Chapter 23
Riley
“Hey, Riley.”
I stuck the milk in the fridge before turning to smile at Sharonda. “Hi. Ooh, you took your knots out. Your hair looks awesome.
She grinned at me, touching the inky black coils that bounced around her face. “Thank you. I got some killer volume this time.”
“You did,” I agreed. I picked up my coffee mug and leaned against the counter as Sharonda poured herself a cup. “How are you?”
“Good. Happy it’s Friday. It’s been the week from hell. Do you have plans for the weekend?”
“Nothing too exciting,” I said.
Letting your boss eat your pussy on Sunday isn’t exciting?
I cleared my throat. “How about you?”
“Movie with girlfriends tonight, going to my parents tomorrow for dinner. Hey, I don’t suppose you have time to help me with something, do you?”
“Sure, what’s up?” I asked.
While Aiden and Deacon had personal assistants, the twelve financial advisors in the firm shared the services of an admin pool. Sharonda was one of three assistants who helped them.
“Okay, so Gary asked me to work on this Excel spreadsheet which is fine, except the formulas are,” she lowered her voice and glanced around the staff kitchen, “fucked beyond belief because Gary tried to do the formulas himself, and Gary is a moron.”
I laughed. “He has some issues with that program.”
“That’s a polite way of putting it. Anyway, I asked Amanda and Fran to help me figure out this one section because I can’t get the formulas to work. They both gave it a go, but it’s seriously FUBAR. Amanda suggested I ask you. She said you’re amazing with Excel.”
“That’s lovely of her, but I’m not sure entirely accurate,” I said.
“Can you look at it with me?”
“Sure,” I said. “My desk or yours?”
“Yours,” she said. “That new boss of yours is sexy as fuck, and I’m hoping to get a better look at him. I was neck-deep in reports when Aiden brought him around on Monday afternoon and barely said hello.”
I laughed and picked up my coffee mug. “All right, but I think Deacon is in meetings until lunch, so I”m not sure if he’ll leave his office.”
“A girl can hope,” Sharonda said, following me to my desk.
An hour later, I adjusted one final formula and saved the document before leaning back in my chair and smiling at Sharonda. “There. It should work now.”
“Damn, Ry,” Sharonda gave me an admiring look, “that was some stellar shit right there. Amanda was right - you’re a whiz with Excel.”
I flushed happily at her praise. “Thank you, but you helped me with it.”
“Sure, but I would never have figured out how to fix most of them without you,” Sharonda said. “You’re good with numbers… have you ever considered becoming an accountant or a financial advisor?”
“No,” I said. “I like being a PA. It suits me.”
“It does,” she said. “You’re great at what you do, Riley. I mean that.”
“Thank you, Sharonda.”
Surprisingly, I didn’t feel my usual urge to downplay my accomplishments or pretend that what I did wasn’t that important. My job did make a difference, and while Mr. Rainer and my parents didn’t see that, Jamie always had, and now, so did Deacon. What I did and who I was mattered to people.
Whoa, where is this new and improved Riley coming from?
I had no idea, but I liked the new Riley and didn’t want her to leave.
“Riley?” Deacon’s office door opened, and he stepped out, staring at his phone screen. “I just wanted to thank you for getting the reports from Richard organized so quickly. It made a huge difference for my meeting this morning, and I… oh, hello.”
He smiled at Sharonda, and her face lit up, making her even more gorgeous. “Sharonda, right?”
“That’s right.” She stood and smoothed her dress, giving him a confident and sexy smile before stepping out from behind my desk and holding out her hand. “We didn’t get a chance to talk on Monday. It’s nice to meet you formally, Mr. Cross.”
“Call me Deacon,” he said.
“Deacon,” she repeated before glancing at her watch. “It’s almost lunch and if you don’t already have lunch plans, I’d love to take you out for a welcome to the firm lunch.”
Even as jealousy coated my stomach in a thick layer, I couldn’t help but wish I had even half the confidence that Sharonda had.
“That’s kind of you, but Riley and I have a lunch meeting today,” Deacon said.
I stared at him in surprise as Sharonda smiled. “Another time, then.”
She turned around and mouthed, “Sexy,” before winking at me and walking away.
I waited until she was gone before saying, “Your calendar doesn’t have a lunch meeting for us.”
“Surprise!” He grinned at me, and my breath caught in my throat. He was so damn handsome. A memory of Wednesday night, of being bent over his desk while his cock pressed at my hot core, flooded through me, and my cheeks went red hot.
I pressed my thighs together in a vain attempt to ease the ache as Deacon said, “Do you like pasta?”
“I do,” I said.
“Good. I have the perfect place. Grab your coat, please. We’ll take my car.”
