Chapter 12
Jane slipped into her bedroom. Without bothering to turn on the light, she padded to the bathroom. She shut the door and stripped off her clothes before brushing her teeth and quickly showering. Work at the club was busy tonight for a Tuesday, and she’d done well in tips. Even Jeremy hadn’t been nearly as annoying. She supposed it helped that he was dating the new girl. He tended to be less of an asshole when he was getting sex on the regular.
Speaking of which… you need to bang Luke tomorrow.
No, she most definitely didn’t. She slipped her nightshirt over her head, shut off the bathroom light and walked toward her bed. Despite her long day and the fact that it was two in the morning, she was oddly restless.
Yeah, because you need to get laid!
Her inner voice probably had a point. She’d loved giving Luke oral sex today, it had seemed so decadently naughty to give him head in his office, but she was left feeling achy and unfulfilled all day. She was tempted to take the bus to Luke’s place after work tonight, but that was about the stupidest thing she could do. He would be sleeping and…
She cocked her head and took a step back from the bed. Why could she hear soft snoring? She flicked on the bedside lamp, and her mouth dropped open. Luke was sleeping in her bed.
“What the hell?” she said.
He didn’t stir, and she reached out and poked him in the shoulder. He snorted and rubbed at his face before blinking sleepily at her. “Jane? What are you doing here?”
“What am I doing here?” she asked. “You’re in my bed.”
He glanced around before giving her a sweet little grin. “Oh yeah, right.” He threw back the covers. He was deliciously naked, and she tried not to drool as she stared at his long, lean body. “Climb in, Jane.”
“Luke,” she said, “what are you doing here? Does Amy know you’re here?”
“Yeah. She was still awake when I let myself into the house at eleven. Get into bed. I’m freezing my ass off.”
Her gaze dropped to his crotch, and he groaned when she licked her lips. “If you don’t get into bed right now, I’ll drag you into it.”
She climbed into bed, lying awkwardly on her back. “Why aren’t you at home?”
“Because I told you,” he snuggled up to her and curved his arm around her waist, “I don’t take and not give. Why are you wearing clothes? I’m naked. You should be naked, too.”
“Because I didn’t expect my boss to be in my bed when I got home,” she said.
“Surprise.”
“This is a terrible idea,” she said as his hand slipped under her nightshirt and cupped her breast. “Now Amy knows and -”
“You’re telling me she didn’t know before?” Luke tweaked her nipple until her back arched.
“I – all right, fine, she knew, but I told her it was just a one-time thing,” Jane gasped. “Now she knows that… oh God, stop doing that!”
“Stop what? This?” He sucked on her nipple through the cotton material of her shirt, and she gripped his hair before pushing his mouth away.
It’s late, and we both have work tomorrow.”
“Yes, it is late,” Luke said. “So, stop talking and let me fuck you.”
“Luke,” she whispered as his hand made circles on her bare abdomen.
“Unless you don’t want me to fuck you. Is that it, Ms. Smith? You don’t want to be fucked?”
His hand slipped between her thighs and cupped her wet pussy. “It doesn’t feel like you don’t want to be fucked.”
She chewed on her bottom lip. “I – I want to be fucked.”
“Good,” he said. “Now, you’re right that it’s late, and I worry that you don’t get enough sleep, so this will be on the quick side. But I promise I’ll take my time on the weekend.”
She wanted to tell him that she wasn’t going anywhere near him on the weekend, but his fingers were rubbing her clit, and it was hard to think straight. The tension and aching she’d felt all day ratcheted up to an almost unbearable level, and she moaned and grabbed his arm.
“You’re so wet, sweet Jane,” he murmured as he slid his finger easily into her aching warmth.
“I’ve been wet all freaking day,” she muttered.
He laughed and nuzzled her throat before kissing her slowly and thoroughly. She sucked at his tongue and thrust her pelvis back and forth.
“Do you think you can be quiet, Ms. Smith?” He asked. “We don’t want to wake your roommate.”
