Take a Breath(81)

My God I love this man. He sits there, one solid hunk of a sexy beast. There should be a law against looking like him. He’s just way too much. I want and need every single molecule of him.

“I must say you’re very sexy right now, Miss Sinclair. You don’t know how tempting it is to grab you, pull you over to me, throw my things aside, and ravish you on my desk.”

I almost purr in anticipation. A different kind of heat reaches my face now, and rapidly hits me between my legs. I shift in the chair, uncross, then cross my legs. Jake, sits there staring at me intently, watching my every move. I manage to stutter out, “Ok,” as Jake laughs at my eagerness.

“Now, now, Ana. You know that’s one rule I cannot break, even for you. As much as I would love to lick every part of that beautiful body of yours, I have work to do.”

I frown at him and he laughs. “Now go on, Ana. Leave that file on my desk and get. You’re too much of a distraction in here.”

I swing my heels and leave his office, despite the desperate aching need between my legs. How am I going to get through the rest of the day now?

I return to my desk and find a chicken salad bought from my favourite ‘Take a Pick,’ sandwich bar across the road from us. Jake again. He won’t let me out in broad daylight, just to walk a few metres across a road. He’s managed to get people to be my gofer now. I sit down and bury my head in my hands.

“I’m sorry, I thought you liked the chicken, Mrs Bennett?”

Tom the asshole takes a seat on my desk. “Yes, very funny, Tom. I’m never going to live this down now, am I?”

He shakes his head and laughs, “I’m afraid not, Mrs Bennett.”

I glare at him which makes him laugh even louder.

“Where’s your new sidekick? Has he grown sick of looking at you already and put in for a transfer? I wouldn’t blame him.”

He places a hand on his chest. “Now that hurt, Ana. I have very delicate feelings that you’re stamping all over right now.”

He pulls a pouty sad face and I start laughing. No matter how much of a slime ball Tom is, I must hand it to him; he’s a funny slime ball.

“He’s gone for some lunch. I thought I’d let him loose for a little bit.”

I squeeze his arm. “Thanks for the salad, Tom. It is appreciated.”

He looks down to where my hand is placed and smiles. “You know if you just move your hand a few more inches to your left, that would be perfect.”

I yank my hand away. “Eww, Tom, that’s gross. Piss off you little sick piece of shit. Just think, I was trying to be nice to you as well.”

He rises from my desk laughing hysterically as he makes his way back to his desk. Everyone is looking now, wondering what on earth has just happened.

I’m about to tuck into my salad— feeling drawn from staring at the computer practically all morning—when one of the other Analysts, Mandy comes over.

“Hey, Ana. How are you? Do you want some coffee? I’m going to make one.”

I smile, but I’m a bit wary. Normally she doesn’t speak to me that often, let alone make me coffee.

“That would be lovely, Mandy. Thank you.”

She beams at me, grabs my mug and heads for the coffee room. Now that was weird.

A couple of minutes later and a few bites into my salad, she comes bouncing back.

“Here you go, Ana. Black, isn’t it?”

I nod and say thank you.

“I just wanted to say that I feel bad, you know, with what you’re going through. We’ve been kind of told to leave you alone, but if it were me, I would want someone to talk to.”

They’ve been told to leave me alone. When did that happen? I’m not a leper. Jake and his over protectiveness.

“You were all told this?”

She sees the mortified look on my face and blushes. She may have realised she’s made a bit of a blunder.

“Erm, well yes. I think Mr Bennett thought that maybe you would be better off not having people fuss around you. Sorry, I thought you knew.”

I grab and squeeze at Mandy’s arm. I’m shocked when I realise just how thin she is underneath her blouse. I look up to her deep brown eyes and for the first time really see Mandy. She has the sincerity there, which immediately puts me at ease.

I ask her to sit in Jessie’s chair so I can have a chat with her whilst on my break. I learnt a lot about Mandy in that half an hour. She is not that much older than me, born and raised in Sterling, and has been living on her own in an apartment for the last five years. She has a lovely young man in her life, which she has been dating for the last year. They are now talking about moving in together. She has two sisters and three brothers, so quite a family. She lost their father two years ago, which I could see was still fresh in her mind. She obviously loved him a great deal.