Say Nothing... (The Speak Series Book 2)

by Roth, T. A.

  The cap on the shampoo bottle clicks. I look over my shoulder and he's rubbing his hands together working it into a lather. He grins and twirls his finger in a circle, motioning me to turn around. I shake my head and once again face the wall.

  He starts at my temples; pressing firmly, he begins to rub small circles with the pads of his fingers. I groan because it feels so good. He kisses my neck, and I have to steady my hands on the wall in front of me to keep my knees from buckling. When he's done, he wraps a hand around my waist and walks us backward into the spray to rinse.

  "Can I ask you a question?" he asks. My eyes are currently rolling into the back of my head; I feel so relaxed.

  "Anything," I answer. He walks us forward a few steps, and once again, begins the same process with the conditioner.

  "Last night, you said something before you fell asleep, and it's been bothering me."

  His hands are still working their way through my hair, so I'm finding it difficult to concentrate on anything he just said.

  "Okay," is all I could manage as a response.

  He takes a deep breath before asking. "Are you attracted to my uncle?" If anyone could hear what was going on in my brain right now, it would sound like screeching tires before an accident. What?

  I turn around so I could see his face. He looks pained as he waits for my answer.

  "Why would you ask that? What did I say?"

  He sighs and looks down at his feet. "I won't hold it against you if you do. It's just . . .”

  "Ben, what did I say?" I repeat frustrated.

  "You were falling asleep, and you mumbled that you were glad I didn't look like him. When I asked you who, you said my uncle. What did you mean?" Shit.

  Note to self: tequila + sangria = Ari having loose lips. I decide on a half-truth. It's the only way I can get out of this without telling him everything.

  He still hasn't met my eyes, so I cradle his face to get him to stop avoiding me.

  "Look at me." His eyes finally meet mine. "I am in no way attracted to your uncle." He releases a breath I'm not sure he even realized he was holding. "I'm not sure why I said what I said. I blame it on the alcohol, but I will admit that sometimes he gives me the creeps."

  Tilting his head to the side, he narrows his eyes inquisitively.

  "Really? Why?" he asks shocked. I wrap my hand around his waist and press my cheek on his chest. This time, I'm the one avoiding his eyes.

  "I don't know," I say with a shrug. "He's just so intense all the time. Maybe it's because he gives too much eye contact. I don't know, he just does."

  "Too much eye contact?" he asks chuckling. The sound vibrates against my ear. He squeezes me a little tighter, resting his chin on the top of my head.

  "It's official. Now, I've heard everything. Let's get you dry. I think the lack of food in your system is making you loopy." That was not how I pictured this going, and I'm grateful. If he'd pushed any more, I'm not sure I could have lied.

  We finish washing up, and he delivers on his promise to feed me. It's delicious as expected; when we're done, we curl up on the couch together and spend the rest of our Sunday being lazy. I never make it to my parents’ house, and for once, I don't feel guilty about it. Wrapped in Ben's arms is the only place I want to be.

  A lazy Sunday is exactly what I needed the day before starting my internship. I didn't admit it to her yesterday, but her muttering about my uncle the other night made me uneasy. I was hoping the morning run would work it out of my system, but the question kept looming like a black cloud. Her answer surprised me; I laughed it off, but the more I thought about it, I don't like the fact he makes her uncomfortable. If he decides to be around more, it's something I'll definitely have to figure out.

  Ari enters the room freshly showered. She pulls the towel from her head and uses it to hand dry her long locks. I watch her through the mirror as she finally takes sight of me. Her eyes widen in appreciation, and she releases a low whistle.

  "Looking damn fine this morning, Mr. Rodriguez." I turn to face her, nervously tugging at my tie.

  "Yeah?" I ask.

  She closes the distance between us and presses her hands to my chest.

  "Oh, yeah," she says before tilting her head up and pressing a kiss to my lips. My hand fists a handful of her damp hair, and I deepen it. She moans, and it takes all I have to restrain myself from ripping the towel off her naked body and throwing her on the bed.

