A/N: After weeks of editing and writing, chapter 8. It was going to be much shorter, and much different... So now this chapter is in two parts and part of its original idea is in chapter 10 as well. I think I'm just so in love with these two, I have to branch it out more. I also wanted to address something, I've gotten lots of questions on their backstory. I want to tell you all why- but for now all I will say, there is a reason why there is the lack of a full story. It's coming though. I might have even given a bit in this chappie...

I will try to update again soon, I'm taking care of puppies now (who happen to be teething like crazy now), catching up on projects once again, and the members of the band I was in got back together much sooner than we all thought we would. But, chapters are in progress along with thousands of ideas.

Don't be afraid to review, comment, message me, etc! I love hearing from you guys and want to know what you all are thinking!

Anyways, have a good day, dears! Love you all!

-PW0

Chapter 8: The Office Terror

The week between their next date seemed to stretch onto forever for both of them, both wanting to know the other's big secret. She his feelings and he, her name. A powerful thing, he once told her. She wanted to see him break, give in to telling her, so she decided to become his little 'Office Terror', and so she did.

She had attempted her start on that Monday, trying to spend the day in his office to butter it out of him but thanks to the world, her plans were completely fouled. That was nothing new. And thanks to him, most of the time he was around she had completely forgot about her devious idea. Her office visits were only to bug him. She was simply bored. Because she would never admit that while sober, that she enjoyed Adam Gold's time, or the way that he touched her, the way he kissed her cheek, or the way he seemed so alluring when he slammed his fist on the desk during their little charade... Nor the feeling of him pressed up against her in the break-room; arms caressing both of her sides as they stretched out to reach the counter, the firmness of his chest that was pressed against her back while his hips...-she was rather sure he didn't know himself, how his own body was acting against her but she certainly was- she could feel him through his trousers, a slight hardness pressed against the curve of her ass. There was times he wouldn't dare do that even when they were dating or had he changed that much? No, it didn't turn her on at all. Then why was she so hot and bothered?

Tuesday hadn't gone well either, since sweet little Belle hadn't gotten it out of him yet, so maybe the tough hided, sassy Lacey had to take another shot at Adam Gold that day. So she went at him just the way Lacey French knew how.

She caught him in the building just shy of four in the morning, the New York sky still navy blue and still dusted with unseen stars due to its light pollution. The room was dark, the only source of light coming from a small antique desk lamp that highlighted both his work and face- maybe even what was a possible glass of whiskey, if she knew him.

"Still ever so the workaholic, eh?" A sultry voice spoke from the doorway, mixed with amusement. It was when Adam Gold looked up he felt everything happen; the world crash around them both, the rest of the air leaving his lungs as words and responses automatically fled from his brain, stubbled jaw grow slack, and the sudden, harsh tightness in his trousers that was accompanied by a shiver down his spine. All in the matter of sheer seconds. They were the only to left in the building and she was wearing, well, that. In the dark. Oh my.

The clothing she was wearing might as well be off, for it hugged her like a second skin, it was a blue dress with mesh cut outs and half-sleeves. The cut out starting between her breasts and wrapping around her side, to above the other hip ending about six inches below the start of it all. It showed off the curve of her breasts and there he saw the lack of a bra. Oh, he was a dead man. It showed off a body whose touch he could never forget, whether it be the slightest brush of a hand by accident or feeling a hot and sweaty, gorgeous flesh under his, delicious legs wrapped around his waist in ecstasy as he absolutely debauched her on any surface in their reach- no, any of those touches of hers would last for thousands of lifetimes, she was just that type of woman. And that was quite the wonderful fantasy.

Oh, he really shouldn't be thinking that. The straining below his waist was getting rather torturous and while they could easily get away with any naughty actions right now, and be loud as their hearts contented- why would she want his filthy hands on her anyways? She had turned into a rather amazing young woman. Meanwhile, not only had he aged- his greying hairs now much more prominent- but he was nothing but a monster, he was surely no Prince Charming. None deserving of his own Snow White.

