When the Boss Gets Jealous (3 page)

Alec had always known it would be a
short-term relationship. All of them were. He wasn’t interested in
marriage or kids and most women weren’t into long-term commitments
without the promise of something more. Plus, he was easily bored
and usually called it quits after a month or two. Jenna was the
exception to that. They’d been fucking for four brief months when
they’d been caught and told to end it. Alec was reluctant to give
her up, but the VP of human resources made it very clear who would
get fired. That would tarnish Jenna’s immaculate career. Despite
letting her go, he still found reasons to keep her at the office
late into the night.

“I know something’s going on. You going to
tell me or make me dig?” Gavin prodded.

Alec and Gavin had been friends since
college. They’d interned at Logicesse as students, then took temp
jobs in software development until they’d been brought on full-time
seven years ago. The two had climbed the corporate ladder together,
Alec accepting the vice-president of software development position
six months ago while Gavin moved to the vice-president of programs
position just three months later.

“Dig? I thought you were the model of
discretion?” Alec mocked.

“Come on, Alec. You’ve been a bear the past
couple months.”

Walking around with a constant erection and
unable to find any relief could do that to a man. “I’m always a
bear.”

“For a while you were relaxed. I dare say
you were even happy. Something happened.”

Alec shook his head, ignoring the way his
cock jumped to life. There was a big difference between happy and
sexually satisfied. For four months, Jenna had kept him satisfied.
Exhausted, actually. The woman had a hunger that challenged Alec’s
control and stamina. He’d always loved a good challenge, though.
That’s probably why the relationship had lasted longer than usual.
Over the last two months, he’d missed that challenge. He’d missed
Jenna.

Jenna Craven had enticed Alec since the day
she started working as a project manager at Logicesse. That was
three years ago. Alec had been a project manager at the time too.
Since he didn’t believe in office relationships, he’d tried to
ignore the attraction. That was easy enough to do when they were
peers. Then he’d been promoted. As Jenna’s boss, Alec exercised
authority over her on a daily basis. On a daily basis, the little
vixen challenged that authority. Her defiance only served to ignite
the simmering attraction. Until one night, it exploded.

Fortunately, Jenna was more the model of
discretion than Gavin claimed to be. She didn’t gossip, and was
adamant that her colleagues not know about their affair. Jenna
didn’t want anyone to think she was being favored, so she’d
insisted they keep their relationship a secret.

If only she’d been wearing panties that
night, maybe Alec’s control wouldn’t have snapped in the parking
lot.

His cock jumped again at the memory of
Jenna’s warm, wet pussy, and her demands that he take her home and
fuck her hard.

Thank goodness Alec was well-positioned
under the desk so his friend didn’t catch sight of all the
below-the-belt activity.

Since it was obvious Gavin wasn’t leaving
without some solid info, Alec caved. “Between you and me?” He
didn’t make it a habit to talk about his relationships, but for
some reason, Jenna Craven made him want to break all the
self-imposed rules he lived by.

“Always,” Gavin replied.

“We were seeing each other. Not
anymore.”

“Why not?”

“We got caught.”

Gavin smiled. Leaning back in the chair, he
settled his feet on the edge of Alec’s desk. “Let me guess, Candace
Pelack.”

“How’d you know?”

“She’s been hot for you for years. Rumor is
that any pretty girl who walks through the doors gets the no
fraternization briefing. I’ve heard she specifically tells new
employees that you, though single, are off limits due to being
VP.”

“You’re so full of it.”

“God’s honest truth, my man,” Gavin said,
raising his hands as though surrendering. “I can’t make this shit
up.”

“Wouldn’t that qualify as harassment?”
Candace Pelack was a pain in the ass. Alec had heard the rumors
that she wanted his cock, but she’d never once given him a clue
that it was true. Not that he was interested. Yes, she was an
attractive woman, tall and slim with large breasts and a pretty
smile. She seemed intelligent enough, but Alec wasn’t attracted to
her. She looked like she spent too much time at the gym and not
enough time at the dinner table. Alec liked his women curvy all
over, not just well-endowed with big tits.

