One Night Forever (The Cinderella Chronicles) (12 page)

“
If you’re
thinking about running out on me while I’m sleeping, it’s too
late.” Matt’s voice was low, close to her ear, and packed with a
slight tease. With tenderness he stroked her hair.

Her heart melted right
then and there. In truth, it had melted a million times over during
their lovemaking. He was so gentle, yet wild and sexual. And so
many times the word “love” had slipped into her mind. All the more
reason why this had to be her last time with him. Cat had said a
hot fling. Love wasn’t that. It was much more. It was risky and
career-ending.

And painful.

Besides, she hardly knew
Matt. She’d been without a man so long she was clearly just hungry
for affection. Something she didn’t recognize before and she wished
she still didn’t. And Matt was her boss. She couldn’t forget that
lethal fact.

“
Lauren?”

“
Um?”

“
What are you
thinking about so hard?” He gently shuffled and urged her onto her
back. Propping his body up on an elbow, he stared down at her with
far too probing eyes.

She tried to smile. It
didn’t work. He looked so damn yummy all she could think about was
either kissing him or getting the hell away from him. “Who says I’m
thinking and not sleeping?”

“
Lauren.”

The way he said her name
hit her in a strange way. It was almost like a plea, yet she knew
better.

“
What time is
it?” she asked.

“
Four.”

“
Four!” she
exclaimed, and tried to sit up, but he stilled her by, once again,
shackling her leg with his bigger, stronger one.

He wrapped his arm across
her body, his mouth nuzzling her temple. “Sleep,” he said. “I’ll
wake you in an hour. That’s plenty of time to go home and change
for work.”

“
But…”

“
You might as
well not argue. I’m not letting you up.” His voice held stubborn,
sensual authority, because he was using it to keep her in bed with
him. How could a girl get upset about that?

“
Has anyone
ever told you how bossy you are?” He answered by leaning close and
brushing his lips over hers. “Matt,” Lauren sighed against his
lips.

He answered by kissing
her, long and deep. Tenderly. A quite effective way of convincing
her to stay. Her resistance was gone. Zilch. A moment later, she
found herself turned so her back fitted against his front. Then, he
wrapped her snugly in his arms. It felt so good that Lauren
couldn’t remember why she had even wanted to leave.

But in the back of her
mind, she knew, she was in trouble. For Matt this was probably
standard bed play. For her, it was much more.

* * * * *

The last thing Lauren
needed or wanted was for Matt to see where she lived…poor. No fancy
cars. No doorman. No mahogany elevator. Sitting beside him in his
Sports car, their differences screamed for attention. There really
was only one option. “Pull over right here.”

Matt did as she said, and
pulled the car into a spot in front of Kenney’s Coffee, her
favorite little twenty-four spot. “I don’t see any
apartments.”

“
I’m only a
few blocks away. I thought I’d grab a cup of coffee and then walk
home.”

He killed the engine and
reached for the door. Lauren grabbed his arm. “What are you
doing?”

“
It’s still
dark. I’m coming with you.”

Panic flared. “No,”
Lauren said. “I’m fine. By the time I order my coffee the sun will
be up.”

“
I’d like some
coffee myself.” His voice held just a hint of challenge.

This was not going how
she planned. “Okay.” She forced herself to let go of his
arm.

A few minutes later, they
stood at the counter, and ordered their drinks. Matt paid. Not a
surprise. He was a macho kind of guy. Even if he wasn’t rich she
didn’t think he’d have acted differently. Still, it felt awkward.
Money seemed like a divider between them. Like him being her boss
wasn’t enough of a barrier.

Lauren accepted her mocha
from Matt. “Thanks.” A long sip later, “Hmm. Next to pizza a good
mocha tops my list.”

He smiled and indicated
his drink. “Seems we share a lot of loves.”

His words hit her like a
charge, electric and hot. Looking away, afraid he would see her
reaction, she glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. “I need to
get home and change for work.“ Besides, it was best this whole
incident be put behind them. Forcing her gaze back to his, she
said, “Thanks for…everything.”

His eyes smoldered and
for long moments they simply stared at one another. “I’ll walk you
home,” he said.

“
The sun is
up,” she said so quickly it was almost abrupt. “I’m
fine.”

“
I insist,” he
said.

She really needed space.
“No.”

He looked like he would
argue, but then said, “Fine. I guess I’ll say goodbye.”

Relief should have
followed. Instead, a dash of disappointment jolted her emotions.
Somehow, she managed a smile. “Goodbye then.”

For several more seconds
he simply stared at her. Without another word, he turned and walked
away. Lauren watched as he climbed into his car, wishing he’d he
look in her direction.

But he didn’t, which was
best. So why did it feel so bad?

Chapter Fourteen

At eight o’clock in the
morning, Lauren stepped into the elevator of the Carlson building
with Celia by her side. Oddly, she felt quite rested after a
night—correction, night and early morning—of sex and more
sex.

A tiny smile played on
her lips at that thought. Matt was like the Energizer Bunny. He
just kept going.

“
Hold the
elevator.” Lauren knew the voice. It was Matt. Her smile
disappeared. Now she was nervous. Seeing him at work, in such an up
close and personal way, was going to be awkward.

At least for her.
Somehow, she doubted it would be for Matt. After all, nothing about
having an affair with an employee seemed to bother him. That
thought made her stomach knot.

Celia hit the open button
just as Matt appeared looking handsome and polished in a tailored
black suit. His white shirt was starched, his red tie a perfect
contrast of color. “Hey, boss man,” Celia said with a grin. “Lucky
I’m in a good mood or I would have pretended not to see
you.”