No, he would never get his 'True Love's Kiss' and if he had, well, he had already lost it.

And now he was itching for the burn of another shot of his whiskey. Anything to distract him from his poisonous thoughts.

It felt like an eternity to Adam before he felt the intelligence came back to him to speak rather than stare at her like a dead fish, "I-" He cleared his throat, attempting to keep calm. At the moment the idea of her finding out he was strutting an erection at full mass was almost as horrifying as that damned obsessive Zelena -Ah right, that was her name...oops..- somehow finding him in such a way. He did not want to think about that woman. "I just simply like coming in early so I can get out of here sooner, Miss French." The name rolled out in his Scottish brogue.

She had the audacity to scoff and roll her eyes at him, crossing her arms as her eyes burned into him. "Please!" Her pitch went up. "You're here later than I am most nights!"

"Most." The man would play with her words.

"Okay, one; one night you have left earlier than I have. No wonder you always have a cane up your arse."

He seemed more baffled at her remark than angry. "E-excuse me?" His brows had furrowed, the lines on his forehead more prominent. He wasn't sure if he was more shocked by her remark, her forwardness, or the fact she was actually paying that much attention to him.

She looked at him with knowing eyes. As if she knew his whole story. He inwardly scoffed, as he listened to her spiel. "I highly doubt you're getting much more than a wink of sleep, you've been so pissy in the morning. The rest of the office is even more terrified of you recently, I hear.-"

"And just who is starting this conversation, dear?" He snapped out, pitch and volume rising placing his hands on the desk, half tempted to stand up before remembering his degrading situation. His desk did hit him at waist height but he was not chancing such a thing. So instead he sneered up at her, head tilted in curiosity for her answer, pupils dilated. "Not the way to be starting the morning, is it?"

She knew it applied to everything she said.

She unlaced her arms, a mini clutch purse in hand, letting let her hips silkily sway as she made her way over. She placed herself just like he had only the day before. He wanted to gulp, yet at the same time show no weakness to this…difficult…woman. It pissed him off. The way she was perched over the wood gave him way too much of a view than he was deserving of that he couldn't help but notice before his eyes met hers."You know if you tell me what I want to hear I'll finally be out of hair, Mr. Gold~" She offered in a purr, voice menacingly sweet almost yet sounding like an offer he couldn't refuse.

His arms angled up and his hands laced together, the pads of calloused fingers pressed up against their opposing partner below his chin. "And you'll tell me what I want to know, Lacey?" He asked coolly, trying out the name on this tongue. It had sent a shiver through her but she refused to let him have the pleasure of knowing he could still do that to her. She huffed at him and the betrayal of her own body. "That was never part of our deal, Gold." He only let out a chuckle and grinned up at her, canines bared in a wolf-like grin. "Call it the fine print if you will, dearie." With a flourish of a hand, him silently dismissing her from his office. Only that both knew she would never leave with something as crude as that. He could only hope. Meanwhile, she could only wish to temporarily kill him. Because she wanted to kill him again afterwards, of course. "You're a coward Adam." He could see the flames of pure Hell in her eyes as she stared coldly at him before stalking out, hands shaking in pure fury. He was almost afraid she was going to throw that purse at him. Although, his face was twisted in a thin-lipped smirk as he watched her leave, just to get her wound up. She reminded him of a pouty teenager who had not gotten her way, even though the other half of himself was completely shaking in a whirlwind of various emotions, too fucking many.

He should have known the woman wasn't finished with him. Stubborn as ever, she was.

It was now later into the day, a more reasonable time in the morning, he noted. Now starting to reach seven in the morning. There were still few in the building, the only sign of occupation but his own being the hallway lights that had flickered on not so long ago. After the sound of shoes clicking against the tile that had dragged his attention away from his work, he caught sight of her walking past his room. She was no longer wearing the seductive blue dress, but the outfit was in no way conservative either. In the brief seconds that he had seen her, he had caught the sight of a cobalt blue wrap crop top that showed parts of her toned stomach, sides, and swell of her breasts, accompanied by a short black pencil skirt that had lace going down in a stripe on the sides with what- he was guessing, her favorite blue suede heels.

