THERE’S A REASON I don’t venture into downtown Boston; the traffic is brutal, even midday. I padded an extra hour on my drive time and ate half of it by the time I parked in the garage of Everly’s building.
Walking in, I pass by her car and remind myself to talk to her about car shopping. With the weather turning colder, she needs to get something that can get through our sometimes brutal Boston winters. She’s been putting it off, not wanting to get rid of her BMW. I told her to just park it at her parents’ house for now because she needs a car with a backseat.
And all-wheel drive or four-wheel drive.
I’m tempted to give her my Tahoe so that I know she and the baby are safe.
As I wait for the elevator, I pull out my phone to double check her floor. When the doors open, I step on and hit the button for the fourteenth floor. It’s a steady ride up with no stops.
When I get off, there is nobody at the receptionist desk, so I continue with Everly’s directions to go left. I pass by offices and cubicles, earning more than one questioning or lust-filled glance.
Just as I get to her office, I slow, catching the eyes of an uptight-looking suit that’s manning the desk outside her office.
“Can I help you?” he asks.
“I’m here to see Everly Hayes. She’s expecting me,” I say.
“She doesn’t have any more appointments for today. What did you say your name was, again?”
“I didn’t. Who are you?”
He stares at me and shakes his head. “That isn’t usually how this works, guy, but I’ll humor you. I’m Lance, and now you are?”
“Lance? As in Lancelot?” I ask him. What kind of name is Lance? Already I don’t like this guy. He rolls his eyes at my question, and I want to just tell him to get out of my way so I can get my girl, but I’m at her job. I don’t want to make shit uncomfortable for her.
“No, as in just Lance. Now, are you going to tell me your name so that I can see if Ms. Hayes is interested in seeing you, or are you going to stand here all afternoon trying to measure my dick?”
Is this guy fucking kidding me? “Measure your dick?”
He blows out a breath and rolls his eyes as he picks up the phone. “Everly, there’s a man here to see you, but he won’t give me his name. Were you expecting someone, or should I send him on his way?” He ignores me and holds the phone to his ear.
“Everly?” This prick obviously knows Ev on some personal level if he calls her by her first name. What the fuck? “What do you mean some guy, and I’d like to see you try to send me on my way, buddy.” This moron needs someone to put him in his place. Send me on my way? Un-fucking-likely. “Of course she’s going to see me, asshole. I’m her baby daddy.”
“Niko!” I hear her shout from the receiver the dumbass has pulled away from his ear. More than likely did that on purpose, too. “I’ll be out in a second, Lance. Have Niko wait for me, please.”
“If you say so, Everly.”
Of course she says so. What the fuck is up with this guy? He hangs up the phone and points me in the direction of the chairs in a waiting area. I start to walk away, but the fucker rubs me the wrong fucking way, and I can’t stop myself.
“For the record, pretty GQ boy, nine and a half inches, that’s what I’m working with. That’s what she likes, and I know for a fact that she’s not complaining seeing as she is currently baking my kid in her oven. Just wanted to make you aware of that, you know, in case you get any ideas that include whatever you’re packing under that tight-ass suit you got on there, Mr. Not-Fucking-Gay secretary.”
His mouth screws up, and I can see the way his jaw ticks. “I’m an executive assistant. And assistant does not mean gay, asshole. Why don’t you go sit down before I get fired for punching my boss’s baby daddy with the nine-and-a-half-inch dick,” the smug son of a bitch says.
I snort and stand in place.
I’m not letting this asshole get the best of me. Screw that, and screw him. Fucking secretary.
He’s lucky we’re at Everly’s job because if we were outside or somewhere else, I’d knock his stuck-up ass the hell out, wrecking his pretty-boy face. That alone would go a long way in making me feel better about the fact that Ev’s fucking assistant is a straight guy and probably close to my age. He reminds me of Bishop with his stupid shoes, gelled up hair, and the stupid face that the chicks flock to.
And. He. Works. With. Ev. This is bullshit. He’s got to go. I’m just going to have to let her know that I am not okay with this guy working as her assistant.
I‘m not fucking moving. I look him up and down before I stand my ground and let him know what’s up.
“I’m not sitting anywhere. I’m going to wait right here . . .” I point to the spot in front of me “. . . until my woman is ready to go.”
His lips twitch, but he’s smart enough not to laugh. If he knows what’s good for him, he’ll just pay attention and keep his eyes to himself.
