His At Last Read online

  His At Last

  by

  Brenna Zinn

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  His At Last

  COPYRIGHT Ó 2011 by Brenna Zinn

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  Contact Information: [email protected]

  Cover Art by Angela Anderson

  The Wild Rose Press

  PO Box 708

  Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708

  Visit us at www.thewilderroses.com

  Publishing History

  First Scarlet Rose Edition, May 2011

  Published in the United States of America

  Trademarks Acknowledgement

  The author of this work of fiction

  acknowledges the following trademarks:

  Blackberry: RIM

  Dedication

  To Desiree, Allie, and Cerise.

  The three of you are the inspiration

  for this story. I adore you all.

  PRAISE FOR AUTHOR

  Brenna Zinn

  AND HER BOOKS

  HIS AT LAST

  “His At Last is a very entertaining read. Well Written. It’s a story that will heat up your night and warm your heart.”

  ~Desiree Holt, author of Do You Trust Me?

  MI TORO

  “This sexy, short story had me on the edge of my seat from the start.”

  ~Aster, Whipped Cream Reviews

  “The sex is blistering hot, low-down and dirty…”

  ~Cocktail Reviews

  His At Last

  The front door to his building opened easily at Carter Lang’s light tug. At seven p.m. on a Friday night, it definitely shouldn’t have. With a security system rivaling Fort Knox, the entrance not only should have been locked tight, the alarm should have been set. Anyone who had a mind to thievery could easily break into the office and strip the joint clean. Today might have been his last official day before retirement, but he’d damn well make sure the person responsible for leaving the office wide open would regret doing so come Monday morning.

  Already pissed he’d left his briefcase in his office—former office—finding the building unlocked and vulnerable only added fuel to his ire.

  This place will go to hell without me.

  Carter trudged up the stairs to the offices, unlocked his office door, and immediately located his briefcase. Leaning on the side of his oversized mahogany desk, the black leather case hadn’t been touched since he came in that morning. Why had he even bothered to bring it in?

  Sighing, he bent to pick up the case, then took one good last look around. Sadness and relief warred inside him. He’d miss this place and the maddening schedule he used to maintain. He’d miss the lively interaction with his partners and his clients. Most of all, he’d miss Leslie Brighton.

  He closed his eyes, letting the memory of her lovely face and quiet composure wash over him. She was the sunshine in the morning, even when the skies were gray. She was the laughter that made each day worth living. She was also the temptation that plagued his dreams and barred his heart from considering any other woman.

  As much as he secretly loved her, he’d never be able to have her. Though he was only forty-eight, Leslie was still fifteen years his junior. Even though she was in her thirties, she was much too young and sweet for a man who’d been around the block more than a few times. His retirement and her leaving for Chicago was probably for the best.

  If only the situation had been different. Had she not been his secretary and so much younger, he would have attempted to make her his years ago. But here he was, loveless and on the verge of starting a new life as a retired man, all alone. No matter how much wealth his business had provided him, money certainly couldn’t fill the empty space in his heart or help warm his bed at night.

  Briefcase in hand, Carter closed his office door for the last time and made his way down the dark corridor. A sound, soft and airy like a kitten’s meow, caught his attention. He turned toward the unexpected noise and noticed light framing the partially closed door to Leslie’s restroom.

  Not for the first time, he smiled to himself as he thought about her private powder room. When he and his late partner designed this new building, the only request Leslie had for her work area was a private restroom. Since they had moved in nine years ago, he’d seen the inside of the room maybe three times. Though a soft spoken, gentile young woman, she guarded the sanctity of her powder room like a hungry Rottweiler protecting a bone.

  “Hello. Anyone still here?”

  Another quiet murmur, almost a moan, again floated in from Leslie’s restroom, breaking the absolute silence in the empty hallway.

  Carter tilted his head toward the sound and picked up a light buzzing noise he hadn’t noticed earlier.

  What in the hell is that?

  He put down his briefcase. With careful, silent steps he walked toward the powder room. His hands clenched into fists. If there was an intruder in the building, the son of a bitch wouldn’t know what hit him.

  As he got closer, the buzzing became louder, the moans more distinct. Just outside Leslie’s restroom, Carter halted. Preparing for the worst, he slowly peered around the door.

  Leslie lay on the powder room couch, eyes closed and auburn hair spread around her head like a copper halo. Other than a set of headphones, the only thing she wore was a yellow skirt hiked up over her hips. With the heel of one foot pushing deep into the seat of the couch and the other foot firmly on the floor, she had spread her long legs wide. Reaching between them, she rubbed a golden vibrator over and around her glistening pussy.

  The unexpected, erotic sight stole his breath. Unable to speak, his mind racing, Carter stumbled back until his ass hit the hallway wall.

  I should leave. I shouldn’t see this.

