by Vivien Vale
“Well, let’s see what you have, then,” Richman says to Leon.
Leon nods and steps forward. He puts a small recording device on the table. I frown. Richman looks at it with a blank expression.
“What’s this?” he asks.
“A recording of the conversations I’ve had with both Wesley and Kylie about their affair.”
Richman doesn’t seem impressed, and I let out a breath I didn’t know I’ve been holding.
Leon presses the playback button and steps back. Leon’s voice is loud and clear, filling the room a moment later. We all listen.
“He slept with a woman last night that apparently wouldn’t stop bragging about how much game her friend has.” It’s Leon’s voice.
“She didn’t brag about herself?” I sound bored.
“Yeah, it is interesting. This friend apparently fucks her boss.”
“Well, I guess morals vary from person to person.”
“I know who Brad’s talking about. He’s talking about Kylie.”
There’s a pause, and I remember how I felt, how I reacted. Of course, that’s not on tape.
“Don’t be ridiculous, man. You heard from your son who heard from a one-night stand who heard from a friend? It sounds like everyone has been drinking too much.”
“I have to get going. I’ll see you in the office tomorrow. Send my regards to Martha.”
Mr. Richman opens his mouth to say something when it plays again, this time with Kylie speaking to Leon.
“Don’t be a little snip.” When he sounds aggressive on tape, Leon clears his throat. The tape plays on. “I mean the person. Your friend? She bragged to Bradley all night long about how her best friend is fucking her boss.”
He clears his throat again. He was quite aggressive toward Kylie.
“Who’s Bradley?”
“Your dumb-blonde routine isn’t going to get you out of this. He’s my son.”
“Well, maybe she was talking about another friend. Did she give him a name?”
Silence for a beat before she speaks again.
“Paris has a lot of friends, not just me. I’m pretty sure all of her friends have bosses.”
On the tape, Kylie sounds very calm, and Leon is aggressive. It doesn’t work in his favor so far. I glance at Richman who’s starting to look pissed. This is so much better than I anticipated.
“You’re lying.”
“It’s your word against mine, at this point.”
Another beat on the tape and then she speaks again.
“How Wes responds to accusations really has nothing to do with me, does it? Do you have any proof of this alleged affair?”
Richman reaches over and stops the tape. When I glance at Kylie, she looks relieved. She doesn’t even look at me. Good girl.
“I think that’s more than enough,” Richman says. “What is it that you’re trying to prove, here?”
Leon looks a little taken aback.
“They’re obviously up to something,” he says. “Did you hear how eager he was to leave?”
Richman looks at me for a moment with a “what the fuck” expression on his face.
“To be honest, Leon, I don’t think I would have been eager to stay if I were being accused like this,” he says.
I don’t smile, even though I want to.
“No one should have to stay in your presence, anyway. As for Miss Jordan, she denied it. From what I could tell, you were rather aggressive.”
Leon opens his mouth to say something, gasps for words and shuts it again without saying anything. He has nothing to say to that. He’s starting to get angry. His hands are tied, and now he’s made it all that much worse for himself. His failed attempt has only made me and Kylie look better.
Richman sighs.
“I think we need a bit of time to discuss this. If you’ll wait outside?”
I get up. Kylie stands, too. Leon doesn’t move. We walk to the door.
“You too, Leon,” Richman says.
Leon looks like he’s going to say something. Or throw something. He controls himself and follows us out.
“This is bullshit,” Leon says as soon as we’re all outside the boardroom. “This is total crap, and you know it.” He jabs a finger at me. “Don’t think I won’t get you for this.”
Kylie watches him with big eyes.
“Get me for what?” I ask. “Making a fool of yourself?”
Leon is getting angrier. His face turns red, and a vein bulges on his forehead. I feel a little bad for the man because he’s not wrong in his suspicions. But he’s going about it wrong, and that’s rubbing me the wrong way.
Leon storms toward the men’s room and I’m relieved that we won’t have to sit with him the whole time we’re waiting. I glance at Kylie, and she makes eye-contact with me, but we don’t speak. We’re doing what we said we would do. We’re not giving anyone a reason to think we might be sleeping together.
It feels like forever, but finally, Harold opens the door.
“You can come in,” he says. “Where’s Leon?”
“Men’s,” I say.
Harold nods. “I’ll call him.”
He disappears. I walk into the boardroom and Kylie follows me. We sit down in our respective seats again. I’m not nearly as nervous, now. I don’t know what they’ll say, but Leon’s evidence didn’t prove anything at all.
Leon walks into the boardroom a moment later with Harold on his heels. When everyone is seated, Richman clears his throat.
“We’ve talked about this, Leon,” he says. “It’s not proof of anything. We can’t do anything about conversations that didn’t go as you planned.”
Leon opens his mouth, shocked.
“What are you talking about?” he asks.
“The only thing we’ve heard today was that you don’t seem to have a lot of respect for your boss or your team member.”
Leon shakes his head. “So, what?”
Richman glances at him, and there’s a warning in his eyes.
“So, you’re going to back off completely, and you’re going to change your attitude in the office, or we’ll have to talk to you for different reasons.”
Leon’s face is getting redder.
