Insufferable Proximity 2 (19 page)

“Hi, Sevigne!” her secretary smiled widely, “It’s so good to have you back!”

“Thank you, it’s good to be back,” Heaven said, smiling as Julian led her into her new office.

“Wow,” Heaven’s eyes grew wide at the sight, “it’s huge. It’s as big as yours.”

Smiling as he shut the door behind them, Julian replied, “I think it’s bigger.”

“It’s gorgeous, and I love it.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his lips.

“I love the fact that you’re so close to me.”

“Right next door.”

“I want you to relax today. Don’t go too far, and don’t leave your office. I have Fritz and Riley rechecking security.”

“I’m not staying in my office all day.”

“Then you’d better not leave this floor,” he warned her.

“I won’t.” She had no intention of leaving; she was excited to be back at work.

“And I want to know every time you leave your office.”

“Okay.” She couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across her face. “Do you think Gavin escaped from prison and is waiting for me on another floor?”

“That’s not funny.”

“Or, maybe his mysterious accomplice is waiting to tackle me in the cafeteria,” she snickered.

“I’m going to finish some work, and then I will be in to see you,” Julian said with a frown before he lightly kissed her lips. It wasn’t a joking matter; the thought of Gavin escaping paralyzed Julian with fear. He couldn’t keep his eyes on Heaven every second of the day, no matter how hard he tried. She was still too stubborn.

“I want to go to the café for lunch,” she reminded him.

“Wherever you want,” he shrugged before kissing her again.

“Maybe we should just go home for lunch,” she suggested, and he smiled wolfishly.

“I like that idea best. I’ll be back, but remember—don’t leave this floor, and call me if you need anything!” he finished.

“I’m not leaving the floor, and I’ll call you if I need anything,” she repeated dramatically.

He kissed her one last time before leaving her office. She had just turned to her desk when she saw his briefcase; grabbing it, she headed out the door.

“Julian,” she called and ran over to him.

Julian turned to her, and then stood in a trance in the middle of the hallway. He felt his cock grow to an ungodly size as he watched her run towards him. He looked around to see that a couple of the secretaries and the new guy were looking. Julian zoned in on the new guy and frowned. He was virtually drooling as he also watched Heaven’s breasts bounce. Julian unconsciously growled low in his throat.

“You forgot your briefcase.” She smiled as she handed it to him. He took his briefcase and pulled her close to him.

“Are you wearing a bra?” he whispered in her ear. Without her binding corsets, it was hard to tell.

“Of course.” She was shocked by his question.

“Don’t run like that again. Not here,” he pulled back to look at her, “but when I get you home, I’m going to make you run for hours,” he chuckled before he bent his head to kiss her. This wasn’t just a little peck—this was the real deal.

He held the back of her neck as his tongue slipped between her lips. She didn’t fight him…she didn’t want to. It felt as if he were churning magic in her mouth, and it was spreading down her body.

For one slight moment, they stood alone in the hallway. There were no secretaries or lawyers nearby; there was no sound, no light…there was only the two of them. His lips were soft for a second before he crushed his mouth against hers. As if it had just dawned on them that they would not be able to kiss or touch each other for the rest of the day, they deepened their kiss.

He kissed her mouth as if he already missed it. His tongue went deeper, trying to get as much of her taste as he could. He knew that he needed to pull away before he changed his mind and dragged her back home. The way she was beginning to melt in his arms, he was sure she wouldn’t object. When he finally tore his lips from hers, she inhaled as if she hadn’t breathed in hours.

Heaven couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across her face. She was never one for public displays of affection, but when Julian kissed her like that, none of that mattered.

“I’m coming to see you soon. Really soon,” he whispered before he briefly kissed her lips again.

She watched him walk into his office. She had no more than turned when she heard her name.

“Ms. Deville?” Heaven turned to see Gloria coming towards her.

“Hello, Ms. Gray.” Heaven had gained her composure before she turned around.

“Oh please, call me Gloria. I’m sorry to bother you; I’m sure you’re anxious to get back to work. I just wanted to thank you for what you’ve done for me. I really appreciate it,” Gloria said with a bright smile full of sincerity.

“For what?”

“For talking to Mr. Baker, and asking him to keep me on as his secretary. I thought for sure that I’d be fired. I love this place, and I really didn’t want to leave.” Gloria’s eyes traveled over to Ian King for a moment before darting back towards Heaven.

“You’re a good secretary, and good secretaries are hard to come by. I had no intention of letting you be punished for your former boss’s deeds. You weren’t going anywhere.” Heaven grinned with confidence. Luckily, Gloria’s employment at the firm was never up for debate. However, if it had been, Heaven would have gone to bat for her. There was no way she would let Gloria leave the firm.

“I can never thank you enough.”

“There is no need to thank me,” Heaven said with a sincerity that made Gloria’s smile widen.

“We should do lunch one day,” Gloria dared to ask. Hell, it was worth a shot; who was she if she wasn’t taking chances?

“That sounds like a good idea, we’ll talk soon,” said Heaven and smiled, before turning into her office.

***

“Disgusting.” Lila Strain grimaced after watching Julian kiss Ms. Deville. She suddenly felt sick to her stomach. Juliette and Lila frowned in disgust as they watched Gloria Gray run down the hallway to speak to Ms. Deville.

“When did they become friends?” Lila asked.

“Who knows?” Juliette shrugged.

“This is going to sound horrible, but too bad Gavin didn’t just kill the bitch,” Lila said to Juliette, her new faux best friend. She tried to make it sound like a joke, but her tone was a little too serious. They had bonded over their hatred for Heaven, and their mutual belief that Julian’s new relationship wouldn’t last. They were both fixated with Julian but for very different reasons.

