Every time I looked over at her out of my office door, though, it got harder and harder to restrain myself.
Chapter 4: Ava
I sat in the meeting, staring down at my file, so I wouldn’t be caught gazing at Tanner like a love-sick school girl. He was looking so amazing in his black Armani suit, black button-up, and his teal tie, and my eyes didn’t want to leave his bulging biceps straining the fabric of the suit. He stood at the front of the room talking about the first stages of the merger and how most of it was very behind the scenes.
Our change manager was there to discuss how things would be handled on the employee front. I wasn’t going to be dealing with the employees as much because my job was to handle the merger’s financial customers. Good thing the topic wasn’t so pertinent to me. It was hard to think about anything with the electric pulses going through my stomach every time Tanner looked over at me. His eyes pierced mine, and I instantly felt like I couldn’t breathe. This was not what I’d expected when I took his offer to work here. It was seriously distracting.
I still didn’t understand how things were feeling between us. It was a continuous stream of thought that had started my first day and had not dulled one bit. My mind would start with simple thoughts about how enticing he looked or how his confidence was sexy. Those thoughts would slowly shift to dirtier things, like imagining what he looked like naked or what his cock was like. Then, without warning, those thoughts would evolve into full-on pornos in my mind where I was the star, and he was giving it to me so good and hard. I always had a vivid imagination, but at that point, I wished I didn’t. I couldn’t shake the sex from my mind, and I was constantly crossing my legs, feeling the pool of juices in my panties.
I bit my lip and looked down at my files, trying to hide the serious blush on my cheeks as I imagined us lying across the huge mahogany table we were sitting around. I could see the web cameras picking up our images and displaying our writhing bodies on the screens above our heads. It would be so freaking erotic but, at the same time, so damn dangerous. I was pretty sure that was one of the things that made me want to do it, the fact that it was so taboo. Just the idea that I was working for the man behind everyone’s back was exciting, and I tried to tame that and remember I was lying to my whole family, and that shouldn’t be exciting. I was pretty much grasping at everything I could to not be attracted to this man. I mean, he was way too old for me. Wait, that was definitely a turn on and not a negative.
“Ava,” Tanner said.
“Yes,” I said, snapping my head back into reality and blushing. Everyone at the table was looking at me expectantly.
“Why don’t you come up, introduce yourself, and talk to us about some of your ideas for pushing our new financial divisions to the next level during the merger?”
“Okay,” I said, taking in a deep breath and walking to the front. I knew this was coming. He had told me ahead of time, but I was never quite ready for public speaking.
Everyone’s gaze was one me, all looking unsure of whether they should prejudge the fact that I was young, judge me for being the only woman in the room, or stare at my tits. It was a mixed crowd, and Tanner was teetering between respect and tits. I straightened out my skirt and walked to the front of the room, taking in a deep breath. Every time I looked over at him, I felt heat creeping up the back of my neck. I wanted so badly for him to be suffering the same affliction I was suffering, but at the same time, I was hoping he wasn’t, so I could keep myself in check.
“Thank you,” I said to Tanner before turning toward all the faces. “My name is Ava, and I’m going to be assisting in the financial changeover on the client end of the spectrum. I got together with our CFO recently, and we discussed the questions the clients will probably have, especially in the beginning. I have come up with a fact template that will post to all representatives, starting today, and will help them begin to ease their client’s concerns. I also believe full candor is a must when it comes to working with people’s money, so we want to let the clients know what we are doing at every step. I have created a template for that as well, and it will not only be emailed but physically mailed as well to make sure our clients are fully understanding what we are doing at every turn. That being said, all managers in all departments will receive a copy of those letters before they are sent out, and they will be in charge of training their teams on what to say, what answers to provide, and how to calm the client by not addressing their fears so much as letting them know how this change will positively affect their money. We don’t want people running just because they aren’t educated on what is going on. Any questions?”
“Yes,” Tanner said, watching my blushed cheeks. “Will we be providing fact lists with every single letter?”
“Yes,” I said, nodding my head. “Every letter will come with a cheat sheet, if you will, an answer to what we believe will be the most asked questions, so we are abl
e to tackle these issues head-on. My door will always be open to anyone, and I’m willing to answer any questions you or our clients have.”
“Thank you, Ava,” Tanner said.
I nodded my head and walked back to my seat, smiling at the applause from the men. I could tell they were surprised by my knowledge and intelligence, and that was the kind of response I wanted. I was never the girl okay with being quiet and submissive, and I knew I was just as smart, if not smarter, than most of the men in that room, except maybe Tanner. When the meeting was over, I shook the other gentlemen’s hands and collected my stuff, trying not to notice that Tanner and I were the last people in the room.
“You okay?”
“Mhmm,” I said, trying not to blush again.
“Ava,” he said, walking over and putting his hand on my arm. “What is it? You were distracted the whole time, though I’m probably the only one who noticed.”
“Nothing,” I said blushing, standing and staring him in the face. “I mean it’s something, but it’s my problem, and I’ll deal with it. There’s nothing you can do about it.”
I put the rest of my files in my bag and tried to ignore the fact that he was staring at me, a small smirk on his face. I put my bag over my shoulder and pushed in my chair, looking up with beet red cheeks. I turned and walked toward the door, trying to get myself together.
“Ava,” he called out. “It’s because of our attraction, isn’t it?”
I stopped and snapped my head back toward him and saw that he was now blushing slightly, too. I closed the door to the meeting room and sighed, taking my bag back off my shoulder and walking to the table. He was standing there, hands in his pockets, leaning against the table. I shook my head holding onto the back of the chair, trying to figure out how to approach the subject. It was undoubtedly a tricky one, but I was glad that he noticed and kind of turned on that he felt the same way and had the guts to admit to it.
“What the hell are we going to do about this?” I asked the question, not sure if he even had an answer.
“I don’t know,” he said calmly. “I suppose we should work on our professional relationship and try to push this aside. I’ve learned through the years that crushes like these tend to fizzle out over time, especially once you start working with someone every day.”
“Really?” I didn’t want it to, but I had to at least act the part. “It’s kind of distracting, and I’m dedicated to this job. I don’t want it to interfere. I’ve known you a long time, Tanner.”
“You don’t have to explain,” he chuckled. “I’ve known you since you were in diapers. If you think it's awkward for you, think about how conflicted by it I am.”
“Okay,” I said taking a deep breath. “Then we will focus on our professional relationship right now, pushing the other stuff aside until it just goes away.”
“Perfect,” he said, walking toward the door. “Oh, do you want to come out to Driscoll’s on Friday for dinner?”