All That She Wants (Connor's Point of View Part 1) (6 page)

She gave me three examples – two more than I
was expecting.

“What’s the best way to structure long-term
incentive plans?”

“It depends on what you want to incentivize,”
she said.

Right answer. Then she proceeded to give me
examples.

HOLY SHIT.

“You didn’t go to school for this?” I asked,
stunned.

“No.”

“How did you pick all this up?!”

“I don’t know… just while I was doing my
job.”

And she shrugged like it was no big deal.

When it was, as Joe Biden would say, a BIG
fucking deal.

The secretary was better at the job than the
VP. In fact, she had probably kept his ass from being called out
and publicly humiliated on several occasions.

And they probably paid her 2% of what he
made.

Not to mention he was an absolute prick to
her.

It completely boggled my mind.

I shook my head in wonder. “Incredible.”

“What?” she asked nervously.

“That you’re an assistant and not a junior
executive, at the very least.”

She stared at me with those big brown eyes
and blushed. “Well… it’s nothing really, just what I’ve picked up
in the last six – ”

“STOP,” I snapped. “Don’t
do
that.
Don’t be modest; don’t lessen your worth like that. You’re an
assistant, but you just showed a better grasp of the big picture
than a couple of Harvard MBA’s I’ve hired in the last month.”

Which was absolutely true – and which was
making me rethink what I was paying those MBA’s.

“Don’t play it off,” I continued. “It’s damn
impressive.
You’re
damn impressive. Don’t ever make yourself
out to be any less than what you really are.”

Situations like this always infuriate me. She
had
so much potential
– so MANY people have so much
potential, like that Stanley guy down in the lobby – but they just
threw it all away because they didn’t believe in themselves.

And the fact that she was throwing it all
away just fuckin’ killed me.

“It’s also a little sad,” I said, because I
couldn’t hold back my feelings.

She’d been staring at me slightly glassy-eyed
up until now. I figured I’d been boring her, but then she jerked
back into the here and now.

“What is?”

“That a woman like you is working for an
idiot like Klaus. The situation should be reversed – and if it
were, I would hope you’d fire his ass.”

She grinned. “In a New York second.”

I was happy to hear that answer – but I
didn’t just want to inspire her à la Tony Robbins and leave it at
that.

So I decided to bring it back to
flirtatious.

“I see so much potential in you, Lily,” I
said, my voice low and seductive. “A huge future. Somebody who
could really go out there and kick some ass. Smart, capable, funny,
charming…
beautiful
, if it’s not inappropriate to say that
again…”

Her mouth dropped open the slightest bit
more.

Damn
I wanted to kiss her…

Not yet. There’s still business to attend
to.

But if I couldn’t kiss her, I was going to
tease her.

“It’s too bad you’re such a doofus,” I said,
and grinned – just to let her know I wasn’t serious.

Her eyes went from glassy to outraged.
“What?! I am
not!”

I was about to assure her it was a joke when
she suddenly asked, “…what exactly do you mean by ‘doofus’?”

“Somebody who, either out of a lack of
intelligence – which isn’t your problem – or a deficit of
self-esteem, sells herself short and puts up with crap she
shouldn’t. Only doofuses work for douchebags,” I said, using a
humorous tone of voice so that she knew I was joking.

Sort of.

She crossed her arms and scowled. “I have to
pay rent, I have to eat, and if the only way to do that is to work
for an asshole,
sorry,
Mr. Bigshot ‘Gonna Buy The Company
Someday,’ but I like having a roof over my head and dinner every
night. It’s not going to be that way forever. It’s only temporary.
Haven’t
you
ever had to put up with crap,
ever,
or is
your life so charmed that you never had to overcome any
setbacks?”

Impressive.

She had backbone.

She had gumption.

She had plans.

I really couldn’t bring up anything about my
own past, or I’d blow my cover.

So I just laughed, and headed for her boss’s
office. “Alright, alright… so you’re just a
little
doofus.
Come on, let’s go dig up some more evidence of your boss’s
douchebaggery.”

