“That’s actually … Perfectly accurate.” I whispered as relief coursed through me. He squeezed my hip.
I stood on my tiptoes and peeked over Michael’s shoulder. His tattoos swirled out of the neckline of his shirt, the ink seemingly alive as his veins pumped double time underneath. He was like a furnace ready to blow.
“She has come onto me time and time again.” Mr. Avery’s voice quavered. “I was simply informing her that I wasn’t the sort of man to cheat on my wife with an associate. That’s all this was.”
“You’re going to lie about my girl to my face?” Michael dropped his hand from my hip and advanced on Mr. Avery.
Mr. Avery stumbled backwards and landed heavily on his couch. Michael kept walking until he loomed over the other man.
“Michael, don’t hurt him.” I had never seen him so angry, every muscle in his body drawn so tight he practically vibrated with malice.
He stopped and stretched his fingers before balling them into fists. Mr. Avery cowered beneath him.
“If you ever treat Jess like anything less than a lawyer deserving of respect, I’ll come back here. Understand? For that matter, if I hear you’ve treated any associate the way you’ve treated my girl, I’ll be back.” He leaned down and stabbed his index finger in Mr. Avery’s face. “I asked you a question.”
“Y-yes, I understand.” Mr. Avery squeaked.
“Now, apologize to Jess.” Michael straightened and crossed his arms over his broad chest. “I’ll wait.”
Mr. Avery glanced to me and then dropped his gaze to the floor. “I’m sorry, Jess.”
“Good. Jess won’t be working for you any more, but I expect a stellar recommendation letter. If I hear any different, I’ll give you three guesses of what will happen.” Michael bored into Mr. Avery with his eyes. “Go on, guess.”
“You’ll be back.” The quaver in his voice had turned into a shudder. I wondered if he might piss himself. Mr. Avery likely wasn’t used to large, tattooed, pierced men with fauxhawks threatening him over his dirty deeds.
“That’s right.” Michael slapped Mr. Avery on the shoulder. The man jumped and paled. “You’re a quick study, Mr. Avery.”
Michael turned back to me, not giving another glance to my ghostly white boss.
“Come on. Let’s get your stuff and get the hell out of here.” He took my hand. It was only then I realized I’d been shaking. Was it with anger or fear? I couldn’t tell.
He pulled me into the hallway and stopped. “Which way to your office?”
He’d never visited me at work before, no matter how many times I’d begged him to come see me. He was too worried the stuffy attorneys would judge his appearance and hold it against me. Why had he chanced it tonight?
He ran his hand down my cheek, the concern in his eyes making me melt for him like I did on the first day we met. “You okay?”
“Now that you’re here, yes.” I placed my hand against his chest, feeling the rapid beat of his heart. “Thank you for not hurting him.”
He smirked and kissed my forehead. “He’s lucky you said something or I would be committing a felony right now.”
“Come on.” I pulled him down the hall, away from Mr. Avery. I didn’t want to risk any more run-ins.
It didn’t take long to pack my few personal items. I hated giving up my job, especially when it was Mr. Avery’s fault, but I couldn’t stay here. I knew that much. Michael tucked my framed diplomas under his arm and I carried a small box of my belongings. I stood in the doorway for a few seconds, saying goodbye to my closet-sized, windowless office.
Michael wrapped his arm around my waist. “I’m sorry this happened. It’s not fair.”
“It’s okay.” I blinked back my tears. There were other jobs, ones that didn’t come with a dickhead for a boss. I leaned against him.
“It’s not, but it will be. I promise. You’re a catch for any firm in this town. You’ll have another job in no time.”
“You always say the right thing.” I smiled up at him. “You do the right thing, too.”
He tensed for a moment, then led me down the corridor toward the elevators.
“Let’s get home. Put this shit behind us. We have a wedding, a honeymoon, and a staggering amount of sex in our imminent future.”
I laughed as we walked into the elevator. “I love you.”
He leaned down and kissed my neck beneath my ear, sending goose bumps down my body. “I love you, too.”
Michael
I held her close, breathing in her scent after I’d sated her that night. I needed to tell her about what happened with Sadie, but she was so shaken up about the shit her boss pulled that I didn’t want to make it any worse.