I Need You Now: Standalone HEA Billionaire Alpha Male BDSM Erotica Contemporary Suspense Romance (Need Series #2)

by Cynthia P. O'Neill

  We all walked down together. I made a small note to remind me to get the bank information for Nate so he could check that all of our funds were accounted for. I’d been so busy with the errors in the reports that I didn’t think to check the bank on a daily basis. I just prayed all the money was there.

  Once we reached the floor of our department, my uncle turned to us at the elevator. “I want you both to put on your faces, act like you’ve been reprimanded. I want to catch them by surprise.”

  What he was asking would be easy for me, because I felt I’d been demoted, in a way. I knew I hadn’t, but to have to share the responsibility of the department with Nate? But then again, he did have more knowledge than me and seemed to have the department’s respect, whereas I was the joke—this could work.

  “Can I have everyone’s attention, please?” my uncle asked. Our department stopped working and gathered round. I looked at all the faces. Several showed concern, while Cameron and Karen had looks of relief and happiness. They’d expected me to be let go, the little shits!

  “It has come to my attention that this department is a bit overstaffed, with several of the employees working at a slower pace.” They began to argue and disagree, citing the errors within the reports. “We understand the reports have been having issues related to our system and we’re working to resolve that. But I won’t tolerate slackers in my company. As a result, I’m hiring on Nate Michaelson in a more permanent position, to become manager”—I watched in horror as my two pains high fived one another—“and work alongside Ms. Scott.”

  It was nice seeing karma come back and kick people when they were full of themselves. Cameron’s and Karen’s jaws practically dropped to the floor.

  “You mean we have to answer to both of them now?” Cameron asked.

  “Yes, Mr. Heath, and I expect everyone to treat both with equal respect, otherwise I’ll have to take any member aside who gives them trouble, and we can discuss why you still have a job in my office. Do I make myself clear?” I loved how Uncle Alexander could put anyone in their place, but with it being Cameron, it made it extra special. I felt I could breathe again, not having to be the one to take any more shit off of him.

  I noticed his jaw was stiff and clenched as he answered with the rest of the department. “Yes, sir.”

  “Good, now let’s get back to work—after all this is a business.” My uncle extended his hand first to Nate and then to me, shaking it and giving us both small little winks before heading back to his office.

  Nate quickly jumped into action and put on a good show in front of everyone. “Gianna, I’ll follow you into your office while you get the statements I need.” He called it my office, not his. I wonder why?

  As soon as we entered, he closed the door behind him, locking it, and whispered, “I still want you to have the office. I think they need the intimidation of a manager sitting out there with them, watching their every move.”

  “I agree.” Who wouldn’t? Nate was quite tall, really ripped, and had a commanding presence. He was intimidating as an employee, but as a manager, no one would want him out there watching them work.

  I moved over to one side of the office to a hidden panel. My uncle was paranoid about having bank statements sitting in a regular filing cabinet. He’d had a fire retardant faux panel made when Mr. Wilson still managed the department. I hit the button to trigger the panel door, then opened the safe to pull out the files Nate wanted.

  “Here are the last statements from the bank, along with a copy of our last internal reports.” I handed them over reluctantly. “Do you really think someone is trying to steal money from the company?”

  He chuckled. “I hope I’m wrong, but something keeps telling me this whole problem is bigger than we think. I just want to ensure all bases are covered. Do you have a contact name at the bank I can talk with?”

  I went over to my desk and looked through my contact list on the computer. “I’ll shoot you an email with their information and will call them to add your name to the account to authorize any dealings with the bank.”

  He just stood there holding the folders, and not making any move to leave. The silence between us was awkward. I finally made a move to sit back at my desk. “I guess we should get to work. There’s a lot to do. Just tell me when you’d like to stay late and what I need to do so I can help pinpoint the origin of the virus and whose computers are affected.”

