Deceiving Her Boss (12 page)

 
Allie waited a few minutes before asking, "Anything we need to take care
of?"

 
Sean shook his head, looking over at her.  "No.  Looks like a quiet day
back home, thankfully.  So we can concentrate on things here.  Do you have the
files in here with you, or are they in back?"

 
Allie pulled her briefcase toward her and extracted the files.  "Here you
go."

 
For the rest of the morning and into the afternoon, Sean was all business, and
Allie kept him organized and on track with all of his meetings.  They took a
quick break to go back to the hotel and freshen up before dinner, and then met
clients for an early meal.  After the dinner, Sean and Allie spent a few more
hours working in one of the hotel's small business meeting rooms before they
split up for the night.

 
The next day was more of the same.  After an early breakfast in the hotel
restaurant, they spent the rest of the day in meetings, with only a quick break
for lunch.  Allie insisted on finding good pupusas, a specialty tortilla from El
Salvador, stuffed with cheese, beans or meat.  Sean indulged her, but after his
first bite, ordered three more to follow.

 
"You haven't had these before?" Allie asked in surprise.

 
"No, and I don't know why not.  They are delicious.  I'll need to log
about ten more miles on the treadmill tomorrow morning," he added.

 
"Hey, if I have to deal with Miami humidity, at least I can enjoy Miami
food," Allie grinned.

 
They finished up their meetings at 4:00 that afternoon.  Allie offered to look
for flights back that evening, since they had finished sooner than expected,
but Sean shook his head.  "Let's go out and get a really good Cuban
dinner.  I'll ask the concierge to make us a reservation," he added.

 
But Allie grinned.  "Forget reservations," she said.  "If you're
game, let's just go over to Little Havana.  The food is bound to be a lot
better than at any of the gourmet Cuban restaurants, and I doubt we'll need a
reservation."

 
Back at the hotel, they changed out of their business clothes.  Allie pulled
out a sleeveless sundress in a soft blue color, and added a pair of beaded
sandals.  Grabbing a light sweater in case the night got chilly, she headed
down to the lobby where Sean was already waiting for her.  He was dressed in a
pair of khaki shorts and a soft red polo shirt, and had on a pair of casual
sandals as well.

 
Little Havana was just as Allie remembered it from her last visit to Miami.  Vibrant
and full of life, the area itself was not really a great spot for tourists, but
was home to amazing Cuban food and drink.  They ate at a small restaurant
recommended by one of the locals, and walked around a bit, but didn't stay
late, since their driver warned that the place could get a bit dicey after
dark.  Instead, he took them down to Miami Beach, where they found a place on
the water for drinks.

 
"I take it back," Allie said as she finished her drink, then leaned
back in the comfortable chair and felt the ocean breeze blowing softly through
her hair.  "I don't hate Miami at all.  I could get used to this,"
she sighed.

 
Sean smiled over at her.  "Want to go for a walk by the water?"

 
"Sure," Allie agreed.

 
Sean settled up their check, and then pulled out Allie's chair for her and
offered her his hand.  She took it, and they weaved their way through the
tables in the restaurant until they reached the sand of the beach.  Allie bent
down and pulled off her sandals, and Sean did the same. 

 
"This is nice," Allie said, as they strolled down to the water.  She
held her shoes in one hand, and with the other, pulled back her hair to prevent
it from blowing in her face.

 
"I love the ocean at night," Sean agreed.  "It has a completely
different feel from during the day.  It's more powerful, and darker.  In an
emotional sense," he added with a grin.

 
"I knew what you meant," Allie smiled.  "I think I love it best
in the rain."

 
"Did you go to the ocean a lot when you were a kid?"

 
"Not really.  We stayed pretty close to home when I was young.   But once
I went away to college, the travel bug sort of hit me.  And then all I wanted
to do was see new things.  I spent some time in the Keys, and then just
traveled up the coast for a while."

