Revenge: A Bad Boy Romance (35 page)

Zach nodded, beads of sweat running down his forehead. The man hesitated for a few seconds and then finally let go. Zach dropped to the floor, gasping for breath, and looking like the pathetic low-life I knew he’d been from the moment he introduced himself to me on my first day in the office.  

The man turned to look at me. His face was still taught with anger, but that didn’t quench the passion burning between my legs.  

“Are you okay?” he asked.  

I nodded, brushing some hair behind my ear, even though it wasn’t in my way. His face relaxed into the most perfect smile I had ever seen and for a few blissful seconds I forgot about Zach leaning against the wall, still trying to catch his breath.

“You’re done for at my firm,” Zach yelled.  

“Ignore him,” the man said. “Let’s go back outside.”

“You’re never going to get a job. Fucking bitch.”  

The man stopped just as his hand was about to open the door. I felt a heavy gust of air on my shoulder as he exhaled, trying to control his temper. It didn’t work.

“Sorry about this,” he said, before turning round and swinging his fist hard into Zach’s face.  

Zach hadn’t been expecting the punch, although even if he had, I doubted there was much he would have been able to do about it. His body slammed back against the wall, before he dropped down to his knees in front of the stranger.  

To give Zach his dues, he didn’t know when to quit. Blood poured from his mouth, but he grabbed onto a handrail and tried to stand up. The punch had left him dazed, so he promptly lost his footing. He kept a firm grip on the rail, but that just made his balance worse. Suddenly he disappeared from view as he slipped halfway down the flight of stairs.  

The man looked down at him, but made no offer to help him up. “He’s still breathing,” the man said, before turning his deep green eyes back to me. “You want to get out of here?”  

I nodded. I wanted to go wherever he was going.  

I’d had plenty of one-on-one meetings with lawyers over the last year, but none like this.  

My law school recommended reaching out to lawyers and offering to buy them coffee for the chance to get to know what they did on a daily basis. Of course, the point was to impress them and hope they’d offer you a job or at least a more formal interview, but we all went along with the charade.  

This meeting was different. We’d already knocked back a couple of drinks each and now I was hitting that stage where the alcohol had removed my usual inhibitions and brought me dangerously close to flirting. That was bad because I couldn’t flirt. I was hopeless at it even with men I knew and trusted. With this guy—what was his name?—I didn’t stand a chance.  

I’d been quiet at first, but now he couldn’t shut me up. I’d told him all about Zach and how he had used every opportunity to get me in his office over the summer. Zach had put himself in charge of my assignments, so everything I did had to flow through him. He’d insisted on going through all his corrections in person, usually sitting next to me and peering down my top as he pretended to point out my mistakes.  

“You could report him,” the man said, as he came back from the bar with another drink. How many was this? Three? Four? It was too many. I shouldn’t be drinking so much in front of an attorney. It wasn’t professional. “Law firms don’t want to deal with claims of sexual harassment.”

“His dad’s a partner, so that isn’t really an option. Besides, I don’t want to get that label. I’ll never find a job if I’m the one who files sexual harassment claims during a summer job. Not that it matters now. I’m screwed. Zach’s going to make sure I don’t get invited back next summer.”

“You sure you want to work there anyway?” he asked. “Working in a big law firm isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

“It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do,” I responded. The man frowned, clearly thinking it odd that I dreamed of working for a big law firm.  

I unloaded on him. I couldn’t help it. I’d blame the alcohol, but I’m not sure it was that. There was something in his eyes that made me weak, and stripped down the barriers I usually kept in place for professional conversations.  

I didn’t even know his name, but I told him how my mother had been a lawyer for a big firm and how I wanted to follow in her footsteps.  

“What does your mother think about this?” he asked.

“Not a lot. She died seven years ago.”

“Sorry. I know how you feel though. My father passed away a few years back.”  

“You don’t need to hear all this.” I closed my eyes and took some slow breaths. I was starting to sweat under my clothes, but I didn’t know if that was because of the heat or the sight of the man opposite me.  

“Let’s go up to the roof,” he said, taking me by the hand and leading me upstairs.  

It wasn’t any cooler outside. The humidity in D.C. tended to last well into the evening, but at least there were fewer people out here. We found a spot in the corner with a degree of privacy. I took a slow sip of my drink, using it as an opportunity to stare at him again. He had a thick neck with a visible vein, which weaved between muscles that I hadn’t even known existed.

