8. Daniel

8

DANIEL

I held down the button on the intercom, calling Jill, who responded immediately.

“Yes, sir?”

Chipper as always, her voice rang through the line clear. “Jill, I need you to get Olivia and come to my office, please.”

“Of course, sir.”

I leaned back in my chair, reflecting on the decision I had made. Emily was perfect as an assistant, but I wanted more time with her. Just seeing that couch where she and I had sex now more than ten days ago was a huge reminder of just how much I liked her company. We still hadn’t discussed the encounter due to my busy schedule, but we had fallen into a comfortable rhythm with work. She brought me coffee just the way I liked it, and I invited her to lunch daily. Twice, she spent her lunch hour with coworkers instead of me, which I encouraged in the name of her building relationships within the firm.

Now I waited for her boss to come and hear my new directions. The clock on the wall ticked seconds by, frustrating me that Olivia was taking so long to come at my call. Jill would have been here in a few seconds, but I gave Olivia the benefit of the doubt. As partner, she was likely busy with a client, which is the only reason I would have considered worthy of making me wait. Everyone knew I was a hard man to please, Emily included.

When the soft knock came at the door, I called, “Come in.” Both Jill and Olivia knew to knock and wait for my call, which is something Emily would never do now because I’d given her free reign of my office.

“Sir, you needed to see me?”

“Both of you, yes.” Olivia nodded at my correction, and both women approached my desk. Jill had a pleasant look on her face, but Olivia looked perplexed, so I cut to the chase. “Tell me what you know about Emily Kline.”

Olivia’s brow furrowed and she glanced at Jill. “Well, Emily graduated magna cum laude from UC Berkeley with a master’s in business management. She was near the top of her class. She grew up in Monroe County, Illinois, in a small town. She has a small family and is new to the city.”

I could have known that all on my own. What I was interested in was tidbits about Emily she’d share with a coworker that she might not feel comfortable sharing with her boss, the CEO. “I’ve read her resume, Olivia. I mean, you’ve gotten to know her a bit. What is she like?”

“Uh, sir, we had lunch a few times so far,” Jill chimed in with a smile. “Emily is generous, and she has a mothering sort of attitude and wants to make sure everyone is taken care of and happy. She brings me a coffee every morning, and she makes sure to order it how I like it.”

“Ah, that’s good to know.” I thought she’d only done that for me, but I liked that she was as kind to everyone as she was to me. Though that brought some doubts to mind that her kindness toward me was more than just at a coworker level, and given her response to my text messages a few nights ago, I worried maybe she really was seeing someone else. “Go on.”

“Sir,” Olivia started, “she is prompt. She is detail oriented with a laser focus. When I ask her to do something, she exceeds my expectations regularly. I agree with Jill. She is generous and thoughtful. I also think she is very ambitious, but not in the way you might think.”

This I already knew, but I’d let them tell me.

“Yes, she told me she wants to use this job as a stepping stone, a personal experience builder to help her resume. She wants to really build a career around business strategy and consulting.” Jill wrung her hands and eyed me nervously. “Why do you ask, sir?”

“Well, I have a proposition.” I stood and buttoned my suit coat, realizing I hadn’t stood when they entered the room the way I always did when Emily walked in. It was evidence to me that I saw her differently at my core level, not just because she was gorgeous. “Jill, you are now going to be office management. You will oversee both Emily and Olivia’s secretary, Brita. The rest of the assistants and office staffers too. It’s a bump in pay, and a reduction in hours, allowing you to spend more time with your children without lacking finances.”

Jill’s eyes lit up. “What? I’m getting a promotion?” She hadn’t seen a promotion in the years she’d worked for me, so it was a long time coming. Besides, I knew she could really do more with her talents.

“Yes.” I nodded and turned to Olivia, too ready to be down to business to revel in her excitement. “Olivia, Emily is now my permanent assistant. Call her a secretary or whatever. It doesn't matter. If we need another assistant, talk to HR to find a good salary range and start hunting.”

“But, sir, I hardly got Emily settled in.” I met Olivia’s protest with a raised hand. She stopped talking, but her face said so many things her lips couldn't utter. She was upset with me.

