In the Boss's Bed (Harlequin Blaze) (15 page)

27

J
AMIE
STEWED
IN
his hotel room. He paced like a caged animal. Gwen had just left and he was restless. He was also still agitated from his run in with Maya. A short time ago, Maya had meant the world to him. He had seen every side of her. Kissed her. Made love to her. Now she acted like a complete stranger to him. Her cold indifference at lunch had so infuriated him that after his meeting with Gwen, he had to take the rest of the day off. He just couldn’t concentrate.

Gwen would have been a surefire way to release some tension. And he knew it would have been great, too. Maybe that was part of the reason why he was so agitated. His dick didn’t seem to understand why neither his brain nor heart wanted to get naked with Gwen. She had been more than eager and willing to lock herself in a hotel room with him to do anything he wanted. And while he was certainly looking forward to it, seeing Maya today had changed his mind. Seeing her had brought everything back—all the longing, the desire. All other women ceased to exist for him. All the while, she sat there, seemingly indifferent to his very existence, as if they hadn’t been intimate only a short time ago.

Jaime wasn’t much of a drinker. Recent history had proven that if he had a little too much to drink, he lost control. But, figuring he wouldn’t be leaving his room anytime soon, he opened the minibar and pulled out all of the small bottles of scotch, and he poured three of them into a short glass. He brought the crystal tumbler to his lips, but a furious pounding on his door stopped his hand before he took a drink. He walked to the door, and when he opened it with an annoyed tug, he found Maya standing on the other side.

He softened. “Maya.”

“Hi, Jamie.”

“What can I do for you?” He stepped aside to allow her to enter.

She walked farther into the room, not looking directly at him. “Well, I just wanted to talk to you about lunch. I’m sorry if it was awkward. That wasn’t my intention. I was hoping that we could at least pretend that we’re still friends, at least in social or business situations.”

Jamie felt his control snap, and he raised his voice.
How dare she.
“Maya, we could still be friends. We could still be lovers. But you were so stubborn and prideful that the only option you saw fit was to leave the goddamn country.”

She flinched at his tone. “Jamie, I had to—”

“None of this had to happen, Maya. We could have moved on from the video. I have a legal team behind us to punish the people responsible. You could have stayed there with me and worked with me.”

“You don’t understand what it’s like for a woman, especially in this business. I needed to step away from you. I needed that, for me and for my career, so I wouldn’t always be the woman who was caught going down on her boss,” she argued. She stopped and her eyes shone with unshed tears. “But you let me walk away entirely, Jamie.” Her voice broke. “You didn’t fight for me.”

The sadness etched on her face completely undid him. “Maya, I was stubborn. I was hurt. And believe it or not, that video was embarrassing for me, too. You were waiting for me to make you stay? I could have. I would have. But I was scared, too,” he said, his voice cracking a little. He had never admitted fear to another person in his life. But that was what Maya did to him. She broke through and destroyed every one of the walls and barriers that he had been constructing for decades.

She stopped. Eyes wide, mouth agape. “What were you afraid of?”

Jamie took a deep breath, and he looked everywhere before his eyes settled squarely on hers. “I was afraid that I would put it all on the line, and you would walk away, anyway.”

Maya sat on the couch in stunned silence. “I thought that seeing that video was the worst moment of my life. But it wasn’t. There were so many other awful moments after that. Leaving you in Trevor’s office, when you stormed out of my apartment, getting on the plane with my one-way ticket. They were all awful.” By now, the tears were steadily flowing down her face.

Jamie went to her and wrapped his arms around her. Nothing had ever felt more right than when she was in his arms. “Maya. I’m not afraid anymore. I don’t want to be without you.” The words
I love you
were poised at the tip of his tongue. But he couldn’t say them. He was still raw and he still wasn’t ready to give her all of him.

“I’m not afraid, either. I’ve stopped running. But my life is here now. My job with Garrett. I just can’t leave and go back to Montreal.”

“I wouldn’t expect you, too. But we can make it work. I promise. We just have to be willing to. Are you willing to work for us, Maya?” Jamie lifted her chin with his fingertips and gazed into her eyes. “With the new hotel opening here, I’ll be back and forth. We can see each other whenever I’m in town. We can talk on the phone, text, there’s Skype, email. It won’t be easy, but I know we can do it. It’s worth it.”

“It is worth it,” she agreed. “We can try to make it work.”

