Crave (Splendor Book 2) (5 page)

Ian stilled as he lifted his mouth from hers, murmuring in awe, “My God, Tessa. Christ - you’re so beautiful, darling. I can’t believe you just -”

Whatever else he was going to say was abruptly halted by the ringing of his cell phone. Tessa’s eyes were tightly shut, too wrecked from what had just happened to even think of opening them yet. She dimly heard Ian curse impatiently as he answered the phone with barely restrained annoyance. As he eased his body away from hers to take the call, she felt suddenly bereft without the hard warmth of him pressed against her.

And then, as the glowing haze of her orgasm began to slowly fade, her mortification returned tenfold. She glanced down and had to stifle a moan when she saw her exposed breast, the nipple still red from his touch. Hastily, she jerked the cup and strap back into place, then grabbed the discarded blouse and pulled it on, her fingers fumbling clumsily with the buttons.

Ian’s call ended and he gazed at her somberly from the other side of his office. She knew she must look a sight, with her flushed cheeks, mussed hair, and stained, wrinkled blouse that she wasn’t sure had even been buttoned up correctly. The only thing that helped her retain a bit of her composure was the realization that Ian seemed as shook up as she was by what had just happened. His tie was askew, his hair rumpled, and he appeared to be at a complete loss for words.

He glanced at her, then at the ship’s clock on his credenza before grabbing a large envelope from his desk.

“I need to go,” he muttered brusquely, and then strode out of the office without a moment’s hesitation.

Tessa stared after him, too shocked at what had just occurred to even move. Just a few short minutes ago her body had been burning up, every part of her on fire for Ian’s touch, the heat of his big body almost smothering her. And now, devoid of all that, she began to shiver almost uncontrollably, shaking in reaction, and she had to wrap her arms about her torso to steady herself.

“Oh, my, God,” she uttered in disbelief. “What in the world have I done?”

***

Ian was echoing almost the same exact words as he very nearly ran out of his office, grateful when an elevator arrived almost immediately and even more so when it proved to be empty. On the ride down to the lobby, he forced himself to take several deep breaths, trying to still the frantic beat of his heart. At the same time he swiftly restored order to his rumpled hair and clothing, and offered up a silent thanks that his raging erection had subsided, for there was no way he could have walked across the lobby to meet his associates in that sort of condition.

His meeting had ended earlier than expected, and he’d agreed to have a quick drink with two of his associates before they headed off to dinner. But then he’d realized he had left a report he needed to give someone in his office, and they had been obliged to make a quick stop to retrieve it.

He hadn’t expected anyone to still be at the office when he arrived, and indeed the floor had been empty when he’d walked through. But Tessa’s purse and coat had still been on top of Andrew’s desk, and then he’d heard her voice as he walked inside his office.

What had happened next was still completely surreal to him, like a dream he had yet to wake from. She’d been standing in the doorway of his private bathroom, the upper half of her body unclothed except for that rather insubstantial lace bra, and she had been so tempting, so sexy, and so completely desirable that he’d had trouble remembering his own name. Her smooth ivory skin had glowed, her long golden hair tumbling about her bare shoulders, and - oh, Christ - those beautiful, ripe tits spilling out of the low-cut bra. They had been bigger, rounder, and firmer than his very dirty imagination could have ever pictured or hoped for, and he’d been instantly, violently aroused.

Ian hadn’t been able to stop what happened next, anymore than he could have stopped breathing. He’d waited too long, denied himself for far too many months, and couldn’t wait even one more day to have her. He’d barely recognized the dominant, forceful commands that had come out of his mouth, but Tessa had responded instinctively to them, obeying him without hesitation.

He’d fallen on her like a starving man, kissing and touching her with absolutely no finesse, grinding himself against her like a horny teenager. He’d never been so hard in his life, had never felt his blood pump so hot, or had the need to fuck like an animal. The sounds she’d made - her groans, the breathy little pants, her husky words of encouragement - had only served to make him harder.

