The Alphabet Game the Complete Alpha Series a to X, Y, Z (6 page)

‘Oh God, oh God, don’t stop, please don’t stop. Stella …’ He shouts my name as he explodes into my mouth.

I watch him for a few minutes as he catches his breath. He’s sated and I did that to him. I feel proud of myself.

‘That was amazing,’ he says. ‘Are you going to untie me now so I can return the compliment?’

‘Oh that’s not necessary,’ I tell him.

‘But I want to.’

‘Oh and you will. It’s just not necessary that I have to untie you.’

I remove my panties and position myself over his mouth.

‘Oh Stella, I think I’ve underestimated you,’ he says as I lower myself.

Chapter 6

I gently brush my swollen lips over his mouth, my clit sending sparks through me as it touches him. He tries to lick me but I move away. We repeat this, him trying to get close to me and my moving over him, then away.

‘God damn it woman untie me,’ he yells as I hover above him.

I laugh and lower myself again. This time I let his tongue invade. He flicks it over my clitoris and I rock towards it. He sucks on my inner flesh and I gasp, it’s like tiny electric shocks pulse within me, leaving a wanting sensation in my lower abdomen.

Momentum builds and I rock faster across him. He begins to thrust his tongue deep inside me. I stroke at my breasts. It’s becoming too much. My legs tremble. I lift off again and stare down at him.

‘Please,’ he pleads, ‘untie me.’

I place my hands on my hips, ‘Well since you asked so nicely.’

I undo the ties and he rubs his hands together to get some feeling into them and then they clasp firmly around my buttocks, pulling me back onto his mouth. He forces his tongue into me and works quickly, his tongue departing and then sucking and teasing my bud. It’s too much for me.

‘Oh my God, oh, oh, oh, ooooooh.’ I explode into his mouth, so sensitive that I have to back up off of him. I sit across his stomach, gathering my breath, resting my head on his chest. Feeling his thundering heartbeat through my cheek.

He gathers me up to him and we get beneath the covers. He curls himself around me, stroking my breasts and stomach. It’s so nice, so warm and I’m so relaxed after such a strong orgasm.

The next thing I know it’s morning and he’s gone.

I feel used. I know Gabe never said anything about staying over, but I just kind of expected that he would stay in my bed and that we’d move on to do other things. I stand in my apartment, rubbing at my ear, a nervous trait, but there’s no note left, no sign he was ever here.

I grab my swimming costume. I need to do a few lengths this morning before I go into work or I’m going to get a headache.

Once again Gabe is out of the office for the day. Mid-morning I sit at my desk and sigh, swivel my chair and gaze out of the window. It’s a dreary, drizzly day which matches my temperament.

‘Good morning Miss Mulroney. Am I disturbing you?’

I swing my chair back around and meet the scrutiny of Arnie Gregory. He has short, coarse, dark grey hair, where each individual strand looks made of metal. His eyes are blue, but they’re the same as Gabe’s in their shape and intensity. I slowly sit up, fixing my face as if he’d interrupted me from pondering a corporate takeover, rather than daydreaming.

‘Not at all Mr Gregory, I was just considering something before I start on the in-tray. What can I do for you?’

His mouth raises slightly at one edge. If he expected me to lose my cool at his arrival, he was wrong. I’d spent two years trying to work here and I’d been expecting to bump into him at some point. Yet here he was in my own office.

‘If you’re wanting Gabe, he’s out today.’

‘No actually, it was you I came to see. May I?’ He indicates a chair in the corner. I nod and he picks it up and wheels it opposite my desk. He sits down.

‘Would you like a tea or coffee?’

‘A tea would be lovely, if you have the time.’

I rise and slowly add pods to the machine to make drinks. I feel like I’m in a game of battleships and we’re trying to guess the location of each others armada.

I place his tea down, alongside a coffee for myself and re-take my seat.

‘Lorraine can make the tea you know?’

