Blood Match (7 page)

“Yes sir, completely understood!” She replied with a hurt edge to her voice at being dealt with so strictly, squirming with humiliation and blushing strongly at her dire embarrassing situation.

“You may go back to your desk now” he said in a resigned tone. She stood up and walked away with as much dignity as she could. He threw her a parting comment as she neared the door and she turned in pleasant surprise…

“By the way Miss Green, your presentation today was most interesting, thank you for your efforts. Please schedule a short meeting with me in here at 10am tomorrow to explain some more. Put it on my calendar will you.”

“Yes Mr. Karrigan” She replied sweetly.  She put her hand on the door handle and turned it, her spirits raising a little.

“And Serena – I actually quite liked some of your wild dancing” She turned yet again to find he had his head down looking at some papers on his desk but he looked like he might be smiling to himself.

What was that? A mini truce perhaps… an olive twig?

Chapter 12

At 10am the next morning she arrived in his office. He was wearing a pale lilac shirt, no tie and leaning back on his chair watching her approach his desk with an expressionless face. He had a look about him that was highly appealing to her, even yesterday when he was angry. He was so totally hot! It scorched her eyes when she looked at him…!  She tried not to stare at him in too obvious a fashion.

“Good morning Mr. Karrigan” She said as she stood in front of his desk.

He caught her scent as she stood in front of him. It was more than mouthwatering. His senses were whirling in a frenzy. He gulped and zoned it out.

“Good morning Serena. Shall we sit at the table over there? It’s easier to show me things if we are side by side.” He said disarming her for a moment.

“It’s Miss Green, sir.” She said pointedly. “I don’t think we should be on first name terms in the office, considering…”

His eyes narrowed with a little annoyance.

“Very well. If you prefer that we maintain the formal approach, Miss Green it shall be” he said evenly.

She walked across to the round table in the corner of his office. She had her presentation slides printed out and accompanying notes in a file. She had also made initial progress since the board meeting which she wanted to share with him, to show him she was already taking this job very seriously. He followed her over and sat down next to her, pulling the chair close.

She was acutely aware of him from the start. He had a heady scent which was assailing her senses and she could feel an electric charge buzzing between them. He seemed larger than life sitting at her side. It was nigh on impossible to keep her mind on what she was doing and saying and her breathing kept going out of step. She was sure he could hear her breathing, it was so heavy. Why couldn’t she get herself in check?

It occurred to her that this meeting was a deliberate ploy. He was testing the strength of her professional resolve. One step out of line and she would be out of this company. She was sure of it. He asked her lots of questions and she hoped she answered him satisfactorily. He seemed genuinely very interested in what she was saying. Once or twice his arm and hand brushed against hers and she felt weak and lightheaded from his touch.  At last she came to the end of the file and both her notes and her mind were exhausted.

“That is all I have for you just now Mr. Karrigan. I should be getting back to my desk soon – I have some important things to do for you today…” She said in an attempt to conclude their meeting and escape from his presence. She needed some fresh air desperately. He stood up and moved to one side of the table. She stood up and faced him. Those sexy eyes…. He was just so appetising…. Her knees were weak… She felt faint with longing ….

“I enjoyed this meeting Miss Green. I think I understand your plan a lot better now. You have made a really good start.”

He looked at her intensely, with something that looked more than a little like admiration… she melted like warm chocolate inside.

She smiled briefly saying thank you, outwardly managing to stay very composed. What on earth was the matter with her…? Why did he have such a massive effect on her?  She asked herself sternly as she made her way towards the door…

She was pathetic!

Chapter 13

The following days were busy with setting up batches of paid campaigns and new social accounts. She could start to feel some traction in her work. They were getting more visitors to the company website and more comments, likes and shares, retweets and so on across the board. She felt fairly confident this would positively affect sales eventually.

The products the company made were absolutely amazing, they didn’t need much of a kick in the right direction… she loved the mood murals best of all and posted lots of images and information about them on their accounts. She just needed a few more weeks to get everything in place and set up a regular maintenance plan.

Thankfully she had not laid eyes on Mr nice eyes since their intimate little meeting round the table. Her senses were very calm and collected in his absence. She had previously checked his outlook calendar and noticed he was away in Bonn for the last two days at a trade fair with Mr Lin the Technology & Design Director, but apparently he was back today.

It was 4pm Friday afternoon and she was really looking forward to her weekend off. This week had been very tiring for her in a variety of ways. Discovering who her boss was being the main one. She was sitting alone in the office, Everyone else had just left for the day. The phone suddenly rang and on the phone LCD display and she could see it was him, her beloved CEO.

Oh no… what did
he
want so late at the end of the week? She wondered.

She answered it with a curt “Hello Mr Karrigan….”

“Miss Green, I have a task for you. Would you come up here please? Bring your coat and bag with you.”

Curiously she went up to his office as instructed. He was waiting outside the door.

”I have an important meeting with a prospective Joint Venture client this afternoon. I want to know how we can forge ahead with this partnership in certain social ways. So I need you with me.  I apologise for the short notice. I have just arranged it.” He explained briefly.

“Of course I’ll do what I can to help” She managed. He needed her? Well that was a good sign. She was useful!  She basked in the knowledge of being needed for a moment. Sadly her good feeling didn’t last for very long.

“Miss Green, if there is alcohol at this event. Can I trust you to behave yourself?”

“I beg your pardon?” She replied quite offended.

“I need you to guarantee you will not become intoxicated and misbehave… am I clear?”

”As clear as glass” She said very icily, fuming. They went up in the lift to the car parking area where the car was waiting. They got in the back in silence. She was completely seething. She couldn’t control her tongue any more so she let him have it full force once the driver had closed the dividing window and they set off through the city.

