Adam’s week had been a goddamn train wreck.

When he’d decided to become a lawyer, he’d had grand dreams. He’d imagined himself winning high-profile cases and defending huge clients. He’d imagined that he could make partner easily if he just put in the dedication and the hard work.

And when Samuel Nash and William Forest, the partners of Nash & Forest, the law firm where Adam worked, were rumored to be looking for a new partner—well, Adam just had to get that coveted spot. He worked all year to prove himself, going the extra mile and pitching in, helping to mentor the paralegals and double-checking statements for his coworkers. He had to show that he was not only a great lawyer but a good leader.

He hadn’t really slept properly in a year, but hey, it would all be worth it once he got that promotion.

When his boss, Nash, had called Adam into his office on Monday morning, Adam had dared to hope. He’d thought that maybe, just maybe, this was finally going to happen.

Nash apparently had very different ideas.

“We’re thinking of opening a partner firm in Chicago,” Nash told him. “We have a lot of big clients from there and we want someone who can be there permanently to liaison.”

He hadn’t come right out and told Adam that he was transferring him to the godforsaken Midwest, but if he wasn’t, then why else would he choose Adam to be the one to handle this particular case?

Perhaps that fear was why he wasn’t happy about working this particular case. The clients, a Mr. and Mrs. John Harper, were trying to gain custody of their grandson. It looked like a pretty open and shut case, so long as Adam played his cards right with the judge.

His meeting with the Harpers on Tuesday, however, hadn’t gone as well as he’d originally hoped.

First the Harpers—John and Wendy—had started out by asking why they weren’t meeting with Nash or Forest.

“They’re the named partners,” Mrs. Harper said. “We were assured that we would be handled by the best, not by one of their assistants.”

The Harpers were the kind of people who not only came from money but made sure that you knew it, from the way they talked to the way they dressed. They were none too shy about showing their feeling of superiority over Adam, either, despite Adam’s law degree from Yale and distinguished case history. It had reminded Adam far too much of when he’d first gotten to college from the inner city, surrounded by preppy kids who’d never once had to worry about the sounds of violence down the block or where their next meal might come from.

“I understand your concern,” Adam replied, even though really, an assistant? That was what they thought he was? “I can assure you that I’m a senior member of the firm and I’ve handled many delicate cases such as this one. Nash and Forest are the best at what they do and they only hire and train the best. They wouldn’t have passed you to me if they didn’t think I’d be the best one for the job.”

The Harpers hadn’t looked all that convinced, but Mr. Harper had then decided to nitpick something else:

“There’s nothing delicate about this case,” he said. “The boy belongs with his proper family, with us.”

One could argue, and in fact Adam did want to argue, that the boy’s brother was also his proper family... but that wasn’t Adam’s job. If someone was going to be talked out of a case, that was Nash or Forest’s job. That was why they were the bosses. Adam’s job was to nod, take notes, and basically reassure his clients that he was doing everything for them.

“I’ve looked into things,” he told them, handing them some files. “And yes, it appears that Luke Markum did originally have some charges against him.”

“You see?” Mrs. Harper said. She gestured at the files without even really looking at them. “Honestly, what do you expect from a hick such as that? Poor Seth will end up the same way, if there is no proper intervention.”

Her superior, pitying tone grated on Adam’s nerves, but he tried not to let it show. These were well-paying clients. He had to remember that.

If only someone had told him that being a lawyer was often eerily similar to working in sales.

“Well, Mrs. Harper, if you look at the files you’ll see that the charges here were due to pranks.” Adam tapped the files he’d passed them. “They were all recorded by the local sheriff. You’ll see in his personal notes, which he was kind enough to add to elaborate on the official files, that these were what we can honestly call boys being boys. Nobody was hurt, and all these so-called crimes stopped after high school. His record’s clean since then.”

“Just because the sheriff got a soft spot for the guy instead of arresting him like he should have doesn’t mean he stopped,” Mr. Harper snapped. “And how do we know he didn’t just get better at hiding his part in further crimes?”

“Sir, this all looks a lot more like typical childhood rebellion,” Adam pointed out.

“And we all know where that leads to,” Mr. Harper replied.

