The Intern (4 page)

“Well, I’ll see you Saturday, Mr. Leighton,” she says as she is seductively smiling up at me. She quickly turns around and begins walking toward the lobby doors.

I put my phone in my pocket and shake the thoughts of Casey out of my head. This is crazy. I can’t think of her like that. She’s my goddamn intern.

*   *   *

B
eing a model all through college and graduate school, it was never hard to find hook ups. Hell, they came to me. It was a much different lifestyle than I have now—everything was handed to me on a gold-lined platter. The clothes, partying until four a.m., limos, drinks, endless amounts of girls throwing themselves at me—it was all part of the lifestyle.

And now? 

The partying has stopped. The limos, drinks, and endless girls stopped. Suit and briefcases became my new wardrobe, and my modeling career vanished as if it never even existed.

I work sixty plus hours a week, take shit from my colleagues who have no faith in me, and have become a walking/talking puppet for my father who wants to mold me into the future CEO.

The family enterprise isn’t what I have an issue with, but the fact that I’m twenty-fucking-six years old and the last thing I’m thinking of is settling down. A part of me wishes for my old life back, just to give me some sense of clarity, but that’s no longer an option for me.

*   *   *

B
y Friday, my mind is fully consumed with thoughts of Casey. Since the interview and bumping into her the day before, my mind has been places extremely inappropriate for someone that’ll be working for me.

I realize I need to get the hell out of this office and clear my head. I call Ryan, another colleague of mine, and tell him to go out with me tonight. He doesn’t argue, so we plan to meet up at ten p.m. at the
Dusty Row
bar.

I change into jeans and a fitted t-shirt before heading out and meeting him. The only thing on my agenda tonight is to get drunk and hopefully, lucky.

*   *   *

I
wake up to the blazing sound of my alarm clock. Six-forty-five a.m. is flashing in bright red lights on my iPhone.

Oh, fuck.

I slowly roll over on my bed and smack into someone on the other side. I quickly rack my brain for memories of last night, but there isn’t any—well, not many at least.

I remember beer.

Girls.

Shots.

More girls.

Liquor.

Naked girls.

That about sums it up.

“Hello?” I shake her until one eye peeks open. “You need to leave, sweetheart. I have to go to work.”

I grab a sheet and wrap it loosely around my waist. I walk to my closet and pull out my suit for the day, partially excited that I get to ‘train’ my new intern—my hot as fuck librarian-looking intern.

“On the weekend?” she asks lazily as she shuffles around on the bed. “Mm...” she moans and pats the spot next to her on the bed, “come back to bed.”

“I can’t. I have to get in the shower. See your way out?”

Her expression tells me she’s offended, and her loud stomping on the floor clarifies that I’m right.

“Do you even remember my name?” she asks angrily as she scoops up her clothes that are scattered on my hardwood floor.

I smirk as she inches closer to me. “Do you remember
mine
?”

She scowls. “You’re an asshole.”

“Take a number, sweetheart. You aren’t the first one to think so,” I call out after her. She’s stomping down the hallway, and I just shrug.

*   *   *

W
alking into work feels different today. I know it’s because I’ll be seeing her again and that she’s
my
intern. And knowing that she’s completely
off limits.

I’m already in my office logging in reports when a soft knock is at my door.

“Come in,” I answer without looking up. I vaguely see her out of the corner of my eye. She’s not in her Grandma-wear, but she’s dressed appropriately for an office job—black, sleek skirt and a red shirt. I vaguely take in her shirt, noticing it reveals much more skin than before.

“Good morning, Mr. Leighton,” she says confidently. I finally look up and curse myself immediately for doing so. Getting a better view of her, I notice her clothes are clung tight to her, showing off every curve and her taut nipples. She’s smiling ear to ear and resting her hands in front of her.

“Good morning, Miss West. Welcome.”

“Thank you.” She smiles at me, and I swallow. “Oh, I forgot to say thank you for this opportunity. I’m absolutely grateful.”

“Sure, well, you deserve it,” I reply kindly.

“Oh, and please call me Ceci. I mean if that’s okay,” she stammers nervously.

