Mr. CEO (8 page)

“
I
’m worried about you
, Charlotte,” Hastings tells me in a hushed voice. He takes off his reading glasses and sets them on his desk, looking at me as though he feels sorry for me.

I knew this was coming when I walked in here this morning. He was too busy to meet with me yesterday by the time I left the
meeting
with Logan. So now I’m sitting in his office trying hard not to be offended, while also trying to project the confidence that I can do this. “I think that Logan is doing you a disservice, putting that much on your plate so soon.”

“I’ll be okay,” I say confidently, flashing an easy smile. Though I’m trying to seem upbeat, I’m not at all. If the shock and self-consciousness about all this shit with the buyout and Logan weren’t enough, I got into a nasty fight with Ian last night. He showed up without warning on my doorstep, demanding that I let him in. I shoved his box out there for him to take, but that’s not what he wanted. He was looking to actually stay over.

I told him that he no longer lived with me, but he wasn’t taking no for an answer. He tried to push his way in, but I slammed the door in his face. He has a key, which sucks. But I had a bolt. So he was fucked. Last night, anyway, since today’s a different story and in the pit of my stomach I know this is going to be an issue. I called the landlord and asked him to change the locks. I’m just praying they get it done in time before that asshole locks me out.

I spent the rest of the night laying in bed, hating Ian and this shit position I’m in. The only other thing I could concentrate on was how Logan wanted me yesterday. All I could do was think about how hot Logan looked in the boardroom, how sexy he made me feel. I am shocked at the sudden turn of events with him taking over the company and naming me head sales rep, but I'm convinced he's up to something.

He’s the cat, and I’m the mouse.

I don’t care what Logan’s plans are,
I think to myself angrily.
I’ll show him that I’m not some toy to be played with on a whim.
Yesterday I was caught off guard and shocked. Today’s a new day.

Thinking about the way Logan looked at me yesterday in the boardroom causes my blood to heat with desire. It pisses me off that I’m turned on by a man who’s toying with me. What's worse is that my job is at stake. My heart clenches, but rather than be worried and upset, I hold onto the anger. Without realizing it, I find myself scowling at Hastings in irritation.

Hastings frowns at me, his bushy eyebrows drawing together. “You’re glaring at me, Charlotte, did I offend you?”

“Oh, no, Mr. Hastings,” I say, quickly morphing my scowl into a smile. “I’m just thinking about how I’m going to go about preparing for a successful launch with the resources I have at my disposal.”

Goddamnit, Logan.

Before Hastings can respond, there’s a knock at the door. I turn to see Eva poking her head in the doorway. She looks the consummate professional today with her hair in an elegant French twist and dressed in a crisp white pantsuit that makes me want to go shopping. “Is it alright if I come in?” she asks sweetly.

Hastings nods, “I think we’re done here?” he says although he’s asking me. I nod with a tight smile.

Eva walks in with a bright smile. “Good morning, Mr. Hastings. You’re looking mighty handsome today.”

Mr. Hastings chuckles, his cheeks turning a rosy red, and waves his hand dismissively. “Oh stop it, Eva. How are you enjoying the merger?”

“It’s going better than I expected,” Eva replies, giving me a smile. “It doesn’t hurt when you have such an awesome boss to help smooth things out with the new one.” She bats her eyelashes, and Mr. Hastings turns redder.

I shake my head. Eva must want something from Hastings, and knowing her, she's most likely going to get it.

The two talk about business matters for a moment. Specifically, the new building, commuting, and Hastings gives her a bullet list of things to do to get everything up and running smoothly. Meanwhile, all I can think about is how I’m going to handle Logan. I have no fucking clue. As I come to that conclusion, Eva turns her gaze on me. “Ready for lunch?”

* * *

“
W
hat’s on your mind
, girlie?” Eva asks as she dips a salty french fry in a pile of ketchup. “I can tell something’s been bothering you.”

For lunch, we’ve settled on an upscale cafe down the street from our new workplace. We’re seated in the middle of the cafe in a small two-person booth. Between the two of us we're enjoying two big burgers, fries, a vanilla shake and a diet Coke. It’s a pretty swanky restaurant, with gleaming marble floors, gold-plated trim and crown molding. I love the burgundy and white color scheme, and the ambience is relaxed.

Too bad I’m a swirling canopy of emotions and can’t calm down and enjoy it.

Should I tell her?
I wonder.
And would she even believe me?

I grip onto my diet Coke with both hands, debating inwardly. It could look very bad if I told Eva that I slept with Logan in a moment of weakness. I like to think that she’d understand, but I’m not sure I want to risk it.

Don’t
, I decide finally.
No matter how much I trust her, there’s no telling what could happen if word got out that I slept with the boss.

When it comes down to it, I don’t want Eva to think less of me. She’s been a good friend, my only friend really, and I would hate to lose her at a time where I'm going through so much in my life.

