Authors Note: This series of short stories are intended to be episodic and thus can be read alone. Any feedback, criticisms or improvements are always welcome. The author also invites reader suggestions about what they would like to see Xanthe do next.
It had been an early morning start for Xanthe. She had a big case headed for court and her boss was riding her to get a satisfactory conclusion to the whole legal quagmire. As a junior in the firm she always dreamed of the day she could take charge of a major client’s case and be the star at the office when things worked out favorably.
Now Xanthe regretted that wish, she had been working overtime every night, giving up her weekends and watching as her boss plucked other staff members from her team and left her undermanned and overworked.
The morning had been long and tedious as she talked with clients and the opposing party’s legal representatives. Her only assistant had called in sick for the day, meaning Xanthe had to run her own errands and file her own paperwork. It seemed like the pile of paper on her desk was getting bigger and bigger.
With all the stress and restlessness Xanthe found herself begging for some time off. Her boss in his infinite wisdom had denied the request, too many people had been taking time off recently and her work was too important to the firm. The one concession he did make was he would look into assigning someone new to her team to help her out.
It was getting late in the afternoon when Xanthe heard a brisk knock on the flimsy veneer and glass door which separated her from the rest of the office. She looked up to see her visitor swing the door open and step into the room. It was her boss Mr. Phillips, a bald portly man who never seemed to speak at a normal tone, instead preferring to get excited and yell. Xanthe saw someone standing behind him.
“Xanthe,” Mr. Phillips called in a stern voice, “I want you to meet Nicole. She will be helping you with the Anderson deal. I think you’ll find her most helpful.” Mr. Phillips turned and let Nicole step past him, and with a broad smile he stepped back out of the room.
“Thanks daddy,” the slightly blushing Nicole replied as her father squeezed past her. Xanthe took a moment to comprehend what she had just heard. Nicole was the boss’s daughter. Rumors had been rife through the office that grumpy Mr. Phillips had a daughter and that she was about to begin work at the firm.
“Hi I’m Xanthe, and I guess we’ll be working together fairly closely over the next couple of weeks.” Xanthe eyed Nicole as she stood patiently in her doorway. Nicole was tall, nearly six foot by Xanthe’s estimation, with a thin figure only partially masked by her business attire. She had shoulder length blonde hair worn up and pale skin, not unlike Xanthe’s. “If you want to put your things down in the corner and pull up a seat I can get you up to speed on what you’ll be doing for the next few days.”
Xanthe ran through all the details that Nicole needed to know and gave her a few menial paper jobs to get her feet wet. It was reaching the end of the day and they were still going strong in the office. Xanthe sat back in her empty office and watched as the last of her colleagues that shared the floor with her headed for the elevator, waving goodbye.
Nicole strolled back from the research department looking at the other dimly lit offices and stalls that surrounded Xanthe’s office. “Looks like we have the place to ourselves.”
“This floor at least, it’s a big building so you can bet there are some other poor souls who are working late,” Xanthe replied in a sarcastic cutting tone. She was getting really tired of the long days and its affect on her ability to think straight. It was during one of her more lucid moments that she realized who she was talking to. “Oh I’m sorry I didn’t mean to imply that you’re … or …”
Nicole knew precisely what Xanthe was flustered about. She knew it would be a little difficult to make friends because of her father. He was an overbearing and demanding man who did force his employees to work ridiculously hard. All those things meant that her new colleagues would probably walk on egg shells around her, thinking she reported straight to him.
“No, don’t worry about me. I know how much of an asshole my father can be,” Nicole said with a grin. “He does work people too hard around here, but you have nothing to fear from me.”
Xanthe eyed her for a moment, she seemed very genuine and maybe the rumors about her weren’t true. Nicole was a very attractive young woman, a little gawky in conversation, she giggled nervously around Xanthe which annoyed the fiery red head to a degree. But it was her little imperfections, like her constant stumbling in conversations and her giggling fits which intrigued Xanthe.