 
"I can't quite see you as a free-spirited nomad," Sean said
seriously.

 
Allie laughed.  "I was a nomad for about five months.  And then I decided
that eating more than ramen noodles was a good idea, as was having a place to
call home.  So I got a job, and settled down a bit and the rest is
history."

 
"So I want to hear more about these free-spirited days," Sean teased
as they walked along the beach.

 
"Not much to tell," Allie shrugged.  "I learned a lot about
myself.  And my own need for security, and a job I love.  I worked some pretty
awful jobs for a while," she said.  "And I learned that I wanted to
do something more with my life."

 
"So you ended up working for me," Sean mused.  "Is it what you
hoped for all those years ago?"

 
"More.  Better.  Like I told you a few weeks ago, I love this work.  It's
why I was willing to do anything to get the job, and anything to keep it.  I
can't imagine finding anything better."

 
Sean came to a stop on the beach, looking out over the dark water.  "If I
had fired you..."

 
Allie drew up beside him and dropped her shoes onto the sand beside her, where
Sean had already placed his.  "I would have found another job, and I may
have grown to like it.  But I would have always regretted deceiving you,"
she admitted.  "I wish I'd had the courage to tell you."

 
Sean shrugged.  "I'm still amazed that it worked for as long as it did.  I'm
apparently a very gullible man."

 
Allie smiled then.  "No, you're not.  We see what we want to see.  You
needed a competent and sexless assistant, and that's what I worked to give to
you.  Why would you look deeper?"

 
"Sexless?" Sean honed in on one word.  "Is that how you see
yourself?  Saw yourself?"

 
Allie looked out into the darkness.  "I guess so, yes.  But mostly because
I was trying so hard to be that.  And the only way to be that was to feel
that.  Does that make sense?"

 
"So you dressed in colors that didn't suit you, and clothes that didn't
fit you."

 
"Not much makes a girl feel worse than having ugly clothes," Allie
said with a shrug.  "But I added the glasses and the makeup and the hair
for good measure.  When I was working for you, I was someone else," Allie
confessed.  "I was me on weekends, when I'd go out, have fun, be with
friends.  But during the week..."

 
"You were someone completely different.  But how could you be happy with
that?" he asked.  "How could you love a job where you lost who you
were?"

 
Allie shrugged.  "That's a good question.  But I just loved the work so
much that nothing else mattered."

 
There was silence between them for a while as they each stared out at the
horizon, lit from behind by the lights of the city.

 
"You were never sexless, Allie," Sean said quietly.  "You may
have felt it, but it wasn't the truth.  Even under that awful disguise, you
were beautiful and sexy and warm.  And that's what attracted me to you, even
then."

 
Allie turned toward Sean as his hands reached out and closed gently on her
shoulders.  He tugged her toward him, his arms moving around her back, his left
hand circling her waist while his right hand buried itself in her hair.   She
melted into his embrace, her own hands moving around his back, both to steady
herself and to pull him closer.  When Sean lowered his mouth to hers, he moved
it gently against her lips, while his hands held her to him fiercely.  He
kissed her over and over, gently, sweetly, moving his mouth to her neck, to her
ear, and back to her lips.

 
Allie moaned softly, a sound that she barely knew she made, but a sound that
Sean heard.  And it immediately made him hard.  Moving his hands to her face,
he angled her mouth to his and took her deeply, his tongue slipping inside her
mouth, entwining with hers, a battle that neither sought to win.  Allie went up
on her toes, molding her body to his, and Sean took advantage of her position,
reaching around her to grasp her and pull her tighter to his hardness.

 
 His hand moved from her back, around her waist, and up to her full breast. 
Allie gasped, and pressed her breast into his hand.  His thumb caressed her
nipple, causing it to harden under his touch.  He slowly reached his fingers
down under the bodice of her dress, pushed her bra aside, and gently moved his
hand over her naked breast.  Allie's head arched back as she moved against him,
all thoughts of resistance gone.  Her body was singing for this man, and she
wanted him like she'd never wanted anyone ever before.  She kissed him fiercely,
wanting to show him what he did to her, and what she wanted from him.

