Page 65 of Just Desserts

"We will not acknowledge each other at work, we will make sure we leave and arrive at different times. When I'm ready, we'll let the partners know about us. If you don't want me filing a sexual harassment suit against you and the firm you will go along with my plan. You will stay sober. You will work overtime. But most importantly you will remember this; youcameto me. I didn't ask you to move in, I'm not forcing you to be with me." We locked eyes, I held his gaze so he understood the seriousness of what I was saying.

"Not only are you going to have to prove yourself to the company, you're gonna have to prove yourself to me. Otherwise you're out on your ass and I let loose. I go after you, your reputation and the entire firm. You'll never practice again and I'll spend the rest of my days making sure I get every last penny possible from you and the company. You'll take the entire place down with you."

The rest of dinner was silent, Jonathan kept his head down, eating two servings and chugging water like it was going out of style. I knew he was detoxing, already the lack of alcohol was getting to him. His eyes kept shifting to the empty bottles on the counter then back down to his plate. A bead of sweat was sliding down his face even though the temperature in the apartment was on the colder side.

I finished my portion and dropped my plate into the sink. I headed into the bedroom and made sure to take extra time with my nighttime routine. I slipped into the most expensive pajama set I had then set my lotion on the end of the bed. With the door open I put my leg up and made sure to take time bending over, moisturizing my entire body from head to toe.

The real silk of the pajamas, a final gift to myself before I stopped using Jonathan's card, felt luxurious on my body. I heard Jonathan enter the bedroom and kept my head down, waiting to feel his body heat. Instead, he gave me a wide berth before stripping down to his boxers and climbing into the bed opposite where I was standing. Once horizontal, he swiftly turned onto his side so his back was to me. I was shocked, and hurt. I wouldn't abide by this anymore.

"What do you think you're doing?" I asked. Walking to stand in front of his side of the bed.

He lifted up on his elbow, looking confused.

"Sleeping? I figured you wanted to go to bed early since we have work tomorrow." He said.

"You thinkthat'swhy I went into the bedroom early?" I asked looking down at myself to make my meaning clear.

"Oh you want, I mean, you, us, right now?" He asked, completely flustered.

"Prove yourself Jonathan. Why are you here?" I asked.

"For you, to be with you." He replied, his voice low.

He sat up, swinging his legs off the side of the bed. The position put him closer to me and he reached his arms around me pulling me until I was standing between his legs. He started kissing my neck and I turned my head giving him more room.I closed my eyes, trying to let everything go and enjoy this, but I couldn't. I almost put a stop to it until Jonathan reached my stomach. Gently, almost reverently he pressed a kiss there.

"Hello baby." He whispered, cupping my flat stomach before resuming his exploration of my body with his mouth. The baby, this baby needed to happen, needed to exist. I shut my eyes and thought back to the early days of our affair. The desire, the rush we felt when we were finally alone together, able to touch each other freely. He pulled me over him until we were laying on the bed.

The moves felt practiced, well rehearsed and our bodies responded to the familiar sensations. When he was finished, he rolled off of me and headed straight to the bathroom. Unsure if it would help, but willing to try anything I laid back, legs in the air. Things got off track, but I was back running this ship. We would get back on course, my course. I was in charge now.

Chapter 45

Jonathan

When I was served with divorce papers I thought my life was over. When my wife cut me out of her life with ruthless efficiency, I was heartbroken. I didn't think it could get any worse. None of that compared to the hell I was in now though. I had nobody and nowhere to go that felt safe. I was living a lie of my own making. I was doing my best to smooth things out at the office.

Alyssa didn't have much use but the kick in the ass she gave me when I moved in was necessary. When I returned to the office, I was keenly aware of the murmurs and the none too subtle looks as I passed by my coworkers. I would much prefer a cosmetic surgery or rehab trip were the truth behind my recent absence.

Upon my return to work, I was called into Martin Shaw's office before lunchtime. All eyes were on me as I made the walk toward the executive suites. Fear, cold and clammy coated my skin. I was utterly defeated, unsure of what I could even say to Martin to defend myself at this moment.

When his secretary escorted me in, Martin was looking down, working at his desk. I felt the door closing behind me but Martin still had not acknowledged my presence. I stood awkwardly, shifting in place, just wanting to be able to exit this conversation as quickly as possible.

"Conner, take a seat." Martin finally said, dismissively waving ahand to the chair across from him.

Reluctantly I sat down, trying to covertly wipe the sweat dripping down my forehead. I was grateful I had replenished the whiskey in my office after the party disaster, the shot I took when I got in this morning was the only thing keeping my hands steady. Finally he looked up, folding his hands together on top of his desk, he leaned in and looked me up and down.

"You look unwell. Have you been to a doctor recently? Do you need to take some personal time?" He asked, the way he said personal time had me sitting up straighter, the insinuation behind it grating on my already raw nerves.

"I had the flu, it hit me harder than I expected but I assure you I'm fine now and not contagious. I made sure to see my physician before returning." I said, doing my best to keep my tone cordial.

"I see. Now I don't typically get involved in my employees personal life, but if there is anything going on you would like to talk about I want you to know I'm here. You've been with us for several years, you have huge potential and we have high hopes for you here. If you are struggling, please let us know. We want our clients to receive the most attention and focus from all lawyers, not our lawyers to give attention to the most clients they can, do you understand?"

My mind was muddled, nausea was rolling through me from the stress of the last few days. I was finding it increasingly difficult to focus on what Marcus was saying to me. Personal issues? Did he know about the divorce?

"Everything is fine. I appreciate your concern and I'm sorry if I dropped the ball while I was sick but I promise you I'm back on track." I said, sitting up straighter in the chair and attempting to imbue my voice with as much bravado as I could muster.

"Be that as it may, we've decided to transfer the Cohen-Meyer case to Reynolds from this point forward."

"I've been handling them for two years, I brought them to the firm." I sputtered, they were my biggest client and had allowed me to get my foot in the door of becoming a partner.

---