Deceptive Nights (21 page)

As they kissed he turned her around to sit on
the front of his desk. They took their time removing parts of their
clothing careful not to rip anything knowing they needed their
clothing for later.

He whispered in her ear, “I missed you,
Phoebe.”

She smiled, “I missed you too, Jacoby.”

These words alone seem to unleash even more
of his passion and he knelt down spreading her legs and burying his
face down below her stomach. Phoebe was in pure heaven and didn’t
care about where they were as she cried out his name. She peaked
several times before his oral onslaught was over with and when he
stood up, his pants were already opened. When he entered her
easily, Phoebe knew only he could make her so susceptible to
lovemaking. There was no competition to keep his attention or make
him stay, every touch with his hands, lips, and body told her that
he wanted to be no where else, but in her arms. Making love to him
made her feel like a queen in his life and there was no other place
she would rather be than here in his arms.

An hour and a half later, she found herself
sitting in his lap, while he rested back in the chair behind his
desk. They were silent as her head rested on his chest and his arms
wrapped around his waist. She listened to his heartbeat enjoying
how the rapid beat was slowing down and would immediately speed
back up whenever she wiggled around on his lap. He was still
partially hardened deep inside of her and although he was spent, he
was still aroused.

How they had gotten on the other side of the
desk was completely obviously to her. She remembered him lifting
her, but she was so consumed in pleasure, she really had not cared
where they ended up.

Looking up at him, she used the tip of her
finger and traced her fingers around the edge of his lips
memorizing every centimeter of skin and the feel of it on her
fingertips. When she would make her touch light as a feather, it
tickled him and he would try to nip at her. Once he caught the tips
in his mouth, she tingled as he suckled softly. She replaced her
tongue with her fingers and immediately their passion was
ignited.

Suddenly the door opened and Madeline stood
there, eyes as wide as saucers and looking like a dark skinned
Cruella DeVille.

“
What the hell is going on
in my offices?!” she screeched.

Phoebe didn’t know what to say, but the
feeling of Jacoby’s arms tightening around her protectively made
her feel a little secure.

“
I can explain this,
Madeline,” Jacoby said. “This is all my-”

“
This is all the workings
of a tramp who can’t keep her legs closed around my office guest to
save her life,” Madeline hissed.

“
That’s not true!” Jacoby
protested.

“
I’m guessing that with all
your screwing around, Phoebe, you haven’t found those reports,”
Madeline guessed.

Phoebe was too embarrassed to speak and only
buried her face in Jacoby’s neck.

Jacoby spoke through gritted teeth. “Give us
some privacy please to get ourselves together, Madeline,” he
ordered.

Madeline’s voice was clearly triumphant as
she said, “She has five minutes to get in my office.” She slammed
the door behind her as she exited the office.

Phoebe groaned in his neck. “I can’t believe
this is happening to me.”

“
Quit now,” he
ordered.

Glaring up at him, she said, “I can’t just go
in there and quit.” She kept her voice down so no one would hear
their voices.

“
Yes, you can. Then you can
come work for me.”

Narrowing her eyes, she snipped, “I won’t be
your mistress.” Moving up and off of him, she started to fix her
clothes.

“
I don’t want a mistress.”
He stood up adjusting his own suit. “I need an office
manager.”

“
You’ve lost your mind
again, haven’t you?”

“
No. I know you’re smart
and highly motivated. You’d be perfect in running the office, while
I’m not there and you can help me with my growing clientele.
Keeping them happy while I’m gathering up new clientele. I know
you’d make a great manager and I won’t have to worry about anything
as long as I have you there.”

“
I won’t be your whore
either, Jacoby. You won’t pimp me to your friends.”

“
I think you need to calm
down.”

“
Calm down?! Madeline
caught us. Doesn’t that bother you?”

“
No. Why should it?” he
asked.

She huffed in frustration. “Does anything
bother you, Jacoby?”

He kissed her nose. “You do, but in a good
way.”

She started toward the door trying to put on
her shoes as she walked.

