Muzak.

Starbucks always seems to be on point with their music selections.  Samantha couldn’t think of one time that she’s come in all these years that the soft muzak didn’t put a smile on her face.  That and their chai tea lattes of course; that drink made her work day so much easier to bear.  It’s not that she didn’t love her job, she did; it was just kind of hard for her to be taken seriously as the sports writer for GQ magazine.

She’d uprooted her life from Texas and moved out to New York City a year ago, but it felt like a lifetime ago.  She didn’t get to visit her family as much as she wanted to and longed to have girl’s night in with her older sister to vent about the ‘stupid boys’ at work and how they didn’t take her seriously because she had a vagina instead of a penis and was writing the “most coveted section of their department”.  Their words, not hers. 

Samantha!!

Her head snapped up when she heard her name called by the barista.  She made her way over to the bar and towards the thing that kept her going at work, well the frothy drink and…

“Sam.” 

Dylan.  His voice; it did things to her that she would never admit to aloud. 

“Hey Dylan,” she replied with a smile.

“Morning coffee?” he asked, raising his own up to hers?

“Chai tea latte; it’s my drug of choice,” she joked and he laughed with her. 

“I used to be like you when I first moved out here three years ago, but long gone are the days of me drinking green tea.  New York has hardened me and I now like my drinks from here the way I like my women, mocha and sweetened.”  He ended his statement with a wink, and Samantha almost dropped her own beverage. 

Did that really just happen?

Was he just flirting with her?

No, it’ couldn’t be.  It was Dylan, her boss, the man who’s been nothing but business since he came on board and revamped GQ to the masterpiece that it is now.  This is the man who took his office door off the hinges to prove his ‘open door’ policy; that’s how serious he was about work. 

“Too far?” he half laughed.

“Yeah, just a bit,” she replied with a side smile, “Almost as bad as Jimmy asking me if I was anything like the Samantha Jones on ‘Sex in the City’.”

“Come on, that joke never gets old.”  He gave her his biggest grin and Samantha could’ve sworn that the room got brighter.  She felt heat rush to her face out of embarrassment and lowered her head.  Justin cleared his throat and grabbed his Venti Mocha Latte off the bar before the barista called his name. 

“When you’ve been hearing for over ten years it does, especially in Jimmy’s case.  He was basically asking if I was as easy as the character was.”

“True true.”  The two of them leisurely made their way over the office building where GQ was located and no words were exchanged until they were on the elevator.

“What floor?” asked a perky brunette who was already on and standing near the buttons.

“Six,” Justin and Samantha replied in unison, a soft smile shared between them afterwards.

“Jinx.  You owe me a Coke Harper,” she joked. 

“How about lunch?  You could have as many Cokes as you want then,” Justin asked.

“I don’t know, Jimmy has my calendar pretty booked up,” Samantha responded in a sarcastic tone.

“Honey, if you don’t take him up on the offer, I will,” the brunette interrupted, passing Justin a business card and mouthing ‘call me’ before getting off the elevator on the 4th floor.

“See,” Samantha began once the elevator doors were closed, “there you go.  You have a date with –” she leaned over and eyed the woman’s business card, “Mel.  She’s cute and ooh, she’s a physical therapist.  That should be fun,” she finished with a wink.

“Does your mind always go to the gutter?”

“It’s not my fault that I work with mostly guys and grew up with 2 big brothers.  Apparently my sister’s influence wasn’t as strong as theirs,” she replied with a shrug. 

‘Floor 6’.

The elevator doors opened and Samantha told him that she’d ‘see him later’ before making her way to her office.  One of the perks about her job was the office…well the placement of it.  Her office was diagonal to Justin’s and her desk was set up so that she only had to raise her eyes a millimeter or two over her computer monitor if she wanted to secretly gawk at Justin.  Very inconspicuous.  She didn’t do it all the time, but she did take pleasure in checking him out randomly during the workday.  Like now.

Samantha was supposed to be checking her morning emails, seeing if there were any impending interviews she had to do, but she couldn’t seem to take her eyes off of Justin as he paced back and forth in his office with his wireless keyboard in his hand tweaking the company’s website. 

He’d long since removed his jacket and stood there in a white blue button down and a navy tie to match his slacks.  This man was the epitome of GQ.

And he was interested in her.

