Page 30 of Wild Night

I need to make it right, and the only way to do that is to leave. Sooner rather than later. If I stay any longer, I’m going to fall in love with Ivy. Madly, deeply, wholly in love with him. It would be easy to do.

Just thinking about walking away from him makes my entire chest ache. But I need to do it. I’m not free right now. I need to get away from Lucian, away from all binding ties with him, and then maybe I can come back and be with Ivy if he still wants me.

Thankfully, the conversation ends as we walk into the office. Ivy is standing at Cidney’s desk, his arms crossed as he shifts his gaze up to meet mine.

“You get some desserts?” he asks.

His voice is soft and so damn sexy that I wonder if I can really walk away from him. I’m not sure it’s physically possible. I want to stay right here… No, that’s a lie. I want to crawl into his arms, naked, and I want him inside of me. To stay inside of me for as long as humanly possible.

So yeah, I need to walk away from him and handle my shit. What I don’t need is to disrupt their whole world. I knew it when I arrived, yet I came here anyway, acting just like I always do—impulsively.

IVY

Something is wrong. Really fucking wrong. And as much as I want to sit down with Posey and demand to know what the fuck it is, I don’t have that luxury. My second meeting of the day has changed plans and he needs me to meet him for lunch. He can’t get away from the office. Sometimes, it’s part of business.

So, as I drive toward my lunch meeting, I can’t help but wonder what the fuck else today is going to bring. My thoughts have been completely consumed with the idea that Posey’s husband is undercover.

Why her?

What is he undercover for?

What kind of blowback does that look like for the club?

A million questions swirl around in my head on a loop, replaying over and over. All I want to do is get to the bottom of them, but I can’t do that shit right now because I need to work. And as much as I want to ignore my clients, that’s just not the person I am.

Plus, my dad would have my ass if I behaved that way. I might be in my forties, but I respect my father too much to give the law office he started a bad reputation. Especially when the reason would be because I want a woman.

Pulling into the diner parking lot, I let out a sigh. I really am trying to save my heart from fucking exploding, but it is increasingly difficult when my favorite fucking thing at this place is the chicken fried steak covered in gravy, fried okra, and coleslaw with a side of baked beans and half a dozen rolls.

Unfolding from my seat, I move toward the front door. I can already see my client seated. He’s got his phone out, and hisfingers are gliding across the screen with fever. This client is a bit more intense than my embezzlement one.

This one was accused of sexual assault. Claims he didn’t do it. Claims a lot of things, none of which I actually believe. But it’s not my job to be the jury. It’s my job to represent him and defend his case to the court. I won’t be mad if I lose this one, though. The good news is that his checks have all cleared. The bad news is he’s a douchebag.

The meeting goes as planned. I tell him about the few ways we can approach, as I try not to eat my weight in rolls, and he fights me on it and tries to encourage me to attack this woman’s sexual history.

That’s something I won’t do. If she’s trying to get a payday, if she’s trying to ruin his life, we can look at her personal background, get character witnesses and all that shit, but I’m not going to dig into someone’s sex life. I can’t be a hypocrite, not like that.

“I’m going to work smarter,” I say. “You get one woman on that jury that is offended we’re slut shaming this girl; you’re cooked,” I state.

Although, maybe that’s exactly what I should do because I am not going to be mad if this fucker goes straight to fucking jail. I might even smile and wave as they load his ass up on the bus.

Leaving the diner, I lift my hand and give him a wave as I sink down in the driver’s seat of my car. I have one more meeting today and some paperwork to do before I can end my night with a good drink and a good fuck. Both things I’m looking forward to, one more than the other.

It doesn’t take me long to get to the office. I unfold from the car and make my way inside, wondering if I can finish off my heart-stressing meal with something sweet from Lainey’s bakery. Nothing she ever makes disappoints, and I’m pretty sureshe put at least one of her specialty blueberry muffins in that box.

“Why haven’t you returned my call?” Cidney asks as soon as I step into the building.

Looking at her, I arch a brow at the sight of her. She’s not sitting at her desk the way she usually does. Instead, she’s standing midstride, almost as if she’s been pacing. My brows snap together, and I tilt my head to the side in question.

When she doesn’t say anything else, I explain to her that I was at a lunch meeting, something she already knows. “My phone was off. I haven’t turned it on yet. What is going on?” I demand.

It’s not like Cidney to question me on anything, but she is my cousin, so the boundaries of boss and employee have always been blurred. There has never been an issue about that, though, and I’m wondering what the fuck is going on.

“Posey is gone.”

I blink slowly, unsure that I’m understanding the three words she’s said to me properly. “Posey is gone?” I ask when she doesn’t elaborate.

“She’s gone. I went to the courthouse to drop off some papers. She didn’t want to go with me, said she was going to stay back here and help me with some filing. When I came back, she was gone.”

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