Mid Life Love (Mid Life Love #1)(96)

Dear Jonathan,

I know you said that you don’t normally do anything for your birthday, but I want to celebrate it with you anyway. I made us a nine o’ clock reservation at Sierra Mar, and I look forward to seeing you tonight.

We can do anything you want :-)

Yours,

Claire

I set the card down and smiled. Whenever I’d told the other women I dated that I didn’t celebrate my birthday, they simply said “Okay” and left it alone. There were no surprise balloons and cake, no surprise dinner dates. There weren’t even simple cards.

Then again, I’d always made sure I was out of the country to prevent that from happening.

“I’m sending them in now, Mr. Statham.” Angela’s voice bounced off my walls.

A young man in a black suit walked through my door, trying his hardest to step around all the balloons. “Good morning, Mr. Statham.”

“Good morning, Mr. Harris. Where’s Mr. Fletcher?”

“Right here, sir.” Another young man walked in right behind him. “It’s a pleasure to see you again. We’re happy you agreed to do this short follow up.”

“It’s an honor to be featured.” I shook their hands and motioned for them to take a seat.

I walked around my desk and sat down, leaning back as they pulled out their digital recorders.

“As you know, Mr. Statham,” Mr. Harris said, “we’re both writers for Tech-Next Magazine. We’re here to get a few personal quotes for our issue that will debut the same day your company goes public. We just had a few that weren’t answered the last time.”

“Ask away.”

“First question: When you started this company, what was your original vision?”

“I’m honestly not sure how to answer that. My former college professor—” I suddenly felt familiar hands unbuttoning my pants beneath the desk.

“Mr. Statham?”

“I’m sorry.” I smiled. “My former college professor didn’t make me outline a plan back then. He only wanted me to develop better computers and come up with new software ideas.”

“Are there any ideas that were scrapped in the start-up years and are going to be developed in the near future?”

I took a deep breath as my pants were tugged down, as Claire placed soft kisses along the inside of my thighs. “Um, no. Most of what I designed back then has already been developed, but there are always newer ideas that come our way. And...” I felt her kisses becoming more forceful, more passionate. “With technology advancing as fast as it has over the past five years, we’re looking forward to putting more products out for the public each year.”

He nodded and looked at his paper. “When your first computer took off, breaking the record for the fastest selling home computer, did you think you would stick to computers forever?”

“No, I—” I suppressed a groan. Claire was running her hands up and down my dick and I was clenching every muscle in my body—trying my hardest to stay focused on this interview and not pull her from under the desk. “I never wanted to stick to computers. At the time, I did that because home computers were what everyone seemed to want, but I was always looking ahead, wondering about the possibilities of the days when computers would be outdated.”

“Are you shocked at how well your company has done over the years?”

“Yes.” I sucked in a breath as Claire’s tongue teased the tip of my dick, as she swirled it around and around. “I’m very shocked...” I sighed as she started to take me deeper and deeper into her mouth.

“Do you have any words of inspiration for those who are trying to enter the software world? Any advice for those who dream of taking your spot at the top of the technology chain one day?”

God, I love this woman...

“I would tell them to work ten times harder than the hardest working person they know. And that there’s a big difference between talent and persistence: It’s nice to have both, but the latter always wins.”

“Thank you so much, Mr. Statham! I think we got everything.” “Happy birthday by the way.” They both reached over my desk and shook my hand.

“No, thank you.” For cutting this interview short...

I stayed glued to my seat and handed them my business card. “If you need anything else, feel free to call me. Make sure my secretary gives both of you a sPhone blue before you leave.”

Their eyes widened and they practically screamed “Thank you” before rushing out of my office.

I buzzed Angela. “Please hold any other meetings until I say so.”

“Yes sir.”

I rolled my chair back and pulled Claire from underneath the desk. I didn’t say anything; I just laughed as she blushed bright red and smiled.

“I can’t believe you did that...” I stood up and pulled her body close to mine. “That was very... inappropriate.” I pressed my lips against hers and ran my fingers through her hair.

She let a moan escape her mouth and I pulled her even closer, kissing her like it was the last time we’d see each other.

“Cancel the rest of your day,” I whispered.

“I can’t...”

“Why not?”

“I really need the overtime...” She caught her breath. “Plus, it’s promo week. Everyone is staying at least two hours over. That’s why our dinner reservation is so late. I can try to come back up at six thirty or—”