy into a serious relationship with anyone.”

  “Holly doesn’t strike me as a casual sex kind of girl.”

  “Me either.” Stephen sighed.

  “So I’ll ask again. What are you going to do?”

  Raking a frustrated hand through his hair, he murmured, “I still don’t know.”

  “Call me tomorrow and let me know what you decided, if you want.” With that, Will was gone. Tossing the phone down on the sofa, Stephen went to stand by the window and watched the rain come down. Off in the distance he saw that the wind was bending some of his trees practically in half. He’d be surprised if they all lasted after such punishment.

  The sights and sounds of the storm calmed him. The rumble of thunder started up again, and he saw lightning off in the distance. If his mind wasn’t racing so much, now would be the perfect time to crawl into bed and sleep. There was something about a storm that always lulled him, but there was no way he could sleep right now. He had to settle this situation in his mind. He ran a hand through his hair and muttered a curse. How was he supposed to know what to do? Either way he was going to lose Holly in some capacity. The businessman in him knew that she was what kept him and his company going. The man in him, the one who’d been in a state of arousal all damn day, wanted what he wanted and to hell with the consequences. It shouldn’t be this hard to have it all. If only Holly were the kind of woman who would have a casual affair.

  Feeling more confused than ever, Stephen walked back through the house to the dining room for another brandy. Now he watched the storm through a front window for a few minutes before going back to the living room to sit in the dark on one of the sofas. The only light on was in his office; he’d shut off the kitchen light when he grabbed his cell phone earlier. The occasional flash of lightning lit up the place, but Stephen barely noticed.

  For how long he sat there, Stephen had no idea. The grandfather clock in the entrance hall was ticking, but it didn’t register with him how many times it had chimed. After some time, he noticed a movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head and saw Holly tiptoeing toward the kitchen. Not wanting to startle her, he sat quietly and let her get into the kitchen before following her there.

  He almost laughed out loud. Holly was sitting at the table, unwrapping a piece of chocolate! He stood in the doorway watching her. She wore a white T-shirt of his. It was huge on her, hitting her mid-thigh when she was standing, he was sure. But now? While sitting at the table? It hugged her bottom and rode high up her thighs, which looked amazing. His mouth watered. His hands twitched. He had to find a way to let her know of his presence without scaring her, and make light of the situation so that he didn’t pounce on her.

  Treading lightly into the kitchen, Stephen noticed that Holly was watching the storm as he had earlier. A flash of lightning brought his reflection into the window and made her scream out. To try to calm her, he said, “You wanted the chocolates after all.” His tone was light but quiet, and he hoped that she wasn’t too badly startled.

  “Stephen! You scared me half to death! I thought you were back in the office.”

  “Nope, I’m done for the night like you said I should be. I’m trying to take your advice and relax a little bit more.” He came and sat across from her at the table—a spot that was somehow never going to be the same after she left. “Unfortunately, I have no idea what to do with myself, so I’ve been wandering around in the dark.”

  Holly noticed the glass in his hand and nodded toward it. “What are you having?”

  “Brandy. I was hoping it would help me fall asleep.”

  “Any luck?”

  “Not yet.”

  Silence. Holly nibbled on the dark-chocolate square and sighed. “I can’t believe I came down here for this. I mean, I ate a ton of food today, and yet all I could do was lie in that continent of a bed thinking that I didn’t have any chocolate. How insane is that?”

  “Continent of a bed?”

  She gave a wicked smile, and Stephen’s blood stirred. “Silly, I know, but that bed is so darn huge that it reminds me of a small continent. A family of four could sleep in that thing without touching each other!”

  An image of Holly sprawled naked across the bed flashed in Stephen’s mind with the same brightness as the lightning outside. In his mind, however, it was his bed that she was sprawled across, and he was touching her all over those silky thighs he was trying not to stare at.

  Holly finished her chocolate quickly and stood up. “Well, I think that should do it.” Looking at the bag, she reached down and grabbed one more piece. “Just in case.”

  “Sure.” He stood and went to stand directly in front of her so that he could see her more clearly in the darkened room as he looked down at her face. Her eyes looked huge, and even in the dark, he could clearly see how the T-shirt did little to hide what was underneath—which promised to be a spectacular body. Her nipples had hardened to tight peaks, and he had to fight the urge to lean forward so they would be touching.

  Holly cleared her throat but couldn’t make her feet move. “I guess I’ll see you in the morning.” Looking up at him, she waited for his response. His eyes were intently on hers, and while she should look away, she couldn’t.

