I suppressed a smirk. She was obviously nervous, but also knew what she was talking about.
“Protect them how?” Jude asked.
I wanted to kick him under the table but worried it would be noticeable.
“There are a lot of legal loopholes, especially in start-up investments, for example,” Henley said.
I felt a light bulb go off in my head, and knew Jude did too, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he continued pressing Henley with more questions, getting her more flustered with each one.
“I do want to know, Miss Cates,” Jude said, his voice harsh. “If you would be able to handle the demands of the job; your tardiness certainly wasn’t a very good way to start off.”
I held back a sigh. “How about some water?” I asked, interrupting before Henley answered. I stood and she nodded as I went to retrieve her a glass.
Accepting graciously, she took small sips before setting it down and turning her attention back to Jude. “I don’t usually arrive to anything late. It’s just not something I do…”
I could tell she wanted to say more, but Jude came back at her with more questions. Strangely enough, the more flustered she got, the cuter I found her incessant blushing. She looked like a damned short-cake with that red hair of hers.
The interview went on for a while longer before I finally ended it with one last question.
“Are you currently pursuing any other job options?”
“No,” she answered quickly.
I glanced at Jude. For some reason, he didn’t look pleased.
We both stood, and Henley rose too, nervously grabbing her purse.
“We’ll let you know our decision soon, rejection or not,” Jude said.
I smiled, trying to ease the harshness of his words. “Thank you for meeting with us. It was a pleasure.” I reached to shake her hand, her small soft hand in mine. She briefly met my gaze and something stirred within me.
I watched as Jude shook her hand before she left. Once she was out of sight, I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
Jude shook his head and went to the whiskey jar. “I thought she was going to start crying.”
“What the hell was that?” I snapped.
“What?” he said over his shoulder.
I took off my jacket, feeling uneasy. Part of me felt we had been too hard on her, yet another part of me felt like she knew something. “You ambushed that girl,” I said.
Jude downed the glass and sighed. “I had to know if she could handle the rough job. It’s grueling.”
“Doesn’t mean you have to be. Jesus, her resume showed she has great experience.”
Jude waved his hand dismissively. “People put anything on paper.”
I paused for a moment, unable to argue with him there. “Did you bring her here because of how she looks, by any chance?” I asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Come on.”
Jude shook his head, grinning. “Doesn’t matter what she looks like. We should still see other applicants.”
“Are you going to look through them?”
“I’m tabling this discussion,” he glanced at his watch before slamming his glass on the table, “and leaving early. See you tomorrow.”
I stared after him and then went back over to the table, frowning. Inhaling deeply, I could still smell Henley’s perfume lingering behind.
4
Jude
I swear, I hadn’t been so pissed off in my entire life. I’d had a lot of bad business meetings in the past, that was for sure. But that was…
I couldn’t even put it into words.
I left early for the first time in years and headed to the bar downtown where we had our own private table, closed off from everyone else. The barkeep came by, asking about Maverick since we usually came together. Although I wasn’t mad at him or anything, I hadn’t felt like waiting for him and had needed to get the hell out of there as fast as possible.
We had no good lawyers, and no good applicants. Henley was pretty and all, but I wasn’t feeling her as an employee. On some level, I knew it was because of how distracted I’d be with her around.
My phone went off in the middle of my second martini, but I ignored it, knowing it was Maverick probably wanting to give me some moral speech about using people. Sighing, I finished my second drink. Mad as I was, I knew I couldn’t leave him hanging. So a little while later, I found myself heading back to the office, pretending not to notice everyone’s inquiring stares. I stopped at Maverick’s office. He was at the computer, his face screwed up and his shoulders tensed. Probably worrying himself over nothing, as usual.
“Back from your pick-me-up?” he said, sensing my presence without even looking up.
I scoffed as I made my way to his desk and perched myself on the edge of it. Glancing at his computer, I saw that he was looking at the market again, comparing it to our numbers. Annoyed, I reached over and clicked off the screen. Maverick sneered in protest, finally looking at me.
“You still obsessing over this shit?” I said, flicking the papers he’d laid out in front of him. Everything had to be so planned and organized with him. It was irritating.
“No. Just checking on things.” He arched his brow. “You wanna tell me what was up with you and that interview?”
I averted my gaze. Suddenly, everything was more interesting than this conversation. I undid my jacket and cuff links while Maverick continued staring at me.
“Nothing,” I said after a moment. “I thought she looked like a good candidate.”
“Based on what, her resume or her face?”
“Look, don’t hound me on this,” I said, although I couldn’t help cracking a smile.
“I’m not. But she was a good candidate, so I don’t know why you grilled her like that.”
I rolled my eyes. “I was just asking basic questions.”
“Not really, man. And you were making her uncomfortable. That’s not what we’re about.”
“Seriously, it isn’t that deep, man. I was just…” But my voice trailed off, unable to think up a valid excuse.
“Whatever, dude. She would have been a good choice. I can’t imagine she would want to work for us now though. Maybe—” He stopped abruptly.
