Chapter 2
TWO
MALLORY
brEATHE, MALLORY, brEATHE.
It only takes a fraction of a second to realize why that’s a horrible idea.
As the sweet, rich scent of sandalwood couples with the feel of his fingertips pressing into my back, I know it’s flight or fight.
Cut off all oxygen or pull away from his arms. Suffocate or step away while I can, because if I keep breathing him in, I’ll be a puddle at his feet in two seconds flat.
I’m a logical woman. There’s no way I’m stepping out of his embrace.
Don’t breathe, Mal. Don’t. Breathe.
Focusing on the feel of his hand against me, the way his arms hold me up like he’s some kind of savior, the morning events spin wildly in my mind.
The failed alarm. Spilling tea down my new dress. One of my favorite heels snapping as I nearly fell backwards when Graham Landry’s picture loaded on my laptop screen.
This seemed like a great idea. The opportunity to work at Landry Holdings glittered like a gift from above laid beautifully in my lap.
I need this job. I’d been praying to find something since I left Columbia and left every hope and dream I’d ever had behind.
When I ran into Sienna Landry, a friend from high school at yoga class, we started talking.
We weren’t the best of friends, hanging out only here and there back then, but she was always so sweet and kind.
When she mentioned this job, it seemed like kismet.
That is, until I pulled up the website this morning.
Whatever I expected Graham to be, he’s not. At least physically. That’s why I can’t look him in the face as his fingers tense against my dress, and all I can do is imagine him touching me elsewhere.
My cheeks heat at my errant thoughts. As I witness the greens of his eyes mix with a color I can only describe as sapphire, I know I need to say something. But when I open my mouth, nothing comes out, and I suddenly feel the oxygen deprivation hitting me full force.
He leans closer. This doesn’t help, nor does my panic that he’ll get stuck in the syrup on the sleeve of my dress.
“Breathe,” he whispers. The cool mintiness of his breath is a stark contradiction to the fire radiating off him in every other way.
Still, his words force into my brain and I drag in a quick lungful of air.
“There you go.” His voice is as warm and smooth as his cologne, and somehow, it seems to break the spell over me.
A giggle slips past my lips before I can stop it.
It’s my go-to reaction, especially when I’ve had too much to drink, and I’m definitely a little buzzed.
Graham shakes his head, his hand subtly pressing me closer to him, a move I pretend was intentional.
I clear my throat in an attempt to swallow my nerves. “This isn’t exactly a good first impression, huh?”
“Depends how you look at it,” he mumbles under his breath and releases me far too quickly. Straightening his navy blue tie, he takes a purposeful step away. While the heat continues to roll off him, it seems now it’s for a different reason. “You do realize you’re seventeen minutes late.”
“I do,” I gulp. “I had an accident this morning . . .” And once I saw your picture, I had to do what any reasonable female would do: find my prettiest panties and matching bra.
His eyes darken as if he can read my mind. I stand before him, his smolder making me wonder how in the hell I’m going to work alongside him every day.
Maybe I can work on top of him. Or under him. Or . . .
“I assume you’re Mallory,” he says, clearing his throat.
“Yes.” I extend a hand, not sure if that’s necessary since we were basically hugging a few seconds ago. “You must be Mr. Landry?”
He takes my palm in his, the size of his twice the size of mine, and shakes it gently. “I didn’t recognize you. You’ve . . . changed.”
“So have you.”
The corners of his lips drift up, pulling mine along with them. The exchange causes my heart to flutter, and I nervously tuck a strand of hair behind my ear.
As quickly as it came, the softness in his eyes vanishes. It’s replaced with a resolution—but to what, I don’t know. “First things first, I’m going to need you in your seat, ready to go, at eight on the dot.”
“Of course,” I reply. Suddenly, I’m transported back to Latin club and he’s standing at my desk, asking me if I have a partner for our end-of-year project. My hands shake now, just as they did then.
“Second, please, call me Graham.”
“Okay.”
He takes a deep breath, running his fingers through his rich, chestnut-colored hair. “I know we knew each other once upon a time and you are friends with my sisters, but that won’t factor in to your performance here. If that will be any issue at all, we need to discuss it now.”
“Graham,” I say, throwing my shoulders back and ignoring how hot he looks with his furrowed brows, “as the CEO of Landry Holdings, I’m certain you did your due diligence before hiring me. If not, you got lucky because you have my word that I will blow your expectations out of the water.”
His brows pull tighter, his freshly-shaven jaw working back and forth like he doesn’t quite know what to do with me. As his tongue darts across his bottom lip, leaving a trail of wetness behind, I gulp.
I know exactly what you should do with me.
He cuts the distance between us in half. As he looms overhead, my brain scatters, once again feeling like he just read my thoughts. It’s unnerving. So much so, in fact, that I’m ready to apologize. Before I can, he speaks.
“Get situated at your desk, and I’ll alert Human Resources to your arrival.”
After a lingering look that keeps me in place, he vanishes through the solid wood door and I can finally breathe again.
***
GRAHAM
A CATASTROPHE. THAT’S WHAT THIS fucking day is.
The clock flips to noon, reminding me how much time I’ve wasted today. I’m usually heading out for a quick bite to eat in between meetings and calls, having already put in a full day’s work for most people. Today? Nothing. I’ve got nothing except a serious case of blue balls and a migraine to boot.
