Chapter Four

“Tell me about AgCorp and their stock.”

Carter sat in his office chair, the giant windows behind him glinting in the early morning sun. He looked like a sun god, or perhaps a financial demi-god sitting there. The sun shone in his dark hair and sparkled in his green eyes.

And his suit? His suit looked like it was made personally for him. It probably was, to be honest. He probably had someone in Italy making him handmade personal suites that accented the broadness of his shoulders, his lean waist, and his very perfect ass.

Not that I was trying to look.

I was trying to stay professional. I was working my butt off looking up stock names and historical prices. I'd learned more in the past month about investing, market strategies, and the current innovations in dozens of markets. I wanted to impress Carter.

This was our routine for the past month. Each morning, I came in and greeted Cindy. Then I'd quickly check in with Carter, who was always busy on his computer or cell phone, but would take the time to get me briefed for the day. He'd quiz me on stocks and see what I knew. Every few days, Carter would call me in for a meeting to check on how things were going. He told me on several different occasions that he was impressed by the thoroughness of my work.

Every day I wanted to impress him more. And not just with my work.

Today I stood in front of his desk wearing my favorite wrap dress. It gave me amazing cleavage, as Maddy had pointed out. But Carter hadn't looked at my chest once. I doubted he even noticed I was female half the time. I could have walked into his office wearing a bikini and I doubt he would have blinked an eye as long as I could tell him how the current oil market was affecting manufacturing.

“AgCorp has stable long term demand and has withstood the test of time. They manufacture agricultural machinery under several brands ranging from entry to high end,” I began.

“I don't care about that,” Carter cut me off. “Tell me why I should buy their stock. Or not.”

He crossed his arms, waiting for me. I frowned, but I was used to this. Some days, Carter wanted the entire back history on a company. Other days, it was just the buy and sell prices. Today, it seemed to be the why.

“Demand is growing for grain storage and protein production,” I explain. “Despite world events, AgCorp has maintained it's $0.18 per share quarterly dividend. The stock has long-term potential, but a low dividend yield. I say pass on it.”

His expression barely shifted, but a small smile pulled at his lips.

“Good,” he said, putting his hands on his desk.

I beamed at the compliment. I didn't get them often, which meant when I did, I felt them all the way to my bones.

“Now, tell me about their competitor, GrainFlow,” he demanded.

I grinned. I knew this trick. He had done it several times. He would tell me to look up one company, but then want to know about their competition. After the first scolding, I was always prepared. I knew about GrainFlow, AgFresh, and TractorCO.

I started rattling off the projected earnings for GrainFlow when a knock came on his office door.

Carter frowned slightly, holding up his hand for me to stop.

“What is it?” he called to the door. “I'm busy.”

“Too busy for me?” A willowy blonde sauntered into his office. She wore a skin tight silver dress with a V-neck so low I could practically see her bellybutton. It made my wrap dress cleavage look like I was wrapped up in a sweater and hidden under a blanket. I watched as Carter's eyes left me and went to her.

He barely acknowledged her. He didn't move to greet her. He just sat at his desk and waited for her to come to him.

The blonde walked past me with barely a glance. She knew I was no threat to her. Not when she wore a dress that screamed sex and money and I wore something I'd found on clearance a few years ago.

“Keep going, Jane,” Carter demanded as the blonde settled into his lap.

I stood for a moment, my mouth agape as I stared. She sat in his lap, her long legs dangling off the side of him while she played with his lapel. She shifted her weight on his lap and grinned, giving him a little extra wiggle.

“I can come back later,” I stammered as she nibbled on his earlobe.

“No. You can do this now,” he corrected.

I tried to look anywhere but at him and the woman on his lap. She was the one being indecent, but all I could think about was him. What it would look like if I were that blonde.

“Um, GrainFlow has increased market,” I stammered, trying to find the confidence I once had. I closed my eyes so I wouldn't see her long fingers touch his chest, teasing him to play with her. “They generate enough cashflow to reward shareholders with dividends while still being able to invest in future growth. Currently, their stock is overvalued given the market. I recommend waiting for a downturn, but to keep an eye on it as a possible money maker.”

