Punishment Read online

  Copyright © 2014 by Emilia Foxton

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  Punishment

  By

  © Emilia Foxton 2014

  “Caren! I need that paperwork faxed over to the Davidsons’ office immediately.”

  “As you wish, Mr. Norton.” Caren Archer never had an issue waiting on Brett Norton hand and foot since it was such an envied job among the other female employees that worked on his floor. Not only was he the most dedicated, hardworking businessman; he was the best eye candy a secretary could ask for. She felt gifted to be graced with his gorgeous body in the long hours the position required because she hoped that one day all of her achievements would be noticed by him.

  Brett Norton was the untouchable thirty-six year old SEO to a tech company that barely gave the girls in the office the time of day. At first, many thought he was gay because his attention would mainly be on the men on the floor, but everyone soon found out that he was just focused on prospering in his career. One would think that he would be the type to lose his cool if things didn't go his way, but he was oddly collected and calm when it came to stressful situations. Many wondered how a man of his status could stay content and balanced even with all the responsibilities on him constantly, but he handled everything without breaking a sweat.

  While Caren gathered the files for Mr. Norton, she watched him move around his office with an air of sophistication, trying to grasp how he was able to work the hours he did and still remain looking gorgeous as ever. She often found herself staring at his captivating chocolate eyes and imagined how touching his sun-kissed skin would feel, but she knew to keep everything professional, regardless of the way her fantasies ran wild the minute he came into view. No matter how bad she wanted him to see her as more than just his assistant, she was too shy and reserved to act on her desires.

  Aside from that fact, Caren didn't have much of an issue showing off her curvy build in tight pencil skirts or her busty chest, which she made sure to keep her blouses unbuttoned enough for her cleavage to show. She knew she was blessed with her mother's genes and she wasn't afraid to flaunt every now and then, but her main focus was always on her job duties so that she was always better than the day before; a trait that Mr. Norton often noted that he admired in her. Only today, she wasn't feeling as up to par as usual and it was beginning to take a toll on her work performance.

  Recently, her attendance had been more necessary for Mr. Norton because he was in between two clients that he wanted to have for his company and he was willing to do just about anything to get their respective business, even if it meant overworking Caren to an extent she wasn't expecting. He explained to her during her interview that he would need her to be available at all times since his position was very demanding and she understood that without a problem, but she didn't think that would mean her job duties would cut into her much needed sleeping hours as well. It had been three weeks and she had only banked around twenty hours of sleep all together, but she was terrified of what he would think of her if she mentioned that she needed a break.

  “Caren!” Mr. Norton slammed his hand against the wall of the copy room and caused her to jump back, which also makes the papers in her hands fall around her. “I told you I needed that paperwork faxed almost ten minutes ago!”

  Flustered, she gathered the forms up from the floor, trying her best to organize them in a small amount of time, and turned to him with a sullen expression. “My apologies, Mr. Norton.” She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and smoothed out her skirt. “It won't happen again.”

  He didn't say anything else to her as he acknowledged her statement and left without a word, leaving her standing there with a puzzled expression on her face. That was the thing with Brett Norton as well; he never commented back to his employees after his demand was heard. Other than being intimidating, it was a trait that made him all the more mysterious and attracting; a lose but a win. Just when Caren thought her chance to impress him was going to happen, something always knocked her ten steps back, and it seemed impossible to ever leave her mark on him.

  *****

  Brett quickly made it back to his office right as his phone began to ring, but he still missed the call anyway. It wasn't anyone important or rather, it wasn’t a person he cared to speak to at the moment, but that didn't stop his mind from racing with what his next move should be. Playing both sides of the field with two businesses was harder work than he figured it would be, but at least with Caren at his side to take on the lesser tasks, he was able to manage everything to this point. The chairman of the board from one of the businesses was on his way to speak to him about joining the company, just as long as Caren did was she was supposed to.

  He sat behind his desk and folded his hands over the files of both companies as he watched for Caren to come back from the copy room. Something was definitely off with her, since he noticed that she hadn't been as alert as she typically was when he required her time, but he couldn't figure out why. Even though this deal was one of the most important deals the company would ever make, he couldn't stop his mind from thinking about the curve of her hips when she bent down to pick up the papers she dropped. Not only that, but the quick view down her shirt caused thoughts within him to surface that never had before.

