Seven Years of Bad Luck (15 page)

“You taste perfect.” Without further hesitation, Ben plunged the second finger into my mouth. “See, Kathleen?” I latched onto his finger and swirled my tongue around it savoring the moment we were sharing. His finger in my mouth was erotic, and I suddenly longed to kneel before him with his erection invading my mouth. The whole scene between us was a grand display of his sexual prowess, and I wanted more. A lot more.

He withdrew his finger from my mouth and leaned in to kiss me when the intercom on his desk came to life. Olivia’s voice echoed out of the small speaker and jarred my brain.

Ben dismissed the interruption and told Olivia that he was not to be disturbed for the time being. The intercom disconnected, and I panicked.

“Oh, shit. Ben, I can’t. I shouldn’t have. Damn.” I pushed my way off his desk and free of his formidable frame. His brows furrowed in confusion, marring his beautiful face. I wanted to melt when a look of rejection glinted in his eyes.

Please don’t make me feel worse.

I stood on wobbly legs in front of his desk with him standing between me and the exit. He was allowing me the minimum amount of space to right myself. I straightened my clothing and smoothed my hair while trying to avoid eye contact.

“You want this. I know you do. You’ve wanted this since we met in the book store.” He pointed a stern finger at me while reminding me of exactly how much I wanted him. I dismissed the tug in my groin at hearing the truth.

“No. I can’t. I-I have… too much to sort out. My life is screwed up. You don’t want to bother with me. Trust me.” I shook my head while I spoke, but continued avoiding eye contact.

“That’s for me to decide.”

I paused in my nervous fidgeting and looked up into his disarming blue-green irises. I couldn’t discern if his statement was a promise or a threat, but either way it was heady and intriguing.

Fine, I thought to myself. I shuffled nervously on my feet, and Ben stepped out of my personal space immediately easing my shuffling. I felt embarrassed and naked, and I decided to segue into safer territory.

“So…” I softly clapped my hands in front of me and rocked back in my heels to bring his attention back from wherever it was. I needed to get out of his office, pronto. I continued to speak when his attention returned to my face. “Where will I be working? I can put my things away and get over to the HR department.”

Ben only nodded his head, motioned me to the door, and he followed beside me. He began giving me basic details of who, when, where, why and how as we walked through his office and back out into the corridor. He guided me to what would be my little office, all the while rattling out information at a dizzying pace in an all-business tone. It made me feel cold and used. I wanted the low-toned rumbling Ben who had been out of breath with need only moments before.

Stupid girl!

I chastised myself for wanting exactly what I just shoved away. His hand was warm and firm where it was pressed against my lower back, but the moment he placed it there, I winced and sucked in a breath through gritted teeth. Ben stopped walking and quirked an eyebrow, signaling me to explain my reaction. I only shook my head dismissively and gave a halfhearted excuse about having pulled a back muscle while working out. It wasn’t even close to believable. I wanted to kick myself as I heard the poorly formed excuse stutter out of my mouth. Ben dropped his hand from my terribly tender, freshly tattooed back and smirked while shaking his head. He took the lead and walked ahead of me into the office space I would be using. It was small but well-equipped for doing research and case prep work, drafting legal documents, and writing reports. It was certainly the best office I had been assigned to yet.

Before he left me to settle in, he turned his smoldering eyes on me. “You won’t refuse me forever.”

Ah. Another threat/promise
, I mused, only slightly shocked. The only response I gave was a tiny gasp through parted lips. He marched away, leaving me with only my thoughts, memories of being in his grip, and damp panties.

Once Ben retreated to his plush office down the hall, I put away my purse and went to the bathroom to clean up evidence from my earlier, coffee catastrophe. By the time I finished up with Human Resources, it was a few minutes until my lunch hour began. I occupied the last few minutes before lunch by getting familiar with the office phone that sat on my desk. It was way more high tech than I was used to. The contraption had a larger than normal color screen with icons on it, and more buttons than I knew what to do with. My curiosity got the best of me when I decided to figure the thing out myself. One button. Nothing.

Hmm.

Another three buttons and nothing special happened.

Really? How hard could it be?

I scrunched my eyebrows together and kept at it. Determined to gain some sign of functionality, I pressed another button, and I heard a pulsing beep coming from the phone. Beep-beeeep, Beep-beeeep.

“Uh-oh,” I muttered aloud. I stood and immediately began jabbing buttons to make it shut up when a voice replaced the beeping.

“Yes?”

Shit! Ben!

Instead of saying something, I froze and decided to just unplug the cords connected to the back. The screen went dark, and I stood frozen, staring at it and hoping that I didn’t make any distinguishing noises that would identify the accidental prank caller as me.

Well played, Kat. Fuck!

I rolled my eyes and looked at the clock which, to my relief, read 12:00. I began to gather my things when my office door swung open, and Ben walked right in. I froze in place, of course. “You called?”

Well, of course, he would know it was me who called and said nothing, then hung up like a nitwit.

“I, uh, I was trying to figure out this phone. It’s complicated. I must have called you on accident. I didn’t really need to talk to you, or um, I didn’t want, I mean, I didn’t need anything-Sorry.”

Go ahead and show your cards, Kat. Lay em’ out so he knows you want AND need plenty from him
.

My private thoughts had my heart racing as I stood there praying for an out.

A boulder falling from the sky and dropping on your head ought to do it.

Ben’s eyebrows rose, and his lips shifted slightly. He was clearly amused with my explanation yet again. “I see. Well, it’s lunch. Let’s go eat, and I will get you up to speed on things around here.”

Yay for painfully awkward, sexually tense lunch breaks with bosses who star in nightly, erotic dreams and who started my work day with an explosive orgasm!