And then, with astonishing, jaw dropping swiftness, she’d come - her body quivering in reaction against his. He’d never been with a woman who could orgasm that quickly, and certainly not without far more stimulation. His head was still spinning with the recollection of how she’d looked and sounded when she had climaxed, and suddenly he was hard again.

“Damn it!” he cursed, for the elevator was nearly at the lobby level. He had to forcibly remove all thoughts of Tessa from his mind as he exited the elevator in order to get himself under control.

If one of the men waiting for him in the lobby hadn’t called his cell, wondering what was keeping him, God knows what might have happened next. Christ, he’d been so far gone, so consumed with pleasure and need, that he had little doubt he would have taken Tessa then and there - on his sofa, his desk, or the floor - maybe all three places. It had shaken him badly, for he was always,
always
in control of his emotions. Except, it seemed, when it concerned his startlingly responsive, sexy as sin, golden girl.

He felt like an ass for having just walked out on her like that - without an apology or explanation or even an acknowledgment - but he’d been in panic mode by then. The very last thing he’d wanted to happen was for his associates to come upstairs looking for him, and so he’d made a hasty departure before that could occur.

But it was probably all for the best, since he badly needed some time to compose himself and think about what had just happened. One thing was for damned sure - he could no longer keep his attraction towards Tessa a secret, not after the way he’d dry humped her against the wall and come within minutes of fucking her senseless. God damn it, this was
not
the way he’d wanted things to unfold, to let her know of how he felt about her. He had intended to woo her gently, to take things slowly and show her exquisite tenderness and patience. But all it had taken was one glimpse of her nearly naked breasts, and his carefully planned seduction had been escalated to breakneck speed.

Ian agonized all during dinner about where things went from here, barely touching his food or saying much of anything. He was vaguely aware that the others at the table were regarding him oddly, asking if he was all right, and he mumbled some excuse about being a bit under the weather.

He had difficulty falling asleep that night, his body hard and throbbing when he recalled how soft Tessa’s lips had been, how sweetly passionate her response. It had been far too long since he’d been with a woman, resorting to jacking off in the shower to find some temporary relief, all because no one else except for Tessa appealed to him in the slightest. And now that he’d finally touched and kissed her, he knew no one else would ever do, that she was the only woman for him. Ever.

As he eventually drifted off into a restless slumber, he still had no idea of what he was going to say or do when he saw her again tomorrow. He should be annoyed that a sweet, shy girl like Tessa had him feeling as rattled and uncertain as an adolescent boy, but instead the realization only brought a smile to his lips as sleep finally claimed him.

Chapter Three

In the five years she had worked for the Gregson Hotel Group, Tessa had never truly considered calling in sick - even when she’d been so ill with the flu she could barely lift her head off the pillow. But today she seriously toyed with the idea, even as she dragged herself out of bed and started getting ready.

Even if she had somehow been able to get the damned ink stain out of her blouse, Tessa knew she’d never be able to wear it again. At least not without remembering in explicit, excruciating detail everything that had happened last evening in Mr. Gregson’s office. Her cheeks still burned with embarrassment as she recalled the way she’d responded to his kisses and expert caresses, how she’d moaned in arousal, and, most shocking of all, how she’d had an orgasm right there on the spot, her body evidently so starved for physical contact that it had taken less than five minutes for her to go off like a skyrocket.

‘Oh, God, he must think you’re some kind of man-hungry slut,’ she despaired as she searched through her ever-diminishing wardrobe for something to wear. ‘Letting him touch you like that, moaning like you’re the star of a bad porn flick. How in the world am I going to face him today?’

Tessa had barely slept a wink last night, tossing and turning as she worried about the consequences of last evening’s fiasco. It was all her fault, she thought wildly, for using his private bathroom and then foolishly deciding to strip off her blouse in what had been a futile attempt to get it clean. She should have just used the ladies room in the office, or at the very least had enough sense to close the door.

He would unquestionably be angry with her, that much was for certain. The look on his face when he’d stormed out of his office had been ferocious, and she only hoped he’d had the opportunity to calm down overnight and deal with this awful mess in a rational manner.

