The General (Professionals 4)

“I think you needed to say all of that,” I countered, kneeling down in front of her.

“Yes, but… the timing. What if he thinks…”

“I think he thinks that you found out – for the first time – about the drugs and women. That it, understandably, pushed you over the edge, made you lash out. Bertram is the kind of man who stood by and let his son be a wife-beating piece of shit. He doesn’t think much of women, clearly. He likely found your actions bitter. Just a typical, resentful, jealous woman making a scene. I highly doubt he suspects you at all.”

But as soon as I was alone, I was going to make sure the team was on it to make sure. Quin would be back in Jersey in a few hours. I had a feeling his first stop would be the office. He could handle this. Maybe he wouldn’t love the turn, but he knew as well as anyone that it was hard – if not impossible – at times to control how the client might act.

“Everything is going to be fine,” I assured her.

And I was going to do everything within my power to make good on that promise.

ELEVEN

Jenny

The days following having my say to Bertram were – dare I even think it – happy.

There was no other way to describe them

It had taken me an almost embarrassingly long time to realize what the light, warm, buzzing feeling inside was.

At first, I had attributed it to the sex, the deep contentedness my well-used body felt from Noah’s hands, mouth, and, well, other parts as well.

I always found the term ‘sexual awakening’ corny and embarrassing. That is, of course, until I had my own. Better late than never. I felt insatiable. I would just find my breath after one session in which he brought me to orgasm half a dozen times, and my body was ready for another round. I found power in bed with Noah, this man who wanted nothing but to make me feel good. I could take the lead, make demands, show him what I liked. Those were things I had never had the privilege to know before.

They were a drug.

And I was shamelessly addicted.

Staff no longer an issue, we devoured each other in every room of the house. And, oddly, it felt like we were reclaiming them, painting over the bad memories of Teddy’s cruel hands on me with the delicious new ones of Noah’s hands driving me up, over, and through orgasm after orgasm.

I was sure nothing could dim the light I felt bathed in.

Until Noah pulled me aside and told me that Quin wanted to have a meeting.

I don’t know why I found him so intimidating since Noah was nicknamed The General, he was the one they called in for the butt-whoopings, the intimidation, the strong-handing whereas Quin was just the mastermind of the whole organization.

But there was a pit of worry in my belly the whole morning as I tried to psych myself up for it, finding myself climbing into my old clothes, feeling like they acted as some kind of shield.

“Relax,” Noah demanded, giving my thigh a squeeze as he parked his truck.

I looked down, swearing that the thigh in question looked a bit wider than it had the last time I saw his hand settled there like that. And that was only maybe a week before. Maybe it was time to start joining him in his grueling before-sunrise workouts he was religious about once I had invited him to use the gym in the basement.

If for no other reason than to watch that muscular back of his contort and contract while he worked it out.

Yeah, that was some motivation.

“He sounds intimidating.”

“Alright. I’ll give you that,” he said, giving me a small smile.

“Gee, you’re not even going to try to tell me he isn’t intimidating?”

“Wouldn’t want me to lie to you, would you?” he asked, hopping out of the truck to jog around the hood to open my door. “Don’t worry. It won’t be bad. He just wants to go over your file, square things up.”

Square things up.

Like the bill.

Which I now had the power to pay since I changed all the passwords and cards to all the accounts so that even if Bertram wanted to spy on my spending, he would have no way to do so.

My belly wobbled a bit at signing over that check, a large part of me worried that that might be it for Noah and me.

I mean, not it.

He’d been pretty clear about his intentions, talking about things like futures, about how we’d spend the summer which was still many months off.

But it would be the end to having him solely to myself. Maybe it was selfish of me to keep wanting that, to drag out this fantasy world where we were the only two people that existed.