He loosened his grip on me, and I lifted to turn around and face him. He held himself as I leisurely sank onto him again.
With my hands in his hair, I said, “That’s better.”
He put one hand on my face and smoothed the other over my hairline before kissing me slowly. Urgency flowed from him to me, and our hips began their own dance. He touched me, circling his fingers over my clit.
“I can’t,” I protested. “This time is for you.”
“You can,” he said, moving his fingers faster.
“David,” I whimpered.
“God, I fucking love being inside of you. I own you like this,” he said quietly. “When I’m buried in you this way, you have nowhere to go, no way to escape. You’re finally mine.”
He kissed me heatedly during the slow, rippling orgasm that his fingers and his erotic words sparked. It started between my thighs as if his hand there had ignited the fire now blazing through my veins. I gasped, but he held me still, forcing me to breathe into him as I threatened to float away.
We continued rocking into each other. His hand moved into my hair, and he pulled it when he came. It felt like a promise of forever, him fisting my hair and coming, holding me so close to him with an arm around my back the whole time and for moments after.
His face fell into my neck, and his shoulders swelled with deep breaths. “Are you okay, really?” he asked.
“It was intense,” I whispered. “Good intense. But I don’t think I want to try anal anytime soon.”
His arms relaxed around me, but he remained serious. “You have to tell me if it’s too much. Promise?”
I nodded.
In bed, he lay on his back, and I draped one arm across his chest.
“I like you in lingerie,” he whispered into my hair.
“Thanks,” I murmured, tightening my embrace on him. I ran my foot along his leg, wondering how I’d always despised cuddling. “Did you get everything done at work today?”
“Not really. It’s never-ending.”
“You work so hard.”
“For you, I’m trying to find ways to cut back,” he said.
“It’s okay. I like that you’re passionate.”
“I want to see you that way, too,” he responded.
I smiled against his chest. “I see you have a new receptionist.”
“New receptionist and new problems.”
“How come?”
“The old receptionist, Clare, is threatening a wrongful termination lawsuit. She claims Arnaud came on to her several times, and she turned him down, so that’s why we fired her.”
I lifted my head to look at him. “But that’s not why. I was there.”
“I know. She called to let me know she’s going to hire a lawyer to sue for sexual harassment.”
I started to balk when I realized who I was talking to. David’s reputation hadn’t materialized out of thin air. There was a very real possibility he’d slept with her. “Did you—”
“Never,” he said. “I never touched her. I’m not that fucking stupid, and neither is Arnaud.”
I believed him, but Arnaud? My creep radar went haywire in his presence. “You don’t think there’s any chance he tried?”
“Arnaud and I have done business together for a long time,” David said. “We would never have gotten this far without being honest with one another. He knows I wouldn’t allow that shit in my office. Too risky.” His chest rose and fell with a sigh. “I did ask, though, just to be certain. He says he kept things entirely professional.”
“Huh.”
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
David’s work was his life, and Arnaud was a member of his team. But Arnaud was a pig, I could tell. Still, I proceeded cautiously. “Don’t disregard her just yet. Maybe she’ll drop it if you guys take it seriously and apologize.”
“Apologize for what?” he asked. “She’s pissed off that I fired her, and she’s trying to get back at us. I don’t like to indulge that kind of behavior.”
I glanced up at him. “If that were true, why wouldn’t she accuse you of sexual harassment instead of Arnaud?” I asked.
He rubbed his eyebrow. “Good point.”
“Do you really want to go through the hassle of a lawsuit?” I asked. “One that would likely end in a huge settlement and a mark on your company’s reputation?”
“No.”
“So acknowledge that it’s possible she’s telling the truth. And, honey, I’m sorry, but . . . the way you fired her wasn’t very nice.”
He grunted and looked up at the ceiling. I ran a finger over each of his eyebrows and then over his lips, still amazed that I was lying in his bed and that I was allowed to just enjoy him. He caught my hand in his and kissed my knuckles.
“I don’t want to talk about them while I’m in bed with you,” he decided.
I resettled my head on his chest. “What do you want to talk about then?”
“I’ll probably regret bringing this up, but was it too bad at the clothing store today?”
“No,” I said honestly. “I decided I’d better get used to running into women you’ve slept with.”
His chest rose as he laughed. “I’m sorry. If I’d known all along I’d end up here, I would’ve remained a virgin.”
I pinched his arm. “Liar. So long as I’m the one who gets to keep you, we’re good.”
“Works for me.” He sat up, and I rolled back onto a pillow. “Where’s the shopping bag?”
“By the closet.”
He got out of bed, and I wiggled excitedly under the comforter as I remembered my present. He returned with the box and sat cross-legged on the mattress.
“What is it?”
“I’m not going to tell you,” he said, rolling his eyes. “But it’s not a ring. Not yet. Just open it.”
Too giddy to get even more giddy at the thought of him proposing, I propped myself up against the headboard and unwrapped the box carefully. In my palm sat a small, black velvet box that creaked when I opened it. I gasped at a pair of big, shiny diamond studs. “I can’t accept these.”