She looked at me like she didn’t quite know
what to make of me… and then walked over and unlocked the door.

I spent another hour going through Klaus’s
files. I knew the companies I was looking for – they were all
analogous in size to corporations I invested in or sat on the
boards of. Lily found the ones I wanted and kept a respectful
silence as I pored over them.

Halfway through, I got a text from
Johnny.

Not to rush you, boss, but I thought you said
an hour? You okay?

I texted back:
I’m fine. Something came
up. Just hang out.

Finally I’d had enough of looking through the
files. Klaus was shitty at his job, and now I had proof to kill the
buyout.

But I had a more pressing problem on my
hands.

How to move from a business relationship with
Lily… to something a little more personal.

Actually, a
lot
more personal.

I could ask her out for a drink… but she
probably won’t leave work… working late… coffee. I bet she would
have coffee with me.

Then I remembered the last time I’d been
here, up in the boardroom on the top floor. And I remembered what
was up there.

But how to get inside…?

I scanned Klaus’s desk.

Like a dumbass, he’d left his security badge
right there by his computer.

Excellent.

I looked up at Lily. She was watching me
intently.

“I feel like a cappuccino,” I said. “You feel
like a cappuccino?”

Her face fell.

Shit, Templeton, you really have the
touch.

“Uh… I guess I could go get some Starbucks if
you want,” she said, trying not to sound too disappointed.

I gave an inner sigh of relief.

“Screw that. Last time I was here, there was
a pretty nice machine up in the boardroom. Want to check it
out?”

She immediately perked back up – but then the
fear took over.

Would a lowly secretary break into the
company board room to have some coffee with a stranger?

We were about to find out exactly how naughty
Lily Ross really was.

She narrowed her eyes again. “When were
you
here?”

“Oh, long before your august tenure at
Exerton began. So, what do you say?”

“I don’t have access to that.”

I picked up Klaus’s badge. “I found this on
your boss’s desk. I’m pretty sure
he
has access, doesn’t
he?”

“I… I don’t think we should do that…”

Sell it, Templeton – sell it –

“Oh, come on, live a little. Besides, you’re
supposed to give me anything I want, remember? And right now, I
want a cappuccino, and I want your company.”

She looked at me, her eyes wide.

I could tell she wanted to.

I silently
willed
her to give in.

“…okay,” she reluctantly agreed.

YES.

Game ON.

I tried to make it fun – two kids sneaking
out of the house, or raiding the family liquor cabinet. I wanted
the good vibes to overwhelm her fear – and it worked. She laughed
all the way up to the top floor.

Sure enough, Klaus’s badge got us into the
boardroom. There was a nice view of downtown Los Angeles, with the
lights of the traffic twinkling in the darkness. Up here, above the
noise and the grime on the street, it was almost as pretty as you
could get.

Perfect.

Just as I thought, the cappuccino machine was
a La Marzocco GS/3. I remembered because I’ve got one at home.

Lily seemed lost as she inspected it, though.
“I have no idea how to work this.”

“I’ll take it from here,” I said, and began
prepping the machine.

“Did you work in Starbucks in college or
something?”

I gave her a half-frown, half-smile. “What?
Where did you get that?”

“You know how to work that machine.”

“I
own
one.”

She shook her head. “Must be nice.”

“Nothing but the best, Lily. You should try
it sometime.”

She rolled her eyes at me. I grinned and
fixed the drinks.

After I was finished, we took our cappuccinos
back to the boardroom. I made sure the lights stayed off. Better to
see the city lights, yes… but also way more romantic.

I took a sip as I looked her over.

“This was worth the whole trip,” I said.

She looked over at me. “The view?” she asked,
though she was obviously fishing for a compliment.

“No, the coffee,” I said, and playfully
lifted my cup.

She hit me lightly on the arm.

Ohhhhh, a hitter…

I wonder if that energy comes out in other
ways, too…

I put on a deadpan face. “What? I make a damn
good cappuccino.”