“Good, Jane,” Carter said. He still sat on his chair as if there were no beautiful woman on his lap. He was watching me. Watching how I was dealing with the pressure of watching him. This was the first time we'd ever had an audience like this and I hoped it would be the last.

I did not like her being here.

“Boring,” the woman announced, her arms wrapped over his shoulder.

I glared at her, wishing she would just leave. My hands tightened into fists and I forced myself to take a deep breath. Jealousy surged through me. Jealousy that she was not only sitting on his lap, but that she was interrupting my time with him.

Carter gave her a look that had her shrinking away and going quiet. He looked like he was about to push her off of him.

“You have a... guest.” I took a step back. “I should get some work done.”

I picked up my things and stuffed them into my bag. I was done dealing with this. Usually it was just the two of us. To have this guest come in made me uncomfortable and irrationally angry.

Carter wasn't mine. Even for these few minutes every day, he wasn't really mine. Having her sit on his lap just made it crystal clear that he only liked my brain. That there was no chance of more for me.

I hated it.

“You did good today, Jane,” Carter told me. “I expect you to have some more prospects for me in the agricultural market tomorrow.”

“Yes, sir,” I replied. I nodded and quickly headed to the door.

I ran to my office, closing the door and trying to breathe.

I'd seen several beautiful women come into his office. It wasn't hard to spot them since my office was so close to his. They were all gorgeous. They were all perfect.

And I wanted to be one of them. I wanted to touch Carter like that woman did. I wanted to sit on his lap and feel the heat of his body. I wanted to wiggle my hips and feel him harden underneath me.

Dammit, Jane, no. Stop that shit. You can keep thinking those kind of things about him, I told myself.

The fantasy of being intimate with Carter had infiltrated my mind. I wanted to be that blonde. I crossed my legs as I sat behind my desk. It took everything I had to ignore the throbbing between my thighs. If I had been at home, I probably would have masturbated to the thought. Instead, though, I had to wait and hope that the urge would pass.

I needed a distraction. Since it was almost lunch time, I texted Maddy to see if she was interested in grabbing lunch. It had been a few days since I had seen her anyway. Plus, I figured her sense of humor would take my mind off of things for awhile.

I made sure not to look toward Carter's office on my way out.

* * *

We met at our usual spot. Maddy was there before me, already seated at a table located in the corner of the patio. She wore a tie dye t-shirt and jeans. She took Casual Friday very seriously. I was sure that if David had allowed it, she would have worn flip flops and sunglasses in the office as well.

“Hey!” Maddy squealed as soon as she saw me. “How in the hell have you been, Jane?”

We exchanged a quick hug and I took a seat across from her. “I've been well.”

“I'll bet you have, 'Mrs. CEO',” she said with a smirk.

“No, not quite CEO,” I replied, setting my purse onto the open seat next to me. I thought of the woman in his office right now. Even though he'd barely looked at her, I was still jealous. “Working for Carter isn't what you'd think it is. I'm pretty much just looking over stock ledgers all day. It's challenging and I love it, but it's probably not all that different than what you're doing.”

“You're telling me you two haven't had any fun times in the janitor's closet yet?” Maddy asked sarcastically.

“I wish,” I said, then instantly regretted it. “I mean, no. We haven't. It's just been work.”

“Come on, Jane, you don't have to be embarrassed. Look, if I worked directly for Carter, I'd make it my mission in life to sleep with him. I'd even go on a diet so that I could lose these love handles, if that's what it took. Seriously, I'd even eat a salad once in a while.”

I laughed. “I'm not going to lie. The man is about as gorgeous of a human being as I've ever seen. The problem, though, is that he knows it. He gets any girl he wants, Maddy. I've seen him with a different girl every few days and all of them are gorgeous. Besides, it's not like I'm going to ruin my career by trying to sleep with my boss. Everyone knows what happens with you go down that road. It never ends well.”

Maddy shrugged. “Suit yourself. I'd throw my career right down the toilet for just one good night with that man.”

I wanted to tell her that I almost felt the same way. I'm not sure if I would have thrown away from career for a night with Carter, but I definitely wouldn't have turned it down the opportunity if it ever presented itself.

Not like it ever will, though, I thought. If not for my math brain, I don't think he'd even know I existed.