‘Yes, I know, but I’m perfectly capable of making it myself. I would only call her in if I was busy.’

‘But don’t you think that’s part of her job as a Receptionist? If she’s not seen to be utilised then maybe we don’t need her. We could always put your desk out on Reception?’

‘She’s kept plenty busy by the rest of the floor and I work for your son.’

He holds his chin. I watch as his thumb strokes the underneath.

‘Indeed. A fact that only came to my attention yesterday when mentioned by one of my own Personnel staff. Don’t you find that odd, that I can own a company and not know all the employees?’

‘It’s a large company, yes I do doubt that you know everyone.’

‘I was extremely inquisitive to find out who my eldest son had interviewed and appointed. What a coincidence that you’re the stepdaughter of one of my closest friends and business partners. He need only have phoned me and I would have found you a job.’

I look towards the window. ‘He doesn’t know I work here.’

‘Aaah. Yes I thought he’d mentioned something in the past about his stepdaughter receiving a three thousand pounds a month allowance.’

My eyes narrow, ‘I don’t touch it. I like to earn my own money.’

‘Yet you haven’t have you? This is your first post. Right here in my company? That makes me a tad suspicious. Should I be Stella? I can call you that can’t I?’

I nod.

‘Are you nodding that I can call you Stella, or that I should be suspicious?’

I take a deep breath and place my hands wide on the edge of the desk. ‘I admire the work you do for my stepfather. I’m a good PA. I have the correct qualifications. I don’t want a career but I do want to earn my own money and have an interesting job.’

‘Well my son says you are proving to be an excellent PA. Then again he thought that of the last one, and the one before that.’

I wince at the inference he makes.

He yawns. ‘Well, thank you for the tea. It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance.’ He rises and shakes my hand. He keeps it in his grip and holds on firmly.

‘If I ever find you anywhere near my office files, you’ll regret it. Understand Stella?’

I nod and this time its clear what my answer is for.

He leaves and I get up, put the ‘Do not Disturb’ sign on my door and sit back down shaking, my breathing ragged. I cannot let his threats get to me like this. I have to find out exactly what is going on with my stepfather and if I can’t do it the obvious way, by sneaking around at work, then I’ll use Gabe to get the information for me. What was that about his previous PA’s too? Has he played games with them all? Is that why they left? Am I just a fool, thinking I was someone special or different? I snort at myself. I acted like a whore last night and he left me like one. I’m surprised he didn’t leave money on the bed.

I sit with my head clutched in my hands, wondering what to do. Fuck this, I can’t stay here right now. I pick up the phone. ‘Ronnie, can you meet for lunch?’ Then I burst into noisy sobs down the phone.

‘Come on girl,’ Ronnie throws her arms around me, almost knocking me across the bank of seating in the bistro where we arranged to meet. ‘This can’t be too much of a surprise. You knew you’d bump into the Head Honcho sooner or later.’

‘I know,’ I sniff, ‘Its just that when I ran it through in my mind, I didn’t expect he would be so, so -’

‘Intimidating?’

I nod.

‘Oh honey,’ he eats other Lawyers for breakfast, day in, day out. You’re a little mouse at the side of those. Maybe you should rethink this whole revenge thing.’

My teeth clench, ‘No.’

‘But what’s the big deal really? So your Stepfather sent you to Boarding School. Most of us went there. You’ve turned out great.’

‘He took my mother away from me. I can’t forgive him for that. When my father died, my mum and I were inseparable. I knew that even though I’d lost my dad, I had my mum. Once he appeared it was like I became an orphan overnight. She turned into a Stepford wife, goodness knows where my real mother went.’

‘Have you tried talking to her.’

‘She shrugs me off.’

‘Well I have both my parents as you know, which is rare these days and possibly only because they turn a blind eye to each others infidelities, but was I raised by them? No. Like all my friends I was raised by a series of nannies. At some point Stella you’ve got to let it go. You’re an adult now. That cosy relationship with your mum is never coming back.’