“Maybe, but she hides behind her policies,”
Gavin stated. “So if you’re not seeing Jenna, how come all the door
shutting the last couple days?”

“Are you my fucking babysitter?”

“I live next door, ass hole. I see her come
and go, hear the door. I get curious, just like everyone else in
the office.”

Ass hole seemed to be Alec’s slogan today.
Hearing it cross Jenna’s lips had fueled his temper. He’d wanted to
bend her over and show her what ass holes were good for, a pleasure
he knew she’d have enjoyed with great enthusiasm. Unfortunately,
the thin walls of his office wouldn’t stifle the sound of her
pleasure, so instead, he’d chastised her like the consummate
professional he was paid to be. “Yeah, well, it’s nothing. I
assigned her to the Westville upgrade and she was pissed.”

Gavin nodded. “I can see why. Westville’s a
pain in the ass.”

“Yeah, and Jenna handles them better than
anyone else. I needed her on this upgrade, just to make sure it
happens on schedule.”

“You trying to convince me or justify it to
yourself?”

“Neither, just saying.” Alec didn’t need to
justify his actions. He’d done what was necessary to keep Jenna
from jumping into bed with someone else. Alec was already out of
his mind watching her saunter around the office like nothing had
ever happened between them. He wasn’t about to look for a dose of
post-orgasmic glow if he wasn’t the man causing it.

“Sure. If you say so.” Gavin obviously
wasn’t buying it.

“I do say so. Now take a hike. I have a
company to run.”

Gavin dropped his feet in a loud thud and
stood, crooking an eyebrow. “You mean department, right?”

“We’re a software development company and I
run the software development department. Therefore, I run the
company.”

“I’d love to hear you make that argument
with Maria Chambers,” Gavin laughed.

“Everyone knows CEOs are just
figure-heads.”

Gavin shook his head, his smile making Alec
relax. “You wanna hit McCabe’s tonight? Catch the game?”

Sox versus the Yankees, the perfect
distraction from his demanding cock. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll meet
you there.”

N
ot much surprised Jenna, but Jalen
leaning against her car when she left the office after eight
o’clock came close.

“You’re not stalking me, are you?” she
laughed, grateful for his perseverance. It’d been a long day and if
she went home, alone, she was going to drive herself crazy thinking
about Alec. It was time to occupy her mind with someone else. Even
though Jalen didn’t make her heart leap or her panties wet, the
potential for all that was there and Jenna was anxious to pursue
it.

“Not unless you want me to. I figured you
didn’t have time to eat, thought I’d take you to dinner.” Jalen had
changed out of his business clothes, looking more sexy than cute in
faded jeans and a worn out tee shirt.

“Dinner? What’s that?” Jenna laughed.

“It’s this thing I’m going to buy you
tonight,” he said, owning his words with a confidence that made her
pussy clench with interest.

“You don’t give up easily, do you?”

The easy smile that had lured her across the
room after their staff meeting yesterday stretched across his face,
brightening those green eyes. “Not usually. Where would you like to
go?”

“There’s a bar about a mile from here. They
serve dinner late,” she suggested.

“McCabe’s?”

“You know the place?” Jenna didn’t know much
about Jalen, not even whether he was from the area. Apparently, he
was, or at least had been around long enough to grow familiar with
the local pub.

“Love their microbrews. So I’ll meet you
there?”

“Sounds good.”

Five minutes later, Jalen was opening her
car door in McCabe’s parking lot. He smelled good, like he’d
recently showered. Jenna wished she’d freshened up before leaving
the office. After the way he’d kissed her that morning, she wasn’t
sure she wanted to wait until a third date to sleep with him. He
was handsome and confident and she was horny as sin. She’d been
working her vibrator overtime the last couple months. The thing was
too efficient, getting her off in record time, but it didn’t
compare to skin on skin contact or the weight of a man’s body on
top of hers.

If Jalen’s kiss was anything to go by, he
had the potential to serve as a full-time replacement to her
efficient vibrator. Jenna was even willing to offer a long-term
opportunity, so long as he wasn’t faking that sexy confidence or
expecting her to be in charge.

