Page 17 of His Curvy Temptation

5

Andy

Pinch me,because I’m pretty sure I’ve died and gone to heaven.

This entire thing is so surreal. His office, the talk we’ve had tonight, the drink on his couch, his expensive suit and delicious cologne.

And now, his lips so close to mine, his body leaning into mine with his arm draped casually over the back of the couch behind me. Just a little closer and we’d be touching, our lips and our bodies too.

I’m trying to formulate a response to Elijah’s question — except it’s more like a command than a question — when the elevator door dings open and a portly man in a brown suit steps out. He’s looking down at the phone in his hand, a Bluetooth headset in his ear, loudly continuing a conversation on his phone without looking up at us.

“And make sure we get that price down…I don’t care if their margins are razor thin, I’ll buy them out before I partner with them for that price…well tell them that’s their problem…I don’t give a fuck if they have to lay off half the staff and cancel Christmas bonuses, we’re not going a dime over my offer…good…okay…get it done.”

He hangs up the call without saying goodbye, and continues speaking in his loud, nearly-shouting bark when he looks up.

“Stone, we’ve got an issue down on level four. The imports from…”

He drifts off when his pouchy eyes land on me, his shining face breaking into a lopsided, yellow-toothed grin.

“Oh, didn’t realize you hadcompany, Stone,” he says. “You two look cozy! Don’t mind me, sweetheart, I just need to talk to your boyfriend for a moment.”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I say quietly, shifting away from Elijah on the couch.

“Oh,” he raises a brow. “Not a boyfriend, eh? More like a transactional relationship? No need to tell me the details sweetheart. Whatever Elijah wants, Elijah gets. I know this by now.”

I have no idea what he means and I’m about to explain that I’m not with Elijah in that way, that I’m just his massage therapist, when the man winks at me.

That single wink makes every hair on my body stand up and suddenly I’m on edge.

Sometimes Deepti talks about auras. Says everyone has an aura, and that the color of someone’s aura tells about their personality.

I usually think it’s a bunch of nonsense, but in this case, I can feel the bad energy coming from this man so strongly that it’s nearly visible, perceptible by my eyes as though he has a literal cloud of ugly aura around him right now.

“Dan, it’s a bad time,” Elijah says beside me in a stern voice. “I told you to call before dropping by my office from now on.”

“So now I need an appointment just to come by and chat business with my old pal?” Dan scoffs. “This will just take a moment.”

“No,” Elijah says, standing up and leaving me behind on the couch. “Go.”

Dan’s eyes slide from Elijah to me and I want to shrink away, sink through the couch and protect myself from him and his gross gaze.

“I see,” Dan says, giving me a once over and grinning in that sick way again. “Well, seeing as you’re urgently occupied withsomething elseat the moment, I’ll save this for the morning.”

“Leave,” Elijah says again and I notice that his entire body has gone rigid and tense, his right fist balled at his side.

Dan holds up his hands as though surrendering.

“You’re the boss,” he says. He aims his twisted grin at me, giving my body a once over again. I cross my arms over my chest, wishing I could turn invisible. “And you — it wasverynice to meet you. Do me a favor and give Elijah a greatmassage. He’s earned it.”

Ew. Ew ew ew ew ew.

He disappears behind the elevator doors and I exhale strongly. Elijah continues staring at the place where Dan had been standing, his fist still balled at his side, stiff and unmoving.

“Um,” I say. “I think I better go now.”

He says nothing, so I put the empty water glass on the coffee table and stand, grabbing my backpack and pulling it on.

When I walk toward the elevator, I turn back. Elijah is still standing there, his brow deeply furrowed, as though lost in thought.

---