When he began ignoring my stare, I gripped his shoulder. “What?” I demanded.
A hint of a smile formed on his lips. “Nothing. I just think you should have gone easier on her, that’s all.”
“I wasn’t being too hard on her,” I said, rolling my eyes. Between the two of us, Maverick was way too nice and easy on people, leaving me to look like the bad guy for being a hard ass.
He stood with a sigh. “Yes, you were. She was a good candidate, to me at least.”
I stood as well. “Yeah. Because you think everyone is a fucking angel, but they’re not. Hell, you’re the reason we’re even in this mess with Hatchett. You trusted him.” It only took a split second for me to regret the statement. I jabbed my finger at his chest, trying to lessen the sting of what I’d just said.
Maverick blinked before nodding and stepping away.
I bit my tongue for a moment, letting the thick air cool before speaking. “You know I didn’t mean that,” I said. “But Henley and her interview were nothing, so just drop it, all right?”
Maverick paced the room for a few seconds and then stopped in front of me. “Fine. Consider it dropped. But Henley may have some other qualities we could use…” He wasn’t usually the one to suggest stuff like that, but obviously, Henley was gorgeous—a fact that wasn’t lost on him. “You have to admit, she is damned sexy,” he added, confirming my thoughts.
“Yeah, I know. But she really doesn’t seem the type,” I said.
“Well, no one ever does seem the type, but we could at least suggest it…”
“How? Call her back to the office?”
Maverick stared back at me. He and I had our own way of going about things, but one of the few things we enjoyed doing togeth
er was acquiring women the same way we acquired assets. Lots of gorgeous women were eager to fall at our feet and succumb to out will, which was quite a rush. But they never ended up in our office as candidates for a job. To call it a conflict of interest would be an understatement, but in this case, Maverick didn’t seem to care. And if he didn’t care, we must have been in the clear.
“No. Something casual,” he said, his eyes gleaming. “Outside of the office. If you’re up for it.”
I nodded, thinking about Henley, her curves, sweet face, and fiery red hair. Plus, her smart mouth would prove more exciting than frustrating if she agreed to be ours. “Yeah, I’m up for it,” I said. “So what do you want to do?”
Maverick returned to his desk with a new pep in his step. “Take her to dinner.”
“Really?” I laughed. “You are such a fucking lush.”
“Yeah, perhaps.” He smiled, powering up the computer I had shut down. I sat on the edge of the desk again, watching him open his email. I’d sent him Henley’s information before the interview, so I knew he had it. We both knew she was beautiful and could be more to us than just a job, but proposing the deal to her would be difficult. I may have been hard on her, but she was still poised and sure of herself.
The other women we’d done this with before were nothing like her. They hadn’t had perfect grade point averages, dozens of internships, and credentials proving them proficient in law. The contract we used with them wasn’t even enforceable and wouldn’t hold up in any kind of court. Asking an ordinary person to sign was already a gamble, so to ask an educated person like Henley was a different story entirely.
Regardless, I wanted her. Her perfection frustrated me; women who could bring me to my knees had never been my favorite thing. During the interview, I’d wanted to make all the first moves, keeping her on the edge of her seat and keeping her at a distance. I’d so badly wished I could have hijacked the conference room and had her on the table. I knew Maverick wouldn’t have cared. Hell, he would have joined in.
I began fantasizing about muffling that smart mouth of hers as I tasted her, and then fucked her with my fingers and cock. I wanted to impale her on all my twelve inches, take her round breasts in my hands and watch them bob with all of my thrusts. I wanted to hear her scream and beg for more. And after I’d made her come three times, I dreamed of her begging to taste and suck me off until I blew my load.
Clearly, Henley was dangerous to me.
“We can take her to the usual spot and keep up appearances of a business dinner,” Maverick said, interrupting my fantasy.
I nodded, hoping she would agree to it. More than likely though, she would think she’d gotten the job and when she realized she hadn’t, I doubted she would agree to be literally fucked instead.
Damn, I’d never wanted anyone so much. If she worked with us, I would end up thinking about her nonstop. She looked like she could take me down and enjoy it. Visions floated through my mind of her sprawled across my desk, dripping in excitement. I imagined fucking her from behind while she sucked him off…
“Yeah,” I said gruffly, already praying she would say yes. Maybe she would be a good lawyer for us and hiring her would be a good idea.
But acquiring her would be an even better idea…
My fingers twitched at the thought of marking her with my lips and hands. I wanted to grip her plush hips so hard, she felt it in her blood.
“Did you send it?” I asked Maverick.
“Not yet.”
I turned to stare out the window. The afternoon sun had almost come down, turning the sky red and reminding me of Henley’s hair. I wondered if she looked the same between her legs—a real red head? There were so many fakes out there, it was hard to tell.
“Just sent it,” Maverick announced.
My chest fluttered. “Think she’ll respond?”
He shrugged. “It’s just dinner. She doesn’t know what we’re asking yet.”
“Fuck, I hope she says yes.”
Maverick smirked. “Yeah. Don’t know about the job yet, but this…”
“She’s a fucking minx. Forget the job, I just want her.”
