Leaning forward, I rested my arms on my desk. “Addison, should you choose to take the job, I want you to know that you’ll be held accountable for your performance. The way in which we met, as well as anything D/s related, is secondary to all this. We wouldn’t have made the suggestion if we didn’t think you were capable of succeeding.”
She nodded, but I could tell she didn’t believe me.
“It’s just…” Addison sighed heavily, her shoulders slumping as she rested her hands in her lap. “It’s obvious I need this. I’m sure you’re both well aware that I have nothing and no one to help me.”
She paused, but I didn’t rush her, nor did I try to fill in the blanks. I wanted to see where she was going.
Addison shifted again, clearly restless. “Truth is, I lived in foster care my entire life and although I was found when I was only a couple of days old, that didn’t—”
“Found?” Ben interrupted.
She looked sad when she glanced down at her hands. “I don’t like to talk about it, but my mother abandoned me at a bus stop. The man who found me took me to the nearest fire station. From there, social services came in. They never were able to locate my mother—she evidently used a fake name at the hospital—but they did find my birth records.
“I grew up in foster care. I started out being fostered by a couple who were desperate for a child, but then the woman got sick when I was two. Since they hadn’t proceeded with the adoption and knew they couldn’t care for me anymore, they sent me back. At that point, I was shuffled in and out of overcrowded foster homes for years. When I was thirteen, I ended up in a group home, where I stayed until I was eighteen.”
Well, that explained a lot. The people who should’ve kept her safe had abandoned her. Not just once but multiple times. It definitely clarified why she was willing to stay with that asshole she’d been with at the club. The woman was looking for stability.
“Where’d you go from there?” Ben asked. “When you were eighteen?”
Addison looked over at him, and for a second, I thought she wasn’t going to answer, but again she sighed.
“I was on the streets mostly, sleeping in shelters when I could, until I met a man named Walter Evans. He was a lot older than I was. At first, I thought he wanted to be my friend. He took me in and let me take care of his house. I was with him for about a year when he offered to send me to college, but in order for that to happen, he wanted me to be…”
“His girlfriend,” I said, urging her to continue.
“Yeah, well.” Addison rolled her eyes. “If only it’d been that simple. I was only nineteen when I met Walter and he…he was sixty-two.”
Ouch.
“I didn’t know it at first, but he was a Dom. And he was into the whole Daddy/little thing and he wanted that between us.” She outwardly shivered as though put off by the thought. “I had no desire to role play as his little girl—I was not attracted to him in the least—and I wasn’t about to whore myself out for school. He told me I could have a couple of weeks to think about it. I knew I didn’t need to think, so…well, I waited for him to go to work the next morning and I left. That was nine years ago.
“The streets have been my home pretty much since. Made a few friends who would let me sleep on their couches from time to time. Then I met Josh last year and we hit it off. Two days after we met, he asked me to move in with him…”
I didn’t need to hear more of that story. I already knew the ending.
“Well, none of that’s taking place here,” I explained as I leaned back in my chair. “We’re offering you the position, Addison. No stipulations. We’d like you to work here. Like I said before, what happens in any other regard requires the three of us to agree.”
Her eyes lifted to meet mine.
“What’s on your mind?”
“Nothing, really. I’m just…I’m really glad I made the choice that I made. You know, this morning. I’m excited, and the more I’ve thought about it, the more I’m looking forward to it.” She glanced over at Ben. “Personally, I’d like to see where things go.” Her gaze strayed back to me. “But I don’t want to have sex just to keep my job.”
I narrowed my eyes and leaned forward again. I couldn’t keep the annoyance from my tone this time. “When I say there aren’t any stipulations as far as the job is concerned, I’m not blowing smoke up your ass, Addison. I appreciate your honesty, and I get that you don’t trust easily, but I fully expect you to give us the benefit of the doubt in this case.”
It was a tall order, I knew, but I needed her to give us a chance.
She swallowed again and nodded. “I’m sorry, Mr. Parker. It’s—”
“No excuses,” I stated firmly. “I want you to feel you can always be honest with me. But I need you to know that I’m true to my word. Understood?”
“Yes.” She looked rightfully scolded and perhaps a little disappointed.
“Good.” I leaned back and glanced at Ben. “Do you have any other questions?”
Because quite frankly, she’d pissed me off and I needed a few minutes to breathe before I said something I would likely regret.
*
BEN
I SHOULD’VE KNOWN THAT THIS was going to turn into a pissing match.
Granted, I was still a little stunned by how much Addison had opened up to us. I wasn’t sure if she realized it required a certain level of trust to relay such intimate details with others. I was grateful she felt comfortable enough to share.
On the other hand, it was obvious that Mr. Parker was offended by Addison’s continued implication that we would be using her for sex. I could understand his irritation, but I could also see this from her perspective.
The girl had nothing. Absolutely nothing. And here we had waltzed into her life, offering her a job while wanting to take her on as our submissive. She’d obviously had other men offer the same, only they’d had ulterior motives. We, on the other hand, simply wanted to help her and get to know her.
