Ryan Matthews walked into his office and was immediately struck with a severe case of Mondayitis. He placed his suitcase on the green couch which was placed against the left wall of his office, pulled a file out of it which he put back in its place in the filling cabinet on the right hand wall, before trudging over to his desk. With a sigh he sat down and pulled the monthly report in front of him and started up his computer.
As the local manager for Essam Reality, a nation wide real estate agency, Ryan's life had become one monotonous blur. It seemed he was always at the office, and when he wasn't he was at home, going over files and accounts, doing chase up work with clients and liaising head office which was in a different time zone. Marking the first of the month, today he would spend the entire day analysing the report he had been given, calling people into his office to check figures, before pushing it off to head office for review. He resigned himself to the inevitable and focussed himself on the task at hand.
Ryan had not been at it very long when there was a sharp knock at the door
'Ryan?' a female voice came from the doorway.
'Mmm?' Ryan replied, looking up from his report.
His most senior sales manager marched into his office like a woman on a mission. She was in her mid-forties, her short blonde hair cut in a neat bob and frozen in place by what he could only assume was the entire contents of a hairspray can. She wore the green company jacket over a crisp white blouse, a matching green knee-length skirt and black stockings covering her legs.
'This is the second Monday in a row she's been late,' Julie said, cutting straight to the point. 'You're going to have to say something to her.'
Ryan sighed. Julie considered herself to be in charge of the other staff, having been with the company the longest, even long then he had been. Being considerably older then him also, she considered her input to be of the utmost benefit of the successful running of the company. While Ryan valued her opinion, he wished she wouldn't give it out so frequently.
'I assume your talking about Katie?'
'She can't just turn up when she feels like it. She was ten minutes late on Monday last week, and she was twenty minutes late this morning. It's becoming a habit.'
Katherine Nielsen was the newest member of the team, having joined the company only a month ago. Her application had been exemplary and so was offered the job as a clerk, filling in for the receptionist during lunch hours, assisting with rental applications and general office work. It wasn't a hard job, but it was a nine to five one. He frowned, concerned.
'Have you said anything to her?'
'I told her to straighten up and make sure she gets here on time last Monday, but obviously it went in one ear and out the other.'
'Alright, tell her to hang back after work and I'll have a word with her. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.'
He looked back down at his report, but was interrupted by Julie clearing her throat.
'Something else?' he queried.
'While you have her in with you, you might want to also discuss appropriate attire. The length of some of the skirts she wears is completely inappropriate for the office.'
'Thank you Julie,' he responded and returned to his report, his tone making it clear that she was to leave him alone now. For once it seemed to work, because when he looked up again she had gone.
It seemed the day had only just begun when he looked at the clock and saw it was five to five. Ryan removed his glasses and pinched the ridge of his nose, searching for the right words to say to Katie. She was a bright girl, friendly with clients and office staff, well mannered, and had enormous potential. He had interviewed her for the position, but hadn't seen very much of her since then. He tended to get inundated with phone calls, reports and complaints from the moment he entered the office until the moment he left. He settled on the usual "I'm paying you from nine to five" speech and checked his work schedule for the following day.
He was interrupted a short time later by a tentative knock at the door.
'Mr. Matthews? You wanted to see me?'
Katie was standing in the doorway, looking meekly in at him. He was amazed by how much more grown-up she looked then she had at the interview, only six weeks prior. His memory of her had been a young woman, dark hair tied back in a conservative ponytail, eyes hidden behind thin-rimmed glasses. Her white blouse had been freshly ironed, and her black skirt modestly ended below her knees. She conducted herself well throughout the interview and Ryan had welcomed her aboard enthusiastically.
The Katie who stood before him now was dazzling. Her hair hung freely down past her shoulders, shining even in the dim office lightning. Her eyes were no longer hidden by glasses, the brown orbs radiating warmth and eagerness to please. She wore the company green polo shirt, but it seemed to be a size too small for her ample breasts, as they seemed to strain at the material. Her black skirt fell several inches short of her knees, which were unclad by stockings, unlike most of the other female staff members. Her legs looked incredible, leading down to a pair of black high heels. She stood waiting for him to speak, her denim bag slung over her shoulder, ready to go home.
