Page 23 of Promise of Destruction
“Good.” I purr, unable to hide my pleasure at the sound of that little word tipping off her tongue. “Now, second: you have a filthy mouth. Itreallyneeds punished.”
I thought she couldn’t get any redder, but I was wrong. It’s one of a few very rare moments where I delight in being wrong.
“That’s completely inappropriate!” She snarls, like the feral little kitty cat she is. “I highly doubt HR would tolerate such brazen sexual harassment.”
I laugh, stepping around her desk to join her. “Smart people don’t bite the hand that feeds them. Nobody is going to levy harassment charges against the man who signs their paycheck.”
“Oh yeah?” She straightens, realizing her ass is against the wall. She has nowhere to go, and just like the desperate, wild creature she is, she’s trapped. “What about the police?”
“Oh, sweet baby girl.” I trace the bow of her lips as she shrinks into the wall like she’s desperate to escape my touch. “You already know the police work for me. You wrote an entire article about it.”
She wants to argue with me, but she knows that I’m right. “Fine. Then I’ll quit. I don’t need this job!”
We both know that isn’t true, but I nod anyway, like I’m preparing to accept defeat. “If you really think that, then you’re free to leave at any moment.” I step back enough to allow her to push past me, and she doesn’t disappoint.
Soren drives her shoulder into my chest as she brushes by me, a passive aggressive little knock that does nothing but amuse me. “But I’d suggest you reconsider that. We haven’t even discussed your raise yet.”
Just like I predicted, my words stop her in her tracks.
There’s a moment where she debates walking out that door, but her common sense kicks in and she turns, crossing her arms over her chest. “What raise?”
“You’re editor in chief, now. Surely you don’t expect to do more work for less pay?”
She worries her bottom lip as she wars with herself for a moment, and when she speaks again, the venom in her voice is poorly concealed.
“So, what? I’m supposed to whore myself out to you? Deal with inappropriate comments and touches because you’re offering me a raise?”
Her candor is cute, but not as much as the complete disgust in her voice at the thought of taking my offer. “I didn’t have any of that written into the contract,” I shrug, “but if you’d like, I can call my attorney and have an amended version here within the hour.”
If looks could kill, I’d have been dead a long time ago and Soren Palmer never would have gotten the opportunity to stare at me like she’s willing the roof to collapse over my head.
Her voice is subdued when she asks, “So what are your terms?”
“I’m making you an offer you can’t refuse.” I assure her. “We can discuss numbers in a bit, but in the meantime, let’s just say you were woefully underpaid before. And I pay my employeesverygenerously.”
Her eyes dart from me to the door, like she’s thinking of walking out on me. But I can see her working through her options, and while she may still cling to her pride, she’s smart enough to realize that turning me down isn’t in her best interest.
“Okay,” she says quietly. “I’ll stick around to review the contract and if it’s satisfactory, we will go from there.”
“Perfect.” She’s nearly out the door before my voice pauses her with her hand on the doorknob. “And Miss Palmer?”
She turns to watch me as I sidle up to her side, her distrust obvious as I close the space between us so that I can bring my mouth to her ear and whisper directly into it.
“If you ever make me late for my own meeting again, I’ll bend you over your desk and spank you until you’re so swollen you can’t walk. You’ll have to roll your chair into the meeting. Are we understood?”
I feel the quiver that passes over her and combined with the little gasp that leaves her lips, I can tell it isn’tallfear that’s making her shake. Her eyes are wide and she’s breathless, afraid to move, to speak. But she recognizes that I’m not stepping away from her until I get an answer, so she manages to gasp out a single word that’s nearly lost on her shaky breath.
“Yes.”
I smile for her benefit, but don’t move just yet, tucking a strand of her hair out of her face. She flinches away from me at first, and then she realizes what I’m waiting for.
Her resolve fractures, a little piece of her pride chipping away as she works the words in her mouth.
“Yes, sir.”
sixteen
Soren