  Like a caveman mesmerized by fire, he tried to look at something else, but simply couldn’t. Leslie was the bright flame, the object of his desire, and his vision fixated on her, unable to pull away. Even from his current position, he could still see her as she manipulated the whirring toy atop her manicured mound. Her firm breasts, two creamy swells with dusky peaks, rose high on her chest as she arched her back.

  Heat scorched the blood pumping through his veins. His cock, awakened by the scene, hardened to painful stone. His balls tightened with an almighty ache.

  He’d wanted to take her in his arms and show her the ferocity of the love he’d hidden from her for so long, but coming to her now simply wasn’t an option. He couldn’t embarrass her. He couldn’t embarrass himself. All he could do was watch as her lively body accepted and roused to the vibrator she wielded in her hand.

  For Leslie’s sake, I have to leave.

  He swallowed hard, his mouth and throat as dry as sand, and screwed up his willpower to go. He was about to turn and retreat down the hallway, when she placed a hand over one pert breast and kneaded the fleshy globe until her nipple contracted to a rosy pebble. She placed the bud between the pads of her finger and thumb and squeezed. In that moment, he thought he’d go mad from desire.

  A man possessed, he unzipped his jeans, pulled his stiff dick from his briefs, and leaned his head back against the wall. With an unsteady hand, he stroked the length of his cock, his gaze focused on Leslie’s every movement. The constant hum of her vibrator an erotic, ambient noise.

  Swaying from side to side, then rocking her hips back a
nd forth, Leslie continued to rub the golden toy on her clit. When she slipped the shiny vibrator into her pussy, his body involuntarily spasmed. If only he could glide his hard cock into her, feel the heat of her creamy juices and the pull and push against her tight walls. The thought of fucking Leslie, right then and there, caused his penis to jerk.

  The speed of Leslie’s movements increased. She leaned her head back into the overstuffed sofa, her sweet lips parting as though preparing for a lover’s kiss. The muscles of her firm legs flexed and strained as she thrust the drenched nub of her clit against the vibrating toy.

  Carter’s hand, slick with pre-cum, slid faster and faster over his throbbing cock. Knowing he was about to come, he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, then pressed his back against the wall for support.

  Toes pointed and back arched high off the couch, Leslie cried out. The sound nearly ripped Carter’s soul from his body.

  Biting his bottom lip to keep himself from moaning aloud, his entire body convulsed as hot cum shot from his cock. For several moments his hips bucked as he continued to stroke his dick, releasing every bit of pent-up lust for his former secretary.

  Immediately, he glanced at Leslie. Eyes still closed, she lay quiet and sated on the sofa.

  His chest tightened. He couldn’t be discovered watching as she masturbated in her private restroom. Despite his deep feelings for her, he’d never be able to explain that he simply lost his mind at finding her naked and fondling herself. He had to leave. Now.

  He also couldn’t let things end like this. He couldn’t simply let her leave for Chicago without somehow letting her know he cared for her and desired her like no other.

  This wasn’t the time or the place.

  But he’d see her next week at Jeff O’Brien’s wedding.

  Carter slipped down the hallway and quietly made his way to the front door. He would put all his cards on the table and see if he could change both their futures, forever.

  ****

  His last opportunity was slipping away.

  Carter didn’t need to look at his watch to know he was running out of time. If he didn’t get some kind of sign soon, any kind of sign, Jeff and Claire’s reception would be over and that would be that. After tonight, Leslie Brighton would begin her new job in Chicago and he’d permanently move to his restored Victorian house on Galveston Island to live out the rest of his retired life.

  The fact he might never know the taste of Leslie’s lips or feel the touch of her supple body against his was inconsequential. Whatever outcome happened tonight was for the best. He had to believe that was true. Fate had always guided him to the right path throughout his forty-eight years and never let him down before. Never. All he could do was wait, watch, and hope.

  “You doing okay, Carter?”

  He glanced up to see Philip O’Brien standing next to him.

  Philip shook Carter’s shoulder. “You look too serious for a wedding guest.”

  Carter forced a smile. “Not at all. It’s a great wedding. And your brother sure snagged himself a winner.”

  “Don’t we all know it.” Philip shook his ass as he did a fast two-step, then waggled his thumb toward the dance floor. “Come on. The music’s great. Find a partner and enjoy the party.”

  I know the partner I want, and she’s out of reach. That’s the problem.

  “I’ll consider it. Go on. I know you have best man duties to take care of instead of worrying about me.”

  “Okay, but I’ll be keeping an eye on you.”

  As Philip walked away, Carter looked around the banquet hall. At the crowded table next to his, a woman in a black cocktail dress tapped her water goblet with a silver spoon. Though music played over many speakers and a multitude of private conversations were taking place around the room, the ting, ting, ting of resonating glass somehow cut through the deafening din. Properly cued, the throng of well-dressed wedding goers called for the groom to kiss his bride.

  “Give her a good one, Jeff,” someone called, slightly slurring his words.

  “If I had someone that hot I’d be kissing him all the time,” a woman giggled.

