Page 46 of Sins and Secrets

I walk out of the office with my head held high. As I sit down at my desk, I keep my posture rigid even though I want to curl in on myself.

Alessio doesn’t need to know the hold he has over me.

All I have to do is get through the next few hours and then I can go home for the evening.

If I’m lucky, tonight will be one of the nights where Alessio has mafia business to deal with that keeps him away from home.

I hum to myself as I sort through the papers, organizing them and trying to put myself in a better mood. No matter how many times I tell myself that today is going to be a good day, it’s getting harder and harder to believe it.

As I finish sorting the paperwork, I see other people through the open door starting to head to the conference room. I glance over my shoulder at Alessio’s closed door, wondering if I should go in and get him or not. He knows that we have this meeting, and I don’t want to go back in there and argue with him again.

However, I have a job to do.

I stand up and smooth my skirt down, taking the time to pop open the top button of my cream blouse. It doesn’t reveal a lot of skin, but just enough to remind him of what he is missing. It might be cruel to both of us, but I’m not going to make this easy on him. If he wants me to be his and only his for the remainder of the contract, then I’m going to have my fun.

Distracting him by teasing him might just allow me to leave the mafia easily. He’s going to think that I’m going along with everything he wants while the reality is far different.

I knock on his door, waiting for an answer. Instead of the gruff come in that I normally get, the door opens. Alessio’s hair is disheveled and his blue eyes are shining with anger. He doesn’t look at me as he strides out of the office.

As I grab the reports, I watch him make his way to the conference room. In the past few days of working here, I’ve noticed him arriving early to every meeting. It’s almost as if he wants to give himself the upper hand in every situation by making others believe that they’ve wasted his time before the meeting begins. I’ve already heard more than one person apologize for being late when they walk into the room and see him sitting there.

I follow him into the conference room and place copies of the reports at several of the seats. It’s going to be a small meeting with the accountants and some of the upper management, but an important one. Alessio is constantly going over his numbers, making sure that the casino is turning over a profit every day.

Who wouldn’t be concerned about turning a profit when they’re using their business to launder money?

Alessio takes his seat at the head of the table as I finish passing out the reports. I make sure to stand a little too close to him, my arm brushing against his. Though he doesn’t say anything, his jaw tightens.

I smile to myself, enjoying the new game for a moment before other people start to filter into the conference room. They talk and laugh with each other, falling silent only when they see Alessio already sitting down and flipping through the reports.

“Well, thank you all for joining me today,” Alessio says, looking around at the other employees as they take seats around the massive oak table. “I’ve been looking over our profit and loss statements for this month and I have to admit that I’m not pleased with what I’m seeing.”

I make a note at the top of my copy of the reports. Alessio stands and grabs a remote, turning on a projector and the screen at the front of the room. The door to the conference room opens and Jefferson rushes in.

“Jefferson, the meeting started already. We will discuss your tardiness afterward.” The glare Alessio gives Jefferson is one that could melt flesh from bone. He scowls and pulls up the reports on the projector, flipping to the first graph.

“While our overall numbers are up, the percentages are down. We have taken more losses this month than we have in the past several. This is not a trend I want to continue for the rest of the quarter.”

His voice booms and the way he speaks while meeting the eyes of everyone in the room exudes control. He is in charge, and everyone knows it. Alessio commands their attention in a way that few people have the power to do. When he addresses the room, he is confident and at ease.

I clench my thighs together, thinking of the way his authoritative tone and confidence would pair together in the bedroom. Heat floods to my core as images of him telling me what to do to please him flash through my mind.

Get control of yourself. You’re at work and you’ve both agreed more than once that this is a stupid idea. Get it together.

When he finally looks at me, I know there is no getting it together.

When it comes to Alessio, I’ve lost control.

As soon as this meeting is over, I’m ordering a new vibrator. One that might make me feel half as good as he does.

A new vibrator might be my only chance at resisting the attraction I feel for him.

16

ALESSIO

Another few days spent avoiding Billie mean another few days that I’ve fucked my hand while picturing her on her knees. By the time this contract is done, I’m not sure how I’m ever going to close my eyes and not see her begging for me to fuck her.

I drum my fingers on the steering wheel of my car and stare up at my house. For the first time ever, I’m dreading going home. This used to be the one place where I could fully relax. I didn’t have to worry about saying the wrong thing to a woman I definitely shouldn’t be interested in.

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