She honestly didn't have to be dressed nicely to look beautiful. Not an ounce of makeup. Wear a trash bag for all he cared, she'd still look like a flawless model.

It was in no way, shape or form, safe to work with this woman. That for a fact, hadn't changed at all.

He supposed she had now calmed down, she didn't flick him off or tell him to go fuck himself as she passed but she hadn't acknowledged him either; so he supposed he was somewhat in the clear. He wouldn't dare bid her a good morning though. He was a coward, yes, and probably a pretty big idiot too- but he was not asking to have this grave dug for him just yet.

Not very long later he found her back in the break-room, tongue working at the task of licking yogurt off of a spoon, and eyes glued to a book. She may or may have not had been waiting for him for at least half an hour… He suspected she didn't know he was even the room- that was until she latched her eyes onto his as she continued tonguing the spoon clean, lips wrapping around it and leaving it with a soft and gentle pop leaving some of the residue on her rouge painted mouth, lips turning into a wicked little smirk afterwards. Well, fuck him.

She watched him, hearing what may have been an- almost - silent growl. His fingers made their way through greying locks as the other tightened around the golden handle of the cane, stepping more into the threshold. "Morning ." She said innocently, before her tone went darker "Or are you still the wretched asshole as usual?" Gold sighed, knowing very well that she was still defiantly pissed at him. Absolutely pissed. And she would make him regret that in any way possible.

"Well good morning to you too, darling." He sarcastically replied. A fake smile graced his lips before fading away only a second later. He walked around the table she was sitting and from behind her she heard the fridge door open. "But, I believe you were the one who riled me up." He mumbled as he looked through the bottom half of the fridge.

"What?" She snipped back.

"And I believe you heard me well enough." Both sets of eyes rolled at the other. She decided it was best to not reply. Not that she at all agreed with the bastard. She reminded herself that she did not want repeat of earlier this morning. An idea sparked.

"I may have been out of line..." She admitted slightly annoyed, she looked over her shoulder at him. He now had a small tupperware in his hand with some type of food. She bit her lip softly, knowing how much he loved it. "Join me?" She cooed, eyes hopeful. Adam looked around as if there would be a sign directing him to say 'yes' or 'no'. "Oh come on, I'm sure I can entertain you much more than boring paperwork and dreadful phone calls can..." She added playfully. This, he quirked an eyebrow at, suspiciously she supposed. She only smirked and turned back to her book, letting him decide for himself. After she listened to him heat his food, she saw the chair next to her be pulled out and a certain someone fill it out of the corner of her eye.

As he took a couple bites of his food, he let his eyes scan the page of the book she was reading. It only took him a few words to realize this was one her many romance novels. Or was it part of her dirty stash of pure smut?

'She crossed the room clad in only a lacy black bra and matching thong. His member twitching in response to the sight..."

He'll take it as smut. With maybe a smidge of actual romance...

'She threw her head back in ecstasy as two fingers filled her, thumb working at the special little bundle of nerves while the two others stroked her from the inside..."

Oddly enough, the situation seemed all too familiar. To boot, he was finding himself slightly jealous of book stealing her attention away from him once again, after all these years... Not that he didn't enjoy her reading. They often had hour long conversations on goodreads.

She realized from the corner of her eye that he was reading it as well. "Enjoying my book, Mr. Gold?" She teased after finishing the page. Watching his eyebrows tighten, and his face slightly heat up at being caught, she shook her head with a chuckle. "I'm not blind, and well, sometimes you're not always so sneaky, Adam..." Closing the book, she pointed it at him, playfully accusing. "I was simply curious, not dwelling into your... porn collection." He bantered back, eyeing the book momentarily.

