Page 5 of Boss of Attraction
Sean Ashford, the silver fox himself, looked up from his computer and returned my smile. “Declan Rivers! Welcome back. How’ve you been?”
He stood, and we shook hands. I had to force myself to let go because fuck, my boss was hot. He was quite a package, with his hair I wanted to run my hands through, piercing dark eyes that made me weak in the knees, and a smile that lit up a room. Looking at him made my dick twitch. Too bad he was straight or I would have been interested in starting my own office rumor.
“Doing good. Glad to be done with law school.”
“I bet. Are you ready for the bar?” He sat back in his high-back leather chair.
“Getting there. To be honest, I’m nervous as hell.”
“You’ll do great.” He waved off my concern. “And if there’s anything I can help with, you just let me know.”
“Of course. Thank you.”
“Glad to have you back. I have a feeling this place is going to be a lot livelier with you around. Now, let’s get you settled in.”
Over the next few days,I settled into the familiar rhythm of work life at Ashford, Nolan & Torrance. The thrill of being surrounded by brilliant minds and the constant buzz of activity fueled my determination to show I was worthy of a promotion once I passed the bar. As I split my time between studying for the upcoming bar exam and diving into the details of ongoing cases, I couldn’t wait for the day when I would be the lead attorney on a case.
One morning, as I sifted through a stack of case files at my desk, Camille approached with a sly grin. “Declan, Sean wants you to assist on the Whitman case. He asked that you get the case file and head to his office.”
My heart skipped a beat. The Whitman case was a high-profile embezzlement matter with its fair share of complexities. This was my opportunity to prove myself beyond the confines of intern duties. I gathered the files, headed to Sean’s office, and knocked on the door.
“Come on in, Declan,” he called, and I stepped inside.
“Morning, boss. I heard you need an extra pair of hands on the Whitman case,” I said, presenting the files with a confident smile.
He nodded, motioning for me to take a seat. “That’s right. It’s going to be a challenging one, but I believe you’re up to the task.”
“I am,” I assured him.
“Then let’s get to work.”
4
Sean
“Let’s call it a night,”I said, swiping my hand down my face. It was after midnight, and I was exhausted from the long day of reviewing reports from the forensic accountants and trying to create a theory of defense for the Whitman case. “I’ll see you two bright and early on Monday morning.”
Camille packed up and quickly rushed out of the conference room, leaving me and Declan behind. I was surprised he wasn’t in a hurry to leave. Most guys his age would be eager to get their weekend started.
“So, how was your first week as an official employee of Ashford, Nolan & Torrance?” I asked as I closed my laptop and put it into my bag.
“It’s been great. Thanks again for the opportunity to work here.”
“No need to thank me. You impressed the entire firm last summer. The other partners and I wanted to offer you a job once you graduated. We didn’t hesitate when you applied.”
He smiled, his brown eyes brightening. “Wow, that means a lot, Mr. Ashford.”
I chuckled. “You know you can call me Sean. Everyone else in the office does.”
We walked out of the conference room together. “All right, Sean. So, do you have any big plans for the weekend?”
The entire floor had cleared out; the only sound in the office was the low hum from overhead lights. “My kids are coming over for dinner tonight, but other than that, I’ll probably spend some time here going through more of those accounting reports. What about you?”
“Fallon and I are getting together to study for the bar tonight, but that’s it, as far as plans go.”
“See if you can convince him to give criminal law a try,” I teased.
I’d known Fallon his entire life, and from a young age, he’d talked about becoming a lawyer. His father and I had hoped he’d follow in our footsteps, but he’d gone a different route toward becoming a civil rights attorney. It was an honorable career for sure, but it would have been nice to work with a Donnelley again.