Plus, when it came to mixing business with pleasure…there was a line that couldn’t be crossed. Sexual harassment was a heinous thing that both women and men dealt with on a daily basis. There was no way to tell her that we weren’t looking to force her into anything. That would come with time.
And it was one of the reasons we had insisted that she made her decision prior to the interview. Had she opted not to pursue a D/s relationship with us, we wouldn’t have held it against her. We needed to know she was making those decisions independent of one another.
The one thing I’d learned about Addison in the short time I’d known her was that she was a true submissive. Unfortunately, she hadn’t had the opportunity to be with a Dom who was worthy of that, though. The ones she’d been with had obviously taken advantage of her, so I figured it would take more than a verbal guarantee for her to realize this was different.
Now was not the time for us to get into that.
“No,” I told Mr. Parker. “I don’t have any other questions.” I turned in my chair to address Addison directly. “If you accept the position, I’ll need you to be in the office early. Your hours will be from seven thirty to five thirty, Monday through Thursday. You get an hour for lunch. We only work until one on Friday. Every now and then, we’ll work on a Saturday, but that’s few and far between these days.”
“Understood.”
“I come in by eight every morning. Mr. Parker is usually here by nine. There will be times that one or both of us are out of the office on business, sometimes for days at a time. We travel quite frequently.” I nodded toward Mr. Parker. “Him more than me.”
Addison continued to watch me.
“Jordan arrives every day at seven thirty. Landon, Langston, and Luci are usually here by nine or nine thirty. If Mr. Parker and I aren’t here, you can always seek one of them out if you have questions or need anything.”
She offered another nod.
“We’ll expect absolute professionalism on your part. When you’re dealing with us or
when you’re dealing with our managers and clients. We had our quarterly meeting last week, so there are a few things we’ll be following up on.”
“They told me a little about it.”
“Good. I’m going to look to Luci to train you, so you’ll be spending quite a bit of time with her for the first few days. You’re more than welcome to meet with us at any time to discuss questions you have. You’ll notice it’s rather quiet, with the exception of the construction. They’ve promised that’ll be completed by the end of the week.”
“Okay.”
“Your official hire date will be tomorrow and you’ll be put on a probationary period.” I glanced at Mr. Parker.
“Thirty days,” he noted.
I turned back to Addison. “At that point, we’ll assess your performance and provide you with input. And I assure you, we will not set you up to fail. We need you here as much as you need to be here. And you’ve got everyone here to back you up.”
“But you’ll need to keep in mind who you work for,” Mr. Parker clarified. “And what our requirements are. Luci works for Landon and Langston; therefore, she does what they need based on their requirements. Ben and I want things done a certain way.”
“Of course.”
I sat back as Mr. Parker pulled a sheet of paper out of his desk drawer, then passed it over to Addison. “This is the information on the pay and benefits.”
Her eyes widened when she looked at the sheet. “I…uh…” Addison’s gaze shot to Mr. Parker. “This is too much.”
“I assure you it’s not,” he countered, his tone harder than before. The man did not like to be pushed and Addison seemed to be getting rather adept at it. “It’s in line with your qualifications and the position. Although it might not sound like it, this is a very demanding job. You won’t have a lot of time to sit around and play solitaire on your computer.”
I sighed. Being confrontational with her was the last thing we needed.
Mr. Parker’s eyes cut over to me and I knew he could see my frustration.
With a heavy sigh, he continued, his tone somewhat calmer. “We’re also allowing you to stay in one of the vacant apartments in the building.”
Addison shook her head.
“It wasn’t a request,” Mr. Parker snapped, leaning forward once more. “You have nowhere to live and this will ensure you’ll be here on time every day. My partners and I own this building, so you’re not putting us out. Although, it’s not your place to decide that, even if it was the case.” He sighed. “And because I know you’re not looking for a handout, we will be charging you rent. We’ll deduct it from your paycheck so that it’s manageable. The details are at the bottom of the page. If you have an issue with the amount, we can certainly discuss.”
At least the girl had the decency to appear remorseful even if she looked as though she wanted to blast him into next week. “It’s very generous, Mr. Parker.”
“Now, do you have any questions for us?” I prompted.
“This probationary period…is it for my position as your secretary? Or does it have to do with being…your submissive as well?”
I had to look to Mr. Parker for the answer to that.
“To be clear, the two are completely separate,” he clarified. “As we’ve stated, your job is not dependent on anything else.”
“I understand.”
“However, we’ll go over the rules tonight at dinner. We’ll also present you with a contract. Do you have an issue with that?”
Her answer came immediately. “Personally, the idea of keeping them separate seems the most logical, but it’s not the most feasible.”
“Which means?” he probed.
“When it comes to submission, I’m not going to be able to turn it off and on. This… It’s the way I’m wired. And I’ve always been the type to give one hundred percent to everything I do.”
Ah. So that was where she was going. Our little rebel didn’t want us to separate the two and her answer was quite logical.
