Dirty Boss Daddy by S.E. Law
8
Leslie
Lips press against the nape of my neck and I wiggle closer to the big form at my back. “Mmm.”
“Time to wake up, beautiful,” Malcolm whispers into my ear, nipping my earlobe and sending shivers dancing over my skin.
I roll over to face him and smile as he presses a second kiss to my lips. “But I’d rather stay here, in bed with you,” I mock-whine.
He smiles, and brushes a curl away from my face before giving me a quick smooch. “All the more reason why you should give up your apartment and move in with me officially.”
I laugh. We’ve been having this conversation for a few weeks now because in the three months since our first date, we’ve been practically inseparable. I’ve stopped by my apartment a few times to be sure, but mostly just to pick up clothes or other sundry items. Otherwise, I live in Malcolm’s NYC penthouse now, and it’s absolutely blissful. He occupies the top floor of a fancy building, and his penthouse has five bedrooms, five baths, a living room, a sitting room, a library, a full chef’s kitchen, and even a dunk pool on one of the terraces. I’ve never been so coddled in my life, and it’s absolutely wonderful.
Giggling, I wrap my arms around Malcolm’s neck as he rests his hands on my hips. “Maybe we shouldn’t make such big life decisions in bed.” Then, I reach between us, cupping his erection and giving it a firm squeeze. “I would hate for you to think I coerced you in any way.”
Malcolm growls low under his breath, and presses into my palm as I massage his stiff shaft. “You can coerce me into anything you want, baby. I’m yours to coerce any day of the week.”
I laugh and shake my head. “You’re crazy.”
“Only about you,” he growls as I roll my eyes.
The next thing I know, Malcolm yanks the blankets off us and hops out of bed. Then he lifts me up into his arms as I squeal.
“OMG!” I wrap my arms around that huge torso. “What are you doing?”
“Taking you to the shower and showing you just how coerced I feel.” Laughter trails us as we disappear into the en suite, and then my lover gives me a lesson on coercion that’s so delightful that I forget my own name.
* * *
It’s funny.Even though we’re dating, we’re keeping it on the downlow. As a result, Malcolm and I try to arrive at work at different times, and sure enough, my cell phone beeps as I wait around the corner. It’s a text from my boyfriend letting me know that he’s inside and firmly ensconced in his office. Good. It’s time for me to make my entrance now.
There’s a huge bouquet of roses on my desk when I arrive and I smile, melting a bit. I’ve tried telling Malcolm he’s spoiling me too much, but he won’t listen. The man is always surprising me with gifts and fancy dinners, but he says he likes doing it. Yet, the gifts aren’t really what floats my boat. They’re nice, of course, and make me feel all kinds of warm and fuzzy things, but it’s the man that I’m drawn to and not these objects. To be honest, if he lost his fortune tomorrow, I wouldn’t go anywhere. I’m that much in love, and absolutely head over heels for this charismatic, commanding man.
My friend Josie spotted the flowers too, and she’s waiting by my desk, waggling her eyebrows in my direction. I shake my head because she’s practically begged me to tell her who I’m seeing, but I’ve resisted so far. Malcolm is not only my boss, but her boss too. Plus, my buddy’s not exactly great at keeping secrets. If I tell her I’m dating Malcolm, pretty soon the whole company will know.
“Good morning,” I murmur as I approach my desk. To my surprise, Josie’s fingering the card that came with the bouquet. I raise a brow at her. “You read my card? Come on, that’s going too far, don’t you think?”
She rolls her eyes. “Don’t give me that look. The card fell out, and no, I didn’t read it. Still, girlfriend! Who is this man you’re dating? The most I’ve ever gotten is a sad little sprig of daisies, and not this incredible bouquet.”
I laugh, shaking my head while plucking the envelope from her hands. “You’re something else, you know that?”
Josie smiles brightly, her brown curls bouncing. “Yes, but you love me anyways.”
I open the card and as I scan the message, my heart does somersaults in my chest. “I love waking up to your beauty and grace. Move in with me,” it reads. Plus, it’s signed Crazy for you with no name, and I smile harder thinking about our morning before we left for work. Malcolm’s right. I don’t want to keep pretending, and there’s no reason for me to pay rent on my studio anymore. I want to be with this man full time because my heart already belongs to him.
“Oh my god, who’s it from?” Josie asks excitedly. I merely throw her a wink.
“I’ll be back,” I say. With my cell in hand, I steal to a back hallway in order to thank Malcolm for the flowers. I can hardly make the call from my cube, given our nosy co-workers, and besides, I also want to tell him I’ve decided to officially end the lease on my apartment in order to move in with him. A small smile steals over my face as I position myself in a deserted nook, already beginning to dial. But then, something bumps into me and I look up. That’s weird. Hardly anyone ever comes back here.
To my surprise, it’s my ex-boyfriend. Ronald’s looking at me with a nasty little smirk on his face, and to be honest, he looks a bit disgusting. He’s always been thin, but now, he’s positively gaunt and his suit hangs off his narrow frame like rags on a scarecrow. Plus, he’s got a breakout on his chin that glistens in the light, and immediately, I attribute it to the nasty processed foods he prefers. Ronald’s never eaten healthy, and now it’s beginning to show. Yet I try to be polite.
“Hi Ronald. It’s been a long time. I didn’t even know you worked at Ligne anymore.”
He shrugs, scratching at his greasy chin.
“Yeah, I got transferred to another department a couple months ago. Sorry I didn’t have time to tell you. Did you miss me?”
I smile tightly.
