My desk is protecting my dignity right now.I bring it out in her. Yes, Sir.I’m so hard it hurts. If this woman set foot in Venom, I’d be intrigued. And that’s something I haven’t felt in recent months. Not even with Tessa, if I’m honest. Aspen has piqued my interest with her observation of my food earlier tonight, but this—alone in my office—has me questioning my judgment. I figured I needed a project to keep myself busy, but this woman might be a little too much of a distraction.
I never mix business with pleasure, and I don’t date. I decided it wasn’t fair to drag some unsuspecting woman into my world. Sure, I’ve had ‘girlfriends,’ who are submissives, but they all came to the table with their eyes wide open.
“I’m just kidding. Sort of. I’m just the right amount of ball-busting.” I can imagine multiple ways to introduce her to my balls that would be so wildly inappropriate. I need to focus on the task at hand and pray that my hard-on subsides because I’m fucking hurting.
“Does Monday work for you?”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’m not that much older than you,” I say in an attempt to stop my cock from standing at attention. If she calls meSirone more time, I’m going to lose it.
“I know. You’re twenty-nine.”
“What else do you know about me?”Stop looking at her perfectly pouty blush-pink lips.
“I’m not a stalker, I promise. At least not a harmful one. You’re inspirational with what you’ve managed in such a short period of time. I’d be a fool not to research how you did it. I’m three years younger than you, and I am a waitress in your restaurant with no prospect of making the food I love.”
“Until now.” I delight in the sweet smile that transforms her face, reaching her eyes, twinkling like stars in the midnight sky.
“Are you serious? I would crawl on my hands and knees to make you a plate of food.”
“I look forward to that, Aspen.” I regret it the second it leaves my lips, when her eyes go wide as saucers. This is not the setting to say something like that. If I were at Venom, no one would bat an eyelid if I told my submissive to crawl naked on her hands and knees to me.
“I…”
“It was a joke.”Maybe.
She gives a nervous laugh, wringing her hands, unable to look at me.
“Come in on Monday at noon. I’ll have been to the markets and gotten fresh produce for the day. You can create a dish for me, and we’ll go from there. If you’ve got the chops in the kitchen, I have no problem taking you on.”
She sits in stunned silence for a few seconds before her gaze snaps to mine. “Can I go to the market with you?” This girl has spunk. I just gave her the offer of a lifetime—according to her—and she wants more. I like her already. You make your own destiny, and I recognize a kindred spirit when I see one.
“Demanding little thing, aren’t you?” I lean back in my chair, steepling my fingers under my chin.
“I’m sorry. I just want to see your process, start to finish.”
“Your wish is my command. Meet me here at seven.” An honest-to-God squeal escapes her as she thrusts her hand across the desk. The second my hand connects with hers, a spike of adrenaline catches me off guard, and by the look on her face, she feels it too. It’s not until I look to where our skin meets that I notice bruises around her wrists.
“What’s this?” She attempts to extricate her hand from my grasp.
“Nothing. It’s fine.” The closer I look, I notice they are finger marks. Someone had her in a harsh grip to cause something like that.
“Who the fuck did that to you?” My blood begins to boil.
“It’s nothing.”
“Like hell it is. You have fucking fingerprints on your wrist. I’m going to ask one more time, and I want a goddamn answer.”
“It was a guy in my building. He asked me out. I said no. He grabbed me, and I handled it.”
“What’s his name?”
“You don’t need to know that.”
“And what if it happens again?”
“It won’t.”
