Get Closer by Alyssa Turner

Chapter 3

Martell

Nothing ever looks better in the fridge than a cold beer after a long day at work. I took one out and leaned against the kitchen counter, scrolling through a blur of sports updates. Really, I was only looking for something to pass the time while I waited for Russel to finally come home so we could kick back together that evening, like we did most evenings. But, a part of me was a little nervous.

I’d touched him earlier, practically stroked his face. What the hell was wrong with me?

Bros don’t do that kind of shit, especially in the office. It was out of bounds even for someone like me who was completely comfortable with every aspect of my sexuality. And this was Russel. Straight, sexy, manly-man Russel. I took a deep swig of beer and grinned just a little remembering he didn’t exactly back away, either…not at first.

It hadn’t gone unnoticed that things had been weird since I moved out to Long Island with him. The favor was only supposed to last a month, yet the renovations on my money pit of a fixer-upper were way more complicated than originally anticipated. Already, it had been three months and I was thankful Russel was so generous, because that was a long time to be loaning out your guestroom.

And man, was it getting difficult.

So yeah, maybe our bromance started out with a secret crush I had on him, because I mean who doesn’t have a crush on the star quarterback on some level. In college, people either wanted to be Russel Darden or they wanted to fuck him. There was no in between. But in spite of me landing on the second half of that equation, we became friends. Good friends and I was satisfied with the way we hung out together and looked out for each other. So he wasn’t bi like me. So what, I thought. I had the best parts of him and both of us could get our rocks off with whoever we wanted. Hell, sometimes it was the same whoever we wanted and it suited both of us just fine.

But lately…

Lately, he looked like home to me, even though I’d only recently bought that old rickety house to help me feel like I belonged somewhere. Lately, the crush was crushing me.

I shook my head. He was straight; kinky as fuck and a hell of a flirt, but straight. Not even close to being bisexual or even bi-curious. Maybe I had a backup in my balls and it was causing a fucking mental episode.

My tablet rang, jolting me back to Earth. I answered the video call with my best sexy smile when I saw the name slide in on a notification. Chloe Pierce was definitely a good start.

“Ms. Pierce,” I felt giddy just seeing her there, sitting behind her desk, still in her office. “What a pleasure.”

Chloe leaned back in her chair, smiling as she ran her hands through her long brown hair. She wore a pinstriped suit that reminded me of a mafia boss’s daughter. “What did I say before, Martell?” She shook her head. “You can call me, Chloe. Say it with me: C-H-L-O-E.”

I chuckled. “Where’s the fun in that?”

She leaned forward, her green eyes twinkling at me through the screen. “So…I will be arriving in New York tomorrow and I was wondering if you would like to meet up for dinner? Possibly help me prep for the presentation I’m giving on Friday.”

“Ah, yes,” I said, stroking my chin, “well, let me check my schedule.” I grabbed a pad of sticky notes and flipped through them, chuckling at her eye roll. “Hmmm, well, I see I’m free. How does seven sound to you?”

“Sounds perfect.” Chloe turned to her computer, typing away at the keyboard, likely making a note of our dinner meeting in her calendar. “Send me an email with the location and I’ll meet you there.”

“Great. See you tomorrow at seven. Safe travels.”

“Thank you,” she winked before her screen went black.

I sighed, opening my calendar and typing in my very important meeting with Chloe Pierce. We’d had several zoom meetings before regarding her big consultation on Springdale Rail and Logistics, a smaller freight company she was brought in to advise on ahead of a possible merger. How many of our meetings over that past six weeks had lasted well past quitting time? Most of them. Once on a last-minute weekend call, I even got the treat of seeing her without makeup in an old Northwestern University sweatshirt. Chloe was a natural beauty, and more than that, she was just as attractive on the inside.

We’d done a decent amount of flirting, me being an expert in that area. Chloe kept me on my toes though and I liked that about her. But, by the time we ended our calls, there was always something left unsaid, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

The familiar jangle of keys at the front door drew me back from my thoughts. The door opened, revealing a very tired Russel, a little disheveled with his tie pulled loose. He kicked the door shut, dropped his briefcase and workout bag in the foyer and slumped against the door. He groaned and rolled his head back and forth, his halfway open gaze fluttering to mine, his lips slightly parted.

I couldn’t deny it, there was definitely a part of me that wanted to go over there, cup his face in my hands and promise I would make it all better. One kiss. What would he say?

“Don’t let me go back tomorrow,” Russel groaned, kicking away from the door while yanking off his tie. He chucked it at the couch on his way to the kitchen counter.

I laughed awkwardly, opening the refrigerator to hide my budding arousal. The chilled air calmed me a bit. But only a bit. “I’ll call you in sick,” I said, grabbing another beer and bringing it to him. He’d been scrolling through his phone, while his hand absentmindedly unbuttoned his dress shirt.

“Perfect,” he said, opening the can with the one-handed trick he mastered freshman year. He took a few large gulps.

The dagger tattoo on his chest was visible now that his shirt hung open. With his eight o’clock shadow and the evidence of his fingers raking through his hair, Russel looked like the Russel of the old days.

