Victorious Pt 01 02

"Coffee." She said walking by dumping her purse and jacket on his desk.

Victor had that one word to go by as his 'hello, good morning, or happy Thursday'. He stared at the items before him, and moved it all to his file cabinet behind him.

His boss' actions had long ago cost him the respect of his colleagues. She was beautiful and he was her big black guard dog. Victor's co-workers thought Meredith was an all business workaholic who practiced staying aloof of office politics to get ahead. They figured Victor to be impotently gay, twisted around her finger somehow, the very worst sort of brown-nosing suck-up, or some combination of the three.

Lunch invitations, after work drinks, cooperation, kind words, and eye contact were things his co-workers skillfully avoided with him. His location didn't help. He was seated across the office from them by the windows with his back to Meredith's door and glass wall. He sat there like a peon on the frontline guarding the general's tent. A no man's land of copiers, cabinets, and conference tables separated him from the receptionist and the elevator nearby their cluster of cubicles.

Victor sighed again and walked to the office kitchen to pour her the French blend he had brewed when he came in nearly two hours ago. Conversations from a few gossipers quieted when he came in the kitchenette alcove. He couldn't ignore what wasn't happening so he concentrated on Meredith's mood of the day. Seven years of practice had taught him the perfect brew for her four dispositions.

Sulking and snappy, from during the divorce three years ago when she needed massive doses of caffeine to launch her shock and awe campaigns.

Fast and twitchy, like when they first worked together and they spent long 16 and 17-hour days working, traveling, and building the company together. Secretly, he had switched between decaf and regular to avoid burning her out.

Stone steady and aloof was his favorite and usually led to a slammed locked door for hours.

Today, he noted his boss' curtness and fast motions, she would need only a spoonful of sugar to get her into lunch.

After pouring a cup, he steadied it and glided to Meredith's office. She sat back on the phone and waved him in the open door as he prepared to knock. After placing the mug down, he stood a step back from the desk and kept his eyes off her as she consulted the engineers for her next sales call.

Deeply tanned, with brown-yellow-hazel eyes that were lighter than her skin it seemed. She was exotic and slightly spooky when they were heavily lidded with eye shadow as they were now. Her face was squared jaw with a flat chin, and distinct cheekbones. Distinctively, her face had a mole above her lips on the right side and another on the other side of her other cheek below the lips.

Her hair was a mane of black curls and waves that went to her lower back. Meredith had the body of a porn star. Lisa Ann, Regina Rizzi, Mercedes Ashley, Ricki White, or Jewels Jade came up in conversation about her features. She was overweight by doctors' standards but she had washboard abs. Her weight was carried in her over generous breasts, butt, thighs, and hair. In her jimmy whoever four-inch heels, she cracked over six feet and stared him in the eye.

"Excellent. Yes thank you, I thought the same thing" Meredith's mask smiled but Victor knew she felt nothing. "Buh bye now." She giggled hanging up the phone. The mask slipped off as the receiver clicked and her full bee-stung lips fell out of her insipid grin.

With him, the mask was always left off. Victor had to see the monster everyday. She was a fully functional sociopath, and it seemed only he knew it. Her bright yellow eyes flicked up to regard him and make her instant inspection. Meredith had a perfect car, job, body, makeup, house, and she had him. He was to be her perfect assistant.

She was the only 'vice VP' of an electronics industry powerhouse. When their small device company was bought out several years ago, she was one of the only people allowed to keep their seat on the board but lost the title VP of sales. Her and Victor were sent from the headquarters, a few miles away, to the hinterlands of a direct marketing office and thrived. If the 'green revolution' took off, she would be a millionaire several times over from their work and contracts already made.

As things stood now, they both made the same amount in commissions since they worked tightly together as the company's best sales engine. The company liked having a minority and a woman working together. The salary she made from the title got her in the next tax bracket despite their relatively close six figure incomes.

"Xerox these, and have Jan bring in her notary stamp." She said sliding over a paper stack of their latest kills. Her off white silk blouse was properly buttoned and was tucked tightly into her pinstripe pencil skirt. He knew that her legs were clad in black stockings with ruler straight seams. The outfit was Nordstrom's pg. 16. Meredith bought exactly what the catalogue models wore.

