Viewing Room

by L. P. Dover

  “I couldn’t sleep.”

  “I went by your place last night, thought we could work on the case, but you weren’t there.”

  Connie has asked me out a few times, but she’s not my type, and until I met Kennedy I wasn’t interested in anyone romantically. I didn’t think Connie would take too kindly to my lifestyle of a quick fuck and see ya later, especially since she’s in all my classes. I didn’t want to complicate anything at school and make things awkward so I’ve stayed away.

  “I was at my girlfriend’s,” I say without looking at her. I don’t need to see her expression to know that she’s pissed.

  “I thought you were just seeing her.”

  This time I sigh. “Things change when you meet the right person.”

  “Oh.”

  I probably could’ve softened the blow or told her that I was at the library, but I’m not going to continue to lie about everything in my life. The club I still keep a secret, but I like telling people that I have a girlfriend, even if I can’t introduce her to anyone.

  “You should bring her by the Pit some day.”

  The Pit is a college hangout with live music and cheap beer. Unfortunately for me, I’ve been there a few times, but tend to stay away for fear that someone would recognize me. It’s never been a problem in class because the studious types won’t blurt out that I shook my dick in their face while they paid me, but the drunken chicks will and that’s a conversation I hope to never have.

  “I don’t think the Pit is her type of place, but I’ll ask her.” I lie easily, knowing full well I won’t ask Kennedy if she wants to hang out there.

  “Great, I can’t wait to meet her.”

  Too bad you already know her. I bite my tongue and nod before returning to my screen. I’m reading over a deposition for a case that Chris has been working on for a high profile divorce. Chris asked me to come up with the alimony chart, but when he presented it to the other lawyer, they declined it, putting us back to square one.

  Dante and Alan come in, looking tired. I can’t imagine they did half of what I did this past weekend between the hiking and the screwing. I don’t care what people say, sex is a fucking workout and since I’ve been with Kennedy, I haven’t had to go to the gym. And you better believe I notice how toned she’s getting. My girl had a rocking fucking body to begin with and it’s just getting hotter.

  “What are you guys doing in here?” Connie asks. I didn’t think about the guys being in here as odd. They work for Kennedy, which makes me slightly jealous, and have their own office to work in.

  “Ms. Vaughn isn’t here yet so we thought we’d come in and see what you guys are doing.”

  “Hmm,” I say, knowing full well she’s here. We followed each other in and made out in her car before she finally told me that I needed to behave. I don’t know why I’m the one to blame all time, especially when she attacked me.

  “Are you already working?” Dante asks.

  I nod and continue my calculations for Chris.

  “He came in early.” Connie snickers, which pisses me off. Both Alan and Dante laugh right along with her, but I ignore them.

  “You know, kissing ass won’t land you a job,” Alan says. If he only knew. When we were hired for the internship it was made very clear that employment isn’t offered at the end of our semester. We have to apply for any job opening there might be, like anyone else would have to.

  “I took Friday off and needed to catch up.”

  “But that is what today is for,” Connie adds.

  I swear these people will never make it in the corporate world. I go back to analyzing the numbers, trying to figure out why they won’t work. The husband makes more than enough money to cover the alimony, but balks each time Chris sends over a proposal. Pulling the folder out that has all of the financial information, I start poring over the pay stubs and the deposits. Everything looks on the straight and narrow … until I find the words Swiss Bank followed by astronomical withdrawals. This fucker has off shore accounts that he’s hiding.

  “Where are you going?” Alan asks as I grab my papers and laptop.

  “I need to see Mr. Marshall.”

  Seconds after I knock, he tells me to enter. Kennedy is in his office and if she’s surprised to see me, she doesn’t show it.

  “Am I interrupting?”

  “Not at all, what’s going on?”

  “I found something in the Bellows’ file that I think we should look at. Mr. Bellows rejected our alimony proposal, but a closer look at the financials shows that Mr. Bellows has been making deposits into a Swiss bank account. He claims our numbers aren’t accurate, and they’re not. He’s actually making more money than he’s reporting.”