My hands clench beneath the table,‘Well thanks for the sympathy, it was well worth you coming.’ I start to get up.

‘Where do you think you’re off to? We’re stopping for lunch. You’ve dragged me across the city, so don’t get all huffy just because I’ve reminded you that you’re not the only girl in the world with shit parents.’

I stand sulking, my top lip pouting over the other, before I realise I really am acting like a big baby.

I flop back down. ‘I’m sorry. He really threw me today. I guess he made me question what I’m doing and then you’ve done the same; it’s just kind of imbalanced me. Maybe I should just pack the job in and fritter the fuckers allowance.’

‘Ahem, are we forgetting Mr Gab-real-ly hot? You cannot pack in that job until you finish the alphabet. I’m living vicariously through you right now, until that bloody Col realises I’m more squishy and tasty than a marshmallow on top of a latte.’

A waitress comes up to take our order.

I suck my top lip. ‘A Black Russian please. She’ll have a Mohito.’

Ronnie looks at me as if I’ve grown a further head. ‘Drinking at lunch, in work hours? Disgraceful.’ She slaps my arm. ‘I bloody love it. Can we have some olives and a selection of breads too please?’

I head back to the office later. A large lunch has soaked up the Tia Maria and Vodka, but I’m left pleasantly chilled, apart from the fact that my pissed-offness at Gregory Senior seems to have projected itself onto Gregory Junior, who is now in my slightly-addled, I’ll agree, mind, the devil incarnate.

When I walk past Lorraine, she runs after me into my office and pours me a coffee from the machine. ‘Mr Gregory’s back.’

‘Which one?’ I panic.

‘Gabriel. He’s in his office and he was steaming that you weren’t in and that I didn’t know your whereabouts. I told him you were entitled to your lunch without having to report in.’

‘Thanks, I owe you one.’ I take a sip of the scalding coffee and wince as it burns my mouth.

‘Yes well he’s given me some filing, which I loathe, as punishment.’

‘I’ll help you later. It’s the least I can do.’

‘Don’t worry about it. Just let him know you’re back.’

I follow Lorraine back out to the Reception to pick up my post. I hear the lift door ping open and out walks what can only be termed an Adonis. Short, spiked blonde hair, sits atop a glowing face with chiselled cheekbones. It’s like Pinocchio’s maker got ten out of ten in making a real boy. Perfect, not too white, teeth are displayed to us in a polite smile and the chest, oh my goodness, that broad chest, under that too tight tee. Oh hang on, I think, check out the calves and thighs on this guy, so tanned and ...

I see Lorraine’s dropped jaw and realise we’re like two women from a Diet Coke ad. Understandable but pathetic.

‘Well, if I knew you two were up here, I’d have been accused of shagging a Judge’s daughter a lot earlier.’ He drawls in a Scottish accent, which makes me even hotter as it reminds me of the God that is David Tennant.

Lorraine and I smile back and try not to puddle at his feet.

Lorraine mumbles nervously, ‘Mr Taylor. I’ll, er let Mr Gregory know you’ve arrived.’

‘Oh no rush, darlin’. I think I prefer it out here to be honest.’ He leans over and whispers to me. ‘He can be really mean to me, you know.’

‘Oh I know, he’s like it with me too. Dreadful being his Assistant.’ I wink.

‘Do you want to come through Harry? says a deep voice, that seems to rumble with thunder. I turn around to see Gabe standing behind us, legs wide apart and arms crossed over his chest. A look of barely disguised fury on his face.

‘I’ll need some time with you after Stella,’ he begins to walk away, ‘there are a few things I need you to take down. It won’t be a problem you staying late after your extended lunch break will it?’

I shake my head.

‘Good.’

‘Oh dear, it sounds like you’re in trouble,’ whispers Lorraine. ‘What’ll be your equivalent of filing?’

‘I dread to think.’I reply, and head back to my desk, yet strangely I feel more excited than worried.

Chapter 7