The Assistant (2 page)

“What is it, Ms. Jones?”

“I need to leave early tomorrow.”

“For what purpose?”  He gave me a sharp
glance.

“I have an appointment.”

He frowned at me.  “You’ve had a lot of
appointments as of late.”

I didn’t reply.  I had never mentioned Rex
to him.  Mr. Wright didn’t strike me as a dog lover and I wouldn’t put it past
him to deny my request just because he hated dogs.

He took a swallow of his scotch.  “Fine.”

“Thank you, Mr. Wright.”

“Good night, Ms. Jones,” he replied
dismissively.

I rolled my eyes and closed his door before
collapsing in the chair at my desk.  I had worked for Aiden Wright for three
years.  Three years of putting up with his shit, his sarcasm, his crazy work
demands.  Three years of crying in the bathroom and watching my social life go
down the drain because of my work schedule.  I shook my head and collected my
stuff before moving to the elevators.  The other financial advisors gave their
assistants flowers and took them for lunch on Administrative Assistant Day. 
They gave bonuses at Christmas and never called them in from their vacation
because they needed a document typed.  In the three years I had worked for him,
Aiden Wright had never once given me a bonus or hell, even told me I was doing
a good job.  I was a fool to keep working for him.

So why are you?  Find another job where
you’re not treated like dirt. 

It was excellent advice and one that I
would never follow.  Some weird part of me liked the constant stress working
for Aiden Wright caused.  The thought of sitting in some office where my boss
was always perfectly polite and perfectly reasonable, made me want to break out
in hives.  I hated to be bored and working for Mr. Wright was far from boring. 

Whatever.  You just keep hoping all your
goddamn sexual fantasies about the man will come true someday.

My cheeks reddened and I stepped out of the
elevator in a hurry.  I crossed the lobby, my heels clicking loudly in the
silence, and walked quickly to my car.  It was freezing cold and I cursed
loudly when I slipped and nearly landed on my ass. 

The man is not attracted to fat girls. 
Get it through your head, you idiot.

I sighed and rubbed my hands together
briskly as I waited for my car to warm up.  Aiden Wright was sex on a stick. 
His dark hair and dark eyes, the sharp cheekbones and the perfect amount of
stubble that always covered his jaw, made women drool.  He worked out
religiously every morning in the gym in the basement of our office building and
at 6’4” he towered over nearly every one. 

I sighed again and drove out of the parking
lot.  My fantasies about my boss had to stop.  They had really heated up over
the last few days and although part of me knew it was a coping mechanism for
the stress, it was time to end them.  Although I had never once seen Mr. Wright
with a woman, I knew without a doubt that I wasn’t his type.  Besides, he was
probably the type of guy who liked a woman to be in control in bed.

I snorted out loud as I drove carefully
down the icy streets.  That was complete and utter bullshit and I knew it.  Mr.
Wright was a man who demanded obedience and there was no reason to think he
wouldn’t be the same in the bedroom.  Fresh wetness dampened my panties at the
thought of being under his control and I groaned and slammed my hand against
the steering wheel.  I really needed to get laid.

“Ms. Jones!” 

His angry bellow had me leaping from my
chair and scurrying into his office.  “What’s wrong?”

“Where the hell is maintenance?”

I could barely hear him over the rattling
of the vent in his ceiling.  “I’ve called them three times.”

“Call them again!”  He snarled.  “How the
hell am I supposed to get any work done?”

“They said they’d be here as soon as they
can.”

“As soon as they can?”  He glared at me. 
“Do I need to do your job and call maintenance, Ms. Jones?”

“Go ahead!”  I snapped.  “I’m sure the owner
of the company would have more pull than his assistant.”

He stood up abruptly and stalked toward the
door.  “I’m going downstairs to get a coffee.  You have ten minutes to get
maintenance up here and fix this vent or I’ll fire the whole lot of you.  Do I
make myself clear?”

“Perfectly,” I replied as he stalked from
the room.

I immediately hurried back to my desk and
called maintenance, sighing impatiently when they didn’t pick up the phone. 
Great, now they were avoiding my calls.  I slammed my phone down and checked my
watch.  Eight minutes.

Grumbling to myself, I ran to the kitchen
and grabbed a butter knife before hurrying back to Mr. Wright’s office.  I
peered up at the vent.  It rattled loudly and I slipped off my shoes and
climbed on to his desk.  I pried off the cover, shaking my head when bits of
ceiling fell on to my face, and peered inside.  One of the metal pieces inside
was vibrating loudly and, standing on my tiptoes, I strained to reach the screw
with the butter knife.  I could only just reach it and I cursed loudly when the
knife just grazed the head of the screw.  I moved closer to the edge of his
desk, planting my toes at the very edge and made a soft grunt of triumph when I
could reach the loose screw.  I checked my watch.  Two minutes.  I twisted the
butter knife, sweat breaking out on my forehead as I teetered a little on my
toes. 