“Nothing,” I say with a sigh, “it’s just this merger is proving to be stressful. The extra commute time, being handed all this responsibility right off the bat. And my breakup with Ian.”

Eva frowns at me and washes down her fry with a slurp of her vanilla milkshake. “I’m sorry, Charlotte. I don’t know why Logan is putting so much pressure on you.” She pauses to dip another fry in ketchup. “Did Ian come get his stuff?”

I nod and then scowl at my untouched burger. I’m such a bundle of nerves that I can’t even think about eating. “Ummm,” I say, “we kind of got into a fight.”

“Kind of?” Eva sits back against the booth. “You’re broken up; what’s there to fight about?”

“Yeah. He wanted back in, but I wouldn’t let him. I mean, can you believe this guy? He thinks he should be able to stay in our apartment after what he did? I ended up throwing all his stuff outside. We started yelling at each other, cursing each other out. Girl, it was awful.”

“Well, at least you got to tell that douche how you really felt.”

“That’s the thing. I’m mad that I did it. It didn’t change anything. He’s not going to say sorry or beg me to take him back. All it did was show how much I still cared.”

Just thinking about the previous night makes me angrier. I still can’t believe Ian hasn’t had the decency to tell me sorry or begged for my forgiveness. After he got caught cheating, his personality took a 180 degree turn. Like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, I’d been sleeping with a stranger the whole time I was with him. And to think that he should be allowed to sleep under the same roof with me after what he did? The nerve of that prick!

Eva reaches across the table and puts a hand on my arm concernedly. “Charlotte, don’t be so hard on yourself. You’re only human. It’s only natural to have those emotions.”

I sniffle, staring at my burger. “You’re right, Eva. I need to stop thinking about it. I wish he’d just move the fuck on so I can let him go live his happily ever after with Sarah.”

I give them two months,
I think to myself,
before they’re at each others throats and Ian is cheating on her with a new whore.
The nasty thought only makes me want to cry. What if it was really me, and not him? What if they do get their happily ever after? I shove down the thought and stuff another fry into my mouth before I cry any more over that asshole.

Eva smiles at me and takes a sip of her vanilla shake. “That’s the spirit. Fuck Ian! You’ll find your own happily ever after with some sex god that’s better in bed than Ian. You’ll see.”

I almost choke on how ironic her words are, though I think a fairytale ending with Logan has zero chance of happening. “I wish.”

Eva sets down her shake and fans herself with both hands. “Oh, oh! Speaking of happily ever afters and sex gods, did you see how hot Logan looked in the boardroom yesterday? My God, that man is pure sex on legs!”

“He’s alright,” I lie, trying to keep my thoughts G-rated. Eva needs to stop bringing up how hot Logan is, especially when it’s hard enough to get the man out of my mind. “Nothing you can’t see in any GQ magazine.”

Eva gives me a look. “What? You’re crazy. On a scale of one to ten, that man is a hundred! Shit, if I weren’t in a relationship with Kevin…” Eva makes a sound and shakes her head.

I don’t know how I feel with Eva going crazy over Logan. On one hand, she’s in a happy relationship and I know that she’s just joking around, but on the other, I want to tell her about my predicament so she’ll stop bringing him up. I know it's not like he's mine or anything, but I don't like her talking about him like that.

When I don’t reply right away, Eva frowns. “Look, if you’re so worried about commuting, why don’t you sign up for the temporary housing the company’s offered? It'll help until you can find a place nearby to move to.”

I pick up a fry and take a small bite. It’s extra salty, like how I feel inside. After a few halfhearted nibbles, I put it down. It’s all my stomach can handle right now. “I thought about it, but I don’t know,” I say. If I take the housing offer it'll only be one more thing that Logan has over me, and I don’t know if I can abide by that.

Eva takes another sip of her shake, this time nearly draining it to the bottom. “Well you better decide before you end up knee-deep in work and don’t have time to get it done. You can’t fail your startup because you’re overworked and tired from working long hours and then having to commute long distances.”

I have to agree with Eva, and it makes me more upset at Logan.

This is a game for him. I don’t want to play a game.

This is my life. I start to get choked up, and I try to ignore it. I wish I wasn’t so emotional. I wish I could just be rational about all this, but how can I be?

I’m worried this could all be a play on his part so he can humiliate me for leaving him in Vegas. His endgame could be to set me up to fail, so he can fire me and make sure I never work in sales again.

At the thought, anger and desperation mix and churn in my stomach, and a surge of anxiety rolls through me. I need to stop being scared and confront him like an adult. If Logan’s plan is to humiliate me, there’s nothing I can do about it but prove to him that I can handle whatever the fuck he throws my way. Just because he’s my boss now doesn’t mean I have to let him treat me this way.

Well,
I think to myself as I signal the waiter for a to-go box so I can put my untouched food away for later,
if he wants me to play games, fuck it. I’ll play.

“
M
r. Parker
?” Charlotte asks with an even voice and the door cracked. “You wanted to see me?” She doesn’t leave the doorway though, and it forces my lips into a straight line.