“So, I get punished when I’m not the one doing anything wrong?”
Richman shakes his head. “There’s nothing else we can find in these allegations, Leon. We can’t pursue this because there’s nothing to pursue. Consider this a warning.”
Leon jumps up.
“A warning?” He’s shouting, now. “I get a warning when they’re fucking, and they are going to just get away with it?”
“You should calm down,” Richman says, and he’s starting to look angry himself. “Remember this is the board.”
Leon is past the point of reason. His hands are balled into fists. I’ve seen him like this before. I know what’s coming.
“If this is the board, the people that are supposed to ensure the company runs well, it’s no wonder we’re such a shit show.”
“Leon.” It’s the final warning. I can hear it in Richman’s voice. I came in here worried that it would go terribly wrong. It is going wrong, but not in the way I expected.
I stand up. I don’t want Leon to make everything so much worse for himself. I still feel responsible for the man in some way.
“Just relax, Leon,” I say.
Leon glares at me.
“Don’t you fucking dare,” he says and picks up the closest chair to him. He flings it toward me. I get out of the way in time, but Kylie yelps and the board members jump up. Two of them grab Leon by the arms to restrain him.
“That’s it, you’re fired!” Richman shouts.
Leon goes limp. “What?” he asks.
“We’ll not tolerate this kind of violence in this company. I expect you to have your things cleared by lunch.”
Leon saws his jaw open and closed. He looks shell-shocked. I’m shocked, too. Kylie sits there, stunned. It escalated so quickly I’m still trying
to catch up.
“You can’t do this to me!” Leon shouts.
Richman’s face is like stone. “Get out, or I’ll have security take care of you.”
The threat seems to calm Leon down enough to storm toward the door. But then he turns around and points at Kylie. “You’re no better than that whore mother of yours,” he bites out, then stomps out of the boardroom. We all stare at the door in shock as it slams shut behind him.
“Well,” Richman says a moment later. “I guess we’re done here.”
Kylie
By Friday everything has calmed down again. Rumors traveled through the office after Leon got fired, but they didn’t last long. There weren’t a lot of people on my floor that liked him. He wasn’t always this way, they tell me, but I’m relieved I don’t have to deal with him and his condescending attitude anymore.
I feel a little guilty that he was fired when he tried to out us. It bugs me that he was right, but he took the fall. Still, it wasn’t our fault he got fired. Wes mentioned he had anger issues. God knows I’ve seen something of his temper as well.
And that parting shot about my mother? How the hell did he know about that? And even stranger, why did he bring it up? Just another jab at me? Or is there something more that I’m missing? I’ve always had the impression he disliked me for reasons I couldn’t fathom. If it has something to do with my mother, though, I’m at a loss.
I guess everything turned out for the better. At least I can focus on my work again. And at least Wes and I aren’t keeping any more secrets. It was weighing on me. Now I can enjoy our time together. What little we get, anyway, since we’re being more careful than ever after the blowup with Leon.
I’m working late more and more so that I’m on top of everything. It’s my first project, and I don’t want to mess it up. I want to prove myself to Wes and everyone else that made me feel so welcome as their new project manager.
I like working late. It’s not just about overtime or feeling like I’m doing what I can to make it work. It’s also because the office is so quiet, then. The floor is empty, no general noise to distract me from my work, and no one drops by my desk to make small talk or ask me something. Of course, I love being a part of everything, now, but I still prefer being left to my own devices. I work so much better when I’m alone.
I’m lost in my work. The first submissions for the project have come back with feedback, and I’m anxious to know if they liked what I did. I’m proud of my work, but I like it when other people are proud, too.
“You’re working late,” Wes says, and I jump. “Sorry,” he adds. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
I shake my head. My heart hammers in my chest and I swallow hard. “I was just lost in my work. I’m looking at feedback.”
I look up at Wes, and his eyes are impossibly green. He’s smiling down at me, and my stomach erupts in butterflies. Is it going to be like this every time I see him, even though we’re just sleeping together and it’s nothing more than that? He smiles at me, and I turn to jelly.
“The project is going well,” he says.
I nod. “I think I have it down. I’m still finding my feet, but I think I’m managing.”
“I would say you’re doing more than just managing. Your work is outstanding, I’ve been going over it whenever you submit something.”
I blush. There’s no good reason for it, but my cheeks burn, anyway.
“Thank you,” I say.
Wes shakes his head. “Don’t thank me. This is all you. I hired you because I knew that you were capable of this kind of work.”
“No,” I tease, “You hired because you wanted to fuck me over.”
He leans in and whispers, “And now I just want to fuck you.” He chuckles, then adds, “But seriously. You’re doing amazingly well. You were meant for this kind of work.”
He’s paying me a lot of compliments, and all of them are about my abilities, my skill, my mind. It goes so much further than a guy calling me hot or sexy. Of course, that’s just as nice, but a man paying attention to my mind just gets me on a whole different level.
“What do they have to say about your work in the feedback?” he asks.
I page through the file.
“They like the designs, they’re happy to proceed with the manufacturing, they seem positive about the programming. I think it’s going to work.”
