Banger: An Office Romance Read online

  “I’m going to need a week off just to enjoy this body the way I want to.” I slid a hand behind her back, trailing it between the round curves of her ass cheeks before my fingers made contact with the bud of her ass. “I want every tight hole you have tonight. And tomorrow night. I want to fuck you raw so everyone will know I’ve been here.”

  Her breathing hitched, her teeth clamped down on her bottom lip, and her pussy fluttered with fresh waves of release.

  “Christ, baby, the way you squeeze my dick makes me lose my mind.” I steadied my thighs, fisting at her ass cheeks as an orgasm shot through me. Long jets of seed coated her insides, making me the happiest goddamn man alive.

  “That’s it, pretty girl.”

  I pulled my cock from her body and pressed a hand between us, swiping at the juice coating her thighs. I mixed us together and slid my digits back inside her cunt.

  “I want everyone to know you’re off-limits.” I slid my fingers soaked in our sex around the neckline of her dress and up her neck, leaving a sweet, glistening trail. “I hope they smell me on you.”

  Her eyes fluttered closed as I pushed my finger into her mouth. Her tongue twisted around my fingers and sucked the taste of her off me.

  “You like the taste of your cunt?” I grunted, replacing my fingers with my lips. My tongue pushed past the seam of her mouth and fucked her. “It’s my favorite flavor.”

  Her breathing picked up, and her nipples puckered with my words.

  “Such a naughty thing. We’re going to have so much fun.” I tapped a finger against her lips then pulled her skirt down past her thighs. I tucked her panties into my pocket, saving them for my stash like the dirty old fucker I was, then I placed a hand at her back.

  “Ready to party?”

  “I’m ready to do a lot of things, but sharing you with anyone else isn’t one of them.” She huffed, her lips turning in an adorable pout.

  “Aww”—I caught her chin with my thumb—“you look cute when you’re desperate for my cock.”

  Her eyes narrowed at me before she pursed her lips and planted a kiss on my lips. My heart ached, it was so damn full, and that was something I’d never felt before. Ellis, and Ellis alone, had brought out this man in me that I’d never even known existed.

  I pulled the office door open, and with a palm at my girl's back, I escorted her down the hall to the conference room where drinks and snacks and sweets were set up.

  Jenny came speeding out as we approached, but she halted instantly when she laid eyes on us.

  She arched an eyebrow with a grin. “‘Another quickie in the closet?”

  Ellis’s mouth dropped in a sweet O, and my laugh must have echoed off of every wall on the top floor.

  “You’re a dirty bird, Jenny,” I said.

  Jenny’s eyes twinkled. “Call it like I see it, and the blush on that girl’s face says it all. I can hold them off for a few more minutes, but much longer and they’ll be diving into that cake you insisted I order.” Jenny smiled then spun, pushing through the double doors into the conference room.

  Chitchat filtered out, and my heart leapt as I fingered the box in my trouser pocket. I didn’t want to ask the one question burning in my mind in front of a hundred other employees.

  I didn’t know what I’d been thinking when I’d arranged the party other than we had so much to celebrate between the charitable giving division opening, an official letter from Forbes congratulating me on being selected as one of the Top 40 Under 40 successful American businessmen, and my lawyer finally succeeding with the cease and desist on the Chicago Daily News. Waiting on that last one had meant a torturous ten days.

  And now her. Us.

  Not thinking twice, I pushed her a few steps back until her back rested against the closet door we’d first come together in. I pressed a hand to her neck, enjoying the shivers that raced through her body as my fingertips traced the line of her throat down to her collarbone.

  “I love you, Ellis,” I murmured, my eyes holding hers before I dropped to one knee.

  I dug the small leather box from my pocket and flipped it open.

  Four carats of crystal-clear pavé diamonds curled around a center princess-cut that would announce to every man, woman, and child that Ellis was mine.

