This is my first time posting a story so be sure to let me know what you think, even if you think it's too long, too short, whatever! I hope you enjoy!
A noise in the kitchen beyond the double swinging doors caught Chloe’s ear and she stilled, listening. Was it a whisper...or a moan?
Silence wrapped around her.
But there it was again. A soft, breathy noise.
Chloe frowned. She thought everyone was gone. What was someone doing in the kitchen?
She turned and pushed open the door, peering around it into the kitchen. The nightlights cast a faint glow into the dark room. It appeared to be empty.
Chloe’s eyes swept the room and she saw them –a man pressing a woman against the stainless steel counter, one thigh thrust between her legs. Her long blonde curls hung down almost to the counter as she let her head fall back. His mouth moved to her throat. And the woman moaned again.
Chloe watched in shock, fascinated against her will. Oh dear god, what had she walked in on? She caught a glimpse of a bare breast in the opening of the woman’s blouse before the man’s hand covered it.
The man pressed his thigh harder against the woman’s pelvis, eliciting another soft sound from her. “Tyler!” she gasped, her hands sliding down to grip his firm behind.
Chloe had known it was Tyler the moment she saw them. Trust him to seduce a woman in his kitchen. But who was the woman? It certainly wasn’t his latest girlfriend, a brunette bombshell named Marla.
She should leave them to it. What Tyler did in his kitchen after hours was his own business. But her feet didn’t move.
Then Tyler turned his head and slowly opened his dark, lust-glazed eyes. And saw Chloe standing there in the doorway.
Chloe held up a hand, mouthed the word “Sorry!” and backed out of the door, letting it swing silently shut.
* * *
“God, Chloe, sorry about last night.” Tyler yawned as he entered Chloe’s office the next day.
Chloe, seated in front of her computer, didn’t even look up from the monitor as she said, “Hey, no problem. I thought you’d gone. I was going to lock up.”
A few more clicks of the mouse and then she said, “Who was that, anyway? It didn’t look like Marla.” She glanced at him.
He grinned and his hand rubbed his chest, wide and muscular beneath a snug black T-shirt, in slow circles. “Marla and I broke up.” He grabbed an apple from a bowl of fruit she kept on the counter in her office and took a bite. “That was Mandy. Sorry I didn’t introduce you.”
“Uh...don’t think that was a good time for introductions.” Mandy, Marla, whatever. Her eyes moved over his mussed hair and rumpled shirt. “Apparently you had a late night.”
“Yeah,” he said with satisfaction. He took another bite with strong white teeth, closed his eyes as he savored the apple. He chewed slowly, then...“Damn!”
“What?” she asked mildly, accustomed to his frequent mood shifts.
“Nothing.” He frowned. “Just remembered what’s up today. Got any coffee going?”
“You know I don’t drink coffee after noon.” She paused. “Do you want me to make some?”
“Nah, I can do it.” He tossed the apple core into the trash but instead of going to make coffee, he sauntered over to her desk and stood behind her chair. His hands slid over her hair, pulling it gently back into a ponytail. He stroked down its length, one hand then the other, over and over.
Chloe let him pet her hair. When she’d first started working for Tyler, his touchy-feely ways had startled her, but after a while she’d realized he was like that with everyone. It didn’t mean anything. Especially with her. He just seemed to like her hair.
“What are you working on?” he murmured.
“Revenues from your cookbook.” Her hand had stilled on the mouse as delicious chills trickled from her scalp, down her back and into her womb.
He let the strands fall from his fingers, dropped his hands to her shoulders. “What time did you come in? You were here late last night.”
“Don’t worry about it.” She slid her chair away from him and swiveled to face him, ignoring the heavy feeling in her breasts, the ache low in her tummy. “Don’t you have meetings this afternoon?”
He pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “Conference call at one o’clock and Joe is calling from LA at two o’clock to talk about some stuff.” He shook his head. “I still can’t believe all the shit that’s been happening.”
She lifted her brows. “Shit?” she murmured, smiling. “It’s called success. Unbelievable success.”
“Yeah. Right.” He stared into space for a few seconds then sighed. “I need that coffee.”
Chloe closed her eyes and tried to relax everything that had clenched inside her. The image of Tyler making love to that woman last night flashed onto her closed lids, his face intense, his beautiful mouth wet and open over hers. The sight of his hand on her breast had been even more erotic and disturbing. She was used to seeing Tyler with all his girlfriends, but not like that! Walking in on such an intimate moment had been embarrassing and disconcerting.
Chloe took a deep breath and shook her head. He was her boss and a notorious womanizer. That scene should not have been so unsettling for her. But her hands trembled as she turned back to her computer.
Sometimes she wondered why she stayed there. But really, she knew why. The generous salary Tyler paid her was important. She needed money to keep trying to find her sister. And she truly loved the work she did. As for Tyler...she sighed.
All last night, her sleep had been restless, interrupted by images of Tyler, making love to a woman. And in her dreams the woman was her.
* * *
Sometimes Chloe felt overwhelmed with how much work she had to do, but she never let Tyler see it. She knew how much was on his plate lately...ha! On his plate - a little restaurant pun. But really, the way he was wound so tightly, if he ever felt her tension and anxiety she was afraid it would send him over the edge.
When she’d started working for Tyler nearly two years ago he had just been named one of the best new chefs in America. Since then, his restaurant business had exploded; he’d opened a second restaurant; he’d published a bestselling cookbook and done all kinds of television appearances.
She studied Tyler’s website thoughtfully, considering what updates were needed. She clicked from one page to the next. Tyler’s face smiled back at her - tousled dark hair, jaw shadowed with perpetual stubble, eyes like smoky topazes outlined with thick dark lashes, wicked smile.
The restaurant’s business manager, Ryan, handled all the administrative duties for Insatiable. Chloe’s job was to manage the personal empire Tyler was building. But since her office was over the restaurant and she was there all the time, everyone knew her, knew she was always willing to step in and answer the phone or sign for deliveries if things were crazy, or help to close if they were short-staffed like she had the other night.
Feet pounded up the stairs in an urgent rhythm.
“Chloe!”
She turned in her chair, startled at Alejandro the line cook’s panicked tone.
“Come quick! Tyler’s bleeding all over the goddamn kitchen!”
Building Castles - Kelly Jamieson's Blog: Insatiable Part 2
