faded.
“You don’t know? You should know if you followed the setup guide,
Rachel. It was in your intro packet. You should have set up your
backup store your first day.”
Rachel froze, the foot that
had been swinging her around in the swivel chair suddenly going
numb, her fingers twitching involuntarily. She’d skimmed through
the packet, but it had been full of standard stuff about breaks and
sick days. There had been information about setting up her backup
stuff? The sickly icy feeling in her stomach returned with
reinforcements, and Rachel doubled over with a low, weak
moan.
“ No,” she said faintly.
“I... I must not have done that yet.”
“ Rachel,” Henry said
sternly, sliding a bit closer. His tall form loomed over her,
powerful and handsome in his powder-blue shirt and navy jacket with
a dark tie. He almost looked like a fashion model more than middle
management, and Rachel slowly stared up at him, trying not to let
the tears spring back into her eyes. How could she have been so
stupid? It was a new job - you didn’t just skip reading everything
they handed you! She berated herself in silence, though it wouldn’t
help any now. The document was long gone. Withering resignation
settled into her, and she sighed, head drooping down to her
medium-sized chest.
“ If you didn’t set it up,
your document is gone,” Henry continued, squatting down onto his
haunches until his eyes were level with hers. She made herself meet
his iron gaze, deep brown eyes boring into her. There wasn’t any
heat in his face, just stern reproach and... she blinked. Something
more. Something like... desire. Her eyes searched his handsome and
chiseled features, wondering how she could be thinking about how
attractive he was when her job was on the line. Here I am, about to be fired, and I’m admiring his
eyes, she thought, but couldn’t pull her
gaze free. He stared at her, quietly considering, thoughts
churning. She wondered what he was thinking, what he was mulling
over.
“ I have to report it up the
chain,” Henry said quietly. He placed a hand on the back of her
chair, his fingers brushing her blouse. She could feel his heat
through the thin garment, and suddenly found her heart thumping in
a way that had nothing to do with worry and fear. At another time,
she’d have been flattered at the touch, at the piercing gaze locked
onto her eyes, but even still, in the back of her mind, she still
heard a wailing voice that prepared to be fired right then in
there.
“ I know,” Rachel said. Her
chin quivered as she tried to keep from completely breaking down,
not quite managing to meet Henry’s face. “Will I be let go?”
“Probably,” Henry said in a neutral tone. “Without someone going to
bat for you, you’re probably sunk, Rachel. You didn’t follow
company protocol and lost all your work. There isn’t much to be
done here.”
Rachel’s eyes slowly lifted.
He was entirely monotone, but there was a catch in his voice, a
small opening in his words that gave her the smallest bit of hope.
Rachel’s hands writhed in her lap with untamed nervousness as she
searched Henry’s face.
“ Someone to go to bat for
me?” she said hesitantly. She licked her suddenly dry lips. “You
could, right? Explain that I hadn’t set up my backup, that it’s my
first week, and ask them for another chance.”
“ I could,” Henry said,
nodding. He slid closer, loafers shuffling on the carpet, looming
over her as she shifted slightly on the chair. She could smell his
cologne this close, and feel the presence of his personality as he
loomed over her, close enough that she imagined she could feel the
heat of his body pressing into her. Her head tilted back, regarding
him with a dim flicker of hope.
His hands moved, pausing for
a brief moment on his belt buckle. Rachel had just a brief moment
to register the moment, to frown in a sudden haze of confusion as
they twitched and undid his pants, peeling back the fabric. His
cock
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