Under My Boss's Direction: Office Romance Collection With New Novel

by Jamie Knight

  I would have to psych myself out. But finally, I convinced myself to roll out of bed, the sudden meeting with the cold floor bringing me the rest of the way awake. Then I zombie-walked to the bathroom, my stiff legs only vaguely cooperating with the dictates of my tyrannical brain.

  She never really left. At least not in spirit. The engine might have started, the red eyes of the taillights disappearing into the dark of night, but Jonna still remained in my heart and my mind. I felt like we’d made a connection over the past couple of days, but I also knew that I needed to be careful.

  We were both adults and it shouldn’t matter but it still did. I was technically in a position of power, making anything more than a strict business relationship questionable, at least to some people’s narrow and suspicious minds. Even taking her to the Loki’s Laugh gig was risking gossip and danger.

  The only thing making it clearly not a date, other than the fact that it was strictly business related, was the presence of Sven and the AGAB guys. I wasn’t entirely versed on modern dating rituals, but I was pretty sure that courting didn’t tend to happen in groups.

  Even so, I was careful to never be alone with her, always leaving my office door open when we were together, with Holly just down the hall, and I never made any sort of contact, even accidentally, no matter how much my spirit might call out for her touch.

  I wanted Jonna, no doubt about that, needed her, even, but the choice between being with her and continuing running the label was not a clear-cut one. Especially when I wasn’t sure she felt the same way.

  I told myself not to think about her too much, focusing instead on cooking myself some breakfast before my work-out. My house was bigger on the inside, or at least I liked to joke that it was. Despite its relatively modest size, the place I called home had a lot of rooms, ranging in size from tiny to huge, and I tried to make the most of it.

  Among the accoutrements added was an exercise room. The in-home gym was the main reason I had yet to succumb to the scourge of the ‘middle-aged spread,’ even though I still had a while left until I qualified.

  Out of curiosity, I’d done one of those ‘when will I die?’ tests, and was relieved to find out that, barring a freak accident, my number wouldn’t come up until I was 90.

  I was halfway through cooking in my kitchen when all of a sudden, I heard whistling.

  What the fuck?

  The sound came from nowhere, a tune picked at random, I supposed— my experience with whistling being rather limited, despite my musical background. Everyone I knew had my full permission to knock me out if I was ever caught humming, let alone whistling.

  But then I realized the sound was coming from me.

  The mushroom popped and sizzled in the cast-iron skillet like a firework display. I had been carefully shifting it with the stainless steel flipper to avoid any unpleasantness. God only knew where I would have heard “I’m A Believer” lately, but out it came as I cooked another high protein, no meat breakfast, Jonna never far from my mind as I did so.

  In fact, she happened to be appearing in several scenarios, in various states of dress. It was like a music video in my head that only I was able to enjoy as I ate my breakfast once I had finished cooking it.

  Now that I was properly fueled for the morning, it was off to my altar of fitness, to try and defy time for another day. I didn’t need to worry, really. It was a lucky feature of my bloodline that everyone looked younger than they were. To the point that people literally didn’t believe my brother and I were both our mother’s children.

  That was partly because of the ten-year age difference between us, but also due to the fact that our mom always looked at least ten years younger than she was. Despite remembering when Nirvana was still on the charts, I was still regularly mistaken for a millennial. Except when I grew a beard.

  Thoughts of Jonna, a fantasy image of her, followed me into the workout room. Her eyes were always on me, a sweet smile on her lips, as I chose my weights.

  They had come in a set I’d ordered online. The shipping costs were murder, but it was worth it in the long run, despite my skepticism that I would ever use all of them. I was wrong about that— I was into the mid-range weights in the first month.

  She stayed with me through the warm-up and all, sitting in a lotus position, wearing nothing but unmentionables, patiently waiting for me to finish. I wasn’t going to cut my routine short but I didn’t want to disappoint her either, even in my mind.

