CHAPTER 5

 CHAPTER 5

Thursday morning came much too quickly and it was apparent to Maddie that Sharon had a hang-over. Still, the woman escorted her to Nordstrom, changed the account over to Maddie’s name, and advised her on the proper apparel for the coming Saturday night. Maddie was appalled at the amount of money spent on the dress, shoes and accessories. Sharon insisted, however, that it was a routine practice for events like the one she’d be attending. Maddie also decided she and Spence would have a conversation about this practice in the near future.

Friday’s dinner celebration wasn’t much of one. Both Sharon and Spence seemed uncomfortable and it didn’t last as long as the dinner Maddie had had with Sharon earlier in the week. Maddie did notice that Sharon was much more careful about the amount of alcohol she drank. She also noticed that Spence ordered the same Scotch as she did and like her, kept it to one. Maddie was more than happy to bid both individuals good night after reassuring Spence she’d be ready by 8:00 pm the following night.

Maddie spent Saturday morning doing errands which included returning all the items that had been purchased at Nordstrom on Thursday. She found the very idea of the company paying such exorbitant sums for clothing for one night appalling. And, okay, it wasn’t thousands and thousands, but it was funds that could be better utilized in some fashion within the company. She had plenty of good clothing from which to choose or she could afford to go buy something herself if she needed something more appropriate.

Once the week’s groceries had been put away, Maddie ran herself a bath and used some of the gardenia bath salts she loved. It had been a long time since she had prepared herself for a date, although tonight wasn’t really a date, but still, it felt good to be pampering herself with the goal of looking splendid by the time Spence came to fetch her. She supposed he would have a limo and perhaps she needed to talk to him about the use of those as well. He certainly didn’t seem to adhere to being frugal no matter how many numbers appeared on his computer screens.

Ready and waiting, Maddie smoothed her hand down the soft velvet of the long cape she wore in lieu of a coat. She enjoyed the feel of the soft material, however, the very thin leather gloves she pulled on over her hands felt just as good. She had always known she had a sensuous nature and speculated her sense of touch was quite possibly stronger than any of her other senses. When Maddie saw the limo pull up in front of her house, she opened the door, checked the lock and moved toward the car.

Spence was surprised not only by Maddie being ready to go, but also by the cloak she was wearing and his surprise increased as he helped her into the car. She seemed to know exactly how to handle all the material, as if she’d worn that type of outwear often. Amazingly, even though she was wearing gloves, when he took her hand to help her into the car, there was still a zing. It made him wonder what the cape concealed. Settled in the back of the limo, they exchanged greetings and while Maddie had prepared herself with as much information about the event as possible, she still had some questions.

“Spencer, I was wondering if you had any ground rules when it comes to your EA attending this type of occasion? Are there any individuals you want me to talk to? I guess I just want to know what your expectations might be?”

“To be perfectly honest, I could attend by myself, but then I’d have all kinds of women trying to match me up with someone and I’m definitely not interested in having that happen. All I’d like you to do is to have a good time, talk to whomever you’d like and, of course, if you learn anything that might benefit the company, that would be great.”

“That sounds fairly easy.”

“One other thing and that’s regarding alcohol. You may drink however much or whatever you like as long as you don’t overdo.”

“You don’t have to worry about my drinking too much. I’ve always been very careful. One glass of wine and I get a little silly. Two glasses and I get very silly and three; well, whoever supplies that third glass could undoubtedly have their way with me.” Maddie responded with a chuckle. “I don’t think I’ve ever been really drunk, not even in college.”

For some reason, Maddie’s laughing comment about having three drinks resulting in someone having their way with her left Spencer thinking seriously about how he could entice her to have that third drink. Those thoughts make his tie just a little too tight. And even though they weren’t sitting thigh to thigh, the atmosphere in the back of the limo seemed charged to him in some way. He wondered if Maddie felt it as well, or if she’d felt the same zing he’d felt through her gloves.

Maddie was also aware of how the very air seemed to hold some form of energy. She’d managed to conceal her hand beneath her cape and rub it on her thigh. It really didn’t make any sense for there to be whatever it was between her and Spencer. She hadn’t even known him a week, but his touch just on her hand made her nipples harden and her imagination run wild. She could barely look at his face because she wanted to stare at his lips.

Neither one of them seemed to have much to say after Spencer had provided his expectations, so they completed the ride in silence. At the hotel, Spencer helped her out of the car and placed her hand on his arm as they entered and proceeded to the ballroom. In front of the cloakroom, Maddie released the cape’s clasp and Spencer removed it prepared to hand it over to the young woman behind the counter. For a few seconds, he couldn’t move because he was hypnotized by what the cape’s removal revealed. Maddie’s arms and back were completely bare right down to her bottom with only strings that criss-crossed the length of that bare skin. At her bottom, the silky black material flowed all the way down to black stilettos.