  "You're going to be late," she says pulling away breathless. I rest my forehead on hers and inhale her essence in an attempt to calm myself.

  "You don't have to be nervous. You're going to be great," she says as her hands smooth over the lapels of my suit jacket. "Now, get out of here before I wrinkle your suit." She presses another kiss to my lips before disappearing into her closet to dress.

  "Okay, babe, I'm gonna head out."

  "Okay, and I love you too," she says coming out of her closet half dressed in just her pants. I've been writing notes in the steam of the glass when she showers. Today's note was another simple I love you.

  An hour later, I pull into the parking structure of The Law Offices of Loya, Rudd, and Rummel. Ari wasn't lying about how bad morning traffic could be, and I'm glad I took her advice and left extra early. I head into the lobby of the large Beverly Hills office building and take another deep breath. Two large security officers sit at a desk in front of the bank of elevators.

  "Name, sir?" asks the man whose badge says Steve.

  "Benjamin Rodriguez." He looks through the list of names and stops to write something down.

  "Okay. Mr. Rodriguez, after you put this on, you're going to take the elevators behind me and go to the eighteenth floor." I take the visitor’s badge he hands me and stick it to the lapel of my jacket.

  "Thank you," I say heading back.

  "Have a good day, sir."

  I find myself fidgeting with my cufflinks as I wait for the elevator to stop on my floor. The car stops, and the doors open up to a large waiting area. A dark maple desk seats two receptionists in the center of the room. A rock waterfall wall sits behind them dividing the room from the offices.

  It's a quarter to eight and the room is already buzzing. The phones are ringing off the hook, and a flurry of men and women walk the halls. I step up to the reception desk, and the red-haired woman sitting behind it puts a finger up gesturing for me to give her a moment. I nod while she wraps up her call. No sooner than she hangs up does another line ring. She picks it up, puts it on hold, and finally gives me her attention.

  "Good morning. How can I help you?"

  "I'm Ben Rodriguez. I'm one of the new summer interns." She puts three more calls on hold before being able to give me instructions.

  "Sorry, it's Monday," she says apologetically. "I'll let Mr. Rudd know that you are here. Please take a seat, and he'll be out shortly."

  "Thank you." She nods in acknowledgment, the incessant ringing unable to let her give a response.

  I grab a seat as three people exit the elevator. They look just as lost and nervous as I do. I overhear the receptionist tell them the same thing she told me. They turn in my direction and take a seat. The only female in the group fidgets with the hem of her skirt and her leg begins to do a nervous bounce reminding me of Ari.

  "Are you guys interns too?" I ask, deciding to break the tension.

  Three sets of eyes meet mine. "Yeah, you too?" the guy sitting across from me asks.

  "Yeah, I'm Ben," I say offering my hand.

  "I'm Carlos," he says shaking it.

  "This is Jennifer and that's Phillip," he says pointing to his left and right. They smile in greeting.

  "So did you guys know each other already?" I ask.

  "We went to UCLA together and recognized each other from class. We really just met downstairs."

  "So you're saying I'm outnumbered here," I say chuckling. They all look at me confused.

  "Rivals," is all I have to say before it clicks.

  "Aww, man. USC, really
?" Carlos says, chuckling.

  "Wait, you were their star running back?" he says, with recognition in his eyes.

  "I don't know about all that, but yeah, I played."

  "I may not be a fan of your school, but I'm a football fan, and you kicked some ass on the field."

  "Thanks, man."

  The elevator doors open and a petite blonde on the verge of tears runs out catching our attention.

  "She's probably with us," Jennifer whispers. We nod in agreement.

  The redhead, whose name I think is Sandra from all of the morning phone greetings, points in our direction and tells her to take a seat.

  She does as she's told and smiles nervously at the four of us. Carlos is the first to introduce himself, and we all wave at her in greeting. She takes the seat next to Jennifer and introduces herself.

  "Hi, I'm Catherine."

  "Ben needs some reinforcements here, Catherine. What school did you go to?"

  "Loyola Marymount," she says blushing.

  An older brunette woman makes her way to us a minute later.

