I had a moment of regret that I hadn’t had Tony take her home. Damn! I’d slipped up there. I shouldn’t have left her alone. What if she was more afraid than she’d let on?
I called her number and felt sick when she didn’t answer. I wanted to go look for her, but where would I go? I had no way of knowing where she lived. I’m going to change that shit as soon as possible.
I tried her number a few more times after convincing myself that she probably hadn’t answered because she was still on the train and phones don’t work on the subway.
When that excuse was no longer plausible I went back to worrying and calling myself ten kinds of fool for not having her driven home or taking her there myself.
Imagine my surprise when I came out of my office not long after to find her at the bar collecting a drink order. The relief was instantaneous followed by annoyance. Does she not know how to listen?
“I thought I told you to go home.” I moved to stand next to her as she waited for the bartender to fill her order. She looked straight ahead like I wasn’t even there.
“I know you can hear me Annabelle, why didn’t you leave when I told you to?” She finally turned her gaze up at me and I got caught by her amazing eyes.
I wanted to reach out and touch her, to reassure myself that she really was okay and not putting on an act. The bartender chose that moment to place the first drink on her tray and saved me from myself.
“Excuse me, but I told you that I didn’t need to go home, I’m perfectly fine. We can’t all afford to lose a day’s pay you know.” Insubordinate little shit. Does she not know you’re not supposed to speak to your boss like that?
“Watch your tone. I’m your boss if I tell you to leave then that’s what the… then that’s what you do. I told you to go home more than an hour ago.” Why am I being so persistent? Wasn’t I just bemoaning the fact that I’d sent her home alone?
I was shocked to realize that I liked arguing with her. If only for an excuse to stay in her presence a little while longer. I came back to earth when she got in my face. Like right in that shit.
“And I told you I have work to do.” Is she really that unaware of the game she is playing? This close I could smell her scent, almost like it was being implanted in my brain.
Her nearness had an enlightening affect on me, and I was the one stepping back to escape. “Now are you going to let me deliver these drinks before the ice melts or do I have to school you on my rights as an employee again?”
She actually poked me in my chest. What the hell? I looked over her shoulder at a grinning Tony and quirked my brow. I wanted to throw her over my shoulder and take her somewhere private and spank her ass.
My dick, which seems to know her well, was on the rise. My heart was doing that thumping shit in my chest and my pulse raced with excitement.
I towered over her and lowered my head in a despicable show of intimidation, but she didn’t back down. Game on!
Instead she looked me square in the eye as if daring me to do something. “Are you trying to get fired?” She rolled her eyes and rocked back on her heels.
“Try it, I haven’t done anything wrong and if you fire me after the night I’ve had, I just might sue you for being a jerk.” Is she for real?
“Lower your voice. And you might want to go easy on the suing talk. I don’t take lightly to those kinda threats.” She didn’t even back away when I got closer.
Just craned her neck all the way back and held eye contact. By now there were more than a few interested eyes taking in the show, but I was having too much fun to put a stop to it.
I wanted to egg her on to see how far she’d go. I couldn’t help but admire her spunk. It was obvious she needed the job, but like Tony said, she didn’t seem like one who’d put up with my shit.
Had she been afraid earlier when that asshole put his hands on her? It was obvious she wasn’t afraid now. On the video she hadn’t appeared to be either.
She’d reacted immediately, almost automatically in fact, and it made me wonder now that I thought of it, if she’d endured that shit before.
“I’m going back to work now. You can go have whatever tantrum this is by your lonesome.” I held her there with my eyes when she tried to move away. Now I was the one daring her to defy me again.