Matt made it to the office the next morning after running 10 miles down the beach where the tide licked up the shore. That's what sexual frustration did to him and he had laid up half the night wishing that he hadn't let C.J. walk away from him. He still didn't get what had set her off but he wanted to find out. He had gone home and instead of spending the night in between the sheets with her doing every wicked thing that came to mind, he had tried to get to sleep, restless and smelling just a hint of her perfume on the pillow.
He had to find a way to figure out what to say to her, to get her back to where she at least would listen to him. The rest would soon follow after he convinced her that he hadn't meant anything by asking her to share a baby with him except that she had been the most logical choice.
But as he got out of his car and headed to the elevator in the garage, he frowned to himself. Wait a minute, wasn't it his adherence to logic and reason in relation to procreation that had gotten him in her doghouse? No, he had to look for something else, something more related to the feelings that he had elicited in her and she in him when they'd been frolicking together, making love as if it were all that mattered. The elevator opened and Maureen looked up at him.
"Any messages," he asked.
She handed him a stack.
"There's probably even more on your voicemail," she said, "Everyone's asking about the new security software."
That didn't surprise him at all. The publicity campaign for it had just started. Since Darla had been benched from her campaign to find him a baby mama, he had assigned her the task of launching his campaign on his new product to keep her busy and happy. She definitely appeared up to the task if the early response was any indication.
"Is C.J. here?"
Maureen looked up at him, a shade too innocently.
"Oh no…she's meeting with the lawyer on that other project," she said, "She'll be back later."
Matt nodded, knowing that as upset as she might be with him, she'd never let her feelings interfere with their business or her work. They were both ultimately professionals and they would get through this complication. Hopefully sooner rather than later because he missed her.
"She'll be happy to know her body paints and nipple jewelry arrived…"
Matt's brows rose.
"What was that?"
Maureen smiled at him then knowing exactly what she was doing.
"She ordered some but that clearly was before her man ticked her off."
Matt folded his arms.
"What do you mean by that?"
Maureen shrugged.
"Oh no one told me anything. No one does has to in this office because I know everyone's business…"
"Maureen…"
She sighed.
"Matt, it is my business to know if I'm to keep this place running smoothly and in relative harmony."
Matt just shook his head at her.
"So what do you think I should do then?"
She leaned forward.
"You need to forget that she's your business partner, and look at her as the woman underneath that business suits."
He smiled to himself because he knew what she looked like underneath her clothes, the most beautiful, sexiest woman he had ever known. Unwrapping her that first time had been like receiving the most amazing present and every time since left him feeling warm inside, and sent his blood sizzling.
"I think I know that."
"Well then act like it," Maureen said, "Treat her like she's your lover and not your partner…just take that rational side of yours and park it."
"Maureen I really don't think…"
"No you don't Matt…and you know what, if were me you were treating like this, I'd take some rope, soft fibered of course, and I'd tie you up…and…well for such a brilliant businessman you can just be so dense."
Matt frowned.
"You'd tie me up?"
Maureen nodded.
"Oh I'd lasso you first…then truss you up like you need because you just need to drop this business attitude of yours because it just doesn't belong in the bedroom."
Matt wondered if Maureen had given C.J. any ideas but really his secretary was all wrong about him. He had dated and slept with many women and none of them had ever complained. In fact, the opposite, that he had given them pleasurable interludes.
"I'd better get to work in my office but Maureen, what's going on between C.J. and me is between us not the office."
Maureen nodded.
"True….until it becomes known by the entire office…then all bets are off."
His brows rose again.
"What?"
"You heard me Matt," she said, "You don't settle what's wrong between the two of you, and then we'll do it."
He just looked at her and she smiled back at him.
"I have a whole catalog at my disposal," she said, "of over 500 sexual aids to get the job done."
He didn't doubt that and he realized that she could either be a formidable ally or his adversary and it was up to him.
"Okay we'll keep that in mind," he said, "Thanks for the heads up but I've got to get to work on that new prototype."
But she'd already returned to sorting through her files so he headed to his office, shaking his head. Had the world around him gone suddenly crazy?
He stopped at the wet bar to pour himself a Scotch before settling down to work.
C.J. had been at meetings most of the day and by the time she hit the office, Matt had been holed up in his office in a phone conference according to Maureen. She had gone to her office and found a discreet black bag on her desk. Peering inside it, she saw the body paints…tequila and strawberry flavored and some nipple and belly chains that she had planned to wear for…never mind. She had tossed and turned most of the night and then had gone to kickboxing class looking to spar with someone to exhaust all her energy and stored up libido. Her instructor had taken one look at her and had sentenced her to bag work. So she had done front kicks, sidekicks, roundhouses and a lot of jabs and upper cuts until she nearly collapsed drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. She could think of more enjoyable activities to leave her in that state…but no, since she'd walked out on Matt, that hadn't been an option.
