ROMANCE: Bear Naked Passion (Billionaire Bear Trio Book 2) (16 page)

Chapter 2

By the end of her first day, Taylor was convinced more than ever that she had lived through her very last day as Zachary’s secretary. Everything that could possibly go wrong actually did. The coffee she made him was not as strong as he would have liked it and the fact that it took her an extra three minutes to get the ‘right’ mug meant that the coffee was not as hot as it should have been. She had then gone on to file the wrong papers and shred the right ones… the day was basically a disaster.

At around four-thirty, she was ready to pack up her desk and just leave. That was the only way she was assured that she could leave the building with her dignity still intact. She had just picked up her purse to leave when Zachary called her into his office. She took a long deep breath and pushed her chair back before she stood up. She walked into his office and found him typing something on his laptop.

“Miss Washington, have a seat, please,” he said as he turned to look at her.

“Okay,” Taylor said in a less than sure voice. She was looking right at him as he leaned back in his chair. She almost felt as if his deep-searching eyes were looking right into her.

“Is this your first secretarial job, Miss Washington?” he suddenly asked. She looked at him and shook her head.

“No… not really.”

Zachary raised an eyebrow over the other.

“Not really?” he echoed and she nodded.

“Well, what I mean to say is that I have worked as a secretary before… twice, actually,” she said, her voice shaking.

There was a long uncomfortable silence before he finally talked again.

“Why did you leave your two previous posts, if you don’t mind my asking?” he asked, looking right into her brown eyes.

“Well, the first company went out of business and the second one…” she paused and exhaled deeply. She did not know how she could politely put ‘the boss spanked me once and I quit’. “I don’t like to talk about the second one so much. All I can say is that it did not end well.”

“I don’t want to sound like I am prying, Miss Washington, but I have to ask. Is there a Mr. Washington?” Zachary suddenly asked. Taylor knew that her surprise was written all over her face.

“Well, there is my dad if that is what you are asking,” she said, even though she knew that she was not telling him what he wanted to hear. “Hence the Miss before my name and not Mrs.”

Zachary smiled.

“I don’t want to sound too direct, Miss Washington,” he started as he leaned forward. “All I want to know is if I need to think twice before I invite you out to a party at The Hamptons tonight.”

Taylor forced out a cough.

“
Tonight
?” she asked in surprise and he nodded.

“Yes, tonight,” Zachary said as he shut down his computer. “I do detest those parties and I think the company of a lovely woman such as yourself would make it worthwhile.” She shook her head and shrugged.

“Mr. Cohen…” she started.

“If you think this is a little too forward… I just wanted…” Zachary was stuttering. “This is not a social call, Miss Washington.”

“It’s not?” she asked, raising an eyebrow over the other.

“No,” he said shaking his head. “I will be meeting a prospective partner at The Hamptons and I initially thought that I would have to get someone from HR to come with me but now that I have an assistant, I don’t see the need to.”

“I’m a secretary, actually,” Taylor pointed out.

“Well, I believe an assistant is a better title and maybe even better pay,” Zachary said, shrugging. Taylor looked at him and wondered what trick he had up his sleeve. “I can organize the overtime pay.”

Taylor sighed and then shrugged.

“Well, I guess that sounds great,” she said.

“Good. We will be leaving in an hour,” he announced as he began doing something on his desk. She could not really tell what.

“An hour?” she asked, surprised. Zachary looked up.

“Why? Is that going to be a problem?” he asked.

“Well, I have to pack and get organized and…” she started before he shook his head.

“Never mind that. We will just be gone for the weekend,” Zachary pointed out as if it was not a big deal. “We should be back here by Sunday evening.”

“Yes, but I have to go back to my place first,” she said as she looked at him.

“Where do you live? I can get someone to drive you over,” he said.

“Oh, that would be great. My apartment is over on Jefferson and Third,” she said, grinning widely, but her smile soon disappeared when she saw that he was not smiling.

“That is a good forty minutes away. One way,” he said. She nodded.

“If it helps, I pack really light,” she said but he was shaking his head.

“No, that will take too long and I have to be there by seven at the very latest,” he said.

“But I need a change of clothes,” she said, as he reached for something in his inside jacket pocket. She gasped when he handed her a credit card. “Take this. There is a store around the corner.”

Taylor shook her head.

“Mr. Cohen, I really don’t want you to take this the wrong way but this is highly inappropriate,” she said.

