Ahh, the aftermath. What began as a horrible day took a turn at the last minute. All this time, these past few weeks I had pondered over the sincerity of his casual comments. Surely he was only kidding with me right? Playing along with my banter to get a rise out of me? Enjoying a little bit of harmless flirtation just to see my cheeks flush? As it turned out, he wasn't kidding. Not by any means, though he could easily have played it off as such had he needed to.
And now, my mind is filled with the remnants of the afternoon. My thoughts play over again, the unnerving warmth of his nearness as he stood behind my chair, the gentle squeeze on my arm before he moved away. It was so subtle, I had to wonder if I'd imagined it, made something out of nothing. Before I even had the chance to speculate, he was already halfway across the room, and had flopped back down into the chair, waiting for...
Maybe a repeated invitation? Once uttered, his presence again loomed behind me, so close, yet not close enough. This time, he offered a brief shoulder massage that I allowed myself to lean into before he retreated back around the desk. I hadn't imagined it then! I could hear myself calling out to him silently to return- shouts inside my head loud enough to wake the dead, but apparently not yet loud enough for him to hear. So this was to be the game then? Again, I offered an excuse of "needing" assistance that would require him near her. My heart nearly leapt from her chest as anticipation washed over me.
I watched with baited breath as he first locked the office door before casually strolling back into my personal space. I couldn't decide- did he take forever or arrive too quickly? Nonetheless, there he was again, his presence enticing and unnerving at the same time. Again, I heard my inner voice crying out, "Oh please...closer!"
I must have been loud enough this time, because I felt him press himself against the back of my chair just before his hands came down to rub across my shoulders again, then the left moved lower to stroke my breast. Only for a moment though, and his hand trailed away to run them both the length of my arms before returning upward to my shoulders. Then down again, and suddenly I could no longer stand the awful utilitarian cloth of the uniform I wore every day.
I felt rather than saw him kneel down behind me. My pulse raced as his breath warmed my ear just fractions of a second before his lips grazed the side of my neck. His hands were everywhere now, and when they found their way under my uniform, I felt their heat through the thin fabric of my tee shirt. Finally I mustered the courage, and spun the chair around to face him.
Our eyes met just as my chair came to a halt. His permanent scowl was gone- replaced by a rather mischievous half-grin. I offered a shaky smile of my own as I pulled him to me.