On the drive over to Flirtify, Jimmy was busy on the phone, gathering the troops for an immediate revamp of Stars and Swipes. It was strange. Although he wasn’t talking to me, I didn’t feel neglected the way I did with Philip’s calls; I felt involved. Jimmy didn’t specify what we needed the troops for, only that all department heads were required to attend.
The elevator dropped to the car park, and Jimmy and I stepped in. As soon as the doors closed, he turned to me.
‘I had a great time tonight, thank you,’ he said, slipping a stray hair behind my ear.
I stepped closer towards him. ‘I should be the one thanking you. It was the coolest, most memorable, outrageous moment of my life being up there with just you!’ I admitted, a broad smile spreading over my face.
We looked at each other, faces lit by elevator light. I caught the tiny lines creasing at the side of his mouth and the stubble edging his jaw. He seemed lost in thought before I slowly raised my hand to the back of his neck, leaning closer.
‘Jimmy?’
‘Mmmm,’ he hummed, still unable to take his eyes off mine.
‘You can kiss me now,’ I whispered.
Jimmy’s eyes widened, surprise mixing with desire, then he instantly pulled me close and kissed me. Our lips met desperately, breaths harsh in the confined space as his hands roamed over my dress, pushing me into the elevator’s corner. I hooked my leg around his hip, drawing him in. Then I felt it. His dick, pressing into me thick and long like a tree trunk trapped in a tailored suit. The heat and urgency between us intensified as we pressed together.
‘Fuck, Ella,’ Jimmy panted, moving his hand up my dress, sweeping my thigh, following it around the back to squeeze my arse.
The lift came to a halt and we reluctantly pulled apart as reality crept back in. The door slid open, revealing the semi-lit office.
‘Some of the team must have arrived already,’ he said with a grin.
I felt myself blush, not quite knowing what had just come over me.
‘Hey,’ Jimmy added, straightening out my blazer and gently wiping lip gloss from my chin. ‘Let’s make something remarkable, yeah? You got this, Ella. I believe in you, one hundred per cent.’ He reached forward and kissed my forehead, not seeming to care who walked by the elevator.
‘Yeah.’ I grinned back, letting out a breath of intense sexual frustration and nerves. ‘We got this,’ I agreed.
Making our way further into the office, the dim light from a few scattered computer monitors lit the room, but we could see brightness coming from the large conference room, along with some chatter. I took out my phone and messaged the group chat.
Ella:Are you guys here? X
Zola:Yeah. Where are you? X
Katy:What’s going on, Ella??? Did you tell J about the stalker? X
With a deep breath, switching myself into professional mode, I followed Jimmy into the conference room, spotting Katy and offering her a reassuring smile. The romantic energy that I could feel wrapped around me shifted immediately as I observed Travis at the back of the room, dressed in a tracksuit and sipping water, and Britney seated with a notepad, her hair in a tight bun. Zola and Katy were pacing at the side, and as I moved towards my friends, a voice from behind interrupted.
‘We don’t do on-call.’ I turned and noticed Ethan, the IT specialist. Great, he too seemed pissed.
‘Hey, Ethan,’ Jimmy said coolly as he headed to greet him. ‘I realise that, but this is important.’ He pointed to a chair, but Ethan still seemed flustered, glancing around the packed room.
‘OK, I think we have everyone.’ Jimmy spoke loudly and authoritatively enough that the room took to their seats and the whispers between staff subsided. ‘Firstly, I want to thank y’all for coming in at this unexpected time. I realise it’s almost eleven p.m. and you’ve already had a busy day in the office. However, Ella shared some concerns about the app we’re all creating, and I thought now would be the perfect time to brainstorm ways to address them.’
Zola and Katy’s side glances felt like stabs of accusation. I hated that it looked like I was sidelining them; this project belonged to all of us. I should have talked to them first. Why didn’t I? Guilt crawled in, tightening my throat.
Instead, I headed to the front of the table, standing beside Jimmy. ‘Yes, and I firstly want to say I haven’t even had a minute to discuss with my two co-founders, so Katy and Zola, please speak up if you disagree on what I’m about to say.’
Zola bobbed her head, while Katy offered a smile in my direction.
‘I have concerns that Stars and Swipes is turning into an app for women, which may have negativeTattle Life-type connotations,’ I began, feeling my sense of purpose and confidence grow. ‘When we initially developed this idea, we wanted to do it in order to warn women about men who perhaps slept around, or were married, abusive or dangerous even .?.?.’
I watched Katy flick her gaze to Travis momentarily.
‘It was created with absolute good intentions; however, what about the women who trick men, who cheat on their husbands, who perhaps catfish or exploit with their pictures?’ The room was silent, and I suddenly felt slightly exhausted. ‘Look, I think we’re missing a whole market by targeting only women. We’re excluding half of the population by creating this in its original form.’
Zola popped her hand up. ‘But we’re pitching it as a secret girls’ club type thing? That is literally the point, isn’t it?’