Jamie felt the weight he’d carried for weeks lift from his shoulders. He pulled her closer and kissed her, as if he had been apart from her for years. Gathering her in his arms, he stood and carried her to his bed.

Laying her on the bed, his heart pounding in his chest, Jamie stared at Maya. He couldn’t believe she was here. In his bed. He never thought he would make love to her again, touch her body, run his fingers through her hair, hear her moan his name...

“Are you actually going to do anything, or just stand there?” she asked, snapping him out of his trance.

He shook his head and laughed. He dropped onto the bed next to her, bringing his lips to hers. He relished it. He had her back and he was not going to lose her again.

28

W
HEN
M
ONDAY
MORNING
rolled around, Maya had a definite skip in her step. Early that morning, Jamie had returned to Montreal, but not before spending two amazing days and nights with her at her apartment. She had been happy in Vegas before she and Jamie had rekindled their relationship. But now, everything felt right. As if everything in her life was starting to fall into place.

Jamie had already texted her from his stopover, and she eagerly awaited his arrival at home, when he would call her. She missed his voice, the way he roughly cleared his throat when he wanted her, his breath on her ear...she shivered and mentally shook it off. There would be plenty of time to talk to Jamie tonight, but at the moment she had a full day of work ahead of her. She started by checking her messages, some of which required immediate attention. So she settled into her desk and put all thoughts of Jamie away until later, when she would have time.

* * *

I
T
WAS
AFTER
midnight when Jamie opened the door to his apartment. He had been traveling for the entire day, and had somehow endured multiple stopovers, bad weather, delays and everything else that could go wrong in what should have been just a five-hour flight. He was exhausted. He did make himself feel better by imagining the evisceration of his corporate travel team and boiling them in oil.

He dropped the thought and his bag by the door and went to the fridge. Grabbing a bottle of water, he pulled out his phone and dialed Maya’s number. He wanted nothing more than to go to bed, but not before he heard her voice.

“Hello?” she answered, after several rings.

“Hey, it’s me.”

“How was your trip?”

“Long, awful,” he responded through a yawn.

“You sound exhausted. It’s got to be what, almost 1 a.m. there?”

“Yeah.”

“You should go to bed. I’m betting you’ll be at the office bright and early in the morning, am I right?”

“You’re not wrong.” He laughed, taking a swallow of water. “And yeah, I’m heading to bed now. I just wanted to talk to you first.”

“That’s sweet. But why don’t you give me a call tomorrow and we’ll have a real conversation?”

“Sounds great.”

She sighed. “I miss you, Jamie.” A sudden sadness crept into her voice.

“I miss you, too. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

“Great. I can’t wait. Bye.”

Jamie hung up the phone with a sigh and went to his bedroom. He was exhausted, but he figured he might as well unpack his bag before he went to bed. That way, he would be able to get his dry cleaning out in the morning. He threw it on the bed and unzipped the bag. He chuckled to himself when lying on top of his light gray suit were a pair of lacy, red panties that he recognized as Maya’s.

29

T
ONIGHT
.
J
AMIE
WAS
going to reach Maya tonight if he had to stay awake until sunrise. He’d had such a hectic week, and it was made worse by the fact that he had barely been able to connect with Maya. He knew that trying to maintain a relationship despite being a couple of time zones away would be tricky, but he didn’t realize that it would be this hard. Even though it was only the difference of a couple hours, it was tough. He needed to speak to her. He felt as if her voice was the only thing that could soothe his frazzled nerves.

He bypassed the bottles of water in his fridge and reached for a beer. Popping it open, he walked to his living room and sat down in the plush leather recliner that he loved. He checked the time on his cell phone: 10 p.m. He calculated the time in Las Vegas and knew it was early evening there.
Perfect.
He knew she had taken the afternoon off to prepare for Abby’s visit the next day, so he was sure he would get her at home. He dialed. After only one ring, her voice, sultry on the line, greeted him.

“Hi, Jamie,” she whispered.

He smiled. “Maya, I’ve got you.”

“You certainly do.”

He settled into his leather chair and leaned back so the leg rest extended. He was almost fully reclined, a broad smile on his face, a beer in one hand and his lifeline, Maya, on the phone in the other. For the first time in more than a week, he was finally relaxed. He sighed to himself. “So what are you doing?”

He heard some water splashing from her end. “I’m actually in the bath.”

He chuckled and closed his eyes, imagining her in her bathtub. Remembering her the night they’d taken a bath on their first night together in Las Vegas. Her hair pulled back, her skin warm and soft from the bathwater. He was now inspired and decided to play a game. “Really? Do you have any bubbles in there?”

