But it was probably all for the best, since he badly needed some time to compose himself and think about what had just happened. One thing was for damned sure - he could no longer keep his attraction towards Tessa a secret, not after the way he’d dry humped her against the wall and come within minutes of fucking her senseless. God damn it, this was not the way he’d wanted things to unfold, to let her know of how he felt about her. He had intended to woo her gently, to take things slowly and show her exquisite tenderness and patience. But all it had taken was one glimpse of her nearly naked breasts, and his carefully planned seduction had been escalated to breakneck speed.

Ian agonized all during dinner about where things went from here, barely touching his food or saying much of anything. He was vaguely aware that the others at the table were regarding him oddly, asking if he was all right, and he mumbled some excuse about being a bit under the weather.

He had difficulty falling asleep that night, his body hard and throbbing when he recalled how soft Tessa’s lips had been, how sweetly passionate her response. It had been far too long since he’d been with a woman, resorting to jacking off in the shower to find some temporary relief, all because no one else except for Tessa appealed to him in the slightest. And now that he’d finally touched and kissed her, he knew no one else would ever do, that she was the only woman for him. Ever.

As he eventually drifted off into a restless slumber, he still had no idea of what he was going to say or do when he saw her again tomorrow. He should be annoyed that a sweet, shy girl like Tessa had him feeling as rattled and uncertain as an adolescent boy, but instead the realization only brought a smile to his lips as sleep finally claimed him.

Chapter Three

In the five years she had worked for the Gregson Hotel Group, Tessa had never truly considered calling in sick - even when she’d been so ill with the flu she could barely lift her head off the pillow. But today she seriously toyed with the idea, even as she dragged herself out of bed and started getting ready.

Even if she had somehow been able to get the damned ink stain out of her blouse, Tessa knew she’d never be able to wear it again. At least not without remembering in explicit, excruciating detail everything that had happened last evening in Mr. Gregson’s office. Her cheeks still burned with embarrassment as she recalled the way she’d responded to his kisses and expert caresses, how she’d moaned in arousal, and, most shocking of all, how she’d had an orgasm right there on the spot, her body evidently so starved for physical contact that it had taken less than five minutes for her to go off like a skyrocket.

‘Oh, God, he must think you’re some kind of man-hungry slut,’ she despaired as she searched through her ever-diminishing wardrobe for something to wear. ‘Letting him touch you like that, moaning like you’re the star of a bad porn flick. How in the world am I going to face him today?’

Tessa had barely slept a wink last night, tossing and turning as she worried about the consequences of last evening’s fiasco. It was all her fault, she thought wildly, for using his private bathroom and then foolishly deciding to strip off her blouse in what had been a futile attempt to get it clean. She should have just used the ladies room in the office, or at the very least had enough sense to close the door.

He would unquestionably be angry with her, that much was for certain. The look on his face when he’d stormed out of his office had been ferocious, and she only hoped he’d had the opportunity to calm down overnight and deal with this awful mess in a rational manner.

She chose one of her oldest outfits - a black turtleneck sweater and a black and white checkered wool skirt. The skirt was a little loose since she’d lost some weight, but after unintentionally exposing herself yesterday she was anxious to present a conservative image this morning. She wore minimal makeup and considered pulling her hair back into a knot, but ran out of time.

During the bus ride to work, Tessa continued to fret about what Mr. Gregson was likely to say or do after their encounter in his office. It was possible that he was as horrified by his impulsive actions as she was about hers, and that he would very tactfully say nothing, acting as though it had never happened. They would finish out the week with her working for him, and then it would likely be a cold day in hell before she was ever asked to fill in for Andrew again.

That was actually the best case scenario. In other, less desirable ones, Mr. Gregson would give her a severe reprimand, arrange for her immediate transfer to another department or location, or, in the absolute worst case, terminate her employment.

Tessa honestly didn’t think Mr. Gregson would go so far as to fire her. He was a kind and fair man, and knew she was on her own now. She simply couldn’t see him putting her out of a job. No, the first and second options were the most likely, and she feared he would in fact arrange for her to be transferred as soon as possible. Of course, her co-workers would immediately begin to speculate that she must have screwed something up big time while filling in for Andrew to suffer such a swift and severe punishment. They wouldn’t guess that what had almost been screwed was Tessa herself.

The bus left her off a couple of minutes earlier than usual due to the “Friday lite” traffic. She was grateful for the extra time to get to her desk and somehow compose herself before Mr. Gregson arrived.

The first thing she noticed when she arrived at her temporary office was the damned printer. Tessa glared at it darkly, thinking it and its faulty ink cartridge the root of all evil.

But then she felt a huge sense of relief when she booted up the computer and looked over the master schedule for today. By some fortunate stroke of luck, Mr. Gregson wouldn’t be arriving at the office until almost noontime. He had a breakfast meeting with the same group of worldwide business associates he’d met with yesterday, followed by a conference he was addressing at the Gregson Hotel up on Nob Hill. Those two appointments would take up most of the morning, giving Tessa some badly needed time to compose herself.

The morning went by quickly as she downloaded and printed a stack of reports, updated some weekly spreadsheets she was in charge of preparing, and answered several emails. She was surprised when she glanced at the clock and realized it was almost noon, and then the butterflies in her tummy really kicked in, for Ian ought to be arriving any minute now. But as the minutes ticked by and he didn’t appear, she assumed he’d just gone to lunch or had a personal appointment, and was grateful to have a few extra minutes before having to face him.