Free Craving Shannon by E. D. Brady Page B

just a stupid girl with an attraction to a man almost double her age, a man that was entirely out of her league, one that she would never, ever be good enough for.
    It had been so long since she had slept in a comfortable bed, it almost made it harder to sleep. So foreign was the soft, fluffy mattress that Shannon’s body almost missed the hardness it was used to, but not for long. Soon, her thoughts began to blur and take on a life of their own. She jerked hard, half-dreaming that she fell down a step, it was the last coherent thing she remembered.
     
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    The smell of fresh coffee brewing was always hard for Shannon to resist. Even in her thick haze of sleep, some rational part of her mind understood that if she forced her eyes open, she would be rewarded with a piping hot cup.
    She sat up and looked around, momentarily confused by the strange décor until the events of the previous night slowly began to seep back in. She scowled at the memory of Chad’s face as he stood in the doorframe of her apartment.
    Another thought suddenly occurred to her. It was Monday morning and she simply couldn’t afford to be late for her new job.  She needed her job more than anything and was determined to keep a good track record.
    She hopped from the bed and raced out into the living room to find out the time. Seeing no clock, she hurried into the kitchen to find Chad washed and dressed in a navy-blue suit that sat perfectly on his muscular body.  “What time is it?” she questioned in a hurried voice.
    “Eight-thirty,” he replied, setting an empty coffee cup into the sink. He turned and stared at her. His eyes fell to her feet then traveled up her legs and stopped around the area of her breasts. She felt her face flush, knowing that he was admiring her body through her small, thin excuse for pajamas. Why hadn’t she changed out of the t-shirt before leaving the room? He pulled his eyes up to her face and sighed. “Go back to bed, Shannon,” he said in an authoritative voice.
    “But work—
    He cut her off. “I’ve already texted Sarah and told her to let whoever it is you report to know that you’ll be out doing research for me today.”
    “Maureen Black,” Shannon whispered.
    Chad nodded. “I’ll call Maureen later to confirm that she got my message.”
    Shannon stood stock-still not sure of how to react.
    “I’m going into the office to attempt to contact Danya Lovitz and to call Bazarov. I’ll be back in two hours or so. I’d like to have a serious talk with you when I return.”
    “Okay,” she replied, feeling like a child being scolded by her father. She had an urge to ask him if she’d done something wrong, but thought better of it. She was an adult after all, not some naughty child who deserved to be sent to their room until their parent had a chance to ‘deal’ with them. She squared her shoulders, raised her chin and tried to look as dignified and mature as she could manage in her flimsy nightwear. “If you don’t mind, I’ll have a cup of coffee first,” she stated confidently.
    “Help yourself,” he answered. Shannon thought she saw a small grin play on his lips. “I’ll see you in a couple of hours,” he added and headed for the door.
    Shannon took her mug of coffee into the living room and plopped down onto the couch. She picked up the remote control and turned on the sixty inch TV. She realized that she hadn’t watched TV in weeks but after flicking around the channels, concluded that she wasn’t really missing anything. She wandered over to the long bookshelf that framed one side of the TV and glanced over the titles. Chad certainly liked Science Fiction and Fantasy. With the exception of a couple of non-fiction books on yoga and meditation, that was the only genre he owned out of a least one hundred books. She pulled ‘The Hobbit’ off the shelf, knowing that it was the prequel to The Lord of the Rings. Since Chad was determined to make her see the movies,