“Ceci?” I raise an eyebrow.

She giggles, and it nearly kills me. That sound. The sound of her laugh is probably the best sound I’ve ever heard.

“Yeah...” she begins shifting back and forth on her feet, “it’s a nickname,” she explains. “My younger brother couldn’t pronounce my name when he was a toddler and ended up calling me Ceci. And well, it’s just stuck all these years, I guess.”

“Sounds good. Ceci it is.” I roll her name with my tongue, and it feels so good...as if I could say her name over and over again.

“What would you like me to do? Do you have some kind of list or agenda that you’d like me to follow? A schedule perhaps?”

That was supposed to be on my to-do list last night.
Shit
.

“Well, first. Do you know how to operate a coffee maker?” I grin.

She gives me a confused expression, and I’m afraid I might have scared her off already.

I smile and grab my wallet out of my back pocket. “Never mind. There’s a Starbucks one block west from here. I’ll take a dark coffee, two sugars. And whatever you’d like.” I hand her my company credit card and her hand briefly grazes mine before taking it.

“Absolutely, sir. I’ll be right back.” She spins on her heel and is out the door in ten seconds flat.

While she’s gone, I try to think of things she can do when she returns, so I don’t feel like a goddamn babysitter, but it’s so hard to concentrate when all I can think of are her damn legs.

Note: No allowing skirts at work.

On second thought...

Only short skirts allowed.

Bentley

I
WAIT IMPATIENTLY until she walks back in, sashaying her hips with ease. She gently places my coffee on my desk and smiles up at me.

Now what do I fucking do with her?

Shit...there’s a lot I’d like to do with her.

“Dark coffee, two sugars, sir.”

“Thank you,” I breathe out. I give my attention back to my computer, hoping she’ll take the hint and leave.

“Sir?” Her voice cracks. “Where would you like me?”

My jaw twitches at the innuendo she’s just put in my head. I try not to stare at her, but the way her soft, pink lips are perking up at me makes it hard to tear my eyes away.

“I’ve made a list—you can start with that,” I respond coldly. She doesn’t deserve it, but I need to remind myself of the situation we’re in currently.

Boss.

Intern.

Off limits.

She inches closer to grab the list from my hand, slowly brushing her fingers over my knuckles. She keeps eye contact with me the entire time, completely pissing me off. This girl wasn’t a scared little intern, and she wasn’t intimidated by my authority. Hell, I bet she even takes charge in the bedroom.

“You can go now,” I toss out.

This girl was either messing with me, or completely oblivious to the way she could attract men. Either way, I couldn’t have that in my office. This was strictly business.

Or so that’s what I’m trying to tell myself.

“You can use the office across from mine for now. Mr. Baumann doesn’t come in on Saturdays,” I add before she turns on her heel and walks out. She needs to be far away from me right now.

I grab my coffee and bring it to my mouth. The smell on the lid grabs my attention before I take a sip. I bring it up to my nose and smell her scent—a mixture of fruity lip-gloss and expensive shampoo—as if she took a sip of my coffee first.

I instantly adjust my pants at the thought of her lips on my coffee lid. It’s an innocent gesture, but smelling the scent and imagining where I’d want those perfect, warm lips is anything, but innocent.

I bury my head in case files all morning. Leighton Enterprises is a full-round corporation, meaning we do many things under the same scope. We investigate criminal cases and report our findings. We also report on major murder cases in the US, such as the case of Caylee Anthony. Leighton Enterprises worked day and night on that one, keeping up with new information and building reports from it.

Often, the police reports are included in the cases we receive, but sometimes they go missing or aren’t filled out accurately. It then becomes our job to try to fill in the missing gaps to write a full, thorough story.

I became interested in criminology after a huge murder flooded the headlines when I was seventeen. My dad worked night and day on that case, making sure to keep up with the news and report anything new that came in. To be the first to report it and to update it added to the Leighton Enterprises’ name. We pride ourselves on being accurate and efficient—all while being number one.

Unfortunately, all we could report was case updates and news from the investigation—the case was never solved. It’s one of the biggest unsolved cases in Nebraska.