 
Sean heard the sound of voices before Allie did, and immediately pulled his
hands from her dress and circled her waist with his arms, drawing her against
him and holding her steady as they caught their breaths.  The sound slowly
began to penetrate the fog around Allie's brain, and she clutched Sean tightly
in embarrassment.

 
They stood there for several minutes, just two people looking out at the ocean,
as a group of young college-aged kids strolled by them.  They were loud and
barely noticed Sean and Allie, which helped Allie to recover her senses
faster.  Finally, she broke free of Sean's embrace and bent down to gather
their shoes from the sand.

 
"Allie," Sean's voice was husky, his need for her unabated. 
"Sweetheart..."

 
"I'm sorry, Sean.   I didn't mean for this to happen, honestly."

 
"I know you didn't, Allie.  But you're in my blood now.  And I hope to God
that I'm in yours."

 
Allie stood, her back rigid, looking away from Sean.  She felt tears gathering
in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall, refused to let him see her this
vulnerable.  When she felt that she could speak without her voice shaking, she
said, "You're in every vein of my body.  And I'm going to need to stop
working for you, Sean.  I'm going to need to resign."

 
"No."  His response was immediate.  And stern.  "I need you in
the office now, Allie.  We've got three major deals that are nearly cinched,
and I'm not going to be able to train someone new and make those happen.  If
you want to leave, you can leave.  But not yet."  His voice softened then,
as he reached out for her hand.  "We'll figure this out, Allie."

 
"How?" her voice was anguished.  "I can't see you without
wanting you.  Without wanting this.  I can't travel with you, because we end up
here, in this same emotional place, every time."

 
"What's so wrong with this, Allie?  With us?"

 
"I can't sleep with my employer, Sean.  It's my own personal code.  I'm
sorry if it seems old-fashioned or..."

 
"No, it doesn't.  It's been my own ethical code for years, Allie.  That's
why none of the other secretaries lasted -- they wouldn't take no for an
answer, and I wasn't about to say yes.  But then you came along, and you got
under my skin.  And now I'm looking at all of my rules and principles, and
wondering what I can compromise."

 
"But you can't, Sean.  That's why I need to resign," she said
quietly.  "I won't do it yet.  I'll wait until I've trained a replacement,
but I need to go."

 
Sean's hand came up to caress her cheek.  "What happened to your comments
about this being the best job in the world for you?"

 
"It's only the best job if I can do it, and do it well.  And I can't do it
well if I can't get my mind off of you."  She looked up at Sean then, her
hair blowing softly around her face.  "If we could go back to three months
ago, when you didn't know I existed, and I didn't know how much I wanted you, I
would.  But I know we can't do that."

 
"No, we can't," Sean mused.  Running his hand through his hair, he
looked down at Allie, and cursed softly.  "Let's go back to the hotel,
Allie.  We'll talk more about this when we get home, OK?  Maybe when we're back
in the office, back in a professional setting, we'll be able to work something
out."

 
Allie nodded.  "Will you promise me one thing, Sean?"

 
"Anything, sweetheart."

 
"Will you make my leaving worthwhile?" she asked.

 
Sean went still.  A muscle in his cheek twitched.  "What are you asking
me?" he questioned at last, his voice so low that Allie barely heard it.

 
"You know what I'm asking," she said in response.  "Not
tonight.  Not next week.  But someday, after I go."

 
Gathering her in his arms, Sean's mouth sought hers with a need that he could
barely contain.  Holding her face firmly in his hands, angling her mouth up so
that his own mouth fit perfectly over hers, he plundered her mouth with a
passion that he couldn't control.  Allie met his need with her own, but his
strength and his desire was a force that swept over them both, and left them
clinging to each other, out of breath and spent.