“We’ve been okay without you,” I manage in a diplomatic tone. Then I move to step around him, but Ronald literally holds an arm up, blocking my way.
“Whoa, sweetie, where are you going? There’s no need to run away.” Something flashes in his eyes that makes my skin crawl. “Oh, I get it. You wanted to get me alone, so you could try to convince me to take you back. Well, if you want me, you’re going to have to show me just how much you need it.” He cups himself through his pants and I literally feel vomit coming up in the back of my throat. I swallow hard to make the nausea go away.
“Um, no Ronald. It’s random chance that we’re bumping into one another, and to be honest, I can’t believe you’re propositioning me in such a disgusting way. Let me go. I need to get back to work.”
I take a big step away from him, trying not to look in his direction, but I only make it a couple steps down the hall before the scrawny man grabs my arm almost painfully.
“Yeah right,” he sniggers. “We both know you miss me, Leslie. I mean, look at you! You’re a big fat bag of blob, and do you think that outfit’s cute?” he asks, indicating the pencil skirt that hugs my bottom. “If anything, it makes your ass look even bigger and you’re going to split your seams if you’re not careful.”
I inhale sharply. Malcolm loves this skirt, and in fact, he destroyed my previous one that was cut in the same style, the billionaire was so eager to get at my curves. But Ronald continues, totally oblivious.
“I know you want me, fat girl, but you’re too late. I found someone a hell of a lot hotter, and she’s about a thousand percent better than you because she’s a Playboy bunny. Get that, you fat witch. Amber’s a woman with curves in all the right places, unlike your saggy ass.”
I’m not sure if I’m going to gag or laugh because his story is so ridiculous. If there is one thing I’ve learned in the past few months with Malcolm, it’s that I was always way out of Ronald’s league. Honestly, I wouldn’t wish my ex on anyone because he’s a lazy misogynist who doesn’t care about any of the women he’s ever been with. There’s no way a Playboy bunny would give him the time of day, so clearly, Ronald’s also become a compulsive liar.
But then Ronald steps closer to me, eliminating the space I’d intentionally put between us. “She’s a real wildcat in the bedroom, but you wouldn’t know anything about that, would you, Leslie? With you, it was always in the dark, missionary, with the cover pulled over our heads.”
My blood boils and I clench my fist. I’ve never been a fighter, but the urge to hit him surges through my veins. Instead, I narrow my eyes at him and blurt the first thing that comes to mind.
“For your information I’m dating someone too, so I don’t give a shit what you’re doing with your Playboy bunny. Not only that, but my new guy is amazing, which is more than I can say for your scrawny ass.”
Ronald’s smirk falters and his nostrils flair. “Oh yeah? Who is it?”
“None of your business.”
He laughs, his smirk returning. “I knew it. You know, it’s sad that you feel like you need to make up a boyfriend to make me jealous. If it means that much to you, we can still hook up this weekend. Amber understands that not all women are as lucky as her, and she’s willing to share.” He moves uncomfortably close, his stinking halitosis hitting me full in the face. “Trust me, she won’t mind.”
“Eew! Get away from me!” I screech, darting away. But Ronald seizes my arm and jerks me in so that I end up plastered against him, looking right at the gooey patch of acne on his chin.
“You want it,” he breathes hotly, his eyes aflame with lust. “I know you do.”
That does it. I jerk myself away furiously and whirl on him.
“For your information, I’m seeing Malcolm Neuwirth,” I spit as Ronald’s eyebrows draw together in confusion. “You know, our CEO? Yeah, the rich, gorgeous billionaire who runs this place. That’s the man I’ve been dating.” Now I’m the one smirking. “And you know what? He approached me after seeing those nude photos you shared, so I guess I should thank you for making the introduction, so to say.”
Ronald stops and stares, his mouth agape. Then his jaw slams shut and there’s a fury in his eyes I’ve never seen before. I know I shouldn’t have told him about Malcolm, but I just couldn’t stand here and listen to his shit for one more second. I let Ronald treat me like I was less than his equal when we were together, turning a blind eye to what an asshat he really was because I’d convinced myself he was as good as I would ever get. I told myself that a chubby girl like me could never land a handsome man who treats me like I’m his everything, but Malcolm has spent the last three months proving that theory very wrong. Now, there’s no way I’m going to stand here and allow Ronald to push me back down into that hole of self-loathing again. I realize my true worth, and it was a long time coming
“Well, aren’t you just the little slut?” Ronald hisses. “Guess I wasn’t high enough up the food chain for you, huh? You needed a bigger fish in order to screw your way to the top. I always knew you’d never go anywhere in this industry with your lack of talent and poor work ethic. Guess you finally figured that out too, Leslie, so instead you’re going to fuck your way to success instead.”
The old me would have lost it. The old Leslie would have cried and yelled at him to take back his ugly accusations before retreating into a hole to sob myself to sleep. But now, I just smile and shake my head at poor, pathetic Ronald. I never needed him nor his approval, and I damn sure don’t need it now.
“What are you smiling about?” Ronald screeches, spittle flying from his lips. But I just laugh.
“I’m just trying to figure out what I ever saw in you, little man. It’s funny that you still think your opinion matters. No one cares about you Ronald.”
My ex goes purple with rage, his face mottled and ugly.
“You can’t talk to me like that!” he stammers, but I’m already walking away. This time, I don’t look back because I used to be insecure and foolish, but not anymore. Ronald is a dark mark from my past, and unless I have to talk to him about work, I have nothing more to say to the idiotic fool. Not now or ever again.
