ZenithRising (7 page)

Even though she had shown up without an appointment, that
was Lillian Davenport’s request. And when she told the assistant she would be
glad to schedule a specific time for later, she had been politely but firmly
asked to wait just a few minutes for Ms. Davenport to get out of her staff
meeting. That was nearly a half-hour ago.

Finally the executive office door opened and four people
exited with notepads in hand and concerned expressions on their faces. Maggie’s
guess was that they’d all been handed assignments they were none too thrilled
about.

A perfectly groomed, statuesque woman with ash-blonde hair
stood in the CEO’s doorway. Despite her high-level position, her smooth
complexion suggested she was barely forty. However, her confidence and air of
authority were easy to identify. This had to be Lillian Davenport.

“Ms. Harrison,” she said with a smile that revealed
beautiful white teeth. “Thank you for stopping by. Come in please.”

Maggie hurried to follow her into the inner sanctum. Rather
than an elegant executive office or a Tommy Bahama interpretation of one, the
room was efficiently furnished and impressively neat…which could have been the
reason her gaze was drawn to the collection of framed photographs on one
bookshelf. They appeared to be mostly family portraits but Maggie’s vision
caught one in particular. It was a photograph of a younger Ms. Davenport and a
ruggedly handsome man sharing an intimate moment. They looked happy and very
much in love. Engraved across the bottom of the silver frame was the phrase,
Lilli
& Kent, 2/14/96
.

As Ms. Davenport moved to her position behind the desk,
Maggie hurried to sit in one of the chairs on the opposite side. It immediately
established each of their positions for this meeting.

“I’m sure you have a lot to do for Mr. Nash so I’ll only
take a minute. Our human resources department speaks very highly of the It’s
Only Temporary agency and I trust that you are as responsible as all the other
temps they have provided us in the past. I understand the agency’s owner, Cory
Servwell, explained that your assignment here was different from the norm. Your
services are being utilized by Mr. Nash and he will be charged the agency’s
usual rate but the Davenport is the official client.”

Maggie furrowed her brow both to show attentiveness and lack
of complete understanding. Miss Davenport either didn’t notice or didn’t care
as she continued on with a speech that sounded somewhat rehearsed and left no
pauses for questions.

“We welcome the potential publicity that Mr. Nash could
bring to the Davenport if he lets it be known we were the inspiration for his
next bestselling novel. I’m sure you’re aware of the effect Stephen King had on
The Stanley Hotel. This property has always been a source of conjecture when it
comes to its past but with all the increased interest in the paranormal we have
seen a correlation in the number and types of guest reservations, especially in
the off-season. In other words, we have accepted the value of all the rumors of
ghosts and portals to other dimensions, though we will continue to deny the
validity of such nonsense.”

So far Maggie still had no idea what she had been summoned
for but she forced herself to remain still.

“There is really just one area that we would prefer remain,
shall we say, off-limits. Our concern is, if we specifically demand Mr. Nash to
avoid that area, he might be tempted to focus on it when it wasn’t what he had
planned on writing about to begin with.”

Despite the confusing statement Maggie noticed Miss
Davenport’s repeated use of the plural pronoun and wondered if the “we”
referred to the group that she saw leaving a few minutes ago or if this woman
just used the word to deflect responsibility away from herself. As the CEO
finally got to her point, Maggie bet it was the latter.

“You see, among all the rumors and ghost stories, there is
one we absolutely will not tolerate being exploited for the thrills and chills
of the masses. There is to be no mention of my grandfather’s death, either
using his name precisely or by implication. This is an area of great
sensitivity to my family and there is no amount of publicity that would make a
mockery of his life acceptable.”

It had taken a while but the woman had finally made the
purpose of her summons clear. “I understand,” Maggie said sympathetically. “I’m
sure I would feel the same way. However, I’m not sure why you’re telling me
this.”