  “I didn’t know what happiness was until I saw you. Didn’t know what love was until I touched you. Didn’t know how much I needed you until you breathed life into me. Let me be your husband, and I’ll spend every day of eternity showing you how happy you make me. Marry me, Ellis.”

  She blinked back tears before stubborn ones finally fell in soft tracks down her cheeks. She nodded instantly, a hand at her throat as her left hand warmed my own.

  I sucked in a deep breath and slid the ring onto her finger, joy piercing all the dark layers of my heart before I shot to my feet, held both of her cheeks, and kissed her until neither of us could breathe, much less think straight.

  “We should duck into this closet and celebrate some more,” I said between kisses, not giving her a chance to answer before plunging my tongue past her lips again.

  “Tobias, you’re wild and crazy and so unexpected. You’re everything I didn’t know I was dreaming of.”

  I dropped my forehead to hers as heaving pants racked both of our bodies.

  “I love you so much. I feel like you’ve been through hell and back with me already, and I can’t live another day without you as my wife.” I swiped the pad of my thumb across her cheek, drying a tear before pressing my lips to her again in a slow kiss.

  “Oh…!” Jenny’s voice pulled us from our bubble. I looked over as she threw the conference room door open and clapped outrageously.

  “She said yes!”

  “Tobias!” Ellis swatted my chest. “They knew?”

  “Well, when I asked Jenny to order an engagement cake, I think she got the hint.”

  “An engagement…” Ellis peered past me into the room. “You were that confident I’d say yes?”

  I grinned, sliding our fingers together, and walked us through the double doors before holding her left hand in the air. The entire room cheered, the blush on Ellis’ cheeks darkening with every passing second.

  I kissed her knuckles again. “I'm a brave man.”

  “Or a crazy one.” She laughed before swiping a piece of cake off the table next to her and dabbing the frosting on my nose.

  “Crazy for you, baby. Only for you.”

  Second Epilogue

  Tobias

  “Hey, Daddy.” Ellis sweet voice hummed against my ear.

  “Mm…” On instinct my hands wrapped around her waist and pulled her soft warm body down onto the couch with me. “I can’t wait for some me and you time.”

  Ellis’ soft chuckle whispered across my neck as her hands twisted in my hair, a slow kiss probing past my lips. We’d been married for five years now, gone through so much together, all of it good. And it kept getting better. “You're not off the clock yet.” She pulled away and whispered. “Someone wants you in the other room.”

  I grinned, knowing exactly what she was talking about, before pressing one more kiss against her lips, enjoying every moment I could steal with her.

  Ellis’ hand was wrapped in mine a moment later as we walked down the long hallway and turned into one of the extra bedrooms.

  The bedroom in my apartment—our apartment—now converted to a nursery.

  For twins.

  “Kiss g’night, Daddy!” My daughter’s joyful shriek echoed around the room, her little brother turning over with sleep-filled eyes and humming in agreement.

  “Good night, sleep tight, sweet Charlotte.” I wrapped my thirteen-month-old daughter in my arms, soaking up the scent of her hair, the soft dark curls that ran in ringlets down her back. “I love you to the moon and back.”

  “Love you.” Charlotte snuggled deeper into my chest, her little arms giving me an extra-tight squeeze.

  “Okay, time for sleep, sweetheart,” Ellis purred, resting a h
and on our daughter’s head.

  “Me! Me!” Ethan piped up, his chubby little hands waving in the air.

  I burst into a fit of laughter before crossing the room to wrap him in my arms, his warm little body an instant comfort to my own.

  It had taken us years to get here.

  Ellis and I had never stopped loving each other, every day, oftentimes multiple times a day. We couldn't keep our hands off, and we’d never once used protection.

  After six months, Ellis had started to worry. By a year, we’d seen the best fertility specialist in the city, and after a battery of tests and two exploratory surgeries, we’d discovered that Ellis had a condition that made it difficult for us to have children.

  We’d both been devastated. Especially my sweet Ellis.

  I’d instantly tried to rally her, promised we’d keep trying and one of these day it would happen for us. We’d even decided that if at some point it still hadn’t happened, we’d adopt kids out of the foster care system.