  “I promised myself that I wouldn’t ask you this,” he began. His voice was low and deep. “But I have to know…have you given any more thought to our work situation and what’s going to happen come Monday?”

  It was a mild disappointment, she told herself, that he was asking her about work and not about anything of a more…personal nature. “I…I haven’t really thought too much more about it. I still think it would be best for me to leave. I don’t want to be the topic of office gossip.” She nervously chewed on her bottom lip, willing him to stop staring. His eyes were drawing her in, making her want things th
at she had no right to want, to yearn for things she shouldn’t yearn for.

  Inhaling deeply and closing his eyes briefly, Stephen knew what needed to be done. It was inevitable, and he knew that the longer he put this off, the worse it would get. Reaching out, he placed his hands on her shoulders, and Holly thought he was going to pull her into his embrace as he had earlier in the day. But he didn’t. This time, it was more than mild disappointment.

  “Well, I have thought about it, and I think it would be best if you did leave Ballinger’s.”

  It was the very last thing she had expected him to say. All the way to his house last night and all day today she felt as if he was doing everything humanly possible to convince her to stay on as his assistant. Maybe she had overstepped her bounds; maybe he found her to be too pushy or demanding now that she had finally stood up for herself, and had decided that he didn’t want to deal with her anymore. Whatever his reasoning, Holly didn’t expect it to hurt so much for him not only to accept her resignation but to encourage it and want her to leave. Her heart ached.

  “Oh,” she whispered and finally looked away, down at her feet, willing them once again to move and get her up to her room as quickly as possible before she lost it and started to cry.

  Stephen watched her head bow, chin to her chest, and waited to see if she would say anything else, if she would demand to know why he had so suddenly changed his mind. His hands were still on her shoulders, and if she moved even a tiny bit, he would release her. But she didn’t. She stood there, looking fragile and hurt and more beautiful than he had ever noticed before. He’d seen her in suits, he’d seen her in cocktail dresses and evening gowns, but for some reason, the sight of her barefoot and in his basic white T-shirt had him wanting her like he’d never wanted a woman before.

  Finally looking back up at him, she seemed about to speak but thought better of it. She licked her lips, and Stephen followed the path of her delicate pink tongue with hungry eyes. She was killing him. He wanted her to speak, to say something. But when, after several moments of silence, she didn’t, Stephen did. “Aren’t you curious? Don’t you want to know why?” Not trusting her voice not to shake, Holly merely shook her head.

  Taking his hands from her shoulders, he placed an index finger under her chin to keep her looking at him. “I think you deserve to know.”

  “Stephen, please,” she begged, not wanting to hear his explanation and not sure how much longer she could stand there before the first tear fell. Holly had never considered herself weak or an overly emotional woman, but something about this entire situation had brought out the absolute worst in her. He had her off balance, and for the first time in her life, she had no confidence in herself and was unsure what to do. How was one supposed to stand toe to toe with someone while they told you how much they didn’t want you around? She’d borne witness to Stephen declining deals with potential clients or ending relationships with clients; she’d overheard him breaking up with a woman or two, but she had never been on the receiving end, and now that she was, it made her feel ill. It took her a minute before she realized that he was talking again.

  “If you were no longer my assistant, then we wouldn’t have to worry about office gossip like you mentioned earlier, or what Will or Derek thought of our relationship, or anyone else for that matter. You wouldn’t have to be looking over your shoulder wondering if people were whispering about you or questioning how you got the job or what we were doing together while working late or if we were away on a business trip.”

  He was saying exactly what she had said earlier, and she was confused. She wanted to get mad then and remind him that it was she who had been saying this all along. Why was he suddenly agreeing with her and throwing her words back at her? Did he want her to beg? Cry? Funny, she’d never thought Stephen to be cruel, but right now she wasn’t so sure.

  “You said that didn’t matter since there was nothing going on. You said that I was being crazy and dramatic about the whole situation. What…I don’t understand. What changed your mind?”

  “This.” With that, he bent his head and claimed her mouth with his.

  Chapter 5

  The moment his mouth touched hers, Stephen was lost. He had never craved a woman the way he craved Holly. At this time yesterday, he would have denied it with every fiber of his being. But now, standing here with her in his arms, he knew he could no longer deny anything where she was concerned.

  Stephen had no idea when it had happened, but somehow it had. Somehow he had developed feelings for Holly; he wouldn’t call it love, hell no. But what he felt for her right now, while wildly sexual, he knew that it went deeper than that and that he needed her like he needed oxygen to breathe.

