Revenge Sex (9 page)

“Fine,” Holt said, sounding bored. “Take care
of the controller business. Let’s move on.” He pointed to Spence.
“Marketing report.”

The remainder of the meeting was somewhat
repetitive no matter how Holt moved it along. Clay already knew the
salient points. His mind didn’t wander so much as focus on two
things at once.

It had all gotten fucked up. He’d had sex
with a subordinate, then he’d walked out on Ruby. He’d have
forgiven Ruby for bringing Bradley into his home. She was correct:
he’d let her change the rules. He hadn’t cared. He’d been sending
her mixed messages. But what he’d done with Jessica in his office
had been momentous. It had changed how he felt about Ruby. He’d
suddenly recognized that his relationship with her wasn’t enough.
Yet he wasn’t the type to simply throw in the towel on three years
without a by-your-leave. He needed time to think, evaluate,
regroup.

Then there was Jessica. What he’d done was
unconscionable and against all his principles. Yet it didn’t change
the fact that he wanted her. She was no longer just his employee:
she was a woman he wanted badly. As her boss, he wouldn’t sabotage
her career at West Coast because he couldn’t stop thinking about
her. Which was why he’d apologized to her this morning. What they’d
done couldn’t happen again. He’d compromised her, his ethics, and
company policy.

Yet he was still caught between the
proverbial rock and a hard place. Because he couldn’t turn off what
she’d turned on. The mix was like a match to a powder keg, ready to
explode.

At this very moment, her panties were in his
jacket pocket. On Saturday, they’d been in his back pocket right
along with Ruby’s condom. He’d felt the soft cotton against his
hand
just before he’
d tossed the condom on
the coffee table. He’d thought of Jessica almost every moment
since. He couldn’t stop.

“Got a minute?” The meeting was over. Holt
stood at his elbow as the others filed out.

“Sure.” Exiting the conference room, Clay
walked slower than the rest, letting the distance grow so they
wouldn’t be overheard. They passed human resources.

“Is Ruby all right?” Holt wanted to know.
“She never calls in sick.”

True. Ruby was as healthy as a horse. He’d
often wondered if it had to do with a good sex life. “I’m sure
she’s fine.”

Holt raised one brow. “Don’t you know?”

They’d stepped inside the annex to Holt’s
office. This was Ruby’s domain, a neat area that included two
comfortable chairs with a side table between them for magazines. It
was where Ruby stood sentry behind her desk, sequestering Holt when
he needed it, fielding his calls, vetting his visitors, getting
them coffee if it was desired. She was the showpiece, but she was
also a damn good executive admin.

Holt eyed him when he didn’t answer. “Trouble
in paradise?”

He wasn’t merely Clay’s boss, but also his
friend. They’d gone on numerous business trips and talked over
drinks. Holt knew why Clay’s wife had divorced him. He knew the
kind of games he played with Ruby and that their relationship was
based primarily on sex. And Clay knew Holt—who’d married young,
divorced young, and had one daughter—liked to play with dominance
and submission. They didn’t, however, get into girlfriend bashing
or overly deep personal discussions.

But Clay had to tell him something. “I’m
staying at the Marriott for the time being.” The statement held a
wealth of information.

Holt nodded, getting the subliminal message
without pressing for details. “Sorry to hear that.”

“
You’ve got my cell number
if you need to get hold of me.” He paused. “And Ruby and I have
agreed never to bring our personal problems into the
workplace.”

“I trust you both.” Holt clapped him on the
shoulder. “Ruby was long overdue for a day off.”

Two women would have taken hours to say what
needed to be said. Men weren’t like that. He’d take a few nights
for thought and strategy, determine what needed to be done. Then
he’d do it.

* * * * *

Clay had left Ruby.

Jessica stood at the copy machine in HR, her
ears roaring, heart pounding. She’d been on her way to pick up some
payroll paperwork. She hadn’t intended to eavesdrop, barely
stopping outside the door to Holt Montgomery’s office suite. But
she’d heard. Ruby was sick today, and Clay was staying at the
Marriott.