Adam did not, in fact, know where it led to, but saying that would have been the fastest way to get himself off the case and into his boss’s office for a disciplinary meeting.

Thing was, he could easily spin these charges to make it seem like Luke Markum was unfit to take care of Seth. If Luke got hold of a competent lawyer however, that lawyer would be able to point out the same things that Adam had.

“What about their finances?” Mr. Harper asked. “They’ve been struggling for years.”

“Our poor Lyla,” Mrs. Harper said. “She must have struggled, poor thing. She was used to being taken care of, you know, as a woman should be. Then she goes and marries a man with a falling-down bar—populated by the most uneducated bundle of small-town hicks—she must have lived in constant frustration.”

Adam sighed. “The finances are where we’ll be able to hit the hardest, and I don’t just mean in terms of hiring lawyers, although that is something to consider. I doubt Luke will be able to afford someone and you’ve hired the best in the city. However, aside from that, it does look like there could be a case for Luke being unable to provide a stable financial environment for Seth.”

The town where Luke and Seth Markum lived had steadily become more and more of a suburb of Chicago. That meant the developers were hovering like vultures, eager to swoop in and pick off whatever they could. Several proposals had been submitted to the city for the development of the land that included a bar registered to Luke Markum, but so far, the development had been halted because Luke wouldn’t sell the land.

Adam explained all of this to the Harpers. “This will work in your favor. I can possibly see about getting the developers to increase their pressure but either way, Luke is going to be in tough financial straits. My research also shows that Luke dropped out of college in his senior year, six months ago.”

This obviously must have been to take care of his younger brother, seeing as Luke had dropped out three days after the plane crash. Still…

“Luke has also had to add on an extra semester of college before he dropped out, and he took a gap year in between high school and college.” Adam passed them the paper with Luke’s educational records. “That’s something we can use, a potential lack of commitment.”

“And we’ll definitely win?” Mr. Harper asked.

“We don’t like to tell clients that they’ll definitely win or lose,” Adam replied automatically. “We don’t want you walking in acting too smug. Judges hate that, but I can say that this looks to be an easy open and shut case.”

Especially with all of the money on the side of the Harpers.

“It ought to be,” Mrs. Harper said, “with what we’re paying you.”

Ah, nothing like being made to feel beholden to another being to get his week started out great.

“I’ll fly out to get some more information and serve the papers,” Adam told them. “Please, look over the files, see if there’s any information that you can think of that we can use. We at Nash & Forest appreciate you choosing us as your lawyers.”

Despite his reassurances to the Harpers, something about this was just… irking him.

Adam figured it was the whole flying out to Chicago thing to deal with this. This was why Nash had given him the case. Adam was sure of it. It was supposed to be a chance for him to start getting used to the area.

Of course, the Harpers weren’t the most pleasant of clients. They were the kind of people who were rich and powerful and knew it, and therefore were used to always getting their way.

Adam wasn’t exactly fond of those kinds of people. There was a way to be rich without being a jerk about it. But, they were his clients and they were paying the firm a ton of money, so what else was he supposed to do? If he didn’t put his full dedication into this case, it would only reflect badly on him to his boss. It would say he didn’t have a good work ethic. And, as annoyed as he was with the idea that they might be shoving him off to open a Chicago branch, he couldn’t afford to be seen as anything less than perfect at his job. The lawyer world was too cutthroat for that.

Who knew, maybe if he proved how good he was, Nash and Forest would realize that Adam was indispensable and keep him in New York.

Still. Given a new case on Monday, meeting with the unpleasant Harpers on Tuesday… and then spending the next two days getting all of his shit together to fly out to Chicago on Friday. Ugh.

He called his friend Enid, who worked in Chicago as a lawyer and specialized in family law. “What should I pack?”

“You’re seriously asking me what you should pack.”

“Yes?”

“I don’t know, check the five-day forecast. The weather here isn’t all that different from the weather in NYC.”

“Says you.”

“Yes, yes, the Midwest is where culture goes to die and all that. But c’mon, while you’re out here, let me take you out for a night on the town. I can show you how fun and cultured Chicago actually is.”

“You know I don’t like clubs.”

