by Tyler Grey
Her cheeks went pink. “I’m sorry, Henry. You’re absolutely right. That wasn’t very professional of me.”
“So, does that mean you’ll let me take you to work every day? Or maybe I can take you out for a drink? We can pretend it’s for work purposes.”
She gasped. “And, you’re back to being a jerk. Okay, professionalism out the window. I’d like to please get back to doing my work. I have a lot to get through before the end of the day, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t bother me. Also, you shouldn’t sit on the desk. It’s rude.”
I chuckled and walked back to my desk. I was getting to her, that was for sure. I was sure I could get her to go out with me. I just had to keep pushing a little more. The last girl I’d been with had been a bit of a challenge, too, but with enough flirting, I had eventually gotten her into bed. When I’d asked her why she had eventually said yes to me, she said it was because I hadn’t given up on her. Well, I wasn’t going to give up on Paisley. There was no way I was going to let someone like her slip through my fingers.
Shawn called me again as I was sitting down at my desk to ask me about whether I wanted to go on a double date with him.
“Dude, why do want me to double date so much?”
“Why don’t you?”
“You know why. I’m on the warpath to get Paisley.”
“You really don’t give up, do you?” he said.
“I don’t. You should know that by now.”
“But what if you’re fighting a losing battle?” he asked.
“That’s rude. You should be telling me to go for it and telling me that you believe in me.”
“Oh, I have no doubt in my mind that you’ll eventually get what you want. You always do.”
I laughed. “Finally, the man speaks some truth.”
“What I’m worried about, though, is that you will regret it. You do realize that you still have to live with her after this, don’t you? And, work with her. Have you forgotten about that?”
“I don’t see any problem with that.”
“Come on, Henry, you know you usually sleep with girls and then forget about them. How are you going to forget about her if she’s there all the time?”
“Well, maybe I won’t want to forget about her.”
“You mean you’re actually thinking about starting a relationship with her?”
“Why is that so strange?”
“Because it’s you! You don’t do that. Are you serious? Is this more than just about getting in her pants? Because if that’s the case, it’s a whole other story.”
I sighed. “I’m not sure, Shawn. I like her. I mean, my main priority is obviously to have sex with her. That has been my goal since the first time I saw her. Is it my only objective, though? I’m not sure. I’ve never met anyone that intrigues me as much as she does.”
“How do you think she feels about you?”
“I think she wants to jump me.”
He burst out laughing. “Wow, that’s confident.”
I chuckled. “Well, I’m not totally sure, but she is doing her best to avoid me. I think it’s because she wants to be with me.”
“If she wants to be with you so much, why is she doing everything in her power to avoid you?”
“Maybe because she’s worried about what her mom will think about it? I don’t know.”
“Well, she’s probably right to be worried. Look, do me a favor, Henry: don’t get involved with this girl if it has the potential to screw things up for your father and her mother. Okay?”
“So, you think I should just screw her, and not get into a relationship with her?” I said.
“Henry!”
“I’m kidding, man. I’m just kidding. Yeah, I know you’re right. I promise not to get involved if I think it’s going to mess things up. The thing is, I really don’t see why it should.”
“For once, think with your head. Okay?”
I laughed. “Thanks for the pep talk, man.”
“Call me if you change your mind about the double date. It might be just what you need to get your mind off all of this.”
I sighed. “You might be right. Okay, I’ll let you know. I promise.”
I stayed at work a bit later than usual. I had a meeting that went on a bit longer than I would’ve liked. By the time I was finished, Paisley was gone. The only person left in the office was Jessica, who was grinning at me when I walked out.
“Jessica, why are you still here?” I asked her.
“Well, I knew you were still in the office, and I wasn’t sure if you would need anything.”
“Thank you, that’s very nice of you, but not necessary. You have your work hours, and you don’t have to work later just because of me. Did Paisley go home?” I asked casually.
She grimaced at the very mention of Paisley’s name. “Yes, she went home. I think she even left five minutes earlier than she was supposed to. Which, to be honest, is a bit rude considering she’s new to the place. Goes to show how important she finds this job.”
I laughed. “Five minutes? That’s fine by me. As long as she finished her work, which I know she did. Well, let’s head on out of here. It’s getting late now. Thanks for staying again, but you really didn’t have to.”
“I wanted to.”
When I got home, I felt desperate for a shower, but there was someone already in both of them. I sighed and was just about to go back to my room when the door to the bathroom opened. I turned around and gasped when I saw Paisley standing in front of me with nothing but a towel. For a moment, we were both transfixed. We stood in silence, just staring at each other. Then she blinked, muttered an apology for taking so long in the bathroom, and rushed off. I gulped and made my way inside.
I climbed into the shower, thinking about what Paisley looked like in a towel. Her hair had been washed and hung loosely around her shoulders. There’d been water droplets on her upper lip, and it had taken all of my power not to reach out and kiss her.
