Climax of Jessica's Career Ch. 01

'I'm sorry, Miss White, but there is another contender for that contract. I hope you understand,' Mr Rogers said, trying to conceal his smug grin. Daniel, sitting diagonally from him at a four-person table, caught it. He was sure Jessica had too. If he caught it, Jessica caught it too, analyzed it, and was already thinking about her next three moves.

'We've been negotiating this deal for months. I was under the impression we were the only ones left,' Jessica White, Senior Manager at Apex Strategy Group, replied. 'Who is the other contender?'

'Vortex Software Inc., but you don't need to concern yourselves with them. Let's focus on our contract.'

Jessica narrowed her eyes slightly as she held Mr Rogers's gaze from across the table. 'Very well. Let's focus on it then. We've addressed all your concerns. We've revised the contract several times already. Are you ready to sign?' Jessica was going for the kill. Rightfully so. All the other companies were out of the race. They were the only ones left. Or so they thought. Where did that Vortex come from?

'Not so hastily. There are no issues with the current version of the contract. We're just exploring our options.'

'Daniel and I have a flight home on Friday. This is not a good time to explore other options.'

This was unusually direct of her. Mr Rogers must have really gotten under her skin. She was seasoned in dealing with difficult clients. She was the one the company sent to win over lost causes. And she would win them over more often than not.

'I am aware of that, yes. Nevertheless, we need to go over their offer as well. We need to make sure we choose the best partner available. This is a big contract, after all. I hope you understand.'

'... Of course, I understand.'

'Very well. Thank you for the dinner. Let's meet tomorrow at noon in my office. I should know Vortex's offer by then,' Mr Rogers said.

He and his assistant rose from the table, bid their goodbyes and left the restaurant. Jessica nodded goodbye and waited until they were out of sight. Daniel watched them go. Mr Rogers could barely fit his big belly between the chairs and tables.

Daniel glanced at Jessica. She was holding her glass of wine against her full red lips. Her blue eyes were fixed on her plate, but she wasn't really looking at it. She was lost in her thoughts. Daniel took the opportunity to admire her beautiful round face, that one cute pimple on her left cheek, and her long blond hair. Her elegant cream-coloured dress was very formal, but still clung to her body in all the right places. She was a tall woman, almost as tall as Daniel, even without her heels. She had a slender waist and full curves that the dress did little to hide. There was something commanding about the way she carried herself, even sitting down.

Jessica slumped a little once she was sure Mr Rogers couldn't see her. She scooted her chair a little closer to Daniel's to reach her purse on the ground. She pulled out her phone and started typing.

'Who are you texting?'

'My assistant. I need more info on those assholes from Vortex. And what do they have in common with Mr Rogers? I have never heard of that company. Why did they appear so out of the blue? This is a fucking joke.' Jessica grimaced.

'Calm down. We'll figure it out. Maybe they're just using their offer as leverage to negotiate our price down.'

'No, they have money in buckets. We went over the finances already. They were really happy with the price and the value we could bring them. Something else is off.' Daniel very rarely saw Jessica this worked up. Last week, the Board promised her a promotion. If she could get Mr Rogers of Sterling & Sterling Group to sign the contract, she would become an official Business Partner at Apex Strategies. Daniel and Jessica had flown to New York convinced the trip and dinner would be a formality. They would exchange pleasantries, sign the deal and spend the rest of the week touring New York City.

'Still, we have a couple of days left. We'll figure out what makes him tick,' Daniel said. 'Speaking of ticking, he should go on a diet. His heart won't keep ticking for long if he keeps eating like this.'

Jessica laughed at his joke. He always knew how to cheer her up. She picked up her glass, two-thirds full, with a slightly trembling hand and brought it to her lips. As she tilted it to take a sip, her hand jerked, sending wine spilling over the rim and down the front of her dress. The red stain covered the front of her dress, her throat and her cleavage.

Jessica froze.

Daniel noticed how the wet fabric clung to her full breasts. She wasn't wearing a bra, he realized. He could see the outlines of her nipples through the dress. This was the first time he had seen Jessica like this in the nearly a year they had been working together. He couldn't take his eyes off her. Jessica noticed his stare, and they held each other's gaze for a second. Daniel snapped out of it, grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and quickly threw it over her shoulders. She pulled the front of the jacket closed to cover the stain. They looked around the restaurant. Luckily, no one saw the incident.