Enid made a kind of strangled snorting noise. Adam could easily picture her face, her nose scrunched up as she rolled her eyes. “Honestly, I don’t know why you’d protest at being in Chicago rather than New York when you don’t even take advantage of the crazy NYC nightlife. You homebody. This could be fun! I could take you out and you could finally meet someone!”

Adam sighed. “We’ve been over this, I don’t need to meet someone.”

“Yes, you do, you just need to meet someone who’s not a stuck-up prick,” Enid replied.

“Well I’m not looking for a one night stand, either.”

“Okay, fine. Look, I know this guy, he’s not a lawyer or a banker, he works at the coffee shop down the—”

Adam paused in his search to find one of his favorite ties. “You are not trying to set me up with a barista from your favorite coffee shop.”

He could practically hear Enid flapping her hands in excitement and frustration. “You’ve said it yourself that you want a relationship!”

“How the hell am I going to have a relationship with someone when they’re in Chicago and I’m in New York?” Adam replied, pretending that he wasn’t possibly about to be transferred to Chicago. It wasn’t like anything was set in stone yet.

“You won’t let me set you up, you’re tired of those blue blood dates, and you won’t do a one night stand. How the hell are you going to find someone to date, then?”

Adam rolled his eyes. He wasn’t about to have another argument about his dating life. “Can’t I just email you the papers, then you can print them and serve them?”

“Is that even legal?”

Adam paused. “Um…”

“Get your lazy ass on the plane and I’ll buy you dinner, okay?”

“Fine. Give my love to Jillian.” Enid’s fiancé was a journalist. Adam didn’t know which of them scared him more—Enid with her fiery attitude and hatred of the patriarchy or Jillian’s unshakeable cheerfulness. Luckily, he also adored them.

“Will do.”

Adam surveyed the mess of clothes that was now his bedroom. He could just go with a couple of his most comfortable suits, right?

Wrong.

His flight getting delayed was bad enough. He had to text Enid and let her know that he wouldn’t be able to make it to dinner and that he’d let her know what his new schedule was so that they could meet up another time. Then, when he tried to look up the bar that Luke owned and worked at—Joe’s—to find out what time it closed to see if he could actually serve Luke the papers before the guy left for the night, he found that the place had no website or anything.

What business operated in this day and age and didn’t have a website? No wonder Luke’s finances were a mess.

Adam managed to get a taxi and figured he could just stop by the bar anyway. It wasn’t too late, maybe he could make last call? It would be better for everyone if he served Luke the papers without anyone else around, anyway.

But of course, it was pouring rain out, and he got splashed by a car while waiting for the taxi and of course the airline had lost his luggage so he had no spare clothes and of course Enid was texting him a picture of the barista “just in case” he changed his mind.

Adam was absolutely stewing in a bad mood by the time he got his taxi and was headed out of Chicago and into the suburbs.

Okay, Enid did have a point; he was lonely. He’d confessed to her, all the way back in their first year at Yale Law together, that he wanted to find a really nice guy to settle down with. Adam had lost his mom in a hit and run when he was sixteen, and with his dad never in the picture to begin with, since then he’d been on his own. Not that a boyfriend could replace his mom, of course, that wasn’t what he was looking for. He wanted to create his own family.

Since then, every single guy he’d tried to date had just been… pretentious, was a good word for it. They never got Adam’s sense of humor, for one thing, always thinking he was being serious when he was actually joking. Then they’d get offended and Adam would have to explain, and then of course there was the apologizing… or, more fun than that, Adam would have to sit and listen to his date yammer on about the stock market, who had been at who’s party in the Hamptons, what guy was cheating on his wife with his secretary (as if that was something original), and so on.

The fact was that in becoming a successful lawyer at a high-powered firm, Adam was realizing, he’d found himself surrounded by snobs. So all the men that he came across who asked him out were also snobs.

It was exhausting.

But he’d never been very popular at law school for a reason—he wasn’t very good at being social. He wasn’t a party type. He didn’t like going out to clubs, as he’d told Enid. The idea of going out to a bar to try and find someone, or dancing with a stranger at a club, or trying (he shuddered inwardly) a dating app or matchmaking service made him feel panicked.

He couldn’t impress or even easily befriend the people that he worked with on a daily basis. How was he supposed to impress someone he’d just met?

