"What the hell were you doing?" he grumbled, standing up.
"I was making sure you weren't dead." I realised how stupid it sounded as soon as the words left my mouth.
"I was breathing wasn't I?" He looked down at me, and his face softened instantly. He offered me his hand. "I'm sorry, but you scared me. Are you okay, Marley?"
He lifted me up and embraced me. He caressed my behind, soothing the area where I'd landed. I looked towards the door because we were in a compromising position.
"Did you hurt yourself, baby?"
"No, except for my eardrums when you screamed. You scream like a girl," I teased, hoping it would distract from the fact that I was gawking at him in his sleep.
Rick laughed. "Yeah, I guess that happens when I wake up to someone staring at me. Even someone as beautiful as you. I like hearing you scream better, especially when it's my name."
I pushed him away from me and sauntered out to my desk.
"Marley?"
I turned around, giving him a placating smile.
"I don't mind if you watch me sleep, but perhaps you'll return the favour one day. I want to know how you say my name when you're dreaming."
My smile disappeared and I rushed out, closing his office door behind me. I sat at my desk, overwhelmed by all the emotions pouring into me. Did he have any idea what he'd just said to me? How it resonated so deeply? The whole reason I didn't want to spend the night with him was because I never wanted him to see the crazy person I became when I dreamed. The person who was violent and lacked control.
I heard Rick's footsteps as he approached me. He placed his hands on my shoulders, bending down so we were at eye level. "I'm sorry, Marley. It was just my lame attempt at humour. I don't know what I said, but I have a feeling I scared you more than you scared me."
I didn't know how to respond so I yanked on his tie and pulled him in for a kiss. It wasn't the smartest idea since we were at work, and he appeared to be struggling with his willpower too. He kissed me back, grasping my waist. The next thing I knew I was off the ground. I instinctively placed my arms around his shoulders and wrapped my legs over his waist while he carried me into his office. He locked the door behind us and shut the blinds.
"Can't have any Peeping Toms," he said jokingly.
This was dangerous territory, but the way his tongue was moving inside my mouth, I couldn't remember why.
Rick scanned his office, searching for a place to take me. It was all very humorous, because his desk was scattered with copy material. Even in his spontaneity, Rick was too studious to be the kind of guy to swipe the papers off his desk. He looked down at the dark, brown carpeting and back up at me. I shook my head in response. I'm no germaphobe, but I had no idea when that carpet had last been cleaned, and the thought of lying on it was somewhat disgusting, especially because I knew the original colour was closer to beige than brown.
"Care to assist me with a problem I'm having, Miss Mason?"
"Of course, what can I do for you, Mr Richard Randy?"
"Well, I really want to fuck you right this second. The question is where?"
"Umm … well, anywhere but my arse, please," I replied jokingly, feigning a British accent. It sounded more like Professor McGonagall than Bridget Jones.
Rick cocked his eyebrows. "You know that's not what I meant, right?"
"Yes, but I see the way you look at my arse and feel you need to be reminded."
"Well, Miss Mason, you do have a breathtaking backside, and I am but a mere man."
"No worries, I myself am a lowly assistant, trying to turn you on with my sexy voice." I batted my eyelashes ridiculously for effect.
"Is that supposed to be British or Irish? I can't tell."
I sighed. "Are you going to fuck me or not?"
I didn't even comprehend his movements because they were so swift. I found myself pinned against the wall. The same wall that we'd shared our first kiss, coincidentally. Rick pushed my skirt up, unzipped his pants and pulled my panties to the side. "This is your fault. You know what you do to me when you wear a garter belt."
"Why do you think I wore one?" After that, I had trouble articulating clearly because he was thrusting into me. He nibbled at my neck and bit my earlobe. The steady thrusts gave way to a fierce pounding. I felt every motion as I clung to his neck and tightened my legs around him.
"I love being inside you. I crave it. I crave you all the time, Marley Mason," he said in a coarse whisper against my neck.
