Six Years Later, New York City.
Six years later, Clara Oswald returned to New York. These six years had been hell. When she woke up in the hotel room, she had been alone and the only evidence that John was ever there was a note he had left that said: 'Good luck in China. -Mr. Magic hands, tongue and dick.' She loved the cheekiness of it and often found herself masturbating to the memory of that night. She had been teaching in China for two years, then went back to England, taught for a year and the last three had been spent working for a men's fashion magazine as the secretary of the CEO, Stella. They were had opened another HQ in New York and since Stella was relocating, Clara left with her. She had been in NY for over six months and just now she received the terrible news that Stella had sold the company and was going to reinvent herself. She was nervous about who the new boss would be, nobody knew that. All they knew was that they owned another magazine, doing god knows what. What if they came with their whole crew and Clara would be out of a job? She was in hysterics. They got told that the new boss would be coming back today so Clara looked down at herself as she stood by her desk and fixed her black pencil skirt in place, rolled the sleeves of her white button up shirt and focused on the little bit of work that was left from Stella because just one more magazine would go out under her charge as CEO.
John Smith had finally done it. He had help, of course, which he credited to his friends and older sibling, Donna. He had started up a business with Donna, a magazine that had become so popular John found it hard to dodge paparazzi. And now he was about to take over the biggest men's fashion magazine in all of NYC. John cleared his throat and stood in the elevator, arms folded against his much bigger chest. This was his building now, he had bought it. At fifty six, he was doing pretty well for himself. John wore a grey suit and a black tie, fitted perfectly on every part of his body. Although his trousers were a little too tight. He was clean shaved, had a few more wrinkles and his hair was shaved at the sides and a mess on top, he never bothered to gel it anymore. It just reminded him of Clara Oswald, the beautiful young woman he had met and fucked like he never had before, he was even impressed with himself. He had ditched his glasses for contacts and had somehow grown a little taller, either that or it was the shoes he was wearing. John looked up as the elevator dinged and the whole floor welcomed him, cheering and shouting 'Welcome, Mr Smith!'
Clara was with the others on the top floor, where Stella's office -scratch that, the new boss' office was, cheering for him. She had to put up a good front and good natured attitude if she wanted to conserve her job. At the last minute, she learned that it was a pretty successful man that came out of the blue, for her at least. She also learned that his name was Mr. Smith. Nobody knew his first name except Stella. They didn't ask either. She was in the front, welcoming him and her breath got stuck in her throat. She had a sense of deja vú, that she had seen him somewhere, but she ignored that feeling, convinced that she had never had set eyes on that gorgeous silver fox before. She just ate him with her eyes and bit her lip.
Holly, her roommate and co-worker nudged her with her elbow and whispered. "Quit staring and imagining him naked!" Holly knew that Clara had developed a taste for older men, she practically devoured all the good looking ones with a stare.
"Sorry." She whispered back as the applause died down.
John walked around the room, shaking his employee's hands. He jumped up the two steps that led to his new office and raised his arms, "Good afternoon everyone," he spoke loudly and with confidence, walking around the platform as he ran a hand through his hair. His Scottish accent had calmed down, a few of his words sounded American. He motioned for everybody to sit down at their desks and raised his head high, his blue eyes staring into the crowd until he saw her. It was her, Clara. Clara Oswald. He coughed and looked down, his hands in his pockets as he paced the platform. She worked here? He remembered bits of their night together, but she looked so different, so incredibly grown up.
To Clara, he sounded a bit American but the Scottish accent was not gone. It was clearly him. Now she remembered that he had told her that he would try to make his own magazine and dammit, he did it. He must be filthy rich now, which was something she didn't mind at all. She wanted him for him but he was her boss now and that was just unethical. She would just pretend that she didn't know him and go about her life because she didn't want any trouble. She didn't want to be known as the woman who slept with her boss. But it had been a long time, maybe he had a girlfriend or something. The thought made her feel a bit upset. Since that night, her relationship with men had been fleeting. They never gave her that feeling of passion, tenderness, wildness and security that John gave her that night so she just kept looking. She moved her head to the side to look at Holly, she was sitting on a desk behind John and she didn't notice him glance at her. He had been confident a few minutes ago but now he seemed hesitant. She looked at him anxiously, trying to let him know with a look that he could relax. She would not tell anything about them. His career was not going to be damaged by such a scandal. Because she was sure that the media would have a field day if they found out.