Enid had never seen it that way. She thought that Adam was supposed to be aggressive in finding someone that he wanted to be with. Enid had been aggressive, so to speak, going out to bars routinely and accepting almost every mixer or social occasion invitation she’d gotten until she’d met Jillian. Adam just wanted something… easy. He wanted someone he clicked with, someone who got his sense of humor and who, for once in his life, actually turned Adam on. He wanted that sizzling, weak-at-the-knees kind of feeling.

Ugh. What was he doing, thinking about this in a cab ride as he went to serve papers to a guy late at night? He needed to focus.

Then of course, thanks to what his life was this week, some god or fate having a laugh at him, the cab took him to the wrong place and he ended up having to walk to the bar in the pouring rain no less.

He looked like a real professional right now, Adam thought sarcastically. He also still had to find a hotel or something to check into for the night. How would that look? “Hello, here are your papers. Also, can you recommend a great local bed and breakfast?”

Then he took one look at Luke and, well, all thoughts of doing his job went out the window.

The guy was gorgeous. Maybe Adam should have found a way to look Luke up and figure out what he looked like, but he’d thought it wouldn’t be necessary. Just go into the bar, ask for the owner, shouldn’t be too difficult. Then he saw Luke in person and thought, oh God, please be the assistant. Please be some hired bartender.

He’d give anything for this tall, blonde, broad-shouldered guy to be someone other than the guy his clients were suing. He looked like he was built to play football, the kind of person who could easily manhandle Adam around—not that Adam had really thought much about that idea until this moment, but apparently he had a kink or two he hadn’t previously known about.

This man being gorgeous was really Adam’s only excuse for stuttering like an idiot and asking to dry off instead of demanding to see the owner like he should have. He’d been clinging a little to the hope that maybe, just maybe, this guy wasn’t Luke Markum. Then he’d introduced himself, and that hope had been blown to shreds. This was definitely Luke.

Adam quickly got out of his wet, clinging clothes inside the back office. The old heater was working away, warming him up quickly, and he draped his clothes over it to help. Goddammit. Not only did Luke just have to be gorgeous, but he had to actually be a nice person as well? It seemed like he was flirting with Adam, too—but that was probably just his imagination, right?

Luke came back just as Adam was finishing getting his wet clothes off. Adam felt a little self-conscious, instinctively folding his arms and wishing he was standing around in something other than his underwear.

“These might be a little big,” Luke said apologetically, as he handed the clothes over. “But they’re comfy.”

Was it just his imagination, or was Luke checking him out? Adam blushed as he tried to avoid looking at Luke, those broad shoulders and gray-blue eyes far too tempting when Adam was like this. He was tired, half-naked, and stuck in a room with a gorgeous man… and he couldn’t do anything about it.

Yeah, somebody somewhere was laughing at him.

Sure enough, the sweat pants and t-shirt that Luke had gotten for him were a little large. The shirt fell off his shoulder a bit, and the pants hung low at his hips, but they were comfy—and they smelled nice. Woodsy, sort of. It was a deep, comforting scent.

He was probably just reacting this way because he hadn’t had a boyfriend in too long.. Adam shook his head, shaking the water out of his hair and trying to get a grip on himself.

He turned, only to see Luke was definitely looking at him. The other man’s gaze was hungry, his eyes darkened, and his lips were slightly parted. They looked slick and wet, plush and definitely, infinitely biteable.

Adam quickly looked away, feeling his face heat up. Arousal curled low in his stomach, but he had to ignore it—no matter how flattered he was that someone like Luke was showing interest in him.

“Do you live nearby?” Luke asked, his voice a little lower and rougher than before.

“I’m just in town on business,” Adam replied. This was the perfect opening to talk about who he was and why he was there. It just didn’t feel right though, not when Luke had just lent him clothes and let him dry off by the heater.

“You got a place to stay?” Luke asked. “I can give you a ride, we’ve got a couple motels around here.”

“That’s—you really don’t have to.” Adam could feel guilt curling up in his stomach, erasing his arousal. “Honestly, I’ll be fine.”

“No, really, it’s no problem.” Luke bit his lip, like he was coming to a decision. Adam’s eyes were helplessly drawn to the movement. “Anything for a handsome guy like you.”

