Chapter Two
“With how vast your company is, there is so much to learn. You’re in advertising, finance, publishing, and even the start of social media platforms. It all seems exciting, and I had hoped to go to college and major in business. That’s what I wanted to study.”
Nora thought about all the things she wanted to do—study business, learn from the best, start her own company. Growing up, she spent many times playing games where she was the boss of her own company. It seemed somewhat lame now.
Her parents had always referred to her as their little businesswoman. Some might have said she had her head in the skies. Her thoughts were nothing but fairy tales. They turned into fairy tales, and then this opportunity came up, and she took it, knowing it could lead to more. Her dad always said she had a good eye for opportunity. Her mother always advised her to let go of the negative, focus on the positive, and to keep moving forward. She realized it was how people coped with the pain and struggles of life. They stopped looking back at the past and only moved forward. She understood it. No one could change the past.
Gabriel stared at her for several seconds.
“Your company is the only one known for allowing promotions across all sectors of enterprise. You have built-in training, and like I said, some of your managers didn’t need college.”
Nora sat down in the chair opposite. She had spent a great deal of time thinking about sitting opposite the boss. Being interviewed for the next position. There had been a few to open up in the last few months, but their roles were far too complex to consider. She had hoped to move up to assistant. Nora didn’t want to promote to a role she wasn’t capable of handling.
The last thing she wanted to do was embarrass herself. So, she would keep working her ass off and wait for the right opportunity. She would learn everything about Gabriel’s world, so she’d have the ability to take control of her life and live it the way she wanted.
“Our lunch has arrived,”
Gabriel said, getting to his feet.
Nora watched as the delivery driver came to Gabriel. The two spoke, and she saw the name of an Italian restaurant on his shirt. It was a very expensive place known for their long list of celebrity clients. She was a little taken aback. Gabriel chuckled, slapped the man on the shoulder, and he left.
So, his reputation of being a monster seemed far-fetched. He’d been nothing but polite, sweet, and even charming to her. She probably sounded like a child or a stupid fairy-tale-riddled asshole.
Gabriel stepped back into his office, and at the same time glanced down at his cell phone.
“Trudy will be back in an hour with your clothes.”
“You really didn’t need to do that.”
“I had no choice but to insist seeing as my employee did that. Do you want to tell me what that was all about?”
Gabriel asked.
Clarice was already fired. She didn’t see the reason to raise complaints.
“I just don’t think Clarice liked me very much.”
There was no thinking about it. Clarice had hated her right from the start. She didn’t know why, just that sometimes people simply didn’t get along. She was not going to analyze it.
“It was nothing.”
“She did it on purpose,”
he said. “You’re not protecting her. She has already lost her job.”
She nibbled her lip. “I don’t know why. Clarice never liked me.”
She shrugged.
Gabriel sighed. “I will not tolerate that level of behavior from anyone. You could have been seriously injured.”
She found it so incredibly sweet that he cared.
“Come, let us eat.”
He moved toward the sofa in the corner of his office, near the open windows that overlooked the city below. The view was breathtaking.
She didn’t get too close to the window as she didn’t like the idea of plunging to her death. That was a long drop. Not that she imagined he shirked on the quality of the glass. It had to be quite thick.
“Italian meatball subs are the very best, and I have two layers of cheese—provolone and parmesan. Delicious. I have this specially made for me. I know the chief, and he likes to change up his sub game, and I’m the one that gets to try it.”
“Sounds like a good friendship,” she said.
This was so strange. She was eating lunch with the boss. The very scary boss that could take her job in a second. Yet, he was talking about sub sandwiches, Italian restaurants, and friendships.
This was a strange day, and it was getting even stranger. She’d also been semi-naked in his office. She couldn’t forget that. Not to mention wearing clothes that were not hers. They fit like a dream, and she knew they had to be designer. The softness of the fabric screamed luxurious to her. There was nothing to hate about what she was wearing.
It was like she and Gabriel had been friends for a long time.
“Pretty good. Let me know what you think.”
He handed her a plate that had the most mouthwatering sub. The cheese was gooey and spilling out the sides. She saw the size of the meatballs. The whole thing looked appealing, which was a lot better than her salad which was probably sweating in her bag in her locker. She had no choice but to store her lunch in her locker, otherwise it was taken.
She didn’t like to order takeout. Her mother often said the best way to save money was through home cooking. Her mother was a good cook, and she missed her.