  Brett leaned back for a second, thinking back to when he first took her on as his personal assistant, and remembered how willing she was to do whatever it was he asked no matter what. She was always polite and respected him better than most others had in the company. He realized that she held him to a higher standard than what he required for the position, always waiting on his beck and call without hesitation. Caren was a shy girl that barely even spoke to the other employees on the floor, but when it came to handling clients she adopted a candid personality that made them always come back.

  Stuck within his own mind, he didn't hear her lightly knocking on his door, which caused her to walk in seemingly unannounced. “I'm sorry to disturb you, but you have a call on line three, Mr. Norton.”

  Brett shook his head and fixed his signature red tie as he stood up from his desk, staring at her perfect posture as she waited for further instructions. “Tha
nk you.” He walked closer to her and he saw her visibly tense up, but at the same time she looked rather nervous or drained. “You are free to return to your desk.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Norton.” As she walked out of his office, Brett fixed his eyesight on the contour of her backside where her skirt outlined an area that drove his mind wild.

  Once she was no longer in view, he was able to regain the focus of the task at hand, which was handling business A for their side of the deal. “This is Brett Norton speaking, how can I be of assistance today?” He spoke in a smooth voice with a confident tone, telling the door man from the first floor to let his one o'clock upstairs and to meet him in the conference room.

  He grabbed the folders off his desk and proceeded out of his office, stopping at Caren's desk to collect her for the meeting as well. She walked beside him with a stance that he never noticed before and soon they were both in the conference, but neither one of them looked as excited as they had before they walked in. Standing before them were the two sets of clients he so desperately tried to play off against each other and yet they were both here, annoyed and looking as if they were ready to walk out.

  An argument ensued and all Brett could do was apologize for his actions, trying to salvage what was left of the deal even though it wasn't looking promising in the least. By the end of the feud, both of the clients ended up leaving and told him that they wouldn't dream of ever doing business with him or with the company in the future. Brett still retained a positive vibe until the clients were no longer in sight or in earshot and then he turned around to Caren, who looked as if she had seen a ghost. “I don't understand. Two meetings? I was only scheduled to have one today. The other one was tomorrow.”

  He slammed his fist down on the desk and shuffled through his day planner to see what exactly he was supposed to do today. He tried his best to keep his cool as he pulled out his PDA and nearly lost it when he checked his electronic schedule to see that he was supposed to have two meetings today. What made it all worse was that it was for the two companies he was playing against each other and there was only one person that could be responsible for this extreme mix-up.

  Brett could tell Caren is bracing herself for the worst from him, but as much as he wanted to scream at her for the embarrassment she created for him, he wasn't the type to do such a thing on the job. He knew he could figure out another way to make her pay for what she caused and he would speak to her about it when the time presented itself to him. He stared at her with an intense anger burning bright in his dark eyes, mortifying her even more than she already was, and eventually she left the room. He watched her until she left, eyeing her until she disappeared down the hallway.

  *****

  Caren was freaking out internally and was sure that he would fire her for losing the two large deals for the company because chances like that only came once in a life time. She knew if she hadn't been so overworked she wouldn't have been so careless in setting up the meetings for him today. Watching him in fear as he hurried back to his office, Caren wanted to hide behind the walls of her cubicle. “I can't believe I did this...” She whispered to herself as he shut the door with a force she'd never seen before and everyone in the office began conspiring against her so they could have the job for themselves.

  Her meticulous attitude was slaughtered by her grave mistake and she didn't know how she would ever make up for what she did, but she felt useless now as she glanced around at her various items all along her desk, mentally noting that soon her desk would belong to someone else. Caren was sure this would be the last hour she would sit outside his office, so she began gathering all of her belongings when suddenly her computer notified her of a new email. She paused to open the message and felt the pang of disappointment inside as she read that Mr. Norton wanted her to come to his office immediately.

  Caren knew he was going to fire her now and she promised herself she would make the transition as painless as possible with herself so she wasn't expecting much from him. Mr. Norton would most likely give her a terrible recommendation if she tried for another assistant job, but she told herself she had no one else to blame except her own lapse of judgment. She took a deep breath, trying to relax as much as she could, and braced herself for the worse as she walked into his office. Closing the door behind her, she stood unmoving, waiting for him to say something before she felt she needed to.