Luke’s eyes flicked upwards, and Adam’s breath caught in his throat at the heated look they carried. Okay, so it had been a long time, yes, but nobody—nobody—had ever made heat flare up inside of him so quickly, and with just a look.

“I’m not—” Adam fumbled. He wasn’t used to men openly complimenting him like this. Most of his dates acted like he ought to be thanking them for going out with him. “Thanks,” he finished, feeling lame.

Luke chuckled. “You’re not used to compliments?”

Adam shrugged. “Pretty much.”

“You’re cute when you blush.” Luke took a small step closer. “Well, if you’re not used to being complimented, I guess I’ll just have to help you get used to that?” He paused, considering. “If you’re comfortable with that. I don’t want to overstep.”

Adam laughed. “Sorry—I shouldn’t have—it’s been a long day.” He thought about that. “Long week, actually.”

He bit his lip. He shouldn’t, he really shouldn’t, but… Luke was gorgeous and flirting with him, and Adam wanted to squirm under the intensity and heat in Luke’s gaze. “But I’m not used to compliments, no. And… you haven’t overstepped.”

Luke grinned at him, like Adam had just given Luke a present. “Got you this, too.” He held up a small towel.

Adam expected Luke to hand it to him, but instead he dropped the towel over Adam’s head and toweled Adam’s hair dry himself. Adam was too surprised to do more than stand there, letting Luke carefully scrub the water from his hair—which was now undoubtedly a mess, the gel gone and his hair sticking up in tufts. Luke’s hands were warm and firm, and soon he wasn’t so much drying Adam’s hair as massaging his scalp, working warmth back into him. Adam found himself instinctively leaning into his touch, groaning a little as some of the tension that had been building up inside of him all day eased. He heard an answering rumble, like Luke was trying to hold in a laugh.

When Luke gently took the towel away, they just stared at each other for a moment, only a few inches apart. Luke was barely half an inch taller than Adam, but it was just enough that Adam had to look up into his eyes. Luke’s gaze drifted downward, looking over Adam’s body, then moved back up again to lock eyes with him.

“You look good in my clothes.” His lips quirked upward in something between a smile and a smirk. “You’re blushing again.”

“If you’re going to insist on complimenting me, then it’s going to keep happening,” Adam replied, feeling equal parts turned on and embarrassed.

“Guess I’ll just have to keep at it. You look adorable right now.”

Adam rolled his eyes. “I’m not adorable.”

“With your hair all sticking up? Yeah, might want to look in a mirror.”

Adam could feel himself blushing furiously. Adorable was not exactly the word he wanted used to describe him in front of a hot guy. Luke just chuckled again. “How are your clothes?”

“Oh.” Adam had forgotten about them. He went and checked—still damp. “Might be a couple more minutes.”

“I’m sure we could think of a way to pass the time.”

Adam should say—he really should stop this, he should say no. There was a way to pass the time, but it wasn’t how Luke was planning. He should serve him the papers, and just deal with the awkwardness. Luke’s tone was so rich and deep though that Adam shivered involuntarily in response. Then he shivered again—and realized how cold he still was.

“Still cold?” Luke looked genuinely a little concerned.

Adam nodded. “Sorry. Do you have a blanket or something?”

“I’ve got a better idea. C’mere.” Luke sat down on the couch and held out his hand.

It was against his better judgment, but Adam gave into his desire and took the outstretched hand. He could feel the calluses on it, calluses that Adam, working a desk job, certainly didn’t have, and he shivered again.

Luke pulled him in gently, settling Adam against his side and then wrapping an arm around Adam’s waist. Fuck, he was warm. Adam just wanted to burrow into him, to let some of that warmth seep into his still-cold skin. Luke was solid too, obviously a guy who worked out. There was no give to the muscle that Adam could now feel pressed against him.

They sat like that for a moment, Luke quietly warming him up, Adam with his head on Luke’s shoulder, torn between wanting to sink further into the sensation and running far, far away. It was comfortable... far too comfortable. It had been so long though since he’d touched someone else like this, or had someone touch him, that his body was screaming for more.