  "Hello, I'm Shelly. Are you the summer interns?"

  "Yes,” we answer in unison.

  "Follow me. Mr. Rudd is waiting for you in the conference room."

  Larry Rudd was my dad's business partner. He and his wife, Sharon, were always over at the house while I was growing up, so when he heard I was studying law, he offered me an internship in the firm. I told Larry I was interested but did not want any special treatment. I went through the application and interview process just like everyone else. It's surreal to be working for someone who meant so much to my father.

  Shelly opens the glass door of the conference room, and Larry stands to greet us.

  "Welcome, I'm Larry Rudd. Please take a seat."

  Seeing Ben dressed in a suit is not a bad way to start my work week. Keeping my hands off him is already a struggle but something about him in a suit does ungodly things to my libido.

  I get to my desk prepared to start packing when the door of the conference room opens. Mr. Benton and Mr. Warner walk out and trailing behind them is the one and only Jalen Jeffrey. I can curse my choice in clothing today. My bosses assured me we wouldn't be seeing any clients this week and to dress comfortably since we would be spending most of the time packing and moving. I guess I missed the memo.

  All three of them step in front of my desk, and I'm willing my brain to tell my jaw to close.

  "Mr. Jeffrey, this is our assistant Ari Muñoz. Ari, this is Mr. Jeffrey." Like he needs an introduction. He's even more handsome in person. He gives me a knowing smile, and I finally gain my bearings and remember where I'm at.

  "Nice to meet you, Mr. Jeffrey," I say offering my hand.

  "Likewise, Miss Muñoz. My sincerest thanks for getting me in touch with these two gents," he says giving my hand a squeeze. Amos must have told him about me, and I war with my feelings of both disgust and giddiness.

  "Ari, we're stepping out. You can let the calls go to the answering service and just get started on the packing. We'll be back in about an hour."

  "No problem." They walk as a group toward the front door.

  "Thanks again, luv," Jalen says before entering the waiting area. I smile and offer a small wave before going into total fangirl mode. I'm short of breath and have to tamp down the urge to clap my hands and jump up and down. I sit at my desk and dig through my purse for my cell. Calling Vonne and sharing this news is probably a better idea than squealing like an idiot to myself. I scroll through contacts and remember she also started her internship today. Dammit!

  I type out a quick text telling Vonne to call me as soon as she has a moment and use my excited energy to get packing.

  My cell phone rings a few hours later. I see Vonne's name across my screen and am thankful my bosses haven't made it back yet.

  "You're gonna die when I tell you who I met today," I answer in a sing-song voice instead of my usual hello.

  "Hello to you too, sunshine. I'm intrigued by your excitement. Who did you meet?"

  "Jalen . . . Jeffrey,” I whisper as two of the other firm’s attorneys pass my desk.

  "What?" she shrieks. I pull the phone away from my ear to avoid hearing loss.

  "I don't think the receptionist heard you, you freak," I say with a laugh.

  "Holy shit, Ari. What was he wearing? Did he talk to you? What did he say?"

  "I don't remember what the hell he was wearing. I was in shock. I had just gotten to work when my bosses came out of the conference room with him. Yes, I talked to him. He thanked me and called me luv before leaving the office." This time, I let out a small squeal.

  "I'm dying over here, you lucky bitch. He is a bad boy if he's in your office. Do I even want to know what he did?"

  "Can't tell you."

  "Oh, you'll tell me. I'll beat it out of you."

  "Well, then I guess I'm luck- Hold on a sec." The sight of Hilda approaching my desk with a huge bouquet of flowers distracts me from my train of thought.

  "These came for you, hon," Hilda says placing the bouquet on my desk.

  “Thanks,” I mouth to her before getting back on the line with Vonne. "Okay, sorry."

  "What was that about?" Vonne asks.

  "Someone sent me flowers. Hilda just set them down on my desk."

  "Is there a card?"

  "Let me see." I dig through the gigantic arrangement of Gerbera daisies and find the white envelope with my name on it.

  "Did you find it yet?" she asks impatiently.

