Hurt me once, shame on you

Chapter 4 -KATE'S CONFUSION

CHAPTER FOUR

KATE’S CONFUSION

Kate’s POV

Kate did not know how she managed to leave the Whitmore Global building on wobbly legs. She remembered stepping into the elevator, she remembered the doors opening on the first floor and the bright sunlight hitting her face when she stepped out onto the street, but everything had happened so fast.

She finally paused for air, her brain trying to process the incident of the past few minutes. She heard the sound of car horns, footsteps as people walked by and loud conversations, but her mind was focused on one person only.

Eric Whitmore.

Her lips still shivered from their kiss, and she pressed them together, still tasting him. She closed her eyes and held her hand to her chest in an effort to steady the fast beating of her heart. She felt as if everyone that looked at her knew what she had done, and she felt a little self conscious.

“Holy s**t” she muttered to herself before hailing a cab.

As soon as Kate locked her door, she leaned heavily against it, letting out a slow breath and trying to calm her nerves.

Her thoughts raced wildly back to being pressed against Eric’s wall. Her arms wrapped around his hard frame while he took claim of her lips like she was his. Her body definitely had a mind of its own, surrendering even before she could stop herself.

Who was she kidding though? She hadn't wanted him to stop, couldn’t stop him even if she wanted to and that realization left her more confused than ever. The kiss was unexpected and highly inappropriate given the circumstances, but it sure as hell felt right.

How did this even happen? Interviews were meant to be professional. You were supposed to figure out if you could fit in while the company decides whether you're what they're looking for. Not sucking lips with the CEO and testing to see if your bodies and tongues aligned.

As she dragged her feet to her bedroom, she couldn’t stop hearing his voice in her head, the way his eyes had burned into her and watched her every move and she felt her cheeks flush again. She couldn’t understand it or make sense of what happened, but she knew that being in his arms felt like the most natural thing in the world.

Had she caused it somehow? Maybe looked at him in a certain way, smiled seductively or carried a ‘please kiss me sir' aura? Nah, she didn’t think so. He might be a billionaire and could have any girl he wanted alright, but that man had wanted her. Bad.

“What does this mean though?” She asked herself. “What happens now?”

She pressed her hands to her face and let out a muffled scream, more anxious than ever. She really wanted this job, well, more like she needed it, in most part for the money, but now she couldn't help wondering if she would hear from him again — them. She meant them again. Damn it! But the probability of getting the job seemed unlikely right now and that hurt.

Kate walked to her bedroom and changed out of her clothes. She kept pacing back and forth, unable to stay still, her blood was still pumping from the adrenaline rush of the kiss. She was in desperate need of something to take her mind off this mess. Looking at her table, she spotted her laptop and decided to give it another go and write something.

She didn’t know what to write at first, but as she settled in her chair, the words began to form gradually in her head. She started to type about her confusion, her thoughts, about being in the middle of a dangerous situation but not wanting to come out. Simple and short sentences began to grow into full pages, and she found herself typing away for hours.

It wasn’t until her stomach started to grumble that she realized it was already well into the evening, and she hadn’t eaten all day. At least she had managed to push Eric Whitmore to the back of her brain for a bit, but the thought of him right now sent a wave of heat through her again.

Kate remembered feeling disappointed when he had pulled back, and she cursed herself for it. She could not recall being kissed like that before in her life. Ever! The hunger she felt and saw in his eyes was overwhelming.

The way they fit perfectly together, moved together and surrendered to the moment was surprising. Kate was usually a slow burner. It took her a while before she got physical with men from her past, but with Eric, the connection was instant.

“Slut” she said as she made her way to her kitchen to fix herself something to eat. She did feel a little better after writing though. It was her personal therapy other than music, and it created an outlet for her to pour out her emotions creatively.

She found it hard to go to sleep that night. After hours of tossing and turning, she picked up her phone and checked her email, slightly hopeful that she would see a message from them but not really expecting it.

‘So what if I did get the job? Could I really work there after what happened this morning?’ She wondered. ‘Would it be uncomfortable or would we be able to conduct ourselves as professionals?’

“We probably won’t need to see each other every day,” she said to herself, then reached for her phone.

Kate typed in Eric’s name on her browser and several images of him filled her screen. Damn! He was a good looking man. Her eyes were fixed on his lips and she subconsciously licked hers.

“Well, at least I got to kiss Eric Whitmore even if I don’t get the job,” she said out loud, the corner of her lips curving into a smirk. That was definitely one experience she would not be forgetting in a hurry. She sighed in frustration and placed her phone back on her bedside table.

After forcing her eyes closed for a while, it wasn’t long until sleep took her.

The Next Day

The sound of her phone vibrating on her dresser from a text message woke Kate up with a start. Having slept late the previous night due to worrying, she was still asleep at ten am. She stretched lazily before slowly reaching out to pick up her phone.

Her phone froze in her hand when she saw the message preview from Whitmore Global. She sat up quickly, then read the message which stated that she was to come in for a follow up interview the next day.

“No s**t!” She whispered to herself. “This has got to be a dream.”

Kate's palms began to sweat due to anxiety and she started replaying the kiss with Eric Whitmore all over again. But while she was still trying to process this information, her phone buzzed in her hand. A call from an unknown caller.

Her stomach tightened, and she took a few seconds to steady her breathing before answering.

“Good morning, Miss Jones?” It was the HR manager. “We’re inviting you for a follow-up interview at Whitmore Global and with Mr Whitmore for tomorrow. Will you be available?”

Her breath caught and she hesitated. With Mr Whitmore! Was she seriously considering returning to that office, alone with him again?

“Yes,” she heard herself say before she thanked her and ended the call.

This only proved one thing. He wanted to see her again.

This was crazy, she thought. Reckless too. She stared into space for some time, trying to decide if she had made the right decision, but her body already answered that for her. She rose from her bed and headed to her wardrobe for an outfit choice.

“I just want to look the part,” she told herself, but even as she concluded on that, she found herself fishing out her sexy blue dress.