Beckett Seventeen more days... You can do it. Damn right you can. You can do anything you set your mind to. I pump myself up, with each st
Ep I take. But I don’t even believe my own bullshit. No. I. Can’t. I won’t survive this. Rhys’s bike is a lot less appealing with each passing day. I’m strung up tighter than the tightrope acrobats walk on. As crazy as it sounds, I’ve jerked off more in the past week and a half than I have in all of my teenage years combined. My balls are aching. My cock is desperate. Self-gratification when it’s all you’re getting is almost pointless and cruel. And dare I say porn becomes lackluster. Thirteen excruciating long days without pussy. Fuck, this born-again virgin shit is torture. Last night, I dreamt of begging a woman to sit on my face so I could devour her pussy for an hour straight. The pussy I wanted to ravish was Arianne’s. There. I said it. What I wouldn’t give to get my mouth on her and feel the swell of her clit against my tongue and taste the sweetness of her slickness. Dammit. I’m hard again. Aware of eyes on me, it’s impossible to adjust myself. It’s like walking with a third leg. Fuck. As I stroll across the executive floor, I nod left and right, dropping good mornings and flashing a warm smile, as I make my way to Arianne’s newly appointed office. Rhys is going to learn the hard way; you don’t challenge me unless you expect to lose. If he thinks I can’t charm a woman, he’s going to get whiplash. I’ll make sure to send him a nice catalog of selfies of Arianne and I, sitting on his prized bike. My knuckles rap against the door of Arianne’s new office. “Knock, knock, knock.” “Come in.” “Good morning, Arianne, I thought you’d—” I freeze. She isn’t alone. She’s sitting next to Rhys. He flashes me a shit-eating grin. “Good morning, buddy,” he says. “Good morning,” I say, unwilling to return his smile. I tear my attention away from him. “Good morning, Arianne.” “Good morning, Beckett,” she says. One glance tells me she’s been in the office for a while. There are stacks of paper piled on her desk. Competitors’ headphone samples litter the small, round conference table in the corner of her office. The two pens sticking out from the back of her head like chopsticks are another indication she’s hard at work. I guess I should say, they’re hard at work. “Is that for me?” Rhys points. “You shouldn’t have.” I don’t grant him an answer. Instead, I focus on the woman who consumed my dreams last night. “I brought you coffee and breakfast,” I say, lifting the tall cup and bag I’m holding. “Wow,” she says. “Does everyone get this kind of royal treatment when they work for you?” I knit my eyebrows in confusion. Rhys crosses his arms across his wide chest and leans back against his seat. “We’re on our second Thoroughly Hot latte of the day, and I’ve already taken care of breakfast and morning snacks.”
“Second cup of the day? Breakfast and morning snacks?” “Yes, we’ve been at it since six a. m.,” Rhys says. “How come?” “Arianne called me last night as I was getting into bed,” he says. I try my darndest not to show my surprise. “We had a great conversation. You know... getting to know each other better.” Fucker. “I found out so many insightful things about her.” I bet. “Did you know she’s a Philly girl, an only child, and her Scottish parents own a couple restaurants?” Oh, he’s so proud of himself. “I also found out that although Ari was in Europe for two years, she chose to explore Italy from top to bottom and never discovered Paris.” Thank you, Mr. Travelocity. “How did she get your number?” I bypass his bullshit. A facetious smile lifts the corner of his lips. “We exchanged numbers while we were waiting for you yesterday. I figured she might need it. I’m glad she had it on hand.” What. The. Fuck? “Really?” The desire to revert to a backward-thinking, Neanderthal-chest-beating caveman, is strong. “Why did you need to call him?” I don’t bother hiding my accusatory tone. She blushes. “I hope I didn’t do anything wrong.” It all d epends. “I’m just curious.” I attempt to soften my abrasiveness. “I called Rhys to find out if I could get to the office early,” Arianne says. “I wanted to hit the ground running first thing this morning.” Rhys and I get in that early when we need to plow through work, but she just started. “Isn’t six a little early?” “You hired me for a reason,” she says, lifting a defiant chin. “I could live with not being pr epared yesterday when I first met you, but that’s not my MO. Since my goal is to have preliminary r eports to you before the end of the week, there isn’t a minute to waste.” I don’t know how to respond to that. On one hand, I’m grateful for her dedication, on the other, I hate that she went to Rhys instead of me. “I see,” I say with a slow nod. I should ke ep my gaze trained on her, but my eyes drift to Rhys. I guess he takes that as an invitation. “I picked up Arianne at her place and we drove in together,” he says. He knows where she lives? “She’s picked up on a few things we can improve.” “That sounds promising,” I say. “Very. Promising.” Rhys is playing me. Arianne meets my gaze. “If it’s okay with you, I plan on spending the next three days working closely with Rhys. I want to have a good grasp of the ins and outs of your manufacturing to see where I can trim costs.” “Three days? That’s—” “That’s the core of the business,” Rhys says. “Any savings could be allotted to more marketing and advertising dollars.” Like I couldn’t figure that out on my own, Einstein. “It makes sense,” I say with a tight smile. Arianne’s eyes drop to my hand, reminding me I’m still holding on to the breakfast I brought her. I close the door with my foot and stalk to her desk, my eyes glued to my business partner.
