Riley’s tongue peeks out sliding over her top lip briefly as she watches me. We are both startled by the thump of the canvas as it slips from her grip.
It’s satisfying to know she feels the heat simmering between us, and it affects her the same way.
“Since Martinez wants you to take the lead on their campaign, I can’t veto that, but I will say this Riley; no design is to be shown to them before it’s cleared by me first. Is that clear?” I try to dissipate the mood with authority, but Riley’s eyes shine with mischief, arousing me even more.
“Yes, sir.” She nods.
My cock springs to attention at her words. Sir. How was I going to be able to focus on her work when I can hardly concentrate on her words?
The phone rings on my desk, but ignore it, unable to break away from the exchange with Riley. I can’t decide whether I want to spank her or ravish her. I have a feeling I was going to walk a tightrope, hoping not to fall on either side.
I clear my throat, trying to calm my raging hormones. “From now on you'll report to me. Miss Weston will consult when I ask her to, but you work directly for me. I know you are excited about landing this campaign, but do you know what it entails?”
“I’ll do anything it takes, Branson. I want to make you proud of me,” Riley says devotedly. “I know you took a big chance on me today, I promise I won’t let you down.”
I can think of a number of things she could do right now that would make me proud, but I shove that to the back of my mind.
“It will involve long hours, designs on short notice and most of all it will require all projects to meet the necessary time frames. Our contract with Martinez entails that if we don’t meet their deadlines, we don’t get paid. Will that be a problem?”
Riley shakes her head, still smiling. She is so eager; I wonder if she would be in bed as well? “No, sir.”
“Branson,” I remind her. “If you have a boyfriend I suggest you make it clear to him that the Martinez campaign is your first priority for the next month.”
“I don’t have a boyfriend.” Riley grins. “The Martinez campaign and I are now dating. I will make sure it gets all the necessary attention it requires.”
Did I just ask an employee if she was romantically involved? I cringe inwardly at the thought. If Lisa finds out about my sudden infatuation with Riley Harper, she will find a reason to fire her on the spot.
Lisa and I casually saw each other over the past year. Even though I broke it off a few months ago, Lisa still becomes very protective if I looked at someone else. Her jealousy is what drove us apart. In the beginning, Lisa was fun, smart, and sexy, then I got to know her. She has a heart of stone and doesn’t mind using sex as a weapon. Our short-lived relationship was hounded by Lisa’s games. A gift or a compliment would result in sex as a reward and a reprimand at work would result in the cold shoulder for weeks. After a while, I got tired of her games and broke it off. Her jealousy is nothing short of a burden. I firmly believe that once she finds another man to play her games, she’ll forget about our brief affair. However, she hasn’t found anyone yet. If Lisa weren’t an excellent Creative Director, I would have fired her long ago, but I will not let my company be affected by my libido and bad personal choices.
I need to keep that in mind as I work closely with Riley. Judging by the stirring in my pants she has just become my libido’s new favorite obsession.
“I’m glad to hear that. You can go back to your desk now, but if I were you, I’d avoid Miss Weston for the rest of the day. She doesn’t take it well when proven wrong.”
“I didn’t do it intentionally,” Riley says defensively.
I raise my brows giving her a doubtful glance. “And yet you did it anyway. Congrats again. And Riley keep in mind I don’t take well to be proven wrong either, so I suggest you continue to prove why I didn’t fire you yesterday.”
Riley nods while her big green-eyes watch me and I notice a hint of a smile. She picks the canvas up from my office floor, giving me a glimpse of her cleavage. As I’m watching her, she suddenly looks up with a question in her eyes. “Why didn’t you?”
“Why didn’t I what?” I ask confused.
“Why didn’t you just fire me yesterday? I thought that was why Miss Weston sent me to you?”
Her question catches me off guard. I haven’t yet figured out the answer to that question myself. “Because you convinced me not to, but don’t think I’ll be as easily convinced next time.”
“I’ll just have to bring it to the next level next time,” Riley says with a sexy grin over her shoulder as she walks out of my office. The scent of wildflowers lingers in her absence.
I have a feeling she can be very convincing when she wants to be. The question is: how convincing will I be to get her into my bed?
4
Riley
“You’ve been moved.” Lisa’s cool voice stops me as soon as I step off the elevator the following morning.
“Good morning, Miss Weston,” I greet her with a smile, but I can feel the anger radiating off her. I avoided her the entire day yesterday, and it seems she still hasn’t cooled off. “What do you mean I’ve been moved?”
“I mean,” she says narrowing her eyes into thin slits as she assesses my outfit. “That you no longer work on this floor. I refuse to work with arrogance and pompousness. You have been moved to the 35th floor where Mr. Carter can keep an eye on you himself.” My eyes widen at the revelation. Luckily I know she couldn’t find fault with my tailored black dress. I had put a considerable dent in my credit card balance last night trying to avoid her apparent disapproval of my wardrobe.