The rest of the retreat passed like a blur to Victoria. Physically she was present but her mind was elsewhere. During the games she appeared invested but truly wasn't. She forgot which team won and whose lost. Nothing registered after that night bound in James's room.
She went through the motions of participation, cheering when others cheered, clapping when applause seemed appropriate. Her employees saw Victoria Sharp, poised and professional as always. They had no idea that beneath her composed exterior, her thoughts were consumed entirely by the memory of sheet restraints and commanding whispers.
The morning after their encounter, Victoria had woken unwrapped from the sheet, the duct tape too loosened somehow. James was already gone, probably off to his morning run. She had gotten up in silence and returned to her own room.
The team building exercises felt meaningless. While others strategized and competed, Victoria found herself studying James from across the room. She memorized the way he moved, the set of his shoulders when he concentrated, the smile that transformed his entire face. Every gesture became something to catalog and replay later in the privacy of her own thoughts.
Since the retreat, Victoria slipped into a quiet state and could not stop watching him. An unconscious act. He had become a fixation, a hunger she didn't know how to feed. Each night she told herself to let it go. Each morning, she failed.
Back at the office, the obsession only intensified. Victoria during meetings, concentrated on James without appearing obvious. She found herself lingering in hallways where she might catch glimpses of him passing by.
She wanted to control it, categorize it like she did everything else. Victoria had built her entire life around order and systematic approaches. Every challenge could be broken down into manageable components, every goal achieved through careful planning and execution. But James Mitchell was chaos in a custom suit. And she wanted more.
The rejection at the retreat had stung more than she cared to admit. Victoria Sharp was not accustomed to being turned away, especially when she was offering something as precious as her surrender. Yet James had wrapped her up like a misbehaving child and left her aching with unfulfilled desire.
But in the weeks that followed, as much as she wanted to deny it, she began to understand his reasoning. James had been so sweet towards her. He wasn't kidding when he said he wanted something meaningful with her, not a rushed encounter fueled purely by physical attraction. He was patient in ways that both frustrated and impressed her.
During the following months, James showered her with time, care and attention. The gestures started small. Victoria had arrived at her office on a Monday morning to find a small potted orchid on her desk, delicate white petals with the faintest blush of pink at their centers. No card, no explanation, but she knew. The gesture was subtle enough to avoid workplace gossip yet intimate enough to make her heart skip.
When she saw James later that morning, she had raised an eyebrow at him.
"Beautiful flowers," she had said carefully, testing the waters.
"I thought you might appreciate something living in your office," he replied, his voice warm but professional. "Orchids are resilient. They bloom when they're ready, not when you want them to."
The meaning behind his words wasn't lost on her. The realization made something tight in her chest loosen slightly.
Her favorite coffee appeared on her desk each morning, prepared exactly how she liked it. Amara oblivious, despite being her assistant. When she mentioned working late, dinner would arrive from restaurants she enjoyed or James's own special cooking.
He remembered everything. The books she liked, the music that moved her, the cosmetics brand she preferred or pieces of jewelries. James paid attention to details that others overlooked, treating each piece of information about her preferences like something valuable to be treasured.
The gifts he brought were thoughtful rather than expensive. A new set of vintage teacups she had mentioned loving and collecting. Tickets to a photography exhibition by an artist whose work she admired. A couples eyeglass, which she loved so much she did a short video of them together with the glasses on, the connection growing between them.
Their dates were sweet in ways Victoria had never experienced. James took her to places that encouraged conversation rather than mere spectacle. Art galleries where they could wander and discuss the pieces that moved them. Small restaurants tucked away from the business district where they could talk without interruption.
The game park had been amazing. Victoria had never seen that side of herself, the woman who could laugh unselfconsciously at mini golf, who could get competitive over arcade games. James brought out a playfulness in her that had been buried under years of corporate responsibility.
She felt her feelings for him grow as time pass. The way he listened when she spoke, really listened rather than waiting for his turn to talk. How he asked thoughtful questions about her opinions and genuinely seemed interested in her answers. The way he looks at her. James treated her like a person worth knowing rather than a prize worth winning.
Victoria cared for him too, in ways that surprised her. She found herself thinking about his comfort, his happiness. When he sought her out for her opinion on a business idea of a virtual reality game he'd been planning and wanting to venture into. She was happy he was including her in his future plans. Victoria teased James, touching his elbow lightly, drawing circles with her fingertip. He gave her a warning look. The same look that does things to her.
"What do you think?" he asked, spreading the proposal documents across her desk.
"Do you want the girlfriend answer or the CEO answer?" Victoria replied, her finger still tracing patterns on his arm.
"CEO."
Victoria's expression shifted to pure business mode. "The market analysis is incomplete. You're missing key demographic data, your projected timeline is unrealistic, and the budget allocation for development versus marketing is completely backwards. You need a better business proposal if you expect any serious investors to take this seriously."
James fell silent, studying her face. Then he asked quietly, "And the girlfriend answer?"