Conquest of the Heart

by R. J. Dillon

  “I do, we do, meaning Adrian and I. There are a lot of people who play an important role in where the company is today. We’re very fortunate,” he said, delighted that she noticed.

  She just took a few minutes to enjoy this. It was nice that she didn’t have to fight him off. While she could handle his advances, no matter what he threw her way, she wanted to get to know him as her boss. His intelligence intrigued her, which is what she was looking forward to when she started her job.

  “You’d have my attention more often if you were like this more,” she commented.

  “Like what?” He was curious. He did notice that she was extremely relaxed right now.

  “Just - ” she paused. “Polite. You’re not trying to cram the fact that you want me down my throat.”

  “Well, I was going to give you a break, but since you brought it up,” he said, looking to see her reaction, “there is something that I would like to know.”

  “That’s fair. I did bring it up. I’m not guaranteeing an answer.” Just as she said this, their lunch arrived.

  “Aahh, merci beaucoup,” she said to their server. Gavin had just started to settle down, but that simple phrase awakened his loins again.

  She turned her focus back on him again, saying, “You had a question for me?” She braced herself. Depending on what he said, she might get a little tense.

  “Why do you let me get to you? I mean, if you’re really not interested, you could cut me off before I even start. We’ve had several conversations over the past few days, and I’m sure there are more to come. You’ve done nothing but endure.”

  “I’m just trying to get to the bottom of why you think it’s necessary to sleep around so much. It really does impact how the company gets viewed.”

  “Faith, I think there’s something else. C&A’s reputation is not in jeopardy. In fact, we are seeking to get more exposure in the community, which is your job. No, there’s definitely another reason behind this. I think you want me too and just won’t say it. That’s fine, because like I’ve said before, I can play the game as long as you’d like.”

  Faith took a bite of her chicken and chewed for a long moment before she said something. “You would just love it if it were that easy, wouldn’t you?”

  “On the contrary, I enjoy the fact that it’s not. Having to work so hard to get you is exciting. When it finally happens, I’ll appreciate you more.” He smiled then. It was one of those devious smiles. Faith couldn’t get upset. She was responsible for the conversation turning south, literally.

  “So you think I’m somehow turned on by the fact that you pursue me, and I’m playing hard to get for a while to amplify this desire?”

  “Maybe. That’s why I’m asking. As soon as I start talking about sex, and having you, you seem to get really uptight. Is there something about sex that makes you uncomfortable?” He took another bite of his burger, continuing to look at her.

  “Of course not,” she said as her cheeks started to turn pink. Gavin noticed. He was on to something.

  “I’m getting warmer,” he bragged. “Now why would a woman as beautiful as you be embarrassed by simply discussing the possibility of being pleased beyond what she could ever imagine?” He watched as her cheeks got bright red. He continued. “When was the last time you had sex, Faith?”

  “Excuse me?” she said in a higher pitched voice, almost choking on her food. ‘Bingo!’ he thought. Whenever Faith was starting to get upset with his pressuring, her voice changed. She quickly became more irritable, as she was now, even though she was trying to stay calm.

  “Hmm, that’s it, isn’t it? You’re in need. How long has it been? You can tell me.” He finished his burger and moved his plate to the side. This was most interesting indeed, so he waited patiently while she searched for words.

  “You’re such an ass, Gavin,” she said, growing more uncomfortable as the subject at hand continued. Gavin wouldn’t let it go. He kept prying.

  “I can remedy that need for you, and it’s not very nice to call your boss an ass,” Gavin mused.

  “It’s not very nice for my boss to badger me constantly about having sex with him. That’s borderline sexual harassment, you know,” she smirked.

  “No, I haven’t touched you, and all you have to do is say the word, and I’ll stop.” He was serious now. Gavin was always very careful when he approached women, especially those he worked with.

  “Would you really? That’s all I have to do?”

  “I’ve never forced anyone to be with me, nor will I ever. If you told me to leave you alone, I would. However, I wouldn’t stop desiring you. I’d just have to come up with a more creative way to change your mind. Though you won’t say no, will you? I think you like that I’m honest and upfront about what I want, and I think you enjoy playing the game.”

  She began to turn pink again, and couldn’t speak.

  “The fact that you say nothing means I’m right, and rather than lie about it, you choose to remain silent. I like that. That’s just something else that excites me about you,” he smiled as the server handed him the ticket.

  Faith was stunned. Had she been that obvious about it? She was beginning to wonder how she was going to get through the afternoon. Gavin was sure to take advantage of this knowledge. She watched as he paid the bill, speechless and numb.

  “Are you ready?” he asked, unaware that she still hadn’t said anything. He was satisfied with the way things were progressing.

  “Yes, I am just super thrilled to go back and spend the afternoon with my arrogant boss, who will more than likely spend the next three hours tormenting me with his brutally honest thoughts towards me. Yay me!” She just shook her head.

  He chuckled and said, “It’s good that you have such a positive attitude about it.” They stood and left, returning to the office.

  When they got back, Gavin said, “I’m going to check my messages and emails. I’ll meet you in my office in a half an hour.” They split up, each going to their own spaces.

