by Parker, Ali
“I just want a damn drink, not a show,” Elijah grumbled.
“Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning,” I said.
Elijah shook his head. “No, I’m fine. Just hungry. And in need of a drink.” He cleared his throat to get the bartender’s attention. It didn’t work. “This is where a pretty smile and some full red lips would really come in handy.”
I rolled my eyes at him and then lifted my hand to wave the bartender down. He spotted me and met my gaze.
“What do you want?” I asked Elijah.
“Same as you is fine.”
I pointed at my glass. The bartender nodded and started pouring rum into a glass of ice.
“Thanks,” Elijah grumbled.
“I didn’t have lipstick on, either.” I chuckled. “Who’d have thought?”
Once Elijah had his drink in hand, his mood improved. “Do you want to get a seat before the horde takes over?”
I shook my head. “I want to stay close to the door. Elise should be here any minute, and I don’t want her to have to walk into this madhouse on her own. It was already hard enough just to get her to agree to come.”
His eyes widened. “Elise is coming to this thing?”
“Yeah, I was as surprised as you. And I think she’s bringing Kate.”
Elijah stopped sipping his drink. “Are you fucking with me, or are you being serious?”
“Would I lie about Kate?” I asked, grinning.
“I don’t know. You like giving me a hard time wherever you see an opening.”
I laughed. That was true. Pulling Elijah’s leg was one of my favorite pastimes. “For once, I’m not messing with you. But I’m also not sure if Kate will show. So, don’t get too excited, or you’ll give yourself blue balls.”
“Ha, ha,” Elijah said dryly.
He followed me through the ever-growing crowd to the doors. Dresses of bright colors swished around us as we made our way through. Women smiled at me. Some, I knew from the office. Others, I didn’t. I assumed they were friends or family members of my fellow coworkers. Their smiles and the batting of their eyelashes had no effect on me, though. I was waiting for Elise.
I lingered by the doors, trying to look as casual as possible while sipping my drink. I slid one hand in my pocket as Elijah looked around the room. “So, I guess your dad isn’t coming this year?”
I shook my head. “Oh, God no. Do you think I would have invited Elise if he was?”
“No. He’d fire your ass.”
“Exactly,” I said. “His absence probably explains this turn out, too. I’ve never seen so many people at this thing before.”
“Do you think your dad knows everyone here hates his guts?”
I shrugged. “Probably. He just doesn’t give a damn. In fact, I think he likes having the reputation he does.”
“I don’t think you’re wrong,” Elijah said.
“I think the only person on the planet who likes my father is Roy.”
He grinned. “Well, Roy doesn't know any better. No offense.”
“None taken,” I said. I was about to vent to Elijah about how hard my dad was riding me to sign Elise as our new writer—even though he didn’t know she was the one we were trying to hire—but I stopped short when my eye caught sight of Elise coming through the front door. My breath hitched in my throat.
She looked stunning.
Her hair was down and in soft curls that rested atop her bare shoulders. The dress she had on hugged her curves from throat to knee. It was black and lacy and hot as hell, while still being sophisticated enough to wear to a party like this. My favorite part of the ensemble was the leather jacket she had draped over her shoulders. Hot damn, she was sexy.
Elise looked from side to side, no doubt searching for me, as Kate stepped in behind her.
Elijah nearly whimpered like a dog beside me. I glanced at him. “Get your shit together, man. And close your mouth. No woman is going to go for the drooling idiot schtick.”
Elijah slapped his mouth closed and stood up a little straighter. “You’re right. Let’s go say hello.”
I straightened my suit jacket and walked toward Elise as she was greeted by a server carrying a tray of champagne. The smile she plastered on her lips was forced. I could tell. She took a glass and so did Kate. The server slipped off just as Elijah and I approached.
“You look beautiful,” I said.
Elise gave me a tight-lipped smile that was a little more genuine than the one she’d offered the server. That was, in my opinion, a step in the right direction. “Thank you. You look pretty good yourself.” She gestured at me and my black suit.
I lifted my chin. “Flattery? Interesting. Who are you, and what have you done with Elise Billingsly?”
She smiled in earnest this time, and the sight warmed my insides.
“Kate.” I nodded in greeting to Elise’s sister. “Thank you for coming. I hope you weren’t as against it as Elise was.”
Kate looked around the room, intentionally avoiding looking at Elijah. “You know me. Any excuse to dress up, and I’m there.”
Elise stared at her sister. “You only agreed to come because I told you there was an open bar.”
Kate waved her hand dismissively. “Details, details.”
Elijah stepped forward, drawing Kate’s attention to him. “Can I take you to the bar and get you a drink? We’ll give these two a chance to talk business before the night gets going.”
Kate licked her lips, and for a moment, I thought she might refuse his offer. But Elijah was persistent, and he held out his hand. She took it, gave Elise a nervous smile, and let Elijah lead her back through the crowd to the bar. I wondered if he would fare better getting a drink with her by his side. She was wearing red lipstick, after all.
Elise adjusted the sleeves of her dress. She was uncomfortable. I could see it written all over her. She had done this whole scene when she was growing up, and she didn’t seem to miss it.
