Sleeping With My Boss: A Standalone Novel (An Alpha Billionaire Romance Love Story) (A Dirty Office Romance) (80 page)

CHAPTER
THIRTY-EIGHT

Echo

"
I
tried to kiss him and he pushed me away and
told me not to," I said miserably. "He doesn't want me, Cece."

"Chica, you
are so very wrong about that," she said handing me a steaming hot cup of
coffee. "Drink this, you'll feel better."

"I don't know
what's wrong with me," I said as I sipped. "Or him. What's wrong with
him?"

"Well, he's
had a pretty rough couple of weeks, I'd say," Cece said giving me a
sympathetic look. "He's lost a friend, his father, his money, and then
almost lost you. I'd say the guy probably deserves a bit of a break when it
comes to making judgments about him right now."

"I
know," I nodded. Cece was right that Ryan's life had been upended, but I
couldn't understand how I could feel like he was so attracted to me and then be
so wrong about it. "But I don't understand the mixed signals, Cece."

"He's a boy,"
she shrugged. "They can be idiots sometimes too."

"What do you
mean?" I asked.

"Chica, you
haven't had that much experience with men, have you?" she said
sympathetically.

"No, but I've
had enough!" I protested.

"Yes, but you
haven't had the kind of experience I've had, have you?"

"No," I
grumbled. "I haven't."

"Okay, then
listen to me. Sometimes boys are idiots not because they're trying to be
idiots, but because they simply can't help it," she said. "They want
to do things, but then they get scared, so they run away."

"Is that what
you think is happening?" I asked.

"I have no
idea, but you know I'm gonna try to find out," she grinned. "It's my
turn to watch for the next few hours, so I'm going to do my best to get to the
bottom of this."

"If you can
figure out what's going on, you're a better woman than I am," I said.

"Go home and
get some rest," she said squeezing my shoulder before she pulled me into a
big hug. "You haven't been sleeping much, have you?"

"No,
but..." I began and then realized that there was no way I could explain my
lack of sleep to her because I couldn't talk about the decision I was trying to
make.

"Just go home
for a few hours and try to sleep," she repeated. "You'll feel better
if you do. I'll call you if anything changes."

"Thanks,
Cece," I said.

"No hay nada,
chica!" she grinned as she grabbed her coffee cup and headed into Ryan's
room. I watched her hoping that she was right and that she'd figure out what
was going on so that maybe Ryan and I could find a way to move forward
together.

#

Three
days later, Ryan
walked through the front door of my apartment just as I was coming out of the
shower.

"What are you
doing here?" I squealed as I grabbed the towel I had wrapped around my
body.

"That's a
nice way to welcome me back from the dead," he grinned as he ran a hand
through his hair and rubbed his jaw. "I hope there's still enough hot
water for me to shower and shave."

"I don't
know, I didn't know you were coming home," I said as I walked backwards
toward the staircase. "Are you okay? Why didn't you tell us you were
getting released today?"

"I wasn't
supposed to be released, but I was sick and tired of the food," he half
joked. "I signed myself out."

"Again? Don't
you remember what happened the last time you did that?" I said warily.

"Yeah, but I
know for a fact that you don't have a gun, so it's all good," he grinned
as he walked toward the couch and collapsed.

"Are you sure
you're okay?" I asked. "Let me get dressed and I'll make some food
for us."

"Nah, I
stopped downstairs and asked Mando to make us something," he said waving
me off. "I hope you don't mind."

"Of course
not. Why would I?" I asked as I quickly climbed the stairs and pulled on
the cleanest pair of shorts and t-shirt I could find.

"Dunno,"
he mumbled. "I'm going to shower. Answer the door if Mando comes, will
you?"

A half an hour
later one of the busboys from Nemo's brought up enough food to keep us fed for
a few days. I was dishing it up as Ryan emerged from the bathroom with nothing
but a towel around his waist. My heart began beating a little faster as I
looked at his bare muscled chest before turning my gaze upward to meet his
bright amber stare.

"Food
arrive?" he asked.

"Uh-huh,"
I nodded as I turned back to the plates and tried to decide if I needed to put
more on them.

