He was between women right now, the last one having become far too clingy, and normally he wouldn’t have given Katherine a second glance. He liked his women to be sexy and outgoing, to know what they wanted and not be afraid to ask for it. But he was also a Dom, and he sensed that she was a natural submissive, albeit one who was inexperienced with men. His practiced eye eventually saw past the drab exterior and to the exquisite figure beneath that she downplayed, and his instincts told him that the right man could not only bring out her external beauty, but awaken her sexually as well.
He’d seen those fists of hers bunch when Dave had tried to steal her coffee as punishment for drawing his attentions. He glanced sideways at his assistant now, who was busy setting up the projector. He knew perfectly well about Dave’s feelings for him and his proclivity for jealousy towards the women he brought around, but that was just too bad. He wasn’t sexually attracted to men, and if he had been he suspected Dave wouldn’t be his type anyway. If it weren’t for the fact that Dave was the best assistant he’d had in his ten years as CEO of Empire Creations he would have gotten rid of him—it didn’t pay to have an assistant constantly mooning after him that he wasn’t sexually attracted to. But his efficiency more than made up for that problem, so he would deal with it. And if Dave had a problem with his current interest in Katherine, he was just going to have to get used to it. Because now that he’d set his sights on her, he wasn’t going to back down until he got what he wanted.
And as everyone in this office new, Mark Donaldson always got what he wanted.
*
Katherine spent the morning answering phones, handling correspondence and doing the other myriad front desk duties expected of her. Every time she sipped from her caramel macchiato her lips curved into a small smile at the memory of Mark giving Dave a set-down. If nothing else good ever happened to her again on this job, she would treasure that memory forever. It was the first time Mark had ever really paid attention to her.
Of course, it was probably going to be the last time too. She knew from office gossip that the runway model he’d been dating was old news, and he had been without a woman for over a week now. She fully expected to see a new one on his arm by the time he came back from lunch today. Sometimes she wondered how he ever got anything done with all the sex he was obviously having. Her cheeks heated as they always did when she thought of him screwing some woman in his office. Did he like for them to kneel on his desk, doggystyle? Or did he sit back in his chair and let them ride him?
Blinking, she shook her head to snap herself out of it and try and lower the color in her cheeks. It was inappropriate for her to be thinking about her boss having sex with other women… even if he did it during office hours. Why should it matter to her, since she was never going to be one of those women? It’s not like his sexual performance affected the performance of the company. Empire Creations’ stock had risen ten percent in the last week alone. Mark was obviously very good at what he did.
Her heart beat a little faster as she heard the sound of Mark’s expensive shoes briskly hitting the tiled floors. He always walked with a powerful stride and she’d learned to recognize when he was coming by the sound alone. Self-consciously, she patted her hair and adjusted her blouse a fraction, not wanting to look less than her best though she knew he probably didn’t pay her any attention.
He came around the corner and she looked up at him through the fringe of her bangs, admiring his powerful body. He was six foot two with broad shoulders and a stocky build—he looked like he’d probably played as a linebacker in college and had maintained the physique despite being in an office position for who knew how long. Fully expecting him to give her a polite smile and walk out the door, she was surprised when he instead made a beeline for her desk.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Donaldson.” She gave him a small smile, hoping to God her cheeks weren’t as hot as they felt. “What can I do for you?”
He smiled warmly, placing a palm on her desk. “I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind coming out to lunch with me. There are some things I’d like to discuss with you.”
“Lunch?” There was no helping it—her cheeks flushed as her heart pumped faster to deal with the sudden rush of hormones coursing through her body. “My lunch break isn’t for another hour… Dave usually comes to cover for me at two o’clock…” Well, that wasn’t particularly true. He usually was a half hour late at the earliest, but that wasn’t something she was going to complain to Mark about. Most days she was just happy to have this job.