Insufferable Proximity 2 (28 page)

“Why do you know so much about him?”

“I know as much about him as I know about every other lawyer at the firm. Except for you, of course.”

“So, because he’s incompetent and could possibly give our firm a bad name, I should just let you help him?”

“Yes. Also, because I want to help Susan. Let me correct that—I
will
help Susan.”

“No, I’ll speak to my father first thing in the morning. He’ll have to find someone else.”

“He’s tried. Trust me; I wouldn’t even consider working directly with Mr. Baker if I thought there was another option.”

“I don’t care; I need him to try a little harder.” He knew right now that this would be a major problem for him. He couldn’t allow her to work directly with Clive. He could already feel his rage escalating at just the thought. He knew if he couldn’t fix the problem, it would only get worse.

***

To Heaven’s complete surprise, Julian was up before her the next morning. He was actually rushing her out of the house. She bathed and dressed in record speed, and they managed to make it to the office thirty minutes early. He led her to her office and then went to speak to his father.

Julian sat down across from Ayden’s desk.

“You’re early today,” Ayden said with a large smile.

“I need to talk to you about Baker’s case. There must be another avenue for this witness without Heaven’s involvement.”

“I’ve tried everything; that woman will not budge.”

“I don’t want her working on this case with him.”

“I understand,” Ayden nodded. He could see the jealousy in his son’s eyes and held back a smile. He was a much different man now. If someone had told Ayden that Julian was jealous over a female, Ayden would have laughed in their face. “Unfortunately there are no other options. The woman is on the verge of recanting everything. We need her for this. After everything Sevigne has been through, I wouldn’t ask if it weren’t important.”

“I don’t like this.” He was honest, and Ayden nodded in agreement.

“I understand. We can go about it without her testimony, but we would lose. Clive is nowhere near as skilled as I was led to believe. He’s good with small cases, but I’m afraid that this is too much for him.” Ayden tried to hide his disappointment. “Heaven wouldn’t be working with Clive alone—I would be at every meeting.”

“Every meeting?”

“Absolutely,” his father vowed.

“Thank you,” Julian said curtly before he stood up.

“So Sevigne will be helping with the case?” Ayden wanted to make sure.

“As long as you attend every meeting,” he replied before he left the office.

Julian was livid, and he felt as if he were being backed into a corner. He didn’t react well in that situation—he never had.

***

“Hi Juliette.”

Juliette turned to see Ronnie, the security guard. He was smiling widely as if happy to see her. She looked at him from head to toe and decided that he looked handsome in his security outfit. When she was younger, she had a thing for men in uniforms.

She smiled back at him. “Hi, Ronnie.”

“You’re looking extra gorgeous today. I love your suit, is it new? I haven’t seen you wear it before.”

Juliette batted her lashes and widened her smile. She was shocked that he’d noticed; no one ever noticed her.

“Yes, I bought it last weekend. It’s a Steffi Zell original design.”

“Steffi who?”

“Steffi Zell, she’s one of NY’s hottest designers. Well, her and her twin sister Stevie.”

“Well, whether designer gown or a trash bag, you’d still be the prettiest girl around.” His southern drawl crept down her back like warm molasses.

“Why, thank you, Ronnie,” she purred as she stepped closer to him.

“There you are, I’ve been looking all over for you,” Lila exclaimed as she walked over to Juliette. “Come with me.”

“What’s going on?” Juliette asked, irritated by the interruption.

“It’s urgent; I’ll tell you when we get there.”

“Bye.” Juliette smiled at Ronnie before she was whisked away.

“What’s wrong?” Juliette asked.

“Nothing, I saved you from having to speak to that simpleton a moment longer,” Lila cackled.

“Who, Ronnie?”

“First name basis now?” Lila raised her thin eyebrow.

“Ronnie’s not a simpleton, he’s actually quite sweet,” Juliette defended him.

“Sweet? Ronnie? You’re joking, right?” Lila looked at Juliette as if she were daft.

“Well—“

“Forget about him; let’s go for coffee,” Lila finished.

Juliette narrowed her eyes for a moment before she composed herself. Lila was protesting a bit too much for it to be heartfelt advice.

***

Everyone was gone for the night except Ian and Gloria. Ian was busy working on his case, and Gloria was busy working on Ian. She walked into his office and put her hands on her hips.

“Do you ever rest? You’re going to work yourself into an early grave,” Gloria scolded him.

“What time is it?”

“It’s time for you to take a break from work and have a good time.”

“I’ll be done soon.”

“No, you’re done now,” she grabbed his hand, “come with me; I know this great little place that has an excellent selection of fried foods and top-shelf liquor.”

“Where?”

“The club that’s waiting for us to walk through its doors.”

“I can’t.”

“Yes, you can. Come have a drink and get your mind off things.”

“No, I really should finish this.”

“I’m not taking no for an answer, now come on,” she insisted, and Ian couldn't stop the smile spreading across his face.

“All right, maybe just a drink.” He wrapped his arm around her as they headed out of his office.

She smiled knowingly. “Yes, just one drink.”

They were holding each other as they left his office. Gloria looked up to see Juliette standing by her desk. They quickly let go of each other and silently walked to the elevators.

“Damn,” Ian hissed once he was inside.

“Don’t worry, she won’t say anything.”

“How can you be certain?”

“I’ll talk to her.”

***

Julian was stewing over the situation with Heaven and Baker. At lunch, he was unusually quiet; he was polite but very distant. He didn’t say more than five words to Heaven for the rest of the day. She understood what was bothering him, but there was nothing she could do.