“What is? My asking you to come with me to The Hamptons?” he asked, as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

“For starters, yes, that. And you are handing me your platinum card at the end of my first day and by the way, it was not a very good first day,” she said and he smiled.

“Well, people have their good and bad days. Maybe today just wasn’t one of your best days,” he said. “I don’t see what that has got to do with anything, anyway. Times are a-wasting, Miss Washington. Get yourself a dress for tonight and maybe something for the flight back and meet me back here.”

Taylor was still hesitant about this whole thing. Sure, she did know Zachary Cohen, but only what she had read about him in the papers and magazines. She had seen him photographed with countless women and she would have hated to think that he was coming on to her or something. She was beginning to think that she understood why he had been through so many secretaries in such a short time. But at the same time, she did not want to seem disrespectful or ungrateful. After all, maybe he was just a really friendly boss… perhaps a little too friendly for comfort, but friendly all the same. And she also did not want to lose her job so soon after she had got it.

“Get yourself something to wear and meet me back here, Miss Washington,” Zachary said again before he turned away, leaving the card on the desk.

“What exactly do you need me to do for you at a party?” she suddenly asked.

“Well, I don’t really know this prospective business partner. I do know that he is five-eight and dark-haired, but that’s about it,” he said as he looked at her. “I need someone to case the area and give me heads up when you spot him. His name is Bernard Miller.” Taylor shook her head again.

“I don’t understand,” she said.

“Just go shopping, Miss Washington, and meet me back here,” he said again. “And I know all this is a little sudden. I promise to make it worth your while.”

Taylor smiled.

“I believe that my resume said that I perform tasks that are required of me,” she said.

“Well, not over the weekend,” Zachary said as he reached for something in his top drawer. She felt a shiver going down her spine when she saw that it was his checkbook. “I believe this should be considered as overtime,” he said as he scribbled something on the checkbook. “I think this should cover it.” He tore the leaf off the book and handed her the check.

Taylor gasped when she looked at the check. Ten freaking thousand dollars.

“Mr. Cohen,” she started as she looked at it. “This is too much,” she said in a whisper.

“It’s the least I can do for disrupting your weekend plans,” he said.

“But shouldn’t accounts be handling this?” Taylor asked still confused.

“Well, they would have if this was an official business thing but this is actually a personal favor, Miss Washington,” Zachary explained. Taylor shook her head again. It was not that she didn’t want the money. God knows that she could use an extra ten grand especially since she had been unemployed for almost an entire month. It would be a perfect nest egg.

“But what about…” she started before Zachary leaned forward.

“Take the card. Go to the store and meet me back here,” he said. She took a long minute before she took a step forward, took the card and walked out of his office. Her heart was pounding hard and fast as she slowly walked to the elevator. She was having a million and one thoughts running through her mind.

“What if I mess up and embarrass him in front of his clients and business partners?”

“What if this has nothing to do with work?”

“What if this is my first and last day at this job? And with this darned economy!”

She was almost shaking as she stepped into the elevator. She could not help but wonder what the hell she had gotten herself into.

****

Taylor was not very sure what she expected to see when they got to The Hamptons, maybe because at the back of her mind, she still thought that Zachary bringing her was part of his grand plan to… she didn’t even know what.

The Cohen property at The Hamptons was a big beachfront mansion and Taylor had been given one of the rooms upstairs. She had just changed into her soft, white, long-sleeved mini dress that blended all too well with her dark skin. Of all the dresses she had tried on at the store, this was the only one which looked a little subtle. She did not want to get something that made her look too sexy now that she was getting dressed for a party that her boss had put together. As she stood in front of the mirror, she felt content that she had made the right decision as far as her outfit was concerned. Her black hair was flowing over her shoulders and she had blended her simple but elegant look with a light shade of pink lipstick. Her perfectly manicured toes were visible in the matching peep toed platform heels she had on.

“Well, here goes nothing,”
she thought as she put on the ear piece Zachary had given her on their way to The Hamptons before she walked downstairs. The place looked like a Page Six newspaper clip. She felt a shiver go down her spine as she looked around. Suddenly, she was feeling a whole new level of panic.

“I don’t know how I am going to live through this,”
she thought as he made her way towards Zachary’s guests.

Chapter 3

Taylor took a long sip of her wine as she walked towards the beach. She was carrying her shoes in one hand as she looked at the beautiful moonlit water. A smile played on her lips.