“Yes. Just – hurry, Luke.”
“Take off your nightgown.”
She sat up and pulled it over her head before tossing it on the floor. “Shit, I don’t have a condom.”
“All taken care of.” He was already rolling one on. “I brought my own. Always be prepared is my motto.”
“That’s the Boy Scouts motto,” she said.
He burst into laughter, and she hushed him before glancing at the closed door. He pushed her onto her back and kneeled between her legs as she stroked her hands across his broad chest. His cock probed at her pussy, and she moaned, her nails digging into his hard chest.
“I’ve barely touched you, and you’re already wet enough to be fucked,” he said. “Do you have any idea how goddamn hot that is, Ms. Smith?”
“Then shut up and fuck me, Mr. Dawson.”
He grinned and rubbed the head of his cock against her clit, watching as she squirmed and panted beneath him. “Did you like giving me head at the office?”
She refused to answer and tried to squeeze her hand between them. Her questing fingers brushed against Luke’s cock, and he inhaled sharply before taking both her hands and pinning them above her wrists. “Answer me. Did you like being on your knees behind my desk with your mouth stuffed full of my cock?”
“You know I did.” She arched her back and tried to entice him to suck on her nipples.
“I want you to say it.” He bent his head and licked the tip of her right nipple.
“Oh God – yes, I liked giving you head in the office!” She muttered. “Fuck me, Luke!”
“I think I’m going to add it to your job description,” he said teasingly before sucking hard on first one nipple and then the other.
Pleasure was crashing through her, drowning out rational thought as he sucked and teased her nipples with his hot mouth and rubbed her clit with his cock.
“Every morning you’ll come into my office, get on your knees and suck my dick. Is that clear, Ms. Smith?” he murmured against her breast.
She made a low keening noise as he released her hands before reaching between them and guiding his cock to her wet opening. “I’m waiting for your answer.”
“I – what?” She gasped.
He slid the head of his cock into her and stopped. She whined in protest and smacked him on the back. “Keep going!”
His arms were shaking, and she could see the way he was fighting for control. “Sucking my dick every morning, Ms. Smith. New job duty, beginning – oh fuck!”
She had bucked her hips upward, taking almost half of his dick, and he made a hard thrust in return, sheathing himself entirely.
“Oh God,” she whispered. “Yes, just like that. Fuck me, Luke.”
“Do you agree to your new – oh hell, honey, don’t squeeze like that – job duty?”
“Yes, for God’s sake! Yes!”
“Excellent,” he gasped out before fucking her hard and deep.
She buried her face in his neck to muffle her cries of pleasure and held on for the ride. She flung her arms around his back, feeling the large muscles rippling and contracting beneath her hands as he worked her into a frenzy of heat, need, and desperation.
When he reached between them, pressed the heel of his hand against her clit and rubbed hard, she bit back her scream of release as she climaxed around his thick cock. He groaned harshly and buried his face in her neck, muffling his moans of release as he thrust deep before he shook and twitched against her soft body.
He slipped off of her and disposed of the condom, then collapsed on his back on the bed. “Fuck,” he muttered almost to himself, “it gets better and better.”
She wanted to agree and ask him if he thought there was some way they could keep doing this without it being a significant problem, but that was just her post-orgasmic glow happening. She knew perfectly well that this couldn’t continue. Her stomach churning, she said, “It’s late. You should probably leave.”
She winced. God, that sounded much harsher than she meant, especially since she wanted him to stay the night.
Rather than being hurt, he grinned at her. “You’re going to make me leave your warm bed and drive home in the cold and the snow, Ms. Smith?”
“No.” She clicked off the lamp and plunged them into darkness. “I want you to stay, but I didn’t want you to think you had to stay.”
“I want to stay.” He pulled her into his embrace. “Now go to sleep because I’m exhausted and have to work in the morning.”
