My eyes were still glued to his as his fingers moved further down and into my wet entrance. I briefly closed my eyes and moaned as two of his fingers began to slowly fuck me. My breathing came in even faster, shorter breaths.
Suddenly I heard the door at the end of the hall open and a couple of female voices approaching the break room. The door to the break room remained open and we were directly in front of it, at the end of the room.
“Relax,” he whispered his command into my ear and I felt his beard gently scratch my cheek.
I tried to speak but his fingers were thrusting fast into me. He pressed his body against mine and I began to shake. I bit down hard on my bottom lip as I tried to keep my moans quiet.
“Come for me Ashley,” he whispered.
His lips brushed against my ear as he spoke. I could hear the footsteps and voices coming closer. He slid his hot wet fingers out of me and rubbed quick circles over my clit before squeezing it between his fingers.
Waves shook my body. I began to writhe and as I cried out, his lips covered mine, muffling the sounds of my orgasm.
He held me up, his body pressed mine against the wall as the last of my orgasm shot through me. As I stood there panting, I heard the voices get even closer.
“Turn around and zip up,” he growled at me as he let me go.
I heard his footsteps cross the room quickly and exit as I quickly pulled myself back together. The voices had finally reached just outside the break room door.
“Good evening Mr. Boone,” said one of the women.
I stood in shock. Mr. Boone? As in Boone Art Gallery?? No, it couldn’t be! I quickly grabbed my things and headed out of the break room and past the women who were still talking to each other. I ran into the exhibit room and looked around for my ice-blue mystery man, but didn’t see him anywhere.
I knew deep down that Xander and Mr. Boone were the same person, but it didn’t make sense to me. There was no way someone like that would be interested in me, he could have anyone. I had to know who he was for sure. I quickly walked past the alcove he sat in earlier, but it was empty. Defeated, I figured I’d might as well head home.
I stepped out into the crisp night air and took a deep breath. The sky was clear and the full moon brightly lit the city. As I walked down the steps of the gallery, I noticed a silver Audi R8 driving out of the parking garage under the building. I stood and watched as it pulled out onto the street and noticed the license plate–Boone.
Chapter Six
Xander
As I headed to the private underground garage, I couldn’t help but think that I should go back. It wasn’t like me to just leave a woman like that. Then again it wasn’t like me to do what I just did. That woman brought out the animal in me.
I inhaled deeply as I got into my car and for once, instead of the smell of the leather interior, all I could smell was her. Her sweet scent, like jasmine mixed with vanilla intoxicated me and I couldn’t get enough of it.
Driving to my apartment, Ashley filled my thoughts. I wondered how I would be able to see her again when I didn’t even have her last name. I considered calling Alan Smithfield and forcing him to give me all the information on his employees so I could find out where she lived. I knew I could bully him into it. It didn’t seem right, but I didn’t care.
“Dial Smithfield.”
The phone rang several times before a rushed sounding Alan Smithfield answered. Based on the background noise I knew he was still at the art gallery.
“Alan, you have contact information for all of your employees right?
“Yes sir, of course I do.”
“A new girl worked for you tonight. Ashley. Give me her last name, phone number and address. This stays between us. I find out you spoke of this and you’ll never cater in this town again.”
“Yes. I understand sir but I don’t have her information. She’s a friend of one of my workers, Jackie Stone. Did she do something to upset you? I know you’ve had issues with our wait staff before.”
“No, she was perfect. Thank you Alan. I’ll make sure there’s a bonus in your payment.”
I hung up the phone and kept my eyes on the road. How would I get to see her again?
Chapter Seven
Ashley
When I got to Jackie’s, I immediately turned on my laptop. I had to look up Xander Boone and find out for sure if that was my mystery man’s full name. The first result appeared from a recent newspaper article about the Boone Art Gallery’s acquisition of the Pedro Escamino exhibit.
I clicked on the link and a photo slowly loaded but when it finished, I wasn’t sure if that was the man I met or not. The picture was a few years old and black and white. The man in it had shorter hair and no beard. I studied the photo for a moment before landing on his eyes. Even in black and white it was obvious the man in the photo had the most intense ice-blue eyes.
Since I knew nothing about Xander Boone, I scrolled down and read the article. The Boone family was old money. While Xander owned and created Boone Enterprises, a leader in banking industry software and applications, his family operated several huge corporations that were involved in everything. You couldn’t purchase something without a Boone company being somehow involved.
Xander immersed himself in the art world, not only having the gallery, but also donating millions to charities and organizations that supported art education and struggling artists. The article summed up with the fact that Xander was one of the wealthiest men in the world, a billionaire.
I did another quick search to see if I could find out anything about his personal life. There were some old articles about ‘wild child’ Xander Boone who had multiple drug and alcohol related run-ins with the law, but those were from over twenty years ago when he was in college. It was almost as if he didn’t exist during the past twenty years.
I heard the keys at the door and closed the lid to my laptop. I didn’t want Jackie seeing how I was obsessing over this man who was just a grumpy stranger a few hours ago.
“Hey Ash. I’m glad you’re here. I was beginning to worry about you.”