He scooted closer, removed one of the diamond earrings from the box, and tucked a piece of my hair behind my ear to slide it in. “Perfect,” he commented.
“David, I—”
“I have an ulterior motive,” he interrupted, moving to the other ear. “I thought maybe if I put something pretty in your earlobes, you’d stop nervously pulling on them all the time.”
I smiled widely and launched forward, crushing his lips to mine. “Thank you.”
“I must say, diamonds suit you. There’ll be more where those came from.” I opened my mouth to protest, but he cut me off. “Don’t argue, just tell me you love them,” he whispered.
“Oh.” I sighed. “I love them, and I love you.”
He rolled me onto the bed and settled on top of me. We remained that way, kissing and whispering softly to each other, until we could no longer keep our eyes open.
22
Only eleven in the morning, and I already wished the day were over. My co-worker Lisa had just expressed that the layout I’d just finished was “a good start.” Instead of plotting out ways to avoid her the rest of my working life, I spent the next twenty minutes fantasizing about how my day would’ve gone if I’d skipped work to stay in bed with David.
I cursed at my desk phone when it seared through my daydream just as it was getting good. “Yes?” I answered.
“There’s a man here in the lobby to see you,” Jenny said.
“Who is it?” I asked. “Can you send him back?”
“He won’t tell me his name,” she said tersely.
I hung up and fixed my hair quickly in the mirror before weaving through the cubicles and out to the front.
A middle-aged man in an ill-fitting suit that reeked of stale cigarettes approached me. “You Olivia Germaine?” he asked.
“Yes.”
He jotted something on the clipboard in his hand. “You’
re being served with a Petition for the Dissolution of Marriage,” he said, holding out an oversized envelope.
There it was. The tragic ending I’d been avoiding since the day I’d looked up the word divorce in the dictionary. As Jenny looked on, my face heated. “That was awfully quick,” I said.
The man’s hard eyes met mine. “I’m here as a favor. Bill’s a friend.”
“Was it really necessary to come to my workplace?” I asked, snatching the packet.
He shrugged and handed me the clipboard to sign. After he left, I took a deep breath and turned to face Jenny, who’d been joined by a concerned-looking Serena.
“Is everything all right, Liv?” Jenny asked.
My hand began to sweat around the envelope. “It’s fine.”
“Was that from Bill?” Serena asked. “Were you expecting it?”
I scratched under my nose. “Yes. Just not at work,” I said, and crossed the lobby, picking up my pace so I could process this alone.
Seated at my desk, I examined the papers, unsure of what I was looking at. Anything involving the legal system, I would’ve taken to Bill. Instead of trying to do this on my own or give myself the day to consider my options, I shot David a text.
I didn’t have to do this alone, and for once, I was glad to ask for help.
Me: I just got served.
My cell phone rang almost immediately with David’s call. “What happened?” he asked.
I tucked the phone between my shoulder and ear while flipping through the paperwork. “Some guy just served me with divorce papers.”
“At work?”
“Yes.” I groaned. “Talk about embarrassing.”
“At least we can get this process started,” David said. “I’m actually meeting my lawyer for lunch on Adams. We’ll come by afterward to take a look.”
I fingered my new earring. Office gossip would spread fast. First, the roses, and now, the divorce papers. People would put two and two together. Did I care anymore?
He sighed when I didn’t respond. “You’re worried about what people will say?” he asked. “You can come to lunch if you want, but we’ll be talking about Clare and some menial items.” He paused. “But I want nothing more than to show you off, Olivia You’re going to have to tell your co-workers sometime.”
This was more than David swinging by my office. Announcing our relationship to the world was an act of faith in us. Up until our time in Dallas, I would’ve wavered over the decision, but he was right. David wasn’t going anywhere, and people would eventually find out.
“No, it’s fine,” I said and a small smile formed on my face as I realized that I, too, would get to show him off. “Come by when you’re finished. I miss you anyway.”
“Good call, baby,” he said, his voice a little grittier. “See you soon.”
I hung up as a grin broke free. I was getting an unexpected visit from my boyfriend. It wasn’t the same as ditching work to stay in bed with him, but it would brighten my day considerably.
He texted me on his way over, so I went to meet him in the lobby. Jenny looked about to burst from curiosity, but I ignored her by playing with my phone as I sat in a club chair to wait.
With the ping of the elevator, I looked up. David waltzed through toward the glass doors with another smartly dressed man.
“Oh, shit. Is that David Dylan?” Jenny whispered right before they entered.
I stood to greet them. David leaned down, kissed me on the cheek, and introduced me to his lawyer, Jerry.
“Nice to meet you,” I said, shaking his hand.
He nodded. “David’s told me a lot about you.”
I kept my head down as I led both men through the cubicles. I was glad David had come, but there was no need to make a bigger spectacle than I knew his presence would. In my office, I shut the door carefully and handed the documents over to Jerry.
As he looked them over, David put his arm around me and planted an innocent kiss on my lips. “How are you?”
“Better,” I said, touching his jaw.
“Me, too. I booked our weekend. Pack your bags, baby, and your teeniest bikini. We’re going to Miami.” I grinned, and he squeezed me before looking up. “How’s it look, Jerry?”
