David Andrews was awfully handsome. She hadn’t noticed a wedding band. He probably had a girlfriend, a fellow WASP in a high-powered profession like himself, perhaps another attorney. Together they’d create a wonderful life together and would never have to worry about money.
She wished she could find someone like him for herself. He had everything she hoped for in a mate: Good looks, success, ambition, and empathy. That was why she’d grown unhappy in her relationship with Joe. He seemed perfectly content to spend the rest of his working life installing and servicing cable TV. Didn’t he realize that if streaming continued to grow in popularity, he might find himself out of a job?
Mama had told her that Ms. Portia was the firm’s sole person of color, not that it mattered. She doubted any male Latino attorneys would be interested in dating her. In her experience, successful Latino men tended to be color-conscious and wanted wives with fair complexions. She’d gone out with one or two non-Latino black men during her ‘off’ periods with Joe and, while she had felt appreciated, that special spark wasn’t there. What she really hoped for was someone who would sweep her off her feet, someone who would excite her.
Someone like David Andrews…
Chapter 3
David stood in the doorway of his office as Devin DaCosta made her way to where her mother was working. He’d be embarrassed if she were to turn around and see him standing there looking at her, but he couldn’t help it. She was a gorgeous woman. It was all he could do to hide his reaction to her. Lucky for him, she hadn’t been able to see how he closed his eyes and puckered his lips, as if he were about to whistle, when he went to sit at his desk, and when he sat down facing her, his expression was all business.
Amparo, the office cleaner, was still a pretty woman, even in middle age. He put her age as somewhere in her upper forties. In hindsight, it shouldn’t have surprised him that she had an equally pretty daughter. Looks were one thing, but he just hadn’t expected Amparo’s daughter to be so…well, polished.
God, he sounded like an awful snob, but it was true. Like Amparo, Devin had a brown complexion, but unlike Amparo, she didn’t speak with an accent. He never would have guessed she was Hispanic to look at her; she simply looked like another of the thousands of pretty black women in Manhattan.
He did hope she’d apply to fill in during Melissa’s maternity leave. He certainly liked the idea of seeing her again. He suspected the senior partners would be thrilled to have an African-American face to be the first to greet visitors. Not that they were particularly liberal, but to them, appearances were everything.
Devin DaCosta seemed like an ambitious woman. She’d said herself how determined she’d been to get herself and her mother out of public housing. David had lived all his life in his family’s townhouse—first in a duplex apartment with his parents, and now in his own two-story apartment—and had never set foot in public housing, but he could only imagine how awful it must be. He also knew that non-subsidized rents in the city were exorbitant. No wonder Devin was worried about being out of work.
He returned to his desk, where he gathered his papers and put them in his briefcase. He did his best work in longhand and gave his notes to his secretary to type, but for Devin’s case he’d use his personal laptop. He had to think ahead. If there was even the slightest possibility of Devin coming to work for the firm, he couldn’t risk her legal problems spreading through the office grapevine. Even if this Joaquin fellow tried to comply with removing the video, the sites might not. If Devin was hired and anyone learned that she’d been the victim of revenge porn, every man in the office would go searching trying to find her video.
Because he’d already made up his mind that he was going to look for it.
It wasn’t right and he knew it, but in addition to Devin DaCosta’s beauty, she had a lovely figure…bubble butt, large breasts that her tailored blouse couldn’t quite conceal, and small waist, and he felt a burning curiosity to see what she looked like naked.
*****
Devin crossed the room, which was lined with desks of the attorneys’ administrative assistants. Her mother, emptying an office trash can into a large, wheeled container with plastic gloved hands, spotted her and immediately put down the trash can. “Did everything go okay? Was Mr. Andrews able to help you?”
“Si, Mama.” Devin put an arm around her mother’s shoulder. “I don’t want you to worry. Everything’s going to be okay.”
Her mother simply stared at her in return, a question looming in her dark eyes. Devin sighed. It was time to fill Mama in on at least part of what was going on.
