Disclaimer: this chapter includes a character making unwanted sexual advances (not rape!) toward another character, and if that makes you uncomfortable, please skip over that part in the story or do not read at all. Also, it is highly recommended that you read the previous chapters in this series as to understand this story. Thank you!
*****
Maybe I'm a shitty person for looking Grayson right in the eye as he complains about how maintenance left his desk a complete mess last night cleaning up. Knowing full well I let Gabriel fuck me bareback ON Grayson's desk makes it so much worse.
I'm tempted to smile or burst out in laughter.
"This isn't the first time, either. I'm going to find out who cleans my office—"
"Grayson, it's not a big deal," I chuckle.
"If it happened to you, you would freak out," he says. I give him a knowing look, and he tones it down. "Fine. If it happens again, I'm complaining. It needs to be the weekend already, damn. I'm going golfing tomorrow with—"
Grayson's words are mumbles to me. I spent last night contemplating what to do about having Gabriel's number. This obviously means he wants more from me. I don't mind that at all. But I don't want my screwing him to influence any part of the decision-making for CEO. Not to mention I don't know a damn thing about him besides "he has an enormous cock" and "he's allergic to caffeine". God, do I even want to know more about him? He's kind of an asshole, and I don't want to get sucked into something stupid with no way out. Then again, the sex so far is mind-blowing. Now I'm tossing up between good dick and my freaking job. Yeah right.
I'm going to stop things where they stand. Gabriel seems like the type of guy to dismiss any kind of conflict and move on quickly. I'm quite the opposite. Not a good match.
"Zeke? Are you even listening to me?" Grayson asks, waving his hand in my face.
"Not really. Lot on my mind. Hey, I'm gonna officially get started on that negotiation with the branch in California," I explain. Grayson says a quick goodbye. As soon as he leaves, my office phone rings. I hate the sound of it. "Hello, Zeke Hartigan of OrtegaTech Colo—"
"Hello, Ezekiel."
"...Hello. May I help you with—"
"This is Jiao. Gabriel's secretary. If you have a minute, Gabriel would like to visit with you in his office."
Before I get the chance to respond, Jiao hangs up. In the past two weeks, my life has been grabbed by the shoulders and shaken until it's dizzy and stumbling. Every fiber of my body tells me to go upstairs, but my brain jumps around a million possible scenarios.
I decide not to rehearse anything to say in fear of sounding dishonest. I think by now, Gabriel can see through it. It's not that I don't want anything to do with him; I just need focus. Big time.
Caught up in my own thoughts, I forget to even knock on the door. Gabriel is caught by surprise, teacup in hand. "Hello."
"Hey. Hello," I say, looking down at my shoes. "I don't really know what to say." I adjust my glasses and straighten my tie. No vest today.
Gabriel stares me down as I toss around a few excuses in my head. I feel like if I say 'I want to focus on work', he's going to laugh at me. Part of me wants to tell him to kindly fuck off, the other part wants to impress him. For what? To me, he's not the head of OTech, he's just another man. An intimidating man, yes, but another man nonetheless.
"I'm not going to call you," I finally announce. "I'm not going to screw my way to CEO."
"This in no way influences—"
"Let me finish," I interrupt. "You're not the nicest person I've come across, Gabriel, and I have a lot to focus on without having to worry about if you approve of me or not. I'm just not going to deal with it. I'm sure you don't mind anyway but I just thought I'd tell you that."
Gabriel stares at me—I'm beginning to think he just never learned NOT to stare at people—and I sigh in annoyance. "Now, you wanted me up here for... whatever reason..."
"Oh..." Gabriel's cheeks flush red and he glances at a brown paper bag on his desk. "I, um, brought you something. You seem like the type of guy who doesn't eat breakfast in the morning. I thought I might... do something about that... I brought you a burrito and some orange juice," he says, mouth twisted. His stance isn't so imposing now. I think I hurt his feelings. He stares at his hands instead of at me.
"No, thank you," I say. I'm on my way out the door when my stomach growls. It's so loud, I wonder if Gabriel heard it. I spin on my heel. "What kind of burrito, exactly?"
------
So, I partially lied to Grayson. The text I sent him said I was in a semi-important conversation with Gabriel upstairs, and to keep an eye on the phone in my office.
As I sit here, taking a big bite of ham, cheese, potatoes and eggs, we are indeed in a conversation. Sort of.
"They put jalapeños in mine," Gabriel complains.
"I'm not switching you," I laugh. "Wait, no. I like jalapeños. Switch me."
"You took a bite out of yours," he protests.
"What are we, in second grade?" I reach over and snatch his burrito from him and give him mine. He quickly gets over it. "This doesn't change anything."
Gabriel mocks me, "Nothing changes anything."
I smirk, taking even a bigger bite from the burrito in my hand. Dear god, was he right. I eat an actual breakfast probably once a week. Twice if I'm lucky. It's not that I'm really rushing in the morning; I just don't feel as if breakfast should be at the top of my priority list.
I eat faster than I intend to; Gabriel hasn't even hit the halfway mark with his meal. "So are you a breakfast person, Gabe?" I ask. Gabriel nods, wiping his mouth with a napkin.
"I'm a food person. I like eating.
