The Office Party Read online

  “Three hundred dollars?” His lips curve into a smirk. “On a five-million-dollar budget?”

  “Well, it’s actually three hundred and twenty-four dollars, but I’m rounding down for effect. Every dollar counts, you know. Companies can easily go broke by losing a few cents over time.”

  He stares at me for several seconds, looking amused.

  “Savannah.”

  “Mr. West.”

  “Okay, Miss Grey.” He pauses. “Although I truly appreciate your concern for my multi-million-dollar budget, but I can assure you that you don’t need to fly commercial for this trip. I’d prefer that you didn’t so we can have the conversation we were supposed to have in my condo two days ago.”

  “I’ve already purchased the ticket on the company card.”

  “I’ll call and get a refund.”

  Silence.

  “Did you book this place on purpose?” I ask. “You know that I hate going home, and you know how I feel about my family. I’m pretty sure I’ve told you that they hate me for not coming around for eight years…They hate me.”

  “You have told me that,” he says, looking at me as if I’m the insane one. “But when have I ever used my time to look into locations for the office party? I verify the budget and sign the check.”

  I stare at him, unsure of what to say next.

  “Can you ride me with me to the other airport now, so we can discuss a few things?” He motions for me to hand over my duffle bag, but I don’t give it to him.

  “Attention, ladies and gentlemen who are scheduled for Flight 2519 with service to Colorado.” A voice suddenly comes over the speakers. “We are now beginning the boarding process.”

  “Well,” I say, taking a step back. “They’re calling my flight. I need to get in line.”

  “Did you not hear what I said about getting a refund?”

  “Loud and clear,” I say, taking another step back. “But they’re boarding, and I’ve emailed you everything that we need to talk about so—Bye!” I turn around and rush down the hall to my gate.

  I don’t dare to look over my shoulder.

  I pull out my boarding pass and hand it to the gate agent.

  “Happy Holidays, Miss Grey.” She returns it to me. “Have a safe flight!”

  “Thank you.” I rush onto the jet bridge and take my place in line.

  When I make it to my seat, I stuff my bag into the overhead bin and put on my headphones—making it perfectly clear that I don’t want to engage in any small talk with whoever happens to sit next to me. I need to use every single second of this flight to contemplate my next move.

  I wait anxiously, hoping Garrett hasn’t bought a ticket at the last minute. That I can put off our inevitable confrontation just a little bit longer.

  Several minutes pass, and only a few other passengers join me on the plane. The flight attendant serves me a shot of vodka and looks disturbed when I down it within seconds and ask for another.

  “Ladies and gentlemen of Flight 2519, this is your pilot speaking,” a deep voice sounds over the speakers. “Thank you for flying with us this holiday season. Flight attendants, please prepare the cabin for takeoff…” Those words give me the assurance I need.

  As the plane rolls down the tarmac, my phone buzzes with a text message.

  Garrett—He KNOWS: Do you honestly think you’re going to avoid talking to me for this entire trip?

  Me: I’m willing to bet you on it.

  Garrett—He KNOWS: How can you say that, when you know I always win…

  THIRTEEN

  This Christmas

  This Christmas

  Colorado Springs, Colorado

  Savannah

  I take my time getting off the airplane when it lands, much to the chagrin of the flight attendants. They sigh loudly every time I double-check my seat, and I’ve heard one of them ask if they should try picking me up and carrying me away together.

  “Miss Grey.” The brunette taps her foot. “You have checked that overhead bin twenty times now. There's nothing—absolutely nothing, up there for you. The three of us have another flight to catch, and I’d hate to call airport authorities on you during the holiday season.”

  “How long will they keep me in jail if they take me? Are we talking hours or weeks?”

  She gives me a look that says, “You don’t want to know,” and points to the exit.

  Defeated, I roll my bag off the jet bridge. I stop in every store on the way to baggage claim, giving the universe all the time in the world to open a sinkhole that I can dive into.

  By the time I make it to the transportation zone, the last sunlight is fading from the sky, so I scroll through my apps and order an Uber.

  When I look up, I squint upon seeing a familiar face by the curb: my long-lost cousin, Taryn.

  Ugh. She looks better as a gingerbread cookie with its head bitten off.

  Dressed in her sorority’s signature pink and green, she tosses her hair over her shoulder and waves down a valet.

  My heart aches at the sight of her, and I know I should turn away and act like she doesn’t exist, but I can’t help but stare. She has that effect on people.

  Besides my grandmother, a local legend in her own right, Taryn is the most successful person in our family. She goes out of her way to make sure that we all know it, too.

  It’s never enough for her to send a simple “Happy Birthday” or “Happy Holidays” card. She has to send a new Cartier watch with custom diamonds to match. She can’t resist saying little things like, “Four hundred dollars? Oh, I spend that on my lunch,” and, “You like this bag? Well, it’s not too bad for the ten-thousand-dollar price tag.”

  She’s also a master manipulator.

  When I didn’t get into Alpha Kappa Alpha, she made it her mission to get in and throw it in my face whenever she could. She invited me to parties that exclusively required sorority membership, and when I asked her to stop, she said, “Why? Doesn’t this inspire you to be better?”