She smiled as he kissed her forehead and stroked her warm back. He was asleep in minutes, but she stared sightlessly into the darkness. What the hell was she doing? She couldn’t keep sleeping with Luke, and she knew that. She had already made this mistake once before, and it had cost her. Jeremy had changed her work schedule to punish her and if it hadn’t been for this new job and her pay raise, Mama J would have been kicked out of the care home by now.
If things soured between her and Luke and she lost her job, she risked Mama J’s safety. Amy had said she wouldn’t let Luke fire her, but Jane wasn’t foolish enough to believe that. Amy was sweet and kind, but Luke was her brother. She would take Luke’s side when push came to shove, and Jane couldn’t blame her for that.
There could be something more with him, Janie. You see that, don’t you?
No, she didn’t. That was just her foolish heart talking again. She had thought Jeremy loved her, and she was dead wrong. Jeremy had initially said and done all the right things, but when she broke it off with him…
She shuddered all over. She couldn’t afford to lose her job. Christ, she sounded like a broken record even to herself, but she needed to do the right damn thing. If that meant she needed to keep reminding herself not to be an idiot, so be it.
He mentioned the weekend, her inner voice said. Take the weekend with him and then end it, okay? He’s not invested in you emotionally yet, so he won’t be angry that you don’t want to keep sleeping with him if you end it on Sunday. It’s been so long since you’ve had sex, and isn’t it nice to have him in your bed? Please, Janie? Just a few more days. Please.
It was easy enough to agree to her inner voice’s begging. A few more days was probably a good idea. If they screwed enough over the weekend, it would ease the sexual tension between them and returning to normal life would be easier.
She curled a little closer to Luke. He stroked her back in his sleep and muttered something she didn’t understand before growing quiet again. She rested her head on his chest, closed her eyes and tried to sleep.
* * *
“I know,I’m late. I’m sorry.” Jane hurried into the kitchen the following day, making a beeline for the fridge.
She hadn’t fallen asleep until almost five and forgot to set her alarm on her phone. She usually woke at six, and she and Amy left for the office at quarter after seven. She jerked awake at seven, sitting up with a gasp and reaching across the bed to shake Luke awake. His side was empty, and he wasn’t in the bathroom either. Obviously, he had already left. Trying not to be upset that he hadn’t said goodbye to her, she had raced through her morning routine, but it was seven thirty when she ran down the stairs.
Now, she whipped open the fridge and grabbed a juice. “Can you grab me an apple? Oh, and can you zip me up?”
She turned around and cracked open the juice. With no time to style her wet hair, she’d piled it into a bun. She took a sip of juice and nearly spit it all over the floor when Amy grasped the zipper of her dress and then pressed a kiss against the exposed nape of her neck.
She choked down her swallow of juice as Amy’s voice called from the hallway, “Luke, have you seen my keys?”
Jane stared wide-eyed at Amy when the blonde poked her head into the kitchen. “Lukie? My keys? Did you – oh, hey, Jane. You ready to go?”
“She’s almost ready.” Luke’s velvety, baritone voice spoke behind her, and he pressed another warm kiss against her neck before he zipped up her dress. “I found your keys on the kitchen floor last night. I hung them on the key hook by the front door.”
“Thanks, Luke.” Amy pushed by them and grabbed a juice from the fridge. “Jane will be a little late this morning. We’re leaving later than usual, and we’re out of coffee, so I’m swinging by Starbucks on the way to the office.”
“All right.” Luke swung Jane around to face him. He slipped his arm around her waist and studied her. “Did you get enough sleep last night?”
“Gross,” Amy said.
Luke rolled his eyes at her as Jane blushed. “Yes, I – I’m fine.”
A slight frown line appeared between his eyebrows, but he nodded. “Okay. I’ll see you at the office?”
“Yes. I won’t be late,” she said. “We’ll get coffee at the office.”
“Like hell, we will,” Amy said cheerfully. “The office coffee tastes like shit. We’ll be late, Luke.”
“That’s fine,” he said absently as he continued to study Jane. “Why don’t you take the day off, Jane? You’ve been working hard and -”
“No,” she said. “I’m not taking the day off.”
