While getting settled into my new office, the man from Human Resources came over to congratulate me on the promotion, along with offering me a friendly handshake. It was the moment my life changed forever.
"It's nice to see some fresh faces in charge," the man said. "I've heard great things about you. And I also saw that Sandra was recently hired back and will work for you. What a treat."
There was a sly grin on the man's face and I didn't know how to respond. If I hadn't known any better, I would have thought this asshole made a suggestive remark about my mother, not knowing that I'm Sandra's son.
Let me explain: My mother spent her entire adult life working as a paralegal for different firms and companies. She paid for my education and pulled a lot of strings to get me this job. After a few years of working here, I got promoted to a managerial position.
Mom had been working in a different department, until sadly, that department was closed a few months ago. As fate should have it, they rehired her in my department.
And she'd be working under me.
We agreed to keep our mother/son relationship a secret. The last thing we needed was to be on the receiving end of jokes because I've become my mother's boss. Only now, it seemed like I was getting a little too much information.
"What do you mean?" I asked. "I've heard that Sandra is a hard worker."
He kept grinning, "Oh yeah. She's a hard worker. She's also smart, funny, and a great cocksucker."
"Very funny," I replied. "Are you trying to get me to flirt with her?"
He smiled and turned to walk away. "That's up to you. But when she's under your desk, sucking you off, just remember this conversation."
"Wait," I replied, stopping him. "Are you serious? I mean, that still goes on in the workplace these days?"
"It's not against the rules if no one knows. Catch my drift?"
"And you've seen this happen with her? Or is it something you've heard?"
"Both, actually," he said. "I'm friends with her previous boss. Once in a while, I've caught glimpses of Sandra on her knees. I've heard positive things. Who knows, maybe if you play your cards right, she'll be your office slut, too."
"Yeah, I guess so."
If only he knew...
***
My head was spinning the next morning as my mother prepared for the first day as my paralegal. All I could think about was the man from Human resources, was he serious, or making a joke? Did my prim and proper mother do that in the office? Worst of all, was she doing that while previously married to dad?
"How exciting," mom said, striking different poses for me. "What do you think of my new outfit?"
She kept modeling different poses while standing in front of her bedroom mirror. As usual, her outfit was both classy and sexy at the same time. It hugged her body and showed off her curves where they needed to be shown.
"You look amazing," I replied.
"I know. I'm warming up to the idea of us working together. A lot of my friends say their kids move out and they rarely hear from them again. So I think it's great that we can spend so much time together."
"Yeah, well it's going to be an interesting day," I replied with a forced smile. "It hasn't fully sunk in yet, to be honest."
She winked. "Give it time. And you better not abuse your powers, either. Believe me, you might be my new boss in the workplace, but I'll always be the boss at home."
"You're right."
"What's the matter?" she asked, seeing through my discomfort. "Are you having second thoughts about this?"
"No, it's not that. It's just, never mind, it's nothing."
She put her hands on her hips. "Tell me, what is it?"
I took a deep breath. "Fine, do you know a guy named Dave from Human Resources?"
"Sure I do. Why?"
"He doesn't know that I'm your son, so he started telling me personal things. You know, about you and the previous boss."
Mom froze for a few seconds. There was no mistaking it, she knew what I was talking about. She could tell from the tone of my voice that it was serious.
"Oh my god," she gasped. "That fucking jerk. I can't believe this."
"So it's true then?"
She paused for a moment. "I'm not a whore. Please don't think of me as one."
"I never said you were."
"No, but you're thinking it. I'm a grown woman. What I do in private is nobody's business. As far as I'm concerned, you have no right to judge me."
I took a few steps forward and put my hand on her shoulder to comfort her.
"I'm not judging you, mom. It caught me off guard and I couldn't stop thinking about it. That's all."
"Fair enough," she replied, calming herself down. "I'm a hardworking woman and I've earned everything I have in life. I didn't sleep my way to career advancement."
"Of course," I replied. "But I have to ask, did the relationship you had with your previous boss happen while you were with dad?"
A look of shock came over her face. "God, no. I've never cheated on your father, and this has nothing to do with the divorce. It was a short fling while I was single."
"I'm glad. That bothered me more than anything."
She nodded. "Sorry I overreacted. We should clear the air, since we'll be working together. Are you okay with that?"
"Sure."
"The relationship with my ex-boss began when I was single. I was busy with my personal life and career. I worked long hours and we developed a mutual attraction. I have a thing for authoritarian figures. It's my only weakness. There, now you can stop wondering what that was all about."
Her tone suggested the conversation was over. Although she tried to be a proud mother, holding her head high and fighting off any sense of embarrassment, I saw her cheeks blush. There was shame on her part.
***
A few hours later, I was sitting behind the desk of my office. I was getting the hang of my new job and things settled with mom. Deep down, I knew it wasn't over. Mom was a prideful woman and she needed to be seen in a positive light.
There was a knock on my door. In typical mom-fashion, she opened the door before I could answer, and she entered with a smile.
"Hi boss," she said, walking towards me. "Can I get you coffee or something? I can't stand the thought of you being overworked sitting behind that cozy desk of yours."
"Your sarcasm is much appreciated. Don't you know it's bad practice to be condescending to your workplace superior?"
She sat on my desk, facing me. "I guess not. I'm having lunch with a few of my old colleagues from other departments. My lunch break will be a little longer than it should. It won't happen again; I promise."
"I knew you'd take advantage."
"Oh, relax. It's only an extra thirty minutes. Besides, I'm one of the most experienced paralegals around here, so I can get things done fast."
"I'm sure you can, but you should expect to be treated like a typical employee."
I realized my bad choice of words, given all that she had confessed.
Her eyebrows raised. "That's quite a revelation."
"You know what I meant. All I'm saying is that..."
She interjected, "Did you want to be treated like my old boss? Because that's what your comment sounded like."
"Has anyone seen Sandra?"
a voice said in the background.
"Your friend is looking for you," I said. "Go ahead and take a longer lunch break. When you come back, I expect your work to be finished by the end of the day."
She smiled and turned to leave. "I knew you'd see things my way."
***
After an awkward car ride home, my mother and I had dinner together that evening. None of us mentioned the innuendo filled discussion we had early in the day, but it was still in the air.
"Picking up pizza was a great choice," she said, breaking the silence at the dinner table.
"I know, right?"
She licked her lips. "We should make this our weekly thing. How about every Friday?"
"That's a plan. I'll pay."
"A generous manager," she said. "Speaking of which, I'm sorry for getting too playful with you earlier. I got carried away in your office."
"Don't worry about it. To be honest, it was kind of funny hearing you talk like that."
"You liked it then?" she teased.
"Not this again."
"I'm partly serious. I wondered if you like mom-play because you're my boss now. There's no shame in liking certain things."
"Was that a vibe you got today?"
"Yes."
"No comment," I replied with a smile.
She shrugged. "I've been extremely honest with you lately, so you can be honest with me. Have you thought about it? The mom/son aspect of our office relationship."
"I'll answer your question on one condition," I said.
Her eyebrow rose. "And what condition would that be?"
"Tell me how submissive you were with your previous boss."
She kept a straight face. "Very."
"Any examples? You don't have to answer."
"Sometimes I went pantyless to work. He would call me into his office, have me sit on his desk, then lift my skirt to see how I felt. That usually ended with me having to wipe his desk clean. In addition to giving him oral sex, he would sometimes screw me in the supply room. And finally, if we worked overtime together, he'd insist that I strip down and do my paralegal duties naked. There have been several instances where the custodian got a nice show."
"That was more than I was expecting to hear," I replied, stunned by my mom's admissions.