Whenever I was around him - my boss - I couldn't help but feel flustered and lost for words. It had been a long time since I had felt that way about someone and it made me feel like a school girl with a crush. He was handsome, in an old fashioned way, with eyes a piercing brown that seemed to look right through me. He always dressed smartly for work, pinstripe trousers and a carefully ironed shirt - ironed by his wife, that is.
He knew women found him attractive too, you could tell by the way he spoke: confidently, but always with a teasing smile. I knew it was pointless, but I couldn't help fantasising about him - if for no other reason, it passed the time in a job I had no interest in. I used to think about the effect I might have had on him too; I was aware I was quite good looking, and a lot younger than some of the other women that worked in the office. We would flirt with each other but I didn't really think it meant anything other than friendly banter - of course, I knew he was married. However, it certainly made my job more entertaining.
I'd been working as a temp for almost a year, ever since I had graduated from college. I hadn't meant to be there for that long, but somehow I had become stuck in a dead-end position that wasn't really going anywhere and I was struggling to see a way out of it. I knew I wasn't ever going to push myself to find a career I was interested in without biting the bullet and leaving my job at the office, so after giving it a lot of thought I decided to hand in my notice.
I felt a mixture of nerves and excitement as I knocked on my boss's door on the morning I'd committed myself to the decision. There was no answer straight away so I knocked again, then half-opened the door and peered around. My boss was sitting at his desk on the phone looking deep in conversation, but looked up as I came in. He stopped speaking for a moment and smiled, signalling for me to take a seat.
"I'm sorry, I'll have to call you back," he told the person he was talking to, "something just came up."
He put the phone back into the cradle and gave me a long look. "So how can I help you this morning?" he asked, sitting back in his seat and folding his arms. I hesitated for a moment suddenly feeling slightly unsure of myself, but managed to hand over the envelope containing the letter I had written the night before, explaining my reasons for leaving.
"I've decided to hand in my notice." I said, not quite meeting his eyes as he took the letter from me. "I'm sorry." I added, somehow trying to soften the blow.
He raised his eyebrows and let out a long breath. "I can't say I'm that surprised." He said, sounding disappointed. "I know this job isn't really what you want to be doing." I nodded in reply. "I'll be sorry to lose a good employee though, you have always been better than this place." I blushed slightly at the compliment and he gave me a long look. "Actually, I won't just miss you as my employee," he added, "I like being able to see you everyday."
"Well, I'll miss working here." I said, trying to bring the conversation back to safe territory. "You've been a good boss."
"I hope I have, to you." He replied, and I felt slightly uncomfortable. He was incredibly attractive, sitting here in front of me, and all I could think about was what his eyes might be searching for when they left my face and lingered on my body. I'd always liked dressing up for work, and today I was wearing sheer stockings with the fastenings just about hidden under an above-knee-length skirt. I wore a tight-fitting white blouse that just showed a little bit of cleavage and black heels. I always wore my hair down, and right now it hung in loose waves around my shoulders. If I'm being honest, I dressed up for him. I hoped to get his attention and it seemed today, perhaps I had.