  "Yes, geez keep your hair on." I pull out the small card that has colorful thank-yous written around the border. The note reads Thank you for your help—Amos. I sit in my chair unable to process this emotion.

  "So who are they from?" Vonne asks, startling me.

  "Oh sorry. Um . . . they're from Amos," I say hesitantly.

  "Amos? Who’s Am-? Wait, Ben's uncle, Amos? Why is he sending you flowers?" she asks confused. She repeats my thoughts exactly.

  "He needed help finding representation for Jalen. I referred him to my firm. I guess he wanted to thank me." I keep my voice as steady as possible; any waver in my pitch will have her asking more questions.

  "Listen, I better go. My other lines are starting to ring. I can't wait to hear about your first day. I'll call you later, okay?" I hate lying to her, but I'm still a little shell-shocked from all of today's excitement.

  "Sure thing. I'll give you a call tonight. I want some selfies next time you see that hottie."

  "I'll try," I say before ending the call.

  My first instinct is to toss the whole arrangement in the trash. It's beautiful, but the longer I stare at it, the angrier I get at myself for helping him. I've opened the door, and now, I have to pay the price. I do the next best thing and get them out of my sight.

  I make my way past Hilda's desk, and she stops me.

  "Something wrong with the flowers, hon?" Shit.

  "No. My allergies are acting up this week, and I figured with all the packing and moving of boxes and things, they’ll just get in the way. I'm going to put them out in the waiting area."

  "That's nice, sweetie. They're very pretty. Are they from that hot man of yours?"

  "No. Just a thank-you from a client,” I say walking away.

  Making it back to my desk without any more questions from Hilda, I shake off the funk that flower delivery put me in and get back to packing away my file cabinet.

  I'm making sure to mark each box with the appropriate range of file numbers when Mr. Benton and Mr. Warner come back dressed down in jeans and polo shirts.

  "Ari, can we see you in my office, please." The last time Mr. Benton asked me into his office, I thought I was getting fired. I put the lid on the box I'm working on and follow them.

  "So it was a very exciting morning," he says looking pleased. "We just wanted to thank you for the referral."

  "My pleasure. Ben's uncle works for the band, so when he asked if I knew anyone who could help, I, of course, t
hought of you," I say, gesturing toward them.

  "We appreciate it. I actually had the pleasure of speaking to Mr. Solis this morning. He was happy we were available to take on the case on such short notice."

  "I'm glad it worked out for everyone."

  "We know you're busy packing, but we have to move quickly on this. Mr. Jeffrey's arraignment is tomorrow. Will you be able to stay late?"

  "Sure," I say taking the file from Mr. Warner.

  "You're a godsend, Ari. Mr. Solis has every right to sing your praises." What?

  "Thank you. I'll get right on this," I say closing the door behind me.

  Nothing should be coming out of that creep’s mouth except my name as the person who referred him. I can’t believe he talked to my bosses about me. Thoughts of turning that flower arrangement into mulch cross my mind as I angrily bang on my keyboard.

  My earbuds are in and the playlist I use to calm me while sitting in traffic is playing. The song interrupts for a second to alert me to a text. I stop what I'm doing and go into my messages.

  Unknown: I hope you liked your flowers. XO A

  LARRY EXPLAINED EVERYTHING EXPECTED OF us as summer interns. He made it clear that although we were there to assist them in any way they needed, the primary reason was to learn. Before summer ended, he assured us that we would all have the opportunity to accompany one of the attorneys in court and gain experience working on an actual case.

  Shelly gave us a tour of the floor and introduced us to everyone. The morning passed quickly. A welcome luncheon was set up for us in one of the larger conference rooms. After lunch, we went into Larry's office individually to find out which attorney we would be assisting. There are six possible choices, and I have a sneaking suspicion Larry will be taking me under his wing. One by one, each of us is called.

  "You’re up," Carlos says as he walks back into the room.

  I knock and Larry asks me to enter.

  "Take a seat," he says gesturing to the chairs in front of him.

  "Thank you."

  "So what do you think?" he asks.

  "It's been great. Everyone seems very nice. I can't wait to get started."