I drop the coffee and the bag in front of her. “In case you want another coffee and you need a shot of sugar before lunch.” “Thank you,” she says. “It’s my pleasure. I’m not a fan of reheating coffee in the microwave, but Thoroughly Hot is worth the exc eption. Tall latte with two shots of espressos and three sugars, just the way you like it, accompanied by an assortment of my favorite French pastries. Since you’ve never been to Paris, I guess this is so apropos.” Rhys rolls his eyes hard. You think you’re the only one who has game, buddy? Think again. “I don’t know what to say.” Arianne blushes. Damn, I love the color of her cheeks. “You two are so attentive.” I shoot Rhys another threatening glare. He returns the favor. I fish for my phone in my suit jacket. “Why don’t we exchange numbers? You never know when you might need mine.” “She already has mine,” Rhys says. I arch a brow. “In case you’re not available.” “I’ll always be available for Arianne.” He pauses. “Day... or night.” He’s rattling my cage. I ke ep my cool. “Shit happens, Hartford.” “I’m reliable, Christensen.” “So. Am. I.” Arianne’s eyes ping-pong from mine to Rhys’s, confusion painted on her beautiful face. “I feel like I did something wrong,” she says. “If you want me to wait until nine when the office opens, it’s okay. I can knock off a couple hours of work at my place.” “Nonsense. If you have my phone number, you have another point of contact.” More eye-rolling from Rhys. “That’s a great idea.” She grabs my phone. With quick fingers, she punches in her number. Much better. Rhys narrows his gaze at me. The slow triumphant smile that curls up my lips doubles as a fuck you. There’s a knock at the door. “Come in,” Arianne shouts. “Rhys, I’m sorry to interrupt,” Cecilia, his executive assistant says, poking her head around the door. “That’s okay,” he says. “What’s up?” “It’s Leland,” Cecilia says. Rhys checks his phone. “Why is he calling the office line?” “He’s here,” Cecilia says. “He says it’s urgent.” Rhys’s worried eyes shoot up, mirroring my own concern. “Did Leland want to see both of us or just Beckett?” “He said this is production related and it’s best if he talks to you first.” We exchange another worried glance. “Okay, I’ll be right out,” Rhys says. “Should I show him to a conference room or your office?” “My office is good, Cecilia,” Rhys says. “Got it,” she says. With that, Cecilia closes the door. Rhys turns his focus to me. “I wonder what’s wrong.” “I’m sure it’s nothing. You know how anal Leland can be.” “He wouldn’t show up here if it was nothing, Beckett.” “You’re not in this alone. Let me know what’s going on and we’ll nip it in the bud asap.” “Divide and conquer,” Rhys says with a slow nod. “Divide and conquer,” I say. The tension between us has dissipated. We’re back to being two buddies with a dream instead of two idiots showing each other up to earn the attention of a gorgeous woman. “I have to go,” he tells Arianne. “I don’t know how long I’ll be tied up for, but if you need anything at all, ask Cecilia and she’ll get it for you.” “Sounds good,” she says. “Have a great meeting.” “Are we still on for lunch, Arianne?” “Yes,” she says. Breakfast and lunch? Someone works fast. “You don’t want to ke ep Leland waiting, Rhys,” I
say. “In a hurry to get rid of me?” “Your executive assistant said it was urgent.” He stares at me. You can’t argue with that. “Catch you later,” he says to Arianne with a chin nod. And... he’s off. “Leland is your point person, right?” I meet Arianne’s gaze. “That’s right. We partnered with Tekknika Audio, a manufacturer based in Brisbane, California, to develop and manufacture SCORE headphones right here in the good ol’ USA. Leland Kastner is the team leader for all our products.” “Thanks for helping me ke ep it all straight.” I smile as I take her in. Today, she’s wearing black armor with a crisp white blouse. Alas, it’s all buttoned up. I hope she’s wearing another one of her sexy as all fuck pencil skirts. Not a strand of hair is out of place. Her makeup is soft and feminine. Everything is almost identical to yesterday, exc ept for the sparkle missing from her big brown eyes. I may be reading into this, but she looks tired. And sad. “Is everything okay?” “Yes.” “You’re sure?” “As okay as it’ll ever be, I suppose.” Her tone is a little too flippant. I try a different approach. “If you were here at six, that means it was a short night for you.” “I didn’t expect to sle ep much.” She doesn’t say more, but her clipped tone suggests there’s a hell of a lot more. “Wanna talk about it? I’m a great listener. If you need an impartial ear, I’m your guy.” “No thanks...” She shakes her head. “It’s nothing worth wasting time over.” That’s all she says. No further explanations. She’s hard to read and impossible to figure out. Why does that intrigue me so much? I can’t remember finding the last dozen women I fucked as fascinating. It’s more than finding out how sweet her pussy tastes, it’s about understanding what makes her tick. My eyes are still glued to her soft pink shapely lips. Damn. I have the pressing urge to suck them between my teeth, to fucking own them. “You’re staring, Beckett.” “Am I?” “You know you are.” My brain is telling me to drop it, but since most of the blood in my body is flowing to my crotch, I’m oblivious to the warning. My starved cock does all the thinking. And talking. “I’d love to take you out for dinner,” I say. “Eight o’clock? We can leave together. There’s this incredible restaurant—” “Unless it’s strictly business, I’ll pass.” Talk about slamming the door shut. Undeterred, I soldier on. “What if I wanted to thank you for your hard work?” “I haven’t even rolled up my sleeves yet, Beckett. It’s a bit premature, don’t you think?” Okay. Strike two. “We both have to eat, might as well do it together? It would be great to get to know each other outside the office.” “That’s not a good idea.” She shakes her head, her lips pressed together, as a blush cre eps up her cheeks. Another time, another place, and I’d say pissed off looks sexy on her, but not in this case. There seems to be a shit load of baggage behind her refusal. “I prefer to ke ep the lines unblurred.” The fury in her eyes is unmistakable. “Anything else and people get royally screwed.”
Her gaze moves to her computer, dismissing me in the process. Well, hell.