I screamed out, causing him to cup his hand to my mouth.
"Shhh, baby, don't forget where we are, okay?"
I did forget-he made me forget everything. I felt my climax as he continued to pulse into me. It was deeper this way, stronger because our fortitude and strength had diminished. We wanted each other too much for our own good. Rick made his final thrust and leaned his head against the wall. His breath heated my neck.
"You're going to break me, baby."
I would have thought it was a joke, but he'd said it seriously with a tinge of sadness. I kissed the top of his head, not sure how to reply. He removed himself and set me down gently.
"Thank you for your assistance, Miss Mason," Rick said in his normal voice, kissing my hand. The moment was over, but he revealed something to me then. Something he wanted to keep to himself. This was going to be painful when it was over for both of us. I didn't quite feel that pain yet, but it was buried deep inside me, readying to come out.
Chapter Thirteen
It was Friday, the best day of the week, but I had to admit I was a little dejected because I couldn't spend the evening with Rick. The sadness turned into indignation when he called me into his office for ‘dictation'. I walked into his office, approaching his desk wearily. "Rick, seriously? We can't let it happen again. We have to keep this professional."
He smiled cynically. "Where's your notepad?"
"What do you mean?"
"How can you take dictation without a notepad? Oh, were you thinking something else, you naughty girl?"
I stood over to his desk, hands on my hips. "Very funny. I think I need to throw something at you."
He took my arm and pulled me down into his lap. "Sorry, baby, I honestly do have a few memos for you to type up."
"If that's the case, then why am I in your lap?" I asked, not stopping him when he kissed me.
"I couldn't help myself. You're so fucking beautiful when you're pretending to be angry."
"I wasn't pretending, mister! Seriously, people are starting to talk about us," I stammered, between his kisses.
"Who's talking, Marley? Give me their names and I'll fire them." Rick laughed, with that wicked, boyish smile. I shook my head and tried to get up, but his grip was too tight. He kissed my neck and it melted any willpower I might have had. "Did you get my present?"
"Yes, I received your presents, plural. I'm wearing one of them. Thank you very much, but did you buy out the whole Victoria's Secret catalogue?"
He laughed. "I didn't know what you'd like so I got some of everything. I'm sorry it's so late, but I reminded you repeatedly that I owed you some panties. Since you kept procrastinating about picking them out, I had to take it upon myself. I didn't know what you'd want, I just picked everything that I liked. Who knew there was such variety?"
"Yeah, it's kind of hard to explain to your mom why you're receiving a truckload of lingerie."
"Ah, sorry, I didn't think about that one. I was too busy thinking about how I was going to rip it all off you."
I pulled away from him, trying to keep my composure. "What's wrong?" he asked me.
"I forgot to tell you, I have plans tonight."
"I know, so do I. Why do you think I was trying to cop a feel?"
I gave him a confused look. "What plans do you have?"
"I can't have plans? Are you jealous?" he asked, moving in for another kiss. I put my arm against his chest to stop him.
"I guess it would depend on who you have plans with and what you plan to do."
"Baby, I'm doing the same thing you are. I know you have your sister's bachelorette party tonight, and I'm going to Adam's bachelor party."
In a way, I was surprised. I knew Rick and Adam had become friends, but I didn't realise they were on that level.
"Does that make you feel better?"
"Not especially. Are you going to a strip club?" I had no idea what Adam was doing, but I didn't like the idea of Rick ogling other woman.
Rick laughed right in the face of my insecurity. "I think so, but don't worry, I'll be thinking of you the whole time."
"Eww, don't think of me when you're watching some girl disrobe and gyrate in fake tassels … that disgusts me."
"Do you want me to think of her?"
"Point taken … think of me."
"It will be easy to think about you because I think about you all the time." He pulled me in for a longer kiss, expertly sneaking his tongue into my mouth. When we separated, I was a little breathless. His kisses still did that to me. The man was a great kisser.