Chapter 19 Creeps and Crooks
Creeps and Crooks
Ernest
The last of my new team had already gone home, but I wanted to make sure the simulation was running smoothly before I left for the day.
Now I hurried through the corridors. Lawrie had texted he was waiting for me in the reception area.
Had I known he was already done for the day, I wouldn’t have lingered.
I burst into the atrium, suit jacket flapping around me, tie flying, then I skidded to a halt.
Two men stood by the main entrance. After a second of confusion, I recognized the alpha in a navy suit. It was Harry Burnes, and he had his hand wrapped around Lawrie’s upper arm.
The image went red around the edges.
In a few strides, I was right in his face, ripping his hand off my mate. Burnes’s mouth curved down in pain, and I forced myself to loosen my grip on his wrist before I crushed it.
“Ernest!” Lawrie hugged my other arm, pressing up close to me. “Mr. Burnes was just leaving,” he said in a slow, measured tone.
Reluctantly, I let go of Burnes, who took a couple of steps back, staring at me as if I had two heads.
“Mr. Burnes, this is my boyfriend, Ernest Bracknell.”
Burnes’s wide eyes flicked from Lawrie to me and back. He flushed as his shock must have turned into anger.
“I’m late for dinner,” he muttered and spun around. He all but ran to the revolving door. Sadly, this time the door worked smoothly. I would have loved having him trapped in there and watching him stew.
“What was that?” I asked.
“Drowning man grabbing at straws. I figure he won’t bother me after this.” Lawrie sounded calm, but I could hear his accelerated heartbeat.
“He touched you.”
“Before you almost ripped his arm off.”
“What did he say to you?”
“Asked me out again. I told him I was in a relationship. He didn’t believe me, I threatened him with HR, and then you showed up. I guess he believes me now.”
I grunted. The image of Burnes’s hand on Lawrie’s upper arm still made my blood boil.
“Unclench your teeth, Ernest.” Lawrie stroked my jaw, and I tore my gaze away from the door. His eyes were soft, lips curved into a smile. “I’m fine. Nothing happened.”
On an exhale, I managed to nod. Lawrie pulled my head down for a gentle kiss.
“Let’s go home.”
I inhaled his scent, willing myself to calm the hell down. My mate was safe. Except tomorrow, I’d have to leave him unprotected again with Burnes running around at large. The man was obviously losing his grip on himself, and who knew what he’d come up with if Davidson pushed him into a corner.
Hugging Lawrie around his shoulders, I pulled my phone out of my jacket pocket.
“Who are you calling?” Lawrie asked.
“Davidson.”
He frowned up at me. “Is it necessary? I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”
“I think he should know.”
“Ernest, I know you mean well, but…”
“Sorry, Lawrie, but this is serious. Burnes obviously has no boundaries. I’ll put us on speaker in the car so you’re not excluded from the conversation. But we can’t let this slide. How am I supposed to leave you alone in this building tomorrow?”
Lawrie studied me with narrow eyes. Then he squeezed them shut. “I hate feeling weak and exposed. I don’t want to need saving, Ernest.”
“We’ll deal with it together, okay?” I cupped his cheek, and he leaned into the touch.
“Okay. Just let me do the talking.”
We dialed Davidson from the car.
“Yes?” he barked.
“Davidson, hi. You’re on speaker.”
“Hello, Mr. Sullivan,” Lawrie chimed in.
I could hear Davidson’s steps echoing in what sounded like a long hallway. He must have been home already. “Lawrence. What’s it this time?”
“Why isn’t Burnes banned from the building yet?” I asked.
“I’ve been arguing with the board about it. Some people don’t want to stir up shit, fearing it would get out and damage the image of the company. Did you see him?”
“He bothered Lawrie again. I had to drag him away.”
“How bothered?”
I looked at Lawrie, and he braced himself with one arm on the console. “Mr. Burnes has approached me several times in the past. I have always assumed the motive behind his advances was to gather information about your activities.”
“Clarify, Lawrence. What advances?”
Wincing, Lawrie scratched his neck. “Sexual advances, sir. He asked me out several times and propositioned me in ways inappropriate for a workplace. I always said no or made excuses and left.”
“When did this happen for the first time?”
“A few weeks after I’d started as your assistant.”
“It’s been going on for a year? Why didn’t you tell me anything?” Davidson’s voice boomed in the car, and I opened my mouth to defend my mate, but Lawrie placed a hand on mine to silence me.
“You haven’t given me the impression you would take my side, sir. I assumed I’d lose my job if I complained about one of the co-owners harassing me. It would have been his word against mine.”
After a moment of silence, the phone crackled with Davidson’s loud sigh. “I apologize, Lawrence. I should have made sure you felt safe at the office.”
Lawrie jerked back and glanced at me with wide eyes. He pointed at the phone and mouthed, “Did you hear that?”
I shrugged. It seemed Davidson didn’t apologize often.
“Tonight, Mr. Burnes approached me again,” Lawrie continued. “But this time, he was outright threatening. I don’t know how far he would have gone because then Ernest appeared, and Mr. Burnes left.”
“Let me make some calls. They need to start taking it seriously.”