Her head tilted slightly. "Would you believe me if I said I found this in your stash? ...Don't tell me you don't remember this..." The book was placed on the table, cover up. Adam studied the title and every inch of the book. "Oh."

Oh. That book. He cleared his throat roughly.

It was just as it sounded.

"Yeah." Belle said, breaking the silence as if reading his mind. "If I recall, it gave us quite the list of ideas..." It was said in a hot whisper against his ear, hand being suggestively placed on his shoulder.

Hearing that, Gold almost choked on his food, going into a coughing fit, Belle moving to pat his back. "Don't die on me yet, old man. I didn't mean to scare you that much..." She mumbled, half jokingly as she soothed his back with one hand. After a few moments of catching his breath, the man decided to open his big mouth. "Mm meanwhile, I was hoping for some mouth-to-mouth resuscitation."

She caught his smug-ass grin and rolled her eyes at him, hand patting him just a bit harsher this time, causing him to wince. "In your dreams, babe." Chuckling, he found the guts to say- but in a joking tone. "You've been in 'em, dear." What the hell would she say if he had- but she interrupted his thoughts. "Mm I bet... and I bet you read Playboy for the articles..." They both laughed, even if he hadn't been necessarily joking with her…

Eventually, Belle had pulled out a small box from a local bakery and she couldn't help but notice just how much Adam seemed to perk up at the idea. Giving an adorable little giggle, she placed a napkin in front of him that was quickly followed by a Boston Creme doughnut. The man had always had a sweet tooth.

It wasn't much longer until she could figuratively poke at his sides once again. The woman was now giving him a judging glare while being completely silent. "What?" Had he said something? Done something to offend her? Because he sure as hell couldn't think of anything.

For a while, she said nothing, just shaking her head and smile threatening to breakout on tight lips. If he wasn't so confused on what was going on, he would be too. Finally, she beckoned him to come closer with a finger and her sweet, angelic voice following, "Come here."

Hesitantly, he did so; turning in the wooden chair to face her, arms resting on his thighs. Meanwhile, she dabbed a napkin on her tongue and turned towards him, a knee placing itself between his. He was tempted to scoot back and flee, be the coward he was- but he continued with his daily routine of an act and toughed it out.

"I don't understand how messy of an eater you can be..." Belle mumbled, more to herself than him as she scooted even closer to Adam and first used a single digit of a finger to swipe at some custard, showing him what she was doing before plopping it in her mouth to clean of the sweet substance. His eyes widened in shock and horror at the sight before him, what the hell was she doing?! Afterwards, she used the napkin to wipe at some custard above his lips and on his cheek and when some stubborn powdered sugar refused to come off… She hosted herself up, standing over this good leg as she practically straddled him as she kissed his cheek, unwedging the power just by the corner of his lips. His body went stiff, (In more place than one, may he add... Why the hell did this woman have such an effect on him?) and he had to use all the self control not to grab at her hips and pull her into his lap. Had he opened his eyes, he just might have caught the smirk that being flashed on the her face. She was a bit tempted to run her fingers through the fluff of his soft hair, which her hand did on its own accord before she could catch herself. Under her fingertips she could feel his muscles slowly loosen up and become pliant from her touch. "Belle..." The words were a husky gasp, slightly strained and hoarse. God, how she missed it. Why did he have to be such an ass? Why did he have such a nice ass?

Giving another slight stroke to his glorious locks, still standing over his leg and leaned over him, she slowly looked down. He looked so out of sorts, body slumped, bending to her will, and well, for his sake, she wouldn't say what else. She supposed she succeeded at this stage of her game. At least she knew she still had that certain charm on him.

At some point, Adam had declared some excuse to get out of there, now sitting at his desk with his head buried in his hands; her touch still radiating through him. How dare she make him look like a bloody fool!? Yet she was the only one who made him act like such. He growled, tempted to throw something, let his anger and confusion out on something. Maybe the mug on his desk. He'd love to see the fragile, color tinted porcelain crack and shatter against the wall from force he could shoot it at.