  It looked like he wanted to say something. He kept opening and closing his mouth, even bouncing back and forth between his two feet, but nothing ever came out. “I’d like you to stay after hours tonight. I have three discs from Ethan. We could get them running while we work the reports.”

  I opened my laptop and pulled up the spreadsheet I’d been working on, hoping that would give him the clue to leave. He turned toward the door, but only after asking, “Did you want to talk with Dane and Marissa about our findings, or should I?”

  I’d already started plugging in numbers, but looked up to see his somber face. It made me wonder what was wrong, but I didn’t dare ask. He needed to get back to work and check on the bank while I played catch-up with these figures. “I’ll let you make that call.”

  He just shook his head, apparently I hadn’t answered to his liking, but I didn’t care. “I guess I should get back to work then.”

  I nodded silently as he opened the door to a bunch of whispering and people scattering about. I guess my uncle’s announcement had really shaken up the department. I decided to make my walls clear so I could keep an eye on them and let them know I was still an active part of this company.

  I heard Nate ask, in a commanding voice, “Is there any reason why you’re all standing around and not working? If so, I’d like to be made aware of it. We’re already behind, so I expect you all to pick up the pace and get back to work.”

  He looked back through the door at me and winked before turning around. “I’d also like to reiterate the chain of command in this department. It seems that two of our members,” I loved how he looked right at Cameron and Karen, making them squirm, “feel they can block people’s attempts to come talk with Ms. Scott or myself.”

  I watched in fascination as he walked over to the two troublemakers and crossed his arms. It was nice seeing them uncomfortable for a change. Maybe I’d end up liking this change a bit better than I’d first thought.

  “Ms. Scott is still your primary manager. I’ve just been added as co-manager and will be seated at the same desk, keeping an eye on the work pace. If you have a problem, you’ll come to me or Ms. Scott, whoever is available. You will not go to a fellow employee for advice. Is that clear?”

  The way he delivered his statement had me wanting to say, “Yes, sir.” It came as no surprise when he had everyone agreeing with him.

  Nate walked over to his desk and started poring through figures before getting on the phone to make a call. As soon as he was occupied, I could hear Cameron and Karen bitching. “Just when we thought we had him in our corner, everything changes. This blows.”

  I cleared my throat, getting their attention. They looked like deer caught in headlights and quickly resumed their positions at their desks to work.

  The rest of the afternoon went by without any issues. Nate let me know he’d be going to the bank and talking with Dane. To my surprise, the rest of the employees kept trudging along with their work, their speeds seemed to increase from their typical pace, making me wonder what kind of crap they’d tried pulling over on me. Maybe he’s right. Maybe we are overstaffed.

  When quitting time came and Nate hadn’t come back, I began to worry, but kept working. I had only made a small dent in some of my work and would continue until I knew otherwise.

  “Hey.” I’d gotten lost in my work and jumped at the sound of his voice and the closing and locking of my door. I’d already frosted the exterior wall to have some privacy from any security or cleaning crew as I worked.

  I looked up to see he’d taken his suit jacket off. He had a bit o
f dirt on his white shirt, and a small cut above his eye. I started to panic, wondering if everything was all right. “Are you okay? What happened?”

  He walked in and took a seat. “It was just a little accident. A couple of tires blew on my car on the way back from the bank. I ended up losing control of the car before it skidded into some parked vehicles.”

  I don’t know what possessed me to do it, but I got up from my desk, walked around to him, and placed my hand against his cheek. “Is everyone okay?”

  His hand came up and held mine firmly to his face. “Yes. No one was in the vehicles I hit. It turns out that someone messed with my tires.”

  I began to ask, “Why would—?” Then I realized. The issues we were having were a lot more complicated than we first realized.

  I swallowed hard at the realization. “Someone tried to kill you?”

