His Desire

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When I reached Mr. Tanner's office, the door was closed. One hand released the notebook held tightly against my chest as my knuckles collided with the door. "Come in," I heard him call, I could feel my heart begin to race in chest as my hand reached for the doorknob. 

I opened the door slowly, peeking through and seeing him sitting at his desk, looking down at a file, my file. I stepped in and jumped, releasing an audible gasp when I heard the click of the door as it closed. His eyes met mine and for a moment, we both froze. I couldn't look away, not even blink. It was strange, those hauntingly beautiful green eyes stared at me, but I felt no anger, no sadness, even after the hell he put me through for the four years of high school. 

Michael cleared his throat, releasing my gaze. "Please, take a seat, Ms. Milton," he gestured toward the chair in front of his desk. I walked over still holding the notebook against my chest, my palms grew sweaty as I feared I would drop it. He did not deserve to see a single ounce of my body, it was mine to be treasured, not scolded. He briefly looked up at me before glancing down at the paper, I plastered a smile on my face, but it probably appeared to be more of a grimace. 

"So you've worked at the company for two years, focusing on advertising," Michael's eyes remained glued to the paper. "Yes, sir," I responded, although I wasn't sure if what he said was meant as a question or a simple statement. "My father spoke very highly of you and from what I can see, you have kept up with all your work," he looked up at me again, a look of uncertainty flashed in his eyes. "Yes, I love my job. I think that this company will only continue to thrive and I will be-" I was rambling and my cheeks grew hot as I looked down at my lap. "You do not need to fear, Ms. Milton, you're position here is not in jeopardy. I'm looking forward to working with you," the smile on his face only made him more attractive and I hated him for it because he wasn't the Michael I knew in high school, he appeared to be a different man and part of me hoped that was true. 

"I do have a few questions though, if you don't mind," he sat back, rolling his shirt sleeves up; Lord knows that makes any woman weak. I had the urge to fan myself but kept my hands glued to the notebook pressed to my chest as it rose and fell. "No, not at all, ask away," I chuckled uncomfortably. The corner of his mouth curled, "It's just a bit of an evaluation," he grabbed a pen and prepared to write down a few notes. "What do you think Tanner Industries needs to improve on?" My eyebrows furrowed as I sat thinking, yet I could feel his eyes on me. "Well, I think every company has the ability to improve and I think so far your father has done a phenomenal job at maintaining everything and also keeping his employees happy," I paused. "Wow, guess I have a lot to live up to," he chuckled and I couldn't help the light giggle that escaped my lips as a smile spread across my face. "Maybe, but I think adding your own spin on things is always good. Make your employees comfortable. I can only imagine how stressful being the owner of an industry is, but you need to make time for fun, find a balance. I don't honestly know what there is to change as of now, but you will get tons of ideas over time and also from your employees." He nodded, barely moving his pen across the paper in front of him. 

"Is that what you have in that notebook, ideas?" He pointed to it, still pressed tightly to my chest. I could feel all the blood rush up my neck and into my face. "Um, actually-" He interjected, "Please, let me see." He held his hand out and I knew I had no choice but to hand it over. I looked away from him as I hesitantly removed the notebook from my body, and held it out. When Michael didn't grab it immediately, I turned to him. His eyes were wide, locked on my chest, I cleared my throat, "Mr. Tanner?" He met my eyes, "I, um, I apologize. Thank you." He quickly grabbed the notebook from my hands. It did have a few ideas and notes from conferences, but few. I felt a smirk play on my lips as I looked down, pulling my shirt closed the best I could. 

I felt oddly satisfied that this man was so engaged in my chest and stuttered when caught. This man had power and yet I could make him stumble over his own words. I was embarrassed, no doubt, but maybe playing a little game of revenge wouldn't be as bad as I thought, maybe Cass was right. I didn't want to force myself onto him by any means, it was something I needed to think about. "If you don't mind me adding, Mr. Tanner, I think improvements do need to be made within the finance department, there are several ways we could cut back on materials and save money for future projects. I know that's not my field at all, but it's just an idea." His eyebrows furrowed, scanning the page. "No, I agree. That was something I always mentioned to my father before his retirement, but he wanted to leave it at the time. Do you happen to have any more notes on that, examples and such?" 

"Yes actually, if you don't mind," I leaned forward, probably not the best move because I could feel a breeze on my breasts, but I continued. He turned the notebook towards me, as I flipped a few pages, finding the exact page I was looking for. "Here, several resources that are irrelevant to business at the moment and others we can decrease as we already have a surplus." I glanced up at him as I turned the book back over to his side of the desk. His eyes were boring into mine, filled with lust. I was shocked, it was a look I had never received from any man before. I sat back in the chair slowly, crossing my legs and pulling my skirt further down my legs, beginning to feel uncomfortable under his intense stare. 

Michael blinked suddenly, snapping out of the daze he was in. My skin was hot and I wanted to escape his office and put as much distance between us as possible, but at the same time, approach him, feel his body pressed against mine. I needed to stop thinking about him like this, he was my boss, a man I was despised because he could never appreciate my body and yet at this moment his eyes roamed over me like prey. "Miss Milton, maybe we can discuss this another time. I have several other employees to meet with, but thank you for your time." He stood, holding his hand out, I did the same, rubbing my sweaty palm down the side of my skirt before shaking his hand. A simple touch and he shocked me, yet his hand lingered for a moment longer. Michael handed me my notebook, "Thank you, Mr. Tanner." 

I headed for the door only to hear him call my name once again, "Yes sir?" He cleared his throat, pointing to his chest, "you may want to fix-" his voice trailed off. I grabbed my shirt once again, forcing it shut. My cheeks were flushed, I didn't look at him, "I'll just go get a safety pin," my voice tailed off as I slipped out of his office, his eyes burned into my back until I heard the door shut when I got more than halfway down the hallway. 

When I approached my cubicle, Cass was sitting back in my chair, eating a donut with one on my desk, waiting to be devoured. "Oh, babe..." she giggled, finishing her donut. She stood, rubbing her hands together to remove any residue of the pastry. I hadn't realized I was so hungry, but I didn't even know if I had any appetite after the intensity of my meeting with Michael, no, Mr. Tanner. "You look hot, like s few capillaries burst in your cheeks." I groaned, ignoring her as I sat at my desk, forcing the donut into my mouth, just so I wouldn't have to respond to her. 

I have never been harassed with questions like that before, Cassidy was persistent, but something told me this wouldn't be the last time we were in this situation.