Taking Courage (4 page)

Janna
wasn't shying away from making new decisions either. On her way into town on
Saturday, she’d dropped off her application to join the BDSM club where she'd
met Simon. She looked down at her hands, rubbing her knuckles. She couldn't
stop thinking about him. Maybe she'd see him at the club. Maybe she'd be able
to apologize again. Maybe he'd forgive her.

She
paced in a circle on the L platform while she waited for the train. It was a
good thing she'd left for work early, because she'd already missed her L stop
and was now backtracking. Accidental sightseeing hadn't been on her agenda
today.

The
recruiter Keller had connected her with had been most efficient. Within a few
days she’d sent several positions for Janna to consider. Once she’d provided
some feedback, interviews were scheduled, and then Janna had two offers to
consider. She was immensely thankful she’d opened up to Keller that night. She
looked forward to paying him back with a job well done.

Keller
hadn't given her a time to arrive. In fact he told her to take her time
settling in. An eight o'clock start was typical, and she couldn't wait to start
her new life. She walked through the front door right on time. The receptionist
gave her directions to Keller's office. He wanted to meet with her first. Two
lefts and a right, two lefts and then ... a right.

After
the last left turn, she ran into a warm wall of man, one that fortunately caught
her elbow and stopped her from falling.

“Oh, sorry ... Simon?”
Pleasure ran
through her. She'd been hoping her fresh start would lead to seeing him again.
She'd need to consider the complications of finding him at her new job.

His
body straightened while his chest puffed and he offered no smile in return. A
hint of recognition lit his eyes, but he simply stepped around her and stomped
off.

“Shit.”
Tears threatened to leak, but she forced them back. He would not ruin her first
day. He hadn't ruined her first night as a submissive, and he wouldn't ruin
today either.

She
pushed at non-existent wrinkles on her skirt and continued on her way. The
right turn opened into a sweet lobby of sorts. Leather-bound books lined the
shelves covering the walls. Two welcoming and comfy looking reading chairs kept
company in one corner. On the opposite corner was a beautiful cherry desk with
a lovely woman behind it. She looked like someone who could be a good friend.
Janna didn't know what good friends looked like, but this woman had a friendly
look about her. However, Janna was known to be wrong about these things. She
clung to her positive outlook for the day and dove in.

“Hi,
I'm Janna Hall. I'm starting today.”

“Just
a minute, yes, one more
tab
and there it is.” The
woman pulled her gaze from the computer screen and smiled. “Hi, Janna, it's
nice to meet you. I'm Anne, Keller's assistant.” She stuck out her hand and
gave Janna a firm shake, good people indeed.

“Thanks, Anne, you, too.”

“We
weren't expecting you until later.” Anne tilted her head. “Didn't you just move
into your place this weekend?”

“Yes,
but I was too excited to sit home with the boxes.”

“I
understand, moving can be overwhelming. I like your strategy of getting out of
the mess. Let me know if you need any help getting settled and tips on the
area. I've lived here all my life.”

“Thanks,
Anne.” She certainly could use a friend in this new town. The offer felt
genuine. Going for it was Janna's new motto. “I'd love a woman's perspective on
the city. Maybe we could get lunch sometime or go shopping.”

“Absolutely,
I'm free any night but Fridays. Just let me know when.”

“Janna.”

She
turned at the sound and found Keller had come out of his office.

“Hi, Keller.”
She held her
arms out at her sides. “I made it.”

“I
see, well done.” He kept his gaze on Janna. “Anne, please find Simon and get
him to my office.”

“Will do, Sir.”

“Come
on in and take a seat.”

She
followed him into a vast office. No books lined the walls, although the panels
all had grooves, like maybe they could be turned. Maybe they opened into secret
passages. She made a mental note to ask Anne.
Any night, but
Friday.

“Thanks
again for taking a chance on me.”

“Nonsense,
you have an impressive record. The chance was yours to take, and I'm glad you
did, but you might want to save the thanks until you hear more about your first
project.” He looked at something behind her.
“Yes, Simon,
right on cue.”

Shit.
What was Keller
up to? She didn't want to turn around, didn't want to see the loathing in his
eyes.

“What
did you want, Keller? I have a mess on my hands today.”

“Yes,
I know the extent of the situation, and I have just the thing here to help.
Simon Young, I'd like you to meet your new Project Manager, Janna Hall.”

Double shit
.
Janna should
have known this whole situation was too good to be true. Good thing she hadn't
unpacked much. She'd never been fired on the first day before. Disappointment
was a mean trick, and defiance took hold. Where was her mantra for the day? With
her chin up, she turned to face him.

“Hi, Simon.
It's good to
see you again. I hope you've recovered from our run-in earlier.”

“You
two have met?”

They'd
met, and Keller knew it.
What was he
playing at?
She was in the middle of a game, and neither of these two
players was going to get her to back down. She squared her shoulders, crossed
her arms, tapped her fingers and waited. She didn't have to wait long.

Simon
turned to face her and took a step forward removing the distance between them.
Her fingers stilled. Her heart waited.

“No
one's in the mood to laugh.
Got it.”
Keller stepped
in-between them. “I was hoping you two could start over. Hear me out?” After a
bit of silence he added, “Have a seat.”

Janna
sat first, and then Simon joined her in the other guest chair.

“Simon’s
the Director of one of our application development departments, and he’s been begging
me for a Project Manager of his own. We have a few, but they’re spread rather
thin.”