Lila longed for more of what she’d had, while Juliette desired what she could never get.

“My sentiments exactly,” said Juliette, frowning in disappointment.

“She really is evil, if anyone deserves it, it’s Ms. Deville,” the sneaky lawyer whispered.

“I still don’t understand why Ayden would hire her in the first place,” Juliette scoffed.

Lila raised her thin eyebrows. “Maybe she slept with him, too.”

“It’s a possibility, she is
very
deceptive. All this time I thought she was a prude. Turns out she’s the biggest whore of them all,” Juliette muttered.

“She must be; how else would she be able to get Julian King to settle down? Julian is like a robot that’s programmed only for sex. He never lets emotion get involved. I swear the man has no heart, and if he does, it’s small enough to fit in the head of his cock.”

“He just needs the right woman in his life to change that,” Juliette said with a knowing smile on her face. Lila turned to look at Juliette as if she were dense.

“Are you daft? That will never happen. The most you can hope for is for him not to get sick of you too quickly. After that—you’re gone with the morning trash, honey,” Lila said. She liked Juliette, since they shared a mutual hatred. However, it was their mutual love for the same man that would inevitably end their rocky relationship.

***

Clive Baker sat in the passenger seat of his friend’s car. He was primping in the rearview mirror. He ran his finger through the tousled curl in the front of his hair; he’d just gotten his roots touched up, and his hair looked fabulous.

“They did a damn good job with the color; it’s like silky gold.” He couldn’t take his eyes off himself.

“That curl drives me crazy,” the woman driving the car purred.

“I know.” Clive flashed his best grin. He was extremely particular about the tousled wave that hung down the middle of his forehead. The curl had to be three-quarters of an inch longer than the rest of his hair. He didn’t want it too long, but it had to be long enough to notice.

“I swear I could watch you get ready all day.” She slid her hand through her dark-brown hair. She’d kept her hair dark-brown because it turned Clive on.

“I know. Thanks for the ride, doll,” he nodded.

“You know I’d do anything for you, Clive honey. How about we get together tonight?”

“I told you, I just don’t have the time.”

“I know; your new job is very demanding.”

“Very demanding,” he winked before he got out of the car.

“Could I get a goodbye kiss at least? I’m leaving tonight, and I won’t be back in a very long time.”

“Sorry, doll,” he pointed a well-manicured finger at her mouth, “too much lip gloss.”

Clive walked into the King Law Firm with the swagger of a natural born gigolo. He was hot, and he knew it, but he was smart enough to hide his conceit from his co-workers. He’d modeled in a few men’s fashion magazines while he was in college. He was blessed with the looks of a supermodel, and he used his beauty to his advantage.

He strutted down the hallway with purpose; running his hand through his blond locks and waiting for the secretaries to sigh. He loved this firm—a few of the women here were especially desperate. They jumped on his bandwagon quickly and been his biggest fans ever since. He was accustomed to being the main man wherever he was. He was used to women flocking over him and speaking sonnets of his handsomeness.

His smile began to spread and then froze before turning down. He looked around him; the bevy of secretaries who usually waited for him each morning weren’t here. The firm looked empty—there was no welcoming committee, no sweet secretaries with fresh batches of cookies, and no gourmet coffee that had been made with love.

“What happened?” he whispered as he continued to look around the empty hall in horror.

That’s when he remembered—Julian King returned today. They would all be preoccupied with his return.

Clive knew it was going to be different when Julian returned, but he had no idea of the extent.

Working at the King Law Firm was different from anything he had ever experienced. He was coming in as second-best, a replacement for the man they truly desired—Julian King. He wasn’t used to coming in second place, nor was he accustomed to an attention drought.

Clive didn’t like competition nor did he like confrontation. He was happy that Julian was settled down with their fellow attorney, Ms. Heaven Deville. Otherwise, the environment would be intolerable at best.

***

Julian took a good look around at the people on the floor before heading into his father’s office. He still couldn’t shake the feeling that someone here may have helped Gavin. He shook his head in disgust and walked into his father’s office.

“Hello, Julian.” Ayden smiled widely, obviously delighted to see his son.

Julian walked over and sat down in the chair across from him. He noticed the cuts and bandages.

“How are your injuries?” Julian asked civilly.

“Not bad enough to keep me out of the office,” Ayden said, smiling. He’d been a workaholic for a reason—he would have done anything to avoid his wife. Unfortunately, in his quest to be the best and avoid his wife, he’d neglected his sons.

“Nothing could ever keep you out of the office.”

Ayden chuckled. “You got that right.”

“Is it possible that you have another son or daughter out there who might want to get revenge for Gavin?” Julian got right to the point.

“No, it’s not possible.”

“But you didn’t know about Gavin.” It was a statement.

“No.”

“You had
no
idea that you had another child?”

“No.”

“Then how can you be certain there’s not another sibling out there waiting to attack? Maybe Gavin had a twin.”

“No, it’s not possible.” Ayden didn’t like being on the receiving end of his son’s interrogation.

“How do you know?”

“I don’t. I’m sorry, Julian. I’m sorry that this happened…I’m sorry for everything.”

“Here,” he passed his father a large set of keys, “the penthouse is yours for as long as you need it.”

“That’s your personal dwelling.”

“Not anymore, I won’t be using the hotel anytime soon.”

“You’re giving up the bachelor pad?” His father grinned widely.

“That life is gone, and the penthouse is now yours for as long as you need it.”

“Are you sure?”