When they entered the bar, the hostess’
friendly greeting pulled Jenna out of a brewing fantasy that
starred Jalen, his dimples, and absolutely no clothes.

“We’d like to have dinner,” Jalen told the
blonde.

“Great. It’s about a twenty minute wait for
a table in the dining room. If you don’t want to wait, you can grab
a table in the bar.”

Jalen looked to Jenna.

“The bar is fine.” She didn’t feel like
waiting, not just because she was tired, but because her growling
stomach had its own demands. Once her belly was full, she might
even ignore the fatigue to feed the other hunger that always
lingered.

Damn her overactive sex drive.

The bar was crowded, but they found a small
table in the corner.

“Do you come here often?” Jenna asked as
they got comfortable. She did a mental head slap, realizing she was
too exhausted after a long day to be more clever than to drop a
line that topped the cliché charts.

Amusement played across Jalen’s face. “A
couple times a week. I like to cook, but it’s wasteful to cook for
one.”

A server interrupted, presenting them with
menus and taking their drink orders. They perused the menu until
the server returned with the drinks and took their dinner
orders.

“So you live alone?” Jenna asked after the
server walked away.

“Yeah, just moved into a studio apartment.
It’s small, but I like it.”

That suited Jenna. If they made it to a
third date, or simply skipped the formality and got down to it
tonight, she’d prefer to do it at his place. She didn’t make a
habit of inviting men back to her apartment unless the relationship
was serious. It’d been a long time since she’d had a man in her
bed. She’d wanted to bring Alec there, but she lived in an
apartment building that housed other Logicesse employees. When you
were sneaking around with the boss, you couldn’t parade him down
the hall for the entire world to see.

“How about you?” he asked. “Roommate?”

“No, not since I moved here,” she responded.
“I actually like having my own place. My last roommate was a slob
and I can be a bit obsessive about things.”

“Hazard of being a project manager. We like
to have control over everything.” Jalen’s eyes flashed with desire,
letting Jenna know he wasn’t just talking about work.

Jenna thrived on control, a quality that
made her a reputable project manager. When it came to sex, though,
she preferred handing over the reins. There was immeasurable
pleasure to be had with a man who took charge. Of course, yielding
to a lover was its own form of control, one that Jenna also wielded
with expertise. At least with Alec. “Cheers to that,” she said,
tapping Jalen’s glass and scolding herself for once again allowing
Alec into her thoughts. She was on a date, for crissake. Jalen
deserved her undivided attention.

“So where’d you live before?” Jalen asked
after taking a long sip of his beer. The change in topic was likely
to tamp the flame of desire sparking between them.

Jenna took his cue. She may want to fuck him
on a first date, but that would ruin the building anticipation, a
powerful aphrodisiac. “Western Mass. But I’ve been up here long
enough that people have stopped calling me a flatlander. How about
you? You from the Upper Valley?”

“I’m from Wilder. Still live there.”

“A Vermonter. I live in Lebanon. Shorter
commute.”

“Yeah, because crossing the river into
Vermont can be treacherous,” he chuckled.

“I’ve made that drive at five. I prefer my
seven-minute cruise to a thirty-minute small-town rush hour. Plus,
New Hampshire doesn’t have an income tax.”

The New Hampshire versus Vermont debate was
interrupted when the server brought their food. Jenna dug into her
monster burger, so hungry she didn’t care if she looked like a
Neanderthal. She made a mental note to remember to eat lunch
tomorrow. Jalen didn’t seem to mind her indulgence as he got to
work on his steak.

“So, tell me about Alec.”

Jenna nearly choked on the burger. She
didn’t talk about Alec, not since they’d started sleeping together.
It was her best method to keep their affair a secret and out of the
gossip mills at Logicesse. Even though they weren’t together
anymore, she still didn’t talk about her boss, afraid someone might
read into her loneliness. “What do you mean?” she asked, playing it
safe.

Jalen gave her that focused attention that
Jenna found sexy but wished he didn’t exercise at every
opportunity. It was easier to keep secrets when people didn’t look
too closely. “I was told he’s easy to work for, but so far he’s
been a dick. I’m wondering if I did something to piss him off or if
he’s always like that.”