John could not take his eyes off of her. Clara Oswald had grown in beauty and grace, she- shit. She was his secretary. He shook his head, trying his best to smile. Oh, how he regretted not leaving his number. There was no other woman after Clara that made him feel the way she did that one night, nobody close to as beautiful as she was, inside and out. He cleared his throat again and stood up straight, arms folded over his chest, "My name is John Smith and I am your new CEO of this magazine. I have my own magazine, I'm sure many of you know it… I hope you all work beautifully for me and I will pay you back in so many ways…" He rubbed his hands together, glancing at Clara as he said the last part and then stared ahead at the rest of the crowd.
"Please, carry on with what you were doing. I want all of your drafts by the end of the day..."
Her breath hitched slightly, cheeks reddening as he made eye contact while he said that. He remembered and she wasn't sure what just happened but she was sure he flirted subtly with her. Damn him! There went her resolution. She'd have to quit if it escalated further and she didn't wanted to quit. She loved this job. She hit send to a few emails and stood, grabbing an IPad, which he would need for work since it had all the appointments he had so far, important phone numbers, etc. She walked confidently towards him, her stiletto heels clicking softly on the floor as she walked towards him.
"Mr John Smith, nice to meet you." She shook his hand, feeling electricity run up her hand and dropped it quickly. "I'm Clara Oswald, I'll be your new secretary, will you please follow me to your new office?" She asked, nodding to his office. Stella had made it on the end of the room, on the left. It was all crystal and you could see outside and inside. Stella had said that she wanted to seem accessible. There were blinders all over the room, so Stella just rolled them out so nobody could see inside when she was busy or pissed off.
John shook Clara's hand, his breath hitched in his throat. He smirked at her, looking her up and down before he followed his new secretary to his office, "Nice to meet you too, Clara Oswald..." He smirked, clear sarcasm and sass dripping from his voice. She knew who he was. John walked in after Clara, looking around the office, "This is nice..." He told her, taking the IPad from her hands as he looked through all his contacts through his emails.
"It is." She said and walked around to the desk. "I'm just signing out of Stella's account." She said as she leaned over the desk, pressing the keys quickly and she looked up at him. "I'm sure you know how to set up an email account and how to synchronise it with your IPad, no? If not, I can help. You must also know how to make a password to your computer, make sure I know it as well." She had to sign out of many accounts, she noticed. Stella left everything open, making Clara groan slightly. That meant staying longer in the room with John.
John looked her up and down, his heart racing. He cleared his throat and looked down at his IPad, eyebrows crossed. "I know how to do all that, Miss Oswald. I am the CEO of billionaire business's..." He was offended to say the least; he knew what he was doing. He set his account up and linked his computer and laptop into one, sending a glare towards Clara. He couldn't be mad at her for too long, she was far too gorgeous.
She chuckled and checked that anything pertaining Stella was gone from the computer and glared at him, hands on her hips. "Just trying to be helpful, that's all." She walked over to him and stood by his side, her arm was close to him but she made a huge effort not to touch him again, either way, she swatted his hand away from the IPad and started writing a new email, addressed to her.
"Here you are going to write all your favourite foods, how you take your coffee, anything of relevance that you might want while you are working and send it to me. So if you are feeling rather monosyllabic you can just email me the word 'coffee' and I'll know how you take it." She snatched her hand back and looked up at him.
"Or you know, use the /old/ fashioned method. Stick your head out of the door and yell what you want."
John was completely stunned. How long was she going to keep this up for? He growled under his breath and snatched the iPad from her, typing out an email and sending it to all his employees. He rolled his eyes and turned to sit down at his desk, buttoning his grey jacket up. "Not travelling anymore?" He asked her, icy blue eyes staring into hers.
She was about to leave when he asked that question. She gulped and stared into his blue eyes. That sentence alone and coming from him, made her feel like a twenty old woman once again. She was twenty six now, she grew up. She wouldn't, she refused, to become nervous in his presence. "Well, I'm here, am I not?" She snapped at him but with no real bite.
