Chapter 19
Theo
The car comes to a stop, and Whitney looks up from her phone. She’s been scrolling along her social media the entire drive, occasionally laughing at something that has me watching her in pure amusement.
Today, we are tasked with an on-site visit for a potential new satellite office.
One of my employees on the geographical research team scoped out this location and brought it to my attention.
I had been feeling awfully cooped up inside the big building downtown, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to take a small field trip for the afternoon with my lovely assistant.
Whitney had been excited about the prospect, hurrying around and grabbing everything she’d need—just in case.
It was about a thirty-minute drive outside of the city and into the suburbs.
The trip had been mostly quiet, as Whitney was busy attending to her social media, but I didn’t mind.
For once, I decided not to have my nose buried in my phone, instead choosing to stare out the window and watch the scenery of the city go by.
There is one thing for certain—Chicago drivers are some of the worst ever.
I was immensely grateful that I had a skilled driver to ensure I got places safely, especially with Whitney sitting next to me. I couldn’t fathom the idea that something would happen to her while on my watch.
The two of us exit the car in front of our destination. Whitney steps right out onto the sidewalk, and I round the back of the Sedan to stand next to her. She’s got her sunglasses on as she peers at the building in front of us, so I can’t see her eyes to gauge her reaction.
“What do you think?” I ask her, hopefully.
The building is significantly smaller than our building downtown, but it’s got charm.
At about two stories, I think this building would be a perfect addition to the steadily growing Nexus Group.
In the long term, I see our chief executive staff moving out of the city and down here to the more private office, which would free up space in our main location for more jobs.
“It’s—” Whitney shakes her head. “I’m not sure what I was expecting, but this wasn’t it. What is this for again?”
I chuckle and place my hand on her lower back as I guide her closer to the front door.
The building’s real estate agent is standing on the stoop, holding the door for us to go look around.
I nod at him and let him know we will be fine on our own.
He lets us go in, staying down in the main lobby and giving us some privacy.
We take a look around the first floor, noting the few office spaces, a break room, and the main lobby with a reception desk.
Whitney is quiet as we glance around the floor plan, but now that I can see her eyes, I know her mind is at work trying to figure out just what I have planned with this space.
“I thought this might be a good satellite office,” I finally tell her, putting her out of her mental struggle. My voice echoes throughout the empty building, and Whitney turns to face me, her eyebrows knitted together in the middle.
“For who? Property Management?”
I give her a smile. “I was thinking executive staff.”
Whitney doesn’t respond right away, but her eyebrows knit together even further. I lead her over to the elevators and press the button to take us to the second floor. When we arrive on the second floor, I hear Whitney suck in a gasp of surprise.
This upper floor has been completely remodeled with the finest architecture. Each office space was walled off with floor-to-ceiling windows to keep the office space open and airy. The exposed ceiling above is sealed with black paint, giving it an industrial but modern feel to it.
Whitney walks around in small circles, taking everything in.
I follow after her, sliding my hands into my pockets and trying to fight the smile off of my face.
The listing did not do this office justice.
It’s stunning, and the longer I stand here, the easier it becomes for me to see myself working in a place like this.
At my old job, executive staff had their own separate building from the day-to-day operations. That seemed to work well for them, so I could easily see it working well with Nexus, too. We wouldn’t be that far away from the main building anyway, only a quick thirty minutes down the freeway.
“Each executive would get their own office,” I tell her as I point out the few large offices. “And there would potentially be room for their assistants to have their own office space as well.”
Her eyes go wide. “My own office?”
I grin at her and nod. “Better than just sitting outside my office, huh?”
She nods her head vigorously and clasps her hands in front of her. “It definitely would be.” Her face falls rapidly, and her eyes shift off to the side.
“What is it?” I ask, taking a step closer to her. My hand raises to cup her jaw, and I pull her attention back to me.
“Mr. Peterson always wanted to expand to two locations,” she says, looking around the top floor once more. Her eyes linger on the big corner office, and she gives a small smile. “I wish he was around to see this. I think he’d be proud of everything you’re doing for the company.”
Guilt consumes me at the mention of Peterson.
I know I have to tell her what I’ve uncovered soon.
It is eating away at my insides. It’s the last thing I want to do, but I know I am running out of time.
Chase and I have steadily been collecting all that we need to approach the Board of Directors with our findings, and there’s no way I’m going to allow her to be blindsided on this matter along with them.
