Chapter Sixteen
Valerie
My skin was tight over my body as I teased Lucas with my words. I couldn’t believe I had the courage to whisper my desires to him. I reveled in my newfound freedom.
Unable to help myself, I brushed my lips against his cheek. Heaven. I savored the feel of his skin against my lips. It was usually Lucas in control, but this time, I was.
“Lord, I want to kiss you.” The words slipped softly from my lips as I stared at him.
“Fuck. You pick your times.” His words came out hard and husky.
His tone went straight to my heart. Lord, this man was a gift. “I know, but you’re the one who got me revved up. Just think, I’m in your lap, my lips on yours. But you’re not passive, you push your tongue over my lips until I open my mouth.”
I wasn’t surprised when my breathing increased. Lucas just stared at me, desire flaring in his eyes.
“You start to take control, but I stop you. This is for me. A chance for me to explore to my heart’s content. I push your tongue aside, and I invade your mouth. You surprise me when you relax into the kiss and let me take the lead.”
Damn if this wasn’t a turn on, big time. Power and passion followed through me. “Is your cock hard?”
Lucas moaned, and I answered his with one of my own. Lord, I was enjoying the hell out of this. I hadn’t been with a man in a while, and Lucas wasn’t exactly a stranger to me.
“My turn.”
Before I could register what he said, he stood in front of me. “Now I have you restrained, and I’m standing between your legs.”
His words lit a fire in me. “Damn.” I hadn’t expected him to take control again. But it was hot as hell.
“I can’t have you forgetting who the Dom is,” he whispered in my ear.
“Never.” I nipped his ear lobe.
“Brat.” He shifted. “When we’re alone, I’m going to kiss you until there is no doubt in your mind who is in control.”
My pussy clenched at the thought. I wanted to lift my legs around his waist and pull him closer. Too bad we were both clothed and in public. To feel him slide into my body would be heaven. I moaned.
“Damn it, woman. That moan tells me all I need to know. ” His breath was hot against my skin. “You’re going to have me coming like a schoolboy.”
“Maybe that’s what I want.” His words sent waves of need through my body.
Everything inside me wanted this man. Who was I kidding?
I’d wanted him since we cleared the air that morning on my patio.
I was ready for a relationship with Lucas.
My gut clenched with fear, but I trusted myself and what I was feeling.
His breath brushed my ear. “I want you in my bed, but we’re in public.”
I stiffened. Oh hell. “I forgot for a short moment where we were.” My body tightened, and my skin was hot, but he was right. This wasn’t the right place or time. I’d gotten carried away. We both had.
“I forgot as well.” He brushed his lips over my cheek before straightening. “At least if someone was watching it looks like we were have an intense conversation.”
“Thank goodness.”
Maybe I’d talk to Josh and Dean about renting this piece of equipment for a weekend of fun with Lucas. I bit my lip. Was I really that bold?
“I guess we better get back to examining the equipment.” My voice was soft, and my pussy pulsed. We’d have to continue this later. We had work to do. I pushed all my emotions and feelings away, trying to get my head back into the game.
“Yes. Let’s continue.”
Lucas took my hand and led me over to the next piece of equipment with small steps. I glanced at his crotch. Oh, no. Poor guy. The outline of his hard cock was evident. Part of me rejoiced in doing that; another part was sorry for the pain he had to be in.
My body wouldn’t stop throbbing. Taking a deep breath, I pushed my desire away the best I could. But my mind went back to how Lucas was when we were together.
He was dominant back then, but only in the bedroom.
The rest of the time he kept his dominant side harnessed, and I made my own choices.
And he was a gentleman, always had a hand on my arm, or waist, or holding my hand, making sure I was safe and so much more.
Is that what I’d been missing all these years, the comfort of being safe?
It’s possible. I had dated, but I’d only slept with three men after Lucas.
Each one was okay in his own way, but they weren’t Lucas.
Had Lucas spoiled me for other men? Maybe.
It was something to chew over. It was Friday; maybe tonight we could spend some time together and explore where this relationship was going.
We spent the next hour going over all the equipment.
What I found the most interesting was the variety of equipment and the difference in each one.
Some of the wood was different, and there were more flaws.
My body was still on fire when we finished, but there wasn’t anything I could do about it. At least not right now.
“Let’s go talk with the owner,” Lucas said, reaching for my hand.
I placed it behind my back. “Are we going to mention anything about the equipment?” At least Lucas walked easier now. I didn’t dare glance to see if he still had an erection. It would make me want to… Mind on business not sex. I almost laughed out loud at my insane thought.