“What the hell are you doing?”

I shrieked at the sound of his voice, my
body jerking wildly and the butter knife falling from my hand as I slipped on
his desk.  I pinwheeled my arms madly but gravity was being a bitch and I fell
straight into my boss.  He grunted with surprise and staggered backward,
tripping over the chair and falling flat on to his back as I landed on him with
a heavy thud that made him wince.  I barely felt the hot coffee soaking into my
sweater as I scrambled off of him.  I was mortified.

“I’m so sorry, Mr. Wright!  Are you – are
you okay?”

Please God, don’t let me have crushed
his ribcage.  Please, sweet baby Jesus, I’m begging you.

He sat up and tossed his crushed coffee cup
to the side.  I could see a few splashes of coffee on his suit jacket but the
majority of the coffee was soaking into my clothes and I grimaced and plucked
at my sweater as he scowled at me.

“What the hell, Ms. Jones?”

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered.  My cheeks
were flaming red and I wanted to sink into the floor.  I stood up quickly. 
“Are you hurt?  Do you need to go to the hospital?”

He climbed gracefully to his feet and
scowled at me.  “No, I’m not hurt.  But thanks to your clumsiness, my coffee is
– “

He stopped, noticing for the first time the
large wet stain on my sweater, and cursed loudly.  I squeaked in surprise when
he took my wrist and nearly dragged me into his private bathroom.

“Take off your sweater!”  He barked at me.

“What?  No, I can’t – “

With a harsh sigh of impatience, he grabbed
the hem of my sweater and yanked it over my head.  I was wearing a light pink
shirt under it, and he quickly unbuttoned it as I stared at him in shocked
silence.  He peeled off my wet shirt and made another sigh of impatience at the
sight of my camisole.

“How many layers are you wearing, Ms. Jones?”

“I get cold,” I said defensively.

His hands reached for the bottom of my
camisole and I slapped at his hands.  “Hey, no!  Don’t do that!”

“It’s covered in coffee and I need to see
if you’re burned,” he said impatiently.  He ignored my flailing hands and
pulled my last layer over my head.  I immediately crossed my arms over my
breasts, acutely aware of the way my nipples were hardening in my bra, as he
studied the redness of my upper chest.

“Shit,” he muttered.  He touched the
reddening skin with the tips of his fingers and I jerked backward.

“It’s fine,” I replied.  “It barely hurts.”

He scowled at me. “Obviously that’s not
true.”

I licked my lips nervously.  It had nothing
to do with the pain.  His touch, the feel of his surprisingly rough fingertips
tracing the sensitive skin of my chest, was what had made me jerk back.  He’d
never once touched me in the three years I had worked for him, not even an
accidental brush, and my nerve endings were singing from just that brief
contact.

He soaked a hand towel in cool water before
pressing it against my chest.  I hissed lightly at the cold and he frowned
again.

“Take off your bra.”

I gave him a startled look.  “No.”

“Take it off.  Now, Ms. Jones.”

My hands trembling, I reached for the front
clasp and unhooked it.  I shrugged it from my shoulders, letting it fall to the
floor, as I closed my eyes. 

He didn’t say anything and after a moment,
I opened my eyes and stared up at him.  He was studying my breasts, and I
thought I saw a glimmer of need in his dark eyes as a drop of water slid down
my right breast and hovered on my erect nipple.

He bent his head and licked the drop of
water from my nipple.  I moaned, my heart beating like a drum in my chest, and
my hands curled into his hair as he licked my nipple again and then sucked
firmly on it.

He let the towel fall to the floor and
cupped my left breast, kneading it with his strong hand as I arched my back and
moaned encouragingly.  His other hand slid around my back and as he pulled me
against him I –

“Ms. Jones?”

“What?”  I opened my eyes, dragging myself
out of yet another sexual fantasy about my unsuspecting boss, and willed myself
not to blush as he continued to press the wet towel against my chest.

“I think you should go to the hospital.”

I shook my head.  “No, it’s fine.  It’s not
burnt.”

“You need to have it looked at.”  He glared
at me.

“I don’t,” I insisted.

“What the hell were you doing on my desk
anyway?”  He asked.

“Fixing the vent,” I muttered. 
“Maintenance is avoiding my calls and I only had ten minutes.”

He rolled his eyes.  “So you decided to fix
it yourself?  That doesn’t seem wise, Ms. Jones.”

“Yeah, well my boss isn’t the most reasonable
guy in the office,” I shot back.

He snorted laughter before pressing the
towel more firmly against my skin and I gave him a hesitant look.

“Are you okay?  Maybe you should go to the
hospital.”

“For what?”

“I, um, landed pretty hard on you and I’m
heavy.  You’ve probably got a cracked rib,” I muttered.

“Doubtful,” he replied.

We stood there in silence for a few minutes
until I couldn’t stand it any longer.  I reached for the towel.  “I think I’m
good.  I’m sure you have work to do.”