Shoving all of those feelings down, I decide to deal with them later. I reach for Whitney’s hand, pulling her into the big corner office she is still eyeing. She chuckles after me, her melancholy thoughts now long forgotten.
“Theo, what are you doing?” She laughs when I close the office door behind us.
I spin her around until her back is to the door. She catches onto what I’m thinking. Her eyes flare, and a seductive smile forms on her lips. Heat trails down my spine, and my cock thickens for her as I lean closer into her space and claim her lips.
Whitney’s hands trail up my side and around my shoulders. When we find a pause, she whispers her question again. “What are we doing?”
“I’m claiming this big, beautiful office as the CEO’s,” I say, kissing her again. “So I figure we better break it in properly. What do you think about that?”
My lips move to her neck, and she tilts her head, giving me more access. With a soft moan, she says, “Anyone could walk in. What about the agent?”
“He won’t if he wants to make the sale,” I tease her, tracing my tongue over the sensitive spot below her earlobe.
“I suppose that’s a good point,” Whitney says.
Her hands dip under the collar of my suit jacket, and she slides it over and down my shoulders.
It falls to the floor, and then she sets to work on the buttons of my dress shirt.
I raise my hand and cup hers, stopping her movements.
Her eyes fly to mine but I lean forward and kiss her deeply, distracting her from her task.
We don’t have the time right now to fully undress each other, though there’s nothing I’d love more.
Right now, my mind is set on one goal—to be buried deep inside her and feel her exploding around me.
My hands slide up her thighs, collecting the bottom of her dress and lifting it up around her pelvis.
I wrap my arms around her waist, hoisting her up and bracing her against the door as her legs wrap around my hips.
“God, I just can’t get enough of you,” I murmur, capturing her lips again.
She wiggles against me, pressing her warm pussy against my steadily hardening length. “Do you want me to fuck you right here?
She whimpers and juts her hips toward me, telling me without words that that’s exactly what she wants.
I won’t prolong this any longer. Nimbly, I undo the belt on my pants with one hand and free my aching cock just long enough to shift her panties to the side and bury myself deep within her. She tosses her head back with a moan as soon as I’m seated fully inside of her.
My hips start moving of their own accord, taking us higher and closer to both of our releases. I try not to get lost in the feel of her nails clawing at my back or how she whispers her broken sighs of pleasure in my ears, but it’s no use.
I’m addicted to Whitney, and I don’t think that will ever change.
Not long after, we both scream out, hitting that point of climax and falling over the edge together. She clutches herself to me, and our skin sticks together as we’re both covered in sweat.
Finally, I let her down, making sure she can stand up straight without falling over. When she’s steady, she reaches for her dress, pulling it down over her hips and covering her perfect body, just as I straighten my shirt and redo my buckle.
When we’re situated properly again, I reach my hand out to her to lead her out of the office, but she halts me.
“Your jacket,” Whitney says, reminding me. I spin around to see my suit jacket crumpled in a heap on the floor.
Chuckling to myself, I bend over and scoop it up, folding it over my forearm and reaching my other hand out to her again. This time, she slides her hand in mine, tangling our fingers together.
Together, we walk out of the empty office and make our way back down to the main floor and the lobby.
Whitney glances at me every now and then, her eyes bright and her cheeks flushed, and she gives me a heart-stopping smile each time I catch her.
It’s something that makes my chest ache with euphoria.
I don’t think I’ll ever be able to get enough of this woman. Nor do I want to.
We do one last look around before going back downstairs to the car waiting for us.
I shake hands with the agent and let him know we’ll be in touch before sliding into the car after Whitney.
Her cheeks are still rosy colored from the orgasm I gave her in the office, and I find myself itching to take her into my arms again.
So I do.
Extending my arm out across the back seat, Whitney reads my mind and sidles up to me, curling into my side. I wrap my arm around her, holding her to me. I lean my head down, burying my nose in her hair and reveling in her intoxicating scent.
As we drive back into the city, my thoughts are a mess of everything that happened on this little field trip today. I keep getting caught up in her comments about how Peterson would have been proud of me.
I realize I can’t keep this secret from her any longer, and I make my mind up.
I’ll call Chase in tomorrow, and we’ll both break the news to her about Peterson and his less-than-ethical money swindling.
I just hope that after all is said and done, she won’t hate me for shedding light on the not-so-brilliant legacy of her friend and mentor.
It’s a risk I’ll have to take—even if it means losing her.