“You would miss out on the chance to ride in Marvin?” I asked.
He laughed and ducked into his office to grab his coat before returning. “I don’t make it a habit of riding in death traps.”
“Hey,” I said, “Marvin is in the prime of his life.”
“Mm-hmm,” he said. “Ready to go?”
There was zero room in my budget for eating out, and I had no idea if this was a work lunch or a personal lunch and couldn’t count on Deacon buying my meal. Hating to once again appear like a broke loser, I tried another tactic. “Oh, I appreciate the invite, but I brought my lunch today.”
“It’ll keep until tomorrow,” he said. “Put your coat on, please.”
I chewed at my bottom lip, and Deacon said, “Stop chewing on your lip, Riley.”
“Yes, sir.” The phrase slipped out by reflex, but the hot look he gave me when I said it made me press my thighs together again.
I cleared my throat. “It’s leftovers from earlier in the week, so it might not last until tomorrow, and I hate wasting food.”
He studied me for a moment before saying. “This is a business lunch I’ll be paying for and expensing, Riley.”
I flushed as he took my jacket off the coat tree and held it out. “Ready?”
I slipped into my coat, and Deacon gave me another smile that made me want to throw him on top of my desk and ride his dick until that ceaseless ache in my pussy finally eased. Instead, I returned his smile and said, “I’m ready.”
* * *
Deacon
I placedmy hand on the small of Riley’s back, guiding her to the table the hostess led us to. I didn’t need to touch her, but I liked doing it. Liked pretending it was a small proprietary touch that told other men in the restaurant she belonged to me.
We hung our coats on the small hooks embedded at the ends of the booth, and Riley slid gracefully into her seat. I sat across from her and watched as she smoothed her hand over the red and white checkered tablecloth. She glanced at the life-size ceramic statue of a man in a chef’s hat and uniform welcoming diners with a hand-printed chalk sign that said, “That’s amore!” with a picture of a heaping plate of pasta below it.
“Don’t let the cheesy decor fool you, okay? This place has the best pasta in the city,” I said.
Her smile was soft and pleased. “This is my favourite Italian restaurant.”
“Seriously?” I asked. “It’s mine too.”
“The lasagna is the best,” she said.
“Nope. The pesto cavatappi is far superior to their lasagna.”
She shook her head. “Agree to disagree.”
I gave her a suspicious look. “What are your thoughts on the garlic bread?”
“Upgrade to cheese toast. Always,” Riley said.
I lifted my water glass and saluted her. “A woman after my own heart.”
She laughed and sipped at her water. “I haven’t been here in forever, so this is a real treat. Thank you, Deacon.”
Christ, I liked how my name sounded on her lips. On Sunday, I’d make her say my real name when she was coming. I’d told her we needed to use our fake names during play sessions, but then I’d gone ahead and broken my own rule, hadn’t I?
“Why did you choose the name Charlotte?” I asked abruptly.
“My middle name is Charlotte,” she said. “Where does Mr. Steele come from?”
I shrugged. “Just something I came up with. No special meaning.”
The server arrived, and we ordered lasagna for her, cavatappi for me and cheese toast for both of us. I drank some water, my throat suddenly dry. “I wanted to take you for lunch to thank you for making this first week a smooth transition.”
She smiled a little. “You’ve mostly been in meetings all week, Deacon. I’ve done very little work for you.”
“You’ve been invaluable,” I said. “I mean that.”
“Thank you,” she said. “That means a lot to me.”
There was a moment of awkward silence before I said, “So, did you grow up here?”
“I did,” she said. “My parents moved to California when I was nineteen, but I stayed here because I had just gotten my first admin job, and I love it here.”
“The warmer weather is nice, though,” I said. “Especially when it’s a winter like this one.”
“That’s true, but I don’t regret staying here. How about you? Are you from here?”
“I was born and raised in Idaho, but my parents moved us here when I was ten.”
She grinned. “You do not look like someone from Idaho.”
“You haven’t seen the portrait my parents have of me at age eleven in overalls, a straw hat, and surrounded by baskets of potatoes,” I said and then internally groaned at how stupid I sounded.
Riley laughed. “I would pay good money to see that portrait.”
“Define good money,” I said. “Because I have a photo of that portrait on my phone, and I could be persuaded to show it to you for the right price.”
“I have a five dollar bill in my wallet. It’s all yours if you show me that picture,” she said.
“I’ll need at least seven dollars,” I said.
“I’ll raid my piggy bank tonight.”
“It’ll be worth it,” I said. “I’m holding a potato, I struck a very jaunty pose, and my aunt told me I was as handsome as a BackStreet Boy.”
“Which one?” she asked.