“I’m glad you came,” I said.
She took a deep breath as she looked around the room. At the bar. The dance floor. The tables and their fancy table settings. “Thank you for inviting me. I wasn’t expecting so much glitz and glamour.”
“Yeah, these people don’t know the meaning of less is more.”
“Apparently not.”
I offered her my elbow. “Let me show you around. Maybe get you some food. Then we can find somewhere to sit.”
“All right,” she said, looping her arm through mine.
She let me tour her around the room. I avoided introducing her to people because I knew she was uncomfortable as hell. This was far from her comfort zone, and I could see the wheels turning in her head. She probably wished she had just stayed home, rather than spend her evening socializing with these rich clowns.
Not all of them were clowns, though. If she took the job and spent a bit of time with us, she’d come to see that most of the employees at Treo were great people.
I spotted Chance at the bar ordering tequila shots and grimaced. He was one of the exceptions. Not a great guy, but easy enough to avoid.
We walked along the length of the buffet table. Elise took a small plate and collected an assortment of things for us to share. Some pastries, bread and cheese, spring rolls, and a couple other appetizers. We found a seat at a round table in one of the corners far from the buffet, bar, and dance floor and picked at the food on the plate between us.
“So, if you weren’t here tonight, what would you be doing?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Probably writing. Or reading. Or watching a movie.”
“Those all sound like a better time than this.”
Her giggle sounded surprised. “I thought you liked this sort of thing?”
I popped a spring roll in my mouth. After wiping my lips with a napkin, I said, “I don’t hate it. But I’d rather be at home with Roy. Alas, this is the nature of the job sometimes.”
“Holidays,” she said knowingly.
> “You know it.”
She sighed and leaned back in her chair. Her eyes roamed around the room and lingered on Elijah and Kate, who were sitting at another table and were deep in conversation. I lost myself staring at her, at the fullness of her lower lip and the sharp angle of her cupid’s bow. Her lips were so damn kissable, and I could almost remember how it used to feel to kiss her. Almost.
“Do you want to get out of here for a bit?” I asked.
Elise turned to me. “Where?”
“I could show you the office?”
She studied me for a moment before nodding. “Yes, please.”
I offered her my hand, and we slipped out one of the back doors to go to the elevators. I punched the button for the top floor, and the doors closed, sealing us inside, just the two of us.
Her floral perfume flooded my nose as she stood beside me, staring calmly ahead.
I wanted to look at her but didn’t dare. She’d catch me for sure and wonder what the hell I was trying to pull. I stared straight ahead and became increasingly aware of her breathing, of the bright red polish on her toes, and of my own heart beating in my chest.
The doors opened, and we stepped off, emerging in the lobby of Treo.
Elise blinked. “This is not what I expected.”
“What did you think it would be like?” I asked.
“I don’t know. More office-like?”
I laughed. “This isn’t an ordinary place, Elise. We do business differently. We’re a family here, and this office is a home away from home for most of the people who work here. I’m not trying to gain anything from saying this, but I really believe you would be happy with this team. Working here.”
With me, I wanted to say.
Chapter 20
Elise
The top floor of the office tower was extremely well appointed with elegant glass chandeliers and soothing taupe walls. Crown molding lent the space an inviting, sophisticated feel, while the dark hardwood floors were a sharp but good contrast.
The office looked like it belonged in a magazine. Or rather, like it shouldn’t be an office at all. It felt like I’d walked into a high-end, members-only clubhouse.
Dallas put his hand in the small of my back and guided me forward gently. We passed a seating area with plush, dark green sofas and dark wood tables. Past that was a communal kitchen with brand-new stainless-steel appliances. There were no dishes in the sink, and it smelled like lemon cleaner.
How pleasant.
Off the kitchen was a long narrow hallway. The lights were all off, but we didn’t need them on to see. The wall to our right was all floor-to-ceiling windows, and the hallway was illuminated by the glow of the city lights. Blue, red, and green.
It was calming and almost romantic. I wanted to expel the thought as soon as it occurred to me.
“On your right at the end,” Dallas said.
I stopped at the door. His name was embossed in gold letters on a plaque on the door. I tapped it with the knuckle of my index finger. “Very professional,” I said.
“It’s all an illusion.” Dallas stepped around me and opened the door, which I was surprised to see was unlocked. Then we stepped into his office, and I looked around in complete awe of his personal workspace.
It was modern and simple, with no clutter or unnecessary appointments. The fireplace seemed a bit out of place, like it had been there a lot longer than everything else, including his minimalist desk and liquor cart.
“This is really nice,” I told him.
“Thank you. It needed a lot of work when I took over. The last guy had rather gaudy taste.”
“It’s very you.” I didn’t even know what I meant by those words, but he smiled.
“Is it better up here than down at the party?”
I nodded. “Much better. That wasn’t really my scene, you know? I don’t do fancy parties. Or dresses like this.” I gestured down at myself.
Dallas didn’t bother to conceal the way his eyes roamed up my body, from the tip of my toes to the top of my head. His gaze drifted down and lingered on my lips, and I sucked in a breath. The air between us was suddenly vibrating with something that felt alive, and it was daring me to move closer to him.