“Sir, sir, did you want to give me that garment?” released Spencer from his wide-eyed stare at Maddie’s back.

“Oh, yes. Please.” He responded with a small head shake.

Spencer cleared his throat and moved up to stand beside Maddie. He placed his hand in the small of her bare back to guide her into the ballroom. If the touch of hands had made him feel a zing, his entire hand on her almost completely bare skin made his entire arm and perhaps his entire body go on high alert. His cock even twitched which was something that had never happened with any woman previously.

As they moved forward to be greeted by their host and hostess, Spencer could tell that Maddie had either been well-instructed as she grew up or she had attended other events like this one. She smiled and said all the right things, as Spencer introduced her as his new EA. It was during the introductions he got to see the front of Maddie’s amazing dress. A halter top covered her entire chest like a second skin and hugged her torso until it reached the top of the front of a short gathered skirt which left at least half of her beautifully toned thighs bare. Long dangly earrings that appeared to be diamonds or very well-made imitations brought one’s attention to her neck, face and the tendrils of hair that appeared to just have fallen from the loose bun at her neck’s nape. Spencer realized Maddie was a gorgeously beautiful woman. He also realized he desired her more than any other woman he’d ever been with.

In the ballroom, Spencer went to acquire drinks for them only to return and find Maddie in earnest conversation with David MacGuire, a venture capitalist who had a reputation for being a ladies’ man. Spencer handed Maddie her drink, shook hands with David and listened as they continued their conversation about the stock market. David was insisting Maddie should sell all her shares in the Stockton Company and Maddie was insisting right back that the company was sound and would soon see a rise in the worth of each share.

“It’s not the time to sell, David, it’s the time to buy. You wait. You’ll be sorry you sold your shares. Be sure to call me so I can say I told you so.”

“For that I’d need your number sweetheart.” David responded with what Spence considered a leer.

“You can reach me at Spencer’s company. I’m his new EA.”

“Well, well, well, aren’t you the lucky one Spence.” David grinned, winked and slapped Spencer on the back. “If I were you, I’d be looking forward to going to work every single day as well as hate having the day end.”

“Guess Maddie’s lucky I’m not you, David. She’d probably find it extremely hard to do her job while you chased her around the desk.”

David laughed heartily while Spencer again placed his hand on Maddie’s back and urged her forward. They moved around the ballroom reception area, sipping their drinks and nibbling on hor d’ouevres. When the ballroom doors opened, they moved with the crowd, found their table and sat down.

By this time, Maddie’s close proximity, the light and pleasant scent that drifted to Spencer from her skin, his hand on her back or her hand on his arm had Spencer aroused to the point he wanted to toss Maddie over his shoulder and find the nearest dark and quiet spot to ravish her. He’d never felt this way in his entire life and was totally mystified by his reaction to this woman. The evening had barely begun, but Spencer was ready to have it end, to have such tempestuous thoughts removed from his mind. He forced himself to turn to the woman on his other side and make conversation. Even then, his entire left side seemed electrified and totally aware of Maddie just inches away.

Maddie’s thoughts and her body’s reaction to Spencer being so near was like nothing she’d experienced before. She was aware of every single cell and each time his hand came in contact with her bare back, she could feel the heat spread throughout her body. That heat made her aware of her nipples hardening and her sex becoming engorged and her panties wet. She hoped Spencer was unaware of her response to him because she didn’t want to lose her job the way Sharon had. Maddie was extremely grateful when they finally sat down to dinner and he wouldn’t feel the need to touch her as he directed her around. Still, even though she turned her entire attention to the very nice gentleman on her left, she could feel a pull from Spencer’s body on her right.

Finally, the evening was over and Maddie’s body was safe from Spencer’s touch beneath her all-encompassing velvet cloak. When the limo arrived to pick them up, Spencer helped her into the car and told the driver to take her home.

“You’re not coming?” Maddie asked, looking up at Spencer’s face. While she waited for answer, she noticed how hard he seemed to be clenching his jaw.

“No, Maddie. I have a few things I need to take care of. I hope you don’t mind. I really appreciated you attending with me tonight. I’ll see you in the office on Monday. Good night.” And Spencer closed the door.

As the limo drove off, Spencer heaved a huge sigh. There had been no way he could have climbed into that car, into that dark and comfortable back seat and sat there breathing in Maddie’s scent and not have accosted her before the car was down the block. He turned and began to walk, wondering how he was going to manage working with her come Monday. There had to be some way to ignore his body’s response when near her. He even wondered if he’d need to fire her and hire Sharon back.