“I do.”

“I hear music. What are you listening to?”

“Norah Jones. Helps me unwind.”

“How high is the water?”

She moaned a little. “High enough so that it covers the tops of my nipples.”

He groaned, imagining her rosy nipples. He licked his lips. “Why don’t you give them a little pinch for me?”

He heard her breath in the phone. “What?”

“Just do it. Trust me. Put the phone on speaker. I want you to feel your breasts for me. Pretend your hands are my hands.” She was silent. He thought she wouldn’t agree. Call him a pervert and hang up. But then he heard the phone shuffling around, a sign that she was doing as he asked. He grinned.

“Okay, the phone’s on speaker,” she told him, her voice sounded farther away.

“Okay, now do what I asked you to,” he commanded her softly.

He heard her moan, and the exquisite sound rattled through him. He felt himself harden in his slacks. “Squeeze your nipples for me, baby.”

Her gasp told him that she had. He knew that her nipples were more sensitive than any he’d ever seen. He smiled. “How does that feel, Maya?”

“Amazing.”

“Are you still doing it?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you imagining that it’s me touching you?”

“Yeah,” she breathed.

“You know what I would do if I was there right now?”

“What?”

“I would then let my fingers glide down your ribs, over your stomach until they came to rest at your perfect little pussy.” Her gasp urged him on. His own hand unbuckled his belt and he unzipped his pants. “Are you wet?”

She giggled. “Well, I am in the bathtub.”

He rolled his eyes and laughed with her. “You know what I mean, smart-ass,” he said, full of affection. “I’m trying to be sexy here.” His hand found his stiff erection. “May we continue?”

“Okay.” She stifled her laughter. “Let’s continue.”

Jamie took a swig of beer and put the bottle on an end table. He put his own phone on speaker and he closed his eyes. “Imagine me slipping my fingers inside you, sliding them along your clit.” She moaned. His own hand roughly gripped his rigid cock. God, he wished it was her hand stroking him.

Maya spoke next, her voice a sultry whisper. “Your own breathing is starting to get a little heavy. Are you touching yourself?”

So she wanted to start playing the game, as well. “I am.”

“What are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking about you. Your mouth and your hands on me.”

Maya moaned, her own pleasure apparent. “Mmm... Jamie, did you know that after the first day I came to work with you, I ran a hot bath and I got myself off in the tub?”

“God, Maya,” he moaned, his fist working quickly over his now-glistening shaft. If that wasn’t the hottest thing he’d ever heard. “You’re so sexy.”

“Jamie,” she gasped. He knew that she was close, that her sensitive body couldn’t take so much stimulation. He felt her pending orgasm as if she were in the room with him, as if he were the one bringing her to climax.

Her crescendo matched his and, as they both played with themselves, their pants and moans fueled each other until they both erupted with furious climaxes. Their combined breathing slowed. For a few moments, they both were silent.

When their breathing regulated, Maya was the first to speak. “So, how was your day?” She giggled.

“It’s suddenly going a lot better,” he said with a laugh. “It’s great to actually speak with you. I can’t believe we’ve been missing each other all week.”

“I know. The whole time zone thing is really frustrating.”

“Yeah, enough about that, though. How about you? How was your day? Got everything squared away for Abby’s visit?”

“Yeah, mostly. I’ve got some show tickets, some table service reserved at a couple of clubs and some great restaurant reservations.”

“Sounds like fun. I’m sure you guys are going to have a great time.”

“We will. She loves Vegas. And her visit will fill some of the time until you come back.”

“Yeah, I’ll be there next Wednesday. I’ve got a couple of meetings lined up with Gwen, though,” he added.

“Gwen?”

“The interior designer I’ve hired for the Vegas hotel. You met her. At that lunch with Collins.”

“Oh, right.” She paused. “Well, that’s okay. As long as I get you the rest of the time.”

“You’ve already got me,” he assured her.

Maya sighed on the other end. “I can’t wait to see you. But I know it’s getting late there, and I should let you get some sleep.”

He sighed regretfully, he didn’t want to hang up the phone. He wanted to keep her there all night. Hell, he wanted to go to bed with her, hold her in his arms until daylight. “Alright, I guess you’re right. I can’t wait to see you.”

“Me, too.”

“Maybe you can run a bath and I can catch the live show of what just happened.”