She reluctantly released a sigh with a roll of her eyes. "Yes, I needed some sort of stability in my life and save some money if I want to retire to Hawaii when I'm sixty two." She shrugged.
"I see you made it big. Congratulations, really."
John placed the IPad down and stepped away from his desk, moving forward until he was face to face with Clara, "You are here, yes. Wasn't teaching your thing?" He asked her, completely calm as he shoved his hands into his trouser pockets. "Sounds like a good plan. Thank you, I intended to make it big, just like I told you on that night... Six years ago."
Him standing so close made her feel a bit numb. She hated herself for it. This new haircut and clean shaven look made her want to do things to him, a few more wrinkles had appeared but that was to be expected. His glasses were missing and upon further inspection, she could make out the contact lenses. A pity, really, because she loved those glasses. "I taught English for three years in China and a year in London… Coal Hill School. The students were a nightmare, though..." She chewed on her fingernails, a habit that she had quitted since she started taking a small dose of Xanax, it was good for her anxiety, and she might have to increase the dosage.
"I know...six years ago. You sure are a driven man."
John could feel Clara's breath on his mouth. His eyes drifted to her lips again and stayed there, not able to tear his eyes away. "I can only imagine... It sounds like you've done a lot in these years, are you married?"
"I..." She noticed that she was inching forward, wanting to kiss him and she took a few steps back, crossing her arms over her chest as she rested most of her weight on her leg. "No." She raised her left hand to show him that there was no ring. "Not married. What about you? I bet you are. Did your wife make you shave your..." She touched her cheeks briefly and pulled her hand down. "You know, beard?" She dreaded the answer. She really did and it was stupid. He was not hers and they just had been together one night but she felt as if he belonged to her.
John took his left hand out of his pocket, smiling at Clara, his typical lopsided smile. "Not married, no. Never again after my first wife…" He sighed and didn't move a muscle. He wasn't going to invade her personal space unless she wanted him too.
She smiled at him softly, showing a little bit of fondness for him. He might have given her just one night of good conversation and amazing sex but afterwards, she fantasized about a life with him. He was definitely husband material. "Not even dating anyone?"
John shoved his hands back into his pockets and shrugged his shoulders, "I haven't for a while, been too busy with running my business..." He trailed off, breaking their eye contact as he looked down at the floor. "Not since you."
"Aw, John." She walked towards him, her hand reaching out, unsure, and she patted his arm awkwardly. You go, Oswald, nice move. She pulled back, but stood closer now. "That night was one of the best nights of my life, so thank you for that. And um, you shouldn't deprive yourself of dating, really. Don't dedicate your life to your job only, yeah? Not healthy." She smiled at him, already turning for the door.
John raised his eyebrow at the awkward pat on his arm, staring at her hand like it had offended him. He smirked to himself. Damn woman had no idea. As she turned away from him, he grabbed her by the wrist and turned her around, his hands on her face as he pressed his lips to hers. It was a blur, it happened so very fast and her brain hadn't caught up with her but she couldn't mistake the sensation on her lips. He was kissing her! At first, she didn't respond, her mind at war with heart. She did a mental shrug and practically said 'fuck you, brain' as she brought her arms around his neck. She was actually taller than she really was so she didn't have to lean up too much to make kissing him comfortable. John gently pushed her back against the glass wall, kissing her with as much passion as he did that night. His hands roamed over the shirt Clara was wearing, he really hoped he had closed the blinds. The blinds were indeed closed, thank God, she had opened her eyes briefly to confirm that. One of her hands reached for his hair, but it was shaved on the back, she smiled into the kiss. It was a bit inconvenient but he had an unruly mop on top, so she decided to get hold of it and kissed him a bit more, letting his tongue glide inside her mouth for a bit until she pulled his head away from her roughly by his hair and kissed his chin sweetly.
"Mr. Smith, behave. I am your secretary."
John breathed heavily, already missing the taste of Clara's lips. "You kissed me back," he smirked to himself, staring down at her. "I'm your boss, Miss Oswald, you behave."
She released him and pushed him back a little then, crossed her arms over her chest, making her breasts stand out. "Fair enough, boss." She licked her lips then smirked at him. "But you started it."