“The dress looks incredible,” he said, taking three slow strides toward me and closing the gap between us. If I wanted to, I could reach out and touch the knot of his tie at his throat. But I didn’t. I kept my hands to myself. “But I’ll admit, you in jeans is just as sexy.”
I swallowed. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
“Do that,” I said.
“I’m not doing anything.”
“You’re saying things to get a rise out of me.”
The corner of his mouth twitched, and he watched me for a moment before shrugging out of his jacket. Damn him. He looked fine as hell with his white button-up and thin black tie. The muscles in his shoulders rippled beneath the thin fabric as he tugged the knot at his throat loose and then popped one of the top buttons of his shirt open with his thumb.
“I have no ulterior motives, Elise. Unless of course, you want me to.”
I couldn’t think of a single thing to say. Mostly because I was distracted by him popping open another button.
“Do you want me to, Elise?”
Yes. Oh God, yes.
My mouth was suddenly flooded with saliva. Prickles scattered across every inch of my skin, almost like the feeling when your foot is asleep. “We should go back downstairs.”
“Should we?”
That place below my belly contracted into a tight knot. I wished he wasn’t standing so close to me. My heart was pounding so hard, and my blood was rushing in my ears. I wondered if he could hear it. Could he tell how turned on I was? My breathing was short and clipped, and my lips parted.
I didn’t have it in me to tell him that we should go back down. I wanted to stay here. I wanted him to put me on his desk and fuck me like it wouldn’t complicate things. I wanted to pretend that it wouldn’t be a mistake.
Dallas closed the last foot of space between us with another step. He looked down at me, and I lifted my chin to stare up at him. The sharp angle of his jaw cast his throat into shadow. It was dark in here, save for the pale light streaming in through his window from the city streets below. His eyes looked black, and I couldn’t make out his pupils, but I didn’t need to in order to know he was meeting my eye. I could feel it.
He put his hand on my waist. His touch shot little sparks through my veins that went straight to the heat between my legs.
And I whimpered.
He smiled, leaned down, and grazed my cheek with the knuckles of his other hand in a tender, sweet moment. “You need to tell me right now if you want to go back down there,” he said roughly. It became suddenly clear that he was struggling just as much as I was to keep it together. “Tell me.”
Tell him, my brain screamed, but my body and my heart held me to the spot like an anchor.
This was happening. Now.
I grabbed his tie and used it to draw him down to me with a rough tug. His lips curled in a smile before they parted and met mine.
He tasted like rum. Spiced rum.
Wrapping his arms around me, Dallas forced me to walk backward as his tongue plunged into my mouth and explored. My hands curled into fists in the front of his shirt, and I let out a giggle into his mouth when he picked me up like I weighed nothing and placed me exactly where I wanted to be: on his desk.
“Where’s the damn zipper on this thing?” he growled as he fumbled around the back of my dress, hell-bent on getting it off me.
“The side,” I breathed, lifting up my arm and dragging the gold zipper down.
He watched me hungrily until the zipper was drawn all the way down to my bare hip. The dress was tight, so I hadn’t worn any panties.
“Damn,” he whispered.
“I wasn’t planning this,” I said hurriedly.
He tugged the sleeves from my shoulders and worked the
dress down, letting it sit around my waist as he soaked in the sight of me in my black push up bra. Then he leaned in, kissed my cleavage, and worked his way up the side of my neck, back to my lips.
As we kissed, he pushed the hem of my dress up my thighs. His palms were warm on my bare skin, and I inched closer to the edge of the desk to hook my arms around his neck. Those big strong hands of his pushed my dress up the rest of the way, and he grabbed my hips, massaging me while letting the dress stay where it was around my waist.
I spread my legs and let my arms fall from his shoulders so I could undo his belt. It was tricky work when his tongue was in my mouth and my nose was flooded with the smell of him: pine and something musky. Something sexy.
I managed to get the belt off, and then I set to work undoing the zipper of his pants. I tugged it frantically down, and he chuckled into our kiss. The sound was pure sex, and he had no clue what he was doing to me.
I pulled the waistband of his black boxer briefs away from his stomach and then pushed his pants and boxers down his thighs, which were thick with muscle. The pants got stuck. I was too frazzled to bother working them down any farther and too distracted by the size of his cock.
He seemed to be growing by the second. I took him in my hand and gently worked him over.
Dallas ran his hand from the inside of my knee, along my inner thigh, to my pussy. His fingers slid up and down my wetness, tracking my juices all over the place, and then he paid special attention to my swollen clit.
He broke away from our kiss. “Have you been thinking about this all night like I have?”
It was hard to breathe, let alone speak. So, I nodded.
“You’re so fucking wet,” he said, his voice a low rumble in his chest.
I moaned. God, I was weak. I couldn’t keep it together when he was touching me like this. I spread my legs farther. He accepted the invitation and stepped in closer, using his other hand to cup the back of my neck and draw my face to his so he could smother me with more kisses.
I had to give him credit where credit was due. He was an exceptional kisser.