Page 17 of Office Affairs

“Chase is booked up with meetings all day tomorrow, and Friday after lunch is packed.” She crossed her ankles and tucked the screen against her stomach. “Is there something you’d like me to add?”

“How many of our Friday appointments can you rearrange?” I rocked back and forth in my chair, the idea growing larger with every passing minute.

Sabrina’s frown made me want to smooth the lines from between her eyes and tell her everything would be alright. “Garrett has to attend the morning meeting with Mrs. Layton. He’s rescheduled it twice and she was adamant this morning that she speak with him. I’m afraid another reschedule will push her away permanently.”

“That’s fine.” Leaning forward, I tapped the play button on another series of security footage I’d received from Mike, our head of security. The video played while Sabrina continued.

“There’s another meeting between Chase and that one woman you called the devil’s spawn.” A grin slipped out before she schooled her features. “Mrs. Slatton is requesting the meeting to discuss merging the separate marketing departments for continuity and workflow.”

“She wants to tell Chase how to run the marketing department because she came here from Stander Global.” I zoomed in on one of the screens. “She’s a menace.”

“But is she right?” Sabrina reached toward me, then snapped her hand back when I jerked. “Sorry. You have lint in your hair.” She motioned at her own head. “There.”

I stilled, my heart beating furiously. “Go ahead.” I gave her permission for something I’d never offered anyone else.

Her fingers spasmed around the tablet before she released it. Time stopped as her fingertips grazed my scalp and she plucked the lint away. She showed it to me like she thought I doubted her.

I wanted her to touch me again. Damn me to hell for having the hots for a woman half my age. I understood what Chase saw in her. It was more than her gorgeous body and the sultry look in her eyes. Sabrina didn’t give a damn if we liked her or not. She had a maturity and a head for business that made her seem older.

Chase would argue I was making a mistake, but he’d come around. I never did anything without serious consideration for the consequences. “Clear Friday afternoon. No meetings. No calls. Nothing. And draft up an email stating that the entire office will shut down Friday at noon. We’ll pay everyone for the missed hours.”

Her mouth fell open in obvious shock. “Why?” She recovered with a shake and stood to her full height. “I mean. Yes, sir. I’ll take care of that right away. What reason should I give in the email and when I reschedule the meetings?”

“None. We don’t owe anyone an answer.” I kept my voice cool and controlled, even as a tiny spike of anger rose.

Anger was Garrett’s thing, not mine. I kept my expression controlled and my hands loose as I continued surveying the video footage. Sparks flew between us when she remained rooted on the spot.

If she kept looking at me like that, I might have to apologize to Chase for not understanding the full extent of his infatuation with her. I was surprised he managed to keep his dick in his pants after the way he looked at her during meetings. Apparently, the sparks I’d seen between them extended to me too. Interesting. Things were far from over between those two or between us. This weekend could be quite the challenge.

“I need you to book a weekend work retreat at the Halsted Hotel. The address is in the book. Book four rooms from Friday until Sunday night. You’ll need to call Captain Austin as well, and tell him to prepare the jet.” I loved the way her mouth fell open with a pop.

I didn’t flaunt our money often, and it was refreshing as hell to see her blatant reaction.

“You’re going to blow off half a day’s worth of meetings for a ‘work retreat’?” She air quoted work retreat like it was a curse word.

“Yes.” I spun my chair around and kicked my feet up onto the desk. “We have some things that need to be taken care of. Things that I’d rather not deal with here.” I left it at that, allowing her imagination to go wherever it would. Mine went straight to the image of my cock inside her as I took her from behind with a broad stretch of the California coast in sunset spread out before us.

“Okay. But why four rooms?” Confusion crinkled her lips into a frown. “There are only three of you.” A disbelieving look widened her eyes before I spoke.

I released the full power of my smile. “Because we need you to come with us.”

10

SABRINA

“No.” The single word burst out of me with an explosion of air that left me breathless. I mean, a weekend work retreat with Russell, Garrett, and Chase sounds fantastic, but there was no way in hell I’d say yes. I can’t believe he’s even being serious. “That’s impossible.”

Russell clapped the sides of his loafers together, the sound echoing through the room. “Why? It’s a work function, and we need you there.”

Yeah, right. They needed me there like I needed a double root canal. I recognized the attraction in his eyes and the way he looked at me. It heated my skin and made me want to crawl across his desk and into his lap. That one night with Chase had ruined me for sure. I wanted Russell too much to give into the temptation of a weekend getaway. Even if it was for work, we’d be away from the office. Rules could be bent outside these walls.

I swallowed the sudden tightening in my throat and gripped the tablet tighter. “You have to give me advance notice.” I hedged around the real answer. “What if I have plans this weekend?”

“Do you?” The quick concern and lifted eyebrows held a hint of warning not to lie.

“Not exactly. No. But that doesn’t mean I can drop everything at home and come running whenever you call.” I was a businesswoman trying to earn a degree, not some prostitute at their beck and call. I had my own goals and ambitions. Sex with Russell would undoubtedly be mind-blowing. It also put me at risk of losing this job and the security that came with it. I had to keep this job, especially now that Bailey was gunning for my home. “I have stuff to take care of.”

“What kind of stuff?” Russell stood and eased his hands into his pockets. The move stretched his dark gray suit jacket over his broad shoulders and drew attention to the clean cut of his beard. His strong jaw worked side to side.

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