"Yes, Ma'am." He replied quietly taking the papers. Chanel wafted up with them. It was obligatory for him to stand until dismissed when dealing with her. Usually, she dismissed him once she knew the coffee was satisfactory, but that only that happened after it cooled slightly.

"Meredith I..."

"Go." She said stopping him and turning for the phone.

Dejected he started out but stopped at the door. Behind him, Meredith was silently flipping through her phone referencing a number. He knew it was theater since she would have had him done it if she actually wanted to call someone. They worked together too long for him to be fooled. But, it was odd to him that she acted this way now.

Victor spun and slowly closed the door. The click roused her and she spun her chair to face him. Her bright eyes inspected him head to toe again with blank interest.

"Meredith, I can't see you anymore. I have a girlfriend, and she makes me happy. I can't hurt her." He breathed in a rush. It suddenly felt like the ceiling vent was blasting hot air.

For a moment, she was silent and stared through him before she blinked and regarded him. She didn't move though she seemed to hunch thoughtfully. Meredith wasn't bad with anything, but she didn't do random surprises well. Her face twitched in an unreadable micro expression that pursed her full lips before she finally spoke.

"No." She said flatly. "In fact we will get married."

Victor froze staring at her like a startled deer. In his head, he repeated a loop of her words certain she wasn't speaking American English.

Meredith was by nature of very few words, and he knew she meant exactly what she said. Her jaw was set and he remembered back in college that she had taught martial arts.

"Meredith," He squeaked feeling sweat starting on his back and forehead. "I tried to help you after the divorce, but I don't think you need me anymore. We got our own lives, and we're all grown up. You know a person can't have a real relationship with another woman on the..."

"Go away." Meredith roared as she snapped forward against the desk. He had just referenced her failed marriage and brutal divorce by inclusion of that last statement. Behind her desk, a shoulder and elbow twitched. She couldn't stand that blip of ugliness in her history.

Victor backed to the door and slipped out while facing and watching her. All told, except for everything she said, it went better than he expected.

He went around and ran his errands. Collecting the accountant for the notarizing was a bittersweet task. Jan, was a tall wide shouldered blonde gal from Oklahoma who was a sorority sister of Meredith's. She had covered natural breasts each the size of his head. He had never seen them outside of modestly buttoned up blouses, sweaters, and ankle length dresses. She had wanted to be an elementary teacher but couldn't say no to more than twice money of working here. She was the nicest person in the office to him and had a trusting wholesome look and slow moving tranquility. Her looks of pity over his seemingly stunted office life stung harder then the others' quiet jokes.

Slipping back to his desk after running his errands, Victor could feel Meredith's eyes on him from the glass wall. The instant Jan stepped back out of the office a green light for interoffice calls flashed on his desk phone. He looked at it for a moment knowing she was watching him.

He cleared his throat picking up the phone. "Hello,"

"This is Meredith, Hi. I wasn't able to have a proper dialogue and resolve things properly with you earlier." Meredith said on the line using her soliciting voice as if on a sales call. "We'll have lunch and discuss your issue." She said and hung up.

Victor counted the seconds until one o'clock when Meredith always went out to feed herself.

Five years ago, he would have never guessed he stayed her assistant. The first time they got together since college was as her marriage was hitting the wall. The company was tiny back then, and they worked in an old cluttered one-story office in a commercial park.

It was late, and it was just them in the office once the rep from legal had left. The corner of the office they were in was dark and lit with the soft orange yellowed light of incandescent bulbs from the desk lamps. Outside, the sun had set and the streetlights had came on, the office reeked of burnt coffee, it was still going to be a while before they left.

"He's cheating on me." Meredith said flatly.

He had picked up how different she was by then. He didn't understand her at all, but he noticed over little more than two years she never laughed, smiled, made a joke, or cried. She seemed like a puppet or a machine. Her manner was always consistent without the frivolous actions he usually picked on women for. He had taught her a lot about acting to help her catch jokes and be warm and personable on sales calls.

