Closer_To_You (10 page)

“Yes, baby, just a little more. Give me just a little more and then I’ll take care of you.” Finally pushing in to the hilt, he paused for a moment, simply enjoying the sensation of being inside of her again. Slowly, he began thrusting inside of her while gripping her ass and controlling her movements on top of him. The snugness of her channel milked him like nothing else had before. Her moans of pleasure were like music to his ears. The feel of her slick body wrapped around his and he felt as if she was what he had been looking for the entire time. All he needed was this woman in his arms. Tuning out anything other than pleasuring Penelope, he fulfilled his promise and took them both to heaven and back several times that night.

 

Sunlight streamed through the windows as Penelope was awakened by her cell phone ringing. Lifting her head to glance at the clock as she reached over to the dresser, she gasped as she noted the time. She scrambled to a sitting position as she grabbed her phone and mumbled “Hello,” in a voice that was still groggy with sleep and somewhat hoarse from screaming last night.

“Penelope, where are you?” This from her work colleague Bettye, the marketing manager at her company. They had formed a friendship over the years and tried to make sure they looked out for each other when things started to go sideways.

“I’m still home.” Frantically looking around her bedroom for any sign of Gabriel, she tried to stay calm as she lifted the tangled covers from her legs and placed her feet on the carpeted floor in her bedroom. “Uhm, I’m running late.”

“Yeah, no shit Sherlock. You were supposed to be here early for that meeting with GTB Technologies that everyone is so up in arms about. Barbara has come by your desk twice looking for you.”

Penelope had walked out to the living room while Bettye had been speaking. Spying a piece of paper lying on her dining room table, she made her way over to it, almost dreading what it would say. It had been a really bad idea to sleep with Gabriel last night. Her rational mind new this, but that didn’t stop the tingle in her body as she remembered all of the things they did. While her body still hummed and the aftershocks of their lovemaking still had her legs weak, she knew that it could never happen again. This was one of the worst decisions she had made. And leave it to her to make that decision over and over again last night. No wonder she had overslept. The man had taken every ounce of energy she had. His mouth should be labeled a lethal weapon after the things he had done to her. Experiencing
le petit mort
had never been so enjoyable.

“Penelope, are you still there?” The loud yell coming through the phone broke her away from picturing her and Gabriel wrapped in each other’s arms last night.

“Huh? What?”

“Did you hear anything I just said to you? Barbara just stopped by again and said to tell you that the meeting has been postponed until eleven this morning. I told her not to worry, that you just weren’t feeling well this morning, but that you were on your way in.”

A sigh of relief was all she could muster at the moment.

“Get your behind in here, girl. And whoever it was that caused you to sleep in like this, you need to tell me all about him.”

“Thanks, Bettye. I appreciate the cover. I’ll be there shortly. Promise.” Having Bettye cover for her was great, but she knew there would be questions later.

“You got it. See you soon.”

Hanging up the phone, Penelope looked back down at the note in her hand and felt her dark skin blush with heat and embarrassment. Her fingers shook slightly as she lifted the note and began to read.

Penelope,

Last night was everything I hoped it would be, and more. Unfortunately, I lied. One more night was not enough. I need to see you again. Tonight, seven o’clock. Be ready for me.

Yours, Gabriel

Staring at the note, she considered all of the possibilities, and the risks. Could she really get away with sleeping with the enemy without losing her job in the process? Or worse yet, her heart? Gabriel just seemed too intense, too commanding, just too much for her. Honestly, she wasn’t sure if she could handle him. Never before had a man owned her body like he had. The more of him she had, the more she seemed to crave. His scent. His touch. His voice. That kind of desire was simply not good. Lying in bed with him, all she could think about was getting closer to him. Her body would curve into his as if she was trying to have every inch of her skin touching his.

The light touches of his fingers on her skin, rubbing her hips and curving around her waist would inevitably send her swirling toward another moment of weakness. Words of submission, of pleading and begging, would fall out of her mouth and she would cry out for him to take her again. Embarrassment at her wanton behavior did not seem to cover the range of emotions she was feeling right now.

Shaking her head to clear the steamy images, she placed the note back down on the table and ran up the stairs to her bedroom. First things first, she had to get her ass to work. There was no way her bosses would allow her to miss a day of work right now. Not with everything going on. Quickly going to her closet, she pulled out a sexy black and white patterned dress that had a crossover tie and a skirt that flared out and flowed perfectly when she wore the black and white pumps with it. Pausing for a second, she wondered if her choice of clothing was driven by the anticipation of seeing Gabriel again. Penelope could admit that it probably was, but throwing caution to the wind, she placed the dress on the bed with a smile and went off to take her shower.

 

She arrived to the office with about thirty minutes to spare. Passing by Bettye’s office, she gave her a thumbs up as she made her way to the legal department and her double-cubicle. Placing her purse in the locked drawer, she had settled into her chair, fired up her computer, and was just about to check her email when his voice came over her shoulder.

“Good morning, Ms. Lucas.”

“Good morning, Mr. Turner.” Damn, he looked good.

“How are you today?”

