After Hours: MMF Romance Read online

  Contents

  Copyright

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  A Summer Dream

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Also by this Author

  Keep in Touch

  ChocolateErotic.com

  After Hours

  by Bianca Vix

  Copyright © 2016 by Bianca Vix

  Published by Chocolate Erotic Press

  Book and cover design by Fine Line Design

  All rights reserved.

  After Hours is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual people (living or dead), events or locations is entirely coincidental. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author.

  Bonus book included! For a limited time, this edition of After Hours

  includes a second short story, A Summer Dream, as a holiday gift to my readers.

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  Also by Bianca Vix:

  Take a Shot

  Sophia’s Secret

  Rock My World

  Going Bi!

  Chapter 1

  The doors slammed shut two seconds before Jen reached them. Nearly tripping and falling more than once in her rush to get down the stairs, she’d risked broken bones to reach the train.

  And still, the doors had closed on her, very few seconds before she could jump inside. Glumly she stared after the train as it screeched away. This love-hate relationship she had going with the L had to end.

  Cursing to herself, Jen checked the time. If the next train didn’t come soon, she was going to be late for work. Not a great start to the week. She was still new on the job and she really needed to attract positive attention to herself, not stand out by being late.

  Feeling a more than a little panicky, she tried to get back to being as calm as she was back at home. Racing into the office in a whirlwind of chaos with the I-didn’t-mean-to-be-late vibe about her wouldn’t do at all.

  Not today.

  This Monday morning she was determined to arrive at work all put-together and glossy, with a the glow of sexy confidence coming off her at all time.

  Since she’d started working at TeraxWest, Jen had never been late, not once. Unlike at her previous company, where she had been given warnings more than a few times, her new job had a great incentive for being on time in the form of one of her colleagues.

  Kade Moran was Irish, and one of the best-looking men on her floor. The first time they met, Jen’s heart had started pounding so hard, she was afraid he’d be able to hear it.

  His warm blue eyes made her think of the ocean. Even the way he pushed a stray piece of his black hair away from his eyes was far sexier than it should have been.

  What really made her shiver though was his rich, lilting accent. It was beautiful and so sexy Jen thought she might have dreamt it up. Later she’d found out that he had moved to Chicago when he was nine, so it wasn’t too heavy but it was more than enough to make his deep, lyrical voice sound as handsome as he looked.

  “Jennilyn.” No-one ever used her full name, except Kade. The way he made her name sound made her wonder just what else his tongue was capable of doing. And she nearly melted every time he said it.

  Every. Single. Time.

  At nearly six foot two, he towered over her five and a half feet. And she would have jumped at the chance to make the climb up his broad chest to reach those sweet, seductive lips.

  Kade was always impeccably dressed. Jen had never found men’s suits particularly sexy until the first time she saw Kade and his perfect combination of professional and cool. And Jen hadn’t yet caught him as anything other than perfectly groomed. Never so much as a single hair out of place. It was a daily challenge to resist imagining him all hot and sweaty.

  Preferably naked and on top of her at the same time.

  He’d charmed her the moment they met and her attraction to him was turning into real interest. Something had to be done to see if she might have a chance with a man like him.

  Jen knew she wasn’t the only woman who wanted him. In fact, she practically had to get in line. There was just something about Kade that attracted every single woman on their floor. Not to mention the married ones, and she noticed more than a few male glances his way every now and then.

  And yet.

  No-one had ever managed to be the one. The one he went for. According to her colleagues that she was starting to get to know, he’d never dated anyone from the office. Or mentioned a girlfriend, not in the entire time he’d been working at TeraxWest.

  Still, Kade flirted with her in a very subtle way, every chance he got. Jen enjoyed that as much as she did being work friends with him. No matter what was going on during the day, just talking to him for a moment would cheer her up and help her get through the crisis of the moment.

  Now if she didn’t make it to work on time, Kade would be behind closed doors at his morning meeting and Jen would have to go for way too long without seeing him.

  That was no way to start the day.

  Glancing back down the dark tunnel, she willed the next train to come faster. It was her own fault she was running late, but still. The L could at least do her a favour and give her a little help. Today was the day she’d finally decided to see if she could take their casual flirting up a notch or two, and she had to dress just right for the occasion.

  Instead of her usual fairly conservative suit, Jen was wearing the new clothes she’d picked up on the weekend. What was supposed to be a quick trip to find a new sweater quickly turned into the project of putting together a whole new look. Something as sexy as she could get away with but that didn’t cross the line into unprofessional.

  Hours after she’d started shopping, Jen had left downtown armed with bags of new treasures. Back at home, she pulled them out lovingly and laid them out to have another look.

  A tight navy skirt would replace her usual dress pants, along with an inappropriately sheer white top that she could keep covered up with a matching jacket when at her desk, but remove casually before she visited Kade in his office. Shiny new black pumps with heels that were just the tiniest bit too high for the average corporate environment, but they rounded out her new outfit nicely.