He gave me an irritated look as I tugged at
the towel.  “I still think you should go to the hospital.”

“Well, I’m not,” I said firmly.  “Let go of
the – “

I gasped when one of my hands touched his
and my nerve endings sizzled and sang once more.  I jerked my hands away, dropping
the towel just as he relinquished his hold on it, and it fell to the floor with
a wet plop.  His eyes dropped to my large breasts and he stared for a long
moment at my nipples straining against the lacy fabric of my bra.

I should have been folding my arms over my
breasts but I couldn’t.  I was mesmerized by the look on his face.  If I didn’t
know any better, I would swear it was lust.  The thought that Aiden Wright
would be lusting after me sent a shot of desire through my body and my nipples hardened
further into tight, painful pebbles.  He made a low sound in the back of his
throat and I watched wide-eyed as his hand moved toward my breast.  He was
about to cup it when he took a step back and, without looking at me, stormed
out of the small bathroom.

I released my breath in a harsh rush and
rubbed at my forehead.  What the fuck had just happened?

The door opened and Mr. Wright stuck his
hand in.  There was a shirt dangling from his fingers and he shook it
impatiently at me.  “Here, you can wear this.”

“Th-thank you,” I stuttered.  I took the
shirt and slipped into it.  It was obviously one of his extra shirts and while
it was a little tight across the breasts, it hung nearly to my knees.  My heart
thudding wildly, I gathered my clothes and stepped out into his office.  He was
sitting behind his desk, staring grimly at his laptop, and I took a few
tentative steps toward him.

“I’ll just finish fixing the vent,” I began
nervously.

“Leave it!”  He snapped.

I nodded and nearly ran from his office.

* * *

“I’m sorry, Lina.  There really isn’t
anything else we can do for him,” Dr. Morrison said gently.

I stared down at Rex.  He was lying on the
floor of the examining room and he gave a weary sigh before closing his eyes. 

“Are you sure?”  I whispered.

“I am.  You’ve done everything you can but
he’s an old dog.  I think it’s time to say goodbye.”

The tears dripped down my face as Dr.
Morrison patted my back gently before squatting and stroking Rex’s fur.  Rex
didn’t open his eyes and Dr. Morrison glanced up at me.

“It’s the right decision, Lina.”

I nodded, the lump in my throat prevented
me from speaking, and Dr. Morrison patted Rex one last time before standing. 
“I’ll be right back.”

He squeezed my shoulder and left the room. 
I laid down on the floor beside Rex and stroked his head.  He sighed again and
I buried my face against him and let the tears soak into his soft fur.

“You’re a good boy, Rexie,” I whispered. 
“Mama loves you so much.”

He chuffed softly but kept his eyes closed
and I rubbed his grey muzzle and kissed the top of his head.

“I love you,” I whispered again.

* * *

I stood in the middle of my living room and
stared at Rex’s empty bed.  I was awake all night, staring at the bed where Rex
used to sleep and trying to come to terms with the idea that I would never see
him again.  That I would never again hear his soft snoring or watch his tail
wag furiously when I said the word ‘walk’.  Tears streamed down my face and I
sat down heavily on the couch and stared out the window at the falling snow.  I
had called in sick to work this morning.  Mr. Wright would be furious with me. 
One of his largest clients was coming in tomorrow for an important meeting and
their file wasn’t completed but I couldn’t bring myself to care.  Ever since
that moment in the bathroom last week, Mr. Wright had been an even bigger dick
than usual.  The thought of having to smile and nod and pretend my heart wasn’t
shattered into a million pieces as he yelled at me, was too much.

My cell phone rang and I stared at the
familiar number of the office.  Without answering it, I set it on the coffee
table and headed back to my bed.  I would worry about the office and Mr. Wright
tomorrow.

* * *

“I am so glad you’re back, Lina.  Yesterday
was a damn nightmare!  I had to help Mr. Wright with his file and he was a
complete and utter monster.  I must have retyped the correspondence a million –
“ 

Amanda trailed to a stop and studied my
pale face carefully.

“Lina?  Are you feeling better?”

“Yeah,” I lied.

She frowned.  “Tell me what’s wrong.”

I swallowed thickly and blinked back the
tears.  “Rex died.”

“Oh, honey.”  Amanda hugged me tightly. 
“I’m so sorry.”

“Thanks,” I whispered.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

I shook my head.  “No.  I should get to
work.  What’s left on the file to do?”

“Not that much.  It shouldn’t take you more
than an hour or so.”  She squeezed my arm and I gave her a grateful smile.

“Thanks for helping out yesterday, Amanda. 
I know it wasn’t pleasant.”

“You’re welcome, honey.  Do you want to go
for drinks after work tonight?  We’ll toast Rex’s memory and then I’ll be your
wingman and get you laid.”

I smiled a little.  “I’ll let you know,
okay?”

“Okay.”  She hugged me again and we parted
ways.