James

“You have the nicest people working for you,” Katherine said, smiling up at him.

“Yeah well, right now I want to fire them all for constantly taking you away from me.” She was charming everyone around her as usual, and he was starting to regret coming at all. Could have had her all to himself. Could have been doing wicked things to her naked body right now.

“James,” she slapped him playfully on the shoulder.

“Hmm…or you could save them all by coming home with me right now,” he said pulling her against him.

“You’re the host, you can’t leave already.” She wrapped her arms around his neck.

“It’s my party I can do whatever I want.” Pulling her in tighter, he pressed his hard length against her, letting her feel what she was doing to him.

“Oh…mmm….you know what? I think your right, they’ll be fine on their own. Really, we’d be doing them a favor. Nobody wants to let loose in front of their boss, right?”

“Exactly,” he murmured against her ear, and added, “I promise, I’ll wear the glasses.”

“Really?” She raised an eyebrow and bit her lip.

God, he loved that look. “Oh yeah. Let’s go,” he said, about to make a fast exit, but before he got anywhere, his assistant stepped in front of him.

“Mr. Reed—”.

“Can’t it wait?” James interrupted before the guy could say anything else, and looked at him hopefully.

“Um…he’s here,” was his response.

James looked at his assistant questioningly.

“I sent him to your office, like you requested,” he elaborated.

“Oh right. Yes, I’ll be right there. Thank you.” James turned to Katherine. “I completely forgot for a moment, I have something important to take care of, but I won’t be long. Will you be all right?”

Katherine smiled at him. “I’ll manage, but you’re going to make it up to me.”

James chuckled. She would more than manage, everyone loved her, but he could hardly wait to make it up to her anyway. “I promise,” he told her and stole a kiss before he left.

He was just about to step into the elevator when John’s furious voice stopped him. “Have you lost your Goddamn mind?”

He turned around to find John’s expression matched his tone. “John, calm down.” James held up his hands.

“Fuck you. Don’t act like you’re the reasonable one here.”

“John,” James tried again.

“No. I came here hoping one of you at least had come to your senses. Obviously, that hasn’t happened.” He gestured towards the crowd with Katherine in the middle. “And if that wasn’t bad enough, I get a call that someone has been snooping around asking questions about my daughter’s drunken night of destruction. Why the fuck, man? Why, after all the strings I’ve pulled to bury this shit, are you dragging it up again? Are you trying to get her expelled, trying to get the police involved? What? What the fu—”

“No,” James cut him off. “Of course, I’m not trying to get her expelled, but as to the police? I haven’t decided yet.”

“Jesus fucking Christ, I’m going to have you locked up because you have gone completely insane.”

“John, just listen to me, something wasn’t right. Things didn’t fit the story you told me, so I hired a private investigator.”

“You hired a PI?” John looked at him as if he’d grown two heads.

“Yes, and he’s waiting in my office right now. Come with me, listen to what he has to say. If there is nothing there, I’ll back off. All right?”

“And you’ll stop fucking my daughter?” John winced as he bit out the words.

“I won’t stop seeing her, no. I love her and you better get used to it,” he said, folding his arms over his chest. “But that’s what this is really about isn’t it?” He narrowed his eyes on John.

He was relieved, quite frankly, that his friend wasn’t a heartless bastard. Of course, he wasn’t, and if they hadn’t been in such a panic when he came to the house that morning, they would have realized he’d been in a good mood when he arrived, the bearer of good news and all. Oh, he might not yet have entirely forgiven Kathrine, but it was only after he’d understood what they’d been hiding from him that his temper had flared again. 

“Of course, it is,” John snapped. “I’ve put up with her shenanigans for years, but this? For fuck sakes man, you’re defiling my baby girl.”

Okay now, that was a little much. “John,” he said in a tone that pleaded for reason. And though he refrained from adding the words you need to get over it, it was most certainly implied.

James was never going to give Katherine up. John had to find a way to accept that.

They stared at each other for a while. Knowing that if John didn’t do just that, it would cause irreparable damage to their friendship, most likely kill it stone dead.

The elevator doors opened. “Give me fifteen minutes?” James said, gesturing for John to lead the way.

He hesitated for a moment before relenting, “I’ll give you five.”