  And everything would have been fine except at the very last minute, when she was just about to leave her apartment, a last glance in the mirror had convinced Jen that her hair wasn’t doing enough for her. She had to change it, and right now.

  Hurrying back the bathroom, she twisted her long ash blonde hair into as tidy of an up-do as she could manage. There. That was it. Kade wouldn’t be able to help noticing her. Sexy, edgy business woman was a look that she knew would get his attention. If everything went as planned, his eyes would fall to the floor when he saw her.

  Bursting into the lobby of the TeraxWest building, Jen arrived only a few minutes later than she would have liked. Not too bad. She still had a good chance of catching Kade before he disappeared.

  Tapping her foot impatiently while waiting for one of several elevators to make an appearance, someone called out her name.

  “Hey, Jen.” Two of the personal assistants, Liz and Sara, came around the corner and joined her.

  “Did you hear? Kade is leaving TW,” Sara told her.

/>   Jen’s jaw dropped. “What?”

  No. No. That couldn’t be right. She and Kade were friends, sort of, so even if he was planning to make a move, surely he would have told her. Her heart plummeted.

  “They’re going to make the official announcement today.” Liz sighed. “I can’t believe he’s going.”

  “Sucks, doesn’t it? He’s such a good guy.” Sara’s disappointment was clear, but nowhere near what Jen was feeling.

  Sara and Liz kept talking as they rode up to the tenth floor, but Jen didn’t listen to a word they were saying. Kade was leaving. The thought was like a physical blow. Her stomach clenched at the idea of not having him around to chat with every day, let alone fuel her very inappropriate fantasies.

  The route to Jen’s desk took her directly past Kade’s office. A quick glance through the glass revealed him to be there, talking on the phone. When he spotted Jen, he gave her a wave to come in.

  Reluctantly she entered, not really having the time to spare but too upset to pass up the opportunity to call him out.

  “I’m going to have to call you back,” he said into the phone, and hung up. At least she wouldn’t have to wait for him, her dismay slowly turning to irritation.

  “Jennilyn! You look lovely. Of course, you always do. But today, wow.” Kade sounded so friendly and cheerful, she could almost forgave him for leaving.

  Almost.

  “How are you?” He was gazing at Jen, his eyes roving over her body like he was seeing her for the first time. It was exactly the reaction she’d been hoping for, but she couldn’t enjoy it now.

  “Fine.” She made an effort to keep the disappointment out of her voice. “More to the point, how are you? Anything new?” In spite of herself, her words came out with a sharper edge than she’d meant them to. And Kade definitely noticed.

  His expression changed. “So, you heard I’m leaving?”

  Jen nodded, her irritation at not being told his news sooner suddenly replaced by sadness. She was truly going to miss him.

  “Jennilyn, I’m sorry. I wanted you to be among the first to know, but I only gave Gavin notice yesterday. Our meeting ended up going on far too long and by the time we were done, you’d already left.”

  Jen ventured a glance into Kade’s eyes. He did seem sincere. “It’s okay. But why didn’t you ever mention that you were looking for another job?”

  “I wasn’t. I had no plans to leave, but I got head-hunted. The offer came right out of the blue. I went to the interview without any expectations whatsoever. They ended up making me an offer right then, and it was far too good to turn down. So I decided to go for it. It’s all been really rushed. I’ve never decided to make such a big change so quickly before.”

  “Well…” Jen didn’t know what to say. “Good for you. Congratulations,” she managed, trying to sound like she meant it as she forced a smile. And she was happy for him, getting a much better job, even though it meant she wouldn’t see him anymore.

  Leaning back in his chair, Kade regarded her, his expression unreadable. “I’ll miss you, Jennilyn,” he said, his sexy grin causing her insides to do somersaults.

  “Me too. I’ll see you later.” The room was suddenly too hot, too small to hold her disappointment. Jen had to get out and away from Kade before he could see just how much he was affecting her.

  Chapter 2

  “Jen, aren’t you coming?” Liz leaned over the low wall that separated their cubicles. “It’s Kade’s last day, remember. Party in the boardroom? Ringing any bells?”

  Like Jen could ever forget it was his last day. “Oh, I know. I’ve just got to tie up one more thing. I’ll see you there in a few minutes.”

  “Better hurry, or there won’t be much left in the way of food or booze.”

  “I will.” With a sigh, Jen turned back to her computer. If she could have gone with Liz, she would have. But she’d be risking her job if she didn’t get this report in on time, and she couldn’t afford to do that. And even without Kade around, she liked working at TW.

  It had been a terrible day, and not just because Kade was leaving. One client after another had issues that needed attention, and Jen had spent at least half the day on the phone putting out fires instead of getting anything done.

