I reached out to press the glowing blue circle next to the massive scrub oak door, only to stop, my finger hovering above its surface. Hesitation froze me until I pulled my hand back, clutching my quaking digits against my chest. This was it…

“Breathe Irene. Everything is fine. You’ve worked hard this week. Miss Perez is going to give you a… A glowing review! I think…” I smiled, taking a shuddering breath. It was an effort to reassure myself. I wasn’t the most confident person around, especially in uncertain situations. “That is… as long as she doesn’t fire your ass on the spot…” My breath rattled in my chest as I exhaled. I shifted my armful of folders and the dry cleaning I’d picked up on the way as I reached once again for the doorbell. The button was stippled rubber under my skin as I depressed it into it’s receptacle. It rang. Loudly. I could hear the electronic chime coming from within, followed by a mechanical male voice announcing, ‘Irene Thomas has arrived.’ My brows drew together at the last. It knew I was expected? Miss Perez must own a very expensive home assistant.

“What am I even doing here?” The words slipped from my mouth before I realized I was speaking. My first (stressful) week at West Valley Ag completed yet… Here I stood at the doorstep of the CEO’s hacienda. Alone. Mere hours after I nearly melted where I sat in her office while she stared at the v of my legs for thirty minutes straight. I’d had a chance to cool down over the last few hours, but the touch of her fingers under my chin and her calm, commanding words were invading my thoughts. That moment she’d stood and walked around her desk to my side was seared into my brain. The way her hips swayed back and forth, the incredible bulge under her skirt. My coworkers hadn’t warned me about anything like this… What did Miss Perez want from me?

I sighed, looking at my watch. It was around 7, sun still up, not yet close to the peaks of the valley hills over my left shoulder. I held out my hand, noting the several fingers between the bottom of the sun and the horizon. Just as I’d been taught by my father. I should be home, kicking my heels off and ordering some pizza. Maybe pleasuring myself to images of my boss railing me over her desk… But instead, here I stood, scared stiff at the prospect that I could be a couple of seconds away from losing the best job I’d landed since graduation. Or… something else entirely.

I hated to admit it, but… Miss Perez frightened me. Among other things… Mostly I feared her because my coworkers had told me several stories, every single day at work this week. I knew… Most, if not all, had to be made up or heavily embellished. But the seeds of doubt had been planted. There was no way Miss Perez could go through that many people week to week. Right? It would be a hiring nightmare! Sandra Perez was the CEO of a huge cooperation though, she held that power in the palm of her hand. It just couldn’t be the case that I would get sacked so soon. I… I hadn’t done anything wrong. And if that was the case, that left only one option…

As I stood stewing on my short-term future, resisting the urge to chew on a nail, my phone buzzed in my clutch

“Shit!” I hissed as I fumbled the device out of my clutch, nearly dropping it in the process. The screen lit up and I read the message waiting for me.

<Everything ok? I didn’t see you after work today…> I read the message and quickly sent back a reply, smiling softly to myself. I’d forgotten to check in with her, as I often did. She was never mad, though, just protective. I read the message over once more. It was nice to have someone that cared. I had friends here in Salinas. The problem with my friends, though, was I didn’t really know them that well. I was rather new here, and relationships took time to develop. I’d get there eventually but for now, It was a comfort that I had her.

“Love you…” I whispered as pressed the send button and thumbed the phone closed, stuffing it back in my clutch.

“Isn’t it a little soon for ‘Love’? After all, we’ve only known each other a week.” I jumped about a mile. Ghost white. I must have been. Papers went flying, dry cleaning a crumpled heap on the tile under my feet. As I turned to the woman in the open door, my eyes wide and one hand clutched at my throat, I realized the shriek I’d just heard had come from me. Eyes wider, face dropping like a brick, my ghost white complexion quickly heated, reddening to an unbearable hue I couldn’t see. But boy could I feel it.

“M-M-Miss Perez!” My voice was so breathy I could scarcely hear myself. I must have looked like a damned idiot scaring so easily. I dropped to the ground to pull the scattered folders back into my arms. “I-I’m so sorry!”

“Leave it.” Her voice rang out like a thunderbolt, reverberating off the entryway steps. I flinched, freezing in place as I stared up at her. Miss Perez stood cock sure in her entryway, the door pulled open wide to reveal the extravagant display within.

“I-I… I’m sorry…” I squeaked out the last, not really knowing what to do and embarrassed beyond belief. Rough tile dug into my knees as a few sheets fell from arms, drifting to the floor.

“Eduardo… Please take care of this.”

“Si, Senora.” I looked up, surprised to see a burly man with flat black hair, streaked with salt and pepper, kneel quickly in front of me. It was almost as if he just appeared out of thin air. I resisted for a moment as he tried to take the papers from me.

“M-Miss Perez these are-” I looked back and forth between the two of them, unsure if I should let documents about company business be handled by a… Well, I didn’t know what Eduardo was. Her butler?

“Eduardo knows what to do, Miss Thomas. You can trust him as I do. Come.” I let go of the papers and rose, stepping towards the doorway before I even realized I had moved. Shit… Miss Perez had an undeniable effect on me.

“Te agradezco mucho, Eduardo.” Miss Perez spoke over her shoulder as she pulled me into the house. She turned her smiling eyes to me, looking me over, though the rest of her looked damned serious. My eyes swept to the floor, unwilling or unable to hold her gaze. But a strong finger puled me up by the chin. I felt a sudden and shivering warmth spread through my core, up my chest, and down my legs, lingering in the spot between them. My eyebrows shot up as she locked eyes with me. I was suddenly reminded of the way she had looked at me back in the office, her fingers under my jaw. Kind, caring, but underneath, the eyes of a predator looked back at me. I suddenly felt I had no business playing with this predator that was pinning me to an imaginary wall with her gaze alone.

“Welcome to my home.” She murmured, half turning as she swept her free arm through the air.

“Th-Thank you…” I mumbled awkwardly, still lost in her eyes. “I’m s-sorry about the-”

“Eduardo will take care of it. I apologize if I startled you.”

“N-No… I should have.” Miss Perez’ thumb swiveled up to cover my lips, locking them before I could utter another word. A small moan caught in my throat before I could stop it. I looked at Miss Perez, shock clear on my face before I turned away from her, pulling myself from her grasp as I studiously focused on her home.

“Can I take your bag?” Miss Perez asked as she closed the door behind me. I could feel her towering over my short frame.

“O-Oh… Yes. Yes, please.” I awkwardly held out my clutch to her over my shoulder, not daring to turn back to the lioness crouched behind me.

For a long moment, I squeezed my eyes shut, re-centering myself on the moment at hand. At the reason I was here. I could get fired. I could get fucked. But I was most likely conjuring things in my imagination like I always did, and this was nothing more than a simple formality. Taking a deep breath, I opened my eyes to find Miss Perez standing before me, a look of concern on her face.

“Are you alright Irene?” Her brow crinkled ever so slightly. I mustered my cheery disposition and looked her in the eye. As best I could…

“I’m fine, just… Taking a deep breath, Miss Perez.”

“Very well.” Her concern vanished. “Come with me. Miss Thomas…”

On shaky legs, I followed behind as Miss Perez led me past an entertainment room straight out of my childhood, and into a sitting room beyond.

© O.L. Vale 2022