Chapter 5 #2
I slip past him on wooden legs and stand in the back corner. The doors slide closed. I stare at the panel of buttons, absently noting the lack of lights since he hasn’t selected which floor, and focus on regulating my breathing.
“Penelope, what’s wrong?”
The urge to tell him everything twists my tongue. I shake my head and close my eyes.
“Are you hurt? What happened?”
The concern in his rich, gravelly voice clogs my throat, but my tension skyrockets when he moves closer.
Bad habits die hard. A half-truth buried by lies will only bury me deeper, but it’ll stop me from suffocating right now.
“I’m fine, just overwhelmed. I avoid high traffic times as much as possible, so it’s been years since I was around so many people. The sidewalks were too crowded.”
I curb my rambling by pulling my lip ring into my mouth. The hairs on my nape rise. I open my eyes and freefall into Sebastian’s hungry stare. He stands larger than life in front of me. I can’t breathe.
He peels his gaze off my lips and rubs his hand over his face. I struggle to process through my emotional whiplash.
“Are you claustrophobic? I can carry you up the stairs if the elevator is too confining,” he says as though he isn’t making the space seem a million times smaller.
His offer turns my inner woman to goo, so I lean on my cynical side and huff a pathetic laugh.
“To what floor? The top of this building? Sorry, old man, but you’d die of a heart attack. Huffing and puffing and blowing the house down over an awkward nerd like me? No way.”
“I’d die a happy man. Huffing and puffing with you in my arms sounds like the best way to go,” he murmurs.
My insides melt. Desire throbs low in my belly. The lace of my bra compresses my pierced nipples as they harden. Slippery warmth seeps from my pussy and coats my labia rings.
His smirk reminds me of our year together in high school. Too much has happened since then. He left me.
Pain clears my mind.
I grit my teeth before asking, “Are you teasing me again?”
He growls—literally rumbles deep in his chest like a wild animal—and shakes his head.
“No, Penelope. I’m not teasing you, I’m flirting with you.”
I lift a cynical brow. My mouth moves without permission.
“Are you like this with all your female employees?”
The words—and my harsh tone—stun me. A smirk of delight flashes across his face so fast I wonder if I imagined it. He leans closer while keeping his shoulder against the wall, towering over me without invading my space.
“I’ve never flirted with anyone but you, sweet pea.”
“Yeah, sure. I’ll believe that when—”
“Be careful how you finish that sentence, little one,” he warns.
Heat scorches my veins. The term poke the bear has never made sense to me, but now I find myself wanting to do just that. Poke this massive grizzly and watch him squirm.
“Why?” I challenge.
Wicked mirth shines from his eyes. Framed by his thick brows and chiseled jaw and lacking the menacing aura of my bullies, his expression wakes parts of me I never knew existed.
“Because I’ll make it come true,” he vows.
“Why?” I breathe.
“It’s too soon for me to answer that, pipsqueak,” he rumbles.
I open my mouth to refute him, but the barely leashed storm brewing in his gaze closes my jaw.
This isn’t me. Sebastian turns me into someone I’m not. I forget too much when I’m around him.
Guilt smothers my arousal. I spin my ring on my finger and close my fist around the gemstone. The sharp edges remind me of life’s cruelties.
“I’m not sorry for flirting, but I am sorry for putting that look in your eyes,” Sebastian says.
I swallow and take a deep breath.
“Thanks.” It’s a lame response, but it’s all I can force myself to say besides, “Let’s get this over with.”
He steps to the far corner of the elevator—which isn’t very far with his bulk taking up most of the space—and says my name.
“What?” I respond.
“You don’t have to sign. I may be desperate for your expertise but—”
“We’ve already discussed the terms. I agreed because they are wildly in my favor. Nothing you said makes me want to back out of our agreement.”
“And if I keep flirting?”
I sigh and roll my eyes.
“You won’t. You’ll get bored after a while and realize you respect my brother too much. Plus, I’m not interested in romance. Give me the cold, hard cash and the benefits. Everything else can suck it.”
He rumbles a noncommittal note, turns, and presses a button on the panel.
As the elevator whirs into motion, I swear he mumbles under his breath about him sucking something, but the memory fueling most of my nightmares pops into gory focus.
Michael’s voice replays in my mind. The intentions may be polar opposites, but the words are too similar.
I shift my weight from one leg to the other, hoping to aggravate my newest piercing, but the wetness between my thighs amplifies my guilt and shame and increases my nausea, so I dig my nails into my sides and use the fiery pain of my scars to center myself.
We ride the elevator up to the executive floor in silence. The doors open. I blink at the unexpected sight.
The entire floor, sans the large glass corner office and the restrooms, is one big open space. Even the kitchen and recreation area seem effortlessly mixed in with the work spaces. Glass partitions delineate different areas, but everything is visible with a simple sweep from left to right.
Sports-themed posters and paraphernalia stretch as far as the eye can see, but most of the work is focused on administrative stuffs, so no actual equipment clutters the space.
Several people call out friendly greetings. Sebastian responds but doesn’t introduce me, and I silently—and begrudgingly—thank him when he lets me use his body as a shield.
I follow beside and a half-step behind him even when he shortens his stride and slows to match my pace.
After closing the door to his office behind us, he gestures to the plush couch in the sitting area and asks if I’d like a beverage.
When I shake my head, he grabs the folder and pen off the corner of his desk and places it on the coffee table in front of me.
“Feel free to take your time and read it over,” he says.
The furtive glances of those on the other side of the glass is too much. I flip through the pages and confirm the changes are as I specified before signing and slapping it down on the table.
Sebastian speaks as he signs my employment agreement.
“The first person you’ll meet today is Kenneth Thomas, my personal assistant. He’ll take you down to orientation.”
I nod. He turns and strides to his desk.
My eyes latch onto his ass. The play of his muscles underneath his trousers is way too alluring, and the deceptive ease with which he moves floods my mouth with saliva.
The door opens. I peel my gaze off my boss’s butt and freeze like a deer in the headlights.
I’ve seen the man standing in the doorway before.
Correction.
I’ve seen all of the man in the doorway before.
As embarrassed heat rises from my chest to the top of my head, I avoid eye contact and try to think of anything except my roommate’s mouth on the man’s erect cock.
Sebastian’s personal assistant is Peter’s latest fling.
Dawning horror spreads through me, clashing with my appreciation of my boss’s body as I recall Mr. Thomas’s suggestive words from the other night.
I grip the edge of the couch cushion and lean forward to leave.
When I steal a glimpse at Sebastian, my insides clench and nipples throb at the yearning in his gaze as he studies my face. The soft lace of my bra morphs to sandpaper against my pierced flesh as my entire body wakes.
The heat in Sebastian’s eyes turns to ice as he swings his gaze to Mr. Thomas.
Oh, falafel.
This is not good. I signed my employment contract less than a minute ago, yet I’m already destroying the carefully curated ambiance of Sebastian’s workplace.
Masculine aggression fills the room.
Nightmares creep closer.
I need to leave.
Now.