The more I thought about her, the more aroused I began to feel. When I looked down, I saw that I was fully erect. I reached down and touched myself and groaned at the thought of it being her hand around me. I closed my eyes and pictured her being there with me. I imagined her kneeling down and putting me in her mouth. In my mind’s eye, I looked down and watched as the water hit the top of her head as she sucked, and sucked, and sucked. It was over quickly, and when I opened my eyes, I felt disappointed that I was in there alone.
Now that I had seen her with just a towel and seen the desire reflected in her gaze, I wasn’t sure I would be able to stop myself from flirting even more. I had to have her. I had to taste her. I had to feel what she felt like against me. I finished off in the shower and climbed out. I got changed in my room and then headed down to the kitchen to get something to eat. As I turned the corner, I bumped straight into Myra.
“Oh, hi, Myra. Sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going.” Because I had been too busy picturing your daughter naked.
She grinned. “No problem, at all. I have some leftover food if you want to heat it up. I was coming to get some myself. Duncan and I are eating in the living room today. There’s a new show starting on TV. You’re welcome to join us.”
“Oh, that would be amazing. Thank you. I’m starving. I had such a busy day today that I didn’t get a chance to eat, but I’m also too tired to cook.”
We stood in the kitchen, getting the food ready and talking about our days. The whole time, I kept wondering if Paisley was going to walk into the room, and what I was going to say if she did. I was going to turn into a bumbling idiot around her if she came in. For once, I hoped that she stayed in her room because I was sure that her mother would figure out that something was going on. As I talked to Myra, I did my best not to think about what had happened in the shower, but it wasn’t easy.
Chapter Fifteen
Paisley
Someone had shown interest in me. Actually, more than one person had shown interest in me. I’d received a m
essage from the dating site that there were three men requesting a date with me. I was surprised. I hadn’t expected anyone to show any interest, let alone three.
I lay in bed, scrolling through their profiles. The first man was Thom, who went on for a little too long about how important it was for people to remember the “h” in his name and how it had defined him as a person. He was a good-looking guy with a big toothy grin, but he seemed a little arrogant to my liking. Also, some of the photos that he had included annoyed me. One showed him topless, standing on the beach and staring off to the side as if the photo wasn’t posed, which it obviously was. I appreciated a man with a good body, but not someone who felt the need to show it off like that. If that was all there was to him, I wasn’t interested. I immediately disregarded him.
The second guy was Gary, thirty years my senior. He liked younger women and said he preferred a woman who was still in her early twenties. I almost balked when I read that he liked them young so that there was still time to mold them into the right woman. I couldn’t handle it. He added in the word “joking” in brackets, but it was pretty obvious it was how he really felt. I felt sickened and immediately crossed him off my list.
There was only one guy left, and already I was regretting this whole online dating thing. The last guy, however, was a little more my type. He was athletically built, with a nice smile, and a lot of tattoos. I’d always had a thing for tattoos, so I was immediately drawn to him. I wasn’t blown away after reading his profile, but at the same time, I wasn’t put off. He was normal, and there was definitely nothing wrong with that.
My hand hovered over the keyboard as I contemplated what I would say to him if I contacted him, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I promised myself that I would message him at the end of the week and closed the laptop.
I was called into Henry’s office the following day when I got to work. The moment I saw him, I knew why I hadn’t contacted the tattooed guy: it was because of Henry. Because every time I saw him, my stomach flopped, and the butterflies inside when crazy. I had never felt this before. I wondered if I would feel this way if I had only seen him on a computer screen. Probably not. He was gorgeous, but the chemistry went beyond that. Maybe I really should give the tattooed man a call. Maybe we would have the same sort of chemistry if I met him face-to-face.
“What’s up?” I asked Henry.
“I’m about to set up a conference call, and I can’t get the damn thing to work. I’ve been sitting here for the last hour trying to set it up, and I’m starting to get frustrated. I don’t want to come across like a complete idiot in front of these guys. This could be big money, and I don’t want to ruin it. Any chance you know anything about this?” he asked.
I knew without a doubt that he must be very frustrated if he had come to asking me for help. I could imagine that he was the sort of guy that didn’t like to admit when he couldn’t do something. For some reason, this pleased me more than anything else. I liked that he had come to me for help. I liked that he needed help and that he was willing to admit to it.
“Uh, not really, but I can take a look,” I said.
“Please. I would appreciate it.”
I walked over to his side of the desk and pulled a chair out to sit. I moved his computer towards me and tried to see if I could figure it out. Every time I moved, our legs touched one another’s, and I would feel a thrill run through me. The first time, I jumped and moved away quickly. The second time, I found myself lingering there, and the third time, I just let my leg stay beside his. It felt too good to move away. We were sitting so close together that I could smell his cologne. It was intoxicating, and I hoped he didn’t notice how flustered I was.
I tried to keep my composure and retain an element of professionalism throughout the exchange. It wasn’t easy. I was so close to telling him to forget the conference and take me on the desk instead.
His arm brushed against mine. This time, it was skin touching skin, and I closed my eyes briefly as it happened. Thankfully, I managed to stop the groan just before it escaped me. I could feel my heart rate begin to accelerate, and I knew I was slowly starting to lose control. I turned to look at him. His eyes were fixed on me, and I held his gaze.