“You’re not mad I left?”
“No way. I saw you talking to that asshole. Figured he probably ruined your night.” She shrugged and then walked into her room, talking loudly so I could hear her. “I told you to stay away from him.”
“He’s not as bad as you think. I found out who he is.” I paused a moment to calm my voice. I could hear the excitement in it. “Have you heard of Xander Boone?”
She peeked out of her room, half dressed.
“As in Boone Art Gallery? Boone Enterprises? Boone–”
“Yes ok, so you have. Jeez, I must live under a rock.”
We laughed and she came out of her room now dressed in sweatpants and an old tee shirt. She looked me up and down and made a face.
“Why haven’t you changed? I thought for sure you’d be out of that uniform by now.”
I shrugged. The truth was I was so busy thinking about finding out who he was, that it hadn’t occurred to me to change. Plus my clothes smelled like him, a mix of musk and spice, I took a deep breath and blushed when I thought of the weight of his body against mine.
I slept later than usual the next morning. Jackie had already left for class so I had the place to myself. I got up and poured myself a glass of orange juice and then remembered the phone number I wrote down for the House Manager position, dug it out of my bag and called.
“Hello?” The voice sounded like it belonged to an older woman with a southern drawl.
“Hi. I’m calling about the House Manager position I saw posted at the Boone Art Gallery. I was wondering if it was still available.”
“Yes it is. I have time for an interview at 10am today. Is that too soon?”
“Oh no, that’s perfect. I’ll be there.” I lied thinking it wasn’t enough time but started going through my mental closet of interview outfits.
“Let me give you the address. When you get here ask for me, I’m Tara.�
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She gave me the address but it wasn’t familiar to me. I pulled it up on a map site and saw that it was on the outskirts of town. I’d have to take a cab if I wanted to get there on time. Luckily Jackie didn’t mind sharing her closet so I had my nicer things hung.
Looking through the closet, I decided on a black pencil skirt with a silky teal colored blouse. The skirt hugged my hips more than I liked, but it still looked nice. I wore my hair loose, with it brushing my shoulders and applied only minimal make up. I wanted to look professional, responsible, and mature. I didn’t want my youth to be a reminder of how inexperienced I was.
The cabby honked his horn to let me know he arrived. I grabbed my bag, a copy of my resume and ran out the door. I didn’t want to leave the cab waiting too long, I was using what was left of my cash to pay for the ride. I didn’t have money to waste.
The car was a traditional yellow cab. The man driving looked like he hadn’t taken a shower all month. I was glad for the clear partition between us because I could imagine what he smelled like and that was bad enough. He wore a cap that covered most of his greasy hair and his skin looked weathered from too much sun.
“Hi. The address is 3900 Whispering Woods Way.”
“You sure about that?” He asked as he inspected my appearance.
“Yes, I’m sure about that. Can you please drive? I don’t want to be late. I have an interview.”
“Yeah yeah, I’m going. An interview, eh? What for?”
“House Manager.” I replied shortly hoping he’d get the hint that I wasn’t in the mood to talk.
“Oh fancy. What’s that pay?”
“I don’t know, better than nothing.”
“Well good luck. It’s a nice looking place there.”
I thought about asking him why he seemed surprised I was going to that address, but I was already feeling so nervous I didn’t want to know anything else. The last thing I needed was to get inside my head and bomb the interview because I was thinking too much. I decided to look out the window and tried to distract myself.
We drove past an Audi dealership and I saw an R8 like Xander Boone’s sitting on a giant display in the center of their parking lot. I wondered if I’d ever see him again and decided it was unlikely. We would never run in the same circles.
I wondered why he had such a bad reputation of making wait staff cry. There was something so brooding and mysterious about him, it drew me to him. As the cabby drove, I replayed the evening in my head and could feel the heat return to my cheeks.
I couldn’t believe I had been so wild. I convinced myself it was best that I never saw him again, if I did I’d probably die from embarrassment. The way he watched me, his eyes were so intense I felt naked in front of him, like he knew everything about me. He certainly knew how to make me come.
I felt the blood rush even more to my cheeks as I thought about his electric touch and his fingers thrusting inside me. I couldn’t believe how wet just the thought of him made me. I crossed my legs hoping that the cabby wouldn’t be able to read my mind or know about the throbbing that had started between my legs.
“It’s just right up here miss.”
I looked out the window and saw we were driving on a small country road along acres of fields with grazing horses. A tall wooden picket fence ran along the perimeter and at the edge, on the other side of the furthest fence, was forest. It was absolutely breathtaking.
I looked ahead and saw a tiny house sitting in the middle of the fields with a large stable behind it with an old pick-up truck. It looked much smaller than I imagined, it was more of a cottage. It had a stone front and was surrounded by wildflowers. I couldn’t figure out why a house so small would need someone to manage it.
“Is that it?” I asked the cabby who took a glance over in the direction of the cottage.
“What? Oh that? No!” He laughed and I felt the blood rush to my cheeks from embarrassment. “We’re still several minutes away Miss. You can’t see the mansion from the road. You know that address is Jefferson Manor right?”