He knew damn well how she was doing today. Tired from their marathon sex session the night before. “I’m fine, thank you. And yourself?”

“A little tired. I had a long night. Didn’t get much sleep.”

Oh, he was really trying it today. Luckily, two could play this game. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I hope it wasn’t anything horrible.”

A smile came across his face and she knew he was remembering their night as clearly as she was, “Oh, no, it was well worth it. Even though I lost hours of sleep, I would repeat it every single night.” Glancing around, he stepped inside her cubicle a little more and leaned up against one of the file cabinets. “Our meeting was delayed this morning.”

Glancing up at him, she tried not to let her nervousness come through in her voice, “Yes, I know. I was running a bit late this morning.”

“Not feeling well, Ms. Lucas?”

“Feeling quite well, thank you. I had a late night myself and just slept in late.”

“Hmmm, interesting. I hope whatever kept you awake was a good thing.”

Deciding to get back at him a little for teasing her, “It was alright. Just one of those things that wouldn’t stop poking and prodding. It kept me up most of the night, but I’m better now.”

“Alright? Is that how you describe it?”

“Well, that’s probably best, don’t you think. It’s probably not a good idea to go into the tawdry details of my entire night, in the open office. Privacy is important to me, sir.”

She watched his eyes become hooded as he continued to look at her. Certain that he had picked up the message, she barely managed to stay calm while waiting for his next words.

“Well, I won’t keep you Ms. Lucas. Our meeting will be starting in about fifteen minutes.” He adjusted his shirtsleeves and flicked a speck of dust off his suit jacket, “Plus, I have plans at seven this evening and nothing will keep me away.” With that, he lowered his head in acknowledgement and walked out of her cubicle and away from her.

Was that a warning, or a promise? Based on how her body had reacted to his presence, she was willing to take either.

Taking a few deep breaths to calm her nerves, she turned back to her computer and logged into her email account quickly. There were a few messages that she needed to read prior to the meeting and a few documents to print out. Once done, she had five minutes to spare before the meeting was set to begin. Gathering her recorder, pad of paper and a pen, she made her way down the hallway. As she opened the door, the first person she saw was Gabriel and her steps faltered. No matter how much she tried to avoid him, there was no denying the pull.

The first night they met, they had been drawn to each other and the attraction was undeniable. It was not like her to go off with a strange man, let alone sleep with him. But with Gabriel, it had seemed so right. Just that one night with him would have been enough to keep her going, and the memories would have sustained her for many months to come.

But having him again, the feel of his body touching hers, the taste of him when they kissed, the slide and thrust of his cock inside of her, was pretty much her undoing. If she had said no that second night when he showed up at her house, she could maybe have kept her sanity. But now, there was no going back. She wanted him and everything he had to offer. Not just for another night or for the length of time he was in the area for this deal to close. She wanted to see where this could go and she hoped he agreed.

Her boss’ voice reached her ears, “Penelope, come on and set up over here, next to me. Did you bring the contracts I sent to you?”

Turning toward Gene, she glanced up and saw Gabriel taking her in and she knew that selecting this dress was the right move. She could feel his eyes following her like a hawk tracking its prey as she walked across the room. Focusing on her boss, she tried her best to ignore the look he was giving her. Today was about business and while he may swim with the sharks on a regular basis, she did not. If that meant she would need to ignore his heated gaze, then she would do just that.

“Here you are, Gene. Three copies, correct?”

“Yes, thanks, Penelope. You’re a godsend. I’m not sure what I would do without you.” Gene patted her on the shoulder as he said the words and she preened under the praise. He didn’t say the words often and she was pleased that he noticed how hard she worked.

“Ms. Lucas, may I have a word with you about some of the paperwork that needs to be reviewed?” Gabriel’s hard voice broke into her thoughts and she was somewhat surprised at the tone.

“Um, sure, Mr. Turner.” Penelope glanced at Gene to gauge his response, and while his brow was wrinkled in slight confusion, he gave her a nod to go on over and see what the client needed. For Gene, it was all about the client.

Making her way over to Gabriel, she tried to still the butterflies in her stomach. “Yes, Mr. Turner.” Outwardly, she may have seemed calm, but her internal monologue consisted of repeatedly telling herself to keep it together.

As he turned away from the crowd of people gathering in the room, it forced Penelope to adjust her position as well so that she was turned away from her boss and the others filing into the room.

“You look beautiful today,” he said in a low voice that only she could hear.

Her gaze flew up to his in shock. When he simply smiled at her, as if waiting for her to acknowledge his statement, she responded back, “Thank you. But why did you need to call me over here for that?”

Sighing, he looked at the papers in his hand, then back at Gene, and finally turned his eyes back to Penelope. “Honestly, I don’t know. I saw Gene touch you and I didn’t like it.”

“Gabriel...Mr. Turner...we are not doing this right now. Please. I need this job and once you’re gone, I still need to work with these people.”

“I apologize, Penelope. You know I would never want to jeopardize anything for you. I know this is forward of me and I need to be careful with how I act when I’m around you.” Pausing for a moment, he flipped a page as if they were actually discussing the documents, “Is my attention toward you unwanted? If it is, I will stop right now and walk away.”