The Deal

LAURA POV

"I...I .."

"I am so sorry sir ..." I apologise, as I panicked while I tried to clean the desk.

He stood up, and I realised that even his white dress shirt now had patches of brown coffee on it. I shut my eyes and opened them one after the other to check the expression on his face, but he didn't have any expression on his face.

"You seem to be a very clumsy woman, Ms.Laura,'' he said, and my hands became sweaty instantly, I can't believe I'm going to lose my job just like that.

I flinched, “Sorry, sir.”

He frowned, his piercing gaze locked onto mine. “I trust you’ve kept what you saw last night to yourself?” he asked, changing the topic.

“Yes, of course,” I answered quickly. 

His jaw tightened as if he didn’t believe me. “Good. Because if word gets out, it won’t just be your job on the line. Understood?”

I nodded, my throat dry. “Understood.”

“Now, get back to work,” he ordered, dismissing me with a wave of his hand.

"You heard me the first time Ms. Laura, get the fuck out of my office," he cursed, and I rushed out as fast as my legs could carry me.

I scurried out of his office, my heart pounding in my chest.

The rest of the day went on without any drama, it felt like the incident in his office was all in my head. I was expecting to see a sack letter, well he wouldn’t want to do that because I have his little secret with me, I thought, giving myself a little hope.

I stayed late again, determined to finish my work this time. But as I was gathering my things to leave, a message popped up on my phone.

From: Mr. Finch

Meet me at this address in the next 30 minutes.

A chill ran down my spine. Was he going to fire me? Or worse, confront me about last night again? 

When I got outside to flag a taxi down, a black tinted car drove by and stopped at my front only to see that it was Bryan’s car. I tried to take a peek, to see if he was inside, but I was unable to see.

His personal bodyguard got out of the car. "Miss Laura, the boss asked me to pick you up."

"Me?? Ok," I murmured as I got into the car. I held my bag close to my body before getting into the car.

The ride to wherever he was taking me was a quiet one. Immediately we got to the mansion, my jaws dropped at how good the place looked. The tall mansion that stood in the middle, showed it was owned by an influential and wealthy man. The fountain and pool gave the place an exquisite look.

"Welcome to the Finch mansion ma'am" The guy ushered me in, and I nodded.

Workers walked around in white and black uniforms. An older lady who seemed to be in her early fifties, came out to welcome me as she took me inside. I was told to sit that the boss would be joining me shortly.

The different meals on the table made me wonder if it was prepared for a king. If I thought the outside looked good, it was nothing compared to the beauty of the inside.

"I can see you looking at things, even if it gets you into trouble most of the time," says the voice I could recognize even in my sleep.

This man has a thing for looking good, I don't think he has a day when he doesn't look good. He is wearing a black polo shirt that outlines his abs, for a moment I thought I could count the packs on his chest. I looked away, I wasn't comfortable with the way he makes me feel even without trying.

The maid pulled the chair out for him to sit, and I felt awkward at the way he was treated with royalty. They wore gloves and caps while serving us.

"You're not eating," he said when he noticed I hadn't touched anything.

What's with this man and being controlling? He made my entire day at the office awkward, and now he is continuing from where he stopped in the morning.

"I ...I'm not hungry" I responded immediately.

"I see you like it here then," he stated, like it was nothing serious.

"What ?" I asked in shock.

"It's obvious you have decided to spend the night here," he added, with a smirk on his face.

"When did I ever say I want to spend the night with you?" I spat angrily, and he smirked.

"There are two types of spending the night, Ms. Laura." He pointed out calmly.

"The one where I have you wrapped under my legs around my waist as I pound into you recklessly, or the one where we sleep in separate rooms, but I get to get what I want in the wee hours of the morning..." he trailed off, and my heart stopped beating for a second.

I drank from the glass of water on the table. "What you are saying is way out of line Mr Finch, you are being so unprofessional. I came here to discuss the deal so I can leave," I said, and my heart was pounding crazily against my chest.

"You ain't eating your food," he pointed out for the second time.

The fact that he was so calm, and I was burning in anger is pissing me off every minute.