On the car ride home, he was just as silent. It wasn’t until they were home and in their room that he finally spoke to her.

She was in her closet removing her suit. He grabbed a bottle of liquor and walked to her closet, went in and sat on the bench.

“My father said he tried everything.” He opened the bottle of cognac. “Against my better judgment, I’m going to allow you to help with this case.”

“Why, thank you for giving me permission,
sir,
” she scoffed sarcastically as she unbuttoned her shirt.

“Watch that mouth,” he warned her, obviously not in the mood for sarcasm. He reached out and swatted her behind.

She tossed her shirt at him. “You watch my mouth.”

“If you keep talking to me like that, I’ll do more than watch your mouth—I’ll violate it,” he threatened as he watched her unzip her skirt.

“I’d like to see you try.”

“Careful.’ He raised his brows as his pale eyes sparked.

She could tell by the look in his eyes and his cocky attitude that he would do more than violate her. He was in a very strange mood indeed.

Julian took a long drink from the bottle before he continued, “And don’t forget, I’ll be keeping a very close watch on you.”

“I know,” she said with a grin as she slid off her skirt.

“There are going to be some rules,” he added as he watched her remove her stockings.

“Rules?”

“Yes. Rule number one, Ayden King is to be in the room with the two of you at all times. I don’t want you alone with Baker under any circumstances. I don’t trust him, and if I catch him looking at your ass or your tits again, I’ll break his fucking nose.”

“I highly doubt he’s looking at my butt or my breasts,” she disagreed.

“What’s happened to you? You’re usually a pro at spotting guys trying to hit on you. You knew every time my eyes strayed to your breasts.” He leaned over and slid his finger under the hem of her panties.

“That’s different. I don’t pay attention to Mr. Baker; he could scream fire and I probably wouldn’t notice. But, I always paid attention to you. I always keep a close eye on my enemies,” she said honestly.

“And that’s another thing; I don’t want you to have any type of relationship with him. Not as a friend, and not as an enemy. I don’t even want you arguing with him. You keep it minimal. I know what arguing with you can do to a man.” He grabbed the front of her bra and pulled her closer to him. She stood between his knees, bending at the waist to accommodate him as he pulled her closer.

His kiss was soft; he kissed her as if it were the first time their lips ever touched. The gentleness of the kiss contradicted the violent way he yanked the front of her bra apart. She tried to stand up, but he wouldn’t allow it. She tried to pull her head back and he bit her lip, keeping her still.

Julian slipped her bra down her shoulders and then grabbed her wrists. He held them behind her back as he quickly bound the material around them. He continued to kiss her as he slid his hands up her arms; he lightly grazed his nails across her shoulders, stopping an inch from her breasts. He skimmed the tips of his fingers over the tips of her breasts, forcing her sigh into his mouth.

She no longer cared that she was bent in an awkward fashion. The soft spell he was weaving over her body was hypnotizing her. She was ready to melt into him as his fingertips and mouth worked their magic. Soft clouds of confusion enveloped her, and just when she was ready to give in, Julian set the clouds aflame with the twitch of his fingers.

He gripped her nipples tightly, forcing her to cry out. He broke the kiss to look into her eyes.

“You don’t argue with him, you don’t smile at him, and you’d better not flirt,” he warned her.

“I don’t flirt,” Heaven frowned; she had never flirted in her life.

“You better not let him touch you,” he advised her, his eyes laced with hostility.

“I won’t,” she cried, trying to keep still lest he rip her nipples off.

“And you better follow every rule,” he cautioned. When she didn’t answer, he applied a little more pressure to her nipples.

“All right, I’ll follow your rules.
Again
.”

“Be careful, Princess; if this backfires, it’s going to turn out
really
bad,” he admitted. He softened his grip on her breasts, and she exhaled.

“It won’t…you’ll see.” She knew that she would have to handle this situation very carefully. Julian was a ticking time bomb, and she knew it wouldn’t take much to set him off.

“It better not.” He released her nipples and began to gently kiss them as if trying to apologize with his lips. He slid his hands into her panties and pulled them off, then sat back to appreciate her for a moment. “I don’t know what I would do.”

“You don’t have anything to worry about. Mr. Baker is a terrible lawyer; there is nothing sexy about that. Besides…he’s not you…so why would I want him to touch me?” Only he knew what she liked; only he could set her body on fire, and only he could make her beg for more.

Julian pulled her down to his lap. He bent his head and began softly kissing the tips of her breasts. She leaned her head and arched her back as he sucked the tip deep into his mouth, then frowned when he pulled back to look at her.

“And don’t you ever forget that,” his tone was serious.

“I can’t forget that,” she answered as she grabbed his hand and put it between her legs.

The Opportunist

The tension at the prison was escalating.  Even though Gavin kept quiet and managed to stay far away from the brewing war, he had all intentions of using it to his advantage. At this point, he was a model prisoner, he followed the rules, he never gave the officers trouble, and he never fought with the other prisoners.

Until now.

He finally saw his opportunity, and he took it. A well-known prisoner was arguing with one of the guards. However, the argument was only a distraction from the inmate’s real plan. He’d overheard the prisoners making plans to kill that particular guard. While the lone guard argued with the prisoner, another prisoner hid in the shadows with a shank. The other prisoner was well-hidden—the guard would never see him coming.

Gavin was able to warn the guard in time. He sprinted over to the guards’ station to get help. The guard took down the prisoner while calling for back-up. Three other officers raced to his aid and managed to secure both prisoners. While the prisoners were being led out, they vowed revenge on Gavin.