“Right. Um, okay; let’s go.” A slightly relieved expression took over his face for a fraction of second before he corrected himself. I followed behind Ben as he walked with graceful, long strides through the corridor and back into his office. He held his hand up beside him at eye level, and without even looking over his shoulder, two fingers extended and flicked forward motioning for me to continue following him into his office. We sat at a comfortable sitting area that was just as inviting as a living room in a person’s house. There were two large cushy chairs, a matching sofa, a large glossy, wooden coffee table and coordinating end tables. Ben noticed my puzzled look, and he explained that he always ate lunch in his office.

Once our Chinese take-out arrived, we ate and talked. Ben filled me in on the basics and ‘got me up to speed.’ Aside from a few lingering looks, Ben acted as if our actions that morning had never happened. I was relieved and a little disappointed at the same time. He seemed to brush it off quite easily, whereas I had been the exact opposite throughout the day.

Once lunch was over, he wanted to introduce me to Trevor Whitmore, another attorney at the firm. We paused at the entry to Trevor Whitmore’s sitting area. Ben placed his left hand on my right elbow and wrapped his fingers lightly around it. His fingers were warm, and they were clasped possessively, rousing a gentle blush to my cheeks. He leaned in toward my ear as he held my elbow. His lips brushed my ear as he spoke quietly. I stared blankly ahead at Trevor’s secretary while Ben spoke.

“Stay here. I need to speak to Trev. I’ll come get you in a sec. Won’t be long.” The secretary sat behind a desk exactly like Olivia’s. She was staring at us with an unreadable look on her face.

Jealousy? Curiosity?

I wondered. She must’ve noticed the delicate blush that spread across my cheeks when Ben spoke in my ear because just then, I saw her jaw tense, and a muscle in her cheek twitched.

Yep. Jealousy. She must have a crush
.

After Ben released my elbow, he strode right past Trevor’s secretary without so much as a glance in her direction. However, she gawked at Ben shamelessly. Once he disappeared behind Trevor’s office door and shut it, her head dropped, and her shoulders slumped.

Someone has it bad for Ben.

I felt a bit sympathetic for the woman. I walked to her desk and extended my hand to introduce myself. Once the woman noticed me walking toward her, she looked directly at me, and her previous unreadable expression replaced the disappointment written on her face.

Great, another person just dying to be friends!

“Hello, I’m Kathleen Cooper. Nice to meet you.”

“Janis Harper.” She made no effort to disguise her opinion of me. The moment my hand fell back to my side, Ben reappeared from Trevor’s office to bring me in. I gave Janis a half-hearted smile before Ben walked me into Trevor’s office. Ben introduced me to Trevor, and he smiled wide before he looked between Ben and I.

We carried on casual conversation for a few minutes then decided it was time to get back to real work. Trevor clapped Ben on the back before we exited and shook his head with an amused grin across his face.

What the hell? Did I miss something?

I wondered what they talked about while I waited with Janis. Ben lifted his hand and waved it in front of us, motioning for me to go ahead of him. As I shouldered past him, he placed a guiding hand on my lower back for just a moment, then it fell away. I felt a pull of disappointment when the warmth of his touch left my back. I wanted to feel it again. I wanted to feel much, much, more. I didn’t bother to acknowledge Janis. I didn’t have to look to know that she had probably turned an unflattering shade of green.

The rest of my first day went by in a blur. Ben had me busy playing catch-up on all the work that had accumulated since his last paralegal quit. I was relieved to be working again and was determined to prove how invaluable I could be to him. If I were being honest with myself, I wanted to impress Ben more than just professionally. When I came home that evening, I told Cheyenne all about my day, and she told me about landing a position at some high-end spa. I could tell she was glad to get back to work, too, even if it was not what she truly loved. I reminded myself over dinner that night that I had to figure out a way to convince Cheyenne to pursue her dreams of opening a bakery.

Thursday, June, 27th, 2013. Day 36 since I began working at the firm. Working alongside Ben proved to be challenging in all the right ways. He was a magnificent attorney who was intimidating in the courtroom. He was thorough and efficient and refused to accept anything less from his team and colleagues at the firm. Unlike the putz I had worked for previously, Ben was all too willing to do time-consuming, tedious work alongside me. I told him many times that I could handle whatever he threw at me, but many times he would insist on doing things himself. I was beginning to wonder if he doubted my intelligence or competence. I thought that perhaps he was making an excuse for us to spend more time in the same room together. I had secretly hoped it was the latter, but just to be sure, I was determined that I would work hard to prove myself. I arrived at work in a rather great mood. I’d slept well the night before, and restful nights like that had been few and far between for far too long. I was enjoying my new-found ability to sleep.

Since I had begun working at the firm, Ben and I ate lunch together nearly every day, and that day was no different. I strolled into Ben’s office at noon. He was on the phone when I walked in and glanced up at me while flashing that mischievous grin that I had become so fond of during the month I had been working at the firm. Though I was still a nervous idiot in his presence, I managed to control myself by focusing on work. Ben, of course, still made me hot and bothered on a regular basis. Heated glances, slight touches, sexual innuendos, and breathy whispers were just a part of being around him. I was becoming accustomed to it all.

Ben placed the phone in its cradle and silently stared at me while reclining in his desk chair. He was free of his suit jacket and tugged the knot of his silk tie loose before he interlaced his fingers at the nape of his neck.

“Kathleen, have a seat. Lunch will be here shortly. In the meantime, I have to talk to you about something.” I fidgeted my fingers anxiously.

“Okay. What about?” Ben appeared simply delicious behind his desk in a relaxed, confident state. I found it difficult to focus on much more than the gorgeous specimen in front of me.