“We have a doctor’s appointment today. Gonna find out if my kid is a boy or a girl. That’s what couples do. Ones that are about to have a kid together.” That sounded stupid even to me, but I don’t give a shit right now. If pretty-boy Lance here had any ideas about hitting on my girl, even if she is pregnant, he can get that shit right out of his stupid gel-haired covered head. Not happening.
He shakes his head and continues to pack up his desk. I guess he’s about to leave for lunch. Good. I hope his GQ-looking face chokes on an ice cube or something. Anything that would take his ass away from this office and Everly.
Fuck. Now I wish I’d met her at the doctor’s office like she said instead of coming here to her job. The situation has thrown me, and I’m acting and talking like some stupid gym rat that doesn’t have two brain cells. Douchebag probably thinks my dick is all I have going for me, and the only reason Ev is with me when it’s not, but this fucking weird feeling is making me dumb.
Cam said she had a gay secretary. He either lied or thought the same thing I did. Male secretary equals gay. Same thing we thought about the guy that cut his hair too, but we were both wrong about Omar. It turns out he was married with eight kids and cut hair on the side to make extra cash.
Fucking Cam.
I look over at pretty-boy Lance and give him a once over while he’s not paying attention to me. There doesn’t seem to be anything flamboyant about this fucker. That’s for sure. He also just came right out and said he wasn’t gay, so why am I still looking for signs that he’s lying?
I wait a few minutes until finally Everly’s office door opens and my beautiful girl appears. And she’s not looking too happy.
“Hey, baby,” I say.
No hello. No nice to see you. No thanks for picking me up, Niko. Nope. I get the ice queen.
Fuck.
This afternoon should be terrific.
“I’m heading out. I’ve left a few files for the Anderson account that Jim was looking for today. If you could just send a courier over to his office, I’d appreciate it, Lance.”
“Of course, Everly. I’ll take care of it first thing after lunch,” he says to her, and she smiles.
I get the fucking ice queen bullshit, but she gives that fucking clown her teeth.
“Let’s go, Niko,” she snaps at me, and I’m left watching her twitch her little ass as she walks away from me and toward the elevators. I turn and see Lance is looking at her ass same as me, and I lose it.
“Keep your fucking eyes off her ass,” I growl at him, causing Everly to stop and walk back to where Lance and I still stand.
“Niko!” she hisses at me.
She doesn’t yell. Nope. She fucking hisses at me like some wildcat. Fine with me. Personally, I like it when her claws come out.
“Everly . . .” She looks at me, fire burning in her hazel eyes, and all I can think about is later tonight. It’s going to be all about the hate fuck. My cock stiffens at the thought, and I want to pull her ass into her office so I can fuck her on her desk, making her scream my name and let Lance here know who owns that pussy. She looks over at Lance and her expression changes from pissed off to embarrassed.
“I’m so sorry, Lance. He’s not normally like this. Next time I’ll make sure I bring the muzzle. Trust me, though, his bark is way bigger than his bite. See you in the morning,” she says and grabs my hand, dragging me along behind her.
The elevator opens just as we reach it and luckily it’s empty. Maybe it would have helped me had it been occupied because as soon as the doors close, she unleashes her full ice-queen persona.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“What’s wrong with me? You’re kidding right now, right?”
“No, Niko, I’m not kidding. That’s my assistant! What if that had been my boss?”
“Yeah, your assistant, not your secretary, he doesn’t like that. Why’s your secretary a guy?” I ask.
“Why not?” she responds, then smacks me on the pec. “Since when did you turn all green-eyed monster on me?”
“Since your assistant is a fucking dude!” Fuck. She’s my girl, and I don’t want some other guy that close to her.
“I’m not arguing about this,” she says, turning forward again. “He works for the company and me. He’s great at his job, and I am not fighting about this.”
“I don’t like him.”
She turns back to me, glaring. “You don’t have to like him. I do!” she hisses.
“Are we going to go find out what we’re having, or are we going to stand here all day talking about your asshole secretary?”
“You’re un-fucking-believable right now.” She shakes her head at me and rather than tell me off any longer, she stomps away toward the car.
“Oh yeah, angry make-up sex later. I’m all for it,” I say out loud, but she keeps going. “Very very angry, hate, make-up sex. Even better, babe.” She pulls the door open, gets into my Tahoe, and slams the door. I smile and walk to the driver’s side. Once inside I start it up and turn my satellite radio on to lighten the mood. “Animals” by Maroon 5 comes on, and I see Ev’s lips twitch from the corner of my eye.
Yup! Make-up sex indeed.