“Our
next project is scheduled for scope approval by the board Wednesday night. The
documents aren’t complete yet, but I don’t want to wait another month for
approval,” said Simon.

“I
can help you with that. Scope documents are my specialty.” She sat up
straighter in her chair.

“Fine,
you can be my Project Manager. But you better get up to speed fast.” Simon’s
eyes shot daggers of disgust.

“Lovely.”
Only her eyes turned to Keller. “I assume my company laptop is already set up
and my email is live?”

“Of
course, it's all in your office. Anne will take you there.”

“Excellent.”
She turned her glare to Simon. “Send me everything you have so far. I'll review
the documents while you schedule a meeting at the end of the day, for the top
level team members only.”

His
anger seemed to seize at her direct order. Having some control over this Dom
was going to be fun.

“Fine.
You have until
four.” He took another long second to stare, and then he stalked from the room.
“Thanks, Keller, you're a real pal.”

She
started breathing again when Simon turned the corner and she lost sight of him.
A slap on the back knocked her from her chair.

“Well
done. You two are going to do just fine.”

“Are
you crazy?” She stretched out her hand in the direction Simon had left. “I've
never had a key stakeholder have that kind of venom for me. What were you
thinking putting us together?”

“Are
you questioning my decision?”

“Oh gosh, no.”
She took a step
back and raised her hands. “I'm sorry. I just wasn't expecting this, and I'm
not used to working with such...”

“You
can say it, dominant men.” He sat at his desk and picked up his phone. “You're
doing fine. Just play this like any other project.”

“I'm
not so sure Simon will let me.”

“Let
you? Look, Janna, he isn't your Dom here. You are no longer hiding who you are.
You may be a submissive in the club, but that's not who you are at work,
right?”

“Right.”
She nodded her
head and straightened her shoulders, but it was just a cover. She couldn't share
his confidence.

“You're
a Project Manager at work. Concentrate on that for now, and don't worry about
Friday night. I have a feeling a few things will be different by then. Go on
now. Anne will take you to your office.”

The
building's layout was pretty simple. The administrative offices were all
located on the upper floor and the rest of the staff on the main floor. Janna's
office was just a couple doors down from Simon's. A fact she couldn't get out
of her head as she settled in and got familiar with the documents he'd sent.

Her
office was just big enough to hold an L shaped cherry wood desk, matching
bookshelf, and two short backed guest chairs. The window by her door was closed
off with a set of blinds, and her other window looked out over a beautiful
ravine. The view tricked you into believing you were nowhere near downtown
Chicago. The few minutes she stared out at the lush trees helped to calm her
nerves and brought her back to the goal of the day.

She
worked for an hour before her mind drifted back to Simon. After re-reading the
same sentence ten times with no comprehension, she got up and paced the room.
She couldn't stand being disliked, let alone hated. They needed to start over.
If her life reboot was going to survive, she couldn't be butting heads with
Simon.

A
Project Manager needed to have good working relationships with their team
leaders. She couldn't have him derail her new life over what she liked to think
was a technicality. He might reject her again, but she had to try.

She
reached for her door handle, gripped the knob, and squeezed. The need to flee
flowed strong and challenged her to take a different and non-confrontational
path.
The easy way out.
Her father would be expecting
it. She'd only have to put up with the “I told you so” for a little while.

“No,
I can do this.” She swung the door open and moved forward.

Leaving
here and going home was not an option. This new life was what she wanted, and
she would fight for it. She swung around the corner and marched to Simon's
office. His door was open, and not wanting to slow her determination, she
walked right in and shut the door behind her.

“Can
we start over?”

“I
hope you're ready for the meeting. I don't like my time wasted.” He leered at
her with what looked like unrestrained disgust.

“I
don't deserve this. I know I shouldn’t have forgotten to tell you it was my
first scene, and for that, I am sorry.” She'd done it. She'd admitted her fault
in the matter. Would he let her off the hook? His mocking stare told her she
was wasting her time. “I was ready for the scene, and you have to admit it went
well.”

“I
don't have to admit anything, and I have no time for liars.”

It
was a sucker punch, but she let it land. Her shoulders sagged with the weight
of his revulsion. She hadn't been open and honest. She hadn't meant to leave out
the truth,
or
had she done it on purpose?

She
had been frightened of his rejection or being talked out of the scene, a scene that
gave her necessary answers. A scene she desperately wanted repeated. But she
was wasting her time. She'd have to find a way to push through with her
professionalism and pray he didn't give her any trouble.

“Well,
I guess that's it then.” She waited a couple heartbeats in one last hope he'd
change his answer. “Thanks for listening.”

She
turned and concentrated on getting to the door.

“Wait—shit.”

Tears
welled up and threatened to escape, so she quickened her pace. She got her hand
on the doorknob, and his hand landed on the door next to her face.

“I
said wait.”

Chapter Three

“You
want to start over?”

“Yes,
please.” The heat from his body soaked into her back. She wanted to press her
hips into him. What would it feel like to be taken, right here?

“No
more lies.”

“None, Sir.”

Her
hips arched back to rub, seeking his hardness. She needed more. Her hips
swirled over him, and he pressed her against the door. A moan escaped her, and
then he was gone. She remained plastered against the door, afraid to move, not
wanting to admit the moment was over. She peered over her shoulder and found
him pacing the back corner of his office.