Right?

Samantha brushed the thought out of her head.  That was just playful banter.  He was friendly like that with everyone.  Besides, there was no way a guy like that would be interested in her.  She was just a Southern girl who’s love of sports and literature landed her the job of her dreams.  He came from a family of writers and editors.  He practically had to be pulled away from the multi-million dollar website that he created and ran from the ground up. 

Samantha was pretty sure that he got propositioned by girls like Melissa on a daily basis.  Cute, perky, and always running around in pencil skirts and heels.  She looked down at her own black slacks and hot pink button.  Hey, at least she was trying.  Working in an office comprised of mostly men and having to defend your job title daily kind of took the front seat to being worried about purchasing the latest pair of Louboutin’s.  

You seem like Mr. Perfect
Why don't you drive over and pick me up?
I'll wear my best outfit and people might compliment
Our chocolate and vanilla skin
And how it looks so good together mixed in

Samantha sighed and continued checking her emails.  After taking down a few notes for her upcoming interview with Reggie Bush she found her thoughts and vision drifting back to Justin.  Particularly the way those slacks fit across his backside. 

Damn this man was sexy!

She must’ve been staring at him a bit longer than she thought because the next thing she knew she was ducking and hiding behind her computer monitor when he waved at her.  Shit, she was caught now.  There was no excuse that could explain her slightly longer than appropriate lustful stares.

Ding!

That was the notification sound signaling she had an instant message on their inner office system.

DylanH: Like what you see? ;)

Samantha wanted to kick herself, but decided to settle on a groan and an eyeroll.  She didn’t want to keep him hanging, but didn’t know how to respond either.

SamanthaJ: Does that line usually work on other women?

DylanH: Damn, burn me why don’t you.

Samantha laughed at his message.  This man was making it harder and harder for her.  Not only was the man absolutely gorgeous, he was a genuinely nice guy. 

And you've blown my mind in two hours time
And I'm so weak and unable to picture
You with someone other than me
But I guess I have to 'cause you haven't asked me out

Samantha stared at the computer screen, once again unsure of what to say.  But Dylan beat her to the punch.

DylanH: So...lunch?

SamanthaJ:  We just got here.  I’m not even hungry yet.

DylanH:  But you will be.  Come on, don’t make me beg.  I promise I won’t bite.

SamanthaJ:  What a shame, I like biters.

She looked up when she heard Dylan laugh in his office.  His smile could light up a room.  That was a cliché statement; she knew it and didn’t care because it was true.  He had the kind of smile that could turn your day around in a moment. 

SamanthaJ: But in all honesty, I can’t do lunch today. I have an interview with Reggie Bush today.

DylanH: Damn, first he gets Kim K and now you, I can never catch a break.

Now it was Samantha's turn to laugh.  She looked up and saw Dylan smiling at her across the room.

DylanH: you have such an infectious laugh J

SamanthaJ: *blushes* thank you, kind sir.

DylanH: You are very welcome ma’am.  Are you sure you can’t do lunch today?  I’m sure I could talk to the editor and get him to remove the stick up his ass about the deadline for this interview.

Samantha laughed once again. Only Dylan would try and make a corny joke like that work, but decided that she wanted to play along.

SamanthaJ: I’m not sure if Mr. Harper would like you talking about him like that.

DylanH: oh he won’t mind; you don’t know him like I do. ;)

Ding!

Another IM popped up on Samantha’s screen, this time from her assistant reminding her that her car was waiting for her downstairs to take her to meet up with Reggie.  She responded with a quick ‘Thank you’ and told Dylan that she had an interview to get to before logging off her computer.  She checked her lipstick in her desktop mirror, fluffed her hair and grabbed her large pink Longchamp le pliage tote.  Oh the glamorous life of a GQ writer.

Yeah right.

***

“I have to say, when I heard that I was gonna be interviewed by ‘Sam Jones’ from GQ, you’re definitely not what came to mind,” Reggie said with an easy smile.

“If I had a nickel for everytime I heard that,” Samantha chuckled.

“You’d be a rich woman?” Reggie finished for her.

“Exactly,” she laughed.

“Well, Miss Samantha I had a wonderful time with you today,” Reggie said, reaching for the check that the waitress laid down on their table. 

