Finally His (7 page)

“Is that what I’m doing?” His voice had dropped to a deep, delicious growl that made her want to sink to her knees, but she fought the instinct and forced herself to hold his gaze. “There was me thinking I was just taking care of the woman I…”  He caught himself, and scrubbed a hand over his face as though he was exasperated with himself, or her, Jolie couldn’t determine, but the flash of heat in his eyes caused her heart to trip up over itself. That couldn’t mean what she thought, and she clamped down on the dangerous impulse to simply let him take care of her.

She dropped her gaze to his collarbone, and Richard sighed.

“I simply want to take care of you, little one. You look tired, and…”

He put his hands up in surrender and stepped back, when she looked up and did her best to try to glare at him.

“Okay, no need to give me dagger looks. Interfering with your work is clearly a hard limit here, right?”

At her sharp nod in answer he laughed.

“Fine, have it your way, girl. Will you at least let me pay for a taxi to take you home, and then into work? I’d take you myself, but no doubt you would object to that too, right?”

Amusement flashed in his blue eyes, when she crossed her arms under her chest. It was that or dissolve into a puddle of goo, because his voice had dropped further, taking on that soothing tone he had used on her last night in the bath, and was a livewire to every one of her erogenous zones.

“Thank you, Sir.” Somehow she managed to get those three words past the huge lump in her throat, and Richard smiled.

“Good girl. See that wasn’t so hard now. I see you at the office then, Miss Pierson.”

With one long last, searching look at her he stalked off, leaving her thoroughly confused standing in his kitchen.

Chapter Seven

Jolie was still confused when she exited the taxi outside the office block that housed Tomlin Enterprises, and in truth, the thought of ringing in sick sounded more and more appealing. She certainly felt sick with the way her stomach churned. After Richard had stalked away from her, she’d seen him briefly, dressed impeccably in one of his tailored business suits, while she’d looked the poor relation in her crumpled dress.

He’d grabbed her, kissing her senseless, and then put her in the promised taxi.

“Take the lady to wherever she wants to go and wait there until she’s ready to go to work. Put it on my account.”

The taxi driver had tipped an imaginary hat at Richard and one more heated glance in her direction later, the man himself had sped off. Fortunately the taxi driver, Ahmed, as she found out, took a more leisurely approach to driving. No doubt because he was on a meter, but, whatever the reason her stomach sure appreciated the more sedate pace.

Ahmed had simply smiled at her and got out his newspaper when they’d made it to her flat.

“I’ll be as quick as I can be,” she’d said.

The taxi driver had nodded and settled down as though this was an everyday occurrence for him. Then again, maybe it was. After all, Richard had an account with the firm, and as Ahmed hadn’t batted an eyelid at her disheveled walk of shame, maybe he was used to picking up women from her boss’s place and taking them home.

Those thoughts had not helped her churning stomach, and neither had the fastest shower she’d ever taken.  Her hair was still slightly damp, being that she had simply shoved it into a bun, and having donned fresh underwear and a pencil skirt and modest blouse had legged it back out of her door.

There had been no time for makeup bar a bit of lip gloss, a decision which she now regretted when she caught sight of her reflection in the revolving door. She looked far too pale. Then again, if the shit hit the fan, she could always excuse herself and go home again. Jolie doubted anyone would question her too closely if she said she wasn’t feeling well. Anyone but Stephanie, that was. That woman would be livid at her turning up over an hour late.

So much for this thing with the boss not affecting her work. Jolie was just kidding herself, and now she was paying the prize for her foolishness.

As predicted Stephanie made a beeline for her the minute Jolie entered the offices.

“What sort of time do you call this?”  Her shrill voice grated on Jolie’s already shredded nerves, especially when Richard chose that moment to come out of his office. Her heart stuttered to a stop seeing him, but Richard gave no indication he had even seen her. He seemed to be looking straight through her, and Jolie sat down at her desk with an inelegant thump as his deep voice addressed her supervisor.

“I would appreciate you tempering your voice, Stephanie. There is no need to berate anyone. I’m sure Miss Pierson has a perfectly valid reason for being late.”

Jolie wanted the ground to swallow her whole as the whole open plan office seemed to look at her, and as for her supervisor she turned a nice shade of putrid purple under her makeup.

