I was in trouble. And not just because of the sexual beast that had just left my office. Jameson Beck was temptation, danger, and trouble rolled into one delicious package, and I’d just let him fuck me on my desk, giving him the upper hand in this twisted power struggle we were locked in.

But right now, Jameson and his sinfully hot body were near the bottom of my list of concerns. Thoughts and questions about my career and my future at Hugh and Roscow swirled through my mind.

Did Jack and Dan really bring him here because they thought I couldn’t win the Delaney case on my own? Had they ever been considering me for the partnership or were they just stringing me along so I wouldn’t take one of the dozens of offers that came my way every year? Why wouldn’t they tell me they were bringing the James Beck on board? I was never going to tell him I’d been studying his cases for years, in preparation for my own. His ego didn’t need that boost.

How had I been kept so completely in the dark about this?

“Goddamn it, Bev,” I mumbled under my breath, realizing she must’ve known something.

I pulled out my phone and sent her a text, as I finished cleaning up my desk and gathering my stuff to go home.

Me: How long have you known James Beck was coming to New York?

My phone vibrated in my hand as I locked my office door.

“I didn’t know,” Bev said without a hello.

“Liar. Jack and Dan can barely take a piss without you, let alone orchestrate the hiring and moving of James Beck.”

“Okay ... I’ve known for a while. But, before you freak out, they made me sign an NDA. The only people who knew about this were Jack, Dan, James, and his boss in California.”

“Why the big secret?”

“I guess things like this fall through all the time, and they didn’t want to get everyone riled up for no reason. They didn’t want a big media circus right before the Delaney trial.”

My anger subsided momentarily as I thought about what Bev was saying. I guess that did make sense. But then I remembered telling her about Jameson last week and my anger boiled to the surface again.

“I told you I slept with him last week and you didn’t say a damn thing!”

“How was I supposed to know the sex god you described and James Beck were the same person?” I wasn’t buying it.

“How many people named Jameson do you know, Bev? I told you what he looked like!” My voice rose as I stepped off the elevator. “You didn’t ever stop to consider it was too big of a coincidence for me to meet a hot guy named Jameson the same week James Beck moved to New York City?”

“Don’t interrogate me like one your witnesses,” Bev barked into the phone. “It’s not my fault you let the man get under your skin, and now you're scrambling to figure out how to get control back. Yes, the thought maybe crossed my mind, but I didn’t know for sure, and even if I did, I couldn’t have said anything.”

“You could have at least given me some sort of warning before I walked in and got blindsided this morning!”

“I had strict instructions not to say anything. You know I’d do almost anything for you, but losing my job is not on that list.” I sighed into the phone. “So, did you talk to him today? I mean, other than the yelling I heard in the conference room this morning.”

“Ummm, yeah I guess you could say that.” I tried to sound nonchalant, but the memory was too fresh, and I had to suppress a small moan at just the thought.

“Oh my God, you did him in the office?” Bev whispered, even though we both knew she was at home.

“I didn’t say that,” I lied. “I’m sorry I called you at home, and thanks again for bringing me dinner.” I changed the subject before she asked any more questions.

“Anytime,” she chuckled, and I imagined her shaking her head. “See you tomorrow.”

“Goodnight, Bev.”

* * *

I was in the office before anyone else the next morning, determined to finish mapping out my argument for why I didn’t need help with the Delaney case. I had been making decent progress until I’d been interrupted by Jameson the night before.

I’d been scribbling on my notepad for over an hour when Bev came in with coffee.

“You are wanted in the conference room.”

“Is he here?” I asked, even though I was pretty sure I already knew the answer. I gathered my notes and stood from my desk. Bev eyed my pants and raised her eyebrow.

“Pants in July?” Even with my semi-sheer blouse, I’d almost died of heat stroke on the subway ride to the office.

“Oh, we’re discussing my wardrobe now, too?” I asked. She laughed and shook her head. She knew as well as I did why I was wearing pants. I took the coffee from her and followed her to the conference room. All three men were already waiting inside.

I met Jameson’s eyes through the glass wall and had to suppress the shiver that ran down my spine. I couldn’t show any signs that I was affected by him, I’d already let him go too far last night. Instead of slapping him and kicking him out of my office like I should have done, I let him make assumptions about my career and then did nothing to prove him wrong. If anything, I’d only strengthened his argument. But it was a mistake I wasn’t going to make again. Bev was right. I’d let him get under my skin, and now I had to act composed, even though my heart was racing. I took a deep breath and opened the door.

“Good morning, gentlemen,” I said cheerily.

“You’re in a better mood today,” Dan said.

“I’m prepared today,” I said. “I don’t like being blindsided, not in the courtroom or anywhere else.” I avoided Jameson’s eyes as I set down my stuff and took a seat across the table from him.

“You can be as prepared as you want, Olivia,” Jack said. “We’re not changing our minds on this. James will be joining you on the Delaney case.”

“You haven’t...” I stood from my seat, ready to defend myself, but was cut off.

“If you have a problem with it, I’m sure James and Mark can handle it without you,” Jack said.

“You wouldn’t,” I gasped. I couldn’t believe he was actually suggesting taking me off the case.

“I would and I will,” Jack continued.

“I’m the only person Josh will talk to. How are you supposed to win a case with two attorneys the defendant won’t speak to?”

“That’s why we’re hoping you’ll sit down and be reasonable about this,” Dan interrupted.

