What the Heart Needs

by Jessica Gadziala

  He finally tore into the office in the late afternoon. She heard him slam the door to his office and drop his briefcase onto his desk. Everything about the movement on the other side of her office door seemed angry.

  She opted out of running to get him a cup of coffee and stayed focused on yet another business trip she had to plan, to North Dakota of all places.

  “Coffee,” EM’s voice blared through her office, making her jump and lose the papers in her hands. She cursed the invention of the office intercom as she picked the scattered pages up again.

  Part of her wanted to be offended at the rudeness, though she knew she was supposed to have had coffee to him already. The other part of her was relieved. If he was being harsh and demanding, then things were back to normal. There would be no more strange, long stares. No more offers of food or wine. No more feeling the hard line of his body pressed up against her while they danced. And certainly no more crying and making a total fool of herself.

  A part of her also went out to him. He had spent hours in court. After meeting Dan, she had no misconceptions about the relationship. Dan was clearly a very clever and conniving woman. She knew what she wanted and she wasn’t about to take no for an answer. Judging by the way Dan had acted at the party, she doubted the divorce was her idea let alone something she was about to go along with without a fight.

  Suddenly she wondered about how, exactly, she had gotten a man like Elliott Michaels to walk down the aisle. Was it simply a matter of business? Trying to get whatever her father had? Had she faked a pregnancy- clichéd and trashy as that seemed? Or had there been an actual relationship that had bloomed and turned into something more than his usual weekend fling? Had he actually loved her?

  Hannah cringed at the idea of someone being able to love someone as cold and calculated as Dan. But then again… EM himself could likely be described as such by many most of the people he came into contact with. It was possible there was a time that the two saw something similar in each other and thought to join alliances. James had said it was a terrible marriage. Hannah thought back to cleaning EM’s house and looking for a blow dryer. There hadn’t been the slightest trace of makeup or clothing or even a feminine touch. Except, she reminded herself, all the bath goodies and the dryer itself.

  Had she actually used Dan’s old bath salts and soap? Or did EM just keep those supplies stocked in case of overnight guests? One-night stands or flings?

  She dropped his coffee on his desk, taking comfort at his usual grunt of appreciateion and no further discussion. Maybe she was making a bigger deal out of everything than she needed to. Hopefully EM had had a few more drinks (of straight whiskey, she had learned) after she had left and he only had a foggy reccollection of the whole thing.

  --

  Elliott had stormed into his office in a foul mood. Dan had been late to court and dragged out every dirty thing she could think of to pin on him. Her father had provided her with their company’s law firm and they were just as big of sharks as his own. Her favorite new tactic was calling him out on infidelity despite her own extensive list of lovers during their short marriage. She even had the audacity to bring in examples of the night of the party and how he had danced with another woman. Everyone dismissed the idea, dancing wasn’t cheating. But it wasn’t helping his case any either.

  She wanted to rake him over the coals for money. There was no doubt that had always been her motive. She had been in search of a rich husband and when she somehow managed to rope him in, she showed her true colors. And when he wouldn’t stand for her nonsense and filed for divorce, she decided to fight him tooth and nail despite only having been together for a few months.

  Dan had an easy motive. Elliott had done business with her father since almost the birth of EM Corporation and Elliott probably knew him better than his daughter did. He was a self-made man from a very poor background who had worked very hard to bring himself up in society. He also had a tight fist on his finances. There was always that worry of losing it all. It was a feeling Elliott understood all too well. As such, Dan was only allotted a certain amount of money every month. And while Elliott wasn’t sure of the exact amount, he was certain it was more than enough to provide her with a very nice lifestyle. But for Dan, it was just never enough.

  He sat down at his desk and waited for Hannah to pop her head in and drop off the coffee he needed so desperately. He heard her shuffling around in her office. He waited ten, fifteen minutes. And she didn’t come.

  It wasn’t like her to slack off. There was no doubt in his mind that she had heard him come in. He certainly hadn’t been quiet. It was even harder for him to wrap his mind around the idea that she was deliberately not bringing his coffee.

  Finally he punched his thumb down on the intercom button and practically growled his demand into it.

  She came in less than two minutes later and placed his mug on the desk while simultaneously grabbing his pile of paperwork and scurrying back into her office. She hadn’t even looked him in the eye.

  For the first time in hours, he felt his anger deflate a bit. Maybe she was having some feelings about the party at his house. He shouldn’t have danced with her. He should have made sure that one of his drunk and idiotic guests hadn’t upset her. Hell, he probably just shouldn’t have insisted she be there at all.

  And there was no way he could bring up the topic that wouldn’t be embarrassing for the both of them.

  With a sigh of a long-suffering man, he set his mind to his work for the day. Only it was a task much easier said than done. His mind kept wandering back to seeing Hannah walk into his office after her impressively long bath. She had been absolutely stunning. More beautiful than he could express in that pink dress. And with her hair down. To her waist. He had known it was long but hadn’t realized just how long. There was just something incredibly sexy about long, sleek hair that made your hands itch to run their fingers through it.

  And the feel of her soft body pressed up against him as they danced.

