Lucas – 13. chapter

The next few days passed without anything particularly eventful. Lucas was clearly trying to avoid Lucia’s company, which suited her just fine. Lucia, on the other hand, seemed to relax. A coworker would occasionally stop by her office for coffee, and she even started taking personal calls at her desk, fully aware that Lucas could hear her. So he learned that she liked hosting themed parties, drank Blue Label Johnnie Walker, had most of her problems handled by someone named Andy, was hypersensitive to chlorine, that the car she called “I don’t know, probably some BMW” was actually an X7 with the M package, and that she wasn’t seeing anyone. The more he learned about her, the more he liked her, and the more it pissed him off that he wasn’t allowed anywhere near her.

When she still showed no interest in any kind of contact after a few days, he decided to give it a push and started stopping by her office now and then. He joked, teased, occasionally tried innuendo. Lucia acted normal, even friendly, often laughing with him. But the moment he got closer than a meter and asked to touch her, she refused. It was starting to get old. Especially once he realized how quickly and how often his body reacted to her.

He first realized how much it bothered him when he caught himself looking her over while she was talking to a colleague in the hallway. He hadn’t been admiring her ass in that tight skirt for long. The memory of holding her naked by the hips flashed through his mind, and he realized the growing pressure in his pants wasn’t something he could just walk off. He went into his office, slammed the door, braced one hand against it, and shoved the other into his pants.

This is embarrassing, he told himself. Which didn’t change the fact that this “release of tension” quickly became a daily routine. After a few weeks, it had gotten out of hand.

He walked into her office and leaned against the wall at a sufficient distance.

“Yes?” she turned to him.

“Haven’t you punished me enough already?”

“Lucas, this isn’t a punishment. I’m just not interested in your kind of fun,” she explained calmly.

“I won’t do it anymore. I won’t hold you down, I promise. Lift the ban, please.”

“No,” she said without hesitation.

“What bothers you about me?” he snapped.

She looked surprised. “Excuse me?”

“I know you like me and you’re attracted to me. You won’t deny that. And you know I can make you come, even in ways you supposedly don’t like. Which means I could do it any other way you asked me to. But instead, you keep me at arm’s length and get off on tormenting me.”

“Your confidence is clearly still intact. But you’re wrong. I’m not getting off on you. I’m just ignoring you.”

“Bullshit. I’ve seen that satisfied little smile of yours plenty of times when you notice I’m hard.”

She chuckled.

“I’m not denying it’s entertaining.” She didn’t even try to hide the spiteful smile.

He scowled.

“So this is all really just because of that one night?”

“That one night?! Do you remember how it went?”

“I remember you coming while I had you in my hands and fucked you,” he growled low.

She looked away and tilted her nose up in irritation.

“Lucas,” she began, and it was obvious how hard she was trying to sound calm. “This conversation is completely pointless. You’re simply not my type.”

“I’m not your type!” he exclaimed in disbelief. “What, exactly, makes me not your type, Miss Perfect?!”

Maybe now she’ll finally say something reasonable.

“Well, first of all,” she started, “I won’t get involved with a boy who thinks he gets to do anything I don’t want him to. That reason alone is enough for me. Then there’s the fact that I don’t think you’re relationship material. Ever since I got here, the only women who come to see you are women we both know charge by the hour. And there’s one more rule. Breaking it would make this entire year I’ve been messing around here meaningless. I don’t get involved with a boy who only shows interest after learning how much money I have in my bank account.”

He stared at her, fascinated, unsure how to react. Whether to thank her for the honesty and the information he had just received in such a concentrated dose, or tear into her for her opinions of him. He didn’t manage to decide in time, so he just nodded and slowly walked back to his office. On the way, he absentmindedly blurted out the first stupid thing that came to mind.

“I’m 37. Most people would define that as a man, not a boy.”

He dropped into his chair and started sorting through his thoughts.