  Setting the weights back onto the rack, I used my newly free hands to attend to the emergency that was occurring in my shorts. A wave of sweet relief crashed over me as my cock came free. The fresh air tickled the head and sent tingles all through me. Laying down on the warm-up mats, I joined Jonna in the theater of my mind.

  She rose to meet me, getting onto her knees, so her mouth was level with my throbbing cock. Her mouth was already open as I lay my hand on the back of her head to slip it into her warm little mouth. My good girl sucked me beautifully, starting at the head and moving down the shaft.

  Getting about halfway down, she started to suck harder. Slowly at first but gaining in both speed and intensity as she gulped down my cock. I took hold of her ponytail, seizing gentle control. She gave her power over to me willingly, letting me guide her movements as she sucked me off, obeying my very whim and directive without hesitation or question.

  She closed her eyes before it came. My load flooded into her mouth as she swallowed it all down, not missing a drop.

  Withdrawing my cock from her mouth, Jonna still licking desperately at the head, I leaned down and kissed her. The sexy, curvy goddess returned my affections with equal gusto, sucking greedily on my tongue.

  Leaving her on her knees, I turned her around, so that she was facing away from me, and put her down on all fours. I lifted her hips, so her sweet ass was in the air, giving me full access to both her tight little holes.

  I didn’t want to hurt her, and took the path of less preparation, burying my face into her tender, pink pussy, making her moan, loud and long. Her sounds were only getting louder as she approached orgasm.

  Giving her a few minutes to recover, gently stroking the small of her back as she trembled with the aftershocks, I caressed the head of my cock against her tender opening. My fantasy Jonna reached back with both hands and spread her pussy lips for me, letting me know she was ready.

  A hand on her ass, I eased my way inside, feeling her pussy adjust to being filled so completely as I moved further in and she pushed back against me. Holding her ass with both hands, I gently fucked her, each of my thrusts met with a sharp gasp as we both approached climax. Jonna’s front end dipped down even further as I fucked her harder, her moans becoming even more urgent, the two of us coming in sweet unison.

  After a second much quicker and colder shower, I headed into the office in a better mood than I’d been in in ages.

  “Visited by ghost in the night?” Holly quipped, as I came in bearing donuts and coffee for all.

  “Not at all. I just felt in a generous mood.”

  “Gee, I wonder why,” she said, with a teasing wink.

  Despite being several years younger than me, Holly had always sort of felt like the big sister I’d never had.

  Sweet Jonna was already in my office. Getting here before me was an endearing feature she’d made a habit of.

  It was a warm day, spring moving invariably into summer, and she was wearing considerably less than she had on the previous six days. She was clad in white Chucks and a light, breezy blue summer dress with no bra straps visible anywhere.

  “Morning, sir,” she said softly.

  It was all I could do not to take her right then and there, remembering the fantasy version of her from this morning. Resisting my more primal and immediate urges, I was resolved to at least talk about today’s training.

  No matter what the possible consequences, I was determined to have her. I just needed to find the right way to go about it.

  And as though a
sign from the heavens, both of our phones pinged in unison, with a very concerning warning.

  Chapter Five

  Jonna

  It was all so sudden. I wasn’t expecting both of us to get a non-work-related message at the same exact time. There must have been something serious going on.

  I could hardly believe my eyes once I checked. On my phone’s screen, in all caps, was the worst message I could have ever imagined receiving.

  COVID-19 ALERT!

  SPECIAL SECURITY MEASURES ARE NOW IN EFFECT. STARTING AT 8:00 PM THIS EVENING, ALL CITIZENS ARE TO GO INTO SELF-QUARANTINE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.

  I could feel my heart break a bit. There was no way to continue with the internship. Not unless I worked from home, and it just wouldn’t be the same. Too much of the work was hands-on.

  I also just liked being around Seth. That would have to come to an end, at least until this lockdown was over.

  “Oh, dear,” Seth said, in his nonchalant way.

  “I guess we’re done, huh?” I said, with only a slight crack in my voice.