She gave him a furious look, and he blinked a little at her ire before nodding. “Okay. See you in a bit.”
Before she could turn her head, he pressed a gentle kiss against her mouth and stepped away. “We have that telephone meeting with the Board at nine, Amy.”
“I know,” she said. “Just us, right?”
“No. Mark will be there too,” he said
Her face darkened, and he shrugged. “The Board wants all three of us at the meeting.”
“Yeah, fine,” Amy said a bit sullenly.
“I’ll see you both at the office,” Luke said.
He left the kitchen, and Jane waited until she heard the front door close before turning to Amy. “Amy, I’m sorry, I…”
Amy shrugged. “You have nothing to be sorry about, Jane.”
“You okay?” Jane asked.
Amy nodded before picking at one brightly-polished nail. “Fine. I need caffeine. Are you okay?”
“Yes.” She wasn’t. She was furious at Luke for trying to make her take the day off. She knew it was irrational, but the old Luke would never have given her the day off because she looked tired. If Amy thought she was getting special treatment because she was sleeping with him…
“I’m not expecting special treatment because I slept with him,” she said as she followed Amy to the front door.
Amy gave her a look of surprise. “I know that, Janie.”
“I wanted to make sure,” Jane muttered. “I know I told you this was a one-time thing only, but…”
“You came home last night, and Luke was in your bed,” Amy said.
Jane nodded, and Amy sighed before stopping in the hallway. “Janie, I love Luke to death, but he has a way of bulldozing his way into a situation. Especially if it’s something he really wants. I know you’re kind of shy and not very assertive. Someone like my brother could take advantage of that without meaning to. You’re not continuing to sleep with him because you think you have no choice, are you?”
“No,” Jane said. “I want him just as much as he wants me.”
“Good,” Amy said. “I only want to be clear that you don’t have to have sex with my brother to keep your job.”
“I know.” Jane decided she sounded like she believed it.
“Do you?” Amy asked.
“Yes. C’mon, let’s go. I need a coffee as much as you do.”
* * *
“Good morning, Jane.”
Jane smiled at Mark. “Hello, Mr. Stanford.”
He gave her a good-natured grin. “Call me Mark. How are you enjoying working for Luke? Is he playing nice?”
Jane hesitated. Did Mark know about her and Luke? Probably. He was Luke’s best friend, no doubt Luke had mentioned to him that he was banging his damn secretary. Her cheeks bright red, she said, “Uh, yes, it’s good.”
“Did I say something wrong?” Mark asked.
“No, of course not,” Jane replied. “Mr. Dawson has been very, uh, good to me.”
Mark looked a little embarrassed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by my comment. I meant that there’s always a spot for you in finance if you decide you don’t want to work for the boss anymore.”
She gave him a look of surprise. “Oh, that’s very kind of you. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Mr. Dawson is in his office if you want to – hi, Amy.”
The smile dropped from Mark’s face. He turned and gave Amy a stiff nod. “Hello, Amy.”
“Mark,” Amy said coolly.
There was an awkward silence that Jane hurried to fill. “Mr. Dawson is in his office, and the Board is scheduled to call in,” she checked her watch, “three minutes.”
Mark and Amy continued to stare at each other. Jane had an idea that they had completely forgotten she was there.
“Amy?” She said. “The meeting?”
“What?” Amy tore her gaze from Mark.
“The meeting with the Board,” Jane said. “It’s starting in a couple of minutes.”
“Right, of course.” Amy hesitated, and Mark made a small gesture toward Luke’s office.
“After you.”
“Thanks.”
She walked toward Luke’s office, and Mark’s gaze dropped to her ass. When he realized Jane was watching him, his cheeks turned red, and he hurried after Amy.
* * *
“Jane?Can you scan and email these documents to Kyla?” Luke asked.
Jane took the documents without looking at him. “Do you need me to pick up lunch for you?”
“No, I’m having lunch with Mark,” Luke said.
She turned to leave, and he frowned. “Jane, wait.”