  Carter was checking his calendar to see what time he was scheduled to meet with Faith and Gavin to work on the city reviews. He found that his calendar had been cleared of all of the additional meetings that they spoke of. He called Agnes to ask her what was going on.

  “Hi Agnes, it’s Carter … I’m fine, and you? … Good to hear. Hey listen. Faith, Gavin and I were supposed to be holding extra meetings this week and next to go work on the expansion project, but for whatever reason, my calendar only shows our meetings during the day. Did something change? … Oh he did? I’ll check with him. Thanks Agnes.” Carter hung up the phone.

  He was furious. He went straight into Gavin’s office without knocking. “You had all our extra meetings removed from my calendar!” he exclaimed.

  “Yes I did. Why does that upset you?” Gavin asked with a plain face, leaning back in his chair.

  “You just don’t want me around Faith. You’re trying to keep me from her,” he scowled.

  “With the work Faith has done to complete the outlines as quickly as she has, it is no longer necessary for all of us to have the additional meetings. So that Faith is not overwhelmed, I’ve been helping her with her portion of the project as we have time.”

  “So you kept the extra meetings on yours and Faith’s calendar. Why can’t I be involved?”

  “You have the promotional aspect to work on. Your time is better spent doing that, so that when we have our daily discussions, we’re all prepared, and the discussions are productive.”

  “When exactly are you working on your client lists? Or are you just working on Faith?”

  “It’s not your concern when I’m getting my work done, is it? You answer to me, not the other way around.” Gavin still had on a poker face. “Moreover, it’s none of your business what’s going on between Faith and I. If you need to know something, you’ll know.”

  “You saw an opportunity to control my contact with her, and you took it.” Carter was livid that Gavin was abusing his status
.

  “I told you to stay away from her. Since you can’t seem to do that on your own, I’m helping you out. I really prefer not to speak of this again.”

  Carter, now infuriated, said, “This is not over!” He turned and stormed out of the office. Faith was approaching just as he left. She could see he was upset, and judging from whose office he was coming from, she could understand why.

  “What did you do to Carter?” she asked as she walked in.

  “He did it to himself. It’s of no concern to you.” Once again, he didn’t want his attitude towards Carter to impact his mood with her. He excused himself for a few minutes. “I need to run to the restroom. I’ll be right back.”

  “Okay.” Faith took her laptop to the small conference table in Gavin’s office and began to get things set up for their meeting. It only took her about five minutes, and Gavin still hadn’t returned. She walked over to the window behind his desk and gazed at the Statue of Liberty, getting lost in her thoughts.

  When Gavin got back to the office, he saw her standing at the window. ‘So it begins,’ he thought. He quietly walked up behind her, and sensuously whispered in her ear, “I can take care of you.” He wanted so badly to nibble at her ear, but had to control the urge. Of course, there was no stopping what happened down south. At that moment, Chandler was coming to see Gavin. She was suddenly stopped in her tracks when she saw how closely Faith and Gavin were standing together, and didn’t like it one bit. She would have to bring this up to him later and quickly walked away.

  Faith shrugged away from him slightly as she turned to face him. She didn’t move too far from him when she said, “Can we at least get some work done before you start hammering me about how much you want me and how much I should want you?” As she looked directly at him, Gavin was aroused even more with how close they were to each other.

  When he didn’t say anything, Faith pushed gently past him and walked to the table where her laptop and files were set up. She sat down, leaned her head on her left hand, and waited.

  Gavin turned around, grabbed his laptop, around and walked over to the table. “Alright. What cities have you worked on already? I know you’ve already done some work.”

  “I did outlines this morning for Boston and Phoenix, and started working on San Francisco,” said Faith, relieved that they could get focused.

  “Okay, let’s finish with San Francisco. I’ll make sure that I backtrack when we’re through meeting here to put client lists together for Boston and Phoenix.”

  “Why don’t we just do that now? It doesn’t make sense for you to have to do that if the point of these meetings is for us to complete both of those pieces together. Wouldn’t it be better to have a complete package, minus Carter’s piece?”

  “You’re right,” he said, thinking, ‘Of course she is.’ “Back to Boston then.” He opened up his laptop and began to access his own resources for looking for potential clients. “There appears to be a lucrative technology or biotechnology industry in the Boston area. What types of events are held there each year? This may not be the best choice for us being that our goal is to expand into entertainment.”

  “The most popular events they hold is the Boston Marathon, held in April and the Saint Patrick’s Day Parade. Like any other city, they have other festivals and activities, but nothing major. Of course, sports is pretty big there, with the Red Sox and the Patriots.”

  “We’ll let Carter fill us in on that part. Anything else notable?” he asked as he continued to look at his screen.

  “Nothing that I can see right now. We’d probably find out more being there.”

  “We’ll see if it makes the cut.” He looked at her and asked, “Phoenix?”

  “Yes,” she said plainly.

  He pulled information for Phoenix, and they discussed their findings, keeping them as brief as possible knowing that more detailed discussions would follow next week. After Phoenix, they completed San Francisco. This is where they spent the bulk of their conversation. Gavin got sidetracked about the city once he felt they were done with the “project” side of things.