  Turns out, after almost five years of trying, we hadn’t needed to adopt.

  But I secretly still hoped we could someday. I wanted an entire brood of kids, and seeing Ellis as a mother to our twins had only confirmed that.

  She was everything I’d always knew she’d be as a mother—patient, loving, kind, so many of the things I loved most about her.

  “It’s time to close your eyes, honey.” Ellis rested a palm on Ethan’s sweet, cherubic cheek.

  “I’ll make pancakes in the morning. How does that sounds, guys?”

  “Mm! Mm!” My boy grunted then shoved his thumb between his lips and fell back onto his pillow, turning over and squeezing his eyes shut tightly, pretending he was asleep.

  “He’s got your sense of humor.” Ellis laughed, twining her fingers in mine again.

  “And thank God they got your good looks,” I huffed, smiling deeply as we watched their sweet little faces from the doorway.

  “Oh right.” Ellis smacked my bicep. Before she could pull her hand away, I snagged it, pulling her wrist to my lips in a soft kiss.

  “Thank you for giving me life. Darkness was all I knew before you.”

  “Tobias…” my beautiful wife sighed, tears instantly hovering in her eyes. “Thank you for giving me them. I didn’t know my heart could get any fuller. I knew we would be happy if it was just the two of us for the rest of our lives, but seeing them…” Ellis shook her head, her smile growing impossibly wider. “They’re magic.”

  “Our love is magic.” I hummed at her earlobe.

  “Our love created them.”

  “And they’re perfect. We’re perfect. I love you, Mrs. Banger.”

  “I love you even more. People search their whole lives to find even one fraction of what I have with you. I love our family Ellis, but you, my love, you are the ember that fuels its fire. Thank you for letting the embrace of your arms be my home.” Ellis pressed up onto her toes, hands locking behind my neck as she planted a kiss on my lips.

  Lifting her by the thighs, I crushed her against my body and walked us out of the room the few short steps to our master suite before pushing her back on the bed and peeling off her shirt.

  “Now it’s mommy-daddy time.”

  Third Epilogue

  Ellis

  “Can you believe we did it?” I hummed, looping my arm in Tobias’ as we settled in our stadium seats.

  “You know,” he paused, the soft crow’s feet at his eyes a reminder of all the laughs we’d shared, all the love we’d had. “I kind of can’t believe it.”

  Tobias took my hand in his and placed a soft kiss on it, just like he’d always done. My husband’s warm eyes turned back to the center of the stadium, rows and rows of chairs set up, waiting for our high school graduates to fill them.

  Ethan and Charlotte were graduating high school today, and every piece of this day felt surreal.

  As the time had gone by, I’d found myself looking back at all the times we’d shared. Never could I have known the day I’d walked into Banger Industries as an intern that I’d come out with a husband, a family, and love. So much love.

  I huddled closer to Tobias, the cool May breeze washing across my face. Today, outside, in the bright sunlight, my children would start the next step in their lives, and somehow it didn’t feel like very long ago that I was doing the same thing. Charlotte was headed off to Northwestern and planning to major in journalism. She was enamored with the foreign correspondents reporting all over the world, and despite everything I’d said to dissuade her from getting herself into dangerous situations, her quest for information drove her. She was so much like her dad in that way—focused, giving, independent.

  And then my sweet boy. He had a tender heart, lacked the fire that often drove his sister, but his compassion was just as deep. He was enrolling in pre-law and hoped to be a public defender someday. He wanted to stick up for the little guy—this was something he said to us often. And whenever Ethan set his mind to something, it was achieved, often bored in school because the curriculum wasn't challenging enough. I was overwhelmed with pride for both of them.

  And even more pride for my husband.

  A glint of sunlight caught a sliver of salt and pepper hair at his temples, something that only added to the handsome, distinguished businessman aura that he still emanated. Tobias had wrapped me up and kissed me so hard it left bruises more times than I could count. Tobias had this unbelievable way of making my heart happy.

