“Thanks for saying that. I…I want very much for us to have a professional relationship, Devin.”
Her heart sank, and she had to struggle to keep her face from crumbling in disappointment. So their kiss had done nothing to make him want her…
“At least,” he amended, “as long as you’re my client. Once our business is wrapped up—” he flashed a grin “—anything can happen.”
Devin brightened, as if someone had turned on a light in her face. “I like that idea.”
They smiled at each other, both of them intrigued by the possibilities…and both of them knowing that whatever contact they had while their relationship remained that of attorney and client would be marked by underlying thoughts of the kiss they’d shared.
Chapter 7
Thursday brought good news. David called that morning to let her know that Mr. Jessup had agreed to pay most of the settlement they’d held out for, twelve weeks’ severance, plus a lump sum payment of twenty thousand dollars at the end of the severance payout, instead of the twenty-five they’d asked for. “I don’t think we should quibble over five thousand dollars, do you?”
“Definitely not. It’s just as you predicted, David. This is wonderful! And I was just about to call you. I just hung up from talking to Marianne Baxter. She offered me the job, and I accepted. It’s lower pay than I thought it would be, but since my regular paychecks will continue, it’s all gravy. It will run three months, and I’m going to learn all I can. I start Monday. Carla’s last day is Thursday, and Marianne wants me to spend a few days with her to get oriented.”
“Wonderful! I’ll get to see you every day.”
“That’ll be great.” A bit of gloom descended over her as she thought about having to conceal their friendship. “And don’t worry; I won’t let on that we know each other. I’ll go back to calling you ‘Mr. Andrews’.”
“That won’t be necessary. We all call each other by our first names at the firm, except Ben and Larry. They’re Mr. Holt and Mr. Cotten, at least to the clerical staff.”
Devin made a mental note. “I’ll remember.”
“This has been quite a week for you, hasn’t it, Devin?”
She pictured him sitting at his desk with a broad smile on his handsome face. “It certainly has. I’m going to do something special to celebrate…maybe treat myself to a spa day.”
“I’d love to celebrate with you, Devin.”
Grateful he couldn’t see her, she pressed her palm against her suddenly racing heart, willing it to slow down. “That’s very nice of you, David, and while I’d like that very much, somehow I can’t imagine you with your face covered with a mud pack.”
He laughed, a wonderful booming sound her ear welcomed. “Neither can I. I wasn’t thinking about going to a spa.”
She shook her head in confusion. “Really? I’d expect that by this late in the week your weekend plans have already been made.”
“Oh, I see,” he said. “You think I’m this swinging bachelor, balancing two or three women…or maybe I should say ‘chicks’.” He sounded amused.
She refused to be embarrassed. “Something like that.”
“I’ve got news for you, Devin. Maybe there’s a woman or two who might want to go out with me. But the only woman who’s been filling my thoughts lately has been you.”
“David, you’re making me blush.” The smile on her face worked its way into her words.
“So,” he said, “about that celebration?”
“That’s very flattering, David,” she said, “but you have to admit it makes for a rather complex situation, considering that as of Monday morning, I’ll be an employee of Holt & Cotten, albeit a temporary one. Marianne did inform me at my interview that they have a policy against employees dating other employees.”
“Agreed. But there is a silver lining. Once you start work at the firm, at least we’ll get to see each other every day.”
“Yes, and we can secretly admire each other from afar,” she remarked wryly.
For a few moments nothing was said. David was the one who broke the silence. “You and I won’t be official coworkers until Monday. Today’s Thursday. That gives us three days to forget about any potential complications. In the meantime, two really good things happened to you today, both of which warrant celebrating, and I’d like to be the one you celebrate with. Will you give me that opportunity?”
“All right, David. Tell me, what did you have in mind?”
“I’d like to pick you up at 11AM Saturday morning.”