His blue eyes looked Clara up and down, his heart racing. "You started it as soon as you walked in here..." He mumbled under his breath, not caring that he was staring at her breasts. Why be subtle?
"Eyes up here, boy." She said with her hands on her hips, a stern expression on her face, her brown eyes focused entirely on his face. "As much as I enjoyed that kiss -which was very good, I guess I sort of time-travelled...anyway, I'm getting side-tracked, as I was saying, that can't happen again for obvious reasons and much less here, John!" She whispered furiously.
John snapped his eyes up back to Clara's brown eyes, he grinned at her, a childish and cocky grin. "You don't want that to happen again?" He asked her, scratching his beard. He could still taste her on his lips and he wanted to taste her again. It took all his will power not to kiss her, he was pretty certain that was sexual harassment in the workplace. He stepped closer to her, a smirk on his face, "If you don't want anything to happen, Miss Oswald, I suggest you call me Mr Smith or Sir, will do just fine."
She bit her lip as she smiled at him, the insufferable man. Was he as insufferable six years ago? She didn't think so. "Oh, I bet me calling you 'sir' would get you off all night." She said looking pointedly at his bulge and then at his eyes. His pants were a bit too tight and damn him, it made his legs look great. "Fine then, Mr. Smith. Putting my secretary mask back on, is there anything -work related, that you need?" She said as she fixed her skirt, and then brushed invisible lint from his suit.
John raised his eyebrow, tilting his head at her, a smirk on his lips once Clara glanced down at his bulge. These trousers were insanely tight. His eyes drifted from her eyes and to her lips, "I think you'd much prefer to call me 'daddy'..." He winked at her and watched as she brushed at his suit, "Not for the moment, Miss Oswald."
She nearly punched him in his rather aquiline nose because it was true, she'd rather call him 'daddy' all night long. "You are so damn insufferable." She styled his hair a little and walked towards the door, hips swaying slightly with each step she took, she opened the door and looked at him over her shoulder then said softly, "Remember to send me the email that I told you about... Daddy." she winked at him and left, closing the door quickly behind herself and running towards her desk and sitting down, heart pounding in her ears.
John felt his trousers tighten at the mention of Clara calling him 'daddy' and cleared his throat loudly, shoving his hands in his pockets. He watched her leave, smirked at the fact she had basically ran from him and he turned around to adjust himself. He sat down at his desk for another few hours before he emailed Clara all the information about himself and asked for his coffee.
She went to do some diligences when she received his email and smirked. He even had written from which place he liked his coffee and so she went with his driver to get it. Holly had been trying to talk to her and gave her odd looks throughout the day but Clara had ignored her and told her they would talk at home. She knocked on his door before opening it and walked inside, placing the cup in front of him along with some packets of sugar. He hadn't specified so instead of deducing if he drank it without sugar; she had taken as many little packets as she could. "There you go. I brought sugar as well. Wasn't sure if you just forgot to say if you liked it with that."
John raised his eyebrow, smirked up at Clara after he had finished typing on his computer and dumped three sugars into his coffee, taking a sip from it, "Good job, Oswald," he winked at her and looked up at her as he drank his coffee, just like he had drank coffee with her all those years ago.
"I do my best." She said as she took the remaining sugars and dumped them in the bin, only to find him looking at her like that. That look brought so many memories of the first time they made eye contact, when she introduced herself and he kissed her hand, when he looked at her while sipping his coffee...since in 30 minutes some employees had to go out for lunch, including herself, she sat on the chair in front of his desk, legs crossed. "You are doing this deliberately. What's your game?"
John placed his coffee down on the table and sat forward, arms on the table. "Not entirely sure what you mean, Miss Oswald..." He whispered, his blue eyes staring into hers.
She sighed and rested her arms on the arm chair, looking at him straight in the eyes. "First the kiss, then looking at me like that with those blue eyes..." She bit her lip, realising that maybe she was in the wrong. She began to stand up. "Forgive me, maybe I'm imagining things."
John sent her a lopsided smile and stood from his chair; he grabbed her wrist and made her stay with him. He stood up and stood in front of her, whispering into Clara's ear, "The only thing I hope you imagine is me screwing you on my desk from behind..."