A mansion? Jefferson Manor? Suddenly I was in over my head. It never occurred to me that I was going to a mansion. Was I dressed well enough? How does one dress for a mansion? And not just any mansion–Jefferson Manor!
Jefferson Manor was the oldest example of Georgian architecture in the state. The mansion itself was considered a work of art. I remembered studying it in a class once. It had stayed in the Jefferson family for centuries, but when the last of the Jeffersons passed away, people found out that the family had let the interior of the house deteriorate.
The mansion and property had been purchased via auction, but I didn’t know by whom. I did remember reading the home was restored to its former beauty.
I went back to looking out the window. The fields were replaced with trees. The cab turned onto a treelined road and I realized that was why it was called Whispering Woods Way. The sun glittered through the leaves and dappled the road. I tried to look ahead but couldn’t see anything through the trees.
“It’s just up here miss.”
“At the end of the road?”
“At the end of this driveway.”
I was looking ahead, over the cabby’s shoulder when I finally caught my first glimpse. Jefferson Manor looked even more stately and grand than the pictures I had seen in school. It had a light tan exterior with tall white columns flanking the large white wooden door and a slate grey roof.
The home had two stories of windows, each with many panes but the windows on the ground floor were much taller than those on the upper floor. In the center of the upper floor was a large dome window and as we followed the curve of the gravel driveway I saw the sparkle of an elegant chandelier. I noticed four chimneys jutting out of the pitched roof and remembered reading that the home had marble fireplaces, originally for heat.
The grounds surrounding the home were perfectly kept. As we slowed down I noticed a rose garden and what looked like an English hedge maze. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined being in that mansion and here I had the opportunity to live in it.
The cab came to a stop and I stepped out onto the gravel and looked around in awe. In the distance I heard a bell tower chime ten times. I ran up to the front door and rang the doorbell. For once I needed to not be late.
“You Ashley Monroe?” A mature woman’s voice with a thick southern drawl came from behind and startled me.
“Goodness!”
“I’m sorry dear, didn’t mean to frighten you. I heard your cab pull up. That’s one thing about this gravel, you hear everything. Come into the house. I’m Tara by the way.”
Tara didn’t look anything like I imagined from hearing her voice on the phone. Pulling up, I began to imagine her as the stereotypical southern belle, very feminine and girly, just older. She looked far from that though.
Tara had on a worn pair of jeans, a plaid button shirt and a pair of battered cowboy boots. Her long sandy colored hair was streaked with grey and pulled into a tight pony tail. As I watched her walk, feet spread apart with a wide gait, I doubted she had a feminine bone in her body.
“Let me show you around. First of all as far as I know, you’re the only one who has answered the ad. I’ll tell you right now, you’ve got the job if you want it. I need someone to do it, I already have enough on my hands with the stables.”
“Are you kidding? You have no idea how much I need a job. And a place to live.”
“I don’t kid Miss Monroe. Alex needs someone to manage the house. I can’t do it, we’ve got over 100 horses here. Some are still racing, some are pasture puffs. I don’t have time for anything else.”
As we walked through the house, I noticed it looked as though no one had lived there for years. All the furniture was covered but cleaners were moving through the rooms, removing the dust and the tarps and making the rooms livable again.
“Doesn’t anyone live here? Who would I be managing?”
“You’ll need to hire people. Maids, coo
ks, that kind of thing. Alex has been living in the city when he’s not traveling, but he’s decided to move back here. I’m sure he’ll want to meet you, there’s a lot he needs help with so you’ll have to be flexible and do whatever he says. Alex has quite the temper but I stay out of his way and he stays out of mine. You’ll do best if you do the same.”
I took it all in. We went to the second floor and she showed me a small suite of rooms I would live in with a private staircase that led to the first floor, near the back of the house, by the kitchen. The suite was plain, unlike the rest of the house, and had a living area with a couch, a kitchenette and a bedroom. The living room and bedroom were separated by glass paned sliding French doors. To me, it was perfect.
We reached the end of the hall which opened up into a circular study. Suspended above, in the center, was the crystal chandelier I saw from the driveway. The dome window was even more striking from the inside. I walked to the back of the study, to the second dome window on the opposite side of the room and looked out.
I could see the stables from there and noticed a man in a suit leaving the cottage and begin walking towards the house. He was too far away for me to make out any features. I was about to ask Tara who he was when she led me down the hall and stopped in front of a pair of closed double doors.
“I need you listen to me,” Tara said. “You’ll have free reign to explore the house and it’s property, but there is one thing I need you to do–do not enter this room.”
“What’s in there?” I needed to know. I hated not knowing something or not being able to do something.
“All I know is it’s the master bedroom.”
I nodded. Apparently Alex liked his privacy. I could appreciate that.
I followed her down a large staircase which curved into a formal living room. The room was the picture perfect image of old world elegance with its marble fireplace and ornamental moldings. As we entered it I could hear footsteps on the gravel outside.
“That must be Alex.” Tara walked towards the hall and called out. “Alex? Come to the living room. I’d like to introduce you to your new House Manager.”
His Every Whim Page 2