by Chanel Ivy
“Is that so? How do you know you get paid less than your male co-workers if I may ask?” Emma questioned, leaning in toward me and playing with a stray lock of my hair.
I looked down at my glass to avoid looking into her beautiful eyes. The way she made me feel was making me slightly uneasy. If we weren’t in a sauna, I’d still be sweating if you catch my drift.
“At last year’s holiday party, Doug, one of the other managers in my department who’s only been here for three years, was bragging about how much he gets paid, and it’s a lot more than what I’m getting.”
“How do you know he wasn’t just lying to be an asshole? Men are known to inflate their attributes to make themselves look better in front of beautiful women,” she said as she placed her glass next to her and began to run her fingers from my hair down my shoulder softly.
“He was definitely drunk, and most drunks I know don’t lie when they’re three sheets to the wind, so I’m pretty sure he was telling the truth,” I replied, holding in a groan of pleasure from her subtle touch.
“Well then, I’ll have to look into that.”
That comment threw me a little.
“What do you mean, you’ll have to look into that?” I asked.
Emma leaned in closer to me, her nose practically in my ear. I felt her warm breath on my neck, and it sent shivers down my spine.
“You’re very beautiful. Do you know that Mia?” she asked as she rubbed my ear with her nose and ran one hand down my shoulder and the other up my thigh. “Your demure attitude intrigues me. Do you even realize how sexy you are?”
I didn’t know what to say to her. I had never been with a woman, and I had never been so blatantly pursued by someone like this before. This woman’s tenacity and blunt attitude about what she wanted was new to me, but it was also exhilarating. I decided to try my hand at her version of flirting.
“I know how sexy you are,” I replied, hoping my response didn’t sound as dumb to her as it did to me, but she laughed at my attempt to be forward.
“You don’t have to pretend you’re not uncomfortable. I know you are. That’s actually part of the fun for me... watching you squirm.” Emma took the glass from my hand and put it next to her. “Do you mind if I kiss you, Mia?”
I looked down at my fingers in my lap playing with my nails as I tried to think of something witty to say in response. My body was telling me to say yes, but my head was telling me that I barely knew this woman.
“I’ll take your silence as consent, but tell me to stop whenever you want, Mia,” Emma whispered into my ear as she kissed the tender spot just below my ear lobe.
I felt my heart quicken at her lips touching me. The pleasant sensation gave me the smallest dose of courage, and I placed my hand on Emma’s upper thigh while she continued to kiss down my neck. I slid my hand up, meeting the soft, damp cloth of the towel that was still wrapped around her, and I squeezed her hip. Emma pulled back ever so slightly and giggled into my shoulder.
“Sorry, I’m a touch ticklish there,” she smiled.
I smirked back at her and let my hand fall back to the outside of her thigh, and Emma’s lips met mine. At first, it was a small gentle kiss, but it quickly turned into something more hungry and fierce. I closed my eyes and let the kiss overtake me. I found myself moaning quietly into her mouth at the sensual feelings that were blossoming inside of me like a flower in springtime.
Emma’s hands were threading into my hair, pulling me closer to her as our tongues danced against one another. It felt like there was a white-hot heat building in me, begging to be let free. I lost myself in the passionate moment. Before I knew what was happening, Emma was pulling me on top of her, so I was straddling her on the wooden bench. My arms wrapped around her neck, and we continued to kiss.
Emma’s hands wandered up my neck and down my arms before landing on my hips. I instinctively rocked my groin into her embrace, and she whimpered into my mouth, “That’s a good girl. I knew you’d enjoy yourself once you opened up a little. And speaking of opening up,” Emma smiled slyly as she sat back and pulled my towel apart, exposing my breasts to her.
She let the towel fall into my lap, leaving my privates covered as her bright blue eyes opened wide, flashing with excitement.
“Your breasts are gorgeous, Mia,” Emma said as she squeezed both of them in her hands, gently pinching my puckered nipples between her fingers.
The sensation sent a ripple of excitement through my entire body. I was on fire with lust for this woman. My head spun with the realization of what I was doing, and I began to second guess myself.
“I... I don’t know if we should be doing this,” I blurted out.
“What do you mean? You’re clearly enjoying it,” Emma replied as she leaned down, sucking one of my nipples into her mouth.
Her tongue danced over my little pebble of pleasure, and it felt so good to have her mouth on me. I lost myself again, leaning my head back, grabbing the back of her head and pulling her harder into me. She sucked harder, pinching my other breast with her fingers, and I felt myself become wet between my thighs. There was an aching in my core that I had not felt for a long time, and it scared me.
“No. I’m sorry, I can’t do this. I barely know you; I don’t even know your last name. I’m sorry,” I whimpered as I gathered my towel around my body again, stood, and quickly exited the sauna.
I didn’t even bother taking a shower. I ran to my locker, got dressed right there in the middle of the room, and left as quickly as I could. I couldn’t bear the thought of facing Emma after I had thoroughly embarrassed myself with her.
