by BWWM Club
“You’ve made me happy.”
“Are you sure? Are you sure you can live with the fact that I own Hartline industries?”
She nodded, wrapping her arms around his strong chest. “As long as you run it with your morals, I can get past it. I don’t want anyone to suffer like I suffered, like my family suffered.”
He kissed her forehead, rubbing his hand up and down her spine. “I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure no one has to deal with that ever again. First though, I’m going to make sure your case is closed. You’re my priority.”
“It doesn’t both you that it’s my husband. Was my husband. I don't know how to label him.”
He pushed a piece of her hair behind her ear. “You don’t have to. I understand. And no, it doesn’t. He meant a lot to you. I only wish I could have experienced love like you did in your lifetime. I won’t ever make you feel bad for loving him. I don’t expect you to stop, I just ask that you allow yourself to fall in love with me.”
“I can do that.”
He lifted his brow. “Yeah?”
She smoothed her palm over his sculpted pec. “Positive. I’m already halfway there.”
He cupped her face, careful to ignore the bruise on her jaw. “I’ll do everything I can to earn your love every day. I want to prove to you I can be what you need.”
“You already have, Josh. You do it every second, with how you handle my sons and the situation, with how you treat me, with how you treat others. I can't ask for a better man than that. Kendrick would have liked you. He would be happy for me.”
His voice cracked when he spoke. “Yeah? You think so?”
“He would have never wanted me to spend twenty years in the misery I allowed myself to seep in to. He always wanted me happy. That’s all he ever cared about. It was me that made me feel guilty all those years. I felt like if I moved on then I would forget about him and I didn’t want to do that.”
Josh held her hand to his chest as they spun in a circle, still dancing. “And now? Do you feel like that?”
She heard his heart pound a little harder against his chest, like he was nervous of the answer. “No. It surprised me at first, but I’ve learned I can love you and still remember him. I could never forget him. He gave me two wonderful sons, plus they look so much like him. They are perfect reminders of another lifetime.”
“I’m glad I found you in this lifetime.”
She pulled back and stared at him, getting lost in the green depths. “Me too.”
Chapter 11
Josh
“What the hell do you mean the statute of limitations has past? Bullshit,” Josh yelled into the phone at his lawyer.
“It’s something that happened twenty years ago. There isn’t much I can do.”
This was his father’s lawyer. He should have known to go with someone else. He was probably costing this company money left and right, but he kept Dixon on because he was a friend of his father's. Not anymore though. He was done. “You’re fired, Dixon. I’ll find someone who is up to the task and not knee deep in bullshit and lies.” Josh hung the phone up with a little more force than necessary. “Fucking bastard.” He dropped his head in his hands and pulled on his hair. This was going to be more complicated than he'd thought.
“I’m an idiot,” he muttered, picking the phone back up and dialing. “Come on, come on. Answer.” Just as the words flowed out of his mouth, the line picked up.
“Hey, buddy. What can I do you for?” Garrett asked cheerfully.
He let out a stressful sigh, not knowing what to do. Law was not his area of expertise.
“Oh no, I know that sound. What’s wrong? Is it your mom again? Is she okay?”
“She’s fine. She’s fine. She threatened that if I didn’t put her in a nursing home, she would take me out of the will, not that I cared. I don’t care about those things, but she was adamant about it. Of course I set her up with the best one. She got there yesterday and has been lying by the pool, apparently, flirting with men her age. Her argument was that she wanted to make friends and not be protected by me.”
“Dang, Ms. H. still got it!” Garrett laughed on the other end of the line.
“Not funny.”
“Aw, come on. Your mom will be fine. You know how much she loves her independence.”
“A little too much. She's old, Garrett. She needs to be cared for.”
“That’s why you placed her in the best care facility in the state. She will be and if she isn’t, she will tell you and you can bring her home.”
That actually made him feel better. He hadn’t thought that far because the only thing he could think of was her being so far away. “Anyway, that’s not why I called.”
“Right. What’s going on?” His tone sounded more serious than the playful tune he'dcarried before.
“I need a lawyer. I’m trying to sue a company that made cords twenty years ago. Did you know five men died the year Ginger’s husband died? Same thing. Faulty cords. My dad covered it all up.”
“How did other companies not know this? Are there others that had the same issue?”
Josh shook his head, forgetting that Garrett couldn’t see him. “I’m not sure. I really don’t know. If other companies were better, they would have notified their employees and got them off those damn cables. Anyway, I was kind of hoping you’d do this?”
“Of course I will. I owe you free legal representation for life. I would love to be brought onto the company as your lawyer, if that was a thing.”
“You know, I can’t believe we didn’t do that earlier and you won’t work for free forever. You just have to prove to me you can be better and handle your money better. Alright?”
“I have my first meeting tomorrow. I’m nervous.”
Josh didn’t like how small Garrett’s voice was. “Do you want me to go with you?”
“No. This is something I need to do on my own.”
“I understand.”
“So, back to the topic at hand. This happened twenty years ago?”
Josh’s hands curled into fists. “Yes. And my father’s previous attorney said the statute of limitations ran out. I know it’s bullshit. He was just as crooked as my father.”