"Wow, that's crazy. I'm sorry." Victor shuffled over on his knees and hugged her in the middle of the mess of product details they tried to cram.

She hugged him tightly and cried for real for the first and only time. As he held her, he was trying to keep his cock down and hands up. He lost, and the wood arose as he smelled her thick black hair, felt her firm yet pleasantly padded body against him, and his chest burned between them.

Before his heart almost melted and he did something stupid, he got over it and pulled her back. She cocked her head to him and pushed in for another hug. Her breast hit his cock and she pressed in tighter and felt for his straining cock with a creeping hand. Right then, with it against the back of her hand, she bit him hard latching on his chest . He was surprised the teeth broke the skin in places.

He had an idea in his mind what she was doing. His old family dog did the same thing every once in a while for attention. Like some kind of challenge: it would bite you as it stared you in the eye to see if you'd fight it. Stupidly, he thought she was just really confused and vulnerable and had wanted to see if he would hurt her. He had assumed that's what she was doing but he didn't know back then that Meredith hadn't had a dog yet.

Much, much later, he would realize she had marked him to assert dominance, not unlike a dog but more like a wolf. He had froze and only moved his head to look down at her in the eyes and she reached down further to cup his cock holding his stare.

Right there in the office, with both of them kneeling on the floor among diagrams and printouts, she slid down his body looking at him as long as she could before she maneuvered around to suck him off. She showed tremendous skill and hunger deepthroating his thick eight-inch cock. It was an excellent blowjob, and truly world-class with enthusiasm he'd rarely seen. She relished and worshipped his cock like it was separate from him and seemed to drink off him when he came.

At first, Victor thought it was exciting to have an affair. A hand full of times he and Meredith messed around. After that, the divorce was settled and things got more confusing.

When she left for lunch, Meredith stepped out and paused for a moment at the side of his desk. She rested a hand on the desk before bringing them together in front of herself.

"Coat."

The jacket was half a step to her left and within her grasp. He could feel her eyes on him as he spun over in his chair and handed the jacket to her.

"We will take my car." She said flatly staring at him again and cocking her head. She did that sometimes when she was considering something not in her plan. Victor didn't want to know what she was thinking.

As they trouped out Victor could feel the stares of his peers.

"Uh oh, she is gonna go whip her boy." Said Carmine, a Hispanic brunette who looked similar though less curvy then Meredith. Carmine was not a friend of Meredith's, she was more of a rival twin. She ran internet sales and had a faction of friends in other sections and a legion of IT techs tripping over themselves finding reasons to visit. She played the workplace as if it was high school and everyone played along.

Only two other men worked in the section. Seven women made the balance of their section in their department. Most were from Meredith's college sorority. None was as hot as Meredith was, though some did have slightly bigger breasts like Jan, a firm tight body Nessi, a caramel black Yale grad who sadly tried to act ghetto since she was born in the suburbs, or nearly as pretty of a face like Carmine.

They rode the elevator with several others in the building down to the car garage. Meredith had barrowed Victor's preference for fast four door cars and drove the biggest blackest late model sedan she could find when her leases were up. This year was a hybrid Lexus ls 600h L.

The interior was cavernous and darkened with the limo tint Meredith preferred. The smell of the vehicle's new leather kept him calm. The radio came on as she started the vehicle with the subdued conversational voices of public radio. The car moved silently as she backed out then set her course to an expensive Mediterranean restaurant Victor had shown her. She wordlessly drove going exactly the speed limit out of the garage and into traffic. After pulling to a light, she turned off the radio and paused again before speaking.

"How long have you dated?" She asked looking ahead.

Victor winced but sighed and started the unsavory business of explanation. "She moved into a nearby apartment four years ago, but I've known her for a few months."

"We've known each other since college Victorious." She said using his frat name and accelerated smoothly with the light.

"Yes, we've talked about that." Victor turned slightly in his seat to face her. "Look, I'll still be here for you. I honestly thought it would be easier for you then this." He turned back to look ahead as they passed another intersection. "Meredith our thing had two obvious outcomes remember? We come out and date for real and H.R. would likely ask one of us to leave, or we eventually stop and date other people since neither of us is married."