She showered in cold water and then dressed to head to a meeting she had on a legal case. It had been a slow work day and when afternoon arrived, she took off telling Maureen she was out for the day…and thanking her for filling her order.
Maureen just nodded and told her to have a nice evening. C.J. planned to do that with her friends at the Vibe. So she went home and dressed up in her black sleeveless top that hugged her figure so tightly that it energized her and the black jeans that went with it…she looked great in them. Some boots and she was ready to go, dressed in black down to her lingerie. Even if she didn't intend to go there to pick up a guy to take home, she definitely wanted to look the part. She'd flirt and she'd dance and kick up her heels having a good time to forget about him for a while.
The club looked packed when she arrived and she found Sonia who waved her on over to the bar where she stood with Randy.
"You decided to show up after all," Sonia said, with a smile.
C.J. shrugged ordering a margarita.
"I decided to have some fun," she said, "and I intend to do that."
Sonia shot her a look.
"Hey I'm not going to take some guy home," C.J. said, "I just want to do some dancing…burn off some steam."
Randy smiled at her.
"Tough day at work?"
"I just need to do some relaxing," C.J. said, "and don't worry now that we've caught up, you won't even know I'm here."
Sonia looked at Randy and then back at C.J..
"Oh…you're not interrupting anything," she said, "Randy and I are just friendly right Randy?"
The smile he showed convinced C.J. otherwise so she said she'd see them later and went to find a dance partner.
Matt picked up the phone. One of his clients had told him he'd call him to discuss a new business deal so he'd stayed late working on some files in the meantime. He'd worked hard but couldn't get his mind off of C.J.. She just had this way of appearing in front of his line of vision, wearing something soft and revealing, her body lush and her eyes sparkling. Damn his pants tightened just at the thought of what he wanted to do with her, not from not from being apart. But she had to cool off and there's not much to indicate that she'd done that yet.
His fingers itched to touch her, his mouth wanted to taste hers again. Okay, he'd work a couple more hours and if this guy called him great, but he'd have to find a way to deal with his inability to think about anything else but her in his bed. Her lithe and luscious body entangled in his own.
The phone rang then.
"Hi…Prescott is that you?"
The line remained silent.
"You're calling about the security software," he said, "Dennis told me you were interested."
He heard someone take a deep breath and exhale it.
"I'm not Prescott…."
"Okay then who are you?"
"I'm no one you need to know."
That puzzled Matt, maybe this was some people's idea of a joke or something. But he had been working hard all day and he had a raging hard on right now so his sense of humor was at a minimum.
"Okay listen if this is a joke…"
"No joke…"
"Then why are you calling," Matt said, "Who are you?"
A pause in answer and Matt almost just hung up on the faceless caller.
"If I can't have her, neither can you…."
Click, and the phone call ended, leaving Matt looking at his phone in response. What the….and then he knew.
He reached for his phone to call her, to let her know she was in danger.
C.J. felt herself grow warm after several dances and decided she needed to go outside to get a breath of fresh air. So she told Sonia who had gone a couple slow rounds on the dance floor with Randy.
Sonia looked concerned.
"You okay?"
C.J. nodded, not wanting to explain that she just needed a couple moments to clear her mind because during her dances, she had been seeing someone not her partner. Her last conversation with Matt and the silence between them since distracted her.
"I'll just be a few moments…"
"Okay be careful…"
C.J. touched Sonia on the arm and threaded herself through the crowd of people and walked to the back doorway into an alley.
Not knowing that a man followed her. A man who had waited all night, no longer than that for this moment…but his footfalls were quiet and her mind, elsewhere. The cooler air struck her face and she pulled her hair out of her face and released it to spill around her face. She took some deep breaths as she stood in the alley looking out into the darkness broken by the halos of several street lights.
And then she heard the footsteps.
"I thought I'd find you here."
The words seemed innocuous at first until her memory latched onto the sound of the voice. She turned around to face the man and her eyes widened as she saw the man who had been bothering her standing there looking at her, his eyes intense.
Then she saw that he held a gun in his hand pointed at her.
"Goodbye C.J.…"
And just like that before she could respond, he fired his gun shooting her pointblank. After she collapsed on the pavement, he looked at her a moment then walked back into the club as if he'd never left it.
C.J. felt her life threatening to slip away with her blood and her mind tingled with conflicting thoughts.
One so sharp it honed like a knife.
Matt…..