She glanced around. A few office doors, including that of David, were still lit, making her think attorneys were working inside. She spotted one secretary sitting at a computer outside one of the lit offices. The immediate area around them, however, was devoid of people. Still, she kept her voice low and moved into the doorway of the nearest office. “I didn’t want to tell you until I knew what I was going to do. I had a problem at work last night. That Mr. Quinn I told you about…he made a pass at me when the two of us were alone in the office.”
Mama’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. “What do you mean, ‘a pass’? Just how far did he go?”
She was already getting upset, Devin noted, but could she really blame her? After drawing in a fortifying breath—if she’d been able to describe what happened to David Andrews, she could certainly describe it to Mama—she said, “He grabbed me, kissed me, shoved his tongue in my mouth, touched my breasts and rubbed his bimbolo against me.”
“Ese cerdo! What’re you going to do? What does Mr. Jessup say?”
Devin agreed with her mother’s assessment of Ray; he was a pig. “I didn’t want to say anything to him until after I spoke with an attorney. Mr. Andrews feels that if I threaten to sue them, they’ll offer an out-of-court settlement. It can mean a nice lump sum of cash…but I have to give up my job, Mama. I can’t go back there.” Devin braced herself for her mother’s objections. Part of being poor was having to accept situations that well-off people could walk away from.
“Si, you should. I don’t like the idea of your going back there. You were nearly raped, Devin.”
“I know, Mama.”
“And they should pay your salary until you find another job, plus some extra for that terrible experiencia.”
“That’s what Mr. Andrews says. He’s going to write them a letter and tell them that I intend to file suit for sexual harassment. He thinks they’ll make us an offer. They’ll have the letter tomorrow. Mr. Andrews is sending it by messenger.”
Worry clouded Mama’s eyes. “Aye, Devin. How much will it cost for him to do all this?”
“I’ll only have to pay for the messenger fee. Mr. Andrews has agreed to handle this pro bono…free. He really thinks highly of you, Mama. He even suggested that I apply to replace their receptionist during her maternity leave. That’ll give me an income—not as much as I’m used to, but if I get a settlement it won’t really matter—plus time to find another job.”
“That was very nice of him.”
Devin took in the skepticism on her mother’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s just that…nobody does something for nothing, Devin. There’s always some kind of price involved. I like Mr. Andrews, but I have to wonder what he might have in mind. Maybe we should have waited for Ms. Portia.”
“I doubt Mr. Andrews would try to barter sex for his services, Mama, if that’s what you’re thinking. Not with how much he thinks of you, and not after I came for him came to him for help with sexual harassment. That would just be too crazy.”
“You’re probably right.”
“Besides, it won’t take much of his time. Maybe half an hour to write a letter, and another hour or so to meet with Mr. Jessup. Mr. Andrews knows we don’t have much money.”
Mama nodded. “It makes more sense now. Maybe I’m too suspicious. But some of these white men are something else. Some of the girls at the hotel have been propositioned by
guests.” She gave an embarrassed shrug. “I shouldn’t lump Mr. Andrews in with them.”
*****
Once at home, David forced himself to draft the letters first, using his voice-to-text software. Not until the letters were written and polished to his satisfaction did he allow himself to begin his search for that elusive video.
He couldn’t believe it. To think he’d spent over an hour browsing through porn sites looking for the sex tape Devin DaCosta’s ex had published of the two of them.
He’d known these sites existed, and he’d been to them a time or two…okay, more than that when he was looking for a quick jack-off, especially when he was studying for the bar exam and didn’t have a lot of time for female companionship—but that had been a while back, and he hadn’t realized it was so extensive. No wonder Playboy magazine had toyed with the idea of dropping their legendary centerfolds and other nudity. Men didn’t have to spend money on magazines to look at naked female bodies. All they had to do was log on to their computers. Sure, a lot of the free porn out there were mere snippets of scenes, but they were largely meant to be momentary diversions to bring on a quick climax.
Just five more minutes, he promised himself for about the fifth time, before studying yet another set of videos. He had an oversize monitor, and he looked at the faces of the females, ruling out those that didn’t look like Devin and checking out the ones where he couldn’t tell. Some of them admittedly captured his attention longer than they should.