'Help me get to the bathroom,' she asked him.

'Of course.'

They stood up and left the restaurant. It was on the ground floor of the hotel where they were staying. They found a bathroom just off a side corridor, away from the main one. There was no one around.

'Can you grab my bag from my room?' she asked, fishing out her room key from her purse and handing it to him. 'I have spare clothes there.'

Daniel took the key. 'Of course. Be right back. I'll knock three times.'

'There's that software developer side of you,' Jessica said with a smile. 'Inventing protocols, even when bringing a woman spare clothes.'

'So you know it's me,' he replied with a smile of his own.

'I could just ask who's knocking. Go now. I can feel the stain. It's cold.'

'I bet it is,' Daniel thought.

Daniel went up to her room on the third floor, found the bag, and took it back down to the bathroom. He knocked three times. He expected Jessica to open the door just wide enough for him to pass the bag through, but instead, she opened it fully.

'I can't unzip my dress. Can you please help?' she asked shyly.

She went back into the bathroom and faced the mirror, gathering her long blonde hair over one shoulder so he could reach the zipper. Daniel stepped inside, closed the door and locked it for good measure. He looked at Jessica. At her creamy throat, her bare shoulder, her dress-clad round butt and long legs. He looked up and met Jessica's eyes in the mirror. He saw desire in them.

'Could she? Surely not...' Daniel thought. 'There is no way she would return my feelings.' He slowly approached her, like a man who had given up on his own safety just to get closer to a lioness. To bask in her beauty and her might. Through stories from their colleagues, he had heard how quickly and ruthlessly she rejected advances from other men at the company. People called her the Ice Queen when she wasn't around. Cold, intelligent, ambitious, beautiful, and strong.

When he got close, he could see the desire in her eyes even more clearly. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, her lips slightly parted. This was the first time he had seen her look at him like that. It stirred something inside him. 'Could she be drunk? No, she had two glasses of wine. I watched her drink much more than that, and shrugged it off. She's serious.'

He stepped forward and placed his right hand on the zipper, his left hand on her bare shoulder. She tensed slightly, but then relaxed. He could still make out the shape of her breasts through the front of her dress in the mirror. He slowly pulled the zipper down, their eyes still connected. When it was undone, he gazed at her bare back. She really wasn't wearing a bra. On her hips, he saw the straps of a red thong. Did she really wear something like this to a business meeting?

His right hand rested just above her butt. He looked up at the mirror again. Jessica was still watching him, her cheeks flushed. He could hear her breathing through her slightly open mouth. Should he go for the kill? There would be no turning back once he did.

Jessica slowly raised her hands and pulled the shoulder straps off her shoulders. The dress slipped down, revealing her voluptuous breasts and pointed nipples. It continued down over her toned belly, red thong, wide hips, and shapely thighs. Her eyes never left his. Daniel took in the sight before him. His heart was pounding. Was this a trap? A test? No, Jessica was always direct. She hated playing games.

He summoned his courage and slowly brought his hands around her torso, cupping her breasts and squeezing them gently. They were so soft and yet so firm. They filled his hands. They were warm. Jessica's breath hitched for a moment. Daniel began gently kneading her breasts. He brought his face close and kissed her neck softly. Jessica put her hand against the side of his face.

Daniel's mind was spinning. He couldn't tell what he was feeling. Fear? Excitement? Love? Arousal? It felt like all of them at once. Adrenaline was coursing through his body, heightening his senses. His hands felt the soft skin of her breasts, the hardness of her nipples. His cock, rock hard now, snuggled between her ass cheeks and started grinding against her. He could feel how hot her body was, even through all his clothing. He should take it off, but he couldn't bring himself to pull away from her.

'What if we get caught?' Jessica asked breathlessly.

'I locked the door.' Daniel continued kissing her neck, his hands now kneading her breasts.

Jessica closed her eyes and moaned. 'You have too many clothes on.'

Daniel unbuttoned his shirt, then unbuckled his belt and lowered his pants. He was rock hard. He moved his hips back against hers. His erect cock, still covered by his underwear, rubbed between Jessica's ass cheeks and her thong.