“If you can get me a list of those other people, we can shut this company down. We can also research if there have been any other incidents or recalls for the cables. We can do this. I’ve had harder cases.”
“I knew I could count on you for this. It’s important to me that I close this case. It would really make Ginger’s sons trust me more.”
Garrett hissed. “So, they found out.”
Josh scratched his head. “You could say that. Jamal called me a few names. Heath lunged at me and ended up punching Ginger in the face because she stepped in front of him. Heath walked out, but Jamal stayed. Heath hasn’t talked to his mom since.”
He whistled. “Damn, is she okay? And when did this happen?”
“Two weeks ago. He hasn’t come home either. Jamal has and he says that Heath is just working a few things out. I don’t blame the kid. His father died when he was two weeks old. I’m sure he has a lot of anger and sadness and then the one thing that was stable, the hate for me and the company, gets pulled out from under him.”
“Yeah, plus he's young. There’s that. Also, do you see it working out with Ginger? She's one of my best paralegals. I swear if you take her from me, I’m going to be pissed,” he teased, but Josh’s hackles went up. He wanted to pound on his chest and shout that she was his, but that was too possessive.
“That will be up to her in the end, Garrett. You know that.” He actually hoped that Ginger quit. He wanted to travel and take her around the world. He didn’t want her to have to worry about another thing again. He wanted to make her life as easy as possible.
He groaned. “Aw, come on. Don’t do this to me. At least part−time. She's so quick and organized. I don’t think I can survive without her.”
“How do you think I feel?” he said off the cuff.
Garrett didn’t say anything, and Josh looked down at the phone to see if it was still connected. “Hello?” he spoke into the receiver.
“You can’t live without her, huh?”
Josh rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair. “No, I don’t think I can, Garrett.”
“Oh, how the mighty have fallen. The most eligible bachelor in town is in love,” he crooned, making fun of him.
“You just wait until it’s your turn.”
Garrett’s teasing stopped. “Ah, no woman is going to want to go out with a recovering gambling addict. She wouldn’t think she could trust herself with me, and hell, maybe she wouldn’t be able to.”
“Don’t say that. You know that isn’t true. You need to give yourself a chance to be happy. It’s going to be hard. I hear the urge is always there for all addicts. You just have to be stronger.”
“Yeah, well, fingers crossed.”
A knock at his door grabbed his attention and when he looked up, his assistant was in the doorway. “Hey, Garrett. I have to go. I’ll call you to set up a meeting later today, alright?”
“Sounds good.”
He hung up the phone and laced his hands together on the desk. “Emma, how can I help you?”
“There is a young man here to see you. His name is Heath Lanton. I told him you were busy but he insisted that he wouldn’t leave without speaking to you. He also said you were dating his mother.” The last of her sentence sounded a bit peeved, but he couldn't care less. He knew that Emma had a thing for him, but she was fifteen years younger than him. And that he was not interested in.
His brows rose to his hairline. “Send him in and clear out my next meeting. Reschedule it.”
“Sir. That meeting has been on the calendar for a year,” she sassed, running her hands down her skirt.
He stood, buttoning his suit jacket. He strode around the table. “I’m aware how long it’s been on the calendar. Maybe instead of arguing with me about it. You’ll do it. As a matter of fact. You’re fired.”
“What! You can’t just fire me.”
“I can. I haven’t liked your attitude for a long time. I’m cleaning house. This company is getting rebuilt. You were here when my father was and it's time for you to go.”
She turned on her heel, grabbing her purse and jacket, huffing before stomping out the doors. Josh sighed, walking towards the lobby. He saw Heath there, slumped in the seat with Beat headphones on. Josh could hear the music from where he was standing. How did his ears not hurt listening to it that high?
He strode forward, placing his hand on Heath’s shoulder. He jumped, yanking his headphones off. “Jeez, you scared me.”
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to. Come on, follow me.”
Heath got up and looked around with wide eyes. “Wow. You really got a set up here.”
“Thanks.” He really didn’t know what else to say. He wasn’t good at small talk.
Josh led him to his office and sat behind the desk. “Please, sit.” He held out his hand to point to a leather seat.
Heath sighed and plopped down in the chair.
“This is a surprise.”
“Yeah….I know.” He scratched his head, staring around the office.
“What brings you here? Your mom is worried sick about you. She only knows what’s going on because of Jamal. Listen, if you don’t want to like me, don’t like me, but don’t take it out on your mom. She loves you. Her entire life was dedicated to you. You not speaking to her is tearing her apart.”
“It is?” he said with big, innocent eyes.
Josh never would have thought this kid was twenty−one. He seemed younger. “Yeah, sometimes she cries at night, not that you need to know that. I don’t want to guilt you into talking to your mom. I want you to talk to her because you want to, not because you’re bullied to.”
“I do want to talk to her. She's my best friend, but I don’t know how to talk to her about this.”
“So, you came to me? I don’t know how I can help. I’m not trying to be a dick, I’m just being honest.” He leaned back in his seat, latching his fingers behind his head.