“What is it, Mr. Dawson?” she asked without turning.
He moved around his desk to slip his arm around her waist. “What’s wrong?”
“Now isn’t the appropriate time to talk about it.”
He kissed the nape of her neck. He liked it when Jane wore her hair down, but there were benefits when she wore it up.
“Please don’t do that,” she said.
“Come to lunch with me,” he said.
“You’re having lunch with Mark.”
“He’ll understand if I bail.”
She made an angry little noise, and he turned her around, curving his arm around her waist again when she tried to step away. She gave him a furious look and pushed at his chest. “Let me go.”
“Come to lunch with me,” he repeated.
“I can’t.” She gave him a look of frustration. “I don’t want special treatment from you.”
“I can take my assistant for lunch, Jane. I had lunch with Elaine once or twice a month.”
“Did you blow off Mark to have lunch with her?” Jane retorted. “Did you zip up her dress in the morning and tell her to take the day off because she looked tired?”
He didn’t reply, and she said, “Things are different now, Luke. We slept together, and now it’s even more important that I don’t look like I’m getting special treatment. If others in the office find out that I slept with the boss... we need to be very careful. All right?”
He nodded and released her before stepping back. “Yes. So, this means it’s done. Is that right?”
Shit, why did he say that? What the hell did he do if she said yes? As fucked up as it was to be sleeping with his assistant, he didn’t want it to be over. Not yet.
* * *
Jane studied Luke.The look on his face was one of careful detachment. She worried at her bottom lip for a moment. Did he want to continue having sex? Earlier this morning, she would have said he did, but she had just been irritable with him and snapped at him. That might have been enough to change his mind. Jeremy hated when she acted like a bitch, and she’d learned to swallow her annoyance with him very quickly.
He was still waiting for her answer. God, why hadn’t she asked the question first? She took a deep breath to steady her nerves and smiled tentatively at him.
“I was thinking about that earlier. I want to continue for a while if you do. But it’s probably best if we have an expiry date on this.”
“An expiry date,” he repeated. “That’s a new one.”
“Look, we both know that we can’t have an actual relationship, but the,” she glanced behind her at the closed doors and lowered her voice anyway, “sex is pretty amazing. I wouldn’t mind a few more days to, um, enjoy you.”
Oh, Jesus, she sounded ridiculous.
“We can get this out of our system and then go back to normal,” she said. “What do you think?”
“A few days,” he said.
She nodded. “Yes, I think if we spend the rest of this week and the weekend, that should be more than enough time. Don’t you?”
He didn’t reply, and she swallowed down the painful lump that had appeared in her throat.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “I’ve misread what you wanted. Ending it now is fine.”
“You didn’t misread.” He returned to his desk. “Until the end of the weekend works for me.”
“Are you sure?” she asked uncertainly.
“Yes.” He sat down behind his desk and stared at his computer screen. “If you tell me what club you work at, I’ll pick you up tonight when you’re finished, so you don’t have to take the bus home.”
“Oh, that’s okay. I don’t mind taking the bus.”
He gave her an impatient look. “I’d prefer if you didn’t take the bus so late. Besides, I know you’re tired. You’ll get more sleep if you let me pick you up. What’s the name of the club?”
She shook her head. “No, thank you.”
“Jane,” he said irritably, “I don’t mind.”
“I do,” she said. “You aren’t missing out on sleep because of my second job. I’ve never had a problem on the bus at night.”
He opened his mouth to argue, and she said, “No special treatment, remember?”
“I remember.” He stared at his computer screen again and frowned before making a few clicks with the mouse. He leaned in to read the screen and rubbed his forehead absently. A muscle in his jaw ticked, and he muttered, “Shit.”
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Can you ask Mark to come to my office?” he said.
She nodded and hurried back to her desk.
* * *
“Wait,so these French guys are here because they’ve changed their minds and want to invest in the company?” Mark gave him a confused look. “But we haven’t even begun to update the website. Didn’t you tell me that Maria just did the ad for the new marketing people?”