They breathed heavily, watching each other in the mirror as their hips rocked against each other.

'Do you have a condom?' Jessica asked breathlessly.

Daniel froze. 'No,' he admitted.

'Put it between my thighs,' she said as she slid her soaked thong down to the middle of her thighs, revealing her eager pussy and swollen clitoris.

For a moment, Daniel simply looked at her. He had imagined being this close to Jessica countless times, but never like this. Never with her looking at him as though she wanted him just as badly.

Daniel took off his underwear. His throbbing shaft sprang free, twitching in anticipation. He stepped towards Jessica and slid his cock between her thighs, right under her pussy. Jessica leaned forward slightly, arching her back. She put her left hand on the sink and used her right hand to lift his dick a little, positioning it so the tip touched her clitoris. Jessica glanced at him in the mirror. There was something almost playful in her expression now, a side of her he had never seen before. The woman who always seemed to have everything under control was letting herself go.

Daniel started moving. Warmth flowed into him. His brain knew he didn't enter Jessica but it felt like it. Daniel fought back the pressure inside him. He slid his penis back, spreading her juices. Her silky thighs rubbed against him. He felt his tip hit Jessica's clitoris. Their hips made a clapping sound, filling the bathroom. Jessica moaned.

Daniel kept moving at a steady pace, as he watched her reflection. Her eyes were closed, her lips parted, and for once she wasn't thinking about the client, the contract, or her promotion. She was simply there with him. The scent of Jessica's arousal filled his nostrils. The wet sounds of their intercrural sex and her moans filled his ears, as her thighs, covered in her juices, squeezed him harder.

The pressure inside his body was too much to ignore now. 'I- I'm close!'

'M-Me too! Ugh! Don't sto-o-o-p!' Jessica rasped between her moans. He had never heard her make sounds like that. Every word she spoke was measured and deliberate. Now she could barely finish a sentence.

Daniel's primitive senses took over. He picked up the pace. If somebody was standing in the hallway, they would surely hear the clapping sound. But he did not care. Jessica did not either. They were lost to their carnal pleasure. Nothing else mattered at that moment.

'I'm cumming!' Jessica screamed. That sent Daniel over the edge. His dick throbbed as he came hard, spilling his cum across the mirror and Jessica's hand. For a few seconds, all he could do was breathe and hold on to her, overwhelmed by the fact that this was really happening. Meanwhile, Jessica let out a sharp cry as her knees buckled and her legs started trembling. For a few seconds, she seemed unable to do anything but feel it. She let out a primal growl, as her pussy clenched around Daniel's dick. He had never seen Jessica lose control like that. It was almost impossible to believe that the woman who commanded every meeting at work was now trembling in front of him.

For a moment, neither of them moved. Daniel wanted to hold her, to kiss her, perhaps even to tell her how long he had wanted this. But he couldn't find the words. His brain was fogged and he was afraid that saying anything would break the moment.

When Daniel finally gathered his thoughts, he wondered what had just happened. They had crossed a point of no return. What would this change? Were they together now? He couldn't believe his lucky stars, but the voice at the back of his head was telling him this could still go either way.

Jessica took a couple of deep breaths and let his penis go. She straightened up, separating herself from him. 'C-Can you please leave? I need to clean up. I will see you at breakfast,' she said while washing her hands. She wasn't looking at him.

Daniel felt his heart break. He still clung to some hope. This evening was a rollercoaster, so maybe all was not lost. Jessica probably needed to collect her thoughts.

'R-Right.' He quickly cleaned himself off with some toilet paper and got dressed. 'Good night,' he said. As he was about to open the door, he glanced back at Jessica. She was still washing her hands, refusing to look at him.

Daniel stood there for a moment. When it looked like Jessica wasn't going to say anything more, he opened the door a little, checked if anybody was in the corridor -- empty, luckily. Then he walked out and closed the door.

His feet guided him to his hotel room. He took a shower and lay down in his bed. Did he do the right thing? Did he ruin their relationship? Would she never want to look at him again? Would she move him to a different team? Fire him?

The ceiling he was staring at offered no answers. Daniel rolled onto his side and tried to get some sleep. He couldn't get any, so he got up, sat at the little desk in his room, and opened his laptop.

To be continued...