“Sir, I find your last remark totally unnecessary. You agreed we would draw a line. I have been totally professional since I started working here and I mean to carry on that way. I wouldn’t dream of getting drunk at a corporate event! I am offended and rather upset you would think I would!”

She had her head turned towards him and gave him an icy glare. He was looking at her with a small smile starting at the corner of his mouth…

She realised quite suddenly just how ruthless, clever and manipulative he must be to own and run this company. And from what she gathered from Alistair, there were many others. She felt like a lamb sitting next to a lion.

He had only said that to deliberately rile her and she walked straight into it! She pursed her lips and flashed her angry eyes at him.

“Is that so?”  He replied staring at her intently “Why should what I say or think offend or upset you Serry?”

Oh dear, he had caught her out there, she thought…and trying to disarm her with the pet name too….

“You are my boss. Of course you can upset and offend me. I am very deeply concerned what you think of me actually” She admitted truthfully. She might as well be honest with him. Her cards were now on the table.

“Oh really? Well that’s interesting. Deeply concerned about what? What does it matter if I
“think”
you are a drunken tramp or a sober virgin? How does it affect your work ethic or abilities? Not that much, I’d guess. What I think about you personally is of no consequence at all. Unless I matter to you in some way Serena… Is that the case?” He said quite unexpectedly.

What is he doing here? She thought in confusion. She tried to conjure up an appropriate smart mouthed retort but couldn’t think of one. So she sidestepped instead.

“Mr. Karrigan, please! Let’s not step over our boundaries. Remember this is work!”  She said rather pleased with her response.

“We have some unbelievable chemistry going on, have you not noticed?” he added in a seductive voice.

He was testing her really hard now. She could deal with this somehow.

“Yes I agree, we do. But this is now a working relationship. Don’t blur the lines for me”

”You cannot resist me Serena.  You and I both know it.” He added moving very close to her.

“This is getting very personal, for a business relationship. What do you suggest I do, as your employee?”

“What I suggest you do is be quiet for a moment whilst I kiss you. You can tell me you don’t want me after that.”

“No, I really don’t think you should…” her words are halted mid-sentence as Ethan pulled her towards him and gently pressed his warm mouth against hers. As he felt her give a little, he pulled her much closer and slipped the tip of his tongue into her mouth, touching hers.  She couldn’t help herself responding to him and she wound her arms around his neck running her hands through his wonderful soft hair. He kissed her for so long it felt like every last ounce of breath was sucked out of her lungs. Her eyes were closed in a state of rapture. Fireworks were exploding in every part of her body and every bell in the whole damn kingdom was ringing loud and clear in her ears. She was so hot for him it was acutely painful. He released her slightly and looked at her flushed face.

“I think we both know exactly what our relationship is Serena, don’t we?”

“Ethan… what kind of test are you conducting here…? I don’t deny I find you very attractive or that there’s chemistry. You were quite clear that you expected me to behave properly at work and now this. You’re the one not being professional!  What on earth are you doing to me? Trying to get me to sabotage myself! I don’t understand your motives for all of this!”

“My motives?  That’s simple… I want you. You want me too. Forget work, just for a few minutes. Indulge yourself with me.”

For a moment she was undecided if he was playing her for a fool. Then she suddenly tipped over the edge of reason and didn’t care. His eyes were deep pools of golden desire burning in her brain. She was attracted to him with a strong magnetic force she couldn’t resist even if her life depended on it.  She simply couldn’t help herself.  She let him pull her back with a deep sigh and they were soon into some seriously heated action on the back seat of the car. He was paying a lot of attention to her neck sucking and nibbling her gently there, just below her ear. She was getting very turned on by it all but a warning bell was quietly sounding in a dark recess of her brain.

Something was just not right about their situation. She broke away and sat up suddenly.

“Where are we going exactly?” She asked with concern as they drove through the country lanes.

“Back to my place” he said quietly watching her reaction.

“What about the special meeting?” She asked suspiciously.

“It’s at my place” he answered

“Who is the JV?”  She asked.

“It’s just you and I” he said.

“You planned this?” She asked him, truly incredulous.

“Mmm… do you mind?” he murmured kissing her fingers one by one.

“Well yes, I bloody do in fact!” She said with her voice rising and snatching her hand away from him. “Tell your driver to take me home this minute!” Tears were threatening to fall. “How could you Ethan? You are my boss and here you are intentionally taking me straight from the office back to your house to do what, to seduce me…..? Under false pretences too! And you ask if I mind? Are you for real? How does this leave me, can I ask… how can I work for you after this?”

She was getting more than a little upset.

“Calm down, Serry. I’ll take you home, if that’s what you really want.”

His voice had taken on a hard edge. He was angry and frustrated. She understood that. She also knew he was used to getting just what he wanted and she was refusing and defying him. Engineering her into this position was so completely wrong. They had only just established their working relationship and now it all lie in ruins. She could not switch between one type of relationship and another just like that, back and forth, as he saw fit. This was all going so wrong…

What on earth was going to happen now, she wondered?

He pressed a button on the dashboard and instructed his driver to take her home. He knew her address? – But of course he did…! She was sure he knew absolutely everything about her by now!

They sat in silence… He was brooding and angry and she felt justifiably even more so with him. She got out of the car outside her flat without any parting words at all…

Chapter 14

The weekend passed and she did not hear from her boss until the middle of the following week. Her mind was totally consumed with him. The thought of their intimacy and the heat generated between them made her feel faint with desire every time it passed through her mind, which unfortunately was most of the day. She was finding it very difficult to do any work at all! She was making stupid mistakes and absentmindedly kept doodling his initials on her notepad which really, really annoyed her. She was still so angry, confused and hurt over his little ‘plan’ to seduce her in such an underhanded way. She was not sure what his intentions were or what to do about these latest developments.