“Yes. I don’t know why they’re in the city,” Luke said. “Pierre’s email said they would be arriving tomorrow and could they meet with me and Amy on Friday afternoon.”
“They want to meet Amy?” Mark said.
“Unfortunately, yes,” Luke sighed. “Think I can convince her to meet with them?”
“You’ll have to,” Mark said.
“I know she hates doing this kind of stuff, but if it means they invest in the line, then she has no choice. Going international is the right move, Mark.”
“I don’t disagree,” Mark said, “but Amy’s not going to be happy with you.”
“Probably not,” Luke said. “Listen, make sure you’re available on Friday afternoon in case they want to meet with you as well.”
“Sure,” Mark said.
“Really?” Luke said.
“Yes, why?”
“Didn’t think you’d come to the meeting if Amy were there. The meeting earlier today was,” he paused, “tense.”
“I didn’t notice.” A muscle in Mark’s jaw twitched. “Do you think I can’t do my job anymore, Luke? Is that what you’re saying? You think I should quit?”
“Whoa,” Luke held up his hands, “where is this coming from? You know I don’t think that.”
Mark glared at him before sitting back in his chair. “Sorry.”
“Mark, we need to fix whatever’s happened between you and Amy,” Luke said. “Both of you are miserable.”
“Maybe it has nothing to do with Amy,” Mark said. “Did you ever think of that?”
“No,” Luke admitted. “But that’s because normally you tell me everything.”
Mark gave him a guilty look. “I’m sorry. I know I’ve been a shitty friend lately.”
“No,” Luke said, “I’m being the shitty friend. I’ve been preoccupied with other stuff.”
“Preoccupied with your assistant,” Mark said. “You ever going to admit to me that you’re fucking her?”
Luke glanced at the closed doors. “Keep your voice down. Fine, we had sex on Saturday night. We both said that was it, and I meant it, I did. Only she walked into my office on Monday, and… let’s just say that my ‘no sex at the office rule’ is null and void now.”
“Shit, man,” Mark said. “You need to be careful. Screwing your assistant in your office is a bad idea. Hell, screwing your assistant is a bad idea, period. What if she sues you for sexual harassment when you end it?”
“She wouldn’t do that,” Luke said. “You don’t know Jane the way I do. She’s sweet and kind. Besides, who said I’m going to end it?”
Mark shrugged. “Your last serious relationship was in University. You’ve never dated a woman for longer than a month since then.”
“I’ve been concentrating on building the company,” Luke said defensively. “Besides, you’re one to talk. When was your last serious relationship?”
“Francine,” Mark said. “We were serious.”
“University girlfriend,” Luke said.
“No, she wasn’t. She was...”
Luke leaned back in his chair. “Face it, buddy, we’re idiots when it comes to women. Neither of us has had a serious relationship in years. There’s something wrong with the both of us.”
“I’m serious about you, Lukie,” Mark said.
Luke rolled his eyes. “Yeah, thanks.”
“If you think we need couples therapy, I’ll do it. I’ll do whatever you want to keep you happy, my little snuggle bunny.”
“Shut up, you ass,” Luke said.
Mark grinned at him as Luke stared out the window for a minute. “Do you ever get tired of being alone, Mark?”
“You thinking you want something more with your assistant?” Mark asked.
“Maybe. I don’t know,” Luke said. “I haven’t known her very long, but there’s something special about her. Not that it matters much how I feel. She wants to end it by the weekend. It’s only sex for her.”
“So, tell her you want more and see what she says,” Mark said.
“Yes, because working together after she rejects me won’t be awkward at all,” Luke said.
Mark laughed. “You’re just afraid of being rejected in general.”
“She doesn’t want more,” Luke said. “She needs her job, and she’s afraid she’ll lose it if things go bad.”
“She makes a good point.”
“Yeah, I know,” Luke sighed. “Anyway, let’s go for lunch early. You can help me figure out how to convince Amy to meet with the investors on Friday.”