Parker didn't know. Frankly, he didn't care. Not so long as he got what he wanted.
And what he wanted was Megan.
With a sigh, he settled in the guest chair she'd vacated, still warm from her body. Her perfume lingered along with her heat--a vanilla essence that tickled his senses. He had a weakness for white cake with vanilla cream frosting, but at the moment, he was craving something even sweeter.
But not just sweet. Strong, too. And his cock tightened with anticipation and desire as he pictured her sitting right in that chair and owning up to her mistake.
For a moment, he simply enjoyed the memory. But then he levered himself out of the chair and circled his desk. Frowning, he pushed the button on his phone to call the reception desk, then waiting until Mrs. Ridley's efficient voice came on the line.
"Yes, Mr. Manning?"
"Is Lisa in?" She'd been his assistant for less than three months, but her lack of attention to detail had sealed her demise. Rather than fire her, though, he'd had Human Resources relocate her. Now, he believed, she worked as a file clerk.
"She is, sir. Shall I send her up?"
"Please." He ended the call, then waited, not entirely certain what had possessed him to go down this particular road. After all, Megan had been perfectly clear that she'd jumped the gun in printing the flyers, and that Lisa had never suggested that he was willing to participate.
Even so, he wanted to talk to the girl himself.
She arrived within five minutes, then wiped what were undoubtedly sweaty palms on her slacks. The girl got nervous and flustered if you so much as looked at her wrong. Yet another reason she wasn't assistant material. He needed an assistant who anticipated him, not one who jumped every time he spoke to her.
"You're not in trouble," he said, because that was the best way to begin every conversation with her. "I'm trying to clear up a misunderstanding and just need to get a few details."
"Oh." She blinked. "Okay. Sure."
"I understand that you told someone at The Fix that I'd participate in their Man of the Month contest." He actually didn't understand that at all. In fact, he assumed the opposite. Hell, Megan had confirmed that Lisa hadn't pulled such a boneheaded maneuver as signing him up for an event without first clearing it with him.
All he wanted was for her to deny it.
Instead, she nodded. "That's right. It's a very popular event. I went with my friends after work about a month ago. We saw Mr. April. That radio guy won. The DJ who's so funny during the morning show when--"
"Lisa."
She closed her mouth, her eyes open wide.
"Is there a reason you never told me about it?"
Miraculously, her eyes opened even wider. "Oh, no, sir. No reason at all."
He considered responding, thought better of it, then nodded. "Thank you, Lisa. That's all I needed to know."
"Oh. So I can go?"
"You can go. Thanks."
He pressed his fingers
to his temples, fighting a headache that was creeping in.
At least he'd confirmed that he'd made the right decision by transferring Lisa off his desk.
And at least he'd confirmed his suspicions that Megan had taken it on the chin, purposefully covering for his assistant's ineptitude.
With a sigh, he looked out the window, thinking.
The truth was, he'd been intrigued by Megan from the first moment he'd met her, but she'd ended up in Carlton's arms before Parker had made a move. He was shallow enough to admit that it was her looks that had initially caught his attention. Her long, glorious hair, so dark against her fair skin. Those big brown eyes that today had been hidden by teal-rimmed glasses. Her slim body and subtle curves. And that sweet, sweet smile that had the power to shatter him.
He'd wanted to mold her against his body and twine his fingers in her hair. He wanted to lose himself in the depths of those eyes and bask in the glory of her smile.