He paled as her hands tightened to white knuckles on the wheel. "I ff..feel not good about this." Emotion was never her strong suit, and neither was blind aggression he hoped. "You are my friend. You are my only real friend."

Using his placating voice Victor tried to ease her into the idea. "You can find someone else, it's the perfect time, and you are very desirable." Another twitch flashed across her dark face still too fast to be read.

After a few miles, she responded. "I bonded to you Victor. I think you're an important person to me. Other men seem...dirty, and it would likely waste many hours to find a similarly ideal... substitution."

Victor tried to end run the bizarre conversation. "Well I don't feel we have anything we can't walk away from. I started out helping you Meredith, so this is like the last step for you to be free."

"No." She said flatly. "I am too busy to allow you this change."

She ignored him the rest of the trip and guided them off the highway. Their exit brought them around to the back of the restaurant. Meredith parked on the street and they found a table inside just off the sidewalk. The tables as usual for restaurants with side walk seating were packed in a tight phalanx.

Victor ordered for them after they sat. Hoping for something light and quick he ordered chicken salad sandwich and a whiskey sour to Meredith's cranberry vodka.

After the waiter left, Meredith took the initiative like this was just a working lunch on another sales call. "I want to give you what you want. H.R. won't interfere. The company doesn't alter successful sales teams." She started.

"Why? Is it fair to drop Taris because you decided not to let go?" He tried to be quiet and not cause the lunchtime break up scene.

"I had you first." She said straightening her silverware.

With the tight tables, he hoped people wouldn't turn them into the entertainment. Every male eating, or on the staff was already glued to the darkly exotic Meredith like bright eyed schoolboys waiting to be called on.

Victor tried to be casual and kept his attention on what she was doing with the inconveniently placed weapons. "Don't be like that."

Her Chanel slid over to him as she leaned in. "Then what are your rules?" Her eyes narrowed as she regarded him. "Why do you want to move on?"

People were picking up on their tense postures, and intentionally subdued voices. Like a ripple in the water, heads turned to listen and the conversations around them stopped.

Victor sighed, the game was up. Now they were the lunchtime entertainment. "We are just sex. Only for release. You show me to your parents around the holidays as if I'm your boyfriend. We work together already a lot and the extra stuff kills any other growth." He gestured across the street to a family restaurant just now opening for the afternoon. "I want to have kids and have a family. I was raised to get married first. If you don't want too I have to go somewhere else."

Meredith paused to blink and likely realized she could get through this. "I want what you want." She repeated.

Victor looked up and tried to avoid the glares of the hostile male elements in the crowd. "Well with three years between us if this doesn't work out with Taris I'm sure we'll get it back."

Meredith sat back and waved at the comment. "Too much uncertainty Victor." She snorted dismissively. "I want you."

They were served and Victor ordered a long island iced tea to make this parody tolerable.

He was glad that with Meredith it wasn't a usual male-female reason v.s. emotion argument. Victor could never stand water works and to her credit, Meredith never spun off on an incomprehensible emotional trip. She had spoiled him that way, His seldom forays associating with other women ended when they tested his patience with their petty games.

He understood it was all an instinctive trait from before time. Being needy, or difficult was how they selected a superior mate that was truly bonded to them before investing the energy in the potentially fatal pregnancy. Nevertheless, they didn't like it when he completely instinctively looked to assess the next vessel to plant his seed in either.

Honestly, he wasn't sure about Taris. He wasn't doing more then going to a movie or meeting her at bars. The potential was certainly there, and that kept him up worrying what the right thing to do was. In college, old 'Victorious' would have 'loved them and left them', but needs change. Victor kept his physique thanks to Meredith but he was shocked into middle age with grey hairs appearing in unusual places.

The last time 'Victorious' swung his bat at another guys ball was Meredith. After a insane party involving four kegs, a fire, a car accident, and several stops by the police he got off campus with Meredith, his friend, and a girl Victor snagged. They wound up at his friend's apartment after the usual trip to taco bell and HEB the grocery store.