“My decision is final. I’ll have you send her in now too, so I can give her the news. Also, tell Gary in HR to bump Emily’s salary and Jill’s, both by ten percent. Got it?”

Olivia offered a skeptical look and pursed her lips. “Yes, sir.”

“Thank you, Mr. Jacobs,” Jill said, now almost giddy. She turned and followed Olivia out, shutting the door behind herself, and I sat back down, ready to enact part two of my plan. I wanted to have Emily in this office as much as possible, even if it meant cutting into my own profits as the head of this firm.

Trying to get my mind focused on work, I flicked through a few case briefings on my computer while I waited for Emily to come in. It wasn’t like her to keep me waiting, so when nearly twenty minutes had passed and she barged in a bit flustered, I was surprised. She looked like a scolded puppy, but rather than focusing on her emotional reaction, I focused on how out of character this was for her. Even Olivia had mentioned how prompt Emily was.

“I asked for you to come in here more than twenty minutes ago.” I stood and greeted her, gesturing for her to sit in one of the chairs at the table across the room.

“Sorry, Olivia had a few things for me to finish up at the last minute, and she wanted to talk to me too.” She pulled a chair out and sat down, smoothing the flyaways around her temples and tucking them behind her ear. ”What did you need, sir?”

“First of all, stop calling me sir.” I chuckled as I sat down, which drew a smile to her lips. “And second of all, you’re going to be my personal assistant permanently now.”

She offered a confused but happy expression. “I’m what?”

“Yes, my personal assistant alone. No one else in the firm gets to access that amazing talent you have. Got it? So when you report to work tomorrow morning, you can clean out your old desk and move into Jill’s.” She opened her mouth to protest, but I forestalled her complaints. “I’ve given Jill a promotion.”

“You did that just so I could report only to you?” Her hand fluttered to her chest where she toyed with a small gold charm on the necklace she wore. It drew my eyes to the dip in her blouse and the hint of cleavage showing.

“I did.” I licked my lips, ready to taste her skin, but we needed to talk first. “And there is something I’ve been meaning to discuss with you for a while.” My dick was swelling, the skin feeling tight already. She did that to me—aroused me like no woman I’d ever met.

“What’s that?” Emily relaxed into the chair and tilted her head at me.

“The way your pussy felt wrapped around my cock.”

As I said the words, I watched her visibly tense. She sat straighter, her eyebrows rose, and she glanced at the door. “I hardly think that’s appropriate conversation for a workplace.”

“Then you’re really going to think what I have to say next is inappropriate.” I saw the grin she tried to hide. “I really like you, and I want you to consider what we might have together.”

“Meaning?” she asked, toying with her necklace again. Her lips darkened by several shades, and I sensed she was eager for me to clarify.

“I mean, when you find someone you click with instantly, and you feel like you’ve known them your whole life, you just know it’s right. You fit with them, like peanut butter and jelly, or mashed potatoes and gravy. And you, Emily, are my perfect match.”

“Sir, I…” She looked down, smiling.

“I said stop calling me sir. My name is Daniel. You can call me Dan, or Danny, or even D, but please do not be so professional with me anymore. I meant it when I said I like you.”

Emily’s face remained downturned, but the smile she had didn’t escape me. She was timid but not weak, polite, but not a pushover. I studied her while she considered my words, the way her hair fell in soft waves around her face, the way the curve of her breasts was provocative, yet modest in their own way. Emily wasn’t a shark like Olivia and Grace, but she wasn’t a limp noodle like some of the other assistants I’d had. And she had some fight in her, a spirit to strive for excellence even if she was going against the grain. I noticed that the first time she walked right into my office without knocking.

“I’m not sure how to respond right now.” Her cheeks were tinged pink—embarrassment or shyness—but her lips grew darker. That meant arousal.

I leaned forward and grabbed her hand, bringing it to my lips to kiss it. “Say nothing right now.” Her palms were sweaty, another sign that she was nervous, but I was about to put her so at ease, she wouldn't be able to walk when I was done with her.

She looked up at me, mouth held slightly open. “But…”

“Just go lock the door.”