  “So, you know, San Francisco is considered one of the most romantic cities in the US?”

  “That has what to do with the project?” Faith asked, not completely sure if they were done for the day.

  “Well, if this city makes the cut, I might have an opportunity to meet your needs. What better place for something to happen between us,” he glared. Faith was not impressed.

  “You really don’t quit, do you?”

  “Hey, I aim to please, and no, I won’t quit. Not until I have you.”

  Faith closed her laptop, sure now that their meeting was over, looked at Gavin and said, “It’s not going to happen. Give up.”

  “I don’t know how to do that, especially not when I’m determined. At least I can say that I’m getting my fix, since you’re not cooperating. What are you doing when you go home at night?” Gavin asked as she stood up and walked to the window. “This problem can be resolved,” he teased.

  “The problem is not with me,” she snapped. “The problem is with you sleeping around all the time.”

  “Which is my business. Like I’ve said before, I’m only going to get worse. Everything about you, everything you do, Faith – the way you talk, your smile, your hair, your perfume, your resistance to me – everything about you turns me on. So, at the end of the day, after I’ve been around you, I have to relieve my tension. Since you won’t allow me to relieve it with you, I have to find someone else.”

  “Gavin Carlisle, you are not going to blame this on me,” she said as she whipped around from the window and glared at him.

  “I will. You drive me wild,” he said. “You’re like a drug that keeps me coming back for more and more. I can’t keep myself away from you.”

  “I can take care of that.” She was trying not to get too upset. He had already called her out once.

  “You won’t. The meetings we’re having are necessary in order to move forward with the project. You’re stuck with me for two weeks,” he boasted.

  “All of our pieces can be done without help from the other. We don’t even need to have these extra meetings, and I think you know it.”

  “Then why did you agree to it?” he asked sarcastically. She was caught, and he knew it.

  “Because I’m new, and who better to learn from than you? You and Adrian have done fantastic things with this company. When we’re talking business, I’m learning from one of the greatest marketing minds there is, and I can feel the pulse of this company. The more I work with you, the more I’ll know, and the better I will become.”

  “Oh, you can feel a pulse, alright!” He knew this would send her overboard.

  “Can you keep your mind clean for just five minutes?”

  “Almost impossible when I’m with you. It takes a great deal of strength. I’ve had to work at it.”

  “I hate that I’m an object to you.” She was beginning to get upset.

  “You’re not an object. You’re more than that. I’ve already made that clear.” He walked over to where she’d been standing by the window. She didn’t move away, at least not initially.

  “Faith, there’s something different about you, and I want to get to know what that is. I’m going crazy.” He paused for a moment. “I would stop being with other women, if you would let me be with you. You’re the solution to my madness.”

  “Really?” she darted, turning to look at him. “Who was your solution before I came? Chandler? Did that solve your little problem?”

  “Chandler is not a solution to anything. She’s a problem all on her own,” he said, shaking his head and rolling his eyes.

  Faith stepped away from the window, and started to pack up her things to return to her office. She stopped, looked at Gavin, who was still facing the window, and said, “Sleeping with me is not going to solve your problem, Gavin. You don’t seem to know what you really want, or what you really need. Until you do, I’m just an
other ‘notch’ for you. I’d satisfy you until the next woman came along. I have never been used by anyone for any purpose, nor will I start.” She picked up her things and started toward the door.

  “I know what I want.” He turned to face her. “I won’t stop until I have you.”

  She stopped, looked back and said, “Thanks for your help this afternoon,” then turned and walked out the door.

  Gavin took a deep breath in, went to his desk and sat down. He was almost back to square one. Knowing that Faith hadn’t had sex in a while was great information, but she seemed to be more resistant than ever. “I’ll just have to keep wearing you down,” he thought out loud.

  Agnes heard most of their conversation. She took a few notes and walked back to her desk. She would compile all the things she witnessed throughout the week and report back to Adrian. In her mind, things weren’t going so well.

  Faith sat in her chair and made a phone call. “Bonjour. Comment s’est passee ta journee? … Un peu stressant, mais je vais passer au travers. Je ne veux pas vous retenir longtemps. Je voulais simplement verifier po … A tres bientot. Au revoir.” She hung up, again exhausted from meeting with Gavin. To think, she had two more days like this. (Hello. How was your day? A little stressful, but I’m getting through. I just wanted to check in. Talk to you soon. Goodbye.)

  Thursday came and went with Jacksonville having been discussed with Carter’s added piece. Faith and Gavin met in the afternoon to build outlines and client lists for two more cities. No project meetings were held on Friday, but Gavin and Faith had their ad hoc meeting, which lasted majority of the day. They stayed in for lunch, with Faith getting to eat her frozen meal that she had wanted to eat all week, and Gavin having his lunch delivered. Once they were finished with their work for next week’s meetings, Gavin started in on Faith.

  She once again had her back turned, and was packing up her files and laptop. He quietly approached her and whispered, “I want you,” again wanting to nibble at her ear, but restraining himself. His loins were out of control.