“Saturday morning?” she repeated, uncertainly. “So this celebration will happen during the afternoon?” I should have known. He’s got a hot date Saturday night, and this is the only time he can squeeze me in. She felt deflated.
“Yes. I know it’s early, but we’re going out of town for the day, and we’ll need to get a reasonably early start.”
Devin’s eyebrows rose. “Out of town? Where to?”
“Have you ever been to the Hamptons?”
“I’ve been to Jones Beach.” She laughed. Jones Beach on Long Island, well west of the monied villages that made up the Hamptons on the island’s eastern end, was a popular destination for New Yorkers to cool off on summer days.
“Well, this will be a new experience for you. I’d like the day to be as special as you are, Devin.”
Her hand shook with excitement as she disconnected the call. A day in the Hamptons with David! She was so excited. Whatever would she wear?
The first thing she did was check the weather forecast. It was finally starting to warm up, now that it was the second week in May. Seasonal temperatures were expected, in the mid to high sixties. It was still too cool to wear shorts—at least for her it was—but Devin decided she could get by with Capri pants, provided they weren’t too summery looking. If she were going to the Hamptons, she definitely wanted to go to the beach, to feel the water of the Atlantic Ocean on her bare feet. She decided she would wear sneakers and anklets with her Capri pants, and carry a pair of flip-flops. That should work nicely.
But what if he wanted to take her out that night, perhaps to dinner? Capri pants were versatile, but wearing sneakers or flip-flops to a restaurant would be a fashion faux pas. She’d have to carry her overnight bag. She could possibly shower before dinner, which would be a good idea to make sure her legs were free of sand. She’d pack a change of underwear, a casual dress, and sandals or mules. She had a sleeveless sheath that would work nicely. Because she suspected it got chilly on the island after dark, she’d pack a shawl as well.
She’d squeeze everything into as small a bag as she could. She would look terribly unsophisticated if she carried a big suitcase for what was essentially a day trip that would last twelve, maybe fourteen hours.
All that remained now was to tell Mama about David’s invitation.
*****
“Mama,” she began when her mother emerged from her shower and sat on her bed, waiting for the ten o’clock news, “I’m going to be gone all day Saturday.”
“Oh? Are you going to celebrate your settlement with Mercy?”
“I’ll be celebrating my settlement and my job, but not with Mercy. Um, David Andrews invited me to the Hamptons for the day. The Hamptons! I’m going to be out among the beautiful people, Mama. Isn’t that exciting?”
The look on Mama’s face wasn’t one of happiness, but concern.
“Are you sure that’s wise? Seeing Mr. Andrews…socially?”
“Why not, Mama? I’m as good as he is.”
“But you’re going to be working for him.”
“Not for him,” Devin corrected. “For the same company. He’s not my direct supervisor. “We’re more like…contemporaries.” She smiled at the thought, but Mama wasn’t having any.
“Contemporaneo? I think you may be getting a bit of the swelled head, Devin. You’ll be working as a receptionist. Mr. Andrews is an attorney. The two of you are hardly on equal footing. And while it was wonderful of him to help you, and gener
ous of him not to take any payment, I don’t think you should go traipsing off to the Hamptons with him.” With a meaningful look at Devin, she added, “He might plan on getting payment from you in a way other than money.”
“Come on, Mama. David wouldn’t do that. He’s already sensitive to my situation of being sexually harassed by Ray.” She rushed on before Mama could ask just how David displayed the sensitivity she spoke of; she could hardly tell her about their kiss in the elevator. “He’s not an ax murderer who’s going to take me out into the woods, kill me, and chop me up into tiny little pieces. I know him. And more than that, you know him. He’s coming to pick me up Saturday morning at eleven, and I’m going with him. I’ll probably be out quite late, like after midnight. It’ll take at least an hour and a half to get out there, depending on the traffic and which town he’s going to.” The Hamptons, she knew, was a string of villages that began well out on the aptly named Long Island and stretched all the way to its eastern end. Some of the villages were closer to the city, others farther away. “I’m sorry that you don’t approve. But this is an experience I don’t want to pass up. How many opportunities will I get to be invited to the playground of the rich and famous? Even if the season hasn’t started yet.” She knew that the official summer season ran from Memorial Day through Labor Day, although people like David who owned or had access to homes could, of course, go out anytime, even for Christmas if they so desired.
