Free The One That I Want by R. J. Jones

C HAPTER O NE
    LIKE CLOCKWORK, the tall, dark, and unbelievably hot guy stood waiting for the elevator. I saw him nearly every morning at 8:55 a.m. I didn’t know what floor he went to but it was somewhere above my third floor, shoe-box-sized cubicle.
    I tried not to look at him, I did, but my eyes had a mind of their own. I drank in the sight of his polished black dress shoes, his muscular thighs, and slim hips covered in a gray pinstripe. Today he wore a crisp, salmon-pink business shirt finished off with silver cufflinks. His matching gray jacket that emphasized his broad shoulders had my mouth drying up like the freaking Sahara.
    When I reached his chiseled jaw and lush, perfectly formed lips, my dick twitched and I was pretty sure I was drooling. Our eyes met and tall, dark, and drop-dead-gorgeous grinned and winked at me.
    Oh my god!
What the hell was wrong with me? I’d been beaten up for less. I averted my gaze to the floor and willed the elevator to hurry the hell up. Mr. Gorgeous chuckled quietly next to me. What was he doing? Baiting the queer, awkward accountant?
    After what seemed like an eternity, the elevator arrived and about a thousand people tried to enter. I could feel the warmth of his body through my shirt as he pressed up behind me in an effort to get into the elevator. My knees almost buckled and he chuckled again, right next to my ear.
    Did he just sniff me?
    Surely not. The man could have anyone he wanted, why would he be sniffing
me
?
    I tried to ignore the hand on the small of my back as he guided me to the rear of the elevator, but the heat from it seemed to be connected to my cock. My heart thundered in my ears. The elevator was too small; I couldn’t get enough air in my lungs, and I was pretty sure I’d pass out from lack of oxygen before I got to my floor. Maybe I should start taking the stairs.
    “Forty-two please.”
    God, even his voice was perfect. At least I knew where he worked now. Connor and Markham was the only company on the top floor but I couldn’t remember what they did. Lawyers, marketing? Something that suited his designer suit, anyway. I’d never belong to those lofty heights.
    “Isn’t this your floor?” A deep grumble in my ear brought me back to the present, and I realized people were waiting for me to exit the elevator. Jesus, why did he always have to be in
my
elevator? I think my cheeks matched the color of the crimson carpet. As I stepped out, I could finally breathe again.
    THE NEXT morning he was there again, and his lips quirked in a small smile when he saw me. I looked at all the people milling around the elevator, then headed for the stairs. I couldn’t stop myself from looking over my shoulder. Mr. Gorgeous was staring at me, his brow furrowed and his smile gone. At least I could breathe in the stairwell. I took the stairs for the rest of the week, successfully eluding another encounter with Mr. Way-out-of-my-league.
    Friday morning came, and I looked toward the elevator, expecting to see him waiting with the hordes, but he wasn’t there. I didn’t always see him, and I presumed he traveled for work or maybe had breakfast meetings on the days I didn’t see him. Heading for the stairs, I pushed the door open as I tried to fit my
Encore
magazine into my messenger bag.
    “Why are you ignoring me?”
    My heart felt like it had flown out of my chest. I grabbed the railing to steady myself with one hand; the other clutching at my chest like it was possible to stop my heart from flying away.
    “Jesus, holy... Are you trying to kill me? I’m sure it’d be less painful to throw me down the stairs.”
    “Sorry, but you’ve been avoiding me all week. Short of stalking you on your way home I thought this was a better, non-psychotic way of getting you to talk to me.”
    “And scaring someone to death in an empty stairwell is less psychotic?”
    “Would you prefer me to follow you home?”
    “There are enough crazies in this city. I’d prefer if you