Fifteen | Sam
Fifteen
Sam
“F irst, I would like to thank everyone for coming in this evening for this very last-minute meeting.” I smiled through the groaning I heard in the back. “I know you all have better things to do, but I have an important announcement and wanted everyone to be here for it.”
I felt Piper’s eyes on me and knew she was nervous about whatever was about to happen since I hadn’t talked to her about it. But that was the fun part about doing surprises like this.
“I know that it’s late notice, but I’ve decided to cancel this year’s holiday party.”
There was a collective gasp as people started whispering amongst themselves.
“I don’t know whether a lot of you were looking forward to it or not, given that Piper has only gotten a few RSVPs for it, and it’s literally in a week. But either way, it has been canceled.”
Piper looked down nervously, and I hated that I had put the spotlight on her, but it was true. Very few people had bothered to tell her whether they were coming, and those who did hadn’t given her an answer on whether they were bringing a plus one. Trying to get anyone to commit to anything was like pulling teeth. I had great employees for the most part, but I also knew that a lot of them had second jobs or were in school, so they constantly had a lot on their plates, which made committing to something like a holiday party that much harder.
“Since the holiday party is canceled, I’ve decided to take the money that we would have spent on the party and turned it into holiday bonuses for everyone instead.”
I grinned as the energy in the room immediately shifted.
“Piper, would you help me pass these out?” I asked, handing her half the stack of envelopes.
We worked quickly to get them distributed, and my heart was filled with happiness as I heard the excitement when they started opening them and saw how much their checks were.
“That’s it for the meeting,” I said loudly, trying to pull their attention back to me so I could end the meeting and officially close up for the day. “Thank you all for your hard work. I greatly appreciate it.”
I was met with hugs as everyone made their way back to the front of the shop to leave. Once they were gone, Piper waited for me in my office.
“That was a very kind thing you did with the bonuses,” she said softly, still holding her envelope in her hand. “I appreciate the gesture, but I cannot accept this.”
She attempted to hand it back to me, but I leaned back in my chair and folded my hands over my stomach.
“Yes, you can. And you will. You earned that bonus, Piper.”
“It’s double what you gave everyone else, Sam.”
“Were you peaking over their shoulders?” I teased, eyeing her suspiciously.
“I mean, some of them are short. I couldn’t help that I saw the amount.”
I raised my eyebrows as I pretended to judge her.
“But still, I can’t accept this, Sam. Not when you’ve given everyone a bonus but won’t take one for yourself.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Yes, I do. I’ve worked with you for five years, and I have never seen you do something nice for yourself. You’re always worried about taking care of everyone else, but who takes care of you?”
That was a loaded question if I ever heard one.
“Hey, sorry to interrupt,” Avery said, knocking on the doorframe. “I know you asked everyone to go home, but is it okay if I stay to close up? I could use the extra hours to make up for my sick day.”
She’s who takes care of me .
I shook my head to clear the errant thought and tried to focus.
“Yes. That’s fine. I’ll be out there in a few to help.”
She smiled and walked out.
“I’m serious, Sam. Please take the check back. I can’t accept it, knowing that you are the only one going without a bonus this year. Out of everyone, you deserve it the most.”
“I’m the owner, Piper. My bonus is the joy I get out of seeing my business thrive.”
She rolled her eyes and tossed her envelope on my desk.
“You’re so full of shit that it’s starting to stink in here. I’m going home and will be in early to open in the morning. Fix that, and then I’ll consider accepting it. Give me the same as everyone else, or even less. Doesn’t matter to me. But I’m not taking that large of a bonus unless you do, too.” She nodded to her bonus and then turned to leave.
I pulled the checkbook out of my desk drawer and flipped it open.
“There. Happy?” I asked, lifting it to show her my name written on the payee line with the same amount as what I gave her.
“Sign it and tear it off.”
I rolled my eyes and then finished writing the check before tearing it off and handing it to her.
“Thank you. I’ll drop these off at the bank in the morning along with the deposit.”
“Sounds good,” I said with a heavy sigh, just to let her know how much I didn’t like it.