Linda was in her mid-fifties. On Friday, she would get here an hour early, send me a weekly recap mid-day, and forward me a finalized schedule for the following week before she left. She crocheted me a blanket last winter.
That’s the assistant I want. Sharp. Efficient. Not hot.
I don’t know which way to go to stop the bleeding first. There’s so much to catch up on—weeks’ worth of business, the security company to iron out, a stack of files higher than I’ve ever allowed to accumulate.
But here I sit, a file open, untouched. Twenty-six calls to return on my desk phone alone and today was the day it was all supposed to get done.
That was the plan and all I can do is sit here with half my attention aimed towards the door.
I’m not sure if Linda ever laughed when my door was closed in the nearly ten years she worked for me. Mallory has five times today. I’m also not certain if Linda ever smelled like lavender or wore a dress that was soft to the touch.
“Stop it,” I groan to myself, trying to wipe the image of her full lips out of my mind. “You’re acting like Lincoln. Damn it.”
As if on cue, my phone rings and his name glows on the screen. “Hello?” I sigh.
“You sound pissier than normal,” Lincoln snickers.
“I was just thinking about you.”
“That’s what they all say,” he jokes. “Seriously, though—what’s up?”
“You, my little brother, were wrong.”
“Uh, about what?”
“Mallory Sims.”
“Sienna’s friend?”
“I like to think of her, for the next few hours, anyway, as my new executive assistant.”
“What was I wrong about? I don’t even know her.”
I whistle through my teeth. “I expected more from you, Linc. You have a reputation in this family and I counted on that. You failed me.”
“What the fuck are you talking about, G?”
“She’s hot.” I let that sink in a second. “If you weren’t all in love with Danielle, I probably wouldn’t even let you in my office ever again.”
“Maybe I need to drop by today,” he jokes. “I’m not sure what you’re pissed about. If I needed a secretary, I’d get a hot one. Before Danielle, I mean. I would’ve before Danielle.”
Rolling my eyes, I lean back in my chair. “Of course you would’ve because you’re an animal.”
“Was. I was an animal.” He pauses. “I was an animal, wasn’t I? God. At least I have the memories,” he sighs.
“Good for you. Go relive those while I try to figure out how to manage this.”
“Need tips? I have some awesome tricks from all that animalistic behavior and I’m willing to share. Hell, someone should be able to use them these days.”
“No, Linc.”
“Oh! Barrett told me one the other day about grapes—”
“Lincoln. Stop.” I tap my pen against the glass on top of my desk and wait for his laughing to subside. “I’m being serious here. How am I supposed to work with a girl that looks like she should be . . .”
“Wrapped around your cock?” he offers.
“Not helping.”
Lincoln bursts out laughing again. “Sorry. I think this shit is funny as hell.”
“You would,” I mutter.
He finishes his amusement and clears his throat.
“So, what are you going to do? Can you just ignore it? Or do you have to let her go because you can’t control yourself ?
” He pauses. “That’s it! I knew it! There’s a kinky animal buried in those stuck-up suits of yours trying to claw its way out, isn’t there? ”
“Lincoln . . .”
He cackles. “You need me for advice. This has to be one of the best days of my life. I knew you’d need me sooner or later.”
“There is nothing about this situation that warrants your advice. Come to think of it, there’s nothing about life that would make me need your two cents.”
“Take a piece of ice and put it—”
“I swear to God, if you don’t stop, I’m sending Ford over to kick your ass.”
“You’ll send Ford because you can’t do it,” he teases.
“I’ll send Ford because some of us have a fucking job to tend to, asshole.”
We both chuckle and I feel the tension ease just a bit. Rising from my desk, I look at the back of my closed office door.
She’s out there, just a few yards from me. Human Resources says she’s catching on, even deferring lunch today so she can learn more. I like that. That’s a good sign. My hard cock is not.
“Did you know she was hot before you hired her?” Lincoln asks. “If so, that’s very un-Graham-like.”
“No. In my defense,” I say over his objection, “I knew her in high school. She wasn’t hot. She was super smart.”
“So she was a nerd like you?”
“Anyway,” I sigh, continuing on, “I felt like I knew her. Her references were stellar. It never crossed my mind that this would be my issue.”
I keep thinking I’ll wake up, she’ll walk in, and this will have been a dream.
A wet one, nearly, but a dream nonetheless.
But until that happens, I need a fucking plan and all I can come up with is ordering uniforms. Ugly, puke green, with a collar up the neck.
No skin. At all. And maybe a muzzle because, as confusing as it is, her voice and smile fuck with me as much as her body.
Lincoln chuckles. “I still don’t see how this is a problem. Think of her as . . . office décor. She’ll just give you something to look forward to in the morning. How interesting can . . . whatever it is you do all day . . . be? This is a godsend, G. Embrace it.”
“I want to embrace it. That’s the fucking problem. I can’t have temptation staring at me all damn day.”
“You can if you’re strong enough to say no. I mean, I’ve never been particularly good at that, but I’m sure it’s on your geek gene somewhere.”
“Out of all our siblings, you are my least favorite.”
“I can live with that,” he laughs. “I gotta go though. I have a meeting in a few. I’ll call you tonight.”
“Call while it still qualifies as night and not morning, okay?”
“I’ll try.”
The line goes dead and I realize I’m still standing behind my desk, looking at the door.