"Claire," Ben said in a commanding voice. "Pay close attention because I will only go over this once."

Claire's reply was immediate as she said, "I am listening, Mr. Hunter.”

I was amused when I heard the sound of her turning book pages. Claire was fully prepared to jot down notes, which was quite impressive. She was such a wholesome girl.

“Until I say otherwise, you will be working alongside Thalia,” informed Ben, leaving Claire and me in complete astonishment.

“Excuse me?” Claire said, obviously taken aback. “Did I hear you correctly, Mr. Hunter?

“Yes. You heard me correctly,” Ben confirmed.

“But I have been working as your assistant for almost two years. Who will be your assistant now?”

“What does that even mean?” My gaze was fixed intently on him. “Claire working alongside me? I don’t understand.”

When Ben flashed that smile at me, I was done for. That damn charm of his was just too much for me to resist. Who would not be sucked in by that devilish smile?

“I see you are finally looking at me," he acknowledged, and all of a sudden, I felt a sense of déjà vu.

I let out a derisive scoff and exaggeratedly rolled my eyes, causing Ben's grin to only grow wider.

"That is not our main concern at the moment. Explain to me why you are letting Claire go."

“I have no intention of firing Claire." He reassured me.

It was like Ben could not hold back any longer. He just reached over and took my hand; this time, I did not even try to push him away. The next thing I knew, he was pulling me closer to him, and I ended up sitting on his lap.

"Listen up, Charles and Claire. I want to make it clear that Thalia is my girlfriend," Ben declared, causing me to almost choke on my own breath.

“I am your what?”

“Thalia and I are currently in the early stages of our relationship. She hasn't had the chance to get to know my family yet,” Ben informed his assistant. "Moving forward, Claire, your responsibility will be to support Thalia. Due to my busy schedule, I will not have sufficient time to inform her of everything. My family is throwing a party tomorrow, and I plan to bring Thalia along to introduce her to everyone. Provide her with as much information as possible. You have... ” Ben raised his hand and looked at his expensive timepiece. “Six hours to cover all the fundamentals. Claire, I trust you are comprehending everything," Ben conveyed. "Once I am dropped off at the company, Charles will take you ladies out. Thalia has to get her hair and outfits ready for dinner tonight and the party tomorrow."

The car was dead silent after Ben dropped that entire paragraph. I could not believe it. My mind was going a mile a minute trying to make sense of it all. My heart was pounding so loudly that I could barely hear myself think. It was like a freaking dream, or maybe more like a nightmare. Had Ben lost his mind? We had only just met, and now he wanted to take me home to meet his family as his "girlfriend." 

“Ben, what are you talking about?” I managed to choke out, hoping that this was all some big misunderstanding.

He tightly embraced me, causing me to tremble. "I am not kidding. I want everyone to be aware of our relationship."

My mind was in disarray, unable to string together a rational thought, let alone a proper reply. All I could manage was to gaze at Ben with incredulity. The notion of being exclusive or in a committed relationship had never even been broached between us.

"Mr. Hunter, are you certain about this?" Claire enquired. "I understand I have no authority to question you, but considering your family, sir..." she paused, her voice trailing off.

“I have never been as certain about anything in my entire life.” He expressed, firmly clasping my hand.

My mind was racing with emotions, but I could not seem to find the words to express them. I felt utterly lost and confused, almost as if I were in a daze. This was the most jolting thing I had ever experienced. Well, the third most jolting, that was. The first being when my darling mother started dating Chump.

The car pulled up outside the fancy business building. Just the sight of it made me feel like a peasant among kings. The sleek, modern design seemed to be reaching for the heavens with its towering height. Ben immediately requested Charles and his assistant to exit the car.

“Claire," Ben called out. "Relay to Tony that I will be arriving in thirty minutes."

"Very well, Mr. Hunter," Claire promptly scurried away to complete her assigned duty with haste. Charles trailed closely behind her, refraining from casting a single glance back at the parked car.

“Were you trying to leave earlier?” Ben's sudden question caught me off guard, leaving me no time to prepare myself.

I stammered, not sure how to respond. “I… I was just taking a walk,” I said, trying to sound nonchalant.

Ben's eyebrow shot up sceptically as he listened to my words. “A walk? All of a sudden?”

The casual lilt in his voice when he spoke and the slight crease between his brows made it clear that he was not quite buying into whatever I was presenting to him.

I bit my lip. “I was just trying to collect my thoughts,” I explained. “I did not mean to make it seem like I was leaving abruptly. Besides, it's been quite an eventful past few hours.

"I can't believe it either," Ben said.

“Is that really the case?” I asked, hoping I was not the only one feeling a bit off-kilter.

"Of course, I never would have imagined myself here with you." Ben's response held a hint of perplexity and astonishment as he gazed at me. "I simply came to your school to help a close friend of mine.”

His eyes were locked on my face, scanning every feature.

“If I had my way, Lance would be part of my company, but he has no interest in my field of work. Instead, he rather tolerates hormonal kids.” He snored, as if in disbelief. “When the job opening came, Lance happened to be ill. I stepped in for the day, curious to see if anything had improved since our school days. Unfortunately, it has only gotten worse.”

“You were substituting for the substitute.” I laughed.

"Essentially," Ben said with a cocky grin. "Lance would have been devastated if he had missed out on this opportunity."

Out of nowhere, Ben flipped down on the car seat and pressed his muscular body. I could not even react. My heart was racing like crazy, and I was pretty sure he could hear it.

Softly, Ben murmured, "My little, Thalia," and pressed his body close to mine. My breath quickened. I felt a jolt of desire rush through me. "I am incredibly grateful that it was your classroom I walked into yesterday. I should thank my friend."

I sighed. “When you talk and act the way you do, it makes me feel like I am important to you.” I expressed, gazing up at his confident and attractive face.

“That's because you are," he answered before capturing my mouth in a passionate and all-consuming kiss. Ben’s lips were still locked onto mine, but his hands were on the move. Before I knew it, he had lifted my top and bra, exposing my perky nipples.

“Oh, God.” I moaned when Ben buried his face between my small boobs. He was like a thirsty animal, sucking and nibbling on my hard, sensitive nipples.

The intense sensation sent waves of anticipation through my body, making me crave more. I was unable to resist the surge of lust that took over me, causing me to arch against him hungrily. My readers, when Ben pulled back and gave me that sexy ass stare, I knew things were about to get hot and heavy. He grabbed my hand and placed it on his bulging pants, and I could feel his throbbing hardness against my palm.

I was getting all kinds of excited. 

“Touch me more, Ben,” I begged. "Touch me all over," I urged him. "Put your hand between my legs. Feel how wet I am for you.”

“Shit!” Ben swore. “You are pushing me to my limits, Thalia. We can’t do much right now, but I won’t leave you hanging this time,” he promised.