"You found a gym already?"
"Yes, it's just around the corner. Do you want to come with me sometime?"
Yeah right! I worked out, but I couldn't imagine the thought of being next to him, suffering through watching him being all sexy and sweaty. My cheeks flushed at the mere thought.
"No thanks."
"You sure? Apparently, I get a discount if I sign someone up." He grinned pleasantly.
Hmm … maybe he's a cheapskate after all.
"Yes, thanks for the Zesty bar."
"Sure."
"Marley, can you work late tonight and file those papers for me?"
I nodded, since my only plans for this evening were with my vibrator, and that could wait.
"I'm eventually going to make the company paperless before I leave, but for now, the files are necessary."
"Isn't that dangerous? I mean, what if there's a network crash?"
"Not if you're careful. We'll have a back-up, and it will save time and money in the long run."
"It sounds efficient," I replied optimistically.
"It will make things run much tighter around here and create a surge of free space and resources." He emphasised the words tighter and surge.
I high-tailed it out of his office, trying not to slam the door behind me. I used my water bottle to wet a napkin and ran it across my neck. The rest of the day was long but productive. The filing cabinets had been set up, and I got to work straight away. Rick didn't come out of his office, and I was thankful for that. He was horribly distracting to me in every way.
After five, the lights dimmed outside our office. I heard the shuffling of bags and coats as people rushed out. I still had a ton of filing to do, and now I was alone … with him. It was very rare that anyone worked late in our office. I wasn't frightened of Rick, but rather by the idea of my own devious thoughts becoming actions. I concentrated on my work, but around six, I heard the unmistakably sultry sounds of Santana and Rob Thomas, playing through his office door. He was listening to Smooth, one of my favourite Santana songs. It made me relax and I started sashaying to it while I filed. I couldn't help it-the things Santana's guitar did to my body should be illegal. My hips swayed to the rhythm in a silly samba. Funny, it didn't seem like the type of song I'd picture Rick liking, but then again, why wouldn't he? It was extremely seductive and sexual just like him. I imagined he could salsa the way men should-masculine and controlling and just so damn … smooth.
"Marley?" His sexy voice chimed through my thoughts. My back went ramrod straight. Geez, this man was too quiet when he walked. I needed to put a cowbell on him. I turned around adjusting my hair anxiously.
"Can you add these files?" he asked, grinning broadly at me.
"Sure," I said curtly, taking the files.
"You were dancing."
"You were playing Santana," I replied as if that was an explanation.
"Oh, Santana makes you dance?"
"I guess so. Does he make you leer like some kind of stalker?" I snapped. My indignation only caused his smirk to widen.
"No, Marley, you manage to do that on your own."
I swallowed, but my throat was completely dry. I leaned against the cabinet. I hoped he would think it was for comfort, but in that moment, it was for complete support.
"I'll have to remember that."
"Remember what?" I tried to sound offended, but it came out breathless instead.
"To download more Santana, of course. I really enjoyed the show."
I wanted to reply with some witty comeback, but before my brain could function, he walked back to his office.
I allowed myself ten minutes to calm down, thinking I would need to buy new batteries for my vibrator since it was going to get plenty of use. I walked into his office when I was done filing to let him know I was leaving. I didn't want to, but it was something I would have done with Mr Bellman. I wouldn't give Rick the satisfaction of knowing how he was affecting me, although at this point, it was probably obvious.
He has a girlfriend. He's your boss. He's not suitable for a one-night stand. You don't do relationships. He has a girlfriend … I repeated the phrases like a mantra as I approached him.
"I just wanted to let you know I'm leaving." I tried to keep my tone even. He glanced towards the clock then back at me. I wondered if he was trying to keep track of my hours. "The filing is all done."
He surprised me when he said, "Thank you, I'll walk you out."
"Are you leaving?"
"No, I have some more work to do, but I want to see you to your car." He grabbed his jacket as he walked towards the door.
I held out my hands, shaking my head. "Really, that's okay. I'm perfectly capable of walking to my car alone."
