Black Ties and White Lies(30)

“There’s not a chance in hell you’re ever wearing this in public.” Goosebumps appear all over my skin from the heat of his gaze as they travel over my body.

I open my mouth to respond when a knock from outside the door has both of us jumping.

“I’m back with a few items for you to test. I’ll need to go to another floor to find some more casual options,” Quincy says, completely unaware of the state she’s found Beck and I in.

Beck smirks, leaning into place kisses against my neck. He licks and then bites softly as I do everything in my power not to moan.

“Okay,” I answer, my tone unusually breathy.

“Where did Mr. Sinclair go?” The sound of hangers scraping against the rod fills the silence.

I have to bite my lip when Beck teases me by running his fingertips over the inside of my thigh. I give him a look, begging him to stop before Quincy catches us like this.

My panic only seems to fuel him further. I didn’t expect to see this commanding yet playful side of him as he shakes his head, not hiding his sly smirk.

“He uh,” I moan when his lips kiss the top of my breast. The silk corset top of the mini dress pushes my boobs almost all the way to my chin, the delicate flesh almost billowing over the top of the fabric. “Had to step out and take a call,” I lie. The scrape of his teeth against the tender skin has heat pooling between my legs. The thong Quincy left in here must be soaked from the unexpected encounter with him.

Quincy clicks her tongue. “Odd. I didn’t see him out there.”

A blond eyebrow quirks as Beck calls me out for lying. I don’t know what else he expects from me. Quincy doesn’t need to know that he has me all hot and bothered in the expensive dress she picked out for me.

“Yeah, odd,” I respond. Beck mocks me by mouthing my words back, leaning in to kiss me once again.

“I’ll be back in a few,” Quincy answers, as she must finally get all the new items she’s brought in hung up.

“Sounds good,” I chirp, letting out a sigh of relief a few moments later when it’s silent on the side of the door.

Beck takes a step back, heat still in his blue eyes. “Maybe it’s time we figure out how to get that dress off you.”

All I can do is turn around, moving my hair to give him access once again.

When I meet his eyes in the mirror all over again, it feels so much more different, and complicated.

I haven’t even started as his assistant and we’ve already broken the terms I’ve laid out.





Ezra gives me an unreadable look as he finishes loading the last of Margo’s things into the trunk of our city car. All of the bags almost didn’t fit, they wouldn’t have if some of the items purchased today were actually in stock instead of being delivered at a later date.

Margo and I drifted from one store to the next, establishing an entirely new wardrobe for her. She stands next to me, anxiously messing with the sleeve of her sweatshirt she insisted on wearing out of the store despite the tens of thousands of dollars of new clothes I just bought her.

“I’ll never be able to repay you for this,” she says softly, looking at the pile of bags and boxes in the back with regret.

I angle my body toward hers, my fingers twitching at my sides to reach out and touch her. In fact, ever since I got to taste and touch her in that dressing room, I haven’t been able to think of anything else. Which is unfortunate, because I can’t be intimate with her in public. Not yet. Ezra no doubt has questions about Margo’s sudden appearance in my life, but it wouldn’t be preferable even if he were to see us pretend to be anything but boss and assistant for a little longer. For us to keep up the charade, people must first believe us to have had some sort of professional relationship before announcing to everyone that things turned serious.

“I’d be livid if you ever tried to repay me for it,” I reply. She chews on her bottom lip, clearly not getting any reprieve from my words.

“It just feels weird for you to buy me all of that. Some of that stuff was so expensive.”

I shake my head at her. “The price doesn’t matter. I’ve got enough money to go around, trust me.”

She tucks her hands into the large pocket on the front of her sweatshirt. “Well, I tried choosing the less expensive things, but it’s hard when most items don’t have their price even listed. What’s the point of that, anyway?”

I watch Ezra close the trunk. He nods at me, cueing me that we’re good to go. He steps around us and opens the rear passenger door even though neither one of us steps to get in. “Most people shopping there don’t necessarily care about the price,” I offer. It feels weird coming out of my mouth. She does have a bit of a point.

I turn to slide into the backseat of the car, but she stops me by grabbing my sleeve. My head turns, watching her curiously wondering what she wants to add. Taking a deep breath, she watches Ezra get into the car before she focuses on me once again. “I just wanted to say thank you. Really, truly,” she emphasizes. “No one has ever done that much for me, and I know it’s because you have to be seen with me at work and don’t want to be embarrassed by my clothes, but it still means a lot. I would’ve been fine just getting clothes at Target or wherever.”

My lip twitches in amusement. “Yeah, but are Target dressing rooms so…fun?”