  Ever since becoming one of the first YouTubers to make it big by earning six figures from her media channel, she’s become ten times more egotistical and unbearable.

  Especially for me.

  Tapping her red-bottomed Christian Louboutin heels against the pavement, she motions for valet once more.

  Her eyes suddenly meet mine, and she smiles. “Well, hello there, little cousin! You’re growing up so fast!”

  “You’re two days older than me.”

  “I didn’t know you were coming home!” She pulls me into a hard hug that I don’t want, squeezing me a little too tight. “What made you come home this year?”

  “My company rented out grandma’s resort for an entire week,” I say. “I’m still at West Media.”

  “Well, that’s nice,” she says. “I heard you were a top advisor, but that’s… still working for someone else, and in this day and age, it’s not good enough at all.”

  Please, Universe. Bring on the sinkhole so that I can drag her down with me.

  “You know, I remember when I was still working a regular job,” she continues, “when I had no idea how much further I could go if I worked for myself. I do hope that one day you’ll get to my level, Savannah. And maybe perhaps, you can join a graduate chapter of Delta Sigma Theta instead of Alpha Kappa Alpha. I’ve heard the former takes pity on people like you.”

  I roll my eyes. “I have an Uber to get,” I say, stepping back. “I’ll see you around later, I’m sure.”

  “You don’t want to ride in my new Benz?” She smiles as the silver car pulls up next to her. “I mean, the ride is nothing like my Lamborghini, but I let one of my old classmates borrow it for the weekend. It’s Monica, the girl I roomed with at Spelman Grad…I still can’t believe I got in there on a full academic scholarship and they didn’t even accept you for undergrad! But somehow you got into Harvard undergrad?”

  “Oh, wait.” She taps her bottom lip. “I can believe it, because that’s exactly what happened.”

>   I silently debate whether I can afford to lose my job because I’m tempted to commit an assault right now.

  “I don’t need a ride,” I say, forcing a smile. “I’ll see you at the resort.” I walk away before she can object, muttering, “Strike one,” and hoping she gets struck by lightning while we’re here.

  * * *

  The Uber driver makes two wrong turns on his way to The Grace Estate, and I pretend like I don’t know that the right lane is three miles down. I shut my eyes and let him figure it out, bracing myself for my grandmother’s reaction to my first homecoming in eight years.

  I know better than to go through the regular entrance like all my coworkers did; that’ll only delay the inevitable heckling and stares, and I want to get this over with once and for all.

  I brace myself for all of my aunts and cousins to regard me as some type of lost stranger who’s better off finding love from another family for the holidays. Them treating me like the broken ornament that no one wants to touch.

  You can do this, Savannah. You can do this.

  “I finally figured it out, Miss.” The driver’s voice makes me open my eyes. He gets out and opens the backdoor for me, launching me into a newly expanded wonderland.

  According to the sign that the giant nutcracker is holding, the newest additions to the resort are an expanded ski lodge, a Michelin-awarded restaurant, and a state-of-the-art golf course.

  Taking a deep breath, I knock on the front door five times.

  No answer, but I hear laughing and music inside.

  I take another deep breath and knock even harder.

  Within seconds, Grandma Hattie opens the door, her recipe book in hand.

  “Now, here I was thinking that not even your job could bring you home!” She smiles and pulls me into a hug that I’ve missed far too much, a hug that immediately brings tears to my eyes.

  “Please don’t go another eight years, you hear?” she whispers. “Your mother was my daughter, and still need to see you. I can only look after you so much from here…”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Fresh tears sting my eyes as she slowly pulls away from me.

  Before I can say another word, my aunts and cousins surround me, giving me hug after hug.

  “Heard you’re doing so well in New York.” “Welcome back home, Savvy.” “We’ve missed you!”

  They pull out their phones and take pictures as they kiss me. They challenge me to the annual family game of Spades that I’ll definitely lose, and they act as if my absence of eight years was something as short as eight seconds.

  Georgia winks at me from the far side of the room.

  “Told you so.” She mouths. “Everyone still loves you.”

  “Cousin Savvy, pick me to give you the tour!” My cousin, Phoenix, walks up to me.

  “No, me!” My other cousin, Austin, blocks him.

  “Everyone, hold on!” My grandmother clears her throat. “Savannah is home, but remember she also has job-obligations while she’s here. Let her get settled into her suite first, get some work done, and then you can worry the hell out of her, right?” She looks at me.

  “Right.”

  They cheer about that last fact, and then she walks over to me with a keycard packet.

  “Good news, you have the best suite here in Building G.” She pats my back. “But bad news, you’re the granddaughter of the owner, and you have to promise me that you’ll take a break from your conference and join me and the rest of the family for the taste-testing dinner at nine on Friday night.”

  “I promise.” I give her one more hug before walking away.

  I roll my luggage to the elevator and take it to the top floor. When I make it to my room, I smile at the bright green “Welcome Home, Savannah” ribbon that’s draped above the door.

  Pulling my suitcase inside, I hit the lights and let out a breath. Before I can move to the bathroom, I hear the door locking behind me.