I should have just asked her for the URL, he thought, knowing full well that would have been highly inappropriate for him to ask. Devin was already embarrassed to tell him about it; she’d barely been able to get the words out. Naturally she wasn’t going to name a specific site. She’d be mortified if she knew he wanted to see her footage.
He blew out a frustrated breath and was ready to call it a night when his eyes caught sight of a topless African-American woman lying on her back, eyes wide open and lips parted, with a shock of thick, dark hair fanned out on the bed. Devin’s hair had been pulled back into a sedate bun, but this could be her…
He gasped. It was her. My God, what a body she had! Full tits with big brown areolae around the nipples. A neatly shaped thatch of dark hair at the junction of her thighs. Her partner leaned over her at the slightest of angles, his face conveniently out of camera range, leaving Devin’s body on full display. David’s breath came out in breathless pants as he unzipped his trousers and removed his rapidly hardened cock from its confines. Devin’s thighs were spread. Her luscious tits bounced as she rotated her hips up and down. Her hands reached over her head to grasp the bars of the mission-style headboard, and she moaned and grunted as her body took a pounding from her ex’s hard cock. Her lovely face made guttural sounds, her lips occasionally forming a round ‘O’ of pleasure. David hated the concept of revenge porn—he regarded it as a dirty trick to play on a woman—but he nevertheless found himself wishing he was the man in bed with Devin. Joaquin Serrano was obviously an Afro-Latino man with a light brown complexion some shades lighter than Devin’s. He obviously knew how to please her, but David felt confident that he, too, could bring out those squeals and grunts Devin was making.
It had been years since David had jacked off to porn, but he couldn’t stop watching. He was mesmerized as Devin and her lover changed positions, and her on her knees, face down, her fleshy, round ass filling camera range as she positioned it in the air. Her partner, obviously playing to the camera, turned her to the side, where he slapped her ass, making it shake, as he pumped her from behind.
Their next position had Devin sucking his cock, and that was enough to make David lose it. He groaned and gritted his teeth as his cock spewed out hot, creamy cum.
However could he manage to keep his lustful feelings for her hidden the next time they met?
One thing he knew for sure. Looking at her having sex with some other man wasn’t enough. He wanted Devin DaCosta for himself…wanted the joy of having her naked body under him…over him…beside him…bent over in front of him. But it wasn’t as if he could simply tell her he wanted to fuck her…she was his client and deserved to be treated with respect. He also couldn’t forget that she’d come to him as a result of being sexually violated in two ways, physically by one man and having her privacy invaded by another.
He’d have to turn on the charm between now and the time her case was resolved, when their professional relationship would end. She planned to apply to cover the reception desk during Carla’s leave, and while her working at the firm for three months would give him more time to enjoy that fantastic body before they went their separate ways, her being hired was by no means a given. No, he’d better start wining and dining for the moment he had some news to share with her, and it would grow from there.
Because he couldn’t let her walk out of his life before he had a chance to get her into bed.
Chapter 4
“Good morning, Devin. David Andrews here. I’ve got good news.”
Her body went rigid with anticipation. “Wonderful! Let’s hear it.”
“Mr. Jessup wants to meet tomorrow at ten. Will that work for you?”
Devin relaxed, her face breaking into a smile. “Sure. There at your office?”
“No, at his office.”
She drew in a shocked breath. The thought of setting foot in the place she’d run from, hyperventilating and shaking with fear, just four days ago, made her stomach churn.
David seemed to sense her reticence. “It’ll be okay, Devin. I’ll be right there beside you. You’ll be perfectly safe. If Jessup hasn’t fired Quinn yet, I’m sure he’ll have the good sense to tell him to stay away from the office tomorrow morning. If you’d like, you can come down here at nine-thirty and meet me in the lobby. We’ll ride over together.”
“I think I’d rather do that,” she said quickly.
“The reason I’d like to meet at his office is because I don’t want anyone from the firm to see the two of us together,” he explained. “Remember, your resume has been submitted.” He had made a few suggestions for improvement when he looked at it last Friday, then gave her the e-mail of the person to send it to. “I’m sure you’ll be called for an interview, and in case you get the job, it wouldn’t be a good idea for anyone to know that I represented you…especially given the specifics of your case. I’m sure you’ll agree that there are some rather unsavory details that are best kept away from prying eyes.”