Chapter 3
Later on that evening, I found myself at home in my shower, sitting on the floor of the tub, crying. I had just made a complete fool of myself in front of someone I worked with. How could I have been so stupid? I was horny and feeling sorry for myself, so I did what every self-respecting woman would do. I masturbated and ate way too much ice cream while catching up on my DVR before falling asleep.
My alarm went off at six-thirty, and this time I didn’t hit the snooze button. I was going to suck it up, put on my big girl panties, and face the day head-on. I changed into my work out clothes, put my black slacks and dark blue blouse in my bag, and headed out the door with confidence.
I made it to the gym before seven, and there were a lot more people here today than there was yesterday. I guess Mondays were too rough for some people to make it to the gym, but Tuesdays weren’t.
I put my stuff in a locker and headed out to the weight room floor.
Stuart was already out there, chatting up some ladies from our accounting team who looked like they would rather be anywhere else than talking to Stu. He gave me a quick wave and winked at me, and I just shook my head in return. The other women saw the interaction, laughed, and walked away from Stuart altogether.
The exasperation on his face was priceless, but he quickly brushed the rejection off and made his way over to an empty treadmill so he could run out his bruised male ego.
I did my rounds on the weight machines with no interruptions, and it felt good. I was slightly apprehensive about finishing my workout, though, because I knew it meant I was that much closer to taking a shower, and the stalls were directly across from the sauna room. If Emma was there, I was going to apologize profusely and ask if she wanted to have dinner with me sometime so we could get to know one another. I was very attracted to her, and after my body’s reaction last night to being touched by her, I was definitely up for a proper date with this mysterious woman.
I walked slowly down the hall towards the showers and put my stuff in the last one like I did yesterday. I turned and opened the door to the steam room and stuck my head inside. There was too much steam inside to see clearly, so I called out, “Emma? Are you in here?”
“There’s no Emma in here, but there is an Alice and a Jessica,” Alice laughed. “Is that you, Mia?”
“Yeah, hey, Alice. How’s your son doing? Is he feeling better?” I a
sked, closing the door behind me. I didn’t want to be rude and let the heat out on them.
“He’s feeling better, but I made my husband stay home with him today. I couldn’t take any more mommy duty. That’s why I’m here, relaxing in the steam room with my girl, Jess,” Alice said before taking a deep breath and tilting her head back. “Oh, hey, thanks for covering for me yesterday. I checked my email last night when I finally got my kid to bed, and I only had one or two that weren’t important. I don’t know how you get it all done, Mia, but thanks again. I owe you one.”
Alice mentioning her son pulled at my heartstrings again, reminding me of how much I missed my own kid. The way she regarded her duties as a mother taking care of a sick child was aggravating. She didn’t know how truly good she had it. I guess it’s true that you never really know what you have until you lose it.
“Yeah, I was here pretty late, but I got it all done, which is what counts, right? Well, I’ll leave you ladies to it. If someone by the name of Emma does join you, can you tell her I was looking for her, please?” I asked.
“Sure, no problem. See you upstairs, Mia.”
I was disappointed I didn’t get to apologize to Emma, but I figured I’d see her soon enough, hopefully.
I had just sat at my desk and turned my computer on with my cup of coffee in hand when my email dinged with a message marked urgent. It was my boss asking to see me in his office right away.
I wasn’t sure what to make of the urgent request, but I was preparing for anything. Had someone seen what went on last night in the sauna with Emma? Did someone report me for inappropriate behavior in the workplace? My stomach was doing summersaults by the time I made my way to my supervisor’s door.
I took a long deep breath, clearing my head, and knocked.
I heard a muffled voice from behind the frosted glass door, “Come in.”
I tried to hide my anxiety behind a smile as I greeted my manager.
“Good morning Jake. You asked to see me?”
“Yes, Mia. Please, come in and have a seat. Would you like any coffee or tea?” he asked.
I found his demeanor odd. You never get beckoned into your boss’s office and then asked if you want refreshments. This had to be really bad.
“No, I’m fine, but thank you for asking,” I replied hesitantly.
“It’s been brought to my attention that you’ve been with us for five years now, correct?”
“Yes, sir. It’ll be six in July,” I replied guardedly.
“That’s great. Six years is a long time. Congratulations. Well, here at Cross Financial, we pride ourselves on being equal and fair to all of our employees while rewarding loyalty, tenure, and tenacity. It has been brought to my attention that I’ve been undervaluing your contributions to our team here, and I’d like to apologize to you formally. I know there are many nights you are here late, making sure all of the work gets done while others brush it off or even have you do their work for them. So if you accept, I’d like to offer you a significant promotion. I’d be moving you up to the fortieth floor as a Senior Account Manager. Your salary would be double what it is currently to start, and you would no longer have any direct reports. You’d work directly under the VP and the Executive team, focusing mainly on networking with our existing clients to retain their business. Then when you get more comfortable in your role, and you’ve developed relationships with our more lucrative clientele, you can then work towards acquiring new business with added commissions on those deals. So, Mia, what do you say?”
I had to remember to breathe. I was so blown away. This was not at all what I was expecting. Here I was thinking I was about to get fired when I was being given a considerable promotion and double my salary.
“Mia?”
I was so taken back that I forgot Jake had asked me a question.