  Handing over the printouts, I show Chris on the computer the information I found.

  “What are you saying, Hunter?”

  “Um …” I look at Kennedy, wondering if I’m overstepping.

  “Hunter, if you found something that helps your client, tell Mr. Marshall how you think he should proceed,” she says, encouraging me to speak my mind.

  “I think we reject the counter offer and go back with a higher one. When his lawyer balks, and we know he will, we demand all the Swiss bank balances and increase not only the alimony payment, but also Mrs. Bellows’ financial payout.”

  “Oh he’s good, Kennedy.” Chris looks at me with pride in his eyes, and Kennedy is doing the same. For me that’s a lot of validation. Usually I’m being complimented on the size of my dick, not my brain.

  “Well done, Hunter. I have a feeling Mrs. Bellows will be very pleased. Write up the proposal and get it sent over to his lawyer this morning. Give them an hour to respond before you file an injunction.”

  “I’m on it.”

  I leave the office without looking at Kennedy. I know that most people in the office already know we’re a couple, but I promised I’d keep everything on the professional level. That probably means making out in her car, in the parking lot, isn’t the smartest of ideas.

  Still on my high from slamming Mr. Bellows to the wall today, I have a little extra pep in my step when I walk into the club. I’m working all week, plus the weekend to make up for taking time off to go with Kennedy. It was worth it, but it’s going to be hard to make up the tips I’m missing.

  It was my idea to go away—I never expected her to book a flight to Wyoming, though, and I couldn’t really tell her that I couldn’t afford it. I want to be seen as an equal in our relationship, on every level.

  As soon as I walk in, I run smack dab into Christy. She’s in charge of the male population of the club. She has a few other employees under her, but men must go through Christy if they want membership, which means she knows Chad.

  “Hi, Hunter.”

  “Hey, Christy. Sorry for running into you.”

  “No worries,” she replies as she starts to walk down the hall. That’s when I have an idea that is surely going to get me fired.

  “Christy, I have a question,” I say, running after her. She stops and looks at me with her hands on her hips. “Um … I’ve been experimenting sexually and have found that I’m really into blond guys.”

  “Okay?”

  “Right, the thing is, working here it’s hard and since we’re the only club in town that does background searches on their clientele I was hoping that you could help me out. I want to watch a threesome, but I need the man to be somewhat buff with blond hair of course, yet have this … I don’t know, certain attitude like he’s God’s gift to women.”

  “You’re gay?” she asks, as if this would be a shock to her.

  “I’m bi, but think it’s just blond men that turn me on. I want to find out before I approach a guy I’ve had my eye on.”

  “You strippers are fucking weird.” She pulls out her phone. “I’ve seen you on the floor, Hunter, I would’ve never suspected you were into men.”

  “I think it’s the club. I never used to look at a man before, but there’s a few who come in here that m
ake me wonder.” The lies continue to flow so easily that I’m even shocking myself.

  “Whatever,” she mutters, as she scrolls through her phone. “Wednesday I have a client that is coming in. He’s straight, brings in his own girl, sometimes two of them. He likes to be watched. He’s very dominant.”

  “You can bring in your own?”

  “They’re members.”

  “Ah, gotcha. Okay. And he’s blond?”

  “Yep. He’ll be in the viewing room at eight. It’s an open show and he likes feedback if you want to give him some.”

  “Thanks, Christy.”

  Chad is a fucking sick bastard and he can bet I’ll be there Wednesday night to watch him. There’s no way in hell I’m letting Kennedy watch anymore of this shit without me being there. It’s not a possessive thing, but a sexual thing. Watching other people fuck, whether you want to or not, turns you on. I’m going to be there to pleasure her every step of the way.

  I head back to my car, pulling out my phone to call Kennedy. She has to know that her suspicion about Wednesday is accurate and she needs to be here.

  “Hey,” she says breathlessly into the receiver.

  “Fuck, hearing your voice makes me hard, Kennedy.”