  He was standing at the window, looking out on all the employees, and pulled the string so that the blinds blocked everyone else's view into his office. It was a typical attribute for him whenever he was discussing something with another person because he believed in complete and total privacy, though nothing could keep everyone else from gossiping about Caren being fired once she took the walk of shame she knew was coming soon. The silence between them scared her even more because unlike everyone else, he never left her waiting when he needed to speak with her.

  “Sit.” Mr. Norton didn't turn to look at her as he spoke to her, but Caren didn't have an issue doing as he said because she felt she at least owed him that much after messing everything up for him. Caren kept her eyes on the floor, not looking up at him for even a second, out of respect for her boss, which was when he turned to her slowly and stared a slight moment. From the corner of her eye, Caren felt like he was observing her, as if he was making an assessment in silence.

  Leaning against the glass, he crossed his arms and stared down at her with the tension she feared. “Do you have any idea what you have cost me? Those were deals totaling almost two million dollars. Why?”

  Caren felt ashamed with herself, so she continued to stare at her fingers, not feeling confident enough to look at him for even a second. “I understand what I have done...but I can explain if you give me the chance.”

  “Let me get this straight. You mess up two of the biggest deals in my entire career and you expect me to just stand here and listen to you explain why it happened?”

  Sighing and trying not to get worked up, she finally found the confidence to look at him as she responded. “I understand I messed things up, but after everything I have done for you, I think you owe me at least that.” It was obvious she was trying to level up to him, but when he raised his eyebrows at, she shrunk back down. “Please, give me a chance to explain, Mr. Norton...”

  “You have one minute and then you stop.” He walked over to his desk and pressed a button on his watch that made a slight beeping noise, which caused Caren to look up at him in curiosity. “Your sixty seconds have started.”

  Caren looked incredulously at Mr. Norton and blinked her eyes a few times to see if she was dreaming or if this was really happening. “Seriously? How can I possibly explain what happened in sixty seconds?”

  Mr. Norton kept his eyes on his watch, not even sparing her a single glance, as he smirked in response. “You just wasted fifteen seconds asking me that question. And another five for my response.”

  Taking a deep breath, Caren tried her best to explain her situation without coming off like she was complaining about the work load. “I know when you first hired me, you explained to me that as your personal assistant I would be on your beck and call at all times, but these past few weeks have done a number on my sleep schedule.” While speaking, Caren mentally counted down the forty seconds she had left so she would know how much more she could say to him. “I love working for you, I really do, but I just...need a break once in a while.”

  His watch beeped, signaling that her minute was over and just when she thought he was going to understand her, he shook his head sighing. “No, that's not possible. I need you because I can't hire anyone else for this position. You know just about everything about me that could at the same time destroy me. I could never trust someone else the way I trust you with that information to have someone else take the workload off of you.”

  Caren's eyes lit up at the sound of his admiration for her and the fact that he finally gave her the recognition she had been hoping for since she first started working for him. S
he was touched by his words, but at the same time, she was a person with needs that she couldn't neglect for him. “I understand how valuable of an asset I am to your company, and to you, but at the same time, I'm not a superhuman, Mr. Norton and-”

  “Call me Brett.” Finally, he granted her his gaze and she gulped from the intensity hidden within his eyes. “Now, finish what you were saying.”

  “R-right, Mr. Norton...I-I mean Brett.” Caren had never called him anything other than Mr. Norton and now that he instructed her to call him by his first name, the atmosphere in his office turned personal. Looking away so that he couldn't notice the hint of blush across her cheeks, she picked up the conversation where she left off. “As I was saying...I'm not a machine that can just work without any consequences. I do need to have some time where I can relax after working.”

  “When you go home you can relax. I give you at least eight hours to rest. Shouldn't that be enough for you?”

  “No. Those 'eight' hours are spread out between trying to get home, changing out of my clothes, eating something, showering and then going to sleep. I come in to work at six in the morning most days and work until nine or ten at night.”

  Brett looked up to the ceiling as if he was trying to figure something out in his head, but evidently brought his eyes back to her and sighed heavily. “Okay, I see what you are saying. I may have over extended your allotted hours for the job, but I don't have any other option right now.”

  An idea popped into Caren's head and she brought it up to him, hoping that he would agree with her request. “Well, how about I work those long hours during the week and then I have the weekends off?”

  Rubbing his jaw line, Caren found herself staring at him longer than what she wanted to and he ended up catching her as he spoke back to her in a playful tone. “That might be possible...if you'll acquiesce to some new terms.”