I’d been drinking with this man for over an hour now, and all I’d done was make myself look like an idiot. Other women were looking in our direction, like vultures waiting to pounce once he’d realized I wasn’t worth it and decided to move on. The least I could do was make a bit of effort. I mumbled something about feeling hot, and opened a few buttons on my blouse.  

I instantly regretted it, when I saw a flash of the tatty old bra I’d slipped on for the evening. Hardly a great impression to make, and it’s not like my tits were worth showing off anyway.

“I’ll make sure you get a job next summer,” the man said. “But it won’t be where I work.”  

He looked down at my exposed chest, without bothering to be subtle about it. Usually I would make a quick attempt to cover up, but instead I crossed my arms under my breasts and pushed them up slightly. Maybe it wasn’t too late to salvage something from this evening.

“We don’t take summer associates at my firm,” he continued, looking up into my eyes again. I thought I caught a glimpse of desire there, but it quickly disappeared. “No offense, but they’re not worth the hassle.”

“Oh, thanks,” I replied, in mock indignation.

He smiled and once again a flush of heat washed over my body. This one definitely had nothing to do with the humidity.

“You did well to get a job in your first summer though,” he said. “How did you manage that?”

“Good grades, I guess.”  

I was being modest. I had near perfect grades, but I didn’t want him to think of me as some nerdy law student right now.
Why did I have to wear such a boring skirt?
I tried to subtly pull it up, but it refused to budge, staying firmly put around my knees.  

“I hope you find the time for a little fun once in a while,” he said. “I partied a lot in law school. Makes all those cases a lot easier to bear.”

“I’m not really the partying type.”

“There’s nothing like just letting go for the evening and having the time of your life.”

“Have you settled down now?” I asked.

“Is that your way of asking whether I have a girlfriend?” he asked, flashing a smile at me.  

“Just curious.”  

There was no way he had a girlfriend. He looked every bit the playboy, in his expensive suit, and the devilish look in his eyes made it clear he wasn’t exactly after a girlfriend or anything even remotely serious.  

“I don’t do relationships. If I’m feeling particularly generous, I will spend an entire night with one woman and give her an experience she’ll never forget, but that’s it. The most anyone gets is one night.”

I raised my hand to my mouth, but I wasn’t quick enough to cover the laugh that escaped my lips. I don’t know why I found it funny. I just hadn’t been expecting him to be so forward. Or so boastful. One second we were talking about work, and the next he was telling me he was some sort of sex god. I believed every word he said.

“Are all lawyers this arrogant?” I asked playfully.  

“Yes,” he replied. “But
I
have the goods to back it up.” He leaned in, and for one terrifying second I thought he was going to kiss me, but he just whispered in my ear. “If you want to check out my goods, you can go right ahead and reach out a hand. In fact, better make it two.”  

He was worse than Zach, except this time I didn’t care. I should leave now, go straight home and forget all about this stranger, but I knew I couldn’t. I was physically incapable of looking away from him, and even if I did make it home, I’d never be able to just forget him. There wasn’t enough alcohol in the world for that.

I didn’t reach out like he wanted me to, but I did look down. Even in the dim lights on the rooftop, I could make out a substantial bulge between his legs where he brazenly had his erection on show for anyone to see. Except only I could see it. The erection was for me; all I had to do was claim it.

“What makes you any better than Zach?” I asked, trying to ignore the fact that my heart was beating furiously in my chest.

“I’ll make you come,” he responded without skipping a beat. “A lot. You’ll still be screaming my name in ten years’ time when you’re married with kids. I’ll take you in ways you’ve never even dreamed about. What would Zach do? Squirm around on top of you for a bit while you pretend you’re enjoying it?”

I laughed again. That was probably an accurate enough description, if not of Zach then certainly of some ex-boyfriends of mine. Most of my ex-boyfriends in fact.

“How far away do you live?” he asked.

“It’s about a ten minute walk.”

“If we leave now, I can have you coming in twenty minutes. You’ll be soaking wet, and come will be dripping down the insides of your thighs and pooling on the bed.”

Holy fucking shit. He meant it.  

This wasn’t some idle talk. I could actually be in the throes of an orgasm in twenty minutes’ time. The thought was paralyzing. I hadn’t come with another man since I started law school.  

“Looks like I have an answer,” he said, smiling and nodding down at my chest.

My nipples had stiffened, and the worn padding of my bra had done little to help hide the evidence from appearing on the front of my shirt. We were both visibly erect; there was no denying that we both wanted to do this. The only question was whether we should.

Screw it. I needed this. I needed him. It’s not like I would ever see him again.  

“Okay then. Your twenty minutes starts now.”