  Jeff and Claire looked at each other, grinned, and exchanged a kiss with gusto. When Jeff finally broke away and looked to the crowd for their approval, Carter briefly made eye contact with the newlywed and smiled. He was leaving his company in good hands with Philip and Jeff O’Brien. He had no doubt the sons of his deceased partner would run the construction company with intelligence and even tempers, just as he and Sean O’Brien had.

  Too bad I don’t have an heir to pass along the company business like Sean did.

  Carter quickly tossed the sentimental notion away. He simply hadn’t found the right woman to love and start a family with yet. That was all. Once he did, he’d have plenty of children and would let them share the portion of the company he still possessed. In the meantime, the brothers were fine substitutes for his own children. Though Philip was a modern day playboy and Jeff was a bit of a straight arrow, both were good men. Carter couldn’t help be proud of them. Claire, a woman with a spirit as free as an eagle’s, would help Jeff find his fun side. And Philip? Well, hopefully the charming Don Juan would eventually find a woman who would make him want to settle down.

  The smile on Carter’s face waned as his gaze scanned the wedding party perched at the front of the banquet room. Leslie still wasn’t there. Carter sat straighter, using his height to better peer over the many people sitting at the round tables scattered about. When he spotted her slipping into the room from one of the back double doors, he realized he’d been holding his breath.

  A heart stopping vision in a sapphire blue gown with her hair swept up in a loose bun at the nape of her elegant neck, Leslie Brighton could easily be the most beautiful woman at the wedding. Holding herself with the effortless poise and grace of someone born into royalty, she made her way to her seat with the rest of the wedding party and chatted with Beckie Daniels, another attendant to the bride.

  From his vantage point, Carter could see he wasn’t the only male in the room taken by Leslie. Several men held forks laden with food suspended in front of their faces as they stared at her with open-mouthed admiration. Anger churned in Carter’s gut.

  I’d like to beat the shit out of each of those overly attentive bastards.

  Instead, he reached for a water goblet, tipped the glass back, and drained it. Two fingers of fine Scotch served neat would suit his mood better, but he wouldn’t drink just yet. He had to stay alert. Not paying close enough attention could mean missing his sign. Making the task more difficult, he wasn’t exactly sure what he was looking for. He would simply know when he saw it.

  Seeing Leslie sit with the wedding party sent pang of melancholy through Carter’s heart and a sense of frustration gripped him.

  If I don’t get some kind of sign pretty soon, how will she ever know how much I want her? Care for her?

  Hell, he had since the moment Leslie had taken the job as secretary to himself and Sean O’Brien ten years ago. How could he not want the auburn-haired enchantress? He would have hired her on the spot whether or not she could type a lick if for no other reason than to watch her every delicate move. Just having her around the office made him feel alive. Her incredible body, long and lean like a colt, and her infectious smile made him want to do little more than hold her until she melted in his arms.

  But he had to protect his company. A boss making a play for the beautiful secretary in today’s business climate was an invitation to a sex harassment suit and a visit with an attorney.

  Carter snorted.

  Who am I kidding? The real reason I’ve stayed away from Leslie is her age.

  At thirty-three, he was fifteen years her senior. Way too old for the likes of her. Leslie needed a man her own age to sweep her off her feet, not some grey-haired man who also happened to be her boss.

  At least he had thought so until the day he retired.

  He shook his head and thought for the hundredth
time how he could have handled that situation differently. Spying on Leslie had been the last thing on his mind when he’d returned to the office to retrieve the briefcase he habitually forgot under his desk. Considering the late hour and the fact neither of them ever planned to walk through the construction company’s front doors again, she really shouldn’t have been there.

  Yet, she was, and watching her masturbate in her private bathroom had been the hottest sight he’d ever seen.

  Despite his inability to pull himself away from her shocking but erotic display, he’d at least had the good sense not to take advantage of the situation by throwing himself at her. Not that he didn’t want to. Every muscle in his body had screamed to take her. But he had held back, too afraid she would reject him because of strands of white in his hair and his aging body. Though he was in decent shape for a forty-eight year old man, he certainly couldn’t compete with some guy Leslie’s age.

  Now, after having replayed that fateful scene over and over in his head, he was prepared to throw all caution out the window tonight if he caught the right sign. The moment he did, he would sweep Leslie off her feet and take her up to his hotel suite for a night neither one of them would ever forget. Hours of music cued, candles on every available surface, and a nice variety of sex toys were ready and waiting in his suite. He had no idea how to use half of what he had bought, but surely Leslie would know. If the array of gadgets he’d seen lying around her private bathroom at the office was any indication, he couldn’t ask for a better teacher.

  The notion of using even one of those toys with Leslie caused the already hot fire in his gut to spread down his groin. His dick twitched then swelled without mercy.

  Rolling his eyes at his own ridiculous reaction, he picked up his napkin, casually wiped his mouth, then placed the linen square over the growing tent in his lap.