I clenched my fist, still feeling his stubble on my palm from earlier. When he looked up, I flinched, hoping he wouldn’t call me out for staring at him. Why was I being so weird? This was Russel. Not some random hottie I’d met in a grocery store or something, and since I wasn’t a stranger to meeting random hotties in grocery stores, I should know the difference.

Russel held my gaze, his hazel eyes drawing me in close. I could feel myself leaning in. Stop it, Martell, I tried telling myself. He’s straight. Definitely not interested.

“Food?” I heard Russel breathe, his face inches from mine.

I gulped. Nice save Russel. “On its way.”

“Thank God,” Russel pushed away from the counter, removing his suit jacket. He draped it on one of the stools. I was rooting for the shirt to come off too. “I don’t even remember eating today.”

“You work too hard.”

He laughed. “When I figure out another way to do it, I’ll let you know.”

I grabbed the beer and my phone, waiting for the delivery guy as Russel found Monday Night Football on the TV.

I glanced over at him. The shirt finally came off and he threw it behind him. No matter how nice his condo was or how put together he looked in a suit, I knew the truth. Russel was a slob. Forgetting to be stealthy about it, I stared at the sloping muscles in his arms and the sculpted chisels in his broad chest.

A sexy slob.

Russel glanced back and I held my breath as he held my gaze with those beautiful eyes of his. What would it be like to kiss the great Russel Darden? He quickly looked away, taking another sip from his beer.

Then he coughed like something was lodged in his throat. “Should be a good game,” he said.

I sighed. Guess I would never know.

The next evening, I waited for Chloe in front of the restaurant as planned. I was a little early. Hell, who was I kidding? I was a lot early. I couldn’t help it. I was so utterly nervous to see her up front and in person. Not that I wasn’t used to turning a few heads of my own, but women like Chloe weren’t impressed by looks alone. I was suddenly super invested in seeing whether the energy flowing between us over the internet would make it past the first course. I had a really bad case of wanting things I couldn’t have with Russel. It was time to get real, and hopefully, this thing I felt with Chloe wasn’t a figment of my imagination.

“Hi!” I heard someone call. I whirled around, smiling as I saw her waving and approaching from across the street. She was dressed in a navy-blue suit jacket with a matching pencil skirt and pink stiletto heels.

“Hello, Ms. Pierce,” I said, offering my hand.

She took it with a firm grip and a beautiful smile on her face. “It’s Chloe, Martell. C-H-L-O-E.” She chuckled and her voice had a beautiful lilt to it.

“Fine,” I said, not yet releasing her hand. “Chloe it is. But just for tonight.”

She turned and eyed the restaurant up and down. “So this place is good?”

“It serves the best New York strip in town.” I raised my eyebrow. “Please don’t tell me you’re a vegetarian.”

“With all the airport food I’m subjected to, I probably should be.”

I laughed, touching her shoulder lightly and guiding her inside. The place was dimly lit with cozy banquettes and elegant fresh flower centerpieces…possibly a bit too romantic for two coworkers prepping for a presentation, but they had an amazing chef. There was also a big part of me that wanted to wine and dine Chloe, even if she was only staying for a short visit.

I helped her into her seat like the gentleman my mother brought me up to be. I’d reserved a small table for two next to a large window overlooking Central Park. Her foot nudged mine lightly under the table and even though I suspected it was by accident, it didn’t stop me from thinking this could possibly be more.

“So are you ready to face the gauntlet tomorrow?” I asked after the waiter brought us a bottle of Cabernet.

Chloe shrugged, unfolding her napkin and placing it on her skirt. “I know the Springdale P&L data like the back of my hand, but Hunter Railways is the biggest account I’ve had so far. I want everything to go perfectly.”

“You’ll rock it, Chloe.”

“Give me some insider information. Is there anyone who isn’t on board with the merger?”

“It’s going to be an easy crowd. Everyone wants the deal. Though…”

“Though what?”

“Our CFO can be…how do I put this?”

“Martell, whatever you say is safe with me, really.”

“Let’s just say I wouldn’t want my sister to have to work for him.”

“Oh, one of those.”

“Afraid so.” It wasn’t professionally loyal of me to warn her, but fuck it. I liked Chloe and though no one had been able to pin any of the pay to play rumors on that asshole, I didn’t like the idea of her being the subject of his attention.

“Thanks for the heads up.” She looked around at the restaurant. “This place is so nice.”

“Yeah, I like it,” I said suddenly, hoping she didn’t think the romantic setting was selected to seduce her, and then remembering that basically it was.

“You’ve been here before?”

I didn’t tell Chloe I had brought more than a few dates here. Mostly because after warning her about Thornhill, I didn’t want her to think this was a date when it was so obvious it wasn’t…or shouldn’t be, but damn how I wished it was.

So instead I shrugged and said, “I come here from time to time.”

Chloe leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table and placing her chin in her palm. “And how have you been?”