Taking a bite to distract herself from the tears that were going to fall, she tasted the flavors. They were amazing. There was no other word to describe them. Each one even more delectable. The balance of the onions and garlic, the tomato sauces, even the cheeses. All of it was a nice party on her tongue, one she was loving.
“This is so good,” she said.
Gabriel chuckled and she felt that pleasure at the sound rush through her body, which was insane. Yes, her boss was a handsome man. No, scrap that. Handsome didn’t even begin to cover it. He was sexy—sexy and hot, and a lot of other things as well. There were so many words she could use to describe him.
She was not going to embarrass herself by having a crush on her boss.
Nora finished her sandwich, and knew she would have to get back to work. She got to her feet. “Uh, thank you for the lunch, and for … the clothes. I promise to return them.”
Gabriel got to his feet.
She walked toward the door, and then stopped. “I’m sorry I landed on you.”
There were her cheeks heating again. Why did this have to be so hard?
“It was a pleasure to meet you, Nora,” he said.
She offered him a smile. It was strange, because as she got to the elevator, she suddenly realized she had never actually told him her name—or had she?
****
For the rest of the week, Gabriel couldn’t get her out of his mind. Trudy had already assured him there was no way Nora would work for his parents. There was no spy.
If anyone was a spy, it would be George in Accounting, who kept trying to befriend him, but he already knew the man was set up by his parents. He was happy for the people his parents sent in, to bring about their own demise. They tended to get too comfortable, or stole from him. This is why he didn’t get close to anyone.
Late Friday night, he sat, perusing the latest numbers of one of his advertising campaigns when Trudy stepped into his office.
“You’re going to get a humpback if you stay in that position all day and night,”
Trudy said.
“Good night, Trudy,” he said.
She tutted. “You know, you work too hard. Your grandfather would not be pleased.”
“My grandfather is not here.”
“He is here, Gabriel. He is always here, and you know it. He’d hate to see you without a family. Without a wife.”
Gabriel laughed. “I’m sure my grandfather would be a lot happier with me being single than taking on one of the gold-diggers.”
“True. But there is a certain woman in Mailing that I think he would approve of.”
He looked at Trudy. She winked at him.
“Oh, I might also like to tell you, you’re not alone in the building. That same woman is also working a late shift.”
Trudy smiled at him.
That woman was going to get fired. He’d fired her a couple of times, but it never stuck. As payback for one of his bad moods, she hadn’t come to work. He’d been pissed and had no choice but to physically get her back. She’d made him apologize, which did piss him off, but he had done so. He knew she must have gotten her kicks out of it. Either way, Trudy worked for him, and there was no firing her.
He watched her walk away, and then sat back in his office chair. Most of the day he’d been hunched over stats, figures, and proposals. Getting to his feet, he lifted his hands in the air and stretched the tight muscles.
Nora was downstairs in the mail room. Why was she working late, and how did Trudy know?
He left his office, taking the elevator right down to the mail room. He had access to every floor, and as he stepped out of the elevator, he spotted Nora immediately. She was once again dressed in a plain, knee-length black skirt and a white blouse. She sometimes wore a jacket. Her long brown hair was pulled to the nape of her neck, and she muttered to herself.
“What brings you to stay here late?” he asked.
Nora let out a gasp and spun around. She wore the cutest pair of glasses, and she quickly pushed them up into her hair.
“Mr. Williams,” she said.
“Please call me Gabriel,” he said.
She nodded. “Uh, Gabriel. There were three people who called in sick, and the temps that were brought in to do the job didn’t do it well. I was the only one who could stay and organize them for tomorrow.”
He knew the mail was important. Trudy had tutted as his mail hadn’t been brought up in a timely fashion this morning, and there was a contract waiting for him to read.
There was a time and a place for modern technology. However, when you invested in an old company and did things the old-fashioned way, you kept that tradition.
“Is there something you need?”
she asked.
You, bent over my desk, so I could get you out of my fucking mind.
“No. Trudy mentioned that you were still here, so I thought I would come and see what you were up to.”
Nora chuckled. “Yeah, she told me you were not in the best of moods. I’m so sorry that mail was delivered late, and I couldn’t bring it up. I’ve been here most of the day, trying to fix it. I didn’t realize how bad it had gotten until around two.”
“It’s fine.”