  “Let’s talk.” Garrett is suddenly standing behind me, his mouth close to my ear. “Now.”

  The hairs on the back of my neck stand up as I slowly turn around to face him. I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out.

  They fly away from the tip of my tongue at the sexy sight of him.

  His white dress shirt is unbuttoned, revealing his chiseled chest and abs. Locking his eyes on mine, he slowly looks me up and down, making it more than clear that he’s not letting me leave this room.

  I suck in a breath, and he steps closer.

  What exactly do you want to talk about? I still can’t get the words to fall from my lips, but he looks at me as if he can read my mind.

  Me fucking you. I read his mind in return—following his gaze as it moves over to my “gift” on the nightstand.

  He closes the gap between us, cupping his hand around the base of my neck. “Tell me that you want me…”

  “I don’t,” I say. “You’re my boss.

  “How so?” He smirks. “We both know that’s technically not true.”

  “If it wasn’t, I can guarantee you that I wouldn’t be at an office party. I’d never show up to any of them.”

  “You’d still attend every single one.” His lips brush against mine. “Because I’d be there, and according to your sister’s note, you like to fantasize about riding my face and being fucked from behind …”

  “She’s lying.”

  “Prove it.” He looks me up and down. “Tell me to leave right now if that’s not true.”

  I don’t utter a word.

  He suddenly stamps his mouth over mine, and I grip onto the window ledge as he teasingly bites down on my bottom lip.

  “Let me…” He darts his tongue against the crease of my lips, demanding entry. “Savannah, let me.”

  I grip the ledge harder and oblige, moaning as he tames my mouth with his. His kiss is reckless but controlling at the same time, and with each whisper of my name, the unbearable tension that’s long-existed between us slowly falls away.

  “Fuck…” He breathes, sliding a hand under my dress.

  My nipples harden against my blouse as he hooks his thumb under my panties and yanks them off. They fall to the floor with ease, and he presses his thumb against my soaking wet clit.

  “Ahhh…” I cry out as he slips two fingers deep inside of my pussy and slowly pushes them in and out.

  “You know I’m going to fuck you much deeper than this, right?” His whispered question is rhetorical.

  I know better than to answer it right now.

  He smiles as I rock against his fingers, and I moan that he’s found my spot and I want more. I press my palm against the front of his pants, feeling his cock harden.

  Using his free hand to pull a condom from his pocket, he whispers, “Take it out.”

  I oblige, and he presses his mouth against my collarbone, pressing long, deep kisses against my skin.

  My eyes widen as I run my hand up and down his length, slowly freeing it from his boxers. I can feel my cheeks heating as he follows my gaze.

  Pulling his fingers from inside of me, he lets out a low laugh and picks up the condom. He holds the edge of the packet close to my mouth, silently demanding me to open it with my teeth.

  When I do, he slowly rolls it over his length, and without warning, he spins me around to face the window.

  “Grab the frame,” he commands, squeezing my ass.

  I can’t move fast enough. My pussy is throbbing at the intense pleasure that his fingers took away from me.

  “Savannah,” he repeats, his voice deep. “Grab the frame.”

  My nails dig into the crown molding, and he presses a kiss at the center of my neck before sliding into me inch by inch.

  “Ahhhh…Oh my god…” I moan as he takes his time filling me. Cry out each time he slaps my ass.

  When he’s buried deep, he blows against my neck. “You feel so fucking good…”

  He repeats himself a few more times, and then he pulls out of me—thrusting in and out, again and again.

/>   “Garrett…” I damn near scream his name

  “Fuck, Savannah…” He grabs a fistful of my hair as I match him stroke for stroke, biting the skin on my neck whenever I say his name.

  I bite my bottom lip as my pussy throbs against his cock, as my hardened nipples hit the cold glass. I can feel myself getting closer to the edge with every stroke, every hasty kiss against my neck.

  All of a sudden, I hear a low buzzing sound, and I feel him pressing the vibrator against my clit.

  My eyes flutter open, and his eyes meet mine in the window’s glass.

  “Is this what you used to use whenever you thought of me?” He changes the setting, not slowing his strokes inside of me. “Tell me…”

  I can’t answer, I can barely speak. The contrasting pleasure of his cock and the vibrations against my swollen clit are too much; all I can do is moan.

  “I’ve wanted you so long, Savannah,” he whispers. “So fucking long…”

  I feel tremors building inside of me, feel my stomach coiling and uncoiling in anticipation. Heat rushes through my veins, and I let go of the ledge—unable to hold on anymore. As if Garrett can feel me getting close, he grips my hips as I shake against him, holding me taut as I scream at the top of my lungs.

  He slowly thrusts into me a few more times, finding his own release. Then he stiffens and kisses my neck until I’ve stopped shaking.

  Slowly pulling out of me, he takes off the condom and tosses it into the trash. Then he spins me around to face him, dominating my mouth with his again.

  When I’m breathless, he tears away from me and begins kissing his way down my neck and across my breasts. He takes his time sucking each of my nipples into his mouth.

  “I need to fuck you again,” he says, looking up at me. “This time I want to look into your eyes…”

  FOURTEEN

  Savannah

  This Christmas

  Colorado Springs, Colorado