“Busy. As usual. You know how it goes.” I sipped at my wine, leaning back to eye her up and down. I couldn’t help it. “Would it be out of line to say you look very…beautiful this evening?” It wasn’t enough. She looked stunningly beautiful. Absolutely, stunningly beautiful.

Chloe chuckled. “Not if I can say it back.” She touched her hair lightly, as if fixing it in place when in fact it was totally perfect. There was a twinkle in her eye, the way the candlelight hit the emerald green when she winked at me. I smiled, feeling suddenly like the one being looked up and down and not hating it one bit. “Besides,” she continued. “After being on a plane or in an airport for more than six hours today, I feel lucky I didn’t scare you with the dark circles under my eyes. All that travel really ages you I think.”

I shook my head. “Not you. You seem completely impenetrable to all that circulated air.”

Chloe smiled, taking a sip of her wine. “Well aren’t you a charmer.”

I chuckled. “Tell me what’s the craziest thing you’ve seen on a plane. All that time in the air, you must have come across some stories.”

“Are you asking about what I’ve seen or what I’ve done?”

I leaned in. “What you’ve done then, definitely.”

She hummed and poured both of us another glass of wine. “I guess you could say I almost joined the Mile High Club.” Smiling coyly, she added, “Once.”

“Oh?” I sipped my wine, licking the liquid from my lips. “I must admit, Chloe. My interest is piqued.”

She chuckled. Her laugh sounded genuine and sexy all at once. I waited for her to go on, but she sat there, leaned back in her chair, staring back at me with a smirk on those sultry lips of hers.

“Well, was it as hot as everyone always says?”

She set down her glass and leaned in close. I glanced at her lips, mere centimeters away. If I leaned a little bit closer I would be able to taste the wine lingering there.

“More so,” she breathed. Her gaze dipped to my lips quickly and my heart raced before her lids flicked back up. “What about you? Ever join the Mile High Club, Mr. Washington?”

My cock twitched. “No,” I breathed. “Not even close. But I can always dream.” I inhaled deeply when I felt her foot rub against my ankle. Definitely not by accident. I touched her lightly back with my foot, shifting in my chair.

“Martell, I thought that was you.”

It took a second, but I realized someone else was speaking to me. I turned to find Kyle Hunter smiling down at us.

“Hello, sir,” I said, standing up to shake the hand of my new boss.

“Oh, no. I am not a sir. I know a few people who like being called that, but one of them isn’t me. Call me Kyle.”

“Nice to see you again, Kyle.” I glanced at Chloe. “This is Chloe Pierce. She’ll be presenting to the team tomorrow about the Springdale merger.”

Chloe chuckled softly. “I’m so glad Martell didn’t introduce me as Ms. Pierce,” she said, shaking Kyle’s hand. “He’s got to be the most polite man on the planet.”

“There are worse things, right?” I said, thinking that she should really get to know me better. I directed my attention back to Kyle. “Do you come here a lot?”

“When we’re in the neighborhood. We keep a little apartment in the building on the next block. It belonged to my other partner’s grandmother, so it’s sentimental. Once in a while we use the thing.”

A petite woman with curly strawberry blonde hair came up behind him with a gift bag in one hand. The other was tucked into the elbow of a caramel-skinned guy who checked his watch.

“Hey babe, they’ll be here soon. Rory texted me from the Uber. So I’m going to ask them to seat us now.”

Martell caught the way she held onto the one guy and also called Kyle “babe”. Now that was interesting.

“Sure, okay, but let me introduce you to Martell Washington, our Senior Project Manager on the Springdale merger. Martell, these are my partners Rebecca and Manny.”

Rebecca waved and Manny held out his hand. “Hey man, good to meet you.”

“And this is Chloe Pierce, the Analyst who’s worth every last penny her firm is overcharging us.”

Chloe laughed. “I only log the billable hours, after that, I wash my hands.”

“I’m just kidding. We are very happy to have you advising us. I look forward to your presentation tomorrow.”

We said our polite goodbyes before Chloe and I sat back down. Where had we been before the interruption? Right, she was about to put her foot in my crotch. Maybe. Or was that my overactive imagination?

Chloe picked up her menu and cleared her throat. “I think I’ll skip the appetizer, early day tomorrow. I always like to get there before everyone else.”

“Sure, yeah. Understood.” Loud and clear. She was a business associate on an active project. So what if we didn’t work for the same company. Work and play do not mix. Hadn’t I learned that lesson well enough with my ex? Then she licked her bottom lip and I nearly moaned.

Stop. This. Now.

When she put the menu down I asked, “So what other questions do you have?”

She blushed a little and my heart did a stupid little twirl.

“I mean about the presentation.”

She pulled her tablet from her bag. “Do me for a second…uh…I mean be me for a second.”

I laughed. “Okay.”

“If you had a choice to start with the good news or the bad news with the people that will be at the table, which would you go for?”

I shook off the haze of attraction and gave the question my full attention, because yes, Chloe was hot, and yes my dick was still a little disappointed by my attempts to keep things professional, but the woman in front of me deserved to be taken seriously. By the end of the evening, I was actually proud of myself for not trying to score a hotel key card.

So, I went home…alone. Good for me.