“I’m here to apologize to you. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lashed out like that. I hate that I hurt her. I never meant to. I’ve struggled with what I did these past few weeks, but it was more than that news you guys gave me. I just have a lot going on right now.”
“I’m sure your mom would like to hear about it.”
“I’m failing med school. No, no, that’s not the truth. I failed out of med school. Not even Jamal knows.”
Oh, shit. Josh had no idea what to do with that information. “Well, is med school what you really want?”
“No. That’s the thing though. I don’t know what I want. I don’t know what I want to spend the rest of my life doing. How am I supposed to know what I want to do with the rest of my life?” He placed his head in his hands. “She's going to be so disappointed in me, more than she already is.”
Josh shook his head. “You’re wrong. You have to have faith in her. Tell you what, I’ll get you a job here.” He held up his hand when Heath opened his mouth. “You don’t have to hang from cables. I was thinking desk work, or something along those lines. I did just have a position open up. I just fired my secretary. It’s up to you. The pay starts at twenty an hour, full−time, benefits. You get three weeks PTO and five sick days. You’ll start at nine, leave at five. You have a one hour lunch and two fifteen minute breaks. This position is important. I’m a busy man. I need to make sure I have someone that can keep up. So, what do you say? Can you keep up?”
“You’re serious?” he asked with wide eyes. “This isn’t just because of my mom, right?”
“I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t.” Josh threw a pen down on the table. “But you seem smart, this could look good on your resume.”
“Yes! Hell yes.” Heath jumped up. “You’re serious? Thank you. Oh, this will make it so much easier telling Mama. Why are you doing this? I almost punched you.”
“I understand why though. Clean slate?” Josh stood, stretching out his hand, hoping that Heath took it to agree to a truce.
“Clean slate.” Their hands slapped in an agreement.
“Alright. I’m coming over later for dinner. You should be there. Then you’ll be here at nine tomorrow. Nice shirt and dress pants or nice dark jeans, not tennis shoes, got it?”
“Yeah, I won’t let you down, Mr. Hart.”
“Hey, Heath? When we aren’t at work, call me Josh, okay?”
“You got it. Thank you. I don’t know why I came here. I knew I needed to apologize, but I didn’t know why I came.”
“I’m glad you did.”
“Me too. I’ll see you later.” He ran out the door with his headphones back on his head, blaring music.
Josh glanced at his watch. It was four o’clock. He was leaving, maybe he even had time to see if he and Ginger could get a quickie in. Just the thought had his cock hard. He grabbed his coat and briefcase and headed out the door.
Josh got into his Range Rover and drove the quick ten minutes to Ginger’s house. The sun was still out and shining bright. Since it was the weekend, people were already walking around the city, drinking and looking for a good time. He parked his car at her apartment complex and took the elevator up. He knocked on her door and when she answered his breath caught.
Damn, she was the prettiest woman in the entire world.
“Hey, you. You’re early. I like it.”
He wrapped his arms around her, pushing her back into the apartment and kicking the door closed. “Hey, gorgeous. How much time do we have?” He tossed his briefcase onto the floor, along with his jacket.
Her pupils dilated from the lust taking her over. “About an hour.”
He loosened his tie. “Oh? That’s plenty of time.” He kicked off his shoes, still walking toward her so she was steppin
g back down the hallway to her room.
“I like the sound of that.” She stripped her blue dress over her head and tossed it in her room after she opened the door.
Once they were inside, Josh kicked it, and locked it. “Let’s not have a repeated of last time, shall we?”
“Great idea.” She sat on the bed, spreading her legs wide.
His mouth watered when he saw her cherry gleaming in the light. It was already soaking wet, dripping with want and need. He unbuttoned his shirt, throwing it on the floor. The metal of his belt clattered in the room as he took it off, tossing it somewhere. He slid his pants down, exposing his grey briefs that held his rock−hard cock.
“That sure is a pretty sight,” she said, rubbing her hand down her body until she cupped her pussy, gliding her fingers through her soaked folds.
“You have no idea.” His voice was low, breaking like gravel as he stared at her body.
“You make me feel so good about myself.”
He lowered his briefs, kicking them off. He pounced on her, nearly slipping his cock inside her in one stroke. That would have been lucky.
“You are beautiful,” he said more serious, and she was. He loved that she had a few grey hairs and she had laugh lines around her eyes, showing that not all in her life had been bad. She didn’t have what society deemed a perfect body, but to him it was. She had stretch marks from her children, a little weight from age, but she was all curves, and nothing made him harder than the woman in front of him. Her tits spilled out of his hands when he grabbed them, and her ass was a work of art when he was plowing her pussy from the back. And the way she looked in a dress? With all those curves? Damn, he could hardly breathe thinking about it.
“You’re in deep thought.”
“Just thinking of you.”
“You don’t need to woo me with words. You’re already in my bed.” Her fingers drew lazy circles on his chest.
“I’ll never stop wooing you with words.” He settled his cock between her pussy lips, his crown rubbing against her labia until his tip hit her pearl.
She gasped, clutching his chest as he rutted against her like that, getting her nice and wet. He wanted her leaking so he could slide in effortlessly. “Could I make you come like this?” he asked, panting as her juices coated his shaft.