"Smells a
hell of a lot better than that disgusting slop they served at the
hospital," he said as he grabbed clothes out of the duffle bag he'd stored
behind my couch and quickly pulled them on.

"Uh-huh,"
I nodded again as I kept my back turned toward him so I wouldn't see anything I
wasn't supposed to.

"You okay,
Echo?" he asked.

"Uh
huh," I nodded as I waited for what seemed like an appropriate amount of
time before turning back around. When I did, Ryan was standing right behind me
and startled me, "Oh!"

"Forgot what
it was like having me around, didn't you?" he said quietly as he reached
around me and grabbed the plates. "Bring drinks, would you?"

"Uh
huh," I nodded more vigorously feeling like an absolute idiot as I grabbed
two beers out of the fridge and followed him to the balcony.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-NINE

Ryan

"
Are
you okay," Echo asked.

"I'm fine,
and if you ask me that one more time, I'm going to lose it," I said as I
scooped up a huge bite of carnitas and beans in a tortilla and shoved it in my
mouth. It had been days since I'd eaten anything more than the horrible fare
served by the hospital dietician and I was starving. I knew I was probably
going to pay a price for this, but I was willing to pay it.

"Sorry,"
she said looking down at her plate as we ate in semi-uncomfortable silence.
Quietly, Echo said, "So, what's next?"

"What do you
mean?" I replied. I was having a hard time focusing on my food when she
was sitting just a couple of feet away from me and looked and smelled so fresh.
Everything about her made me want to gather her up in my arms and carry her up
those stairs, but I knew better than to let those thoughts find a home in my
brain, so I shook my head and tried to conjure up images of what I would be
doing once I returned to my SEAL team.

"What are you
going to do now?" she asked without looking up.

"Go back to
the SEAL team and figure out what I missed," I shrugged.

"What?"
she said looking up shocked. "You can't do that!"

"The hell I
can't," I said shoving more food into my mouth and staring straight at
her.

"But you were
seriously injured," she replied staring at me. "Are they going to let
you go back?"

"Lady, there
are tons of us who have been hurt far worse and gone back to serve," I
said as I kept chewing. "My injuries are minor compared to what some have
suffered."

"You seem so
blasé about it," she said frowning.

"Nope, just
practical," I shrugged looking out over the balcony onto 13
th
 
Street. "I mean, it's not like there's
anything keeping me here now, is there?"

"What about
TriCorp?" she asked. "Aren't you going to try and keep it going while
they look for a new CEO?"

"Huh?" I
said genuinely surprised by what she was saying.

"I would have
thought they'd have come and told you that they arrested Julian this
morning," she said. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed."

"Arrested
Julian?" I said.

"Eva gave him
up as the one who'd masterminded the kidnapping and the attempt to steal the
hard drive," she said. "Her lawyer got the State to take the death
penalty off the table for Butch Wilson's death if she'd turn over Julian."

"Jesus, all
of these secrets," I said shaking my head.

"Secrets are
what kill us," she replied as she took a big swig of her beer.

"Who the hell
are you to judge people for keeping secrets?" I demanded to know.
"You're the one hiding the secret boyfriend!"

"Boyfriend?
What the hell are you talking about?" she said looking completely
confused.

"Don't play
act with me, Echo!" I yelled as I shot up out of my chair and began pacing
the balcony. "You and Mando are an item and you've been using me for — I
don't know what!"

"What? Me and
Mando?" she said with a look of genuine surprise. "We're not a
couple! God, he's like my brother!"

"But he
said..." I began.

"What did he
say?" she demanded. "Tell me, and I'll skin him alive! What did he
say?"

"He
said..." I began again and then stopped.

"Yeah, I'm sure
he did," she said as she rolled her eyes. "He's way too
overprotective of me and Cece, and we both feel smothered by him sometimes. I'm
sure he was trying to put the fear of God into you so that you wouldn't take
advantage of my innocence or something."

"But you
kissed him and told him I'm totally safe," I said trying to recall
everything that had gone on.

"I was
teasing him about his protectiveness," she said. "But that was
it."

"Crap,"
I said as I ran a hand through my hair and then I remembered, "But he said
watch out for our girl."
 