Meanwhile, Belle was glaring at the now empty spot next to her in the break room. What the hell had she just done?! Now she wasn't sure if she wanted to ring his neck with her bare hands or use them for some way more pleasurable things… Hell no. She did not need her mind going down the gutter now. For heaven sakes, she swore she'd never go after another man like Adam Gold. Instead, that's the only type of man she seemed to attract and stupidly went after.

Both confused, and in a horrendous daze, they let their anger out on eachother.

Late in the afternoon the two were bickering in the halls, the rest of the building's occupants hiding from the battle occurring on the front lines.

He commented on last night's 'promiscuous' dress.

Was he accusing her of something? Better not be.

So she told him that she indeed, had a very good evening. Little did he know, she may or may have not worn that tease of a dress to irk him. Apparently, it worked, and so had this.

She watched as a calloused hand balled up into a fist, studying how the muscles of his fingers tensed and untensed. Meanwhile, on the other hand, his hand clenched the golden Fitz handle of his cane. She could imagine how had there been no barrier, blood would be dripping from cuts on the palms of his hands made by the force of his blunt nails. She couldn't refrain a shutter.

Did they…? Did she love this unknown man? For some greedy reason he really hoped not. The discussion eventually leading to Gold being reverted back to 'The Wretched Asshole' than just 'Grumpy Mr. Gold', he found her using tiny, slender fingers to push him against the wall, and with surprising force a slight thud that caused a picture to slant from the force to the left of them. Red, luscious lips quirked up in a very sexy, yet bitter smirk that were all too close to his. The feel of her hot breath on his face only mere inches from hers was torturous. "Face it Mr. Gold, you miss me." While one dainty little finger still dug its way into his chest, the other hand grazed over his own that was loosely holding his cane, it trailed up his arm towards her other hand hand to play with his red and black silk tie.

No. He wouldn't dare give in to this, superb-stubborn… yes that was the word he was looking for, stubborn. Not, definitely not, superb. "Hmph… I do not. Now would you please leave me the hell alone?" He barked out.

The siren's voice turned all sing-songy on him, driving his blood pressure up with her pitch. "But don't you want to know, Bar-"

"Do not use my fucking middle name, I should have never told you it. Crazy ass woman..." His voice was in a poisonous snarl, and eyes held a deadly gaze, Scottish brogue thick with rage.

Her Australian accented voice turned just as deadly. "Maybe I happen to like it? But everything is about Adam-Fucking-Gold, isn't it?!" Each syllable of his name was poked harshly into his chest by an index with finger with a red painted, pointy nail. "Maybe coward wasn't the word. Childish? Stupid. ...Maybe even stubborn, or completely self-centered and selfish!" She boomed out at him, neither one of them caring if anyone in else in the building heard them, and he could have sworn he saw a growing wetness forming in her eyes. He was rather sure if he wasn't already on the wall, she would have shoved him into it.

He had to admit, there was a part of him that liked when she was angry. That part of him didn't think well, did it? But seeing tears in her eyes set off a completely different feeling of unease. There was a part of him that wanted to soften his edges and reach out to her, he could never stand her looking so sad. But Lord knew her intentions, and couldn't let his walls down down. "Does that actually surprise you?" He sneered, "You should have listened to the others. I'm positive they all told you just who I was.

"You're impossible" She groaned, rolling her eyes and turning on her heel, walking away and finally letting him up from up against the wall. With flames practically radiating off of her, she stomped out of the building, the thudding of his black, polished dress shoes and cane following after her.

What she didn't notice at that moment was that even with the endless grumbling back and forth, the imp stayed there at her side until she finally slammed the door closed to the first arriving taxi.

Maybe sexually frustrating the both of them hadn't been her greatest of ideas...