“She responded,” Maverick said suddenly.
I looked over his shoulders and toward the computer, damn near crossing my fingers.
5
Henley
I had been on my couch for hours since leaving the interview. I’d never felt so dejected. I was a failure, knowing I had fucked everything up. The best opportunity I’d had in ages, and it had already been ruined.
Greasy food usually made me feel a little better, but as I lounged in my sweats and watched an old sitcom, it did nothing for me. I couldn’t stop feeling like my degree and hard work all meant nothing.
I pondered my next steps. Applying to jobs and rushing to interviews was tiring and disheartening, and I didn’t know how much longer I could stand it. If things kept up like this, I would end up as a barista or bartender just to pay the bills. And then I’d end up staying there for the comfort, getting on the management track to feel worthy, and looking over legal contracts just to feel important. Maybe I would finally end up a paralegal or switch to do public law or something. And maybe all of that was fine, but it just wasn’t what I wanted, which was to practice corporate law and protect people who built companies from the ground up to help the little people.
I didn’t want to call my parents because the last time I’d talked to them, they’d basically told me not to call back until I had a job. Since I didn’t have a job yet, I wouldn’t call.
It was close to nine o’clock when I got up for a snack break. I put some peanut butter cookies on a glass plate to feel fancy, and then poured myself a glass of almond milk, which was the best I could do since it was all Denton had bought and I didn’t have money to dictate groceries at the moment. After finishing my snack and watching a few more episodes, I was ready to retire to my bedroom to sulk some more, and maybe get myself hot and bothered just to fall asleep easier.
In my tee shirt and nothing else, thinking of the men who’d interviewed me earlier was enough. I mean, I had never seen men like that before—so powerful and in charge. While one had been rude and imposing and the other kind and accommodating, they had both been intimidating and intense in their own right. If I closed my eyes and thought hard enough, I could still smell their cologne surrounding me, strong and expensive.
I brought myself back to the present to check my phone, noticing a new calendar event I couldn’t remember putting in.
A dinner invite from H&P? When the hell did that happen? I wondered, eyeing it suspiciously. The dinner was set for the next evening at seven p.m. with both Jude and Maverick. I would have remembered if I’d responded…
But then I recalled the new update I’d installed that sent automatic replies since the only thing I got were interview invites that I wouldn’t want to decline. So apparently, hours ago, I had ‘accepted’ dinner with them at an elusive business restaurant, known for being the location of very important business deals.
Was I having a second interview? An extended interview?
My head began to spin. I would have to find the right thing to wear, and I certainly couldn’t be late again.
Any thoughts I’d had of making myself relax disappeared. I set my alarm and started planning my whole day in my head before eventually falling asleep.
~
For the first time in a while, I went for a run after breakfast to loosen my muscles and clear my head. And when I got back, I decided to clean up as a favor to Denton. I hadn’t seen much of him lately because he’d been so busy with work.
Once I finished tidying up, I showered and lounged around in my robe until four, giving myself three hours to pick out an outfit, do my hair and makeup, get dressed, and leave. So until it was time to start getting ready, I distracted myself by wondering what they could possibly want with me. There hadn’t been anything on their invite besides the date and time, which I double checked, even to the poin
t of making sure it was in the right time zone.
Finally, I began rummaging through my business clothes when a thought came over me…
I’d watched so many other women in my internships get offered full-time jobs just because they traded in their pant-suits for nice dresses on evaluation or observation day. I contemplated whether I should do the same.
I had the assets and knew how to work them, but could I do it for a job?
I groaned and leaned on my closet door in frustration. I needed this job, but at what expense?
Glancing at my closet, an old dress caught my eye. The fabric deep and blue, I knew it would set off my skin and hair. The neckline was a little low, but my bust would fill it out. It was fairly short, but not inappropriately so, stopping just above my knees.
Sighing, I went to do my hair and makeup—nothing too fancy, just light foundation, a bit of natural blush, and nude lipstick. Once I slipped the dress on and added the black Mary Janes, I was ready.
Ready for whatever the hell lied ahead of me.
With an hour to spare, I spritzed on some perfume and grabbed my clutch purse before heading out. My GPS took me right to the venue, where I got valet parked, as well as some funny stares since my car wasn’t a million-dollar vehicle.
“Hello,” I said to the hostess once I was inside. “I have a meeting with H&P.”
The young woman smiled and led me along. Her hips swayed in a way I was sure she was trained to do for the men who regularly dined here. I suddenly felt uncomfortable, wondering if I had picked the right attire; I felt so exposed.
We rounded the corner, beyond a big private wall.
There they were, Jude and Maverick.
Seeing me, they stood. The two of them looked me over as I did the same to them. Jude had his suit jacket off. The white of his dress shirt stretched over his muscles and the black ink of his tattoos was visible beneath. He spread his legs in a power stance, his hands in his pockets drawing attention to his cock.
Contrastingly, Maverick had his gray suit jacket on, although it was open and showing that he too, had his hands in his pockets. His legs were also slightly spread.
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