  And how much more easily she connected with James. It had been a bone of contention between the two brothers since they were teenagers. While women flocked to him, he never found it as easy to connect with them. Then there was James who could make any female eight to eighty-eight giggle within five minutes of talking to them.

  Why he wanted to have easier conversations with his assistant was another issue. He wasn’t supposed to go there. She was too valuable to him in the office to be constantly fantasizing about getting her into his bed.

  Hannah had worked nonstop since she got into the office. A text chimed on her phone, and when she checked it, she realized it was already well after seven at night. Her stomach growled angrily and her eyes hurt from squinting at her computer screen. She was going to need glasses in less than a year if she wasn’t careful.

  She stood, walking to the side of her desk. The door to EM’s office opened behind her and she turned, startled. For some reason she had expected him to already be gone for the day. And certainly not coming to look for her.

  He looked tired. He had pulled his grey and black tie loose and his hair actually seemed a bit shaggy. His piercing blue eyes looked small and sleep-deprived. She had never seen him look quite so human before.

  He stopped abruptly as if he hadn’t expected her to be there. Or maybe be so close.

  Hannah felt her thighs push against the desk behind her. He still hadn’t said anything, just stood there looking down at her with a look she couldn’t quite explain. But the memories of that same look on his face when they were in the library and of when he had fixed her computer flashed into her mind and she could feel her cheeks warming.

  He saw a slight blush come over her face and he realized he was staring and had been for almost a full minute already.

  Then she looked down at her feet and bit her lip and he didn’t know what came over him but he stepped forward, pushing her against her desk.

  She felt his body suddenly presse
d close to her and his arm went behind her back, pulling her against him. She looked up then, as if she would find answers on his face. Instead she saw desire. That was the look she couldn’t find a name for before. His eyes looked almost closed, his gaze piercing into hers.

  Her stomach flipped when she realized what was about to happen. Her heart was hammering in her chest and she felt her breath come only in shallow waves. Then his free hand reached out and stroked her jawbone.

  Hannah’s mouth fell open on a sigh, heat flooding her stomach and she felt a rush of desire that she hadn’t even known she was capable of feeling before.

  She saw the decision be made a split second before his face lowered to hers. His lips captured hers quickly and with gentle pressure. His arm pulled her tighter as she melted against him. His mouth pressed harder on hers and her arms went up around his neck, pulling him closer.

  Her mouth opened on a moan and his tongue slipped inside to find hers, stroking it with such soft insistance that she whimpered against his mouth.

  Elliott’s arms went around her as he deepened the kiss and pulled her with him to the sofa. He pulled her down on top of him, his hand finding the back of her head and he held her against him. He nipped her lower lip and felt a tremble shake her whole body.

  Hannah’s hands were on either side of Elliott’s head. She could feel his stubble raking across the soft skin on her face and she felt heat fill her body.

  Elliott shifted, suddenly pulling her body under his and Hannah felt his body press her into the couch. One of his legs kneeled on the outer edge of the couch, the other was wedged between her thighs. His fingers were tangled in her hair and he grabbed it and pulled, forcing her head to the side and his lips abandoned her lips to trace a line across her jawbone. Then down her throat where he stopped, nipping and sucking on the sensitive skin until she was moaning. She squirmed beneath him and felt his hardness pressing against her thigh.

  Elliott groaned when she raised her hips up to his and his mouth found hers again, pressing roughly, taking the kiss from intense to demanding in a second. Hannah’s arms went around him and she wrapped one of her legs around his waist. She felt herself shamelessly pressing against his hard-on, trying to get relief from the fist of desire building in her core. At her gentle exploration, Elliott shifted so his desire would find hers and she moaned and trembled when his cock finally pressed against the sensitive juncture of her thighs. Her legs tightened around him.

  And then her phone blasted suddenly and they both jumped and pulled away like cold water had just rained down upon them. Hannah pulled herself off the couch and scrambled away toward her desk.

  Elliott pulled himself into a seated position, his head in his hands.

  Hannah could feel her heatbeat pounding in her throat and wrists and chest. Every nerve ending felt sensitive. Try as she might to ignore it, there was an achy throbbing between her thighs that spoke of desire unattended to.

  She couldn’t wrap her head around what had just happened. One minute they were just standing there, shocked to see each other. The next thing they were on her sofa, writhing and groaning. She felt an epic blush spreading across her face. Good god, she had actually pushed her pelvis against his. She had thrust the most private part of her against his erection and practically begged him to take her then and there.

  “Hello,” she breathed into her phone, her voice barely above a whisper.

  “Hey baby,” her mother’s voice said cheerfully. “I didn’t think you were gonna pick up. You’re all out of breath.”

  Hannah squinted, her hand covering her face. “Yeah I had to run to get the phone.”

  “Oh okay. I just wanted to call and check in. You didn’t sound great this weekend. I just want to make sure you’re doing okay.”

  “Yeah,” Hannah said, her voice unconvincing even to her own ears. “Yeah, Mom, I’m fine. Don’t worry. But hey, I’m still at work. I have to finish up a few things so I can get out of here. I’ll call you on my way home.”