“I can’t believe I almost didn’t come,” she said to no one in particular as she looked at the quiet ocean. This had to be the first time in a long time that she was relaxing on a weekend, and so far, it was definitely worth it. She slowly made her way to the water and dug her toes into the sand. A shiver went through her as the cold water washed over her feet. She closed her eyes and smiled even wider as she felt the water washing over her feet again. She was still lost in her own thoughts when Zachary walked up to where she was.

“Barefooted in the cold water? That’s brave,” he said, making her turn around to look at him.

“It’s just something I used to do with my cousin when I was a kid,” she said as she walked to where he was, away from the water’s reach.

“You and your cousin tried to get hypothermia?” he asked. She smiled. Even in the dimly lit night, she could see him smiling.

“No, we tried to see who would last the longest in the cold water,” she said.

“And what would the winner get?” he asked.

“The other person’s dessert,” Taylor said, smiling. He frowned.

“That was a cruel game,” he said.

“Well, it depends. For Melissa, it sucked but for me, it kicked ass,” she said matter-of-factly.

“So, I gather you won a lot,” he said and she nodded.

There was a long uncomfortable silence and Taylor turned away from him, even though she could still feel him looking at her.

“Did you close that deal you came out here for?” she asked as she looked at the ocean.

“Yeah, as a matter of fact, I did,” he said, smiling, even though Taylor was not really looking at him. “Thanks to you,” he added as a shiver went through her body. “I could not have hacked the meeting without you there to help me.” Zachary was now taking off his jacket.

Taylor gasped silently as he draped his jacket on her shoulders. She turned around and looked at him.

“You look a little cold,” he said in a low voice.

“Thanks
…
I am,” she said in a whisper.

Zachary was standing so close to her that she was sure he could hear her heart beating.

“Thanks for coming today,” he said in a low voice. “You did great.”

“I… I was just doing my job, sir,” she said as she looked at him.

“Sir?” he asked and she nodded. “We are officially off the clock, you know.”

“Well, you are giving me a shitload of overtime…” Taylor started before her voice trailed off. “I mean, a lot of money in overtime and you still call me Miss Washington.” She did not know why but her voice was slowly getting lower with every word she said.

“Well, if you call me Zachary, I will call you Taylor,” he said.

“I like Zach better,” she said and he nodded.

“It is nice to meet you, Taylor,” he said, looking into her eyes. The wind was blowing through his full thick mane, making strands of hair fall out of place in front of his eyes. He was standing so close to her, so unusually close to her, that she just couldn’t help but feel awkward. In fact, she was so feeling so awkward that she dropped the glass of wine she had in her hand, making a few drops land on his pants.

“Oh God
…
sir…I  mean, Zach, I’m so sorry,” she said as she took a step back. She hated herself for being such a klutz. It was like the entire universe was against her as far as Zachary was concerned. “I should go back in… I think I’ve had a little too much to drink,” she said. She wanted to pull away from him but he wouldn’t let her. He pulled her to himself and she gasped.

“We’ve both had a little too much to drink,” Zachary said in a soft voice as he looked down at her. His body was pressed up against hers and she could smell his cologne all around her. She did not know whether it was the wine that was getting to her head or the fact that she was letting her not so bright judgment take over but she did not pull away when he lowered his head to meet her lips in a long, slow kiss. He pulled away for a few seconds and brought a hand up to hold the back of her neck before he kissed her again. This time, he was kissing her deeper and their tongues were doing a slow dance in her mouth. By the time he pulled away, she was panting. She looked at him and he held the side of her face.

“This is a bad idea,” she whispered. The hand on the small of her back slowly went lower on her body until he cupped a feel of her plump ass.

“Does this feel like a bad idea?” he asked, looking into her eyes.

She never answered him. He lowered his head and kissed her again. She knew that she would most probably regret this in the morning. She knew that she would not be able to look at Zachary ever again but all that was stuff she didn’t want to think about at least at that moment. He pushed off his jacket off her shoulders and gently forced her down on the ground.

“Shouldn’t you be getting back to your guests?” she asked as she looked at him.

“I have waiters pouring eight hundred dollar champagne in there,” he said as he got himself on top of her. “My guests are fine,” he whispered.

