© Carey Decevito, 2013

Chapter 4

The next morning, I arrived at the office and wondered if Nicole would show up like she said she would.  Not having discussed a time, salary, benefits… anything, I’d made sure that my schedule for this morning had been cleared of meetings.

I was drafting up a PR pitch to win a large account when a knock came on my open door.

“Yes?”

“Mr. Withers, there’s someone by the name of Nicole Baxter who’s here for you?” the receptionist said.

My lips tugged upward.  “Please show her in Carly.”

“Right away, sir.”

I pushed most of my paperwork to the side and gave my email a quick perusal when in walked the she-devil herself.

“Thank you, Carly.  Please shut the door behind you.”  Carly nodded and left.  “I guess you stuck to your decision.  Thanks for coming.”  I took in her attire.  Black pin-striped pencil skirt, up to her mid-thigh… Nice; crème satin blouse, unbuttoned enough to see the top of her peeks… Gorgeous; natural make-up but accented with dark red lipstick… Sexy as fuck; and her chestnut brown hair was up in a loose chignon, showing off the length of her slender neck, the tresses begging for a man to let them loose and run his fingers through them… Beautiful.

The internal screeching of a scratched record resounded in my head.  Hold on… What?

“Where do you want me?” she asked.

Sexually explicit answers swam through my thoughts but I shoved them to the side.  It wouldn’t do well to anger the beast on her first day.

I cleared my throat.  “We have a few things to discuss first.”  Gesturing to the chair in front of my desk, I said, “Have a seat.”

I went through the motions of explaining that Nicole would have full health and dental benefits from the get-go.  She was more than happy with the other perks that came with the job but a little hesitant about the travelling that would be needed on occasion.

Her eyes bulged when I pointed out her salary which was a bit short of six figures.  “Are you sure about this?”

“About what?”  I asked.

“Don’t you think the salary’s a bit much?”

“Are you asking me to lower it?”  My brow arched.  “I would have thought it obvious, with the fact that you’re not my biggest fan and that some kind of compensation would be more than appropriate.”

She blushed.  “Well…”

The zing to my cock was potent.  I like that look.  Clearing my throat and trying to control my lustful reaction, I said, “So it’s settled then?”  Please agree so you can sign on the dotted line and get out of here before I embarrass myself.

She gave me a small nod and her game face returned.

“Then I’ll need your signature on this stuff.”  I slapped a pen on top of the packet of papers and slid it all over to her before leaning back into my chair and crossing my arms over my chest.

She leaned forward, the white lace of her bra peeking through the gap in her shirt.

My throat constricted, my groin stirred further at the sight.

Nicole signed her life away, got up and stuck her hand out.  I took it and held her eyes which widened.  I held on to her delicate fingers, entranced by the feel of softness and warmth a moment longer than necessary, which caused her cheeks to flush and thus reminding me to release her.

“So… um… my desk is…”  She pointed just outside my door into the open-concept office suite with a thumb over her shoulder.

“Yes.  Go ahead, make yourself at home and then we can talk about my agenda and the other stuff I’ll need you to tend to so we can get caught up and jump into other things,” I said.

“I don’t have anything to settle, so why don’t I grab a notepad and pen and we can cut to the chase?” shesuggested.

“Sounds good to me.”

The moment the woman turned around, I was quick to adjust myself.

Before we knew it, lunchtime had arrived and Nicole was at her desk with a rather extensive list of tasks to perform.

My lunch meeting being cancelled at the last minute left me with some time to myself.  Realizing that I had yet to eat anything all day, I decided to head to the deli across the street.

When I stepped out of my office, I found my new assistant sitting at her desk, eating some kind of leftover meal that didn’t seem all that appetizing.  Nicole dropped her fork in the dish and pushed it away from her with a scowl and proceeded to be engrossed in her workstation.

“I thought that you’d be out with friends, celebrating your first day.  You know you’re allowed to leave the building right?” I sassed.

Her fingers halted on the keyboard.  “Funny.”  She kept her eyes to her computer screen instead of looking at me.  “I thought you said you had a lunch meeting?”she said as she typed a few more strokes.