  Her mother’s voice sounded concerned, and Hannah could practically see her eyebrows furrowed in concern. “Promise?”

  “Yes, I promise.”

  “Okay I love you.”

  “I love you too. Bye.”

  Hannah ended the call, realizing too soon that she should have kept her mother on the phone. Elliott was still sitting on the couch, his breath steady again. Why hadn’t he left? He couldn’t possibly think she was going to go back over and finish what they had started. Could he?

  Why had she let that happen? She should have turned away. She should have started talking about work instead of standing there like an idiot looking at him. She certainly shouldn’t have wantonly melted into him.

  She was just an easy target. He had obviously had a long, hard day at court and he was tired and frustrated. And he had walked in on her and saw no rejection in her eyes. Men like him, powerful men with little free time, always reached for what was closest. She was yet another personal assistant to be reached for in a time of need.

  How the hell were they ever going to go back to a normal employee-employer relationship after having tasted each other’s kiss and felt one another’s desire? They couldn’t. Well, she couldn’t. And she doubted he had any respect left for her now. He wouldn’t trust her in the way he had before.

  She knew better. She had always known better. She never so much as got involved with a coworker, let alone a boss.

  Elliott could just sense the wheels turning in her head. He had sat there, watching her back as she talked to her mother and her breathing slowed. Her hair was still mussed from rolling around on the couch and from his hands. He could hear the confusion in her voice, sense the disappointment in herself.

  She wasn’t the kind of woman he was used to. She wasn’t yet another in the line of assistance who had thrown themselves at him, dressed provocatively to draw him in, flirt with him, stand too close. She wasn’t the kind of girl to get involved with her boss. And she certainly wasn’t the kind of woman who got rolled around on office furniture.

  He cursed himself for putting her in that kind of situation. He had manipulated her desire and her obvious innocence of it. She wasn’t even aware she was attracted to him, for chrissakes. Just because he saw it didn’t mean he should use it against her to satisfy his own frustration.

  He had wanted her since she snapped back at him at her job interview. He couldn’t count the amount of times he imagined grabbing her and taking her right on his desk in the middle of a work day.

  The fact that he had a hard day in court, wanting nothing less than to throttle Dan and her lawyers, the countless amount of work he had missed out on for being out of the office and out of reach had caused an insurmountable amount of frustration and anger. He felt on edge than usual and it had caused his usual rigid self-control to abandon him. When he walked into her office and she turned and looked up at him with those big grey eyes that slowly filled with something he recognized as attraction, what little tethers that held him back snapped.

  And her inviting mouth, her soft body pressing into his, her soft moaning against his lips had driven him so mad that he couldn’t pull himself back. When her hips rose to meet his erection, he had to fight every desire to pull her pants off and bury himself deeply inside her.

  Then the phone rang. He both cursed and thanked it in equal terms. If he took her right there in the office, there would be no coming back from it. He would probably never see her again. But, god, it might have been worth it. He felt her desire which she must have kept taut as a chord thrumming from her. If he had taken her, she would have been like an explosion.

  She had hung up well over a minute and she still stood facing away from him, her hands on her desk making her back hunch slightly. Her head was down. She was waiting for him to leave, to act like nothing happened so they could go back to pretending there was nothing between them.

  Elliott stood up slowly, rolling his neck. He was still as hard a
s he had been with her beneath him despite trying to distract his mind. He took a deep breath, walking up to her slowly, deliberately. She must have sensed his presence because she straightned herself. But she didn’t turn around.

  He walked up behind her, close enough to feel her outline against his chest. He placed one of his palms on the desk in front of her. His face rested against her soft hair as he spoke into her ear.

  “We can try to ignore this, Hannah. But we both know it is going to blow up in our faces.”

  She swore she could feel his lips press a kiss against her hair before he turned and left, but she shook off the idea. It was too personal, too intimate a thing to do. He wasn’t that kind of man.

  Hannah walked slowly over to her chair, her hands on her desk the whole time as if she needed help standing and walking. She sunk into her chair, resting her elbows on the surface of the desk and cradling her head in her hands.

  Blow up in their faces? Didn’t that just happen? How much worse could it get? Even if they had slept together, it was really no different. She wouldn’t feel any less shame or embarrassment than she did now. She wouldn’t be able to face him and better than she would the next morning.

  Hannah groaned and picked up her phone, texting the first person she could think of.

  Hannah: 8:02PM: I think I have to quit.

  Tad: 8:02PM: Um… no. That is unacceptable.

  Hannah: 8:03PM: You don’t understand, Tad.

  Tad: 8:04PM: Make me understand.

  Hannah: 8:04PM: I cant. It’s complicated.

  Tad: 8:06PM: Nothing is complicated. Do you still want this job?

  Hannah: 8:06PM: Yeah…

  Tad: 8:07: Then its not complicated. Don’t quit. Change your mindset. Take a cold shower. Have a cup of tea. Eat a whole bag of cookies. Go to bed early. Whatever it takes to get you out of this funk. You’ll only regret quitting.

  Hannah: 8:10PM: I’ll see you tomorrow, Tad. Thanks for the pep talk.