“Yes, Mr. Paulson. I’m so sorry. This is all very unexpected. I’m ecstatic to be given this opportunity, but it’s very out of the blue, so I apologize if I’m a little lost for words.”
“So, I’ll take that as a yes? You’ll accept the position?”
“Yes, absolutely, Mr. Paulson.”
“Perfect. I can send my secretary, Gemma, with you to grab some boxes, and she can help you pack up your things. I’ll phone down to security to have your badge updated so you can get up to the fortieth floor, and you can head up there as soon as you’re all packed.”
“Really? Right now? This is happening today?” I asked, stunned. What if I didn’t take the position? I’d be completely nuts not to, but wow, this was all happening so quickly.
“Yep, the word came down from on high to have you up there as soon as possible. It’s been a pleasure working with you, Mia. I’m sure your team will be sad to see you go, but just as happy for your achievement of making it all the way upstairs in just five and a half short years,” Jake said flatly.
Something in his voice said he wasn’t happy for me. He actually seemed slightly bitter. And what did he mean by, ‘the word came down from on high,’ anyway? I was going to ask, but Jake stood and motioned me out of the office while picking up his phone and asking his secretary to help me with whatever I needed.
Chapter 4
It only took me thirty minutes and two small boxes to pack up my work life. It was kind of sad but invigorating at the same time. I had no idea what to expect upstairs, and I was excited to find out.
I was told to leave all of my files. They were going to divide them up among the other managers on my floor. They were doing the same thing with my team members also. I felt slightly vindicated that they were distributing all of my work and my subordinates to the other managers instead of hiring someone to fill my position. I had done all of their work for so long. Now they were finally going to see what it was like doing everything I had done for so long.
As I exited the floor, I got congratulatory hugs from a number of my co-workers and offers to take me out for drinks. The other managers glared at me when my back was turned, but to my face, they promised to take me out this Thursday for a celebratory dinner. They added the caveat that they’d take me as long as I wasn’t too busy with my fancy new Senior Account Manager position.
Snarky assholes.
I told them I’d always make time for them as I entered the elevator and hit the button for the top floor, swiping my badge when it asked me for clearance to get to that level.
This felt good. I finally felt important for the first time in a good long while, and I was reveling in it. Once the doors closed, I did a quick happy dance and then readjusted myself, so I didn’t look like a complete idiot with my two sad boxes of belongings when the elevator doors finally opened.
The lift dinged, and the doors opened to reveal a superbly modern style reception area. There was white marble and dark mahogany wood everywhere. The contrast of the two materials made me feel like I was walking into a consulate or somewhere extremely important.
A beautiful, skinny red head greeted me from behind a massive desk.
“Are you, Miss. Mia Blackburn?”
“I am.”
“I’m Jamie. You can put your boxes down over there,” she said, pointing to a sitting area next to the elevators. “I’ll have someone bring your belongings to your office. They should have let you leave everything downstairs. We could have sent someone to get it all for you. I’ll introduce you to Matt, who will be your assistant, and he’ll get you settled from there. One moment, Miss. Blackburn.” The receptionist picked up her phone and began talking.
“Thank you, Jamie,” I replied sort of dumbstruck.
Everything was moving so fast I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming or not. People were calling me Miss. Blackburn and getting my assistant for me? I didn’t feel like it was real, but sure enough, one of the doors to my right opened and out walked a skinny, dorky-looking, dark-skinned kid who must have been no older than twenty wearing dark-rimmed glasses.
“Good morning Miss. Blackburn. My name is Matthew Johnston, and I’ll be your assista
nt. Let me show you to your office, and I’ll have someone grab your belongings for you,” Matt said as he held the door open for me to enter.
I didn’t want to look stupid in front of these people, so I made sure my mouth was closed and walked through the door.
“Thank you, Matt. It’s a pleasure to meet you. And please, call me Mia. Miss. Blackburn is much too formal,” I said, trying not to smile too much as I looked around at the elegant furniture and artwork lining the hallway.
“Absolutely, Mia. Follow me, please.”
We walked down the long marble hallway, passing dark mahogany doors with gold plates marking whose office we were walking past. I read as we walked, and the people up here were the real big wigs. I felt entirely out of place up here. Every door I saw was for an executive of some sort, the Executive in charge of Anti-Money Laundering Compliance, the Executive in charge of Global Equities, and so on. I really didn’t belong up here.
“Excuse me, Matt? Are you sure I’m on the right floor? These are all offices for the executives, and I’ve only just been promoted to a Senior Account Manager.”
“Yes, ma’am, I’m sure. You’re right over here,” Matt said, pointing to a door that already had my name listed on the gold plaque. It read: Mia Blackburn, Senior Account Manager - Director.
“Wait. What’s this ‘Director’ after my title? I thought I was going to be networking with the existing customers. What am I the Director of?” I asked almost ready to cry at the thought of taking on more than I could handle with this new position.
“You’re the new Director of Account Management, Mia. Don’t worry, I read about some of the work you did downstairs, and you are more than capable of taking on this position. You actually might find this much easier than anything you used to do down on the fifth floor,” Matt said, smiling from ear to ear as he opened the door.