“I need some lunch, let’s go out,” he said, suddenly needing to get out of the offices for a while.
“I will eat in,” she said, completely shutting him down. He didn’t like to be refused, which she was better off learning now.
“It will be a business lunch so you’ll accompany me,” he demanded. He grabbed his jacket and walked to the door, holding it open for her to exit. If looks could kill, he would’ve been melted right on the spot.
She jerkily got up and followed him out. He could practically see the steam rising from her ears. He was amused by her attitude and surprised by that amusement. He wasn’t used to being so openly disobeyed but he liked that she was unafraid to challenge him.
He drove them to a diner he enjoyed several times a week. The staff knew him well and led them to a private table in the back of the restaurant. He liked the place for its privacy when he needed to talk to a client, or take a date out. He used it for many different purposes. He was a person that didn’t mess with a good thing once he found it.
Jasmine narrowed her eyes further as she looked around at the intimate restaurant. It was the middle of the afternoon and there were candles burning on the tables. She glared some more at his back as she followed him to the table in the corner.
If he really thought he was going to try to seduce her, he had another thing coming. The hostess sat them down and then asked what they would like to drink. He ordered an iced tea. Normally Jasmine didn’t drink alcohol, especially in the middle of her work day but she had the feeling she was going to need a glass, if she was going to make it through the rest of the day without snapping at him.
“I’ll take a glass of red wine,” she said with a smile. He raised his brows at her but didn’t say anything. She was testing her limits. Let’s see if he’d fire her for having a glass of wine at a lunch he’d forced her to accompany him on.
Their appetizers came out and Jasmine found she was starving. The food was excellent and it disappeared quickly. Derek chuckled as she looked at his plate. She always had enjoyed good foods, good wine and great sex. His groin tightened once again.
The rest of their meal came out and they ate comfortably. She let her defenses down and chatted with him as the wine loosened her tongue and the food sated her stomach.
She excused herself to go to the restroom and was adjusting her hair when Amy approached her from behind. The woman didn’t look happy at all.
“I see you’re getting very cozy with the boss,” the woman snarled. Jasmine had no idea she’d been fired. She just now realized she hadn’t seen her in the offices all morning.
“It’s a business lunch, not that it’s any of your business,” Jasmine said and then made to go around her.
“It looked a lot cozier than a business lunch. I wouldn’t get too comfortable with him if I were you. He likes to add notches to his bed post but he gets bored quickly and then tosses you out even faster,” Amy said with anger.
Jasmine stared at her as she realized what the woman was saying. She was one of his cast offs. She was horrified to have her thoughts turned into reality.
“I see the light is dawning. Yes, we’ve been intimate a long time. I’m actually expecting him to propose marriage at any moment but it seems he wants to sow some more oats before settling down,” Amy said with a smug look on her face.
“How could you want to be with a man who won’t be faithful to you?” Amy asked.
“He can have his flings now, because once he puts that ring on my finger, he will be mine and will no longer have any desire to find whores,” she said as if she really didn’t care and then looked at Jasmine, implying she was one of those whores. She walked out of the bathroom, leaving Jasmine staring after her.
Jasmine took a few more minutes, before finally walking back to the table. Derek was looking at her with curiosity. She realized she’d been gone for a while. She didn’t say anything to him, she just gathered her jacket and started heading for the door. She didn’t offer to cover her portion of lunch. He’d insisted she come with him, so he could pay for the overpriced meal.
Derek paid for their lunch and then met her out at the front curb. He couldn’t figure out what had changed from the time she’d left the table, to the time she came back from the bathroom. She’d been starting to relax around him before she’d left.
He was actually glad she was back on guard. It was too easy to forget who she was when she was being charming.
They rode silently back to the office and the elevator was filled with tension as the numbers slowly crawled up to the top floor. He heard her actually let out a sigh of relief when the doors opened. She jumped out like the hounds of hell were after her. He enjoyed the sway of her hips as he followed her along the hallway to his office.
The room was unusually warm and his mouth started watering when she slipped her jacket off, revealing a silky tank style blouse. It dipped in the front, to show a small amount of cle**age, increasing his desire to see more. It hugged her generous curves and showed her small waist off to perfection. Without the suit jacket on, he could see the curve of her hips, which the skirt enhanced. She’d grown curvier with age and now had a woman’s body, instead of the slim figure of a teenager.
His mouth went dry, as he fought not to grab ahold of her and feel how those curves fit within his hands. Her br**sts used to fit perfectly in his hands. He could tell now they would spill out of his palms. His pants were once again far too tight. He quickly sat down, so she wouldn’t see his reaction to her.
She picked up another file, getting right back to work. “I need a break from looking at those folders. Let’s go ahead and do some interviews,” he told her. “Move over here to my desk and grab a notebook. I want you to jot some things down. We will start with your good friend, Henry,” he said with a grimace. He wanted to interview the man and then throw him out on his butt.
“That’s fine with me, after all, you’re the boss,” she said with a bit too much sugar dripping from her tone. He narrowed his eyes as he looked her over. He didn’t like being mocked; he was really tempted to show her a lesson or two about messing with him.
He called Henry and told him to report to the office immediately. Jasmine glared at him as he hung up. “You really don’t have to be so rude all of the time,” she mumbled. He let it go because there was a knock at the door. The man was quick, maybe because he wasn’t doing any work.