“Oh no, my treat,” Samantha said, “well, GQ’s treat.  I heard that you had to move some things around in your schedule to meet with me today, and I wanna thank you for that.”

“A gentleman always pays; and my momma would have my behind if I went against the ways she raised me,” Reggie smirked.  Samantha could feel the heat rising to her face and she hoped that her hazelnut toned skin didn’t give away her blush.

“Well in that case, thank you.”

“No problem,” Reggie began, “So what do you have planned after this?  I have a few free hours…”  he stopped mid-sentence when he saw her phone light up and vibrate across the table.

“Someone’s a very busy woman,” he joked.

“Sorry, that’s my car.  My editor has a stick up his behind and I have to have this piece finished by the end of the day.  Maybe next time though.”

“If you ever find yourself in New Orleans give me a call, I’ll hook you up with tickets or something.”  Reggie gave her his megawatt smile and Samantha couldn’t help but return the gesture before gathering her belongings.  The two of them shared a quick hug and Samantha headed outside to her awaiting vehicle.  She wasn’t even completely out of the door when she saw him leaning against the car.

“Dylan.”

“Your chariot awaits m’lady,” he said with a grin.

“What are you doing here?” Samantha asked as she climbed in the vehicle.

“I spoke to your editor and got him to remove some of that stick from his ass and he gave you just enough time to grab a quick coffee with me.”

Samantha laughed.

“I can’t believe you’re still trying to make that joke work.”

“If it’s what I have to do to get you to go out with me then I’ll do it.  Shit, I’ll recite ‘knock knock’ jokes if I have to.”  They both laughed at that. 

“Oh no, that won’t be necessary at all,” she replied as the driver pulled up outside the many Starbucks near Central Park.

On a date to get some chai, tea, lattes
You open the door for me always
You're such a gentlemen, like that
I don't know anyone who has a sweeter heart than you do
You're like twenty billion Reese cups in two

Samantha and Justin got their usual drinks and she decided that a quick stroll around the park was just what she needed to get her mentally prepared to possibly pull an late night at the office to transcribe her interview with Reggie and write the article. 

“I never thought this day would actually come,” Dylan said, breaking the silence as they walked side by side.

“What do you mean?”

“I never thought you’d actually agree to go out with me.  You are the epitome of ‘hard to get’ girl.”

Samantha laughed.

“Well Harper, if you’re anything you’re persistent,” she began, “and by the way, this is far from a date.  You didn’t even pay for my coffee.  Reggie at least had the decency to do that.”

“I kept trying to do that.  You were the one who was turning me down.”

“I just didn’t want to be another one of the girls in the office you took out.  For a second there it seemed like you were making it your mission to personally take out and ‘get to know’ every female in the office.”

Dylan’s jaw dropped in shock.

“What do you mean by that?”

“You’ve gone out with like 5 girls from GQ since you got here.  You can’t tell me that it’s just a coincidence that all of us work at the same place.”

“That’s not true,” Dylan stated plainly.

Samantha gave him the side eye, she didn’t believe him.

“I’ve gone out with two women since I came here.  Yeah, so both of you work with me; but my life is my job now and it’s the only place where I’ve had the time to meet women.  Remind me to sign up for ‘Plenty ‘O Fish’ when we get back to the office though,” he joked.  Samantha rolled her eyes and playfully shoved him.

She couldn’t believe it though.

“So you’ve only taken out 2 women since you’ve been here?”

“Yes, and you’re one of them.  Honestly, you’re the only one who really matters.  I only went out with that other chick because she wouldn’t stop hounding me,” Dylan admitted, “I thought she was a sweet girl, she just needed to tone down her aggressiveness.”

“Well what about those other women?”  Dylan was silent while he tried to figure out what women she was talking about.  Then it hit him.

“Oh!  It was a business lunch!  I was used as a ploy by my boss to try and woo them to come work for us.”

“Oh.”  Now Samantha felt foolish.  He was really interested in her and she was brushing it off in fear of being just another notch in his bedpost…if it even made it that far.  And oh did she want it to go that far. 

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Dylan asked.

“Prejudging you.  I assumed the worst.”

“And you know what happens when you assume, right?”

“I make an ass out of you and me,” Samantha finished for him.

“Exactly,” Dylan laughed. 

“Picture for the happy couple?”