"What does me not eating my food have to do with this? Sir??" I asked.

"Not eating means you're not ready for the conversation," he declared, and I knew the man was ready to frustrate me.

I took a deep breath in and out and decided to dig in. The more I listened to him speak, the more infuriating it was becoming so I went ahead and started eating.

After dinner, he walked me towards the bar in his sitting room, where he threw a file on the table in front of me. I stared at it with my eyebrows raised.

"Check it out," he declared, and I took a deep breath in and out to calm my nerves before going through the files.

"Wait, What...."I trailed in shock.

"Yes, I'm willing to pay you that amount of money, a promotion at the office as an official employee you don't have to be the office assistant anymore."

"You get to go on business trips with me," Mr Finch said, as he moved his hands to my laps, making me drag my skirt down a bit.

"A car and an apartment are part of that position, courtesy of Premium trust," he spoke, and his voice was so calm like none of the situations bothered him.

"Isn't it a bit too much?" I asked, the whole thing felt too good to be true it almost scared me.

"Why? Isn’t that what you wanted?" he asked.

"You're willing to do all this just to shut me up? Why then do you strip, when you know it can destroy the reputation of your company?" I asked, and his intimidating eyes burned into me, making me shut up almost instantly.

"Why does it bother you so much that I strip? Have given you what you want, so why are you questioning me?" he asked, as he made his way over to me.

"I...it ...it doesn't bother me" I stuttered, as he walked in between my legs.

"Mr Fin.....ch" I stuttered, as tension filled the air.

"Why does it bother you so much, Ms. Laura?" He asked again.

"I saw the way you looked at me that night in the dark, like you wanted to be fucked so hard," he muttered in his deep velvety voice, that send chills to my body.

"I guess I should take my leave," I announced, and stood up immediately as I picked up my purse from the table, I heard him chuckle softly.

"Ms. Laura," he called, as I hurried towards the door.

I stopped in my tracks, as he walked over to me and handed me the documents.

"Make sure you sign them," he announced, and I walked away after grabbing the files.

As soon as I got home, I slammed the door shut and leaned against it, still holding the papers Bryan gave me. My heart was racing like I had just run a long race.

“What is wrong with me?” I spoke quietly, throwing the papers onto the nightstand in my room.

I walked to the bathroom, wanting to wash away the stress from the night. The room suddenly felt even smaller, making it hard to think clearly. I turned on the shower and let the hot water run over me, but it didn’t help drown out Bryan’s words in my head.

'I saw how you looked at me that night like you wanted something.' His words kept repeating in my mind until I groaned out in frustration, and held onto the sink for support.

“What am I doing?” I whispered to myself while looking at myself in the mirror. My cheeks were red, and my hair was wet and messy. I looked like someone who had been caught doing something wrong.

I stepped under the water again, hoping it would wash away memories of his smirk and the way he looked at me.

“This is silly,” I told myself.

“He’s my boss. He’s rude and controlling. I should be angry, not...”I stopped talking, biting my lower lip.

I shook my head, trying to push that thought away. “No. No way. This isn’t attraction. It’s just... stress or fear or—”

Or maybe how his touch felt when he handed me the papers. 

I pressed my forehead against the cool tiles in the bathroom, trying to stop thinking about him. But my body didn’t listen. My skin still tingled where he had touched me. 

“Come on, Laura, get it together,” I told myself, standing up straight with my fists clenched at my sides.

“You don’t have time for this. You need this job, not... whatever this is.” But even as I said that, I knew it wasn’t completely true. It wasn’t just about the job or the promotion, it was about him. Bryan Finch, the man who made me angry and scared but also made my heart race.

I hit my palm against the shower wall in frustration. “Why does he have to be so... so—”

“Ugh!” I groaned, turning off the water and stepping out of the shower.

I wrapped myself in a towel and walked into my bedroom, determined to stop thinking about him.

But when I fell onto my bed, the first thing I saw was the file he gave me sitting on my nightstand.

I sighed and covered my face with my hands. “This can’t end well,” I whispered to myself, as I picked it up and signed the document.