“
I’ll pay you forty
thousand. The amount she was supposed to be paying you.”

Looking back at him over her shoulder, she
shook her head. “I won’t work for you, Jacoby.”

“
Fifty.”

“
No.”

“
Sixty.”

“
Stop that.” Phoebe faced
him.

“
Seventy five and that’s my
final offer, plus full benefits and a company car.”

“
You’re crazy.” Calming
herself down, she leaned against the door and shook her head not
believing she was actually considering another offer from him.
“This has nothing to do with sex, Jacoby.”

“
I told you I never mix
business with pleasure. I don’t hire you for sexual reasons,” he
stated firmly. “I hire you on your business skills and
determination to do a good job.”

“
Let me handle this crisis
first, then we’ll talk.” She started to open the door, but he
grabbed her and pulled her in his arms kissing her hard.

“
What was that for?” she
asked breathlessly when he finally released her.

“
Luck and later.” A wicked
twinkle in his eye clearly told her Jacoby was a man filled with
desire for her, but he also was filled with admiration for her
knowledge and intelligence.

Gathering her courage like a thick coat
around her, she prepared to face Madeline. Going first to the
printer where the reports were all run off, she gathered them off
and placed them in an envelope, then went and grabbed her
briefcase. Going into Madeline’s office, she looked at the corner
of the room to see Jacoby standing by the window out of the way
with a sympathetic look on her face and Simon sitting in front of
the desk with a triumphant look on his face just like Madeline.

“
Are you ready to explain
where the reports are?” Madeline asked. “We have Leslie and Kyle on
the phone already. Kyle has informed me that they are missing
reports from Monday. Do you have an explanation?”

“
Yes, Phoebe,” Simon butted
in. “You do have an explanation, especially for taking so long to
find them.”

Phoebe shot Simon a loathing look. Sitting
down in front of the desk, she found herself very able to speak now
that she wasn’t so undress.

“
Before anything is said,”
Jacoby interjected, “Maybe I should leave.”

“
Oh no, Jacoby,” Madeline
beamed. “I would like you to stay.”

Phoebe knew Madeline wanted Jacoby there and
Jacoby looked over at her feeling a bit uncomfortable. Obviously,
Madeline must have explained the situation and Jacoby couldn’t find
any good reason to get her out the situation she seemed to have dug
herself in.

“
I would like you to see
that Phoebe has incompetently failed our client. With her gross
negligence and stupidity she has lost over twenty reports and then
never told anyone what she has done.” Madeline leaned forward
toward Phoebe. “Now you expect me to pay out of my pocket to
doctor’s and the transcriptionists to re-dictate and retype reports
that you lost. I don’t think so.” She pulled out some papers from a
file she had on her desk. “According to my calculations, you owe
this company ten thousand dollars for your ignorance. How do you
intend to pay it?”

Phoebe looked at Simon and then Jacoby.
Returning her gaze back to Madeline, she said, “I don’t intend to
pay it, Madeline.”

“
Then I suggest you give us
your resignation now or would you just prefer I fire you for
incompetence.”

Phoebe ticked her tongue. “I think neither
would be feasible for you.”

“
Feasible for me?” Madeline
cackled. “Have you listened to a word that I’ve said? I don’t owe
you a dime, Phoebe Green.”

Taking the information out of her bag that
her mother had complied, Phoebe handed the packet to Madeline. She
had three more copies. With those she handed two to Jacob and
Simon, then kept one for herself. “According to this packet, you
owe me a total of one hundred and twenty thousand dollars in back
pay including bonuses and the use of a vehicle which you quoted in
the FIA agreement of what your office manager would be making and
having. In the total I have put in the cost of transportation,
extra expenses I have incurred because of what you have not given -
this includes late fees for daycare and nonpayment of bills because
of decrease living expenses or unable to make payments because I
was too busy at work.”

“
Are you forgetting the
issue at hand? You lost reports!” Madeline screamed standing up.
“You have yet to explain what happened to those
reports.”