“What about Mark?” I asked, curious where my current partner stood in this twisted mess.

“Mark has been reassigned to another case,” Jack said. “You and James are more than capable of handling the Delaney case.”

I wanted to ask about the partnership, if what Jameson had said was really true, but I’d already lost my cool in front of Jack and Dan yesterday. They didn’t need any more reasons to consider Jameson over me. I had always assumed the outcome of this trial would play a big role in their decision, but now I might never know.

“Olivia,” Dan said, bringing me back to the conversation. “We have briefed James on the case, but obviously you are the expert on everything Josh Delaney, so we’re going to need you to get him up to speed and ready for the courtroom.”

“The jury is already seated?” Jameson asked, the first words he’d spoken since I’d entered the room.

“Yes,” I replied.

“You’ve reviewed the juror profiles, right, James?” Dan said. “Do you see any issues?”

“No, from what I can tell, Ms. Roberts did an excellent job of picking jury members who will give us the best chance at winning the case.”

“Good,” Dan said. “Then we’ll leave you two to get to work. Please keep us updated on the progress. We can always ask for more time if you think we need it.”

“Judge Davidson isn’t giving up any more time,” I said. “He made that abundantly clear yesterday.”

“We don’t need more time,” Jameson spoke up. “I’ll be ready.”

Dan was already out the door when Jack paused and turned back to us.

“We’re expecting great things out of you two,” he said. “Don’t let us down.” The door clicked shut, and I looked back across the table at my new co-counsel. The smug look on his face from earlier was back. I’d never wanted to strangle someone and fuck them at the same time before, but those were the feelings Jameson was currently bringing out in me. We stared at each other for a long time, neither of us willing to be the first to break eye contact.

“Shall we get to work?” he asked, after a few minutes of silence.

“I need to get my files,” I said. “I wasn’t planning on having to share them with you.” Jameson laughed, and if I had been standing, my knees would’ve gone weak, the sound was so sexy.

“I thought you were prepared today?”

“I was prepared to argue my case,” I said, standing from the table. “I wasn’t prepared to have an egotistical asshole forced on me.”

“You didn’t seem to mind when I forced myself on you last night,” he whispered. My cheeks flushed, and my panties grew damp at the memory, but I didn’t respond. Instead, I turned and walked away.

“Olivia?” Jameson said. I paused, my hand on the door handle, and turned back to look at him. “Nice pants.” He smirked. I yanked the door open and stomped down the hall. I heard Jameson laughing behind me, but I didn’t turn back to look at him again.

I didn’t know how I was going to get through one day working with this man, let alone working a multi-week murder trial.

* * *

“This is impressive,” Jameson said. We had been going over everything I had gathered about Josh’s past. I had interviews with childhood friends, old teachers, bosses, even ex-girlfriends, along with school records, every parking ticket and encounter with the police he’d ever had. It was months’ worth of work, spread out on the conference room table.

“I know,” I said, stretching my arms out above my head.

“I’m serious. This is good work.”

“Oooh yes. The big, successful lawyer from California told me I do good work. I guess my career has reached its peak now,” I said sarcastically. “I know I’m good at what I do, Jameson. I don’t need your praise for that.”

“You’re not going to be able to talk to me like that when I’m your boss.” He put his hands behind his head and leaned back, studying me across the table. We hadn’t slept together since the night in my office, and that was almost a week ago. If I thought the sexual tension was thick before, it was nothing compared to now. We’d both gotten used to seeing the other every few days, but right now, we were in a battle for control, and I wasn’t going to be the first to break down.

“What are you going to do when I’m your boss?” I asked, leaning forward on the table. He laughed like the idea was absurd. “It’s not outside the realm of possibility, you know. I’ve been at this firm for almost ten years. I have seniority.”

“What if they already offered me the job?” Jameson leaned forward, his arms on the table, his hands nearly touching mine. My stomach dropped at his words, and I looked away from him. What if they had already offered him the job? What if they were keeping it from me so I’d stay and help them win the Delaney trial? “You have to do a better job at hiding the emotion on your face,” he said.

“What?”

“You need to work on your poker face,” he said. “You’re a great lawyer, but you could be better if you learned to keep your emotions out of the courtroom.”

“I keep my emotions out of the courtroom,” I huffed. “You’ve never even seen me in an actual trial setting.”

“I don’t need to. I’ve seen you lose your cool or struggle to keep your emotions in check more times than I can count in interactions here in the office.”

“It’s not the same,” I argued.

“You’re right, the courtroom is a much more intense environment, emotions run high, people’s futures are at stake, the adrenaline is so powerful you sometimes go home and don’t sleep at all but still have just as much energy the next day.” His description was why I loved being a lawyer. I lived on those emotions and craved that rush. “If you can’t get your emotions in check in a neutral office environment, I have serious doubts that you could do it in the courtroom.”

“I don’t give a shit about your doubts.”

“I’m trying to help you, Olivia.” I needed a break. Being around Jameson for 12 hours a day and not ripping his clothes off was wearing me down.

“I don’t need your help, Jameson.” I stood up from the table. “You can keep reviewing these files. I’ll be in my office if you need me.”

“The things I’m going to need from you aren’t appropriate for your office,” Jameson said, his voice low and silky, the words causing my thighs to clench.

“I don’t need your help for that either,” I said without turning around, knowing he’d be able to read the lie on my face.