AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I rub a hand across my face as I try to stop my racing thoughts. Being with a scheming woman for seven years has made me wary.
“I have to work to get her off my mind.”
A knock on the door jerks me from staring at the documents. I put them aside. Hailey comes into the office looking drop-dead gorgeous in a pale-yellow dress I once told her drove me crazy and made me yearn to peel it off her body.
Seductive little witch! She’s not naïve at all. She wore that dress today on purpose. I remember pulling the dress up to her waist while I fucked her from behind as she gripped the edges of my desk.
My dick stirs awake at that moment, and I curse inwardly. That I still want to be with her after her betrayal fills me with self-disgust. I school my features to hide my flailing emotions and stare at her with icy eyes.
“Gareth, we need to talk. I need to explain what happened last night and—”
“You don’t have to explain anything.”
She takes a step forward with her hands put together in a plea. Oh, she’s here to beg because her plan backfired? Because I didn’t fall into her trap and propose marriage instantly?
“You misunderstood the whole scenario. Brad and I—”
“Hailey,” I interrupt her in a no-nonsense tone. “Yesterday, you made it perfectly clear to me that you no longer wanted to have anything to do with me outside of work. I got the message loud and clear when I found Brad half-naked at your place. So, you don’t have to explain anything to me. You’re a grown woman. You can have as many lovers as you want. Heck, you can decide to fuck anyone in this building. As long as you don’t allow it to interfere with your work, I couldn’t care less. So, if you’re worried I will fire you because you no longer want to be my fuck buddy, rest assured, I won’t do that.”
I lower my gaze when I see the tears in her eyes. Oh, she’s good. She knows I can’t resist when I see her upset.
“Now, if that’s all, I suggest you go back to your office and do the work I hired you for. After all, you didn’t come here to fuck the boss, did you?”
She opens her mouth to say something, but then she clamps it shut and sniffs. She spins around and leaves the office with slumped shoulders. It takes everything in me not to call her back, draw her into my arms, and apologize for my cruelty.
The memory of her walking away looking so lost will haunt me for days, but it’s what I had to do. It was a big mistake starting something with her in the first place and now the relationship has left a sour taste in my mouth.
Like she said, it was enjoyable while it lasted, but it’s over now. Thankfully, there’s no scandal. Although I was wrong about her being naïve, I don’t think she will expose our affair. Dare I call her to tell her not to do that? Maybe that will be taking things too far.
An unexpected longing fills me. I’m sure I was already falling in love with her, but with her bombshell yesterday, I don’t know anymore. Our fleeting affair flashes through my mind, and I realize that I’ll miss her dearly. Not only the sex with her, but also her smile, her witty conversations, her intelligence, her listening ear, and much more.
My heart tightens at the knowledge that I might never find love again, if what I had with Linda could even be called love. In a week, the project will be over. In another, we will have the election and there will be no need for Hailey to work on my floor anymore. Can I deal with not seeing her every day? Will I regularly find an excuse to go down to the cyber security department to catch a glimpse of her?
I’ll have to find a way to move on as I did after Linda.
After a brief knock, Susan enters the office. She gives me a strange look, then reads out my schedule for the day. I nearly gnash my teeth when she mentions I have a lunch meeting with the election team.
“Okay,” I say when she’s done talking.
Diving into work straightaway, I put my personal issues away. When it’s time for the meeting with the election team, I ride with Hailey and another team member in my car while the others catch an Uber. I spend the short ride to the restaurant on the phone.
We dine in one of the private dining rooms of The Scarpeta. It’s a tough battle with Hailey seated beside me, forcing me to inhale her scent. It drives me crazy, but I put my whole attention into the meeting. I hide my irritation well when the men flirt and pour praises on Hailey, and she gulps them up the way she does when I come inside her.
I understand what I must do to forget about Hailey and the sizzling affair we had. She’s my employee and nothing more. If I don’t draw that line, I’ll end up making a big mistake. It takes a lot of energy for me because I once believed I was falling in love with her, but I pull it off.
For the rest of the week, I treat Hailey like a stranger. The warm smiles, sizzling looks, and my yearning for explosive sex with her are kept under wraps. Everything is strictly professional. If anyone noticed how frosty I became, they chalked it down to pressure from the looming deadline. The toughest part is seeing her with Brad. The damn project manager can’t keep away from her. Wherever I turn, he’s right there beside her, smiling charmingly and offering assistance.
Is she fucking him now? I wonder and torture myself with that question. Eventually, I agree that she’s better off with him. He’s not bad to look at, he’s intelligent, within her age bracket, and obviously available and interested.
The nights are hell for me because as the deadline for the project draws near, all hands are on deck, so I don’t get to work with Hailey alone anymore. I should count that as advantageous, but I can’t.
On the evening before we’re to submit the program and all the election materials we have, I go over to Linda’s to pick up Amber for the weekend. As I pull in the driveway, I hope Linda isn’t home. I’ve had a shitty week, and I don’t want another ugly incident with her. Ever since I rejected her advances, she has returned to her bitchy self. No surprise there.
Amber’s phone is switched off, so that means going to fetch her myself. Sighing, I swing out of the car and head for the door. It thrusts open before I get there. Linda, in a cheery robe, glares at me.
“What are you doing here?”
“And a good evening to you, too, Linda.”