Phoebe tossed the reports on the middle of
Madeline’s desk. “I emailed those reports personally to Leslie
Monday afternoon because I knew your deceit would know no bounds.
Those reports are where they are supposed to be - with the doctors.
I asked Leslie to send those reports off and didn’t inform Kyle
that I had sent them. All you can fault me on is miscommunication,
and you can’t fire me because of that. I got my job complete and
that’s all that needs to be said.”

Jacoby chuckled. “According to these
agreements, Madeline, if Phoebe gets a good employment lawyer, your
ass is grass.”

Stiffly Madeline said, “This does not concern
you, Jacoby. You may leave.”

“
And miss the going down of
the Titanic? I think not.” Jacoby crossed his arms. “I really want
to see this.”

“
Furthermore, I think
Simon’s father would be very interested in hearing about how you
have misappropriated some of the funds that the FIA has been
sending you,” Phoebe said continuing. “You deliberately deceived
the state in issuing out two checks. One for the regular reports
and another one for the extra reports requested, then you over
billed for those reports from the state.”

Leslie spoke up. “I would also be interested
in that as well.”

Madeline picked up the entire phone and threw
it against the wall ending the call with Lansing. “Shut up!” she
screeched. “You stupid, bitch. You think you can come in here and
mess up what I have worked so hard to create.”

“
You deceived everyone,
didn’t you Madeline? You did anything and everything to get your
way, but I won’t let you get away with it another moment. I’m
taking all I have to the state and Joseph Bowen. You’ll go to jail
for what you-” Phoebe was cut off sharply as Madeline seem to leap
over the desk and enclose her long fingers around Phoebe’s neck
strangling her.

Phoebe fell back from the force of body
weight on her and Madeline followed all the way to the ground. At
this same moment security arrived along with Lawrence to see
Madeline choking Phoebe. Jacoby was above them, trying to pull
Madeline away, but she had a death grip on Phoebe’s neck.

With all her might and what was left of the
strength inside her body, Phoebe delivered a fist to Madeline’s
right jaw sending the older woman careening off of her. Phoebe
stood up with Jacoby’s help as Madeline jumped to her feet on her
own. Phoebe was still coughing, but when Madeline charged at her
and swung the claws she called nails, Phoebe ducked and Madeline
viciously scraped Jacoby’s neck with her nails.

Phoebe bawled up her other fist and delivered
a full body weight punch to Madeline’s chest followed by a right to
her eye. Madeline fell back over the chairs. Phoebe turned to
Jacoby to see if he was all right as Madeline barely was able to
stand up on her own.

“
Arrest her!” Madeline
sneered. “Call the police.”

“
But you were landing the
punches,” one of the security officers said.

She sneered, “This is my office and I demand
that this slut be thrown off my property.”

Phoebe was sick and tired of Madeline’s petty
name calling. “I’ll show you some throwing, Bitch,” she sneered
lunging for her, but Jacoby grabbed her around the waist and held
her against him. Madeline ran behind Simon, who now stood with a
daze and confused look on his face.

“
Take your hands off of
her,” Lawrence ordered.

Jacoby gave Lawrence a warning glance. “This
isn’t the time, Lawrence.”

Phoebe rolled her eyes heavenwards and moved
away from Jacoby to turn the attention back to her ignoring
Lawrence’s displeasure. “Simon you better start talking, unless you
were apart of this. In that case, I intend to tell your father
about your involvement on having me fired.”

Simon was sweating like a stuck pig as he
blurted out, “It was all her idea!”

The room was quiet as all eyes turned on
Madeline, whom Simon was pointing an accusing finger at.

“
She said we could get away
with it all if I didn’t tell my daddy and I’d get a boatload of
money.”

“
Just how much money is
involved here?” Jacoby asked bothered.

“
Over a million dollars in
overages alone, not including the money for the office personnel
that she supposedly told Bowen that was employed here. Looking over
the accounting records,” Phoebe said, going over to the desk to
flip through the packet, “She has four bogus employees here that
don’t exist, but their checks are being cashed and put in her
account.”