He glanced down the length of her body. Her thighs looked full and ripe. He wondered what they would feel like wrapped around his waist as he pounded inside her. Gabriel wanted to touch her, to pull her into his arms and kiss those full lips, designed to be wrapped around his cock. He’d love to sink to the back of her throat. His dick started to harden, and he wanted to slide so hard and deep within her.
“I forgot to give you something,” she said.
She moved toward her desk and had to bend over, didn’t she? That full ass looked so inviting. He wanted to lift that skirt and see what kind of panties she wore.
Gabriel was not used to having these kinds of feelings. He loved women, enjoyed playing with women, but since first seeing Nora, he’d not been able to even look at another woman. This was disconcerting. It had been a long time since he had sex.
She came toward him carrying a brown paper bag.
“Thank you for the other day,”
she said. “These are the clothes you let me borrow.”
She offered him a smile. It was such a sweet, endearing smile.
Damn it. He grabbed the bag from her and placed it right in front of his dick. She didn’t need to see how aroused he was.
“How much longer do you have?” he asked.
“I’m not sure. Thirty minutes, an hour, perhaps.”
“Good. I’ll help,” he said.
“You really don’t need to do that,” she said.
“I insist.”
He removed his jacket, rolled up his sleeves, and got to work in learning how his mail room functioned.
Nora was a good teacher, and together they were able to finish in exactly thirty minutes.
“Grab your coat. I’m taking you to dinner.”
“Sir, you don’t need to do that.”
“I know, but I insist. Come on.”
He held out his hand, and Nora glanced at it for just a moment. What was going through her head as she hesitated? He waited.
Then, she slid her hand in his, and he couldn’t help but wonder if she felt it too. Did she feel that power between them? That magic? What the fuck was happening to him?
He was going to have to fuck soon. That could be the only explanation as to why he was feeling this way. This had been the longest time he’d gone without sex. Women were so openly available to him, and he usually took full advantage of it.
They walked out of the building together, and he went straight to his car, helping her into the passenger side. He couldn’t resist reaching in to slide the belt across her chest, and securing her into his car. She didn’t complain. He walked around the other side, and climbed into his car.
“You have a nice car,” she said.
“I know.”
He turned over the ignition, and within seconds, they were pulling out of the parking lot of his building and heading toward his favorite Italian restaurant. There was never a wait for him, and his table was always reserved. He never cooked for himself.
Handing his key to the concierge, he helped Nora out of his car and led her inside the restaurant. The ma?tre d’ was already there with a smile and took him straight to his table.
“Do you have any idea how hard it is to get a table at this place?”
Nora asked.
“No,”
he said. He looked at her. “Did your boyfriend or husband wish to book you a table here?”
None of the information he gathered on her mentioned a partner. No husband, no boyfriend.
“No, no, I don’t have a husband or a boyfriend. I overheard one of the men in the lunchroom complain about it. He wanted to take his wife for a special anniversary dinner, and she always wanted to come here.”
“Who?”
he asked, curious as to who might have wanted a table.
“Larry from Accounting.”
Gabriel knew Larry and made a note to get Trudy to send him to his office. He liked to take care of members of his staff, especially those who raised concerns. It was Larry that alerted him to George’s associations. Larry had overheard one of his conversations with Gabriel’s dad and put two and two together.
He would make sure Larry got to take his wife on that anniversary dinner. The man was in his late fifties, had five children, and still loved his wife, who was his childhood sweetheart. He got the full story and Larry was a good guy. Never once strayed from his marriage. Nor had his wife. They were good people.
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Larry doesn’t need to be fired,” she said.
He looked at her and frowned. “You think I’m going to fire Larry?”
“That’s what it means by taking care of it, doesn’t it?”
“No,”
he said, laughing. “I’m going to make sure Larry gets my table, and he can take his wife for that anniversary dinner.”
“Oh,”
Nora said.
Her cheeks turned a delightful shade of red. She was adorable and sexy.
“I’m so sorry.”
“Please don’t worry about it. I am sure there are a lot of people who think the worst of me.”
She winced. “It’s just that you have a reputation for not taking fools gladly.”
“I know.”
“And you fired Clarice.”
“I fire those who do not deserve the job they have been given, Nora. I’m not a tyrant. Those who wish to keep their job, can. I’m a fair man.”
He gives people plenty of opportunities to either prove themselves or fail. It was not his responsibility to see they succeeded. That was on them.
“Now, what would you like to eat?” he asked.