She chose one of her oldest outfits - a black turtleneck sweater and a black and white checkered wool skirt. The skirt was a little loose since she’d lost some weight, but after unintentionally exposing herself yesterday she was anxious to present a conservative image this morning. She wore minimal makeup and considered pulling her hair back into a knot, but ran out of time.

During the bus ride to work, Tessa continued to fret about what Mr. Gregson was likely to say or do after their encounter in his office. It was possible that he was as horrified by his impulsive actions as she was about hers, and that he would very tactfully say nothing, acting as though it had never happened. They would finish out the week with her working for him, and then it would likely be a cold day in hell before she was ever asked to fill in for Andrew again.

That was actually the best case scenario. In other, less desirable ones, Mr. Gregson would give her a severe reprimand, arrange for her immediate transfer to another department or location, or, in the absolute worst case, terminate her employment.

Tessa honestly didn’t think Mr. Gregson would go so far as to fire her. He was a kind and fair man, and knew she was on her own now. She simply couldn’t see him putting her out of a job. No, the first and second options were the most likely, and she feared he would in fact arrange for her to be transferred as soon as possible. Of course, her co-workers would immediately begin to speculate that she must have screwed something up big time while filling in for Andrew to suffer such a swift and severe punishment. They wouldn’t guess that what had almost been screwed was Tessa herself.

The bus left her off a couple of minutes earlier than usual due to the “Friday lite” traffic. She was grateful for the extra time to get to her desk and somehow compose herself before Mr. Gregson arrived.

The first thing she noticed when she arrived at her temporary office was the damned printer. Tessa glared at it darkly, thinking it and its faulty ink cartridge the root of all evil.

But then she felt a huge sense of relief when she booted up the computer and looked over the master schedule for today. By some fortunate stroke of luck, Mr. Gregson wouldn’t be arriving at the office until almost noontime. He had a breakfast meeting with the same group of worldwide business associates he’d met with yesterday, followed by a conference he was addressing at the Gregson Hotel up on Nob Hill. Those two appointments would take up most of the morning, giving Tessa some badly needed time to compose herself.

The morning went by quickly as she downloaded and printed a stack of reports, updated some weekly spreadsheets she was in charge of preparing, and answered several emails. She was surprised when she glanced at the clock and realized it was almost noon, and then the butterflies in her tummy really kicked in, for Ian ought to be arriving any minute now. But as the minutes ticked by and he didn’t appear, she assumed he’d just gone to lunch or had a personal appointment, and was grateful to have a few extra minutes before having to face him.

Her stomach growled, reminding her that she’d barely eaten any dinner last night, far too shook up to have an appetite, and that so far today had only been able to stomach some tea and half a protein bar. But she honestly didn’t think she could keep any food down right now, as edgy and nervous as she felt.

It was past one o’clock before Ian made an appearance, and her heart almost stopped beating when she saw him striding down the hallway towards her desk. God, he looked magnificent, she thought almost desperately, so incredibly handsome and sexy in a charcoal gray suit and burgundy tie. He was as poised and regal as ever, betraying no sign of the passionate, aggressive lover she’d seen all too briefly last evening.

Their gazes locked and held until he inclined his head towards his office. “I’d like to speak with you in my office please, Tessa.”

She shot to her feet in agitation. “Yes - of, of course sir.”

Tessa clasped her hands in front of her, anxious to still their trembling, and preceded him inside his office. She’d been mentally preparing herself for this moment since last night, and just hoped she wouldn’t do something foolish, like start to cry.

But what she absolutely hadn’t prepped herself for was the way Ian swiftly shut and locked the door behind him, and then swept her into his arms. She gasped in surprise, her hands drifting up to rest on his upper arms as he gazed down at her with an almost desperate look in his eyes.

“Just tell me,” he pleaded, “that you don’t regret what happened last night. And that whatever this is between us - that you feel it, too.”

Tessa was astonished at his impassioned words, the very last sort of thing she had expected him to say. Despite her shock, she was still able to whisper, “No. I – I don’t regret it. And yes - I feel it, too.”