Page 23 of Strictly Business

I can see where his hard cock is pressing the sheet up and God, I want to ride him again, but I won’t give him the satisfaction of thinking I want him for more than what I’ve had.

“Back to bed,” I say. “Something tells me I’ll be able to sleep now.”

I leave the room, forcing myself not to look back. When I’ve pulled the door closed behind me, I let out a shaky breath. I don’t know if I’m more upset that Wyatt has made it clear we won’t be doing that again, or happier that I made him think that I felt the same way and not that I had some pathetic little crush on him. Oh, and I’m pretty happy about the fact that I think I left him wanting more. Because while his words tell me he doesn’t want this, doesn’t want me, his cock tells me he’s lying.

CHAPTER17

Serena

When I woke up this morning, the night before came straight back to me. Not only the delicious orgasms, but the conversation that Wyatt and I had after the sex, where we both agreed that the idea of anything else happening between us is very much off the table.

I agreed when Wyatt said what we had done was a mistake, simply so I didn’t look like some ditzy schoolgirl with a crush who thinks every kiss leads to a relationship of sorts. I don’t for a second think us being together was a mistake though. Something that felt that good can’t be wrong, right? Wyatt said we had made a mistake because he was worried about who my dad was. And also, because we work together. The more I think about this, the more I realize that there is still a bit of hope for us yet.

The working together thing was easy – we would simply not mix business and pleasure. The other thing was a little bit harder; I couldn’t really change who my dad was. But maybe over time, Wyatt would see that it wasn’t my father’s choice who I did or didn’t date. Because I learned one thing for sure last night. Wyatt can deny wanting me all he likes. He can find a hundred reasons for us not to hook up again. But beneath it all, he wants me every bit as much as I want him, and I reckon if I bide my time, we’ll end up having sex again. Maybe more than once.

The car ride to work this morning was surprisingly relaxed. I really expected it to be awkward, but it wasn’t. We didn’t talk much, but it was a comfortable silence rather than an awkward one and to be honest, I put it down to it being early in the morning rather than anything else.

We didn’t appear to be seen arriving at the office together, or if we did, no one has said anything to me about it and I haven’t caught anyone whispering or giggling when they think I’m not looking so that’s a bonus at least.

I have spent my day so far finishing up the last few bits I had to do from last night and then just going back over my presentation perfecting it and then checking and double checking it. There is about fifteen minutes until the presentation is due to start and I’m happy with my work, and to make me even happier, I have so far today avoided seeing Ruth. All in all, it hasn’t been a bad day for me so far and I’m hopeful that I’m going to keep it that way with the new and improved pitch with no mention of fucking vegetarian dogs.

I gather my things together and head back to the same conference room from yesterday. I get everything set up and run through it all. I am happy with it, but I’m still debating running through it all again, just to be on the safe side. As I debate it, the conference room door opens and Ruth walks in. I instantly decide not to go through the presentation with her here – I won’t give her the satisfaction of thinking I’m nervous. Instead, I glance up at her and force a smile.

“Good morning, Ruth. How are you?” I ask.

“Fine thank you,” Ruth says, her tone icy. The door to the conference room opens again and Wyatt comes in. All at once, Ruth’s whole demeanor towards me changes, and when she speaks again, the icy tone is gone, and she speaks like she’s talking to a friend. “What about you? You’re not too nervous, are you?”

“No, I’m feeling pretty confident to be honest,” I reply, trying my best not to laugh at the obvious change in Ruth.

Wyatt, oblivious to Ruth’s change of attitude, greets us both. Ruth manages to look at me without even looking slightly embarrassed about what she’s just done. That only makes the urge to laugh even stronger and I force myself to look back down at my notes until I get myself under control.

“Whenever you’re ready Serena,” Wyatt says.

I look up from my notes and at Wyatt, frowning with confusion.

“Ok,” I say, still confused but then the confusion turns to understanding through what I say next. Wyatt no longer trusts me enough to have other people in here until he has heard the pitch himself. “Is it just you two. I thought …?”

I trail off before I can say anything that gives Ruth a lead in to say something bitchy, although I am a little bit worried that maybe I already have.

“What I saw last time was good except for the one obvious error,” Wyatt explains. “And I went through the rest of the pitch afterwards too. The execs that were in here agreed with me, so I didn’t feel the need to disturb them again. Think of this as a dress rehearsal and if all goes well, I’ll get the client in.”

I can’t stop myself from smiling as I get up and start my presentation. My first thought, upon learning the execs weren’t coming in, was that my pitch last time has been so bad Wyatt wanted to see it himself first in case I embarrassed him in front of his staff. But it seems that actually, the opposite of that was true. Or even if it wasn’t, he had made it sound so and I knew that would piss Ruth off for no real reason and I liked that.

I was already pretty confident about the presentation, and Wyatt’s words boost my confidence even more and I sail through my pitch, showcasing the various marketing graphics and the brand message. When I’ve finished the last screen, I smile out at my audience of two.

“Do you have any questions?” I ask.

Wyatt shakes his head which surprises me. I was expecting a whole slew of questions designed not to throw me off my game, but to get me to learn to respond confidently before the representatives of the brand came along and asked me those same questions.

“Honestly Serena, I like to throw a few questions at my guys at this point, things I think the brand will ask, but you have covered everything so well and I genuinely can’t think of anything to ask. The brand will probably come up with something I have overlooked so I apologize if you are caught short but that’s where we are,” Wyatt says. I beam under his praise. He turns to Ruth. “Ruth? Any questions or thoughts?”

“Not really. It was ok – for the second attempt,” she says, and I resist the urge to roll my eyes. I am a little bit hurt that Wyatt doesn’t say anything about her attitude. I mean I get it – he trusts her opinion – but he must be able to see that was just her being nasty for no reason. Oh well, never mind. She’s not the first mean girl I’ve dealt with, and she probably won’t be the last one either.

I begin to disconnect everything, and I’m soon ready to leave. Wyatt and Ruth are still sitting at the table, and I wonder if I am meant to be staying or if they are waiting for me to go so that they can discuss my presentation in greater detail.

“Is that everything you need from me then?” I ask when it becomes clear that no one is saying anything.

“Yes, thank you Serena,” Wyatt says. I start to stand up and he speaks again. “Oh actually, there was something. Do you have a second? I have to go in a moment because I have a meeting, so I don’t have time to come back up to your office to talk to you.”

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