“I doubt that, Richard, and besides, she hasn’t finished the work I set her to do, so—”

“Which work would that be?” Richard interrupted the woman, and belatedly Jolie noticed the note he held in her hand. The very one written by Stephanie and addressed to Jolie. Surely she’d got rid of that last night, before she’d gone to Richard’s office? Then again he had known about it anyway, and he might have just retrieved that note for his own purposes. Surely the appearance of the HR manager didn’t bode well, especially as she was accompanied by two security guards.

That sick feeling in Jolie’s stomach increased tenfold, and she grabbed the bottle of water she always kept on her desk to lubricate her dry throat.

“I … that is … where did you get that from?” Stephanie’s voice had risen further in her agitation, and the look of pure venom she threw toward Jolie made Jolie glad she was still sitting.

“I really don’t think that matters, Ms. De Costa.” The other woman blinked at Richard’s formal address. “What matters is you passing off other people’s hard work off as your own, and then trying to humiliate the other person into silence.”

Richard let those ominous words sit in the room, and Jolie winced at her supervisor’s reaction.

“You can’t believe a word that little trollop says.” Stephanie’s shrill voice grated. “She’s been after my job since the day she started here, and I’ve seen the moon eyes she’s made at you. We all have. Ask anyone in the office. It’s pathetic.”

Jolie gasped in horror at those words. Surely she hadn’t been that transparent, and this whole scenario was her worst nightmare come true. This was exactly what she hadn’t wanted to happen.

“What exactly are you implying here, Ms. De Costa?”

Richard’s voice had dropped further, taking on that dangerous edge which instantly made Jolie wet. Yeah, she was fucked up, for sure, because she was a lost cause as far as her boss was concerned.

His response took the wind out of Stephanie’s sails a little, and she changed tactics.

“Nothing, I’m not implying that you would be swayed by—”

“I’m very glad to hear you say that, because who I chose to date is nobody’s business but mine and the lady’s in question.”

Stephanie gasped and threw another one of those looks toward Jolie.

Richard, too, looked her way, and smiled. It was that toe curling sexy smile he’d given her plenty of last night, and try as she might Jolie couldn’t look away. Nor could she summon the rightful anger she ought to be feeling at his so recklessly going back on their agreement. His expression softened the longer he looked at her, and the depths of emotion in his darkening eyes as he held her gaze made her feel special.

“I knew it. She’s been—”

Richard’s growl of annoyance stopped the other woman, and she took several steps away from him, as he advanced on her. Lord, he looked utterly furious, and the thought that he was that angry on Jolie’s behalf made the submissive inside of her sigh. Fuck this whole being an independent woman lark, especially when he spoke again.

“I would advise you to be very careful what you say, because my lawyer will have a field day taking you to task for defamation of Miss Pierson’s character, if you continue to insinuate what I think you are. Miss Pierson has an excellent work record, both before she started work here, and since, especially considering she has been carrying most of your workload, too.”

He paused to let the words sink in, and then looked around the office, as if to ensure that he had everyone’s undivided attention, which of course he did. The gossipmongers would have a field day about this for weeks to come, Jolie was sure.

“I had an interesting conversation with our HR manager this morning, when I came to her with my concerns about your work ethic, Ms. De Costa.”

Said HR manager stepped forward and nodded, and it finally seemed to dawn on Stephanie what was happening here, because her superior attitude deflated like a balloon running out of air.

Jolie almost felt sorry for her, when Richard continued.

“It seems she had similar concerns, as there have been complaints from other members of staff.”

Several of the onlookers looked uncomfortable, and Jolie held her breath at what was news to her. She knew Stephanie wasn’t very well liked, but she’d worked here for seven years, and thus she didn’t think anyone would dare complain about her, let alone go to HR, but it seemed they had.

“We are a team here at Tomlin Enterprises, and as such there is no room for anyone who goes out of their way to not only exploit their fellow employees, but also turns out to be extremely economical with the truth. I will not abide dishonesty in my company, Ms. De Costa, so consider your employment terminated forthwith.”

A collective gasp went round the office, which Richard ignored and carried on speaking.

“In lieu of notice, HR has six months’ severance pay, the check for which you can pick up on your way out of the building. Under the circumstances I’m sure you will agree the company is being more than generous. Now, remove yourself from my presence and never darken my company’s door again.”

Richard pushed his hands into his trouser pockets, looking every inch the pissed off executive, but, of course Stephanie was not going to take this lying down.