  “We don’t need to be.”

  “Really?” I asked, unable to keep a squeaky tone out of my voice.

  “We could both work from home,” he suggested. “The same home, I mean, if you agree to go into lockdown with me.”

  “Is that, like, legal?”

  “We could get a test if you want to be sure.”

  “We can do that before tonight?”

  “We can do it right now; I have medical staff on sight. There was an embarrassing amount of pretty grievous injuries back in the day,” he added, by way of explanation, because I was looking at him with an eyebrow raised. “No one died, thank God, especially since none of us had insurance, but I always promised myself that if I could, I’d have a medical department, just to make sure it never happened again.”

  “Has it?” I asked him, my eyes too wide now for him to notice any raised eyebrow, I hoped. “Happened again?”

  “Not like it used to, though there are still some instances here and there. Still, better safe than sorry.”

  “That’s not what I thought you’d say,” I confessed.

  “Oh, why is that?”

  I could feel the heat rising on my cheeks. The last thing I wanted to do was insult or embarrass him, but I couldn’t really think of any way around it.

  “I just figured things would be a bit more, you know.”

  “Anarchic?”

  “You took the word right out of my mouth.”

  “They were at the beginning,” he admitted. “But more by circumstance than design. Sometimes I think I was born to be the responsible one. A sort of counter-balance to keep the others in one piece.”

  “You seem to be doing a good job.”

  “Thanks. I do what I can. So, what do you say, can you stand the sight of me for at least two weeks? And I could continue training you at my house.”

  I loved the way he said that.

  Training me.

  At his house.

  “Absolutely!” I said, a bit too enthusiastically. “I would just need to run home and get myself some clothes and stuff.”

  “Tell you what. You do that, and I’ll call Harrison and get the tests set up,” Seth instructed me.

  I nodded, and hastily made the round trip home, stuffing what I hoped was at least two weeks’ worth of everything I’d need into a duffel bag. I could barely think straight. I was really going to be locked down… alone… with Seth Black.

  I probably overpacked, but I figured it would be better to err on the side of caution, and I even stuffed some of my favorite albums into a backpack, just to have them close.

  Content with what I’d gathered, I rushed back to the office, and Seth whisked me downstairs to get tested.

  Harrison, it turned out— much to my surprise, which I tried my best not to let show— was an awesome Punk babe about my age, who also happened to have a nursing degree. It must have been nice to work somewhere where no one would care if she wore her gear.

  It wasn’t too extreme. No rubber skirts or leather lab coats, but her tribe alignment was very much on display in other ways. Particularly in her hair and make-up.

  “You're all clear,” Harrison said, when the results came through. “Each of you.”

  “Can I get that in writing?” Seth asked.

  “Sure, I’ll have you both letters by the end of the day.”

  “Thanks, Hari, you're the best.”

  “You’re welcome, but remember— don’t call me Hari.”

  She glared at him, clearly not afraid to piss off her boss. I admired her bravery. And her efficiency.

  That was it. We’d both been tested and cleared, the clouds of doom rolling in over my mentorship clearing as soon as they’d gathered.

  “Do you want the address, or will you ride with me?” Seth asked.

  “With you,” I blurted out.

  Despite my dirty mind that being around Seth seemed to have brought out in me, I didn’t even think about the double entendre of the word ‘ride.’ I just wanted to be close to him, and my car was safe in the staff parking garage, and it wasn’t like it was going to be checked anyway. Lucky thing, too, because I was about to get closer to him than I’d ever imagined.

  “Okay,” he said. “But I brought my bike today. I find traffic more tolerable that way. I hope you don’t mind.”

  “Umm, okay,” I told him, unsure.

  There was a notion, often repeated, that the best view was from a motorcycle. This might well be true for the drivers. I was too scared to open my eyes the whole way there. I screwed my eyes shut and clung to Seth like a baby koala.

  “We’re here,” he said, the engine reducing to a lower ebb.