“I hear it’s pretty easy when you have a
million dollar machine to make it for you.”

“Oh really? Is that why you did such a great
job of preparing it for us?”

“Fine,” she said, though she really meant
Smartass.
“You make a damn good cappuccino.”

“Finally, credit where credit is due. But, I
have to say, there
is
one other thing that makes the
cappuccino absolutely amazing…”

“What?”

I stared into her big brown eyes.

She was holding her breath… which I
liked.

“…the view,” I whispered.

She smacked me on the arm again.

I laughed. “Aaah! I’m going to report you to
HR for that!”

“For what?”

“Physical abuse and intimidation.”

“You don’t even work here.”

“Okay, I’m going to report you to HR after I
buy the company.”

“In that case, I don’t ever have to worry
about it, then,” she said, then took a sip of cappuccino and smiled
at me.

She had just the slightest bit of foam on her
lip.

Immediately I thought,
There’s my opening
play.

I gestured to her. “You have a little, uh,
foam on your lip.”

Her smile fell, and she tried to wipe it
off.

“Here, I’ll – just hold still.”

I reached out and touched her mouth.

I could feel her body trembling beneath my
touch.

GOD that turned me on.

I brushed my finger across her lip
seductively. For the first time, I let her see my true feelings –
no humor, no playful flirtation, just naked desire. That I
wanted
her.

And she moaned.

Softly – just barely – but she moaned.

She blushed furiously, as though ashamed of
what she’d given away.

It was one of the biggest turn-ons I’d ever
experienced in my life.

Just as I was about to lean forward and kiss
her, she surprised the hell out of me.

She opened her lips and licked the tip of my
finger.

Softly.

Slowly.

She seemed so innocent and conservative… and
I guess I had let myself believe that, and only that.

I’d forgotten the part about still waters
running deep.

My heart started beating faster as she began
to suck, ever so lightly, playing her tongue over my fingertip.

I was getting hard –
so
hard – just
feeling her mouth, her lips, her tongue.

I couldn’t stand it anymore.

I pulled my fingers away and kissed her.

God she tasted sweet… and not just from the
sugar in the coffee.

I wanted to taste her all over, to find out
if she tasted that sweet everywhere.

I wrapped her up in my arms, crushed her
against me as my need for her became a raging fire.

I wrapped my arms around her, feeling her
curves, her breasts pressing against my body.

She opened her mouth to me, and I slowly
began to French kiss her. So sweet… so soft… so inviting… so
sensual…

I lowered my hands and felt her ass – Jesus,
what an ass. I cupped one cheek in my hand and forced her against
me, pressing her against my cock, which was harder than I could
ever remember. It
ached
to be inside her.

And then she surprised me again.

Her hand drifted slowly… ever so ladylike…
down below my belt…

…and she began to caress me.

Ohhhhhhhh…

She just kept tracing her fingers slowly up
and down my cock… pressed her palm against it, as though she wanted
to cup it, to hold it.

I
wanted
her to hold it. I wanted her
to stroke it, to lick it, to play with it, to put it inside
her.

I had never wanted something so much in my
life.

She moaned again as she stroked me. Moaned
right into my mouth as we kissed.

I hadn’t felt like this in years
.
Miranda had never been this passionate; she’d always had a cool
detachment throughout. Never made a noise.

But this girl…

…I wanted to make her come just so I could
hear what she would sound like.

I took my hand and put it over hers, pressed
her hand over my cock, made her hold it tighter.

Then I whispered in her ear, “You feel
that?”

She nodded silently.

“
YOU
do that to me,” I whispered.
“
YOU
make me hard like that.”

As I said it, I ran my lips along her
earlobe.

She whimpered. I could feel her trembling as
she rubbed me harder.

I reached up and grabbed her hair at the nape
of her neck, softly pulled her head back until her throat was
exposed – and then I began to kiss her. Lick her. Light flicks of
my tongue across her skin, mixed with hot, feverish kisses.