“I’m willing to see how things go,” Mr. Parker stated. “I agree, the line between employee and submissive may get blurred along the way. Should that happen and you have any issues, I expect you to talk to us so we’re aware of your expectations.”
“Yes, Mr. Parker.”
Mr. Parker held her gaze for a few seconds, then turned his attention to me. “Ben, please show Miss Hayes to her apartment. All the items you purchased should’ve been delivered by now.”
When Addison began to speak, I held up my hand. “Let it go, Addison.”
For now, that was the best thing she could do.
For all of our sakes.
There was only so much Mr. Parker could take before the Dom in him took over and punishment became his focus.
“Once you take her to her apartment,” Mr. Parker said, addressing me directly as he passed over a key, “I want you to come back down here.”
“Yes, Mr. Parker.”
I got to my feet and motioned Addison out of the office, then down the hall to the elevator. I could feel her tension. It was coming off her in waves. Understandably so. She’d had a rather eventful day.
When the doors opened, I ushered her inside. “Mr. Parker takes a little getting used to, Addison.”
She shrugged, then wrapped her arms around herself as though she was cold. I felt for her right then. The girl was in over her head where Mr. Parker was concerned. She wanted something, but she had no idea what she was getting herself into. The Doms she’d played with before weren’t even in the same hemisphere as Mr. Parker.
When the elevator stopped on our floor, I reached over and took her hand, clasping it in mine. Surprisingly, she didn’t try to pull away. For whatever reason, I wanted to touch her, to console her if only a little.
I retrieved her apartment key from my pocket and inserted it into the lock when we stopped at her door. She was directly across the hall from Mr. Parker, which didn’t surprise me in the least. He liked to keep me close, so it only made sense that he would want to keep Addison close as well.
Once unlocked, I pushed open the door and stepped back out of the way, allowing her to go in first.
She didn’t say anything, but I could tell by her expression that she was shocked by the accommodations. The apartment was fully furnished with expensive furniture and high-end appliances and electronics. Not only that but we’d also had her new wardrobe delivered, as well as hygiene items that she would need. I’d gone so far as to have makeup ordered as well. Not much, because she didn’t need it, but with Judy’s help, I did get most of what she would possibly want should she decide to use it.
When she turned to face me, Addison’s eyes were glassy with tears.
“Come here, precious girl.” I held out my arms and she walked right into them.
Curling my hand around the back of her head, I pulled her against me. She was doing her best not to cry and I respected her for that.
I knew better than to say anything. She already had plenty to work through, so I kept the words to myself, but I wanted her to know she was safe with us. We would protect her, show her how important she was to those around her. For whatever reason, Addison had been placed in our path and I was a firm believer that these things happened for a reason. The fact that Mr. Parker and I were in a position to help her only cemented that fact.
As I’d expected, Addison didn’t let herself fall apart. She straightened her spine, then stepped back from me. I reluctantly released her.
“You smell good,” she said with a watery chuckle.
I smiled back at her. “I want you to accept this for the opportunity that it is. Both personally and professionally. And believe it or not, the two can coexist. I’m proof of that. I submit to Mr. Parker twenty-four seven. It can sometimes be confusing because I’m his equal when it comes to business.” Cupping her face, I leaned closer. “But I don’t want you to rush it. We’ll give you all the space you need to get comfortable.”
Addison smiled, and for the
first time, it actually reached her eyes. “I’m already comfortable. But I appreciate it all the same.”
I released her and took a step back mostly to keep from kissing that damn delectable mouth.
“Now get settled. You’ll find food in the refrigerator, but remember, Mr. Parker has asked you to join us for dinner tonight.”
She didn’t look away. “What time?”
“Probably around six.”
“Okay.”
“Do me a favor?”
Addison nodded.
“Don’t push Mr. Parker away. I know that’s probably your first instinct, but he’s one of the good ones. And he needs to take care of you for whatever reason. We both do.” I held up my hand before she could speak. “We’re not asking for anything more. Just let us do this for you. There’ll be plenty of time for you to prove yourself in the coming months.”
Fortunately, Addison nodded.
Unable to help myself, I moved in close again. I couldn’t seem to keep my distance from this girl.
I leaned down and met her gaze, tilting her chin up and sliding my thumb over her smooth, warm cheek. “I’ll see you at dinner tonight. We’ve got quite a few more things to discuss.”
“Like the contract?” Her smile was genuine.
“Yes. And limits as well as other things. Is that all right with you?”
“Yes. Definitely.”
With that, I turned and left her standing there. I didn’t want to, but I knew she needed some space, some time to wrap her head around everything that had happened.
And I was nothing if not patient.
Granted, the same couldn’t be said for my Dom.
And I was sure Addison would learn that soon enough.
Twelve
ADDISON
FOR TWO SOLID HOURS, I wandered aimlessly around my new apartment, sitting on the bed, the sofa, touching every light switch, turning on the faucets, turning them off, pulling out the dishes, putting them back. By the time I was sitting in the cushiony dining room chair, I was pretty sure I’d touched every single surface in that place at least twice.
Their Rebellious Submissive (Office Intrigue Book 3) Page 12