Burn: Book 3 (The Heat Series)

by MJ Masucci

  “But why the reaction to me this afternoon?”

  “When I heard that you were related to Daniel, I was worried about even talking to you. Even if we are just friends, I don’t want a rift between us to cause problems at work.”

  “Philip, you don’t have to worry about that. I’m not that kind of person. I would never destroy someone’s career because we didn’t get along.”

  They finished their conversation just as their meals came. After eating, they sipped their wine and chatted about things going on in their lives. Ava told him about growing up in Georgia, and he told her about his in Connecticut. Before she knew it, the time on her watch said it was after eight.

  “I need to leave. I want to get home to meet Xander.”

  “Okay. Thank you for going with me to dinner.”

  He signaled the waiter who brought over the check. Ava reached for it, and he pulled it away.

  “This is my treat on your second day as a practicing attorney. I thank you for spending time with me. It would be nice to have friends in the city.”

  She reiterated that he should come over for dinner to their apartment one night. Out on the street, he hugged her before they parted. She decided to walk up to the office to see if Xander had left yet. As she got to the building, she noticed him out on the street with Mike Halloran. She watched as they shook hands and Mike hailed a cab. After he was gone, she called to Xander. His face looked shocked as he saw her coming towards him.

  “I thought you would be home by now.”

  “What was that all about?”

  “Can we discuss it later?”

  “Are you hiding something from me?”

  “Ava, at home,” he said sternly while he hailed a cab.

  She backed off questioning him and said nothing on the way. Xander watched her face as the passed under the streetlights. Her bottom lip was between her teeth, and she was sawing at it. He wanted to reach over to pop it free, but he was afraid of her reaction. They were both silent until they got into his apartment.

  She kicked off her heels and left them in the foyer just to annoy him. Then she slung her coat onto the living room sofa and walked into the bedroom. He knew that she was upset with him. It would take an effort to disarm her because she was locked and loaded. He put her coat in the closet and picked up her heels to take them to the bedroom.

  “Can I please explain?”

  “Why bother. You prefer to hide things from me. Did you have a client meeting or was Mike your meeting?”

  “Mike was my meeting.”

  She sighed deeply and continued undressing. He wanted to reach out to touch her but thought better of it; she was angry with him. Instead, he went to the closet to deposit her shoes and change into something comfortable.

  “If you want to listen, I’ll be in my office.”

  She watched as he left the bedroom. He was keeping things from her, and it could mean her life. That was not protecting her. She decided to go to his office and discuss what he had found out.

  “I want you to tell me what Mike said. I can’t protect myself if you hide things from me.”

  “Come here. I’ll show you what he gave me. I didn’t want to discuss this in public or with the driver able to hear. I want to protect you.”

  For the next several minutes, he paged through the folder of information that Mike had discovered and the potential threat to them. Her anxiety began to ramp up as she found out that they were being watched. Xander finally told her that Mike was almost positive that Liam was hiding in Brazil, which is where Papi had been deported. Fear was written all over Ava’s face.

  “This is why I didn’t want to tell you,” he said softly.

  “I needed to know this. How long until one of them or even Liam is going to come back for me?”

  “Mike said as soon as he confirms Liam’s location he will be contacting the authorities in Brazil. He will be caught, and there is nothing that Papi can do unless he wants to answer as to why he is harboring a criminal.”

  “And how long will that be? Long enough, so he gets to us?”

  “It will be soon. We need to live our lives and stop putting so much time into worrying about Liam. They will all be caught. Mike already talked to his connections at the NYPD. They are going to get these guys, and I’m sure they will fold on Papi. Then we can get some real information as to Liam’s exact whereabouts.”

  Ava said nothing; she crawled onto Xander’s lap and buried her head in his chest. She was exhausted from everything, and it was only Tuesday. He kissed her head, and she clung to his shirt with both hands.

  “Don’t worry sweetheart, the cops and Mike will handle it. They have all the information they need.”

  “I hope so.”

  In bed that night she fell into an uneasy sleep, ending up waking Xander in the middle of the night as she thrashed about and yelled “no” several times. He took her into his arms to soothe her, and she fell back to sleep. However, he was no longer able to sleep, and he spent the rest of the night listening to her soft breathing.

  The rest of that week and weekend passed quietly. Ava spent time reading, and Xander spent time in his home office only going out for what he said was to visit his parents. She had a feeling he was shopping even though he came home with no bags.

  When the work week started, their routine was the same. They went to work and spent the rest of the night at home. Ava spent the evenings trolling the internet for gifts for her family and Xander. They had planned to spend their first Christmas together, alone. She was looking forward to having him to herself, and she loved the holidays.

  The following weekend they went to get a large Christmas tree for the corner of the living room. They decorated it most of Saturday and part of Sunday. On Sunday, Xander left her to run some errands. She had a feeling that it was just a guise so that he could get her gifts. The closet in the washroom was running out of space to hide things. She had gone overboard.

