I reach beneath her skirt and kiss the back of her neck as she twists to look at me over her shoulder. “Who is Linsey?”
I slide my hand up the back of her thigh. “My paralegal.”
She grabs my wrist, stopping me from going further. “You’ve never talked about her.”
And I don’t wish to now, either. “I’ve had no reason to. We never discuss my job.”
“How long has she worked for you?”
I’m not surprised my wife wants details. I would if she were working side by side with a man I didn’t know.
“When I was in law school, Linsey came forward and volunteered to be my paralegal when I became defender for the brotherhood. The Fellowship sent her to college where she was properly trained to be my legal assistant.”
“So this has been in the works for years?”
“Yes. Only men must choose a service to The Fellowship when they come of age but some women do as well—the ones who want to work and contribute by means other than being claimed and taken care of by a man.”
“I’m sure it was a painful choice on her part to volunteer to be up your ass every day. Let me guess. She isn’t married?”
“No, but I am. Happily.”
I know where Bleu’s going with this. She’s suggesting Linsey volunteered as a close contact so she could pursue snagging me. And my wife’s absolutely right. Linsey has confirmed that as her intention on more than one occasion.
Complete honesty. It’s the only way to handle this.
“She has tried to fuck me but I turned her down.”
Bleu twists in my arms so we’re face to face. “Since we’ve been together?”
“Technically, we weren’t together. She didn’t come to work for me until after I finished my traineeship. It happened after you were back in the US.”
“She had no idea I left you. As far as she was concerned, we were still a couple when she tried to sleep with you. That’s a betrayal against me.”
I was wrong. She’s not jealous. She’s angry.
“You should know now that Linsey and I will be having our own Fellowship meeting later today.”
I look at the clock and see we’ve wasted three of our fifteen minutes having this asinine conversation. “Fine. You’re to become her leader. Handle it the way you think you must. Until then, shut up and kiss me,” I growl before my lips crash against hers.
She doesn’t push away. Instead, she melts into my arms.
Her mouth tastes minty fresh but it’s not what I’m craving. “Turn around.”
I help her twist so she’s facing the sofa again. I put my hand between her shoulder blades and push them down so her bum is bent over the arm—right where I want it. I glide my hand over one cheek before lifting it and bringing my palm down against it playfully, but with enough force to catch her attention.
She squeals. “Oh! What was that for?”
“I want your full attention on us and what we’re about to do. Your wild imagination conjuring things that have not happened has no place here. Understand?”
“Aye,” she says, a giggle escaping.
I laugh at her use of the word I so often say to her. “Good. I’m happy we’re on the same page.”
I lift the bottom of her black skirt so her bum is exposed. She’s wearing pink knickers, the ones barely covering anything. No surprise there. I saw her put them on when she was getting ready this morning. They made me hard then and they’re making me hard now.
I glide my palm over the silky fabric barely covering the cheek I spanked. “I’ve spent a lot of nights on this couch wondering where you were and imagining what I’d do to you if I ever got you like this.”
“And now that you have me where you want me, what are you going to do?”
I glide my middle finger down her cleft, only the fabric of her knickers preventing me from pushing my finger inside. “Things so dirty they should never be done in the light of day.”
She straightens her arms and presses them into the cushion of the sofa, bracing for what’s to come.
I look at the clock and then at the open door. Fuck! I should have closed it. My mistake. But in my defense, I didn’t know we were going to have a conversation about a sofa that would spark me bending my wife over its arm for an early-morning shag.
I’m wrestling with the choice of dragging Bleu’s knickers to her knees or helping her upright and offering a rain check for my dirty deeds.
My decision is made for me when I hear the closing of Linsey’s desk drawer, announcing her arrival. No kidding. She’s been working here for months and has arrived at a quarter after on the dot every single day. Until now. She’s nine minutes early. “Un-fucking-believable.”
Bleu looks over her shoulder at me. “What?”
“She’s in early today.”
Bleu drops her head and sighs. “Dammit. I was so looking forward to seeing what you classified as an act so dirty it should never be done in the light of day.”
I kiss the back of her head and pull her skirt down to cover her bum. I pat it lovingly before helping her to stand. “Later. You have my word.”
“That’s a promise I’ll expect you to keep.”
* * *
My wife is pleasant to Linsey when they’re introduced but I don’t mistake their meeting for anything other than what it is—the calm before the storm. Linsey has a special kind of hell waiting for her, and its name is Bleu Breckenridge.
Since I have last-minute preparations for court, I place Bleu in the capable hands of my mum’s oldest and dearest friend, Treva, for a tour of the third floor.
I’m finishing up the final touches of my argument when my father appears at my office door. “Got a minute?”
I look at the clock. “I have exactly fourteen to spare.”
“Good. What I have to say can be said in thirteen.”
“That’ll be all, Linsey.”
“Yes, sir.”
My father waits until the door is shut. It’s his way. He never talks shop in front of anyone but those who sit at the leadership table. Doesn’t matter how trivial. “You must be proud to see your wife showing an interest in BI.”
“Of course. Mum was right to suggest Bleu make a visit.”
“I agree. It’s very important for Bleu to understand the business part of The Fellowship but as your wife, she has another very important job as well. Is she aware of the expectations placed upon her?”
I’m a little surprised my father is already bringing this up. “She knows and it’s in the works.”
My father grins. “Bleu’s already pregnant?”
“Not yet, but she’s agreed to work on it. We saw a doctor last week and he gave us the go-ahead.” I’m not telling my father about Bleu’s reproductive issues. It’ll only cause unnecessary concern.
“My grandchildren will be Amanda’s grandchildren. They’ll each carry a small piece of her and me in them. You can’t imagine how incredibly special that will make them to me.”
I hadn’t thought of that.
“Your mum will be so pleased to have a baby in the family. She adores children.”
“I suspect as much.” I’m certain my mum is itching to get her hands on a grandchild since all of her children were taken from her so young.
I understand my father did what he thought was right for The Fellowship but he was wrong. And I don’t plan on repeating his mistakes. He needs to know this early on. “If we have a son, I won’t take him from her.”
“You don’t have a choice. Your son must be raised in The Fellowship way.”
“And he will be—raised by both of his parents.”
“The brotherhood will not agree.”
“Their approval is not a requirement.”
“Your son will be a weak leader if he’s not raised among strong councilmen.”
My father is wrong. “I’m stronger with Bleu by my side. The same will be true for our children. End of story.”
Chapter Fifteen
Bleu
Breckenridge
Treva has shown me far more than I ever wanted to see on the third floor housing BI. The average person walking through would only see a nice business front. What they wouldn’t pick up on is the slew of illegal activities happening behind the scenes.
They steal from thieves, terrorists, rival criminal organizations, and so on. I find myself justifying the acts they commit. The longer I’m one of them, the easier it is to turn a blind eye. The agent I was a year ago would never have done that.
I return to the legal department and to Sin’s office. I sit in his chair and pick up the framed photo of us on his desk. It was taken at my initiation during the vow ceremony. He had just cut my hand, and then his own. Our fingers are laced, a trickle of blood oozing down our arms. It was such a primitive thing for him to do. And hot. I still remember how much I wanted him afterward.
My phone alerts me to a new message.
*Tied up with a client. Don’t know how long I’ll be. See you at home in a little while. Love you.*