“No. This was more to see what we’d find. I want to talk it over with the others before we do.”
“Okay. Do you think I can chat with their accountant?”
“About?”
“I’m curious about how they categorize everything. I know I’ve been going over the books, but some of the categories are not as intuitive as I think they should be.”
“It shouldn’t be a problem. They know we’re looking into the books.” We walked across the warehouse floor, and that’s when I realized something. I tugged Lucas to a stop. He looked at me.
“Have you noticed how there is no noise and no people are walking around?” Not since Fred left us alone. That was odd for a manufacturing company.
“Not until you mentioned it. You’re right; it’s too quiet.” Lucas knocked on the open door, and we stepped in. Fred sat behind his desk. He stood as we approached.
“Did you enjoy your tour?” he asked us.
“Yes.” Lucas stared at Fred. “Have all those pieces been through quality control?”
Fred glanced around, looking nervous. “They should have. I’ll have them double checked.”
Lucas nodded.
“I’m really interested in how your accountant handles the categories for all of this. Is it possible to talk with them?” I wasn’t going to beat around the bush.
Fred frowned, then nodded. “I know Fantasies, Inc. is auditing our books, so I don’t see why not. Let me introduce you.” We left his office and went to another one. A woman sat behind an old wooden desk with ledgers open. Her black hair was pulled back into a bun, and she was frowning.
Fred called her name. “Clara…”
She lifted her head, and I blinked. There was something familiar about her, but I couldn’t quite place it. “Hello,” she said, closing the books on her desk.
“This is Lucas and Valerie from Fantasies, Inc.” Fred emphasized the company name as he shifted from one foot to the other. “Valerie has a question or two for you.”
Clara stiffened and stared at Fred, then she glanced at me. “Sure. What is your question?”
“I was wondering how you classify the equipment. I noticed that most of the furniture gets classified under a main category. Does that get broken down into sub-categories?” I already knew the answer, I’d seen some sub-categories, but they didn’t always make sense to me.
“It really depends. I put all the spanking benches in one category, along with the crosses, but some of the other items go under miscellaneous.”
I nodded. By using miscellaneous it would create an accounting nightmare of knowing inventory in stock, constructed, sold, and rented.
What was the company hiding? “Thank you; I was curious.” While that seemed like a straightforward answer, no company that I’d ever worked didn’t have detailed sub-categories.
“You’re quite welcome.”
Fred led us out of Clara’s office. Something didn’t sit right with me, but I wouldn’t say anything until Lucas and I were alone. I didn’t want to tip them off that I was anything more than just someone who worked for FI and not someone going over their books.
“Thanks for letting us come and visit. I’m sorry we can’t see the manufacturing side. We need to get back to the office.” Lucas shook Fred’s hand.
“You’re more than welcome. We look forward to working with you.” Fred shook my hand too.
Lucas guided me from the warehouse and to his vehicle. Once we were on the road, I turned to him. “Something is wrong, not only with their books, but their manufacturing.”
“Agreed. But we don’t have anything concrete.”
“Cracks and splinters are concrete. Plus, you took pictures.”
“That could be an intricate way of hiding errors, and Fred wasn’t sure if quality control had been done.”
“But if Fred doesn’t know, why was the equipment on the floor looking ready to send out?” I couldn’t shake the feeling that Rustic wasn’t what they appeared to be.
“Good question. He should know, but it’s possible he hasn’t looked at the paperwork yet. I don’t know. I’m a finance guy.” Lucas rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s also my gut feeling something is off.”
I glanced out the window. This was more complicated than I thought it would be. And it was a puzzle I would have to figure out.
“I’m going to call the boss and the department heads together when we get back. I want you to join us.”
“Me?” I wasn’t expecting that.
“Yes. You saw what I saw. The others might have questions, and I want you there to help answer them.”
“All right.” That made sense. It wasn’t like I hadn’t met them, but my nerves still tingled with anxiety.
While I’d talked with all the department heads, this was different than the casual settings we had been spending time in.
I was a worker bee. I did up the reports and didn’t talk to the higher ups.
It was just business, I told myself. Nothing to worry about.
“Don’t be nervous.”
I glanced at Lucas. Was he reading my mind? Again?
“It’s all over your face,” he said before I could ask. “Valerie, you’re fantastic at what you do. Stop second guessing yourself.”
Lucas was right. “I’ll try.” It wasn’t easy for me.
I’d spent too much time being blamed for everything that went wrong when I was a child.
It didn’t matter that I was innocent, blame always fell on me.
I blew out a breath. I was an adult now.
Time to be that woman. I was good at my job; it was why FI hired me.