Chapter 11 #2
“Not at all, babe,” I reply, getting up and going over to the door.
I pull her in close, my hands clasping around her waist before I kiss her hard.
This is one part I don’t mind at all. Violet’s lips are delicious, and as she moans against me, I reach down to cup her ass, squeezing lightly and causing her to whimper into my mouth.
“Honey . . . we have an audience.” Violet gasps as she pulls back, blushing even as she scolds me.
“I don’t mind one damn bit,” Archie answers for himself, hip-bumping his way past us and into my office.
He sits down in the chair next to Courtney.
“By all means, feel free to carry on.” He waves his hand like he’s the queen, encouraging us to kiss again.
I wink at him and press one more chaste kiss to Vi’s lips as Archie grins evilly.
He looks to Courtney, whispering conspiratorially.
“Ain’t love grand?” Her brows shoot together and he laughs.
“You should see your face. Speaking of face, I can see the resemblance. You must be Courtney, the sister? I’m Archie Hornee, the one tasked with keeping Violet in line—no easy task, mind you.
” He shoots Violet a glare, but it seems to be in jest.
Courtney looks gobsmacked. Whether it’s by Violet’s appearance in the office, our steamy kiss hello, or Archie’s over-the-top comfort with basically everything and everyone, I don’t know.
I take advantage of her momentary silence and look Violet up and down, virtually salivating. She’s stunning, her work pants sexy but professional, her blouse hugging her curves perfectly. And now . . . she’s all mine. Or at least, I get to pretend she is.
“Courtney, I’ll have to cut this short,” I comment over my shoulder as I stare into Violet’s eyes and feel my head start to spin. “But I’ll see you at the meeting today?”
“Meeting?” Violet asks, and I nod. “I didn’t know you had a meeting. Is this a bad time?”
“Sorry, babe. I was so caught up in . . . well, you, that I forgot about the weekly Monday meeting,” I tell her, linking my arms around her waist to keep us as close as possible.
I stare into her eyes deeply, wondering what’s going through her head, what she thinks of my office, and what she thinks of me.
There’s a small piece of me that worried she would freak out once we separated this morning to go to our respective offices.
But if she did, she’s got the part of dutiful fiancée down pat now, and she looks lovingly back at me as if she missed me in the few hours we’ve been apart.
I realize with a start that I did miss her.
Courtney hums under her breath as she walks past us, and I know the war’s not over, just this round. “I’ll see you there, Ross. Nice to see you again, Violet, and to meet you, Archie.”
I shut the door behind her, giving us the room.
“It’s fine. The meeting’s no big deal, more of a weekly informal pow-wow.
Normally pretty cut and dry because we hash everything out via email beforehand.
But Dad likes to do things old school and look people in the eyes so he doesn’t miss anything.
Speaking of which . . . I missed you this morning, you know that?
” A truth I didn’t intend to share, but it came tumbling off my tongue before I could stop it.
I don’t want to think about the whys of that, nor do I want Violet to, so I lower my lips to hers. There’s no Courtney, Kaede’s still going to be gone for a little while, and Archie doesn’t matter because he’s in on the whole ruse.
But I do it anyway, kissing Violet simply because I want to. She’s a beautiful woman, she’s in my arms, and kissing her makes us both feel good.
Behind us, Archie makes a pretty good wolf whistle, and I pull back, both of us flushed and feeling the heat in the small space between us.
“Wow,” Violet whispers quietly, looking up at me before shaking her head, seemingly to clear it.
I fight back the victorious grin at having made her lose herself for a moment.
“So, your office?”
For the next hour, we talk ideas for my office suite.
Violet’s spent the past two days living in my penthouse.
She knows my style well enough, so her suggestions are on point.
Archie adds ideas here and there and takes copious notes.
I can see that Violet and he are a great team, built on creative genius and respect, much like Kaede and I are.
“So, a basic update, nothing major,” Violet summarizes.
“We’ll add some warmth for a more welcoming feel, using wood and brass instead of the blacks and steels of the penthouse.
Silk drapes on both ends of the window, even though you’ll probably never close them with a view like that.
