Page 30 of Hooked

Turning to her with a grin, his finger brushed down her cheek in a now familiar caress. “And in quite spectacular fashion, I must say.”

Blushing, she glanced away. “I’ll be crucified in the office grapevine, Joseph.”

“Perhaps, but it will pass quickly. Someone else will have a more scandalous and juicier tidbit of gossip in a day or two and we’ll be forgotten.”

“Would it be okay if we keep up the appearance of professionalism while at work?”

He chuckled. “I don’t plan to fuck you on your desk with the door wide open, if that’s your concern.”

“Joseph!” His language, she noted, got rather blunt and quite kitschy when he spoke of sex. Until a few days ago, the worst she’d ever heard him utter was damn.

He leaned in to brush her lips with a kiss, undeterred when she turned her head at the last moment. Instead, he whispered teasingly in her ear, “How about I reserve all fucking for my office behind the locked door? Will that do?”

Even if this wasn’t the 1950s or the set ofMad Men, where a little office slap and tickle or being bent over the boss’s desk was the norm, women still took the hit in the reputation column with an office affair. She was serious, and he was being flippant. It stung and to cover the mist of tears that threatened to become a deluge, she looked away.

His fingers caught her chin and turned her face back to his, sobering when he took in her distress.

“Aw, pet, I’m sorry. You have valid concerns about this, and I’m being crass.” His other hand came up and with both thumbs, he wiped away the few tears that had already escaped. “We’ll keep things aboveboard at the office if that’s what you want. And, despite my off-color humor just now, I have no intention of flaunting it or embarrassing you. I’m not hiding our relationship, however, just the intimate details. If I want to have lunch with you or take you to a cocktail party as my date, I will. They’re used to seeing us together. Soon, they’ll be used to us as a couple. You can trust me on this. And, I promise, if there is the first hint of nastiness, I’ll nip it in the bud.”

Her hand rose to his cheek. That he thought he had power over titillating gossip and the office rumor mill was naïve but sweet. “I do trust you, Joseph. Thank you.”

His lips brushed hers softly. “We better go, or we’ll be late. You know how the boss is about punctuality.”

She grinned when he winked. As he walked around to open her door, images of being called on the carpet by Mr. Hooks and being taken to task over his desk filled her oversexed mind.

***

THE WEEK FLEW BY. WITHa huge class action filing imminent, the firm was busy, and it was all hands on deck preparing the documents. Joseph’s schedule was hectic with court three days, new client interviews, and an impromptu return to Ft. Worth for another deposition on Thursday. She’d been in his bed for five straight nights, but on Wednesday went home alone. By the close of business the following day, she was missing him terribly.

To make matters worse, his return flight was delayed. When he walked in after lunch, giving her only a discreet peck on the cheek in greeting, she regretted her request for professionalism in the office.

The adagebe careful what you ask forrattled around in her head, not stopping when Joseph came out of his office an hour later on his way to court.

“Do you have those two motions for me to look over?” he asked as he strode out, his briefcase in one hand while he straightened his tie with the other. A black-and-white pin-dot bow tie to be exact, which contrasted perfectly with another lightweight tweed suit, in dark gray. He was the only man she knew who wore a bow tie, but as sexy as Joseph was, he worked it.

Distracted by his glittering green-eyed gaze and warm smile, she handed him the folder with the documents. Her vision became hazy with longing when he ran his thumb over the apple of her cheek in thanks. As her eyes followed him to the door, she noticed the long square box on the console table.

“I almost forgot. That package came for you earlier.” She motioned toward it when he glanced back. Stopping briefly, he eyed the label while saying nothing, but there was a sparkle of excitement illuminating his gaze that hadn’t been there before when he glanced her way again.

“Get us a table at the Fig Tree tonight,” he said quietly. “My mouth is watering for Sea Scallops.”

“Sounds wonderful,” she replied, thinking a kiss and them getting naked on the couch in his office sounded a million times better than the city’s best seafood.

“Make it for six o’clock. We’ll be home by nine for dessert. I missed you, pet, so be warned. You are the only sweet course I have in mind.” With a wink, he was gone.

Warmth spread through her and her fantasies were on the lustful side as she stood staring longingly at the empty doorway for some time. With a deep sigh, she forced herself to get back to work.

Taking her seat, her eyes scanned the files scattered across the surface of her desk. That’s when it hit her. Frantically, she rifled through several folders then pulled out drawers and sifted through the file folders there as well. When she found the one she was looking for, she opened it and scanned the documents. Then she groaned, dropping her head on her desk with a thud.

Feeling lonely yesterday, she’d had a fleeting idea. It was childish really, so she’d pushed it aside and gone back to work. But the idea kept returning, along with her recurring fantasy of Joseph spanking her over her desk. Throughout the long day, it kept popping into her head at the oddest times.

Frustrated, she set out to make it a reality. It hadn’t taken her over ten minutes to switch the names of two clients on two different contracts. When she was done, she stared down at the documents, the incorrect names patently obvious and practically leaping off the typewritten pages.

She’d thought to force his hand, testing how he would react to such a careless error now that their relationship had changed. Knowing it was a stupid and immature game, she’d abandoned the idea and had meant to shred them, but someone had come in and distracted her. She had no intention of following through with her silly scheme.

Crap! How could she have given him the wrong file?

She picked up the phone and dialed Emma.

---