Page 26 of Secret Desire
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“I think you’re ready to take over this account on your own now. I’ll manage the construction, but I’m turning over all the interior work to you.”
“That’s great,” Ashley said, her smile bright. “I appreciate your faith in me.”
“You’re doing a great job Ashley. We’re lucky to have you on the team.”
The team assembled around the table all shook their heads in agreement. In a few short months Ashley had made herself indispensable to the company. Everyone who worked with her raved about her creativity and professionalism. Even people who might have had doubts about her being Ariel’s sister and any perceived nepotism had been won over. Ashley was an asset to the team by anyone’s estimation.
Now that she’d finished her probationary period and was able to manage her own team, we really needed to figure out what to do about us.
I could no longer deny the fact that I was head over heels in love with Ashley. It wasn’t just a crush. It was the kind of all-consuming love that I saw Ariel have for Sadie, and Grace have for Nicole. I wanted what they had. I wanted to have Ashley in my home without hiding her. I wanted to hold her hand in front of my friends and slow dance with her in the nightclub. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.
And even though we’d never explicitly discussed it, I was pretty sure that Ashley felt the same way.
I knew that the hiding and the secrecy was wearing on both of us, but when we discussed it, we couldn’t figure out a way to come out to my friends and her sister without someone getting angry.
I didn’t want to be at odds with Ariel, or worse yet, have something happen that ruined our friendship. I also didn’t want to give Ashley up, or for us to do anything that ruined her budding relationship with her sister.
So we procrastinated, continuing to sneak around and keep secrets. In retrospect, I guess I should have known it would all come crashing down on us sooner or later.
A couple of weeks after the charity lunch I was working on a Saturday when I heard a knock on my office door. I looked up in surprise, having assumed I was alone. Ashley stood there with a bag from my favorite burger place.
“Have you had lunch?” she asked.
I glanced around for my phone, then realized that I’d left it upstairs in my condo. I’d been so deep into my work I hadn’t even noticed.
“What time is it?”
“Almost two o’clock.”
“Holy crap. I totally lost track of time.”
I was working on finalizing an important report for one of our angel investors. While Ariel, Grace, and I owned nearly all of AGM and were fully responsible for our operations, in the early days we’d accepted a capital stake from a small investment group who had deeper pockets than us at the time. They’d never needed to do more than supply the initial cash infusion, and they’d earned their money back a hundred fold.
We’d been so busy the last few months that I’d put the report off to the last minute, which wasn’t like me. We were gradually hiring more staff to expand the company, but we’d all agreed to do so slowly and planfully. As a result, we’d all been working crazy hours, even with Grace finally quitting her parents’ company and focusing on AGM full-time.
“I know you’re busy,” Ashley said gently. “But you have to eat. Come on.”
She moved over to the leather couch that was pushed along one wall, sitting down and spreading the food out on the coffee table. I saved my document and came over to join her.
“Is anyone else here?” I asked.
I hadn’t seen anyone here all day, probably because it was Labor Day weekend and everyone was taking advantage of summer’s last hurrah before the weather turned cold again.
“Not a soul,” Ashley said. “I walked the whole floor to make sure.”
We ate in silence, the thick bacon cheeseburger and fries filling my empty belly while the caffeine and sugar in the Coke she’d brought gave me a nice burst of energy.
Ashley was an incredibly thoughtful girlfriend. I’d never felt so loved and cared for before. And unlike most of the other women that I’d dated over the years, Ash didn’t want me to buy her things. She just wanted us to spend time together.
“I really appreciate this,” I said. “My eyes were starting to cross from fatigue and hunger.”
“You can thank me tonight,” she said, giving me a flirty look.
“Why wait for tonight?” I said, setting down the rest of my burger to pull her into my arms.
As usual, the minute our lips touched things turned hot. I couldn’t get enough of Ashley, even though we’d just had sex last night. I pushed her backwards on the couch, stretching out on top of her to get closer. I shoved one thigh between her legs,pushing off my toes to grind myself against her clit. She moaned, and the sound only made me more desperate to have her.