I was just about to say something to him when a voice startled us. The conference call had begun. I’d fixed it.
“Thank you,” he whispered as I quickly stood up.
I nodded and left the room without saying anything. I could barely breathe, let alone talk. I just knew that I needed to get out of there — I needed to get out of there fast. I looked at the time. It was almost lunchtime. I walked up to Jessica’s desk and told her that I had to take an early lunch that day, but that I would be back early, too. She didn’t even nod at me, barely acknowledging me at all. I didn’t care. I had to get out of there before I imploded.
Once outside, I breathed in the cool air, gulping it as if it were water. It didn’t seem to help as much as it had last time. The air did nothing to take away the way Henry’s skin had felt against mine or the way our legs had touched and remained together. What would’ve happened if there hadn’t been someone on that conference call? I wondered. Would we have kissed?
I couldn’t deny the truth. It was going to happen — I was sure of it. I wasn’t sure if I felt relieved or disappointed that it hadn’t happened. I sent Olive a text, telling her that I was going crazy. Of course, she simply replied to tell me that I should give it a go, and that I deserved to have some fun. Where was the level-headed Olive that had always given me sound advice? She wasn’t the sort of person to say these things to me. Was I missing something? Was I really supposed to be with him?
I thought of my mother, and I groaned. A man walking past and looked at me curiously, and I realized I had groaned out loud. I ignored him. I couldn’t be with Henry. I couldn’t do that to my mother or to Duncan. They had finally found happiness, and I wasn’t going to ruin it for them.
When I got back to my desk, I was pleased to discover that Henry was out for the rest of the day. I had planned on feigning the flue and going home, but now I didn’t have to. Was he out because he couldn’t be around me either? Or was I looking into it too much? I wondered.
I spent the rest of the day working hard and trying not to think about what had happened. I decided I would simply have to avoid all physical contact with him from here on out. I managed to get through all my work, simply because I was so desperate to keep myself distracted. Jessica didn’t talk to me at all, and because I wasn’t allowed to take or make personal calls, I spent my whole afternoon working.
After work, I headed straight to the gym. I always had a gym bag in my car, but it was very rarely used. Olive was the one that was so into her fitness, while I was the one that always avoided it. She’d be pleased to know that I was so willing to work out now. Although, she’d probably just tell me that it was a testament to how good Henry was for me. I decided not to tell her.
At the gym, I worked hard. Even harder than I did at work. I punished myself on the elliptical and ran longer and faster on the treadmill than I ever had before. It was a good workout, and I could now see why so many people were obsessed with it. If I continued to work with Henry, I was going to become very fit. I had a feeling I would have to start coming here daily from here on out.
“Wow, you’re fit,” a woman said to me when I stopped the treadmill and caught my breath.
I looked at her and laughed. “Nobody has ever said that to me before.”
“You were running like a maniac. I’m impressed, and I’m also very surprised that nobody has said that to you before.”
I grinned. “I’m only trying to run away from my problems.”
She laughed. “Isn’t that the only reason we all come to the gym?”
“I’ve only just figured out how good it feels to do this. I might get in pretty good shape, after all.”
I was feeling better about everything as I walked to the showers. The workout had been amazing. When I looked at t
he time, I saw that I had been at it for an hour and a half, which was by far the longest I had ever stayed in a gym before. I thought about showering at home, but I was pouring with sweat. Anyway, I was trying to avoid going home for as long as possible. Instead, I climbed into the shower and smiled as the cool water touched me.
While I had been working out, I hadn’t thought about Henry, at all. All I had been focused on was pushing my body to the limits. Now that I had stopped, the thoughts came rushing back. Under the coolness of the shower, I began to think about the way he had looked at me in his office today and the way his arm had felt against mine. If just his arm had felt so good next to me, how would it feel if we kissed?
I closed my eyes and pictured him walking into the shower with me. My hands trailed over my body. My hands touched my breasts, and I imagined they were his hands touching me. I pinched my nipples and pictured him doing it. Then I moved my hand down between my legs, and I pushed my finger inside me. I groaned at the thought of being his hand there, and I allowed myself to fully succumb to the thought.
When I climbed out the shower, I saw the woman that had complimented me on the treadmill. She gave me a strange look, and I wondered if I had been groaning out loud. Oh no. I felt my cheeks warm in embarrassment, and I quickly rushed out the room. Oh no, what was this man doing to me?
I either had to be with Henry, or I had to stay as far away from him as possible. I needed to go on a date with the tattooed man. I needed a distraction in the form of a man. Working out clearly was not going to do it for me like I thought it would.
Chapter Sixteen
Henry
I spent the day on the golf course with a client. It was good to get out the office because after the incident around the conference call the day before, I wasn’t sure I would be able to stop myself.
She’d felt it, too. I was sure of it. We’d locked eyes, and for a moment, I had been so sure that she was about to kiss me. Or, at least, she wouldn’t pull away if I had leaned in and kissed her. She’d been so close, I could smell her. Her hair smelled like strawberries and a hint of vanilla. It was intoxicating.