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Placing a finger under my chin, he turns my face up so that he’s staring directly into my eyes. He’s so close to me I think I could taste him if only I reached out my tongue. “Yes, dinner. I’ll pick you up at seven.”
“What if I already have plans? This is a little last minute,” I tease. His face darkens and his forehead scrunches up like he’s deep in thought. If I didn’t know better, I would think he was jealous.
“Cancel them,” he says in that gruff tone when he’s telling me what to do before sending my body into a state of pure bliss. Before I can argue with his highhanded attitude, he leans forward and, with his lips against my ear, whispers, “Plus, I can fuck you in an actual bed after.”
I don’t even think twice before giving him my answer. “Yes.”
“Yes?” he asks, obviously a bit thrown that I’m agreeing so easily. Frankly, I am too. I shouldn’t trust him. I know his type because I’ve seen men like him all my life with my mom. But something seems different about him. Like maybe he values me and even likes me a little. At that moment I realize I have feelings for Archer. I’m not exactly sure what they are, but I care for him more deeply than an employee should for her asshole boss.
For once in my life, I decide to just go with it. I’m young. I want to go out and have fun with the amazingly sexy man who’s doing things to my body I never thought possible. Where’s the harm in that?
I lift myself off his lap, straightening my skirt and looking around for my wayward pair of panties. I spot them half poking out from underneath the expensive couch. As I’m reaching for them, Archer swoops in front of me and scoops them off the floor, shoving them into his suit pocket.
“I’ll be keeping these as collateral. Just in case you try to change your mind.” He’s got that mischievous little boy smile on his face that makes my insides melt, but I can’t help but tease him a little either.
“They’re just a pair of panties, Archer. They aren’t that valuable.”
“They are to me.”
He says this with such an earnest expression that I’m both taken aback and slightly uncomfortable. What am I supposed to say to something like that? Is he running some kind of game on me? Maybe he has a bet that he can turn me into the prom queen. Whatever is going on, I hope I make it through the other side with my heart still intact. Something tells me it may already be too late.
Quickly slipping out the door, I leave Archer to straighten himself up, and unexpectedly crash into the soft male chest of Gilbert Clarke.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Clarke, I didn’t see you standing there.” Come to think of it, he was standing a little too close to Archer’s office door. I hope he didn’t hear what was happening inside the office. I can feel my cheeks go rosy as I think about what he might have heard from the other side of the door.
“Not a problem, my dear. We all get distracted at times. Tell me, how are you liking it here at Clarke Hotels? Is my nephew treating you well?”
This is strange. I’m nobody to Gilbert Clarke. The man has taken zero interest in me, either personally or professionally, since I started here. He barely even looks at me. Until now, I’ve garnered as much attention from him as that of a potted plant. Why is he interested in my well-being suddenly?
“Everything has been great. Mr. Clarke keeps me busy, but I enjoy the work.” I try to move around him to my desk so that I can get back to work, but 0 he’s blocking my path and doesn’t seem inclined to get out of the way. “Is there anything I can help you with this afternoon?” I ask, trying not to show my impatience.
“I wanted to check in and see how things were going. Remember, if you ever need any help with young Archer there. Don’t be afraid to come to me. I’m sure I could help.” He’s giving me a tight-lipped smile that’s half creepy perv, half sneer. That he thinks I would come to him for anything, let alone an issue with his nephew, is laughable. I’ve heard the gossip, Gilbert Clarke is kept on here as a relic of days passed. He doesn’t do much of anything except gossip with the board and dine out on the company dime. I’m a bit surprised he’s even here, considering it’s the middle of the day and there’s no board meeting. He never comes to the office unless he has to.
“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you, sir.” I give him a smile, hoping that will be the end of this unsettling conversation. There’s a disconcerting glint in his eyes. I think he knows that there is something going on between Archer and me.
“You do that.” He bends down and lifts his briefcase from where it was leaning against my desk before heading down the hallway to the elevator. Now that I’ve dealt with that entirely odd interaction, I can get back to my actual work.
I grab the stack of FedEx envelopes from my outbox and head to the mailroom in the basement. I want to get these proposals out as soon as possible. After triple checking with the clerk at least three times that they would make it to their destinations by the deadline the next day, I head back to my desk to catch up on work. As I’m answering and forwarding emails, everything finally catches up with me.
I have a date with Archer Clarke.
I want to give a little squeal of joy but contain myself like the adult woman I am. Rummaging through the bottom of my purse, I pull out my phone. I never told the girls about my rendezvous with Archer last weekend. It’s not that I was trying to hide it from them exactly, I just didn’t know what it meant, or if it even meant anything at all. They would have so many questions, ones I wouldn’t have answers to. How could I explain something like that to them when I couldn’t even explain it to myself?
However, now was not the time for discretion. I was going to need my girls tonight.
Me: You guys going to be home tonight? I need you!
Violet: What’s going on? You ok?
Me: I have a date and I need help getting ready.
B: Who???
Me: …Archer…
B: Bahahahaha I knew it!
Me: Ewww! It’s just dinner.