“Cancelled,” I announced.  She still didn’t turn to look at me, instead, typed a few more additional notes.  “Listen, it doesn’t seem like you’re enjoying the lunch you brought withyou, I’m heading out to the deli if you’d like to join me; my treat in honor of your first day.”

“Thanks, but I think I’ll pass.”

This time, when her fingers hit the keyboard again, it felt like I’d been dismissed.

“Fine.  Enjoy your shitty leftovers then.”

I thought I heard her grumble as I walked away.

In the hour I was out, my phone’s alert system was getting some serious mileage.  As I checked the source of the chime, appointment after appointment filled my calendar and I smiled.

Quick and efficient the woman was turning out to be.  I made a mental note to thank Danica for her recommendation.  For her first day, Nicole sure knew how to handle an office she was unfamiliar with.  I wondered how smooth things would run once she felt comfortable.

When I got back, papers that had seen far too much of the light of day had been removed and I could only assume that Nicole had filed them away during my absence, seeingas they were nowhere to be found.

I walked into my office and noticed that even my desk, which had been an organized chaos when I had left, looked tidier.  The pile of files on the edge of it had disappeared as well.

I turned to say something to Nicole and found her on the phone.

“I’ll be sure to let him know,” she said and giggled in the phone.  “Sure… will do, sir.”  She hung up, closed a file folder and got up in a rush, almost crashing into me.  “Uh… here.”  She pushed the file at me.  “Mr. Winthrow called and he’s on for Monday at lunch.  I guess you’re flying out to Austin.  Did you need me to coordinate your travel arrangements?”

“That would be wonderful, thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”  She dropped to her seat, pulled up my agenda and started tapping away at the keyboard again.

Damn!  The woman was like my last three assistants combined and on steroids!

The rest of the afternoon flew by, with Nicole walking in and out of my office with various files, removing those I was done with and everything kind of flowed. Before I knew it, I heard a knock on my door.

“I’m heading out.  Is there anything you need before I go?” she asked.

I glanced at the clock on the bottom right of my computer screen.  “No.”  I gave her a warm smile.  She gave me an awkward look but it was all.  “Thanks for today.  You were great.”

“No prob.  It’s what I do.”  She shrugged her shoulders.  “See you tomorrow.”

“Yeah.”

I looked around my office and realized that for the first time in months I was able to leave work at a decent time — before dinner.

I locked my office, pocketed my keys and headed out, waving to the few assistants and VPs that remained.  The look of surprise at my early departure on their faces was comical.

I drove toward my house and then decided to take a detour.  I wasn’t in the mood to eat alone.

Circling the block a few times before deciding to stop and park, I walked up the front steps and rang.

Jordan, my nephew answered.  “Uncle Mike, what are you doing here?”

“Hello to you too.”  I fist-bumped him and walked in.  “Any room for an extra person at the dinner table?”  I walked into the kitchen and watched Jake in action.

“You’re out of the office already?” Danica asked.

“Yeah.  Thanks for that.”  I smirked.  “She might not be my biggest fan but the woman looks good and knows how to work.”

“Sounds like someone’s got a crush,” Jordan said in a singsong tone.

“Pipe down Romeo!” I told him.

“I think he might be right,” Jake said with a smile.

“Guys!” Danica’s warning tone came out.  “There’snothing going on with those two and let’s face it, they’re all kinds of wrong for each other.”

“Some people would have said the same thing about us.”  Jake wrapped himself around her back and rubbed her humongous belly.  “Look at us now.”

“Mmmhmm,” she said and turned her head sideways to meet her husband’s lips.

“Damn you guys make it look easy,” I mumbled and took a seat at the table, pouring myself a glass of iced water and downing half of it in two gulps.

“Do I sense a change of heart?” Danica asked with a smirk, her arms crossed over her chest in suspicion.

The thoughts that had run rampant in my head from the last two nights came to mind.  “Maybe.”

“Well amen!”  She said, raising her hands to the air in a dramatic fashion.  “He’s finally seen the light!”

“Dani, I haven’t been that bad,” I told her.  “It’s just that lately…”

“Told you, man,” Jake said, “it gets old quick… and lonely.”

I nodded.  Oh how right he was.