  He nodded. “I’m not sure whether they made an attempt or if it was a warning message. Makes me wonder if one of the offices is bugged. I’ve talked with Alexander.” I noticed he dropped all the formalities, since we were by ourselves in the department. “He’s going to have security do a sweep of the offices to see if they can detect any listening devices. Whoever’s messing with the system and the bank accounts is definitely thorough.”

  I felt like I’d been punched in the gut. “Bank accounts? Please tell me they’re intact.”

  He took my hand from his face and surrounded it with both of his. “I’d like to, but there’s some activity that can’t be accounted for. I’ve talked to the manager at the bank and we have some safety measures put in place where any requests to transfer funds has to get a verbal authorization, along with a special code word from your uncle, you, or myself. If those criteria aren’t met, then the cash remains in the bank and the request will be nullified.”

  I breathed a sigh of relief that nothing more could leave the bank, but had to know. “How much have they taken already?”

  Nate gave my hand a squeeze. “It looks like we caught on right as they were starting to test the waters at the bank. A few thousand have been lost, but I have Ethan working with the bank to try and recapture the funds and see if he can find a name that goes to the account they’ve been transferred to.”

  “Is the account local or foreign?” If the account were local, we could probably locate the person of interest more easily. If it was foreign, we might be out the money, with no chance of getting it back.

  “It’s foreign, but still we can try to track it down to its owner.”

  I pulled my hand away from his, reached up to rub my forehead, and admitted, “This was all my fault. Why didn’t I pay closer attention to the bank accounts?”

  I tried walking away from him, but he pushed me up against my desk, laying hands on each side of me, blocking me in. “Look at me, Gianna.”

  I couldn’t look at him. I’d felt confident and knowledgeable earlier today and now I felt like the biggest sucker on earth. I put my hands up against his hard chest and tried pushing him away. “Please, let me go, Nate. I feel so stupid.”

  His body pressed into mine. “No. I told you to look at me.”

  I still fought to escape him.

  He chuckled. “I’m not letting you go off and sulk somewhere. I want you to look at me. Look at me, now!” He commanded my attention and I obeyed.

  I WAS TIRED OF Gianna working herself to death and feeling that she had to be in charge of everything. I needed her to relinquish the power of command to me. I needed to show her who’d be in control of the department, and her, from now on.

  I’d waited long enough to find my mystery Vixen. It was a lost cause. But the pull she had toward me wasn’t. It was time to test this little filly and see if her personality was truly one of dominance or submission.

  Her first answer came when I ordered her to, “Look at me, now!”

  I’d never seen someone go from fighting me to being so compliant in such a short span of time. Her eyes didn’t focus on mine directly, she kept them downcast at the floor, but her head did turn my direction, giving me acknowledgement of the order.

  So she was a submissive after all. “How long?” I’d asked.

  Gianna’s face looked puzzled and she shook it back and forth. “How long what?”

  I inched forward until my mouth was hovering over hers. “How long have you been hiding your submissive desires?”

  She started to open her mouth to speak, but I didn’t wait for her to answer. I wrapped one hand around her waist, while the other reached up and grabbed her firmly by the nape, crushing her lips to mine as I plundered her mouth with my tongue and tasted the hint of something minty, making me hungry for more.

  I’d expected her to protest my advances, but she only made a half-hearted attempt to get away from me before surrendering to the passion coming from our connection. I’d expected it to have a little feeling, but was almost blown away from the intensity.

  My cock sprang to life in a painful way as the blood surged to it, making it harder than it had been in months. I hadn’t expected this kind of connection with Gianna. Sure, I’d been attracted to her, who wouldn’t? But had I known the amount of passion that lurked beneath her rough exterior, I would have commanded her much earlier.

  She was the first to pull back from the kiss, her eyes looking a little dazed and confused. “I don’t—”

  I placed my finger to her lips. “Shh, love. I don’t want you talking, only feeling. There’s something between us, I’m not sure exactly what it is, but I need to satisfy my curiosity. If you want me to stop, just say so, otherwise I’ll take it as an invitation to explore your body and acquaint you with mine. Understood?” I kept my voice firm, in command, but I tried to convey a level of caring that I never did with any subs in the past, except for Vixen. Stop thinking about her. You have Gianna right here, ready for the taking.