“So you’re not attached to your dad’s hip like everyone around the office has been saying.” Xanthe relaxed back into her soft executive chair. She gazed at Nicole’s pale complexion. She had a narrow face, high cheekbones and very straight distinguished nose. That was where Nicole’s contradictory character started; she looked very mature and sophisticated, yet had a nervous youthful personality which didn’t quite match her outward appearance.
“No,” replied an amused Nicole, “is that what they are saying about me? That I’m the second coming of my father?”
“Well not entirely,” laughed Xanthe with a wink of her eye, she led Nicole on. “So how about we get out of this stuffy office and go do something that requires a little less brain work?”
“Sounds good, and I promise I won’t tell my dad you were slacking off.” Both girls laughed at the little joke as Xanthe gathered some papers that needed to be copied and filed downstairs.
Both woman left the office and walked through the rows of stalls to get to the elevators. The entire floor was uninhabited, something Xanthe also found strangely exhilarating. Nicole hit the door button and within seconds the doors opened to present an empty elevator.
As Nicole stepped in Xanthe gave her a full body assessment, from her elegant high heeled boots to her tight fitting, yet conservative business skirt and matching chocolate brown jacket, Nicole certainly knew how to dress to impress. She turned around and looked back at Xanthe who was caught momentarily appraising her figure. With a little chagrin Xanthe stepped into the mirrored elevator hoping Nicole hadn’t figured out what she was doing.
A small text message ran across the LCD display at the controls, warning staff members that the elevators were undergoing routine service and would be operating slower than normal. “Passengers should not be alarmed,” read Nicole turning to smirk at Xanthe.
Xanthe found the tall blonde very attractive, she was the total opposite to the shorter more petite Xanthe and it was something about that which led her mind astray. Maybe it was the gradual release of stress that the evening always brought, or her immense fatigue, but Xanthe’s mind wandered onto more intimate thoughts, and they involved the woman standing right beside her.
The elevator felt like it was slowly inching its way down the shaft and Xanthe’s mind latched on to her knew mental stimulus. She looked around the elevator interior noticing Nicole’s thin figure from a number of different angles. She had a firm tight rear, only a small chest, but sleek toned legs which were magnified by the glove tight fit of her knee high boots.
“So what do you like to get up to?” Xanthe asked trying to make conversation.
“The regular things, work, going out, drinking, partying. Yourself?” came Nicole’s quick reply.
“Much the same, but more of the work and less of the partying.”
“Yeah, maybe we should hook up some time and hit the city clubs.” Nicole’s response was a little surprising to Xanthe. She was still trying to distinguish the young and sexy blonde woman from the boss’s daughter. “Are you in a relationship?”
Xanthe glared at Nicole for a moment, she wasn’t one to hold back on the personal questions. “Me, no, I have my fun in other ways …”
Nicole was a little taken aback, not quite sure what Xanthe was implying by the cryptic response. “Well I’m still looking for Mr. Right, but I don’t mind Mr. Right Now on occasion either.”
Nicole’s cheeky grin and laugh was infectious and Xanthe cracked up. The elevator door opened suddenly causing both girls to quell their laughter and check the immediate vicinity for any other office staff.
There was nobody else present as the two girls left the elevator and headed for the coffee room opposite. All the floor lights were still on, meaning that there was a good chance other people were still slaving away with overtime. Xanthe strolled into the coffee room and could see the last wisps of steam waft from the expresso machine.
“Hey you want a coffee?” Xanthe asked making small talk. Nicole nodded her head and turned to look at a few magazines strewn across the table. Xanthe again caught a glimpse of Nicole’s finely tuned physique. She possessed a certain graceful pose for someone so young. Xanthe knew she was getting turned on by her new companion.
“So when you said you had your fun in other ways, what did you mean?” the question was probing but Nicole added a barely perceptible smile to it. She tossed away another gossip magazine and leaned back onto the edge of the table.
“Aren’t we into asking personal questions,” giggled Xanthe. She took a deep breath and gazed into Nicole’s eyes. “Well I like to have my fun in other more fleeting circumstances … and I’m not necessarily looking for Mr. Right or Mr. Right Now.”