Yes, Ryan thought, a good dressing-down is exactly what I'd like to give her. He then berated himself and pushed the idea firmly away. He dragged his eyes away from her body and looked her in the eyes.
'Yes I did. Come in Katie, take a seat.'
She nervously made her way into his office and sat on the chair opposite him, putting her bag on the floor next her and crossing her legs, which caused the skirt to rise up another inch. Ryan readjusted himself and told himself to behave. At nineteen the girl was over ten years his junior, but his stiffening cock didn't seem to care. He cleared his throat and tried to remember the speech he had planned out.
'Mr. Matthews,' Katie intervened. 'I'm sorry I've been late the last couple of Mondays. I'm studying externally at SAU, part-time of course, and the weekend is when I get most of my course work done. It's coming up to the end of term, so I've got assignments due, and I've been staying up later then I should to try and get them finished. Come Monday morning I'm racing around because I've overslept. I'm really sorry Mr. Matthews, I know it's inexcusable, and you should definitely dock my pay for the times I have been late. I do work during my lunch breaks to try to make up for my lateness, but I understand that it's not the same. I promise I won't be late again.'
It had all flowed like a well-rehearsed speech, one that she had been agonising over for some time. She had taken responsibility for her actions, was looking at him with such sincerity that he felt bad that he had been planning to tell her off. He sighed.
'Just don't make a habit of it, okay Katie? You're a brilliant young woman. I'd hate to lose you.'
Katie smiled sweetly at him.
'Thank you, Mr. Matthews. I won't let you down.'
They both stood up and he escorted her to the car park, locking up behind him. He looked around as they walked, trying to keep his eyes off her firm arse and smooth legs, but they always ended up back there.
'So,' he said, searching for some small talk. 'Are you going out tonight, or straight home?'
'Straight home I'm afraid. I've got a five thousand word essay due on Thursday that I've got to get finished.'
'Working all day and studying all night? You must have a very understanding boyfriend.'
'No, no boyfriend. Guys my age don't interest me much. I prefer men with a bit more maturity.'
He stopped just as they reached her car and tried not to think too much about what she had just said, but he couldn't help noticing the way she blushed as she fumbled for her keys.
'Thanks for walking me to my car, Mr. Matthews,' she said as she got in her car. 'See you tomorrow.'
Ryan watched as Katie pulled out of the company car park and gave him a little wave as she drove off.
Oh dear, Ryan thought as he walked to his own car, not good.
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Ryan paid much closer attention to Katie over the next few days. She arrived early each morning, and greeted him with a special smile which had him ducking behind objects to hide his arousal. He was glad he had forgotten to speak to her about her skirt, as watching it slide up and down her legs throughout the day was a pleasant distraction from the mind numbing repetitiveness of his job.
Julie seemed in high spirits after he had taken her advice and spoken to Katie, as if his taking her advice further assured herself of her own importance. She made a point however looking inauspiciously at Katie's skirt whenever he was around, in a kind of stage whisper to him. Ryan tactfully chose to ignore her. He found that not only was Katie a beauty, but a brain as well. She was articulate, well read, imaginative and inventive. She single-handedly reorganised the filing archive filing into a coherent system, while assisting the other staff members in any way she could. The customers seemed to love her too, and she would happily chat with them and see to their needs while she was on reception, keeping them engaged and satisfied while they waited for their appointments.
It was with great surprise therefore that on Friday of that week he walked out of his office to find Katie crying her heart out, being consoled by the female staff members while Ryan's lead property manager had a rather loud diplomatic conversation with someone on the phone. He was heartbroken to see her so vulnerable and made his way over to the group as she started to calm down and wipe away the tears.
'Katie, can I see you for a minute?' he asked.
He walked back to his office and stood by the door as Katie gave the group a watery smile of gratitude and walked inside. He closed the door behind her and got her to sit on the couch. He sat on the opposite end, keeping a much distance between them as he could.
'What happened?'
