CHAPTER TWO
Linc
“M r. Thorne, I’m heading out for the evening.
Is there anything I can get you before I go?
” Ruby, my ever-efficient secretary, asks.
She’s been with me from the beginning and was my first hire after Olivia, my business partner, when I started Thorne Law Firm.
She is fifty-eight and has three grandkids who she gushes about on the daily.
Her desk is littered with photos and finger paintings.
“No, that will be all, Ruby. Have a great weekend and kiss those grandbabies,” I say as I press the button on the phone to respond.
The thought of babies makes me cringe slightly. I’ve never thought of myself having kids with the lifestyle that I’ve grown accustomed to. My life consists of work, sex, more work and buying the latest toy for my car collection, or something else to get my adrenaline pumping.
“You too, Mr. Thorne. Don’t forget you’re meeting Mr. Levi and Reid for drinks in thirty minutes.”
“Got it,” I answer, not letting her know that I’m really meeting up with a woman I met just hours earlier.
Levi, my brother, is tagging along after chatting with him on my way from the courthouse earlier back to my office.
I’d told him I’d met his future sister-in-law and that I was meeting up with her later this evening.
Him being the nosy prick that he is, decided to meet me there as well, to see the woman who brought me to my bachelor knees—his words not mine.
He also called our cousin, who we think of as our brother, Reid, and shared the news to him.
She says her goodbye and my office goes silent once again.
Shutting down my computer, I gather up my case files and lock them away for tomorrow.
I’ve got no plans this weekend so working on a Saturday and Sunday is nothing new for me.
I’ve got a huge case next and can’t afford to get behind.
My client has been accused of murdering two people and I think I’ve got just what I need to get him off and have the entire case thrown out of court.
The elevator dings and I step out into the garage that hosts my Limited-Edition Bugatti.
She is my favorite baby and I only get her out on Fridays, when I know I’m going out on the town.
Being photographed and my face splashed across every outlet on a weekly basis is part of being a high-powered attorney, so making sure to arrive in style is something that is expected of me.
Los Angeles traffic is absolutely horrendous, so when we hang out, I make sure Levi and Reid always pick a place close to where we live. We usually avoid the crowd on Friday nights, but I’ve got a date with an angel, and I’d meet her anywhere she wanted.
One thing I love about LA is that just about every place has valet parking. Tossing my keys to the guy, I slip him a hundred dollars, telling him to make sure she stays in the same shape as I’m leaving her, and to keep her parked in front of the bar for an easy getaway when we’re done here.
“Lincoln!” I hear my name being yelled as I walk in and see both Levi and Reid sitting on a stool in the middle of the bar. They are already halfway through their pints of beer as I approach my brothers.
“Hey bro.” We greet each other the same way we’ve always done, a hard man hug.
One thing I always love about Reid is that he is never jealous of me or Levi for coming into his family and stealing some of the attention of his parents.
He welcomed us with open arms and never thought of us as anything other than his brother.
Of course, we fight like cats and dogs, but at the end of the day, we know he is our best friend.
“I see you couldn’t wait for the evening to start.” I nod towards their almost empty glasses.
“Well, I never know if you’ll be held up with a case or not.” Levi shrugs and waves down the bartender. “Plus I wanted to get here early so that we could talk more about this woman you think you are going to marry.”
“Not a lot to tell but that she’s perfect,” I say. “Came out of the courtroom after scoring another big win off of Button’s and there she was.”
“Just like that,” Levi scoffs.
“The light filtered through the window above us and it looked as though she was an angel standing there with a halo around her head. Stopped me straight in my tracks.” The bartender pours my draft beer in a mug then slides it over the countertop.
After taking a gulp I set it down and say, “Felt like my life was never going to be the same.”
“Now that is going to make Grandma happy to hear,” Reid says, then waves for another drink.
Thirty minutes later, the game showing on the wall behind the bar is halfway over and the crowd has finally calmed down for halftime.
I still have another twenty minutes before Everly is supposed to be here but I’m anxious that she might stand me up.