The two of them were taken aback by the street vendor.

“Oh, we’re not a couple,” she chuckled.

“Oh come on, humor the guy.  He looks pretty talented,” Dylan replied, placing his hand on her lower back and guiding her over to the street vendor’s make-shift studio area.  It was a simple gesture, but it sent her body afire and sent a chill down her spine.

“You cold?” Dylan asked, concern in his eyes.

“No, I’m okay.  Thank you for asking,” she replied with a sweet smile.  The vendor situated them on the bench he’d commandeered for the day and was picking up his pencil to sketch them when he paused.

“Aww come on, act like you know each other.  Scoot closer.”

Samantha shot Dylan a bashful look over her shoulder before he looped an arm around her race and pulled her close to him.  She rested her back against his front and he leaned over, almost resting his head on her shoulder.  The tingling she felt when he touched her lower back was nothing compared to how their closeness had her feeling now.  His body was warm, solid and hard.  She felt his muscles flex beneath his button down and smelled his unique scent, the mix of Dove soap and Drakkar Noir. 

“Closer, closer,” the street artist urged. 

Dylan moved Samantha's chestnut tendrils behind her ear and she could’ve sworn she felt him press a feather-light kiss on her shoulder blade, but brushed it off as wishful thinking.  It was when she felt him pepper kisses along her neck that she knew he did.

“Do you know how long I’ve wanted to do this?” he whispered against her neck.

“Since yesterday?”

Dylan chuckled and she felt his barely-there beard brush against her neck.

“Try since my second day of work.”

I seem to think of you everyday
And ever since I've gone away I just have to say that you've
Blown my mind in two hours time
And I'm so weak and unable to picture
You with someone other than me

“I’ve been dying to call you in my office and bend you over my desk, I’d put my door back on the frame for that.”

“Dylan!” Samantha exclaimed.

“Am I being too forward?  I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize; just get me out of here.  I wanna see if you can back up all this talk,” she smirked.  He was caught off-guard and she used this time to do something she’d wanted to do for awhile.  Leaning forward she captured his lips with hers, kissing him slow and deep before suckling his bottom lip and pulling away leaving them both breathless. 

“You wanna get out of here?” she asked.

“Perfect!”  The two of them looked up and when they heard the street artist speak.

“I’m finished and this is my best work yet,” the man exclaimed. 

“Well thank you,” Dylan said, sliding the artist a $10 bill and taking the artwork from him.  He had to admit, the guy had talent.

“So are you closer or am I?” Samantha asked.  Her body was already on edge and that caricature was the last thing on her mind.

“Umm, I’m still learning the area, but my condo is pretty close to the office.”

“To your place it is,” she replied with a grin. 

It turns out he was right.  The two of them barreled through his front door 20 minutes later and immediately began ripping each other’s clothes off.  The caricature that ignited the flame between them was thrown haphazardly aside and the two of them stumbled to his bedroom.  It wasn’t until Samantha felt the bed against the back of her legs that she finally pulled away from him, taking time to breathe and properly assess the situation.

Dylan was shirtless in front of her and she be damned if she didn’t think that he looked even better that way.  She licked her lips and lifted a hand towards him.  With the lightest of touches she scraped the tip of an index finger down his throat until she reached the hollow part.  She left it there, compelled by the connection it held to the tiniest strand of static-charged air and his raging pulse. 

“You are one beautiful man,” she said, her voice dripping with honey.  Dylan just smirked.

“I’m serious.  You should be on display somewhere.  So hard…so strong,” she ran a hand down his chest, watching her navy-tinged nails rake lightly across his abs.  She could do some serious laundry on those.  She didn’t pause in her journey though, until she reached the waist of his slacks.

“These have got to go,” Samantha said as she nimbly undid his button and unzipped his pants.  They slid down off of his narrow waist, leaving him standing before in his black Calvin Klein briefs.

“And now I’m feeling overdressed,” he smirked, returning the favor and removing her slacks. 

“Matching black lace,” he said as he stared her standing there in her bra and boy shorts, “Was this just for me, or do you do this daily?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” she grinned. 

“Actually I would,” he replied, glancing down at her long, sexy legs.  He couldn’t wait to feel them wrapped around him.  Dylan reached for her, cupping her hips and pulling her closer to him.