  The gifts she had ordered for her family were already on their way to Georgia right from the shops on the internet. Her nieces and nephews would be thrilled at the items she had bought for them. The one regret she had was that she would not be able to spend the holiday there. Her favorite activity on Christmas was to watch the bright faces of the children as they opened their gifts.

  “Only eleven more days until Christmas,” she said as he bit into a piece of roasted chicken that she had prepared for dinner.

  “Yeah. So?” He looked down to hide his smirk.

  “I’m going to ignore that because you’re kidding me, right?”

  “Of course, sweetheart. I’m excited to spend the holidays with you. This will be our first Christmas together - married or otherwise. Last Christmas sucked for me.”

  “At least you had the warm weather of California.”

  “I would have given it all up if I could have spent it with you.”

  “Well, now you are.”

  The upcoming week would be the last full week of the year at the firm. Christmas fell on a Thursday, and the partners had decided to give Friday off. To top it off, they were closing the office on Christmas Eve at noon. So the following week, they would have four and a half glorious days to spend alone with each other.

  “Are you finished with your shopping?”

  “I decided just to give cash to everyone this year. It makes life so much easier for me.”

  Ava scowled, “Again, I’m going to ignore that.”

  Xander couldn’t contain himself and almost choked on his meal as he started to laugh. “I love you, sweetheart. You’re such a good sport.”

  “Are you done making fun of me?”

  “Never, it’s my favorite activity.”

  She groaned and took her empty plate to the kitchen while he finished eating. After dinner, they turned off all the lights in the apartment except the ones lit on the tree. It illuminated the living room. Xander sprawled on the couch, and she settled in between his legs with her head on his stomach. He stroke
d her hair, and a feeling of contentment came over her.

  Things had started to work out better between them. They recently went to see Dr. Hornung, who suggested certain exercises to work on their relationship. They had been doing well for the past week. No arguments, disagreements or hurt feelings. Their sex life had returned to normal, which was back up to several times a night.

  “Xander?”

  “Yes, baby?”

  “My test is next month.”

  “I know. Are you thinking about it?

  “Yes. I’m anxious to know if I’m ever going to have children of my own.”

  “Stop worrying. There are always ways.”

  She grew silent as she thought about the ways they could have their own babies. Deep down she knew that he would love to have a child of his own flesh and blood. She had seen how let down he was when Lex was found not to be his; Ava felt guilty for being happy that he wasn’t. It would have disrupted their lives of which they might not have recovered.

  That night was one of the rare nights they only made love once. She was exhausted even though the start of the work week was tomorrow. Xander pulled her body against his, and he tucked his hand under her breast after they were done. She loved to feel the heat of his body against hers, especially on cold nights.

  They woke up in the same position as they had gone to sleep. The room felt chilly, and she wanted to stay under the covers. He untangled himself and got ready to go downstairs to the building’s gym, which was better equipped than hers. Not that it mattered. She hadn’t slept at her apartment for weeks and was planning on making the move permanent. She had no idea if she should sell her apartment or rent it.

  “Get up lazy bones. I thought you wanted to work out with me?”

  “I’m cold. I want to stay here.”

  He placed his hand on her forehead, “Are you sick?”

  She shrugged it away, “I’m not sick. I am so comfortable here. I wish you would come back to bed.”

  “I would, but you don’t want a paunchy, fat husband do you?”

  “You’re body is hard as a rock. I doubt you will be that way.”

  “I’m getting old, so I need to keep up my exercise.”

  “You need to stop eating burgers then you can take it easy on the exercise.”

  “I’m going. I’ll wake you when I get back if you aren’t already up.”

  He left the bedroom, and she snuggled deep into the plush mattress. She dozed while he was away and was awakened by the rustling of him removing his clothes. His back was turned to her, and he was half undressed. She watched the muscles in his back ripple and felt her core clench. He leaned down to wake her not realizing she already was.

  “Sweetheart, time to get up.”

  “How was your work out?”

  “Great, though I had an audience.”

  Ava opened her eyes wide, “Audience?”

  “Two teenage girls were ogling me while I ran on the treadmill. I guess I don’t look that old after all.”

  “I think it’s time we got you a wedding ring.”

  He laughed, “Are you worried I’ll trade you in for a younger model.”

  She sat up in bed, “Xander Wilder, that is not funny.”

  “Remember what I said, old and gray, old and gray.”

  After he had finished undressing, he went in the shower. She was aroused by the viewing of his body, and she got out of bed to join him. He was washing his hair with eyes closed as the suds ran down his face. Her fingers stroked his chest through the bubbles, and he jumped.

  “You scared me.”

  “I’m sorry. I just thought it would be faster if we showered together.”

  “You being in here with me is not going to be faster, it’s going to be trouble.”

  And two minutes later, it was, as he picked her up against the tiled wall, legs wrapped around his waist and he impaled her with his erection. She encircled his neck with her arms and laid her head on his shoulder while he worked his length in and out of her. They both came simultaneously, and he moved her under the warm spray will they were locked together. She picked her head up and kissed him before he gently put her down.