She grinned and waved as she headed out.
When I got up front, Avery was wiping down the counters, and the supplies were fully restocked for the morning.
“Wow. You work fast,” I said, impressed with how much she got done in such a short time.
“I’m a mom. You learn to get things done quickly when you’re trying to balance keeping a clean house and taking care of a baby. It kinda just sticks with you.”
“Well, I appreciate your help tonight.”
“And I appreciate the bonus.” She stopped and looked at me, her head tilted as if she was trying to figure something out.
“Why do I get the feeling that this new bonus thing is because of me?”
I chewed my lower lip as I tried to figure out what the best approach to this would be.
“It’s not,” I lied.
“Really?”
I nodded, not trusting my words to come out clearly right now.
“People didn’t seem interested in the holiday party this year, so I figured I might as well do something better with the money. Times can get pretty tough this time of year, and it feels good to help out however I can.”
“Yeah, but you’ve never done a bonus until I started working for you.”
“True. But maybe you working for me has helped me see things differently. You can’t fault me for trying to be the good guy who wants to help his employees, Avery.”
“I’m not,” she rushed out quickly with a shake of her head. “But I also can’t help but feel guilty, like I’m the reason you had to shell out all of that cash in Christmas bonuses.”
“I was going to spend that money on the employees one way or another. This just felt like the better way to do it.”
“Well, for what it’s worth, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
We stood there, inches apart for what felt like forever, as she looked down to avoid looking me in the eye.
“So,” I said, trying to break the awkward silence. “Cassidy said she would watch Kenndy overnight tonight. I thought maybe if you wanted to, we could go grab dinner and then do some Christmas shopping.”
“Oh. Umm. I don’t know. I mean, it sounds fun, but I can’t really do that right now.”
Her cheeks flushed crimson, and I hated myself for being so clueless. She hadn’t gotten her first paycheck from me yet because she started at the beginning of a new pay cycle, which meant she couldn’t afford to go out and do fun stuff right now.
I turned on my heel and headed for my office, ready to solve the problem. I could hear her still cleaning up in the front as I pulled the petty cash box out of the safe and unlocked it. Thankfully, we kept enough in there that I was able to cash her bonus check out without leaving it empty.
I grabbed the cash and headed up front, rounding the corner at the same time she did.
Her soft body crashed against mine as my hand reached out to steady her.
“Sorry, I didn’t see you there,” she mumbled, her breasts pressed firmly against my chest.
“You’re fine. I shouldn’t have been in such a rush. Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she breathed out, her voice a little shaky as she made no effort to move away from me.
My hand rubbed down her back as my fingers feathered lightly above her ass. Her back arched as if inviting me to touch it while her head lifted slightly to see me.
Without even thinking about it, I dropped the cash in my hand and pulled her against me as my mouth crashed down over hers. She moaned softly, her fingers tangling in my hair as she deepened the kiss.
My tongue swiped against her lip, begging for access as my hands reached down and grabbed her ass. Her chest rose and fell heavily against mine as she jumped up and wrapped her legs around my waist.
Kissing Avery was far better than anything I could have ever imagined. I walked us over to the counter and set her down while our tongues continued to explore. Her fingers tugged at the bottom of my shirt, desperately trying to pull it off when I finally stepped back and broke the kiss.
Her eyes were wide as they studied me, unsure of what just happened.
I scrubbed my hand down my jaw and took a deep breath.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized quickly. “I was out of line and shouldn’t have—”
“Avery,” I interrupted. “Stop.”
She closed her mouth and rubbed her swollen lips together.
“You’re not the one who needs to be apologizing,” I said, taking a step back from her. “I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry. I crossed a line, and I shouldn’t have.”
“We both crossed the line,” she replied sternly, hopping off of the counter and standing in front of me. “It wasn’t just you. I wanted that as much as you did.”
“You did?”
She nodded.
“I don’t know what I’m doing in life right now, Sam, and I’m sure there will be plenty that I regret as I try to figure things out. But kissing you—that’s one thing I will never regret.”