  I unstuck my face from the back of his leather jacket as he put down the kickstand, the smell of freshly cut grass permeating the air.

  “Careful now,” he said, helping me down on to solid ground, my thighs still vibrating.

  I lost my footing and fell against him, feeling the solidness of his torso through his cotton polo. I couldn’t resist pressing my hands against him, just to make sure it was actually real. It was.

  Seth kept himself in really great shape. I could feel my pussy twitch, but I did my best to ignore it.

  “Better?” he asked with genuine concern.

  “Yeah, I’m good. Just a bit, you know, off balance.”

  “First time on a bike?”

  “Yeah, first and probably last.”

  “Was it really that bad?” Seth asked with a chuckle.

  “Scarier than a roller coaster.”

  “Well, let’s get you inside and settled in.”

  “Sounds good.”

  I wasn’t exactly expecting a mansion, but Seth’s house still came as a surprise to me. Not least because of its surroundings. It all seemed so… domestic. Not that that was a bad thing. The more I thought about it, in fact, the more appealing it seemed.

  “You’ll have your own room, of course,” Seth said, as he led the way up the stairs.

  It did seem like an “of course” thing to say, although I wasn’t really happy about it. To be quite honest, I wanted him to fuck me, but I understood if he didn’t. It could be really costly for him, were he to be caught messing around with an intern. That was the sort of thing that could get a president of a country impeached. Let alone the president of a company.

  As far as I knew, Seth still ran things at Suspicious Activity, but the label had gotten big enough that it had HR, as well as a legal department. I’d seen them listed next to the elevator. We could get in a lot of trouble if we indulged in any forbidden flings.

  “This is you, and I’m just across the hall,” Seth said, and I put my bag down on the four-poster bed.

  “It’s lovely; thank you.”

  “No trouble. Are you hungry?”

  I was, come to think of it, and so I nodded. Breakfast was the last meal I could remember eating, with everything involving the pending lockdown becomin
g so hectic all of a sudden.

  I was glad Seth wanted me here even if it was just about the job, even though I was hoping it was also about sex. I really felt like Seth needed me at the studio, or at least that I was genuinely useful. Not just shadowing him as he did his work.

  “I’ll go start dinner,” Seth announced.

  After changing my clothes to something more comfortable, the evening cooling considerably from earlier in the day, I headed downstairs to see what might happen.

  I could hear it even before I reached the bottom. The unmistakable bass tones of Joy Division’s “Shadowplay.”

  So, he didn’t just like Metal after all.

  It shouldn’t have surprised me that much.

  I’d always figured Seth to be a man of depth and taste. If I went through his record collection in earnest, I’d more than likely find some Classical, particularly Baroque, probably, and even some Blues and Jazz.

  “What’s cookin’?” I asked him.

  “Crêpes. I wasn’t sure if you were veggie, so I did some with chicken.”

  “Aren’t crêpes more of a dessert?”

  “Not the way I make ‘em.”

  Time seemed to move differently. I could fall out of my chair and not hit the floor, at least not for a while, or at least so it seemed. That was how good Seth’s crêpes were.

  They made me never want dinner to end. To stay right there, in that moment for the rest of my life, if not the rest of time.

  “These are truly delicious,” I told him.

  “Glad you like them,” Seth said. “I aim to please.”

  I could have sworn he winked at me when he said that, but I wasn’t sure.

  He probably didn’t mean anything by, it but what if he had?

  The question plagued me, pulling and tugging, even as things got really nice and relaxing. Seth suggested we go to bed early. He said he had a lot planned for the next day. Reluctantly, I agreed, wishing we could stay up and flirt but knowing that that wasn’t the brightest idea.

  Morning almost came too soon. Rested but confused, I did light exercises to get the adrenaline going and looked for something to wear. I would have to do it eventually, but taking a shower right then seemed too presumptuous, since it seemed so intimate of a thing to do in someone else’s house and I still wasn’t sure where we stood.