He paused, but only for a moment. "I know that, but it's late, and the parking lot's empty." He gestured to the picture window behind him.
"Seriously, the chivalry thing is nice, but totally unnecessary," I said laughing, but it sounded a little too hysterical. I couldn't imagine being alone with him in the elevator for sixteen flights.
His chiselled features became completely sombre. "Marley, I'm not joking. Every day that you work late, I'm going to make sure you get to your car. It's non-negotiable for me. If you won't allow me to, I can't have you stay late." He spoke slowly with concentrated intent. It was no use arguing-he was determined.
"Fine," I conceded. We walked in silence towards the elevator. I didn't want to admit it, but it was actually quite nice of him to escort me. I had stayed once before, much later than this, for Mr Bellman, and he hadn't so much as acknowledged it.
We both went to opposite ends of the elevator car, as if being too close was dangerous. He has a girlfriend. He's your boss. Look at that silky hair. Crap no! He's not about casual consensual. Look at those hard abs … wonder what else is hard? Fuck! Rick was my Kryptonite. I breathed a sigh of relief when the elevator doors opened, finally releasing us from our confinement.
He walked me to my car in silence then opened the door for me. He thanked me for my hard work and told me to drive safe before heading back into the building. It was the sweetest gesture. Part of me wanted to express that to him, but most of me just wanted to hit the accelerator and rush home to my vibrator.
Chapter Four
Rick definitely scored many touchdowns over the weekend, at least in my mind. We'd fallen into a more comfortable pattern. The next few weeks were a little easier. He would still make the occasional double entendre and I would ignore it, but for the most part, we did work well together. I had more responsibilities in my new position as his assistant, and I enjoyed that. He asked for my advice on his ideas quite a bit and I was pleased when he actually took it, but I was completely flattered when he gave me the credit I was due. I went to meetings with him and Henley. Kathy was there too. It was almost comical. I would bring up an idea and Kathy would shoot it down immediately, saying it was impractical. Henley was oblivious to the power play that was happening, but Rick seemed to sense it. He was a very smart man. He would bring up the idea a few minutes later re-wording it slightly. Kathy would gush all over it saying it was brilliant, to which Rick would reply that it was the same idea I'd had. I'd never witnessed office politics play out so clearly.
Kathy was majorly crushing on Rick. She would stop by our office with various, inane excuses for needing his time. He was professional and courteous, but I noticed he never flirted with her. I wondered if his advances towards me were due to the fact that I was his assistant. In reality, the flirting didn't bother me. I actually liked it and I felt if I told him to stop completely, he would. After all, he didn't call me Garter Belt Girl anymore. But I didn't tell him to stop, at least not emphatically, and that was what bothered me.
Rick worked tenaciously to bring all of his projects to fruition. I worked the necessary overtime to complete the items on his checklist, but his hours were massive. I wasn't sure how many, but he was always at the office before me and always left after me. As promised, he walked me to my car whenever I stayed late. He utilised my skills during the day and I fantasised about his skills during the night. In this way, I kept my desires at bay because I knew nothing would come from them. He had a girlfriend, he was my boss and I was a total mess-it helped to keep repeating those boundaries to myself.
I brought him his coffee every morning and every morning he complimented my appearance, especially when I wore a skirt. Occasionally, he would leave a Zesty bar on my desk when I returned from lunch. I started looking forward to the little treats. I had always enjoyed my job, but now I was excited about it-I chalked it up to my new responsibilities, but in the back of my mind, I knew Rick had something to do with it.
On Thursday of our second week, I noticed the Zesty bar after I got back from lunch. I smoothed out the brown paper wrapper, turning it over in my hand. It was such a sweet gesture. I always felt a little disappointed when there wasn't one waiting for me. I started thinking about the days he left them for me. Was there a pattern? I knew it was crazy, but I was in marketing and I've always thought in terms of charts, spreadsheets and graphs. I was technically still on my lunch hour, since Dillon and I had just run out and got food, so I decided to spare a few minutes to think about the Zesty bar pattern.