Miss Davenport’s smile did not reach her eyes. “I am telling
this to you because part of your assignment here is to report on Mr. Nash’s
progress and how his story seems to be developing. You will make these reports
directly and
only
to me, at least once a week, and not alert Mr. Nash in
any way.”

Maggie felt a rush of acid flood her stomach. She was being
ordered to spy on and lie to Noah. Even if she didn’t care about him,
subterfuge was not in her character range. Something made her glance at the
framed portrait on the shelf. It was hard to believe the happy young woman in
the photo was now the cold-blooded executive sitting behind the big desk.

“I understand you and Mr. Nash were previously acquainted.”

An alarm sounded in Maggie’s mind. “That’s correct. It was
back in high school. But he barely remembered me.” The lie slid out more easily
than she expected.

“Good. If I thought you were too close to him, I would have
to ask for a replacement.”

Maggie wasn’t worried. Noah wouldn’t accept a replacement.
But Ms. Davenport wasn’t finished.

“Also, I was told you and Cory Servwell are very good
personal friends. So let me add this—if Mr. Nash’s book includes even one
sentence about my grandfather and you fail to warn me of that possibility in
time to take preventive action, I will see to it that all of our staffing needs
are taken away from It’s Only Temporary…
permanently
.”

* * * * *

All the way back to the suite Maggie wondered how she was
going to get out of the spider web she’d just gotten caught in. It would be
different if she didn’t know Noah was already thinking of using Robert
Davenport, or at least the idea of him, in his new book. If she didn’t tell
Noah about her secret orders, she’d feel like she was betraying him. She
couldn’t be sure where their relationship was headed but starting off spying on
him didn’t seem to lay a good foundation for the future.

On the other hand, if she told him about it and he purposely
avoided a particularly good plot idea to make things easier on her, she’d be
guilty of interfering with his creative process. Also not a great beginning.

If that wasn’t complicated enough, she and Cory had been
close for some time and she loved working for her agency. Davenport made up
most of Cory’s business. If they pulled out, the firm’s reputation would be
severely damaged and it could take her friend a very long time to recover, if
at all.

During the short elevator ride, she made the decision not to
do anything for a few days. After all, she had a week before having to report
to Miss Davenport again. Meanwhile she would not tell Noah about the warning.
She would not tell Cory about the threat. And finally she would not ruin the
time she had with Noah by fretting over the day when she would have to say
something to someone.

Before entering the suite, she brought back the memory of
the last minutes she and Noah had spent together. That’s all it took to shake
off her worries and put on a bright smile.

“Hi—” That was all she got out before he gestured for her
not to talk for a second but come closer. She walked over to the dining room
table, which he had apparently chosen over working at the smaller, more formal
desk. He was reading something on his laptop screen, papers were spewing out of
the printer and books, magazines and printouts of articles covered every inch
of the table. He clicked the print icon and turned to her with a delighted
expression.

Without a word he shifted his chair, sat her down on his lap
and planted a firm kiss on her mouth.

“I take it you’ve had a good time while I was out working,”
she said teasingly.

Rather than respond, he nuzzled her neck while fondling her
breast.

Ribbons of pleasure unfurled from each spot he touched. The
silken strands slithered along her nerves and settled in her core. In mere
seconds, her pussy awoke, more than ready to play. “Um, I’m a little confused.
Am I still under orders to keep you focused on work or—”

He cut her off with a full-mouth, tongue-twisting kiss that
took her breath away. “I missed you,” he murmured as he pushed the strap of her
sundress off her shoulder. He lifted the breast out of its cup and kneaded it
to arousal while his mouth continued its exploration of her neck and shoulder.
In between caresses, he whispered, “I missed your skin…your breasts…” He
quickly repositioned her so she was straddling his lap and so he could unzip
her dress and bare her other breast. Cupping both mounds, he lifted them and
buried his face between, licking and kissing the soft flesh then suckling the
peaks.