Mama looked as if her feelings had been hurt. “All right,” she said, her shoulders sagging in defeat. “You’re a grown woman, Devin, not a little girl. I know you make your own decisions. And while I like Mr. Andrews very much, all I see for you if you get involved with him is heartbreak.”
“Mama—”
“And don’t tell me you’re just going to spend this one day with him and that will be it. I know you, Devin. I know you want the finer things in life. I know that you broke up with Joaquin, a perfectly good man, because you didn’t feel he would get anything more out of life except what he has right now.”
Devin bit down on her lip so hard she thought it would bleed. What would her mother say if she knew what that “good man” had done to her, posting a video of their intimate moments?
“You broke up with him for a very foolish reason,” Mama continued. She shook her head. “Now I wish Miss Portia had been in the office that afternoon. Or that I’d just waited another day to ask her to help you instead of Mr. Andrews. You wouldn’t be about to make a major mistake if I had.”
“Mama, I needed to speak to an attorney right away. Mr. Jessup might have considered me to have abandoned my job if I stayed out for two or three days.” Devin raised her chin in defiance. “Besides, what’s wrong with David and I being attracted to each other?”
“Nothing, but there’s no future in it, so why bother?”
“Who says there’s no future?”
“Come on, Devin. Can you really picture him attending Glenys’s wedding next month? He comes from a different world, querida. He’s not going to feel comfortable around a lot of Latinos at a reception in the community room of the church. The type of weddings he goes to are held at the Four Seasons or the Plaza, where they pay two hundred dollars for each guest’s dinner. If you don’t see the difference, trust me, he will. And it won’t end well.” Mama wore an equally stony expression. “Besides, I didn’t arrange for him to help you so you could become his…plaything.”
“Oh, Mama.”
“You do what you want. Just remember that I tried to warn you.”
Devin could only sigh.
*****
David left home extra early to pick up Devin. He didn’t imagine it would be too difficult finding a place to park up in Hamilton Heights, a hundred blocks north and well away from the masses of midtown, but it still might not be easy, and he wanted to get on the road as close to 11AM as possible. Once he and Devin got into Quogue, their first stop would be to go get some lunch.
It would save time if he asked her to meet him downstairs, but he had been raised to treat women with respect, and that when a man takes a woman out, he should call for her at her door. It wasn’t always easy because of the parking situation in the city, but he felt that was how it should be, at least on a first date. Only after he and the woman knew each other a little better would he feel comfortable asking her to meet him downstairs. And at the end of every date, he definitely made it his business to see the woman of the moment safely to her door. Of course, his dates usually lived downtown, and he didn’t have to worry about parking, because he traveled by taxi or Uber. David believed goodnight kisses should take place in private, and if he was lucky, he’d be invited to stay for a night of sexual delights.
Calling for Devin at her door held even greater importance, since not only did she live with her mother, but he knew her mother. He didn’t know how Amparo would feel about his dating her daughter, and because he respected her opinion, he wanted to make a good impression.
Then there was his other reason for wanting to pick Devin up at her apartment. She carried herself with class and dignity, but he had to consider that her experiences were much less than his. He’d wrestled with how to handle suggesting that she might want to bring a change of clothes without coming off like he was schooling her. The Hamptons tended to be casual, but it would probably be late when they went for dinner, and she’d likely want to freshen up, especially if they took a walk on the beach and got all sandy. He decided to make a casual suggestion to her when he picked her up and hoped she wouldn’t be insulted. She’d said herself that she’d never spent a weekend in the Hamptons—no, make that a day in the Hamptons. Because as far as Devin was concerned, that was all it would be. But he held out hope it would be more than just a day.