It’ll frame it nicely and draw attention to the main feature of the space.
New chairs for guests in a subtle pattern, and a casual seating area with a couch and coffee table for less formal meetings. ”
“Isn’t that going to be a lot of unnecessary clutter?
” I ask, looking around the sparse space.
I’m one for function and efficiency—desk, chair, bar, and a chair or two for guests.
I don’t need much else, and honestly, I only got the guest chairs because Kaede refused to continue rolling his chair into my office to have a place to sit.
“No, it’ll still be clean and simple, but more .
. .” She pauses, eyeing me, and I can feel her relax viscerally.
“Look, I’m going to ditch the professional speech and tell you straight out, ‘kay?” I spread my hands, open to an unfiltered version of Violet.
“You have impeccable taste. Each piece is top-notch and gorgeous, but the fact that you keep your office like the rich boy’s version of a bachelor pad, i.e.
transient and empty, tells everyone from your Dad to the board that you’re not all in.
They see you as temporary because you’re telling them you’re not putting down roots. ”
Well, fuck. Guess the gloves are off. And ouch.
I look around my office, the one I’ve worked in for years and that feels like a symbol that I’ve made it.
But I can see her point. I could move out of here in one truckload, a small truckload at that.
And that’s if I was taking the furniture with me.
Realistically, I could walk out today and never return.
There’s not a single picture, no artwork other than the generic modern art canvases that are unemotional filler.
Hell, I don’t even have a plant for Kaede to water.
“And you think putting a couch and some pillows is going to solve that?” I ask, my lip curling with recognition that she’s right.
She nods. “Yes. A couch, some pictures, some trinkets, some personality. Partner that with settling down with a wife, and you’re a whole new Ross Andrews, aren’t ya?”
Archie clears his throat, garnering my attention, and I realize he’s enjoying watching Violet take me down a notch or two. “This is the part where you say ‘yes, ma’am’ and let her do her thing, man.”
I cut my eyes back to Violet. “Yes, ma’am.” There must be a god somewhere with a soft spot for me because I’m saved from her gloating by a beep from my computer.
“You have a call? Need us to step out?” Archie says as Violet and I eye each other.
“Meeting,” I correct. I stand up, going around my desk, and offer Violet my hand. She slips hers into mine and I pull her to stand with me. Her eyes search mine, looking for what, I’m not sure.
I don’t think about what I’m doing. I just press my lips to hers and she gasps.
I take advantage and sip at her deeply. She pushes against my chest, but it’s a split second too late and I know, could feel, that she sank into me for a moment.
“Have at my office. Have at the penthouse. Show me what you can do.”
I stride toward the door, but she calls my name and I stop, wondering if she’s going to filet me for taking liberties.
The anticipation has me on edge, a sensation I like where she’s concerned.
“What’s your favorite color?” she asks, but I can see her lips twitching, and I wonder what she was going to say.
“Violet. My favorite color is violet.”
Just outside, I can hear Archie’s voice carry. “I’ve never been that close to actual porn before. You two were this close to combustion, and you know I was keeping my mouth shut so maybe you’d forget I was here and just go on and get underneath that man. Fuck, Vi.”
I smile to myself, walking away before I hear her answer, not sure if I want to hear the protests I know she’ll throw out.
The meeting takes place in the big conference room, Dad sitting at the head of the table.
He’s looking pretty good for a workday, all smiles and congeniality, until I come in and his face immediately goes to stone.
Paul Washington, the head of the R&D department, says something and catches his attention, pulling his assessing glare from me.
The meeting’s just like normal, everyone basically saying that their divisions are clicking along and no major updates from Friday’s email dumps.
Dad asks a few questions, pointedly avoiding me until the end. “Okay, if there’s nothing else—”
“I have something,” I reply, sticking my hand up and rising. I glance around the table, meeting each member’s eyes like my dad taught me to, and then settle on Courtney, who sits to Dad’s right, taking notes. “Courtney, could you bring the guest from my office, please?”
Her eyes widen and her jaw drops. “Ross?” I give her a nod, letting her know that I have a plan and know exactly what I’m doing. She shakes her head but does as I request, heading down to fetch Violet.