12. Flora

Flora

I was quickly learning that bossy was Teresa’s default tone. Instead of responding to her, I just headed downstairs and grabbed my bag out of the closet. My phone beeped, letting me know that the car had arrived.

“Our ride is here,” I said, heading for the door.

As I put my hand on the knob, Teresa pulled me back.

“I need to go first,” she said firmly.

“Is that a vampire thing?” I asked in confusion. “Like how you can’t come in unless you’re invited?”

“No, it’s a bodyguard thing.”

Teresa took a step out the door, her head swinging from side to side as she looked around. Satisfied that it was safe, she gripped my elbow and led me to the car.

“Wait.”

She grabbed a small black device from her pocket, walking all the way around the car with it before tapping on the driver’s side window and exchanging a few words with the driver. Completing her circle of the car, she moved close and whispered in my ear.

“It’s free of explosives but there might be listening devices, so keep things superficial.”

Good Lord, was this my life now?

I scooted into the car, greeting the driver as Teresa slid in from the other side. We rode in total silence to my office.

I took a deep breath as I walked into the familiar high rise that housed Meyer Beauty. It was twelve stories high, housing not only our corporate offices but also our product testing labs and classrooms. The outside of the building was shiny, making it look almost like a big mirror with the Meyer Beauty name and logo in large letters across the very top.

“Good morning, Miss Meyer.”

Both the men at the security desk stood up to greet me.

“Good morning Earl. Ben. This is my new personal assistant Teresa. Can you make her a security badge please?”

“What access level, Miss Meyer?” Ben asked.

“Unrestricted.”

Ben’s eyebrows rose slightly, the only hint that he was surprised by my response. We were fanatical about security here and very few people had full access to the building. Corporate espionage was very common in the beauty industry.

“Yes ma’am.”

After taking a quick photo of Teresa glowering, Ben handed her a badge and lanyard.

“Here you go, Miss.”

“Thanks,” my bodyguard grunted.

She jerked it over her neck like it had offended her and we headed for the elevator.

“My office is on the top floor,” I said as I scanned my badge to unlock the elevator.

As soon as I got off the elevator there was a flurry of activity. My assistant was standing near reception waiting for me, iPad in hand as she rattled off my schedule. I introduced them to Teresa as we strode towards my office.

“Um, Miss Meyer, are you unhappy with me?”

I sent Amy my assistant a small smile. “No it’s not that. I think supporting me is getting to be more than one person can handle, so you’ll continue with phones, scheduling, the mail, while Teresa will help with meeting notes, my personal tasks, and whatever else I need.”

I had a flash of what I needed as I remembered that orgasm I had last night. Even though Teresa hadn’t given even the slightest indication that she liked me – if anything, she seemed to dislike me – I had the strangest feeling that she was as attracted to me as I was to her. If so, maybe we could let off some steam while we were stuck together for however long it took to get to the bottom of these death threats.

Not that I could worry about that right now. I had a packed schedule to deal with.

Four and a half hours and five meetings later Teresa leaned over my desk and fixed me with a hard stare.

“You haven’t eaten all day.”

“Uh huh,” I said distractedly, focused on an advertising layout that was spread across my desk.

“It’s after one o’clock. What do you usually do for lunch?”

“I have yogurt in the mini fridge,” I said, gesturing at the small appliance slotted into a built in cabinet that also housed an espresso machine and an electric tea kettle.

She marched across the room and barked for Amy to come in. My assistant scurried in, sending Teresa a nervous look.

“You need to go get lunch.”

“No you don’t,” I contradicted. “I can have a yogurt.”

“I don’t mind, Miss Meyer,” Amy said timidly. “I can get you a sandwich from that deli up the street that you like. Turkey, right?”

“You know what Amy, that would be very nice if you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind at all,” she said, sending another nervous look towards Teresa.

“Bring a second one for Teresa please,” I said. “And get something for yourself too if you haven’t eaten. You can charge it to your company card, just save the receipt.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

Once the door closed behind Amy I stood up, leaning my hands on the desk and fixing Teresa with a glare.

“You don’t get to treat my staff like that,” I said firmly. “And for the record, I’m her boss, not you. Yours too.”

Teresa ambled closer, somehow reminding me of a lion hunting a gazelle. Her blue eyes darked and I saw the tips of her fangs poking from beneath her lower lip.

“Did anyone every tell you that you’re beautiful when you’re acting bossy?” she drawled.

I sputtered in shock.

“Excuse me?”

Teresa moved forward, her hands coming to my shoulders and pulling me forward until our faces met in the middle, the desk still between us. Then she kissed me.

The touch of her mouth on mine immediately drained the anger out of me. Her lips were soft and a bit cold. She pressed a little more firmly and when I sighed, her tongue swooped in, exploring my mouth. Everything inside me seemed to burst into flames. Teresa lifted one hand to cup the back of my head, holding me in place while she dominated my mouth.

I moaned, trying to move closer but stymied by the desk. I don’t know how long the kiss lasted -- it both seemed to last forever and seemed to be over much faster than I wanted – but by the time we pulled apart I was breathing heavily, and my heart was thundering in my chest.

Teresa and I just stared at each other for a long moment before she took a big step back.

“Damn it, my vamp is right.”

“Huh?” I was in no condition to be eloquent right now.

“Nothing,” she muttered. “I’ve got to use the bathroom. If something happens, scream.”

As soon as the door closed behind her, I fell into my chair, eyes closed and fingers pressed against my lips. Holy crap. I knew I was attracted to Teresa, but what had just happened felt different. It felt… life altering. I should know, I’d had a lot of life altering experiences over the past year.

By the time Teresa returned from the restroom Amy was back with our sandwiches. My bodyguard retreated to the conference room table where she’d set up shop this morning, using it as her work area when she wasn’t accompanying me to a meeting in one of the conference rooms.

Other than the constant clacking of the keys with whatever she was doing, she was silent for the rest of the day. I ate my sandwich and the fruit salad that came with it, approved the advertising campaign, and participated in several video meetings before the day was over.

After Amy left at five thirty I started packing up my laptop and some files. I tried not to stay in the office too late, although I typically did a few hours of work at home after dinner.

“What have you been working on today?” I asked Teresa as we got into the elevator.

She held up her finger and mouthed the word “bugs”.

Out loud she said, “I was working on that report you gave me, boss.”

The town car from the car service was waiting for us when we stepped out of the building. After circling the car to check for explosives, Teresa and I got into the back seat and headed home. As we drove through the dark, rainy streets, I couldn’t help but daydream about that kiss and wonder what it all meant.

And hope that we’d do it again soon…