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Natalie on her knees, taking my cock as she sucks Finn off, her dark, sweaty curls tangling over her shoulders. She’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen and I thank God for the thousandth time I get to see her like this, for however long it lasts.
“What do you think, Nic?”
I blink away the memory, coming back to the present. Four other guys, only two of whom I actually know, are standing around me, staring, waiting for an answer.
“Say again? It’s loud in here.” Lucky for me, that’s true. We’ve been in here an hour, and the place is already packed with too many suits blowing off too much steam. At least three trays of shots have made the rounds, and those were just the ones I saw.
I get it—cutting loose with people who know what your job is like. Kindred spirits, whatever. But this has never been my scene. Work and play don’t mix, not for somebody like me. Not if you want to keep any of your secrets.
“There you are, Nic!” Dad’s voice booms behind me, his big hand clapping me on the shoulder. Reason number one I wasn’t excited about this event tonight.
“Hi, Dad. Hey, Tucker,” I add, greeting the man who comes up with Dad.
“Pendy Junior!” says my former classmate. “Long time no see.”
I’m not known as Junior, but that’s never stopped Tucker. His dad and mine go way back, and Tucker’s always quick to remind me of it.
“Didn’t see you at the golf scramble this weekend,” says Dad. “Everything okay?”
“Just tied up with work,” I say blandly. I’d flat-out forgotten about it.
Tied up—added to the list. I wonder if Natalie and Finn are back from dinner yet. It’s only been an hour, but they might be in a hurry.
Christ. Get a grip, Nic.
Tucker laughs. “I think you’ve forgotten how to have friends, man. Now and then, we’re supposed to call each other, check in, see how things are going.”
Tucker’s a friend—of sorts—from law school, though as friendships go, the foundation leaves a little to be desired. We survived 1L together, and that’s a bond you can’t break. Like a good son, he went and joined his own father’s law firm across town.
“You’re still at that little office in the Sizzle building, yeah? A little birdie told me you’ve got some help these days.”
Tucker nudges Dad with his elbow. Dad raises his glass, tapping it to Tucker’s beer bottle. A knot forms in my stomach.
“You need a subcontractor or something? I can forward you some recommendations,” I say, deliberately misinterpreting his comment. Tucker laughs again. This time it takes on an edge I don’t care for.
“No, man. Your dad’s been talking about some pretty little thing you’ve got working for you these days. He’s been going on about her for weeks. She must really be something. Thought maybe I’d swing by and introduce myself.” He wags his eyebrows, grinning like an asshole. My jaw clenches hard enough to crack.
I want to tell him she’s taken. I want to tell him she’s mine and that she’s been mine from day one. But she’s not, not really. Not mine any more than she’s Finn’s because if she’s anything, she’s ours.
What the damn hell would happen if Tucker, Dad, or anybody else I know found out I was not only dating my personal assistant but sharing her with another man?
If this thing between us got out, I’d never get another client, not in a town this conservative. God only knows what they’d say at Legal Aid. There’s no law against unconventional relationships—at least, not like ours. Not that this is a relationship.
I close my eyes, staving off the rising panic.
I have no idea how the other volunteers at Legal Aid would respond. We’ve always gotten along quite well, but that might change if they know more about my personal life. Half of those people are here tonight. I picture Tucker’s face if he found out—there goes my invitation to the annual alumni cruise. Hell, most of my colleagues in the area would cut me off, if only to avoid pissing off my father.
Tucker and Dad are joined by a couple of lackeys from Tucker’s office, sycophants who want to hear my dad’s opinions on some case that made the regional news. I couldn’t care less.
Everybody in this bar tonight would shut me out if this… thing with Finn and Natalie was made public. Bad enough, I’d be dating my personal assistant; they’d let that one slide. It’s practically tradition. Like father, like son.
My stomach turns at the thought.
It’d be uglier if they found out Natalie was dating us both. Uglier still if they found out Finn and I were together.
The knot in my stomach grows. The raucous noise fades into the background. Three guys standing at the bar, identical in their suits, nobody I recognize or care about in the slightest, have their heads tipped together just close enough they can gossip about me, like I’m not standing right fucking here, their eyes darting at me then away when they realize I can see them.
Between the space of two heartbeats, it dawns on me: I don’t know what they’re saying. And it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter in the slightest. I haven’t done a goddamned thing, and people are going to gossip no matter what. Not just those guys—every damn body on the planet. Why should I worry about what they say about me? Some of it’ll be true, most of it won’t; that’s just the nature of gossip.
