AlTonya Washington - Pleasure After Hours

“You’re right.” Ike sighed, pushing both hands into his pockets while crossing the office. “She glides.” He sat on the edge of the desk. “Hell, Taeo, she’s amazing. I see why you never officially introduced me to her before now.”

Practically speechless, Mataeo simply watched the man. He considered himself one rarely surprised by anything or anyone. But his crew chief had managed to accomplish that at least twice in one hour.

“It’s okay.” Ike waved his hands playfully. “I understand. I wouldn’t want my friends knowing her, either.”

“It’s not like that.” Mataeo sat behind his desk. “She sees who she wants, when she wants....”

Ike braced his hands on the desk. “And how often is that when she spends most of her time working for you?”

Mataeo couldn’t prevent a smile from curving his mouth.

“Would you be upset if I asked her out?”

“Why should I be upset?” Mataeo was unconscious of the clipped tone to his words.

Ike nodded, satisfied by the response at any rate. “Well, I gotta get goin’.” He patted his khaki pockets for keys. “See you at the next meeting,” he called on his way out the door.

Alone, Mataeo dropped the cool facade. He sat on the desk, facing the view beyond the windows, and massaged a palm across his fist.

Later that afternoon, Temple was curled up on her office sofa reviewing notes from the meeting with Ike Melvin. Mataeo found her when she was about halfway through.

“Don’t get up.” He raised a hand when she spotted him at the door and made a move to leave the sofa.

“I didn’t mean to barge in.” He motioned toward the door as he crossed the threshold. “Lilly wasn’t at her desk,” he said, referencing her assistant.

“Is everything all right?” Temple drew her knees up to her chest and watched him stroll in slowly.

“Yeah, fine.” The quiet sandpaper tone of his voice held an absent quality. Hands hidden in the deep pockets of his walnut trousers, he perused the various knickknacks and artwork lining the walls.

“Are you all right?” she rephrased, tilting her head just slightly when he picked up a photo of her with her sisters and studied it for the longest time. “Taeo?”

“Hmm? Yeah, yeah, Temp, I’m good.” He set down the photo and fixed her with a bemused look. “I think Ike’s in love with you,” he teased.

Temple chuckled, stretching her legs out across the sofa cushions and wriggling her toes. “He seems very knowledgeable and sweet. Glad I had the chance to meet him.”

Mataeo felt his jaw clench over the “sweet” comment and wasn’t sure he quite understood the reason why.

“Just remember you said that,” he warned playfully, still trying to make light of the moment. “I got a feelin’ the guy’s leanin’ toward asking you out.”

“Hmph.” Temple’s focus had returned to her meeting notes. She looked up when Mataeo came to take a seat on the sofa.

Once settled, he pulled her feet across his lap before she could curl them beneath her bottom.

She gave him a nudge with one stockinged foot. “You’re acting weirder than usual. What’s up?” She nudged him again. “Taeo?”

A massive shoulder raised up beneath the crisp fabric of his shirt. His gaze remained downcast. “Just realized that I never ask you anything about that.”

“About what?” Temple settled back against the arm of the sofa. “Ike?”

“About your personal life, Temp. About anything that doesn’t have anything to do with this place.” He grimaced and partly curved a fist. “Or about my personal life.” In spite of his mood, Mataeo couldn’t help but smile when he heard her laughter.

“And what a helluva personal life it is.” She reached over to stroke the back of her hand across his cheek.

The smile curving his mouth didn’t quite reach the warm depths of his brown eyes. “I never meant to seem unsympathetic about it, you know?”

“About my…personal life?” She bit the corner of her upper lip when he nodded at her confirmation. “Well…” She smoothed both hands down the satiny length of her skirt. “I know it’s practically nonexistent but I promise you it’s not all that pathetic. There’s no need for sympathy.”

“I didn’t mean it that way.” His voice went softer. “I’m sure it’s, um… I’m sure it’s great. It’d have to be…” His fingers strummed across the top of her feet before traveling a bit higher.

Temple pressed her lips together and blinked several times in rapid succession. She tried to move her feet, but Mataeo prevented that.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” She squeezed his wrists.

“I keep you so damn busy around here. Way too busy—not very fair of me.” His eyes were narrowed as he sent her a sideways look.

“Taeo, no…I love it. I love my job.” She ignored the little voice that reminded her that she was quitting.

“A girl can’t spend her life working all the time, though.”

“But I don’t.” She rubbed his wrist again, then drew back when she felt his hand constrict about her foot. “Do you think you’re keeping me from having fun or something?” She moved her feet beneath her then. She scooted closer when she heard the gruff sound rumble in his chest.

“Taeo?” She dipped her head for a better look at his face. “Is this about my sex life or Manson Yates?”

“Jesus, Temple. Sex life?” His handsome features contorted fiercely, as though that image was one he didn’t want in his head.

His reaction gave Temple pause and she sat up a bit straighter. “Mataeo, why are you really here?” She ignored the voice that told her not to ask.

He captured her hand and dropped a hard kiss to the back of it. No words followed the gesture. Mataeo simply toyed with her fingers for a while. He repeated the hard kiss, only this time he planted it upon her mouth.

“I’ll let you get back to work.” He smoothed the side of his index finger across her parted lips. He kissed her again quickly and then left the office.

“Hey, did you already order?” Temple asked Megaleen as they hugged near the table Meg had secured in her uncle’s seafood restaurant, Barnum’s.

“You know I haven’t.” Meg rolled her eyes toward the front of the dining room. “Shane wanted to come take the orders personally when he found out I was having lunch with you. Told me I could just wait ’til you got here.”

Temple laughed. Shane Barnum, the owner’s son, had women all over Wilmington and beyond. Temple never took his advances seriously. The fact that Shane realized this made his attempts even more humorously outrageous.

“So what’s going on?” Meg brought her elbows to the glossy oak table. “You sounded excited when you called about getting together for lunch.”

“I talked to Kendall last night.” Temple dropped her keys into her tote and set it on an empty chair at the table. “He found a place and claims I won’t need to see another one once he shows it to me.”

“That man.” Meg flipped a lock of her auburn hair around her finger. “Always trying to outdo himself. I don’t see how anything else could top the two places you already have.”

“Well, Kendall told me he could handle those sales, as well.” Temple reached for her water glass and took a hasty swallow.

“You’re going to sell them?” Meg’s brows drew close over her blue eyes. “Have you thought about what Mataeo will say?”

“No, I haven’t, Meg. I never spend any time there. I feel like I’ve wasted his money....” She grimaced and pushed at the glass as if the water had left a sour taste. “I haven’t spent a night in either place since he closed on them.”

“I never knew that.” Meg’s fingers slowed in her hair. “Why not?” Her expression turned more probing when Temple only shrugged.