“I’m about to do something either very rewarding or very stupid,” Luke admitted. His face turned, his nose brushing the curve of Adam’s cheek, and Adam knew what Luke was going to do.

He pulled away, slightly, but enough that Luke paused. “We shouldn’t.”

“You don’t want to?” Luke asked, eyes searching Adam’s face for clarification.

“No, I…” I’m the lawyer for your stepmom’s parents. I’m here to serve you papers. I’m here to fight you about your brother. “I’m a stranger you just met.”

Fuck. Dammit. How Adam was going to be able to look at himself in the mirror in the morning, he didn’t know.

Luke gave him a definite smirk this time. “Trust me, you’re far from the first stranger I’ve met.” His smirk widened. “Definitely the best looking, though... unless you’re a serial killer or something?”

“Yeah, I’m wanted by the FBI, thought it might make things awkward later,” Adam responded instinctively.

To his surprise, Luke laughed, catching on that it was a joke despite Adam’s dry, flat tone. Most people thought that Adam was insulting them, but Luke got the humor. “Okay, now I just have to kiss you.”

Before Adam could even begin to think of a response to that, Luke leaned in and slid his lips over Adam’s.

Everything short-circuited. Adam gasped instinctively, his lips moving of their own accord, and then Luke groaned deep in his chest and pressed in closer.

Damn, Luke was a good kisser. Probably got a lot of practice, the treacherous part of Adam’s brain thought. Luke probably had every guy in town lining up to get a chance with someone like him. Then Luke slid his hand up to the back of Adam’s head to tilt him, changing the angle of the kiss, and all thoughts, self-deprecating and otherwise, flew out of Adam’s head. Luke kissed with a single-mindedness and sensuality that Adam had never experienced. It was like Luke was pouring all of himself into the kiss. It stole Adam’s breath away.

Adam clutched at Luke’s shoulders, pulling him closer as their tongues slid together, ramping up the heat inside of Adam’s body. Luke pulled back, gasping, only to dive back down and nuzzle at Adam’s throat. He all but hauled Adam up into his lap, and Adam spread his legs to settle down even further.

Fuck, this was so wrong. He was violating so many client-attorney rules right now. But it just felt so damn good. Luke’s hands were all over him, sliding up under his borrowed t-shirt, and he had Luke’s solid body under him, between his legs, pressing up against him. It felt like he was slowly melting into Luke, and he knew he should stop, but he couldn’t seem to muster up the ability to actually make it happen.

“You should have seen yourself,” Luke growled, sinking his teeth into Adam’s shoulder and making him arch up as pleasure spiked through him. “Your clothes clinging to you like that. I wanted to rip them off you.”

“I looked like a drowned rat,” Adam replied, his snappy words losing their bite as he all but gasped them out.

“You looked like a goddamn model,” Luke shot back, and then they were kissing again and Adam could only whimper helplessly into Luke’s mouth.

They kept kissing, hands roaming, until Adam felt like he was all but writhing on Luke’s lap. He felt hot all over, like his skin was a size too small, and it was all he could do to hold on and enjoy the best make-out session of his life.

Of course, that was the moment the heater spluttered.

The sound wasn’t much—it wasn’t like the heater was catching fire or anything—but it jolted Adam back to reality. This was Luke Markum, the guy his clients were suing. This was—this was wrong in so many ways, so unprofessional. He could get fired over this, to say nothing of what Luke would think once he found out who Adam really was.

Adam scrambled upwards and backwards, managing to detangle himself from Luke and staggering to his feet, taking a few unsteady steps backwards. “Sorry, I can’t, I can’t, I—”

“Luke?”

Another, much younger male voice came wafting in from the bar. Luke jumped to his feet, straightening himself out. Adam did his best to smooth down his hair, Luke’s nervousness catching. A moment later, a young boy walked into the room. He was wearing jeans and a t-shirt with a hoodie, and had blond hair like Luke, but his eyes were bluer, with less gray in them. He looked gangly, like he’d just gotten his first growth spurt and wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself.

“Hey,” Luke said, his voice suddenly paternal and fond, and Adam realized that this must be Seth Markum.

Seth looked up at his brother with sleepy eyes, and then turned to look at Adam. “Who’s this?”

Well, shit.