Devin bit her lip. It certainly would be embarrassing if anyone found out about the sex tape Joe had posted on the Internet. That’s probably why he didn’t suggest I use his name as a reference. Instead he’d instructed her to say, if she was asked, that she’d learned about the temporary assignment from her mother, who of course was in the Holt & Cotten offices every day and easily could have seen the job posting.
“Since I’m representing you pro bono,” David continued, “there won’t be a client file on you, so no one will know.”
“Good. That reminds me. Has there been any word from Joe?”
“None at all. Um…is the video still online?”
Her reply almost sounded like a grunt. “Yes. I checked first thing this morning.”
“That doesn’t mean he hasn’t contacted them about taking it down. It might take a day or two to get it removed.” He paused. “Have you…seen him since you learned what he did?”
“No. He lives on the east side, in Spanish Harlem, and I stuck close to home this weekend. I didn’t want to take a chance on running into him at any of the clubs. I’d be too tempted to scream at him and slap his face.”
“I understand. It was a rotten thing to do. It wouldn’t surprise me if he sent an anonymous letter to your employer, telling him about the video. That could even be how Quinn found out.”
“No. All the mail goes through me. Ray came across that video because he’s a freak who looks at porn sites.”
“Oh. Well, at any rate, he still has a few days to get that video taken down
. My messenger came back with a signature, and a promise from the woman who signed for it that it would be handed to him along with his paycheck. Lucky for us that Friday happened to be their payday.”
Devin took that to mean he was ending their conversation. “Yes, lucky. Thank you, Mr. Andrews. I’ll meet you in the lobby of your building at nine-thirty tomorrow.”
*****
David stared thoughtfully at the phone after hanging up. It sounded so formal for Devin to address him as “Mr. Andrews,” considering that he’d been looking at her sex tape all weekend. She really knew how to please a man, and he wanted her. He constantly daydreamed about the two of them going at it in a variety of positions, or feeling her lips suck him dry. He’d had a date last Saturday and kept mentally comparing his date’s figure to Devin’s, and while his date had great tits—which she’d been only too happy to show him when he brought her home—her flat ass couldn’t compare to Devin’s curvaceous one. How he longed to feel those meaty globes under his own palms, to pinch and squeeze…
He could hardly wait to see her again tomorrow.
*****
She was waiting when he stepped off the elevator, dressed similarly to their first meeting in a blazer, blouse, slacks, and flats, this time clutching a padfolio in the crook of her arm like a student carrying books. Once more her thick, wavy hair was pulled back into a bun, a few stray wisps framing her face.
She looked lovely, he thought.
“Hi, there,” he said. “I hope you haven’t been waiting too long.”
“Not long. I like being early.”
His cellphone beeped. “The Uber I ordered is about to pull up. Let’s go outside.”
“You ordered an Uber instead of a cab?”
“I know we’re only going across town, but I much prefer them to cabs. They’re a lot cleaner, for one.”
Devin mentally filed away that tidbit. Always sensitive about her background of coming from the projects and eager to improve herself, she made it a habit to study the habits of successful people. She already knew that everyone who had done well in life didn’t come from money…Mr. Jessup, her old boss, came from a family of modest means, his late father having been a plumber on Long Island. She understood that proper carriage and language could bring her far. Devin had worked hard to rid herself of her accent. She wasn’t trying to hide her ethnicity, of which she was proud. She simply didn’t want to be hampered by speech people found difficult to understand. A thick accent had kept the Golden Age actress Maria Montez, a Dominicana, limited to playing exotic temptresses, where other actresses who began their careers playing foreign beauties, like Gene Tierney and Yvonne DeCarlo, moved on to play all sorts of mainstream roles. Of course, had Maria Montez had African blood, she wouldn’t even have gotten as far as she did—Hollywood would have cast her as a maid. Devin considered herself black first and Latina second, because she knew that was how the world looked at her, as a black woman. But she also knew that an accent would hold her back professionally. It was OK for a professional—a doctor, a scientist, an engineer—to speak with an accent, but not the person answering the office phones.
After Office Hours Page 3