She slipped a hand around his neck and kissed him again. His hands were all over her, caressing and stroking, and his tongue was slowly exploring her mouth. She let out a low moan when he began kissing her chin. He worked his way down to her neck as his other hand gently slipped under her dress. She let out a gasp as he hiked her dress up revealing her bare thighs to the cool evening wind. Her head rolled to one side as he kissed her neck again and his hand caressed her thigh causing goosebumps all over her chocolate skin. He pulled away from her and pulled his shirt apart sending his buttons flying all over the sand. She reached up and gently ran her hand down his chest before he flipped her over, getting her on top of him.

As she looked down at him, straddling him, he reached for her back and pulled down the zipper at the back of her dress. She suddenly threw all caution to the wind and pulled the dress down. He looked at her breasts still concealed in the white lace bra she had on and she could tell that it was taking everything he had not to pull the bra down to reveal her breasts to him. He held her waist gently and put his other hand on her thigh. She was breathing heavily as she felt his erection pressing against her pelvis, making her increasingly wet as she looked down at him.

“Tell me what you want,” Zachary said in a low voice. She lowered herself and kissed him gently.

“I am not sure I should get what I want,” she whispered.

Zachary raised a hand and undid her bra clasp with one hand before he pulled her bra off.

“Let me be the judge of that,” he said, raising his head to take one hard nipple in his mouth. Taylor closed her eyes and exhaled loudly as he sucked hard on her nipple. He had her nipple right in between his teeth, and for a moment, she thought he was going to bite… and he did, just enough to make her moan. Without even realizing it, she was grinding her pelvis on him and he was moaning softly, much to her pleasure. He pulled away from her now rock-hard nipple only to take in the other one. She threw her head back and sighed loudly as he circled his tongue around her other nipple. He then flipped her over and she was under him once more. She could feel the sand on his back as she held him tightly. He filled his hand with one of her breasts and began kissing her chest. His other hand slowly slid down to her waist and then further down her thigh. She raised her hips when she felt him pulling her panties down.

Taylor raised her head and looked at Zachary as he worked himself lower and lower on her body until he got to her tummy. He looked up briefly and then slowly worked his hand in between her legs. She welcomingly spread her legs and threw her head back as he began working his finger in and out of her. She was moaning as he worked her pussy, slowly at first and then going faster as he went on. She could feel herself getting closer and closer to the edge but Zachary was not showing any signs of slowing down. If anything, he was going faster and harder still. She put a hand over her mouth to muffle her moans. Given the way she was moaning, she knew that it wouldn’t be long before someone came to check out what was going on. The tightness in her pussy was a sure sign that she was going to explode. She arched her back as she felt herself tightening up all around his finger and at that moment, he pulled put and pushed in two more fingers making her gasp out loudly. The way he was going was all she needed to make her explode, and she did. The force in her pussy pushed his fingers out of her and she exhaled loudly.

Zachary collapsed next to her, his hand on his crotch.

“We should probably get back to the house,” he said in a soft voice. “There is a private gate away from prying eyes.”

Taylor pulled herself up and rested her weight on her elbows.

“I would love to finish what we started here,” he said again as he leaned in to kiss her. She pulled away from him and looked into his eyes.

“Aren’t you breaking like a million HR rules right now?” she asked.

“Well, it is my company,” Zachary pointed out matter-of-factly. “I don’t think I need to worry about HR rules.”

He got up and helped her to her feet.

“Your shirt…” she started as she looked at his bare chest.

“Never mind that,” he said, smiling as he shook the sand off his jacket. He looked into her eyes and gently kissed her cheek. “I just want to be with my new assistant…”

“Assistant,” Taylor echoed as she looked at him. Suddenly everything was back in perspective. She was being reminded of her new position.

“Look, Miss Washington…Taylor,” Zachary started. “I didn’t mean to make you feel…” she shook her head before he could get a chance to finish what he was saying.

“This was a mistake,” she said before she walked away.

“No, Taylor… wait,” Zachary said as he held her wrist, making her turn around. She looked at him and shook her head.

“Mr. Cohen,” she started and Zachary smiled.

“We are back to Mr. Cohen now, aren’t we?” he asked and she nodded.

“I don’t want to lose my job,” she said. He frowned.

“Why would you lose your job?” he asked.

“I crossed a line I shouldn’t have,” she said in a soft voice. “And I think this is as far as I can go right now,” she added before she walked away cursing herself for the mistake she had just made.