  “Hunter … I’m still at work.”

  “I know, me too, sort of.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “On Wednesday I was thinking we’d try a little reverse cowgirl?”

  “Come again?”

  “Exactly, Kennedy. I confirmed with Christy that she has a blond male coming in, who is a cocky piece of shit and happens to fit the body type of Chad. We’re going to celebrate once we nail his ass to the wall.”

  “Hunter, do you know what this means?”

  That I’m about to get fired from my job from giving out classified client information. I don’t tell her that because I don’t want her to feel bad.

  “Yep. He’s going to get fucked up the ass.”

  “That he is,” she replies happily. “How did you find out?”

  Sighing, I run my hand through my hair. “I lied and told Christy that I’m bi-sexual and want to experiment with this guy I met, but don’t know if he’s my type. I told her I need to see a somewhat buff blond man in action, who likes to dominate.”

  “Oh my—”

  “Yeah. Wasn’t the most pleasant experience, I’ll tell you.”

  “At least, I know there’s nothing gay about you.”

  “You’re damn right.”

  “Oh wait,” she blurts out. “I already told Jared I wanted in on Wednesday. He hasn’t gotten back to me yet with a time. What should I do?”

  “Don’t worry,” I tell her. “I’m already booked in that room to watch. I’ll make sure you’re in, too.”

  “Good. I’m ready to get this finished.”

  “Me too. But listen, I have to go. I’ll be home around two.” We say our goodbyes and I hang up the phone. When I say home, I mean her house. Aside from going back to mine to get more clothes, I haven’t slept there in weeks. I’m slowly gravitating my belongings into Kennedy’s home with her encouragement.

  I’ve even cleaned her house. I figure I need to do my part since I’m helping her mess it up. The biggest mess was when she was trying to cook with flour a few nights before and it ended up all over the place. We laughed for hours, especially when we were covered head to toe in it after rolling around on the floor. It showed me a side of her I’d never seen before.

  The morning sun draws me out of my sleep, but instead of hating it like I used to, I welcome it. Glancing around the room, I smile at all the additions. Ever so slowly, Hunter’s been bringing in more of his things. I love seeing his laptop beside mine on the desk, his clothes on his side of the closet, and even the silly things like his toothbrush and razor in the bathroom. What I love even more is smelling him all around me when I wake up in the morning. For the longest time, I never thought I’d let anyone else inside of my home or my heart. It didn’t seem possible.

  Stretching my arms over my head, I notice my muscles are still sore from the night before. Every night when Hunter leaves to do his thing at the club, I’ve been spending my time working out. I think I ran three miles last night. It’s the only thing that gets my mind off of what he’s doing. He’s made it clear he hates it when I go to the club and he knows I loathe him being there. I keep hoping he’ll quit and just work for me, but that’s not the kind of guy he is.

  “Babe, you up?” Hunter calls out.

  The steam billows out of the bathroom and I smile. “Yes,” I laugh. “I needed the extra few minutes of sleep.”

  “Wanna join me?”

  My stomach growls and I know if I get in the shower with him, I’ll never get out. We have to be at the office soon. “I would, but I’m starving. Besides, doesn’t Chris want you there early?”

  The shower water shuts off and I watch him get out, his naked body dripping. He sees me gawking at him and smirks. “He does, but I thought we could have some fun.”

  Chris and Hunter have been inseparable the past week. We’ve never had an intern be on top of things like Hunter is. He’s going to make an amazing lawyer when he graduates; definitely one to be feared. “You’ve made it perfectly clear we’re going to have fun tonight. Although, I don’t see how. Seeing Chad up on stage is going to piss me off more than anything … especially if I can’t get actual proof. It’ll be my word against his.”

  Grabbing a towel, Hunter runs it through his dark hair and over his body as he walks toward me, his gaze heated and raw. He climbs up on the bed, his skin hot from the shower. “I got this handled, Kennedy. No matter what, we’ll get our proof. And after we bust his sorry ass, you’ll be more than ready to let me fuck you.”