Matt gave Celia a boyish
grin. It didn’t surprised Lauren that Celia got along well with
Matt. She was one of those people who blended and clicked. Celia’s
presence, and her light mood, helped a little. The flutters of her
stomach calmed knowing Celia would make conversation and act as a
shield of sort. Because the truth was, everything had happened so
fast, Lauren didn’t know how to act around Matt.

Normal, she told herself.
Yeah right. What was normal for her and Matt?

“
Must have had
your morning pot of coffee,” Matt said to Celia as he stepped
inside the car. He stood between Celia and Lauren. Then he looked
at Lauren. “If you catch her before her coffee she isn’t the same
person. It’s scary.”

“
Really?”
Lauren asked, surprised by his easygoing mood for some reason. “But
she seems so nice.”

He nodded. “There lies
the real danger. No one suspects but I have seen it
firsthand.”

Lauren found herself
laughing. Something she didn’t think possible considering the
oddity of the situation. “Oh stop,” Celia said, eyeing Lauren,
“don’t believe a word of his junk.” Celia looked at Matt and her
expression went serious. “Would you believe Lauren got paired with
Greg for the BG campaign?”

Lauren’s jaw dropped.
Just when she thought she might survive this elevator ride. Why in
the world had Celia just told Matt that? Lauren looked at him to
see how he reacted.

“
Really?” Matt
said, slanting Lauren a look. Theirs eyes locked for the briefest
of moments and Lauren felt the intimacy in those dark eyes clear to
her toes. She quickly cut her gaze and focused on Celia, giving her
a silent plea that said, “please say no more”.

Celia ignored Lauren and
focused on Matt. “I told Tyler this is an extremely bad way to
start Lauren’s career. That man is trouble.”

Lauren fought the urge to
protest, but settled for a mere fidget and a discreet comment. The
last thing she wanted was anyone thinking she couldn’t handle Greg
or her job. And the last person’s help she needed was Matt’s. “It’s
fine,” Lauren said. “Greg and I are getting along just
fine.”

Matt spoke then, his
attention on Celia, but there was a hidden meaning to his words
directed at Lauren. It was as if he had read her mind. “Somehow, I
bet Lauren can handle Greg just fine. He would be sadly mistaken to
underestimate her.”

Lauren felt
her cheeks warm as the elevator dinged and opened.
Thank you
. Lauren stepped forward urgent for escape. She
murmured good-byes, and took off toward her office. The reality of
her bad decision had hit home. Working with Matt after sleeping
with him would be a problem. What in the heck had she been
thinking? How could she have slept with her boss?

As soon as she was in her
office, she dropped her things into a drawer and sunk into her
chair. And on top of it was another envelope. She grabbed it and
then dropped it as if it were toxic. It might just be. Or at least
a death wish. This was a dangerous game she’d entered.

She stared at the
offending item, hands gripping the arms to her chair. How had he
managed to get this here before she arrived?

What
now
? She swallowed. Thinking.
Crap. She had to know what was inside. Lauren grabbed it and tore
it open. And then she read…

The room is lit with only
candles. You stand before me in only your bra and panties. I crave
the feel of your skin against mine. I pull you close, savoring the
decadent feel of your soft curves in my hands.

Same time, same secret
place.

Tonight

“
No…” she
whispered.

She couldn’t meet him
again. No. It wasn’t an option. Her teeth found her bottom lip. Her
chest felt tight. She really wanted to meet him again. She stared
at what he’d written. Maybe just one more time. She squeezed her
eyes shut. Meeting him would be so damn foolish. Images of their
naked bodies entwined danced in her head. Of soft caresses, and
hard demands. Of perfect kisses. A sigh slipped from her mouth.
Meeting him again might make her a fool, but it would make her a
really satisfied one.

She had to meet
him.

* * * * *

One week later, Lauren
sat at her desk with a calendar in front of her. She checked off
every time she’d met Matt. Of course she knew. Five out of five
work days they’d met. The weekend in between had been long and
confusing with no contact.

How had a one-night stand
turned into this?

Each day at work started
with a new poem. Each night ended in the same hotel room. The worst
part of it all was Lauren’s complete inability to stop seeing Matt.
And she should. Each visit, she became more attached to
him.

This morning had been a
true testament to how involved she’d allowed her heart to become.
Matt had driven her home or rather to the coffee shop as he had
each day. He always pressed to walk her home and she refused. This
morning it had been a near argument.

When he’d driven away,
she’d stood there, hugging herself…and then, out of nowhere, tears
had formed. In that moment, she’d felt more alone than she had in
all the years she’d gone without so much as a date.

The buzzer went off on
her phone. Lauren jumped, realizing how deep she’d been in her
thoughts. Stiffening, she punched the button. “Ready?” Greg
asked.

“
Yeah,” Lauren
said. “I thought you were coming here. I’m waiting on
you.”

“
No, I told
you my office.”

Lauren frowned at the
phone, knowing full well that wasn’t the case. “Fine,” she said,
pushing to her feet. “I’ll be there in five.”

Fifteen minutes later,
Lauren sat at the conference table in Greg’s office, barely
containing her frustration. “Greg—”

“
This just
isn’t going to work,” Greg said gruffly, pushing Lauren’s proposal
for BG aside. “Your ideas are too bold for this client. They’re
known for being conservative.”

Lauren disagreed. Greg’s
ideas were overused, recycled campaigns done by too many, too
often. Hers were fresh, new, and youthful—even sexy and she was
proud of them. The stats she looked over about BG supported the
need for a unique approach. BG already had the older buyers, but
they didn’t have the younger workforce. She wanted to help them get
to what they didn’t have.

By the time she ended the
meeting with Greg, she was fuming. Silently brooding, she moved
through the hall toward her office.

“
Lauren!”

Lauren turned to find
Celia rushing toward her, a huge smile on her face. “A delivery
came for you. I left it in your chair.”