Most women he dated would know to bring a change of clothes, or two changes—one for dinner and one for the next day, because his invitation would have been for the weekend. He’d like nothing better than to spend the night with Devin…to make love to her, fall asleep holding her, wake up next to her. But because of the nature of their relationship, and how they’d met, inviting her for the weekend simply wouldn’t work. Technically, she was still a client—he’d gotten her a settlement, but her case wouldn’t be closed until that video had been taken down—and he had a rapidly narrowing window before she became a co-worker. The best he could do was let things unfold naturally and hope like hell he got his way. Because if she didn’t sleep with him this time, it might not ever happen, and that was a possibility he hated to think about.
He’d actually downloaded her video so he could watch it again—and he’d looked at it nightly since locating it—but when he tested the URL it was now a dead link. That creep Joe had apparently kept his word and gotten it removed, at least from that particular site. It wouldn’t surprise him if it was up on others, but he was sure Devin was monitoring them closely to check on the removal. He didn’t envy her, having to look through porn sites to see if she was being featured.
He’d wait another week, and then he would check with her to see if the video was still up anywhere that she knew of. If so, he would compose another letter to Joaquin—or, as Devin called him, Joe—informing him that it was still up on some sites. He’d let Devin fill in the URLs.
One thing for sure. He had to be very careful not to let on to Devin that he’d seen her video. She’d be humiliated, and more than a little angry.
He headed uptown on Madison Avenue, managing to squeeze his Lexus into the first vacant parking space he spotted. As he walked toward Devin’s apartment, he casually looked at his surroundings. The closest he’d ever been to this part of the city was during his days at Columbia, and even that was a good thirty blocks south of here. The area was full of low-rise residential buildings, many of which had stores, bars, and other businesses on the street level. It really didn’t look any different from the neighborhood west of Midtown commonly known as Hell’s Kitchen.
Devin and Amparo lived in an attractive, six-story light-colored bric
k building that had obviously been steam cleaned to give it a fresh appearance, across the street from a school. He entered the vestibule and rang the doorbell for their apartment. He was buzzed in without a voice speaking to him through the intercom. He took the elevator to the third floor, noting the cleanliness of the floors and walls.
His knock on the apartment door was quickly answered by a relaxed-appearing Amparo, who obviously had the day off from her hotel housekeeping job.
“Good morning, Amparo,” he said, sounding jovial. “How nice to see you.”
“Good morning, Mr. Andrews. Come in.” She stepped back, holding the door open for him to enter.
David felt a twinge of guilt. “You know, it’s fine with me if you called me David. You can do that on the job as well.”
“It’s nice of you to offer,” she said, rather stiffly, “but I don’t feel comfortable doing that, if you don’t mind.” She waved a hand toward the living room. “Please, sit down. Devin will be out in just a moment.”
From her stiff manner, David surmised that she didn’t much approve of him taking her daughter out. He found himself feeling relief when she disappeared out of his view, probably into the bedroom she shared with Devin. It wasn’t as though he could reassure her. None of his relationships lasted for a long period. There was always greener grass somewhere among the women of New York, and that grass always managed to find him. He just hoped he’d be able to get in one memorable night with Devin. He didn’t anticipate having any difficulty working in the same office afterward; he’d had brief relationships with a paralegal as well as one of the secretaries, and neither of those had given him any problem after it ended. He’d shown both women a good time, wined and dined them, and they enjoyed a mutually satisfying, lusty relationship for a few weeks. He cautioned them to keep it quiet, adding that the senior partners didn’t like fraternization between attorneys and support staff. The fear that their jobs might be endangered did the trick, for neither woman breathed a word. Both had since left Holt & Cotten, the paralegal for the legal department of a large manufacturer, the secretary for one of those huge law firms with hundreds of attorneys.
After Office Hours Page 7
