I could just barely see the bay in the distance, occluded by a light fog and surrounded by forests. I knew it was the bay by the lights that surrounded it and the lightless gap that sat in the middle of all that construction. I leaned back in my folding beach chair, a glass of whisky in my hand, trying to enjoy the night.

The charity event had gone more or less as planned after I met Emily up on the roof. We sat down at the table, ate and drank and smiled at shitty jokes, and eventually we gave a little interview to the media. She was perfect, just like I knew she would be, and things went great.

I didn’t see her much the next day, since I was too busy with work. After I got home, I came right up to the roof, mostly to get a few minutes alone to myself but partially to keep myself away from her.

I knew I was going to get sucked in. It was just a matter of time before I got lost in that girl and gave up everything to have her again and again. It was stupid and there was so much at stake, but I couldn’t help myself.

Not after having her lips wrapped around my cock.

It was fucked up and stupid to let that happen, but it happened. I wouldn’t do a single thing differently if I could go back, and that thought scared me a little bit.

She was gorgeous and incredible. Evelyn knew something had happened, but she wasn’t pushing to find out what, not yet at least. I was thankful for that, since I didn’t know if I could keep it from her. Well, maybe the details of what had happened, but not the greater picture of something going down between Emily and me.

But nobody caught us and nobody seemed to know what was happening. Otherwise, I’d likely get castrated by my damn board and end up a pauper. Well, maybe not a pauper, but significantly less rich.

Being wealthy, young, and handsome meant that a lot of women threw themselves at me over the years. I lived for a long time to fuck, drink, and party, and life didn’t seem like it could get any better. I neglected my company, leaving it in the hands of other people while I indulged myself.

I continued to get richer and richer because I created a solid foundation for Valor and I hired great people to run it for me. But I wasn’t doing much of anything, at least until the last two years. I got back to my roots, doing research and real work for the company, at least until the whole married women scandal broke.

I knew there was more out there than just fucking. I knew I needed to change, needed to do something differently. I thought that could be just lying to the media and giving the illusion of having changed, but maybe I really was going through a real change.

It was strange and exciting, a lot like my relationship with Emily was. Things were complicated, and although in the past I ran like hell from anything difficult, I felt for the first time in my life that I was ready for something a little more meaningful.

I didn’t know what form that meaning would take, but I wanted something more. Maybe that more was Emily, or maybe it wasn’t. I couldn’t be sure, not yet at least. All I knew was that I wanted her, and I couldn’t pretend otherwise.

As I sipped my whisky, I heard the roof door open. I looked back and watched Evelyn step out, adjusting herself as she frowned over in my direction.

“Fancy meeting you here,” I said as she approached.

“I’ve been looking for you all over.”

“Why didn’t you check the Marauder’s Map?”

She blinked at me. “The what?”

“Never mind.”

“Anyway, I wanted to talk to you.”

“What about?”

“There have been some changes around the mansion that I’m a little concerned with.”

“Like?”

“Well, there are a lot more strange men hanging around than there were a few days ago.”

“Increased security,” I said. “After the dog’s head incident, we beefed things up.”

“Did you catch who did that yet?”

“Not yet. Cox is working on it.”

She nodded, looking out toward the bay. We were silent for a few minutes while I sipped my drink. Evelyn was smart, probably way too smart to be my secretary, and I figured that if she had a better chance in life she could have really done something amazing. As it was, she raised an awesome daughter and did a damn good job for me, so that was pretty great already.

“I’m worried,” Evelyn finally said.

“Don’t be. Cox is very good at what he does.”

“I believe you. But things are very shaky right now, and the last thing we want is someone breaking into this house.”

“Nobody is breaking in,” I grumbled.

“Still, Carter. You know what I’m saying.”

I nodded. “I get it. What do you want me to do?”

“Be careful,” she said softly. “I know something happened between you and Emily at the charity thing last night. Don’t be stupid and reckless, Carter.”

I grinned at her. “I don’t know any other way to be.”

She shook her head, not amused. “I’d forbid you from seeing her, but that would probably only make things worse.”

“I can’t pretend like it would stop me much.”

Evelyn sighed and faced me, her arms crossed. “My daughter is a grown woman and one of the most responsible people I know. Probably too responsible. But she never asked for any of this, and I don’t want her dragged into the mud if we fuck this up.”

“You mean, if I fuck this up,” I said softly.

She stared at me, not saying a word.

“The last thing I want is for Emily to get hurt,” I said finally.

“Good.” Evelyn’s expression softened. “She likes you, you know.”

“Oh, I know.”

“She hasn’t had a serious boyfriend since high school. Honestly, I was starting to wonder if she took after her mother.” Evelyn laughed softly to herself.

I cocked my head at her, not sure what she meant, but she was already walking away. I watched her go, confused by that last comment, but I didn’t want to persist.

She was a worried mother and had every right to be. The things happening at the house were strange, even strange by my standards. Put my relationship with Emily, or whatever the fuck we were doing, on top of that and things just got downright insane. Evelyn was probably barely holding it all together, juggling everything and keeping it in place without me even realizing it. That was what she did best and why I valued her so highly. She made things just work without having to be directed.

After a few more minutes, I finished my drink and stood. It was time to get back inside and back to work, although I mainly wanted to stay up on the roof and have maybe three more drinks. Unfortunately, I had to pretend to be a responsible adult for another few hours, and so I headed downstairs toward the lab.

On a whim, I pulled up my phone and opened my Marauder’s Map. I couldn’t help but notice that Emily’s dot was nearby, in the gym. It was right around the corner, actually, and it wouldn’t be out of the way to go check her out. Or check on her, actually.

As I headed in that direction, watching my phone’s screen, I idly wondered what she was wearing. Probably a pair of tight running shorts and a sports bra, the sweat slowly rolling down her perfect skin, her cheeks flushed from the exercise.

I was totally lost in my fantasy, looking at my phone screen instead of right in front of me. I turned a corner and suddenly collided with someone, nearly knocking her over. I reacted fast, grabbing her back to steady her.

“Shit!” I said. “I’m sorry.”

Emily looked at me, surprised, and then laughed. “Carter. What are you doing?”

“Sorry,” I said again. “I was looking at my phone and not paying attention to where I was going.”

“You nearly knocked me over.”

“Can’t say I’m upset about it.” I grinned at her, staring at her body. I was nearly right about what she’d be wearing, except in reality she had on long tights and her sports bra was a colorful mix of neon making her already fair skin that much more gorgeous.

I could have let her go, since the danger was past, but I found my hands were lingering on her body. She didn’t make a move to step away.

“I would have been pretty upset if you gave me a black eye or something.”

“Don’t worry. I’m very gentle.”

She laughed. “I doubt that very much.”

“You’re right. It’s hard to be gentle when you look like this.”

She rolled her eyes but the smile didn’t leave her face. “Good one. I’m sweaty and gross right now and you know it.”

“Sweaty, maybe. But not gross.”

“Agree to disagree then.”

With her body in my hands, I suddenly had an idea. Maybe it was stupid and the sort of thing that her mother just warned me against, but I couldn’t help myself. My cock was already hard just looking at her, and being so close was driving me insane.

“I want to show you something,” I said.

“What is it?”

“A way for you to get clean.”

“I’m skeptical.”

“Good. You should be.” I stepped back and took her hand. “Come on.”

She bit her lip, hesitating for a second, then nodded. I led her away, down toward the indoor pool.

I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted to, wanted to be stronger and better, but I couldn’t. Not when she was so close, not when she looked so damn good.

I was taking her someplace where she could get clean. But my intentions were very far from honorable.