“I don’t want Lawrie to be left alone as long as Burnes is allowed into the building,” I said. Lawrie flashed me an annoyed look which I returned. He folded his arms over his chest and leaned back, slouching in the seat.
“No problem. He’ll be either with me or you.”
“Thank you, Davidson.”
We ended the call, and I drove us out of the garage. Lawrie was quiet as we navigated the evening traffic. I had to focus on the road and couldn’t read his face.
Soon, the frustration got to me. “How are you?”
“I’m okay.”
“I need you to be more specific, love.”
He snorted weakly. “Glad that Mr. Sullivan believes me. But I’m annoyed at the whole situation.”
“Why didn’t you want to speak up about the harassment, Lawrie? You could have gone to HR.”
“Sorry if I sound blunt, Ernest, but I don’t think a person who’s never been in this situation can really understand how it feels.
He had power over me, and up until tonight, he’s been careful both in choosing his target and timing.
Nobody ever witnessed our interactions. I was a junior employee with no connections and would have had to depend on people simply believing my word against his.
Telling anyone posed a much greater risk for me than it did for him. ”
“Davidson would have believed you.”
“Well, I had no reason to think that based on how he treated me.”
I gripped the steering wheel tighter. As usual, Lawrie was right.
“I’m so sorry, Lawrie.”
I glanced at him, but he was looking out of the window, his arms wrapped around himself protectively.
“You’re right. I don’t know how it feels to be this powerless. I’m sorry it happened to you.”
“It makes me furious you had to sweep in and save me, you know? I’m glad you did, but it pisses me off at the same time.”
I reached out to stroke his arm. To my relief, he grabbed my hand and squeezed it.
“You’re not angry with me?” I asked. “Is there something you wish I’d done differently?”
An excruciatingly long silence followed, and I struggled to keep my eyes on the road.
“No, Ernest. I’m glad you made me call Mr. Sullivan. The last person I told didn’t believe me, so it’s a relief to know you and Mr. Sullivan do trust me.”
That made me pause, and I slowed down, looking for a parking spot. This conversation needed my full attention.
“Who was that?” I asked when the vehicle was safely in the pocket and the motor turned off.
“My ex.”
Good thing I’d parked. “Do you want to tell me the whole story?”
Lawrie watched the passing traffic, so I could only see his profile. But his breathing and heartbeat revealed how much the memories pained him. My own heart thumped faster. There was more, wasn’t there?
“Before I met Timothy, I slept with a couple of guys in college, but nothing that lasted longer than a month. So he had been my only serious relationship before I met you. We had plenty of disagreements, but he was fun and charming when he chose to be, and I always forgave him. I was with him for my first heat, but he left me alone for the recovery, which should have been a red flag. But I’d just started a new job, and my dad had died…
I simply didn’t have the brain capacity to reevaluate my relationship. ”
Slouched in the car seat, he looked even smaller, and I ached to hold him. But something told me I should let him get it out first.
“The first time Burnes harassed me, I told Timothy, but he dismissed it completely. According to him, I was exaggerating and should take it as a compliment. When I insisted that Burnes’s behavior was inappropriate and made me wildly uncomfortable, Timothy threw a jealous tantrum, accusing me of having invited his advances. ”
I gripped the steering wheel. “What?”
“I should have broken up with him on the spot. But I slept on it, and the next day, I wondered if maybe I had somehow provoked Burnes. It took me a month to realize that under his charming exterior, Timothy was indeed a spineless piece of shit. One day, Burnes ‘accidentally’ grabbed my ass. I got so angry I went and broke up with Timothy. I didn’t explain why.
Just told him I was done.” The tight expression on Lawrie’s face suggested it hadn’t been as simple.
“And then you had to face Burnes for an additional year. Jesus, Lawrie…”
“I’ve been single since then.” He finally met my gaze and gave me a small, sad smile. “Trust issues.”
“I bet.”
“It might have been a part of the reason why I preferred dealing with Burnes on my own after that.”
I took his hands in mine, stroking his fingers. “I hope that, in time, I can alleviate those trust issues.”
“You’re getting there.”
He kissed my palm, and then he placed my hand back on the steering wheel.
“Now let’s go home.”
When we arrived, I drew Lawrie a bath. I massaged his scalp in the tub, and he almost fell asleep against my chest.
“Bed?” I asked.
“Uh-huh. Just need to brush my teeth.”
I waited for him in bed, and he snuggled right up to me. When he wiggled in my arms, I got hard. I couldn’t help it. Lawrie turned his head to face me, eyes glistening in the dark.
“You can fuck me…” he began, but I put my fingers over his lips. I’d smell it if he was aroused. He obviously wasn’t in the mood and only offered for my sake.
“Shh. You’re knackered. Don’t worry about me.”
I pulled him closer, so his naked ass cheeks pressed against my erection in a delicious, tantalizing way.
“Sleep, love.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yes.”
He stroked my thigh under the comforter, but then his movement slowed until he stilled, already drifting.
My cock throbbing, I reveled in my frustrated state. The power of my arousal blended with my visceral need to take care of my mate, and when I finally fell asleep, I dreamed only of Lawrie.
In the morning, I woke up from his warm mouth sliding over my dick.
“I love you, Lawrie,” I breathed out, barely awake but oh so happy.