“Standard stuff so far,” Jerry said, perching on the edge of my desk. “Bill has filed for divorce.”
“Do you know Bill?” I asked.
“Yep.” He licked the tip of his index finger and flipped a page. “Nice guy, good at what he does.”
I leaned into David. “Will that be an issue?”
“Not at all.” Jerry cleared his throat. “Looks like he’s filing on the grounds of adultery.”
“He warned me he would,” I said. “He’s pulling this whole ‘no more Mr. Nice Guy’ act.”
“Actually,” Jerry started, “it’s unusual to file this way because it involves going to trial. That means time and money, evidence and witnesses. And since it doesn’t affect the division of assets because of Illinois’ laws, he’s likely only doing it for one reason.”
“To embarrass her,” David guessed.
“You got it,” Jerry said. “Thing is . . . it could work in your favor. If Bill’s able to prove adultery, which he will be, they may grant the divorce faster.” Jerry looked up, resting the papers against his thigh. “Olivia would deny the charge, but essentially, we’d be throwing the case.”
“Isn’t that, like, collusion or something?” I asked.
“No, because Bill isn’t in on it.” Jerry nodded at David. “You said you want fast, this is fastest. Assuming you’re willing to spend the money, Dylan.” Jerry shrugged. “Otherwise, we can try to convince Bill to agree to a no-fault divorce, which would cost everyone less but could take either six months or two years.”
“Two years?” I exclaimed.
“The court wants to know that you’ve had a reasonable separation period,” Jerry explained. “That’s customarily two years but can be reduced to six months.”
That was ridiculous. How could a court possibly make that determination? My heart sank knowing how long David had waited to find his future wife, only to have to wait two more years.
“I think you know how I feel, Jerry,” David said. “Money’s no object if it means moving this along.”
Jerry nodded. “Then I’ll file the response today. Next thing would be—”
“Wait,” I said. “You mentioned a trial. Evidence? Witnesses? Is that necessary?”
“Yes.” Jerry sucked in a breath. “That’s where the shaming comes in. You should be prepared for it to get personal.”
“Let’s proceed,” David said.
“Hang on,” I said, stepping away from David. “What do you mean by ‘personal’?”
“Well . . .” Jerry dropped the stack of papers on my desk and looked around the small office. “Bill will need to submit evidence. This might involve photographs of you two, witness accounts, private detectives—since you’re denying the charge so it goes to trial, he’ll need whatever he can scrape up to prove that you cheated on him.”
“Absolutely not,” I said, forming two fists. It was bad enough I’d be branded an adulterer the rest of my life, but ultimately, I was just another divorcée. David had a successful career and reputation to protect. “I’m not putting David through that.”
“Baby,” David said, “it might get you out faster. It would mean—”
“No,” I said resolutely. I didn’t need to discuss, consider, or even give it another thought. I turned to face David. “I won’t have your name dragged through the mud like that. What about your career, David? The firm? You’ve worked too hard to get where you are. We can do six months, two years if we have to.”
David frowned. “I’ve waited long enough to call you mine.”
I stepped up and took his hand in mine. “I am yours. And you can tell anyone you want, but what’s most important is that we know it.” Despite being acutely aware of a third person in the room, and slightly uncomfortable with bein
g so vulnerable in front of him, I forced myself to tell David what he deserved to hear. “I’ll be married to Bill on paper a while longer, but my heart is completely, irrevocably yours no matter what.”
David took my chin and touched his thumb to the corner of my mouth. With gratitude in his eyes, he nodded, then turned to Jerry. “How does it work if Olivia admits to the affair?”
“Like I said, the two-year separation can be reduced to six months if both parties agree to it,” Jerry said.
“If he’s out for payback, he’ll never go for that,” David said.
“Unless . . .” I blinked up at him. “Unless I tell him he can keep everything.”
“I doubt any amount of money will deter him from seeing us suffer,” David said.
I smiled. “Then you don’t know Bill. He’s pretty frugal.”
I’d wanted to shield Bill from getting hurt further, even up until I’d gone to move out my things. But now, my loyalty lay with David. And Bill had gone out of his way to try to embarrass him, so I didn’t owe him any more protection. “He doesn’t know we were already planning to let him have it. He’ll go for it. I just have to convince him.”
Jerry pulled at his chin. “Olivia—I’m David’s lawyer, but in this matter, you’re my client, too.” He looked between David and me. “And as your lawyer, I can’t advise you to do that. In all my years of practice, I’ve never had a client hand everything over. If you waive the right to alimony, that’s it. No turning back.”
David’s arm tightened around me. “Jerry. We already discussed this.”
“I’m sorry, David.” He shook his head. “We go back a long time, but I can’t advise a client to enter into that type of agreement no matter how in love she thinks she is.”
I wondered if that was true or if Jerry had reservations because of David’s history. But it was clear to me, by the way David tensed beside me, and from the time we’d spent together, that my trust in him meant something. It meant a lot. And despite all the times I’d deprived him of it, he’d still fought for me. So I said, “Let the bastard have it all.”
Cityscape Affair Series: The Complete Box Set Page 82