  The feel of Stephen’s mouth on hers took Holly by surprise, but it didn’t take long for her to join in and give as good as she was getting. His lips were so soft and wonderful, and as his tongue gently invaded her mouth, she touched her own to it shyly. When she felt his body shudder, she grew bold. Chocolate fell to the floor as first her arms wound around his neck and then her fingers raked through his hair as she had itched to do all day, and it felt glorious.

  Heads changed angles, bodies shifted, but all Holly knew was that she did not want this to end. All thoughts of Ballinger’s and coworkers and friends vanished. There was only this need, this chemistry, this desire to be with this man.

  Stephen pulled her closer and sighed at the feel of those stiff and glorious nipples against his chest. His hands ran up and down her back, keeping her close.

  He cupped her bottom and felt what had to be the tiniest pair of panties ever created. It was as if she were wearing nothing, and that had him harder than stone. He forced himself to leave her mouth and work his way across her cheek to the shell of her ear and felt her sigh, heard her moan. He kissed her throat up one side and down the other until she was writhing in his arms.

  “Stephen, please,” she begged, and if he didn’t rein himself in quickly, he’d be taking her right there on the kitchen floor. The storm continued to rage outside, but it was nothing compared to what was going on right there in the darkened kitchen.

  “Are you sure?” he asked raggedly. He was a little fearful that she had come to her senses, but he had to ask, had to know.

  “I don’t want to think about work, or people, or even tomorrow. I want you, Stephen. Now. Please.” It was all he needed to hear. He knew his bedroom was a mile away, and yet there was no place else that he wanted to be with her for the first time. Scooping her up in his arms, he hugged her in close and kissed her thoroughly.

  He kept his eyes on her as much as humanly possible as he carried her across the darkness to the stairs and up to his bedroom. Holly planted kisses along his jaw, his cheek. Her hot breath felt like heaven. At the door to his room, he placed her on her feet and pressed her against the cool wood. He needed to feel her against him fully again.

  She reached for him and arched her back away from the door so that she could be pressed against him where she needed him the most. He was going mad with want for her. His mouth claimed hers once more, and Stephen knew he could kiss her forever and still not have enough. It was a thought that stilled him briefly. To clear his head, he broke the kiss and took her by the hand as he opened the door. He led her into the room and didn’t stop until they were next to the bed.

  Without words, without asking, he reached for the hem of her T-shirt, pulled it over her head, and stood in awe. That wonderful mane of hair fell about her shoulders, looking tousled and sexy to the point of making him sweat. She truly was perfection—high, firm breasts; a tiny waist; curvy hips; and lean, smooth legs that he could not wait to have wrapped around him.

  Reverently, he reached out and cupped her breasts, and she shuddered and purred with pleasure. He almost came from the sound of it. Her head fell back and her hair spilled down her spine. That pose, in nothing but those tiny panties, was the single most erotic picture
Stephen had ever seen in his life.

  She came around slowly, her eyes slumberous as she reached out and ran a hand up his chest and then down, getting under the hem of his shirt so that she could touch skin. Her hands were so small, so smooth, and they felt so good on him that he almost ripped his own shirt off to give her better access. Holly worked quickly in getting his shirt over his head. Once it was gone, she touched him all over before leaning forward and kissing his chest. She flicked her tongue over each nipple, and when he growled, she smiled.

  Feeling satisfied that he was as crazed as she was, she stepped away from him, lay down on the bed, and reached for him. It was all the invitation he needed. Peeling off his jeans and briefs in record time, he joined her on the bed. He was beside her, kissing her mouth, touching her body at random but everywhere. It was heaven. It was hell. He wanted to be inside her desperately but wanted to take it slow. He wasn’t a teenager; they were two adults, and they had all night. There was no reason to rush this, and yet that was exactly what his body was yelling at him to do.

  Before he completely lost the ability to think, he reached into his bedside table for a condom. Sheathing himself quickly, he looked down at the sexy picture she made. Holly writhed against him, driving him mad with each movement. “Stephen,” she whispered; it was a plea. That one single word had him knowing that if he didn’t have her right now, he would be insane in minutes. He peeled her panties away. Moving on top of her, Stephen looked down at her face, flushed with passion, her eyes dazed. “Please.”

  He was inside her before the word was finished. He groaned at the sheer pleasure of it, the sweet perfection of their bodies fitting together. He wanted to go slowly, knew that if he didn’t get some sort of control of himself, it would be over too soon. But as Holly wrapped her legs around his waist and locked her ankles behind him, he was lost. Stephen knew that never before had a woman obsessed him as Holly did, no woman had ever made him crave as Holly did, and certainly no woman brought out this animalistic need in him as Holly did.