I tap my knuckles on the desk and stare pointedly at the door. “Close it.” My voice is low and she stares back at me with her chest rising and falling.

My command seems to trigger something in her. There’s an obvious shift in her demeanor. Her eyes narrow at me but she closes it, kicking it shut with her heel and making her way toward me.

“Logan,” she says in a harsh voice. She looks pissed as hell and for some reason it turns me the fuck on. My cock twitches in my two thousand dollar slacks, and my heart races in my chest. This isn’t why I called her in here. I don’t know what’s gotten into her, but I need to fix this.

“If I’m going to lose my job over this, so be it, but I am not some office slut.” She spits out the last part with venom. Is that what she thinks? Fuck! This was supposed to be enjoyable for her, and just as much as it is for me. I feel like an asshole. I should have explained things better to her.

“I am not some-”

I look her in the eyes and cut her off. “If you don’t want me, there’s nothing left to discuss. You still have your job, you earned it. You deserve that position.”

Her forehead pinches and she opens and closes her mouth taking deep angry breaths as though she’s ready to lay into me, but she’s lost her steam. She wasn’t expecting me to bow out of this argument so easily.

This is something she made up in her head. It’s my fault for toying with her, but I didn’t expect this reaction.

“If you don’t want to fuck me, then don’t,” I say easily. “It’s been two days since our discussion, and I couldn’t wait another hour to see you at the meeting.” I stand and walk my way around the desk to her. She eyes me warily as I lean back, both hands gripping the edge of the desk.

“You aren’t an office slut, and I don’t see you like that at all.” My eyes roam her body as I speak. “But I wanna fuck you like one,” I confess to her.

Her eyes widen and she takes a half step back.

I turn to face her and take a full step forward so I’m close enough to pull her toward me, but I resist.

“I want you, Rose. I want you in my company making me proud, and I want you bent over my desk cumming on my dick.”

A small pant slips past her lips. Her thighs clench, and knowing that I’m exciting her makes my dick stiffen. I reach up and slowly run my finger along her bottom lip. I can see her on her knees, sucking me off under my desk. I want that. I desperately want that.

“You’re striking; it’s only natural that I want you.”

Her eyes stay on mine and she speaks in a low voice, “I’m not a fucktoy.” There’s no fight in her words though. I can see she’s just as turned on as I am.

“You’re not, but I think it’d be fun to treat you like one, for both of us. It doesn’t have to be degrading…” I trail off and watch as her eyes fall to the floor before continuing, “unless you want it to be.”

Her beautiful blue eyes snap up to mine and I can see she still wants to fight the sexual tension between us. She doesn’t want to give in to the primal needs that she has.

“Today for instance,” I start to say, turning away from her and walking back to my desk. If she wants this, she’s going to have to prove it to me.

I sit easily in my chair as she stands defensively across the desk.

“Today I wanted you to play my secretary. I dreamed of fucking you on my desk.” I put my hand out in front of me. “Right here,” I say as I pat the desk and maintain eye contact with her. “It’s a fantasy I’ve had before, but I’ve never fulfilled.”

She scoffs at me. “I don’t believe that for one second.” Her defenses go up and her eyes light with a passion to prove me wrong. It pisses me off. I’m not a liar, and I’ve never given her any reason to think I would lie.

Before this day is over, I want her on her knees, begging me to forgive her and choking on my cock.

“I’ve never and I never will lie to you,” I say with a lowered voice.

She stays mute, refusing to believe me but not offering me a rebuttal.

“I thought you enjoyed me fucking you.” Her small hands ball into fists. “It certainly seemed that way when you were screaming my name.”

“Fuck you.” She practically hisses.

“Yes, please do,” I say back to her with a small smile.

It’s quiet for a moment, the two of us at odds. Pointless really, we both want each other. She just needs to let go and give in. I can give her pleasure while she fulfills my needs.

“This isn’t a game to me,” she finally says. She’s not angry though, which is what I expected. She sounds sincere, and genuinely upset. “This is my life.”

I grind my teeth, hating that I’m unsure of what to do. I want her. And I’ll have her. But not yet. She needs something from me before she’s going to give in. It’s a challenge that I readily accept.

I clear my throat and sit up straight in my seat. “Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?”

She stares at me in an attempt to calm herself down. I want to walk over and pull her into my embrace, to soothe her worries and tell her everything is going to be alright. But right now she’s hostile. It would only make matters worse.

“I’ll see you in forty minutes then, Miss Harrison.” She nods quickly and turns on her heels.

“Rose,” I call out her name and she stops with her hand on the doorknob, but she doesn’t turn around. “My door is always open for you. If you decide you need anything.” I hear her take in a deep breath. I’m not sure, but I think she may be crying. It fucking shreds me. “There’s a bathroom to your right, if you need it before leaving my office.”

She shakes her head and mutters, “I’m fine.”

But she’s not fine, she’s so far from it.