"He says that
to every guy one of us dates," she chuckled as she shook her head.
"It's like some kind of big brother insurance policy against bad
things."

"And it works
well..." I said trailing off. "So the night on the couch and the day
you came to see me after I got shot and then the other day when I was back in
the hospital..."

"Yeah, I
wondered why you kept pushing me away," she said as she stood up and moved
toward me. She lowered her voice as she reached out and ran a finger down my
arm, "Because quite frankly, you've been driving me crazy since you
arrived, Mr. Navy Seal."

The next thing I
knew, she reached up and wound her arms around my neck pulling me down so she
could kiss me hard and deep.

"Oh
God," I groaned as I wrapped my arms around her and pressed her body
against mine, then winced as I felt the tug on my stitches.

"Oh no! I'm
sorry!" she said as she pulled away.

"No,
no," I shook my head. "We just have to go slow, take it easy."

"I can do
that," she grinned as she took my hand and led me into the apartment and
up the stairs where she proceeded to gently pull off my shirt and shorts before
shedding her own.

"Uh, that's
was quick," I said.

"Do you have
any idea how long I've been wanting to do that?" she asked as she pulled
me down on the bed and carefully pushed me back against the pillows. I could
feel her hands lightly roaming my body and felt the results of her
ministrations immediately.

"No
idea," I said as she straddled my hips and leaned forward to kiss me.

"A long
time," she whispered into my lips as she kissed me again and ran her
fingers though my hair. I groaned as she pinned the arm on my injured side to
the bed with her knee and reached up with the other hand to stroke her cheek
before slipping my fingers into her long thick hair and holding her head so I
could kiss her more deeply.

I felt her moving
lower as we kissed until she stopped and quickly grabbed a condom from the nightstand
drawer, laughing as she did it.

"Safety
first, Seal," she whispered as she kissed me and then moved aside so she
could roll it onto my rock hard erection. Before I knew it, she had swung her
leg over my hips and was guiding me to her opening as she moaned softly
pressing down and then rising up teasing both of us before she sank down and
took me in one swift stroke. She smiled at me as she said, "Take it easy,
and let me do the work."

"Oh
God," I groaned as I felt her heat around me.

"Mmm
hmmm," she leaned forward and kissed me as she began moving her hips in a
slow rocking motion. The movement nearly drove me over the edge until she
slowed a bit and kissed me harder.
 
She
speeded up and slowed down over and over until both of us were groaning with
the need for release. Then she pushed herself up and braced her hands on the
wall above my head as she began rocking hard and fast. I could feel her muscles
tensing and releasing as she drove us both closer and closer to the edge.

I knew I shouldn't
do it, but I couldn't stop myself. I planted my feet and thrust up hard and
deep and felt it set off her orgasm as she moaned. The pulsing of her muscles
set off my own release as I groaned and thrust up into her one more time
holding it there as I exploded inside of her.

In the few minutes
it took for us to catch our breath, Echo laid across my chest with her face
buried in my shoulder. I could feel the wound in my side stretching and while I
hoped that I hadn't opened it yet again, I knew that if I had, it would have
been completely worth it.

"My
hand," I whispered into her hair a few minutes later. "Can't feel
it."

"Oh God, I'm
sorry!" she cried as she quickly moved her knee and slid off of me to the
side. She sat up and looked at my injured side, gasped and grabbed a towel from
a drawer under the bed. "You're bleeding, but not too badly. Does it
hurt?"

"I can't feel
anything," I said.

"Oh shit! Do
I need to call an ambulance?" she asked as the worry turned to fear.

"No, it's a
good thing," I said. "I can't feel anything but my incredibly happy
friend down there."

"You
jerk," she said swatting me lightly with a pillow. "You had me
worried!"

"I'm fine,
seriously," I said as I lifted the towel and showed her that there was no
blood only a little bit of clear fluid leaking out of the incision site.
"I'm good. No, better than good. I'm great."

"I'm great,
too," she smiled as she laid her hand on my cheek and then lay down beside
me in the space I made with my good arm. "This is the best ever."

"Indeed it is,"
I smiled as I turned and kissed the top of her head.