  Kade’s remaining time had flown by without Jen seeing very much of him. Every time she stopped by for a quick chat, he’d been engrossed in yet another meeting. It made sense, since he had to get everyone up to speed on his projects before he left, but still. He wasn’t even gone and she was already missing him.

  Kade was leaving after only a week’s notice instead of the usual two, having struck some sort of deal with Gavin. And so Jen had to resign herself to the fact she probably wouldn’t see him again. He hadn’t made a move on her yet and she was out of moves of her own.

  Even in spite of the way he would give her a smoldering grin every single time he caught a glimpse of her through the glass walls of his office. All she could do was give him a shaky smile back and hope that he couldn’t read her mind.

  Although, maybe it would make life a lot more interesting if he could.

  But now, time was up. Everyone was gathering for his send-off. If he’d wanted to make a move on her, it would be today or never.

  Probably never.

  Still, she wasn’t going to miss seeing him off. By the time she was able to hurry down to the large boardroom, everyone was already calling for Kade to make a speech.

  Standing in the doorway, Jen’s eyes never left Kade as he made his way to the head of the table.

  “Thank you everyone, this is great.” He glanced around the room as he spoke, and Jen couldn’t help but hope he’d somehow spot her in the crowd.

  No such luck.

  God. The sound of Kade’s sexy voice was more than she could take right now. Jen needed to get herself a glass of wine and some food, in that order.

  She had to step out to find what she wanted. There was no way she could make it through the crowd to get to anything in the boardroom, so she went off to the smaller meeting room next door where the overflow was being kept. The party Sara had put together was lovely, although Jen was in no mood to appreciate it.

  Liz was there, for the same reason she was. “Hey, Jen. You made it.”

  “Finally.” She poured herself a glass of wine.

  “I don’t know if you got to spend much time with Kade at all, but he’s a great guy. It’s not going to be the same around here without him.”

  “He seems pretty nice.” Jen took a long drink. “Lots of people came out to say goodbye, too.”

  “He is. I was his PA when I first started at TW. I’m going to miss him a lot. Just like every other female employee in the building will be, I’m sure.”

  Jen stifled a sigh. What Liz said was true, of course, but she didn’t need to be reminded that Kade could have had anyone in the entire company if he wanted to. And for all she knew, he had. Maybe he was just super-discrete.

  There was little chance of anything ever happening between the two of them, but at least up until now, Jen could dream about it. With him gone, little chance went straight to zero.

  “You want to get back there?” Liz topped up both of their glasses.

  Jen nodded, following her out.

  By the time they got back, Kade was finished his speech. Jen found a gap off to the side to stand in, busying herself with snacking and drinking. She didn’t know anyone very well yet, and she wasn’t really up for mingling right then anyway.

  All she really wanted to do was go home, but it would have been rude to Kade to leave his party too soon. In a little while, she could probably slip away without being noticed.

  In spite of herself, Jen scanned around the room, sipping her wine and looking for Kade so she could say a quick goodbye.

  “Looking for someone?”

  The voice came from behind her. Jen swiveled her head, her eyes widening at the unexpected sight of Kade lounging against the wall, tie loosened, a drink in his han
d. He was wearing a pale blue shirt under his charcoal suit jacket that made his eyes seem an even deeper shade of blue than usual.

  Color flooded Jen’s cheeks so fast and hard, they actually throbbed. Surely Kade would notice her reaction to being so close to him?

  His scent was intoxicating, all masculine and strong. That must be what was making her head spin and her heart pound.

  “What are you doing by the door, Jennilyn? Was my speech so dull that you had to make an escape?” A smile was forming at the corners of Kade’s mouth, curving into a seductive grin.

  She caught her breath at the familiar, intoxicating way he pronounced her name. It was as if his rich, smooth voice was caressing her body.

  If only.

  How would she react if it were his hands instead? Probably catch on fire. Jen shook her head. This was so not the time to think about that. “Of course not. I just needed a drink. It’s been a long week, you know.”

  Kade raised his eyebrow at her as if he somehow knew what she was really thinking. If she was blushing before, she must have been on the verge of bursting into flames now. Still, there was no possible way he could tell just how much she wanted him.

  Was there?

  Kade’s grin turned into a smirk just before he took a sip of his drink. Oh, hell. He was just too damn sexy. It shouldn’t have been possible for any man to look as gorgeous as he did.

  Still unnerved by his sudden presence and how close he was standing to her, Jen struggled to come up with something to say. The way he was looking at her was making her cheeks heat up once again.

  Along with pretty much every other part of her body.

  It didn’t help a bit when Kade slid his arm around Jen’s waist, hugging her to his side so their hips bumped, forcing a rush of lust to pump through her veins. He’d never touched her like that before. The closest they’d come to intimacy was a friendly hug that was anything but sexual. And that had happened just the one time.