The door chimes and I happen to look over as Levi is telling me the latest real estate property he’s looking to purchase while Reid is talking sports with the guy next to him.
Have you ever had a moment in your life where your life starts a reel like in the movies? You can just picture everything in the order it’s going to happen. You stop breathing as if you’re suspended in midair waiting for the clock to be reset. This is that moment for me. Again .
She mesmerizes me and something about her draws me in. It’s like she has this aura around her, letting everyone in the bar know she is something special. My breath stalls in those few seconds as I watch her giggle at something her friend is saying.
Hook.
Line.
Sinker.
Even her giggle sets me on a dreamy path. It’s like seeing her for the first time.
She is wearing a white mini dress that fits her like a glove with tall heels.
Even from here I can tell she was a shorty with those skyscraper shoes on.
She stands at most five-two against my six-two easily but those legs look like they go on for days.
Her chest is heavy and just barely showing the tops of her perfectly perky tits that fill out the top of the dress.
She has the fullest pink lips that I’d like to bite between my teeth.
When she wets her lips with her bubblegum tongue, I know I’m a goner.
Her smile lights up the entire bar and her hazel eyes shine brightly against her chocolate-colored hair.
Reid snaps his fingers in my face, bringing me out of my trance.
I know that she is something special and I’ll be damned if she is going to leave here with some asshole; other than me, of course.
I’ll find a way to make her mine. During the day, I’m built to negotiate and persuade people to see things my way and she’ll be no different.
No, I saw her first this afternoon and there isn’t any other outcome that is going to be acceptable.
I am Lincoln Thorne, the wealthiest attorney in the city, and I run this town.
So, what does a good looking thirty-four-year-old guy who has the world at his fingertips do?
I leave my brothers in the dust and make my way over to where she and her friends are all congregating.
Normally, I have a contingency plan in place for every occasion.
I am a scheduled person, structure is my life, but this little slip of a woman set my mapped-out life up in flames.
All it took was one look into her bright hazel eyes and I knew she was mine.
The look she gave me when we were almost nose to nose tells me that she is just as captivated as me.
That what we were feeling at the courthouse wasn’t a one-time thing.
“You have plans for the next sixty-five years?” The words are spilling out of me before I can stop them. I am never one to seek out women, they always find and pursue me.
“She isn’t interested buddy,” her friend, who she came in with, spouts waving me away, but I ignore her and keep my eyes focused on my future wife.
“I think I might,” she wiggles her eyebrows and I can tell her heart rate is racing from the pulsing vein in her neck. I am good at reading people for a living and she is going to be all mine.
“What’s your name, angel?” I ask even though we already know each other.
“Everly,” she says, playing along.
“Well, Everly, I’m Lincoln Thorne.”
“I’m glad you came,” she says, stepping closer to me as the crowded bar around us gets louder. “I didn’t really think you’d show up.”
“Let’s go across the street to the quiet coffee bar and get a drink. Then we can discuss how our future together is going to pan out.”
And it’s that simple. She tells her friends bye, much to the protest of her group of friends, and I guide her out of the bar and across the street to a small coffee shop, leaving behind all the noise.
We order at the counter and I stand back and watch how she greets and speaks with each person she comes in contact with.
Her smile never falters as she engages with the employees.
“So, Everly, where have you been all my life?”
“Do all those lines really work on women?” she asks as our coffee is delivered to the little half circular booth in the corner. We’re so close our thighs are touching.
“Not sure. You’re the first one I’ve ever said that to.” She rolls her eyes and I can’t help but chuckle. “Really, it’s true. I’ve never used a line on a woman before now.”
“Well, then you might need a little more practice, Casanova.”
We both sip our hot coffee a bit and I can’t help but enjoy her presence. She brings a bit of fresh air and is like no other woman I’ve had contact with, and I’ve had a lot of women in my presence.
“So, when you’re not out with your friends, what occupies your time?”
“I’m a massage therapist at a spa here in town.”