  When she didn’t respond, only looked lost and confused, I asked again. “I asked you a question and I demand an answer. Do. You. Understand?”

  Her eyes finally rose to meet mine. “Permission to speak.”

  Now she was talking like the submissive I thought her to be. “Granted. What’s on your mind, little one?”

  Her mouth twitched, looking like she was having a hard time speaking with me. It took a couple of minutes for her to compose her thoughts, before asking, “What about the person I love? What about the one that got away for you?”

  I kept the one hand around her lower back and pulled her closer as the other grabbed her chin and held her in place while I planted a firm kiss on her lips. “What about them?” I kissed her again.

  “But—”

  I didn’t let her say anything more as I wiggled one leg between hers and ground my erection into her center. “But nothing! I don’t care that we’re co-workers. I don’t care that we’re neighbors. My lost love is just that, lost to me forever, but you’re here and so am I. We can’t keep going on pretending they’ll come back into our lives. I want to live in the moment and take you right here, right now.”

  I could feel the heat coming off her center and imagined how wet she was underneath everything. I needed to get her on top of her desk and take her fast and hard, making us both forget everything, letting us surrender to the moment.

  I licked her lower lip and bit it gently to get her to open to me. When she did, I thrust my tongue into her mouth, hoping she’d get the message I wanted to do the same thing with my cock into her body. I was surprised to feel her tongue wrestle with me as I explored her mouth.

  My hand reached back and pushed all of her paperwork to the side before reaching down to undo the top buttons of her dress. Her breasts were small, but the perfect size for me. I loved being able to suck not just the nipple, but the entire breast into my mouth.

  Her head fell back as my lips started a path from her mouth, across her chin, down her neck, and to the edges of her bra. I pulled both cups of her underwire down underneath her breasts. They looked like a beautiful offering for my mouth to plea
sure.

  Her hands came up to my shoulders, holding on for support as my mouth took her right nipple into my mouth and began to suck. They were already hardened, but they continued to grow as my tongue worshipped them.

  My other hand went to her left breast, kneading it and rolling her nipple between my fingers as my tongue continued to tease her right one. I wanted to test her threshold to pain, so I bit down on her breast and pulled back to see how she’d respond.

  To my delight, she didn’t yell out, only moaned in satisfaction, which made my cock hungrier. It needed to be fed and soon! I was already feeling it strain against the material of my pants, threatening to rip a hole in them.

  I lifted her skirt and found, to my delight, that she wore a garter, thong, and stockings. “You look radiant, Gianna. Did you dress this way for me, hoping I’d be here doing this to you?”

  She tried to push away from me, but I wouldn’t let her move. “Don’t be shy now. Answer me!”

  A look of resolve swept across her features. “Yes.”

  So she had thought about me as much as I did her.

  “Have I been in your dreams lately? Be honest with me or I’ll know. I can tell by your body if you’re lying to me or not.”

  She nodded. “Yes.”

  My hand slipped into her panties and pulled hard, breaking them away from her body and slipping them into my pants pocket. I’d save these for later as a reminder of our time together.

  Her smell was intoxicating, familiar in a way. I let my fingers brush lightly against her folds and enjoyed the sweet whimpers that escaped her mouth.

  I looked up to find her eyes closed and her mouth open, surrendering to the moment, allowing me to take her to the place I wanted to go. I loved it when a woman gave me total control. So many times, I’d had women watch as I tried to pleasure them. Their moans were fake and forced. There was nothing that could equal the beauty found in total submission.

  I bent toward her neck, sucking, licking, and gently biting at her skin. “Do you trust me?” I asked as I pulled some of her skin into my mouth, feeling the need to mark it.