Yet he said he wanted to keep his
professional relationship with Jessica intact. Which meant no
fooling around with her.

A fist closed around her chest, making it
hard to breathe. What did it mean? That he didn’t want Ruby
anymore, but he didn’t need Jessica either?

Chapter Ten

Ruby wore her fuzzy pink slippers and her
baggy sweats. Comfort clothes.

On Sunday, she’d been sure Clay would come
back. She hadn’t done anything
that
bad. But he didn’t come
home. He didn’t phone. Monday morning she’d called in sick. She
figured Clay needed a sign of her contrition, like she’d been so
upset this weekend that she couldn’t even make it into work on
Monday.
O
f course, she
was
upset,
totally. It would have been very difficult to go through the
motions while Clay was at work upstairs in his office. The perfect
solution, a sick day.

He still hadn’t called by Monday afternoon.
She dished out a bowl of ice cream. Some comfort food was in
order.

The doorbell rang, and her heart leapt with
joy. It would be just like him to ring the bell.

It wasn’t Clay. “What on earth are you doing
here?” she snapped.

Bradley stood right where Clay should have
been standing, his face hangdog and apologetic. Of course, he did
look good in faded jeans that outlined his lovely package. “We’ve
got to talk, Ruby.”

“No, we don’t,” she said, starting to close
the door. All she needed was for Clay to show up and find Bradley
here. She was
not
making that mistake again.

But Bradley put his foot in the door. “I
quit.”

She gaped. “Why the hell would you do that?”
This wasn’t the economy to walk out on your job.

“So he doesn’t have anything to hold over
me.”

“Clay wouldn’t hold anything over you.” Clay
wasn’t like that. Then again, she hadn’t expected him to walk out
either.

“He’d have made our lives miserable.” He gave
her such an earnest look, with caramel brown eyes like a worshipful
pet.

But really, he wasn’t making sense. “Why
would he do
that
?”

“When you leave him for me.”

It wasn’t a good look for her, she knew, but
Ruby let her jaw drop. “Are you insane?”

“It’s the only way, now that he knows about
us.” He smiled, making his stubbled chin more prominent.

She remembered that she didn’t really like
the scratchiness of his overgrown beard between her thighs, and her
face always felt a little tender after she’d kissed him for too
long. “I would
never
leave Clay for you.”

His features seemed to droop like a sad
puppy. “But—”

She cut him off. “We had sex. That’s all. And
now you don’t even have a job.”

“I’ll get another one,” he said, his gaze
hopeful.

“Right,” she snapped. “You’d be better off
begging Greg to take you back.”

He put out a hand, then dropped it as if he’d
thought better of touching her in this mood. “Please, Ruby,” he
pleaded. “It can all work out and be perfect for us.”

“What I had
was
perfect.” Bradley had
screwed it up. What if Clay threw her out? She couldn’t afford
anything in this quality of neighborhood on her salary. Then
she
took advantage of the fact that Bradley
had removed his foot from the jamb and slammed the door in his
face. She threw the deadbolt for good measure.

Pulling aside the lace curtain that covered
the narrow side window, she looked out across the expanse of lawn.
Bradley climbed into his car and sat. And
sat
. As if he
figured that eventually she’d have pity on him. What had she seen
in the boy, other than the fact that he’d caught her at a needy
time when she’d found a new wrinkle forming at the corner of her
eye. She loved the way she looked, she was proud of her trim body,
but even Ruby was sometimes taken off guard. It was a weak
moment.

She should have listened to Clay. There was a
very good reason for not having sex with anyone she worked with.
And for not letting him into her own bed. Because when the guy got
absolutely hysterical with love for her, he knew where she worked
and he knew where she lived.

If Bradley didn’t leave, she might have to
call the police.

* * * * *

The next morning, Ruby kept a low
profile—something she was
not
used to doing—did her work and
was exceptionally polite with anyone who tried to get in to see
Holt. Her smaller office fronted Holt’s more spacious one, but at
least she had a window.