  “That should hold me until tonight,” she chuckled.

  Surprisingly, the office was abuzz with activity when they arrived. A lot of the attorneys and office staff were coming in earlier than usual even though several had planned to take off the entire week. She kissed Xander when she got off the elevator and headed to her office. As she was unlocking the door, Philip came out of his.

  “Did you hear?”

  “Hear what?”

  “Victoria gave birth last night, a little girl.”

  Ava felt a pang of jealousy, “That’s wonderful. I’ll send her something.”

  “That means we need to pick up the slack since she won’t be back for the next couple of months at least.”

  “That’s not a problem.”

  “Brian came by and gave us some work that he wanted me to split with you. Can you come to my office after you get settled?”

  “Uh, sure. I’ll be right over.”

  He stood in the doorway watching her as she removed her full-length wool coat. She could swear she saw him out of the corner of her eye, look her up and down.

  “This was what Brian called ‘some work’?” Philip gestured to twenty or so case folders.

  “How much work was Victoria doing?”

  “She’s good, and apparently people requested her. So we’re going to have to be just as good.”

  He split the pile and took her heavy load of folders in his arms to carry back to her office for her. She expected the week to be easy but not with this amount of work. When Xander came by five hours later, she was practically hidden by the stack of paperwork on her desk.

  “Did your caseload multiply?”

  “In a way. Victoria gave birth, so Philip and I inherited her cases for the time being. I hope she isn’t one of those nurturing mothers or we’re going to be busy for the next few months.”

  “Do you want to get some lunch with me?”

  “Baby, I can’t. I need to get a few things done before this client comes by for a three o’clock meeting. You can help me out by getting me a smoothie if there are any.”

  “You didn’t eat this morning. That is not going to hold you.”

  “Xander, please. I don’t have time to argue.”

  “Fine, but I’m getting you a protein smoothie from downstairs. At least they’re more nutritious than those small things in the break room.”

  “I appreciate it. Love you,” she called as he walked out to get her lunch.

  At five he came back to get her, and she was still swamped with work. He noticed that she had barely drunk even half the large smoothie that he had gotten her hours before.

  “Are you ready to go?”

  “No, I have an early meeting tomorrow with another client, and I need to finish this before I leave. I hope they assign me an assistant soon.”

  “You don’t have to wait for them to assign one. Ask Mark Malloy to assign someone or pass work to him and let him delegate it out. You’re killing yourself doing extra work.”

  “Everyone is busy. People are on vacation. Philip doesn’t have an assistant, and he is doing fine.”

  “I doubt that because he is still here, too.”

  “Just give me one more hour. Sit on the couch like I used to do with you.”

  He made a face at her and sat down on the plush couch in the corner while she worked on a contract.

  The rest of the week went just the same way. He only managed to last sitting on her couch until Tuesday. The other nights he went home and hoped she would show up at their apartment before nine. By Friday, she was exhausted and ready for a day off.

  “Only a few more days next week and I can relax. What a week this has been. Trial by fire. I gotta hand it to Victoria; that woman works a lot.”

  “That’s why she is one of the best in the department. But I don’
t want to talk about her. I want to snuggle up with my wife.”

  She yawned and leaned against his side. In minutes, she was asleep with a glass of wine still in her hand. He removed it before he took her to the bedroom and sat her on the bed so he could undress her. She mumbled something about him trying to seduce her, but he ignored it with a smirk on his face. Even if he tried, she wouldn’t wake up because she was so tired.

  Ava ended up sleeping through the night. She felt refreshed after such a busy week. Glancing at the clock, she saw it was only six, and she snuggled into her pillow. That was when she realized that Xander was not in bed next to her. Spreading her hand out to his side, the sheets were cold. That meant that he hadn’t been in bed for some time.

  She got out of bed and slipped on her robe. Xander had undressed her last night only leaving her in panties. First, she checked the bathroom, and when she didn’t find him there, she began searching the rest of the house. The kitchen had evidence that he was previously there since his coffee cup sat on the counter. Next, she checked his office and found him sitting on the floor, surrounded by several rolls of wrapping paper and many bags from different stores.

  At the sound of her entering, he quickly threw things back in the bags so she wouldn’t see.

  “I was trying to get this done without you seeing. I’m going to be here all day with this.”

  She chuckled, “Why don’t you use gift bags; it’s much easier, and you won’t have to wrap everything.”

  “Don’t look so smug. Do we have any?”

  She left the room and came back with several sized bags, tissue paper, and tags.

  “Here, knock yourself out.”

  “Are you naked under that robe?”

  “I’m just how you put me to bed, only wearing panties.”

  He licked his lips, “Leave me before I take you right here on the carpet.”

  She crossed her arms defiantly and stared at him.

  “Are you daring me to take you over my knee and then have you?”

  “I’d rather you take me over your desk.”

  He groaned, “You’re incorrigible and a bit of a tease. I want to finish this, and then I promise to attend to your needs and mine.”