Chapter 5
MAX
“Good morning, Louise.” I sidle up to my secretary at the coffee station.
“Morning, Mr. Hart,” she replies brightly as she stirs creamer into her coffee. “You don’t have any meetings scheduled for today. I pushed some of your appointments to later in the week after yesterday’s busy schedule. I thought you needed some admin days to catch up.”
Hallelujah and thank God for Louise, my office angel. Hiring her was one of the best decisions I ever made. For five years we’ve been working together, and she never misses a beat. She gets me and knows what I need, and when.
Louise lifts the coffee off the counter and passes me the steaming mug. “You’re just in time. This is for you.”
“Thank you.” Gratefully, I reach out and wrap my hands around the mug before taking a sip, welcoming the caffeine that hits my bloodstream. “What would I do without you?” I ask her.
She double pats my shoulder as she passes me on her way back to her desk. “You’d be screwing every temp at your desk during lunchtimes, firing them when you got bored, then repeating the same scenarios all over again two weeks later.”
I almost snort my coffee out of my nose as I take a bigger sip. I would never do that, but she sure does like to wind me up.
This is the reason I love Louise. She’s blunt, efficient, and, more importantly, she takes none of my bullshit and shoots from the hip. I love her.
And if she weren’t happily married to San Francisco Giants first baseman, Austin Porter, I would marry her myself.
Obviously not, because, you know, marriage isn’t for me and all that, but I love a strong woman who knows her own mind and isn’t scared to speak out, like Louise, and her husband loves her for it.
She doesn’t need to work; she can afford not to, but she loves her job here at Hart Law and has even said that if her husband gets traded, she will work for me remotely.
She’s clearly a glutton for punishment.
A thought comes into my mind. “Hey, Louise, can I ask you something?” I walk with purpose toward her as she turns around.
“Anything. You had better be quick, though; I have a date planned with a Dictaphone, and he’ll be mad with me if I keep him waiting,” she says deadpan, keeping a straight face.
Another thing I love about Louise is that she’s funny without trying. “Oh, don’t worry, it won’t take a minute,” I say before looking around to make sure no one is within earshot, then ask her, “What do you know about Paige Bradshaw?”
Her mouth downturns as she lets out a humming noise and puts her memory to work.
“Well, she’s like your work twin because she’s a great divorce lawyer, if not better than you.
Why Moore it makes work more fun.
I stop Louise in her tracks before she reels off more of Paige’s career track record. “No, that’s not what I meant. I mean, do you know what’s going on in her personal life?”
“Not a thing.” She shakes her head.
“But she’s single?” Why the fuck I am asking is anyone’s guess.
“As far as I’m aware, she is, yeah.”
“Mmmm,” I hum, pondering what the hell she meant last night. I’m surprised you don’t know what has made me late for the last six months. “So, you don’t know what happened six months ago?” I ask.
Louise’s brows pull together. “No, why?”
“It’s probably nothing, but she mentioned that the reason she’s been late for almost every one of our meetings is because something changed for her six months ago. Is she sick?” I wonder out loud.
“I think we would all know if that was the case, and would she still be working?”
My grip around my mug tightens, annoyed that no one seems to know. Asking Nathan was a dead end, as was Joseph, our top-floor receptionist who knows everyone and everything happening inside the building and at every law firm in the city.
I sigh, surrendering to the inevitable: I’m searching for an invisible ghost. “Maybe I misinterpreted what she told me in her email.”
“Most likely.” Louise thumbs over her shoulder. “Gotta go, Dictaphone date.”
“Enjoy.” I follow her down the corridor in the direction of my office.
“Oh, Cole stopped by before you arrived to tell you that he’s in court all day. But if you want to go out with him tonight to that place you discussed last night, he’ll meet you outside the venue at nine.”
I tut, annoyed that he didn’t take my first answer as my final one. “Thanks, Louise.” I have no intention of going with him tonight.
Walking into my office, I settle behind my desk and turn on my laptop. While waiting for it to wake up, curiosity takes over, and before I can stop myself, I open my cell phone and go to The Velvet Rooms’ website.
On the events tab, I hit the promo for tonight’s Dating in the Dark.
I read the words I saw last night instead of just scanning the page; this time, I absorb each one.
Whispered words.
Velvet cloak of darkness.
Tentative finger brushes.
Breath like warm caresses against the skin.
Slow burning desires.
Pulses quicken.
Electric encounters.
Feel soft laughter like tiny vibrations.
Where shared silences ignite connection.
Sensual magic.
Let your body come alive in the shadows.
Let your heart connect beyond appearance.
Fuck. I’ve already got a semi just thinking about it.
Sounds fucking wild.
But it’s not for me.
Nope.
Leaving my cell phone open, I wheel my chair further under my desk to get closer to my screen. I swear I need eyeglasses. Note to self: book an eye exam.
Opening my emails, I brace myself for a day of admin work, phone calls, and endless email chains and paperwork. Unless the building is on fire, I won’t leave my desk.
One minute later, my eyes flick toward my phone, which hasn’t gone to sleep yet. The Velvet Rooms’ website glares back at me, begging me to take another look.
Like a moth to a flame, I can’t tear my gaze away.
Nope, I’m not going.
I return my focus to my laptop, but again, not even five seconds later, I find myself sliding my eyes to my cell phone again.
“Fuck it.” Before I second-guess myself, I’m texting Cole, informing him I’ll meet him outside The Velvet Rooms tonight.