“I really would," he said in a low tone before recapturing her lips with his.  Slipping his hands into her hair and cupping her head, he licked her lips, demanding access.  Samantha obliged, her tongue meeting his with warm, languid strokes.  This kiss was different from their first one, different but good.  It wasn’t as rushed, but still felt passionate.  Their bodies melted together fluidly, her softness cradling the hard places on his body.   Every curve on her body welcomed him, molding to his chest, his groin, his thighs.  

“Dylan,” his name barely escaped her lips, but that’s all she needed to say.  Long gone were the days that they needed to talk using their mouths or whatever other technology was available.  Now it was time for their bodies handle all the communication. 

Samantha reached behind her and unsnapped her bra, letting it fall to the floor.

“Lord have mercy.”

Samantha giggled at the expression, but stopped abruptly when he picked her up.  She instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist and soon felt his lips on her neck.

“You have the softest skin,” he murmured against her.

“Yours is kind of rough,” she giggled softly.

“Is too rough for your cheek?” he asked, nuzzling her a little.  Samantha shook her head ‘no’ and smiled at him.

“Not too rough for your neck either?” he asked, going back to it and continuing his pleasurable assault on it.

“Not at all,” she purred.  He sat her down on the edge of the bed and kneeled in front of her.  He ran a hand lightly down the column of her throat before leaning in and taking one of her taut nipples in his mouth.  He suckled gently before letting it fall out of his mouth with a soft “plop” and kissed around her areola. 

“Too rough here?”

“Naw uh,” Samantha moaned.  Dylan continued travelling down her body, placing wet kisses down her abdomen and kissed along her hip before he slowly eased the waistband of her boyshorts down.  He cupped her ample behind and tugged her closer, tilting her pelvis and inhaling her womanly scent.  He breathed against the small and soft tuft of curls there and smiled.

“Please,” she begged.  That’s the last thing she needed to do though.  Dylan needed no encouragement to spread her lips and taste her sweet juices…over and over again.  Samantha cried out in ecstasy and buried her hands in his curls.  Her body was writhing in pleasure and he knew it wouldn’t be long before she gave him just what he wanted.  Within moments she was crying out his name and he was lapping up her juices like it was his last meal on earth.  He kissed his way back up her body and carried her towards the center of the bed.  Stroking her cheek gently as she came down from the high of her first orgasm Dylan whispered in her ear.

“I need to be inside of you.”  Samantha didn’t respond verbally, instead she nodded slowly and kissed him.  Positioning herself so that she was comfortable on her back she watched Dylan position himself between her legs, never once breaking their kiss.  Her eyes rolled back in pleasure as he stroked himself over her folds before guiding himself to her entrance and easing in, inch by inch.  It took a few moments, but when he was buried deep within her he stayed still; giving them both the chance to adjust to each other.  He went slow with her, wanting to really enjoy her, wanting her to enjoy him.  He wasn’t thinking about work, about tomorrow, about what he was going to do for dinner that night.  His one and only concern was Samantha and showing her how much she meant to him. 

Their bodies moved in sync and the only sounds that could be heard in the room were her melodic moans and their skin meeting over and over again.  Kisses were placed on her temple, shoulder, neck, anywhere Dylan found open and words of praise for her body and what she was doing with it poured from his mouth.  Being the gentleman that he was, Dylan didn’t want to finish before her, but knew that he was close.  Samantha watched as he slid a hand between their bodies, noticing the contrast in their chocolate and vanilla skin.  His nimble fingers found her clitoris and teased it mercilessly while he drove her over the edge, following her shortly after. 

Moving off of her, Dylan wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close and placing a sweet kiss on the back of her neck.  Samantha was still flying high on her release, her body still shivering occasionally from the amazing release. 

“If I would’ve known that you were gonna be this good I would’ve taken you up on your offer sooner,” she chuckled.

“Does this mean, you’ll listen to me and do what I say next time?”

“Oh yes, I definitely will,” she replied, turning around and running her nails across his shoulder.  She kissed him soundly on the lips.  That one kissed turned into two, which turned into a couple more and before she knew it she felt his arousal heavy against her thigh.

“I say it’s time for round two.  Wouldn’t you agree?” he asked with a cocky grin.

“Yep,” she replied, her face mimicking his, “I couldn’t agree more.”