Wes walks around my desk and pulls a chair closer from another desk. He rolls the chair so close that our knees touch when he sits down next to me and I’m suddenly flustered. I can’t think when he’s touching me. I can’t think when he’s near me, even.
“I knew it would all be good, of course,” he said. “I hope you’re proud.”
I nod, but I can’t really tell what he’s saying anymore. Blood rushes in my ears, and my heart hammers against my chest. My body responds to him the way it always does – I start getting wet. He turns me on no matter how he looks at me.
As if his bright green eyes and charming smile weren’t enough, his eyes slide down my body. He moves his hand to my knee. I swallow hard and try to concentrate on his face, on what he’ll say next. I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to make rational conversation. When I’m around Wes, I lose a couple of point on my IQ and my ability to communicate coherently abandons me. Pathetic? Yes. But I lust after him, and he’s the kind of guy that makes me melt every time he touches me.
Which is often, and he does it so fucking well.
Wes’s hand on my thigh slides upward. I’m wearing a skirt and thigh-high nylons, and the silk makes his skin on mine that much more intense. I’m hyperaware of his movement, of how his hand inches closer and closer to my pussy.
When his hand pushes underneath the skirt, I swallow hard. I close my eyes, try to pull myself together and put my hand on his to stop him.
I shake my head, and he doesn’t move further, doesn’t fight me. He doesn’t remove his hand, but it’s not sliding upward anymore. Small victories.
“We shouldn’t do this,” I say.
Wes frowns. His hand is searing hot on my thigh, and I’m aware of my own breathing, too shallow and uneven.
“Why?”
I take another deep breath. It comes out shaky when I exhale.
“Because I don’t want to lose my job. It’s been a close call with Leon, Wes. We can’t keep doing this.”
His eyes are serious when he looks at me.
“But I want to keep doing this,” he says. “I want you, Kylie. Surely, you know by now how irresistible you are?”
He moves closer to me as he speaks, his face moving so slowly toward mine I can’t exactly protest. But I don’t move away, and his face is so close now I can see bits of brown in his eyes, nestled in between the green of his irises, giving his eyes depth.
I smell his cologne. It’s so strong in my nostrils, and the scent reminds me of sex. The accompanying emotion is so strong my breath hitches in my throat. I can’t think straight. His hand is heavy on my thigh and images of his hand on my pussy, his mouth between my legs, flash before my eye.
“Wes,” I say, but I don’t get to finish my sentence. He presses his lips against mine, and every argument I had to defend my opinion disappears into thin air. He slides his tongue into my mouth, penetrating me. His hand slides up my thigh again, beneath my skirt and this time I don’t stop him. His fingers slide over the lace at the top of my stockings, tickle the bare skin on my inner thigh, and his fingers brush against the satin of my panties. A jolt of electricity shoots through my body, clenching muscles at my core and I sigh into his mouth.
His other hand moves to my neck, and he presses his broad palm against my skin. He slides his hand down and into the collar of my shirt. He’s not anywhere important yet. His fingertips only brush against my pussy and his hand is on the swell of my breast, but I’m breathing hard, lust roaring through my body.
“We can’t do this,” I mumble against his lips. “Someone can see us here.
Wes stops, and I’m proud of m
yself for being able to think rationally. He pulls away, taking me by the hand and pulling me up. He holds me against him for a second before he steps away and leads me with him. I can see his cock, erect in his pants, pushing it out so that it looks like he’s pitching a tent. He’s not even trying to hide it.
He leads me to the meeting room.
“This isn’t what I meant,” I say. “We’re still at the office. Wes. We said we wouldn’t do this.”
Wes closes the door behind us and locks it. The meeting room only has one window. It’s wide but it looks out over San Francisco, and it’s high enough that no one is going to be able to look in and see us.
“I can’t wait,” he says, and he takes two quick strides toward me. He grabs me and spins me around, pressing me against the wall. He pins me with his body, his cock grinding against me, hips gyrating, and I gasp. My body responds to his advances and lust is so thick in the air it makes me choke. I don’t know how I’m going to stop. A moment later his tongue is in my mouth, his hand on my tit and I stop thinking altogether.
His hand slides down my body, and he lifts my skirt.
“Sometimes I think you wear these to the office just to drive me crazy,” he says.
I don’t have time to answer him. He pulls up my skirt, pushes his hand into my panties, and his fingers find my clit so that my only response is a gasp. He moves his fingers back and forth, spreading my wetness. His fingers are slick with my sex when he pulls them out again. He’s teasing me, giving me just a taste before giving me anything else.
“I want you to suck on me, baby,” he says in a hoarse whisper. “I want my cock in your mouth.”
I don’t let him ask me twice. I kneel in front of him. My skirt is still up around my hips, my ass exposed to the cold air in the room. I don’t care. I want him in my mouth, too. I can already taste him.
I undo the button and unzip him before I reach into his pants and pull out his cock. He’s hard and thick, the smooth skin stretched across the size of him. The tip is slick with precum. I look up at him when I open my mouth and slide him between my lips. His face is riddled with hunger. I know he likes it when I look up at him. I know that it looks slutty, but I don’t do it with everyone all the time. Just for Wes.