Page 70 of Hula Girl

“I—”

“Oh, sorry, I know you’ve never actually been married. But Ford and I, our relationship is a true partnership. And the natural thing would be to take that into a legal practice, too. We’d make a very tempting alternative for some of the clients Ford still has here, don’t you think?”

Senior’s mouth drops open for just a moment before he recovers himself. “Wait a minute. Are you saying—” he starts, but Ford interrupts.

“Ava, we have to go.”

I make a show of looking conflicted over cutting things short. Then, I shrug with a small smile. “Gotta go,” I say, and wink at Senior.

I’ve played it cool, but as soon as Ford pulls me out of that meeting room, I can feel my heart beating wildly. Ford’s got my hand and is leading me through the expansive office. I feel all eyes on us. Suddenly, I can’t contain a giggle. It turns into real laughter that I can’t even muffle with my hand to my mouth.

I don’t know what came over me.

But damn, it felt good to see Senior’s shocked expression.

Ford pulls me into a side room, and before I know it, he’s closed the door and pushed me up against it, his body pressed to mine.

He’s grinning.

“What was that all about?”

“I, uh …” Looking around, I see that the room is a study space. It’s small, with a table and four chairs and a library reading lamp atop it. There are several law texts, a copy of theLos Angeles Times, and a legal pad scattered there. Otherwise, we’re alone. “I don’t know.”

“Not many people can do what you did just now to my father.” He draws his fingers through my hair gently, his eyes full of admiration.

“What did I do?”

He laughs. “You caught the bastard flat-footed.”

“Oh,” I say.

“You want to partner up with me, huh?”

“Um, that just kind of came out,” I say. “Seemed like the way to throw him.”

“It sure as fuck did. But you gotta watch it, honey. He can be vicious.” He touches my chin, making sure our eyes meet. “I don’t want you getting a target on your back out of all of this. I couldn’t stand it if he went after you.”

I like that he’s protective of me. But despite all the years of Randall trying to do the same thing, when it comes down to it, I know no one takes care of me better than me.

Grabbing his hip, I pull him closer. “I know how to handle myself.”

“Hell, yeah you do,” he murmurs as he presses his lips to mine, kissing me tenderly at first. That quickly escalates to kisses that are so heated that we’re pawing at each other at the same time.

“Hey,” I say breathlessly as he kisses my cheek and neck, getting rougher and more desperate. “I was thinking about your shares issue.”

He pulls away for a second and looks at me quizzically. “You were?”

“Yeah, a little.”

“Jesus, that turns me on.”

I laugh and then kiss him, pulling on his bottom lip with my teeth as I pull away. “Have you looked into whether the bylaws have ever been amended regarding shares transfers? You know, special circumstances you can use as precedent for doing something different with your shares?”

“I, uh …” he starts, and I can see his mind working.

Now I’m the one to kiss his neck, biting at his skin, wanting to take this into something that will satisfy us both. We get lost in each other, but when I reach down and stroke him, he pulls away and goes to the table, leaning over.

“Are you okay?” I ask.

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