HE SAID
I strode down the hallway surveying the office to determine who might still be around at 5:00 pm on a summer Friday afternoon. All the assistants appeared gone, their desks empty and computers turned off. Their bosses' doors were closed, a typical sign that they too had left for the weekend.
My body was pumped, muscles ripped from the afternoon workout at the gym. More importantly, my heart raced with excitement. I had received 'the signal' from Elizabeth Meade that morning. It was 'our' signal. Today Liz wore those stockings- the black ones with small polka dots and a seam up the back, the ones which so beautifully adorned her sexy legs and told me she wanted me. If it was going to happen any day of the week, it could only be on a Friday. Every Friday morning was exciting, although every Friday did not bring the wanted signal.
We were paired together when I started my first job out of graduate school at Smith Gump, LLP. I was the young hot shot they recruited that year. Liz, a prim and proper British woman with a proper (and sexy) accent, was assigned to me as my assistant. She was maybe eight years my senior and had been with the company a while, guiding and grooming the firm's young recruits, turning them into star performers.
Liz and I worked together like a hand and glove. She was a steadying force to my frenetic deal making. Without her I would not have developed a multi-million dollar book of business, making oodles of money for my employer in the process. Management acknowledged how well we operated. When it wanted to assign her to a new recruit, I vigorously opposed the move. After a heated power play, I prevailed only because of the amount of money I, no we, were making for the firm.
We worked together and grew to know one another on a very personal level. We had a great repertoire- we worked, talked and joked, we became mutual confidants and friends. I thought she could discuss anything with me. I felt the same way with her, and went so far as to pour out my heart, all to often in fact, over failed relationships and the young women I coveted and chased.
Then around our seventh year together she confided that she was in a failed marriage, one which had been disintegrating for many years and had finally reached collapse. I was shocked, not just because of the revelation itself, but also because of how long she had kept her situation from me. She suspected "he" was cheating on her, that "he" had not touched her in years, that they agreed to stay together and live under the same roof for the benefit of her two sons, who were near college age. Once the boys were away at college he was going to file far a divorce. She said it was irreconcilable, not that she wanted reconciliation. She was disheartened over it. I would have never known if she did not mention it. She said she had low self esteem believing "he" wanted nothing to do with her- she thought it was because of her appearance or persona, although she admitted "he" had never given her a clear and convincing explanation of his feelings and behavior. I was astounded and assured her she was completely wrong- that she was a highly attractive woman and a wonderful person. I blamed it all on "him". She told me I was too kind, had always been to her, and she appreciated my support and kind words. Then the subject was dropped and we went about our business without mentioning it further.
Later that year, Boaz, Guild, LTD, a competitor of Smith Gump, solicited me to switch firms. I could have left Liz behind and trained a new assistant. It would have taken a good six months to a year to develop the working relationship I needed, and that assumed the person I hired was the right one and I did not need to go through a series of hirings and firing until I was satisfied. But Liz was too valuable to me. She was my right hand and alter ego. She gave me confidence to do the things I needed to do knowing she stood behind me to properly handle clients and matters in my absence and make critical snap decisions. And, work would not have been the same without her. No, I could not leave her behind. I told Boaz Guild that they had to hire Liz too or I would not make the move. Brazen? Yes, but i recognized she was my strength. Boaz solicited her without hesitation. Smith Gump found out and countered her hard. Knowing I was going, she did not flinch as she took the jump, and the hefty bonus that came with it.
Boaz was extremely happy with our production. I started giving Liz a cut of every commission I made. She deserved it. She worked hard, was dedicated to my success and made sure things just went right every day. Clients always told me how much they enjoyed working and talking with her. Basically, she just made it all happen and allowed me to focus on what really mattered.
About a year into working at Boaz she again vented about her marriage late one afternoon. She again expressed how much she appreciated my support and then she dropped a bomb, perhaps it was a slip of the tongue, when she told me, "Alec, if I were single and younger, I would snatch you up before those other women come to their senses...."
That comment coaxed me to think about her in a manner different than before. I admit, I always had found her very attractive and was intrigued by her. Every day I went to work looking forward to seeing her. Given her married status, I always looked past her. I did not want to ruin our platonic relationship. Now, given her void marriage, well, I wondered if her innocent comment was designed to open a door between us.
As she rose to leave my office she dropped a load of papers and files on the floor. I stood and crouched down helping her to pick up the scattered documents. "Liz," I started placing my hand on her arm about to tell her I would clean the mess.
She looked at me as we knelt, faces but a foot apart, "Yes," she interrupted as I began.
Then I took a leap of faith. "Is it just me?" I asked. She blushed a bit and hesitated in her response.
"No, its me too," she admitted in a hushed British accent. I leaned forward and gently kissed her beautiful red lips. She hesitated at first but became receptive. A soft kiss inflamed long held unspoken passion. We rose and our bodies pressed together. We respectfully touched each other through our clothes, exploring each others bodies, slowly bridging the gap of the past years. Tender loving kisses led to naked tangled limbs and joined flesh infused with the rapture of two finding sync for the first time.
When it was over, we agreed we would continue what was long overdue but also agreed we could have no expectations- just a casual affair. We understood our time would be limited to Friday afternoons in the office- she had to get home to feed her kids dinner and could not linger late. We also understood that getting caught carried dire unwanted consequences. Discretion was the rule. We had to be careful to avoid raising suspicions. Our encounters had to be quiet and behind locked doors, when nobody was around the office who could find us, and if we were caught together after hours late on a Friday we could not raise suspicions. We had to keep our clothes from becoming disheveled, avoid smudging her make up on my clothes, avoid all suspicion and appearance of impropriety. Yes, it was of paramount importance to protect our illicit affair and hide our mutual lust.