After being cooped up yesterday, the sun
streaming through the open blinds felt good on her arms as she did
Holt’s filing. She had a perfect system and could her fingers on
anything at a moment’s notice. She would
not
let one of the
AP girls file for her the way Clay did. They’d screw up her system
and make her look inefficient.

She didn’t consider going up to see Clay. He
was in his man-cave, that thing men did when they had to think. It
was best to let him do it. He’d get over it. He’d hate it if she
whined.

Her intercom buzzed. Holt wasn’t the kind who
drove a girl crazy with constant demands. Oh yeah, she’d had bosses
like that.

She pushed the button. “Yes, Holt?”

“You got a minute?”

“Sure.” She clicked off.

Holt’s office was multi-functioning. Two
monitors occupied his large desk, so he could switch between tasks.
Holt was a marvel, always doing more than one thing at once. A
six-person capacity conference table in the corner was for hands-on
meetings, and by the big bank of windows, he had a sofa-and-chair
grouping for more informal discussions with customers, investors,
and industry professionals. All the filing was done out in Ruby’s
annex.

Holt was seated behind his desk. Ruby
daintily took the chair next to it, which was used for informal
one-on-one discussions. She didn’t bothered to pull her skirt down
over her knees. Not that it would reach anyway.

“Are you okay, Ruby?” His brow knitted in
concern.

“I’m fine.” Dammit, what had Clay told
him?

“You were sick yesterday. I was worried.”

She dipped her chin slightly, looking up at
him. “Worried?”

Holt Mont
gomery was a
good boss, a fair man, intelligent, witty, and drop dead gorgeous.
He was a fit fifty-two, with sexy gray hair and a strong face that
had far fewer lines than a man his age deserved. He’d married very
young, and his only daughter was thirty-three years old. He never
forget her birthday, never made Ruby run out to buy a present for
her. She’d never been the mothering type, but there was something
about a man who doted on his daughter. It the same way she felt
about Clay and his boys. How could you not admire a man who was an
exceptionally good father?

He was looking at her, as if he wanted
something more from her. She thought she knew what it was. “Clay
left—”

He held up his hand. “Not my business. What
is my business is whether you’re up to working today.”

Whether you’re up to working?
He
sounded concerned about her feelings. But that didn’t make sense.
She was his secretary. Why would he care? He was a good boss, not
some touchy-feely kind of guy.

“I’m here,” she said, which should have told
him everything.

But Holt kept insisting. “I know. But I’ll
also understand if you need another day.”

She stared at him. His face didn’t give away
anything. Being a CEO—or a gambler—he had to have complete control
over his features. She couldn’t tell whether he was disapproving,
or if he even knew why Clay had walked out.

She wasn’t about to give him any more
information. “I can work just fine.”

Clay had probably painted her in the worst
light. She’d cheated, no caveat, no mention of the fact that he
actually sent her out to screw other men.

Then she smiled, to take the bite out of her
tone. After all, Holt was a man and her boss, and she’d learned at
an early age that it was always best to keep the men in your life
happy. “But I really appreciate your concern. Is there anything
else?”

He gazed at her a moment longer, his eyes
irritatingly unreadable. “No, Ruby. Nothing right now.”

“I’ll get back to the filing.” She gave him
one more smile before she headed out the door. Once she was back at
her own desk, the smile faded from her lips.

Not only had Clay left, worse, he’d talked to
Holt about it. That meant things were far more serious than she’d
imagined.

The problem was that Ruby—who had a plan for
everything when a man was involved—didn’t have a clue what to
do.

* * * * *

After his initial apology on Monday, Clay
hadn’t said a personal word to her in two days. He was all business
all the time. Jessica had waited. Nothing happened. He hadn’t even
looked at her like he’d ever touched her. Licked her. Made her
come.

How was she supposed to make him notice
her?

By Wednesday morning, she’d been ready to
scream in frustration. Until she’d gotten an idea. A brilliant
idea. Right after lunch, she had a meeting with Clay about the
construction-in-progress account,.

And during lunch...

“That was fucking hot.” Vince. He always knew
the right thing to say.