I shuffle through files sitting on my desk and don’t notice that my office door is opening. She walks in with ease, smiling as she walks up to my desk.

“Yes?” I snarl, not making eye contact with her.

“I’m all done,” she replies simply. “What else can I do for you? Is there anything maybe...” she pauses, biting down on her lower lip, “more challenging that I can do?” Her voice is higher as she anticipates my response.

I look down at my desk pretending to stack papers and smirk at how her innocent questions suddenly sound dirty in my head.

“Well...what can you do, Miss West?” I clear my throat. “I mean Ceci. I know you have high achievements, so you tell me. What do you want to learn?” I look up at her this time and watch her squirm at my words.

She grins and steps closer. “What can you teach me?”

I adjust my pants again—my damn cock can’t behave.
This girl is a twenty-one-year-old naïve college student, and I’m her boss
, I remind my cock, but it does nothing to tame itself.

“Are you okay?” she asks leaning over my desk to where my hand is trying to hide the tent I’m now sporting.

“For someone so well-educated, you’re sure a curious little thing,” I respond nervously trying to get her eyes off my junk.

She giggles.

She actually fucking giggles.

“Sorry, sir. It’s just...you look very uncomfortable. Like you’re trying to scratch your skin off or something.”

“Excuse me?” My eyes meet hers.

“Oh, shit.” She covers her mouth with her hand. “I’m so sorry. That was really inappropriate.” I can tell she’s still smiling.

I pull my chair back and stand up, towering over her tiny size. “I think it’s best you go home for the day.”

She checks her watch quick before speaking. “It’s not even noon, sir. Please, I’m so sorry. It’ll never happen again. I really want to be here. Just tell me what to do. Anything. I’ll do it.”

I sit back down and think about her request. She looks at me pleadingly and like the sucker I am, I give in. “Fine.” I breathe out. “I’ll show you the software we use. You’ll need to know how to operate it.”

She clasps her hands tightly together and thanks me over and over. I nod, hardly acknowledging, and then I tell her to bring a chair over to my side.

I move my chair over to give her enough room, but with the way my computer is angled, she has to lean over me to get a good view.

“All right, so...” I clear my throat as I try to concentrate on the screen and not the fact that I can feel her warm breath on my neck, “it’s pretty easy once you get the hang of it.”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Leighton.” She interrupts. “I’m a fast learner.” I can hear the seduction in her voice and immediately realize how bad of an idea this is. Her body is close to mine as she leans over her chair. Her breasts are rubbing against the back of my arm, and I can tell her skin is silky smooth just from the contact.

My cock twitches and I move forward to avoid her body against mine. I swallow hard as I continue. “Here is where each case is located. They are categorized by date, location, file number, and last name. You can do easy searches by this icon up here, as well as typing in the first couple letters of the name. It’s very user friendly.”

Just when I think I’m home free, and my cock tames itself, she leans off her chair and puts a hand on my shoulder as she reaches a finger to the screen. My body immediately tenses at the touch of her hand. Even if it’s an innocent gesture, she knows what she’s fucking doing.

“What’s this icon down here?” she asks, oblivious to the mini heart attacks she’s currently giving me.

“Um...” I clear my throat as I adjust myself on the chair. I can’t have her this close to me. “It’s for transcripts. You can read them right on the screen instead of digging the files out. Most have been electronically scanned in.”

“Wow, how awesome. I mean, for the journalists.”

“Yeah, it’s definitely a time saver.” She finally sits back down, so I turn and face her. “I could have you do something like that, but it’s not very challenging. You seem too smart for something like that.” I grin.

Expecting her to agree with me, I’m surprised by her reaction. “That’s perfect!” She sits up straighter. She is giddy at the fact that she’ll be scanning in documents all day? This girl was a basket of crazy. “I’d love to do it.”

I scratch the back of my neck trying to think of something that might keep her in my office instead. Too bad the only thing I have in mind is her kneeling in front of me.

I stand up and tell her to follow me out. There are only a handful of other journalists who come in on Saturdays, so the office is relatively quiet.