“Howie,” I said.
She sat back in her chair. “Pfft. You do not look like Howie.”
“Are you saying I’m not as handsome as a boy band member? Because if you are, you and my aunt are gonna have words.”
She giggled. “When I look at you, no, I don’t think boy band member.”
“What do you think?” I asked.
“I think - why did the hottest man on the planet choose me to play with,” she said with frank honesty.
“Because you’re gorgeous with a killer body.”
“So is Sharonda,” she said casually.
I grinned inwardly. Right or wrong, I liked her little spark of jealousy. “I’m not interested in Sharonda.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t date coworkers,” I said. “Plus, I’m positive Sharonda would not be compatible with me in certain areas of my life.”
“The bedroom, you mean,” she said.
“I do.”
“Maybe Sharonda has a secret praise kink.”
“Maybe,” I said, “but doubtful.”
“Do you ever have, um, a vanilla type relationship?”
“No,” I said. “I’ve tried in the past, but it’s not for me.”
“That’s fair,” she said. “You like what you like, right?”
“How about you?” I asked.
She laughed. “You know the answer to that. I’ve had nothing but vanilla relationships. And I’m sure Celeste and Catherine were very clear about my lack of experience in the kink. They said it would make me more appealing because you liked training new girls.”
Our food arrived, and I waited until we’d taken our first few bites before I said, “I don’t think of it as training. I think of it as helping a woman discover who she is and what she wants.”
“Sorry,” she said, “I didn’t mean to insult you.”
“You didn’t,” I said. “When did you realize you had a praise kink?”
She thought it over as she ate a piece of lasagna and drank a sip of water. “Well, I’ve known for years that I craved approval from people, but I wasn’t certain it was also a sexual thing for me. I suspected it might be, so I worked up the courage to ask a previous boyfriend to call me a good girl in bed. He did, but it didn’t do anything for me. It felt fake, and it was obviously just a game to him. He didn’t understand that I wanted it to be real, and I didn’t know how to tell him without looking like a weirdo.”
I smiled a little. “You’re not a weirdo, Riley.”
“Anyway, then I took the test at the agency, and the sisters told me how high I’d charted on the praise kink. I wasn’t surprised by that, just surprised that it was considered a kink because I’d tried it in the bedroom, and it hadn’t turned me on. I guess that was pretty naive of me, though.”
“Learning to navigate a new-to-you kink can require help from an experienced partner,” I said.
“I guess. Anyway, I sought approval with past relationships, but after my failed bedroom experiment, I didn’t see that need for approval as a kink. Especially since I want approval from everyone and not just for a sexual release.”
She poked at her pasta. “Am I making any sense?”
“Yes,” I said.
Her gaze went hazy, and she spoke almost to herself. “But after my initial meeting with the sisters, where they assured me it was very much a sexual kink, I went home and watched so much porn with a dominant/submissive theme to it. While most of it was way too extreme for me, the ones where the woman received lots of verbal praise, as well as orgasms, for doing what she was told were the ones that did it for me - in a big way. I think I masturbated more that weekend than I had in my entire life.”
She lapsed into silence before suddenly glancing around the restaurant with a horrified look. “I should not be telling you this, especially not here.”
“I’m glad you told me,” I said. “It’ll help me improve our play sessions for you.”
She gave me a shy look. “I think they’re wonderful as they are.”
I smiled at her. “There’s always room for improvement.”
Fucking her in a play session until she screamed my name would be an improvement, I thought, but I didn’t say.
“How did you, um, discover you liked what you like?” she asked.
“I went to a sex club,” I said, keeping my voice pitched low as our server walked by. “I watched and participated in different sessions and learned pretty quickly that I was dominant, not submissive.”
“You did play scenes where you were the submissive?” she asked.
I nodded, and she stared at me like I’d grown a second head. “I can’t picture that. At all.”
I laughed. “I was young and experimenting and unsure what I wanted or needed. I just knew vanilla sex wasn’t enough for me.”
“Do you still go to the club?” she asked, then grimaced. “Sorry, is that too personal?”
“It isn’t, and no, I haven’t gone to the club in a while. The agency works better for my needs. It matches me with a partner who is exactly what I’m looking for, and I also wanted anonymity.”
“I guess we blew that out of the water,” she said with a wry grin.
“We did, but that was through no fault of our own.”
I could see the look on her face, the one that said, “He’s going to tell me again that we can’t play together anymore,” but I didn’t say anything. I knew continuing to play together was a mistake, but I couldn’t stand the idea of her playing with someone else. So, until I could convince her not to, I wouldn’t end our play sessions.
I glanced at my watch. “Finish up your lunch. We have one more errand to run before we return to work.”