Maggie felt herself melting into a pool of desire. It would
be so easy to just let him service her again but a whisper of guilt demanded
she treat him to a gift instead. She slipped her hands between their bodies,
unbuttoned his jeans and lowered his zipper a few notches, but the head of his
penis was all she could touch. It was fully extended and damp at the tip but
she wanted access to every sexy inch. Despite how pleasurable his mouth felt on
her breasts, she stood and tugged his pants and shorts down to his ankles
without letting him rise. She was in charge this time.

She bent down between his knees and closed one hand tightly
around his erection. The other hand was more gentle as she cupped his balls.
She felt his heat warm her fingers and flow into her body. At the same time as
her lips enveloped the head of his cock her fingers strummed the sensitive sac
at the base, gradually squeezing past to apply pressure to the nerve center
just beyond. He jerked the first time she did it then shifted on the seat so
she could do it again more easily.

But she made him wait for the replay until she slid her
mouth down his cock, wetting the length of him with her tongue and making him
feel her teeth on the return glide. Down, hold, up, scrape. Again. And again.
With the next upward stroke, she sucked hard and pressed her fingers harder
against the little nerve bundle she’d found.

His groan came from deep in his chest and let her know how
much he liked what she was doing. And she let him know how much she liked doing
it by repeating the move over and over until his whole body was tense and the
grip he had on her shoulders was like a vise. She began raising and lowering the
hand on his penis along with the rhythmic movement of her mouth and tilted her
head so that he was bumping the back of her throat.

She wanted nothing more than to give him an experience he
would not easily forget. Little by little, she picked up the pace of her
strokes. As she quickened the motion she sucked more aggressively until he was
growling through clenched teeth.

“I’m—” He tried to warn her but she tightened, pressed and
sucked all at once and he came with a force that could not be held back.

And she savored every last drop.

As he gasped for breath she sat sideways on his lap again,
took a few swallows out of his water bottle then gave him a soft kiss. “You
were saying something about missing me?”

He grinned. “I’d tweak your nose for that but I can’t lift
my arms.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” She gave him another peck
on the mouth. “I missed you too.”

“Really? I couldn’t tell.” He took a breath and wrapped his
arms around her. “To borrow the expression of a great wordsmith…you are
something else, Maggie Harrison. So, are you all mine for the rest of the day?”

How about for the rest of my life?
“Yep. And now I’m
ready to find out what you learned while I was gone.”

He traced the line of her jaw and trailed his fingers down
to her nipple. “I’m thinking that could wait just a little longer…”

She caught his fingers and brought them to her lips for a
kiss. “As tempting as that is, I think it’s time for one of us to invoke the
work rule.” She got off his lap and put her sundress back in place. Glancing at
his rapidly softening sex, she asked, “Do you need help putting your toys
away?”

“You’re getting awfully bossy for someone who’s supposed to
be working for me,” he said with a pout as he stood and redressed.

She shrugged and sat down in a chair on the opposite side of
the table. “Do you want to fill me in or give me a task?” He tried to look
disappointed but she could tell he was actually pleased with her interest.

He decided to save a review for after he’d covered more
ground and instead showed her how to download the morning’s recording and
perform edits. Since she needed to be on his computer to do that, he turned to
the book she had brought with her.

The next several hours passed in relative silence, other
than Maggie’s typing and Noah’s scribbling on Post-It notes and attaching them
to various pages. By twilight she had finished cleaning up the recording and he
had finished perusing a stack of material including her book.

“Hungry yet?” he asked.

“Starved. But if you want to keep working I’d be good with
room service.”

“I had something a little different in mind.” He went into
his bedroom, made a phone call that she couldn’t quite hear and returned. “All
set. And don’t ask. It’s a surprise. But there is a dress code—a bathing suit,
flip-flops and that robe you had on this morning.”

“Do I have time for a shower?” she asked hopefully.

His expression went from sly to pained. “Only if I don’t
join you. Go on. They’ll wait for us.”