  I nod even though I highly doubt tonight will go the way I want. I’ve spent weeks trying to nail Chad Bates to the wall with no luck. It’s like the man’s untouchable. I have one last chance to catch the bastard before I give up for good. Tonight is the final night. Covering me with his body, Hunter leans down and kisses me, his lips soft yet firm. I love the way he nips me with his teeth.

  “Are you always this confident?” I ask breathlessly.

  It’s one of the things I love about him. I haven’t said the words to him, because frankly, I’m scared as hell. I know I care about him deeply and he practically lives with me, but I haven’t been able to speak them. I can see it in his eyes he wants me to, and I hope one day I’ll be able to say them.

  He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “I have to be,” he murmurs. He starts to kiss me again, but my doorbell rings. Brows furrowed, he glances over his shoulder toward the bedroom door. “Expecting someone?”

  I slide out from under him and grab a pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt out from my drawer. “Not that I know of, but I guess we’ll find out,” I say, throwing on my clothes. I’ve never had anyone show up at my house so early in the morning.

  I run downstairs just as the doorbell rings again. When I look out the peephole, my heart stops. It’s Aaron. I haven’t talked to him in days. Taking a deep breath, I open the door slowly and he smiles, his sea green eyes brighter than usual.

  He’s dressed in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, not his usual work attire. I open the screen door and smile back. “Hey.”

  He steps forward, but makes no attempt to come inside. “I’m sorry for stopping by so early, but I was in the neighborhood and I wanted to give you this.” Holding out a long, black box, I recognize it immediately. “I don’t know how they ended up in my stuff, but I wanted to make sure you had them back. Your mother will be angry with you if she thought you lost them.”

  Chuckling, I take the box and open it. My mother gave me the expensive strand of pearls when I graduated college. I can’t believe I didn’t realize they were gone. “She would’ve been more than angry,” I reply, holding them close to my chest. “Thank you so much for bringing them over.”

  He shrugs. “No problem.” Then he nods toward his car. “We’re o
n our way to Seattle for a few days and I knew we had to drive right by here.”

  “We?” I ask. That’s when I notice the woman in his car. Her hair is a deep red and wavy from what I can tell. She smiles unsurely and waves so I wave back and grin. “Never mind, I see. She’s very beautiful.”

  Aaron beams and glances back at her before turning back to me. “Yeah, she is. I was going to wait until I knew you were alone to bring your pearls by, but every time I drive by you have company.” Hunter’s car has been a permanent fixture lately. “I didn’t want to ruffle any feathers.”

  I hold up my hand. “You have nothing to worry about.”

  Hunter walks into the room, sharply dressed in his suit. He looks at Aaron and then settles his gaze on mine. Tension fills the air because it doesn’t take Hunter long to realize who the man is at my door, but I knew they’d be introduced to each other at some point. The expression on his face makes my heart ache, though. I can see he doesn’t believe I’ll tell my ex-husband the truth on who he is to me.

  Hunter grabs his keys and briefcase and I hold out my hand, taking his arm when he joins me at the door. I look at them both and smile. “Aaron, this is my boyfriend, Hunter Miles. Hunter, this is my ex-husband, Aaron Thomas. He stopped by to drop these off,” I explain, holding up my pearls. “They were a gift from my mother.”

  They shake hands and Hunter nods. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Likewise,” Aaron replies. “I was telling Kennedy how sorry I am for stopping by so early. But I’m glad I got to meet you. I can see she’s happy now.”

  “I am,” I murmur, “but so are you.”

  He smiles. “I am. I’ll be even happier when we get on the road. I don’t think I’ve had a vacation in years.” He steps back and waves. “Take care of yourself, Kennedy.”

  “I will. You do the same.”

  Once he’s gone, Hunter turns me to face him, his arms tight around my waist. “So that’s your ex, huh?”

  I bring my hands up to his cheeks and kiss him. “You’re not worried about him, are you?”

  He kisses me back. “No, but you were married to the guy for a long time. There’s a lot of history there.”