Into the Darkness

I had back-to-back meetings that morning with stakeholders and agents. I emailed Kate asking her to send me today’s schedule. My cell buzzed; it was from Charlotte.

That depends. Do I get a chocolate brownie as well?

I had forgotten what it felt like to smile, to look forward to something, or should I say someone, to feel those damn butterflies that women always ramble on about.

Depends on what you’re wearing

I couldn’t help myself. Maybe they were horny butterflies since they had been kept in captivity for so long.

Behave, Mr. Edwards. 11am at Café York on 5th Ave

Fuck, here we go again. My cock throbbed as she called me Mr. Edwards. The image of whips, kinky shit and a librarian came to my mind. It did nothing to ease the tension.

See you then, Miss Mason.

…

I couldn’t focus during my first meeting. I had stakeholders talking my ear off about profits, revenue, budgets. Thankfully I had Kate there to take down notes.

“I have a quick catch-up with an old friend,” I advised Kate.

“That’s fine, Mr. Edwards. Your next meeting is a lunch meeting at midday.” She emailed me the details and we parted ways.

I took a cab to Café York. It was a small coffee shop, very cozy and intimate. It was eleven when I got in. She wasn’t there yet. I checked my cell to see if she had texted me. She hadn’t, so I quickly flicked through the dozens of emails I had received.

“Sorry, it’s been one of those crazy mornings.” Charlotte walked in, out of breath. She was wearing a black pinstripe shirt with a high-wasted skirt, a thick black belt, black Louboutin pumps, and glasses. She looked unbelievably hot. She needed to wear those glasses the next time I fucked her. Don’t get ahead of yourself, Edwards.

I stood up and leaned in to kiss her cheek, and I felt her body stiffen. We sat at a table towards the back and ordered coffees and of course her brownie.

“Charlotte, about last night—”

“Can we just drop the subject?” she said. “Adriana explained the whole Samantha thing to me.”

“You spoke to Adriana about last night?”

“Well, no, I mean yes. I had lunch with her yesterday. She mentioned Samantha and explained what happened which I can only assume she heard from you since she wasn’t at the club. I was pretty wasted. I don’t recall much of the night.”

“Would you like me to refresh your memory?” I teased.

She smiled, only slightly. “How about we keep that a secret?”

I changed the subject, not wanting to push her any further. “So you’re a lawyer?” I wanted to get to know her again, as the woman rather than the girl.

“Yes. Nikki and I opened our practice about a year ago.” She sipped her coffee as she spoke.

“Wow, that’s quite an achievement. Where did you study?”

“Harvard. I pretty much worked my ass off to get where I am.”

Her ass. Don’t. Fucking. Go. There. “So you came here after…” I didn’t want say the words.

“No, I went to live with my grandmother in Connecticut. She passed away about five months after I arrived.” She looked down at the table, reliving the sad memory. “She was an amazing woman. She taught me a lot during that time. After she passed, I wanted to make her proud. So I got into Harvard, studied hard then moved here with Nikki and started my career.”

“I’m sorry about your grandmother.” I reached out to touch her hand.

Her phone started vibrating on the table. “Sorry, I need to take this.”

“Michael,” she answered. She continued to listen, obviously irritated with what he was saying. “Fine, I’ll be there but I’m telling you, we won’t settle for that amount,” she demanded.