“That’s rich. You’re talking of honesty, when all this time you’ve been sleeping with that little cunt, and no doubt will put her fat ass into my position the minute I’m out of this door.”

Here it came. Jolie fervently wished there was a mouse hole for her to hide in, but no such luck. Instead, Richard’s soft curse carried, and the tone of his voice alone could have cut glass when he replied.

“If that is what you truly think of me, well…” He laughed and glanced over toward Jolie again, as did everyone else in the office. Yep, she was so not liking this being in the spotlight thing.

“Not that I have to explain my private life to anyone, but in the interests of being transparent, here. Yes,” he smiled at Jolie and winked at her. “Miss Pierson and I have entered into a relationship, one that I hope will continue for a long time yet, and one that has absolutely no bearing on anything that has taken or will take place in the office.  Like I have already stated my private life is not the company’s concern, nor is Miss Pierson’s, and if I find anyone spreading malicious gossip about Miss Pierson, they will have to answer to both me and HR. As for the position freed up by your dismissal, Ms. De Costa, it will be open to internal applications forthwith, and if no one suitable is found within two weeks it will be opened to the general public. If Miss Pierson chooses to apply for the position she will be considered on her own merit, as will everyone else in the company, and the filling of this vacancy is entirely at the discretion of our very capable HR department.” He paused again, and looked around the office as though daring anyone to disagree with him.

Stephanie looked ill, and when the security guards stepped up to her, wordlessly followed them out. The stern looking HR manager smiled at Jolie, and then went after them.

As for Richard, he nodded and addressed the floor again.

“As you were then. The spectacle is over. Get back to work. Jolie.” He glanced her way and something inside her shifted, because there was open vulnerability in his face as he continued.

“Will you please come and see me in my office, when you can.”

Not waiting for her answer, he stalked back to his office and shut the door. The resulting click seemed to spur people back into work mode, because the office floor returned to the general hubbub of noisy activity it usually was.

How long Jolie sat there and stared at Richard’s closed door she wasn’t entirely sure, but eventually she got her feet to obey the commands of her brain and got up. She was sure every pair of eyes in the office was trained on her again, but no one said anything, and the general din continued, so maybe it was all a figment of her over active imagination, and no one actually gave two hoots about her sleeping with the boss.

Oh God, I’m such a cliché.

Richard’s deep voice bade her to enter before she’d even managed to knock at the door, and through the slats of the blind she could see him looking at her. His delectable butt perched on the edge off his desk, he looked rather more disheveled than he had earlier. His jacket was gone for starters, and he’d loosened his tie. His hair, too, looked all mussed up, as though he’d run his hands through it repeatedly, and when she opened the door and stepped through it he did it again.

He looked utterly exasperated in fact as he crossed the distance between them, and shut the door after her. The click of the lock sounded far too loud in the quiet room, and when he adjusted the blinds so that no one could look in on them, Jolie’s heart threatened to beat itself out of her chest. One hand on her throat he pinned her back against the door and studied her. The quiet intensity in his gaze was unnerving to say the least, and when Jolie couldn’t stand it anymore she croaked her question.

“Sir?”

His eyes flashed in heated approval, and his sharp inhale made Jolie feel tons better about this whole situation.

“I am still your Sir then?” he asked. She blinked at the hoarse quality of his voice, and Richard’s grasp on her turned into a soothing caress which left tingles of awareness in their wake.

“I thought I might have blown it all with what I said in there.” He looked uncertain again when she didn’t reply straight away, and he cursed softly and released her.

Her stomach dropped and she desperately wanted his hands back on her, but Richard pushed them in his trouser pockets and started pacing instead. To see this usually so controlled man losing it was something else entirely, and all the silly little seeds of hope which had taken hold in her heart despite her best efforts to squash them blossomed and bloomed.

He wouldn’t be that agitated, unless he cared for her, would he?

“Say something, little one, for the love of God, even if it’s to tell me to fuck off.”

He drew to a stop in front of her, as he ground the words out through gritted teeth, and when she didn’t reply, he reached out to her, only to fist his hand and drop it to his side.

“I’m sorry I reneged on our agreement, but I couldn’t let her get away with her conduct, and when she talked to you like that. Fuck.” He dragged a hand through his hair again and clenched his jaw. “I’ve never been so tempted to hit a woman in my life, I tell you. How dare she talk to you like that, insinuate we have something sordid going on. I … fuck it. You hate me now, right?”