  “I love you.” I murmured, squeezing his hand in mine.

  Tobias’ eyes caught mine, a slow smile curling his lips and twisting my stomach sinfully. He still had that charm, no doubt.

  “Ellis Banger, I am a boy who likes playing with fire, and you are my perfect match. You and our children have been the biggest joy of my life. You, my love, are my today and all of my tomorrows. I can’t wait for our next fifty years.”

  His hand cupped my cheek, and right there in a sea of parents, we kissed like we were teenagers.

  I loved this man.

  The more time passed, the deeper our love grew until it had blossomed and taken on a life of its own. I hadn’t married a man I could live with but the man I couldn’t live without.

  “I think they’re coming,” Tobias murmured. The music started, and we turned our attention to the parade of graduates coming into the stadium.

  “Look, there they are!” I pointed to our twins in the crowd.

  Tobias nodded, swiping a hand at his cheek before mumbling. “They’re going to do incredible things, Ellis.”

  “They definitely are.” I paused, letting the reality of an empty nest sink in.

  “Can you believe all the mommy-daddy time we’re going to have now?”

  I laughed, wondering what I’d ever do without Tobias Banger in my life. “You’re crazy, Tobias Banger.”

  He winked. “Crazy for you.”

  THE END

  The Long Ball

  Cash

  “Stop being a whiny bitch, Greenwood! Bottoms up!”

  My best friend and resident troublemaker of the team smacked me on the back. His boisterous laugh and booming voice took up all the space around him. I loved many things about the man, but the thing I loved the most was that in his presence, I became invisible. Since the age of 16 I’ve been recognizable. Once you were a star athlete with a future and the hope of winning a championship, you became a commodity, something shiny. And being simultaneously a slugger and a pitcher was a combination so rare that those with it, like myself, were priceless.

  It hadn’t taken me long to learn that being invisible keeps you safe.

  “We have to meet that analytics chick in an hour. I don’t want to reek of alcohol. Coach will kick our asses.” I didn’t like to drink. Most days I couldn’t even stomach the smell of it, but for the sake of keeping up appearances I usually nursed a glass in my hand and always offered to be the designated driver so no one suspected anything. Rod was really good about covering for me when needed, chugg
ing back the drinks people often bought for me, acting like the cocky best friend he was.

  “It’s still technically the off-season. Another one won’t hurt.”

  “Another always hurts, particularly in the form of a hangover the next morning,” I replied.

  “You sound like a dodgy old fuck. Where’s the guy who used to party with me all night long? I want him back.”

  I chuckled, thinking about all the times we’d been in trouble. I prided myself on how well I blended into the crowd and let him take the attention. Rodriguez and I had been buddies since our rookie year. We’d grown up together on this team, cut our teeth on the ins and outs of playing professional ball, but as time passed I found that faking it seemed to exhaust me more and more each day. I was tired of it all, and the only thing that still made me feel something was the game. Everything else was endless noise that passed by with no true meaning or intention. I felt like I was walking in a blur, just waiting for time to pass.

  “I’m not twenty-one anymore. Coach said any more stunts like that one you pulled at warm-ups and we’re both benched. And you, motherfucker, are not getting me benched.” The idea of sitting out a game was unbearable. Rod and I were thick as thieves, and Coach knew that if anyone could reel him in, it would be me. But what the coach didn’t know was that the idea of losing baseball in any way was like a noose around my neck, tightening until all the oxygen was ripped from me.

  “You're my wingman, buddy, and ya gotta admit, spiking the water cooler was pretty genius.”

  “And landed us in a shit load of trouble. Frankly, I’m just too old for this shit anymore. Let the rookies have at it. We had our fun.”

  “You make thirty sound like a death sentence. Not for me. When I turn the big 3-0 next year I’m going big. I want my feet in the sand with a drink in my hand and a pussy on each arm. Fuck it, a limo full of pussy. I am gonna get more ass that night than a toilet seat.”