“I do not appreciate you making decisions without my consent-” She raised a hand to silence him before he could even form a response. “At least when it comes to anything other than security which is the only purview of your job. After some consideration last night I came to the conclusion that, although it wouldn’t have been my first choice, pretending you’re my boyfriend would probably be the easiest way to handle our current situation.”
He opened his mouth, intending to ask what the hell the issue was then, but again, she held up a hand to silence him.
“Which, had you bothered to merely ask, I would have told you. But considering you seem to be hell bent on running your mouth to my friends and colleagues at the drop of a hat, we’re going to establish some ground rules regarding what you can and cannot tell people.”
She stopped and looked at him expectantly.
“Oh, so now I can speak?” He snorted.
“If you have anything relevant to add to the conversation, then feel free.”
Damn it all, but he didn’t at the moment.
“Firstly, you will not tell them anything that we haven’t already discussed and agreed upon in advance. Even if the question is as simple as “what did you have for lunch?” you will hedge. Got it?”
Connor was tempted to snap off a salute, but kept his response to a curt nod.
“Everyone will be told, or already has been told,” She said with a roll of her eyes. “That we’re dating. News travels fast in our office, in large part due to Janie. People will be curious and they will ask questions. Some of them will be inappropriate, again, I’m primarily talking about Janie.”
He raised an eyebrow, silently urging her to get to the point. She took a deep breath and let it out in a long sigh.
“To be blunt, Janie will ask for… details. And she won’t be coy about it.”
Connor grinned. He liked Janie already.
“You will not, under any circumstances, give her any.”
“What do you mean?” He frowned in confusion.
“I mean, you will tell her nothing. You will not create scenarios, you will not make innuendos, you will not make suggestive comments.”
“So you want me to tell her we’re not having sex?”
“No. She’ll assume we are, even if you tell her we’re not. Let her assume whatever she wants, but tell her gentlemen don’t kiss and tell, or however you want to phrase it.”
“Why?” He was suddenly curious. She didn’t care if they thought she was doing the dirty, but she didn’t want them to know even fictitious details? Why the distinction?
“Because it’s nobody’s fucking business.” She snapped, before quickly composing herself. “It’s something I’m… particular about, which makes it more authentic, and it also simplifies things. The simpler the lie, the better.”
He raised an eyebrow but kept silent. He searched for some sign of what was going on in her head, but he caught not a glimpse of emotion on her face. He hated it. Hated not knowing what she was thinking.
“I feel it would also be advisable if you’re… discreet in terms of any… liaisons you might have while we’re ‘dating’,” She said, making quotes with her fingers.
“Anything else?” He asked.
“Yes.” She swallowed hard, but her expression didn’t change. “I do appreciate you checking on Janie. It was thoughtful of you. And, although I have significant issues with the way you handled things last night, I am nothing if not reasonable. Your intentions were good and I’m acknowledging that.”
He was surprised, but a little pleased that at least she was giving him some credit, though the delivery, and that unemotional way she spoke, disappointed him. She was telling him that logically she should appreciate his concern for Janie’s safety but she wasn’t saying that she felt appreciative of what he was trying to do. That somehow made it… less.
It also made him want to see her a little less reasonable. Less composed, less in control. He wondered what that Alexandra would look like, sound like, feel like...
“Alright.” He said solemnly. “Are you done?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Now, it’s my turn. For one thing, I don’t have liaisons. I don’t fuck around, and I’m slightly insulted that you think I’d be the type of dobber who’d start this whole thing and then go around doggin’ anything on two legs right under yer nose.”
She looked at him blankly. “I have no idea what you just said.”
“I’m not a prick.” He enunciated, regaining control of his language center again. “I’m not going to fuck around. Clear?”
“Oh.” She said. She nodded.
“Same goes for you.” Connor added. “No dating other guys, alright?”
“I don’t date.” She said without hesitation. “We should go so we’re not late. There shouldn’t be much opportunity for Janie to grill you at the gym. We can sit down and come up with some basic backstory later.” She shrugged as she coolly turned and placed her mug in the sink. She walked away without a word and Connor had nothing to do but follow.
The ride to the gym was silent, but mercifully short. Janie was already there and Alexandra quickly whisked her away toward the treadmills to begin their workout. He stayed close, but opted to start with some free weights so that he could turn to face her and keep the door in sight at the same time. She and Janie chatted away while they warmed up. He caught several of Janie’s inquisitive glances and assumed the inquisition had begun.
He almost felt bad. Almost. The conversation stopped when they both popped in earbuds. Janie continued to walk and Alexandra pumped up her treadmill to an easy jog.
He kept an eye on the surroundings but he found himself watching Alexandra more closely than anything else. He was pretty sure his elevated heart rate wasn’t due entirely to the exercise. She really was beautiful. She was curvy in all the right places, shown off to considerable advantage while she jogged in her yoga pants.
Her legs were long and lean, arms toned but also graceful, but her hips and breasts were still full and round. Her face was a mask of concentration, smooth and blank despite the sweat beginning to bead on her forehead. Her full lips pursed every so slightly with every exhalation.
But her eyes. Some of the fire was back in them. He tried to see what had sparked it, but he realized it must be the music she was listening to since she wasn’t looking at anything in particular. As he watched, curious what she was listening to, she began to mouth the words to herself. He was riveted by the motion of her mouth, even though he could only make out about half the words.
Then, lost in her own world, she closed her eyes and bobbed her head to the music. He was transfixed. He wondered if it was the same rapturous expression she wore when she came. And then all he could do was picture it-- picture her. Under his hands, writhing, moaning. He was immediately, and painfully hard.
Fuck. The last thing he needed was to walk around the gym with an erection. He tore his focus from her and sat on the weight bench. He picked up the weight and focused intently on bicep curls until he could get his body under control. He limited himself to quick glances in her direction. Just enough to make sure she was still there. He directed the rest of his attention to watching the door.
✽✽✽
Alexandra wouldn’t let herself acknowledge his presence until she’d had a chance to work off her earlier frustration. A good run on the treadmill with her favorite playlist had done the trick. She began her cooldown and finally looked around to see where he was. She was sure he wouldn’t be far away given his hard and fast five foot rule.
She spotted him almost directly in front of her seated on a bench doing curls with what seemed to be a very large weight. He was turned toward the mirror, working his right arm. His shirt was damp with sweat and stretched taut across his broad back and sculpted shoulders. She could see every muscle move beneath the fabric. Her mouth went dry and she took a large swig from her water bottle.
When she looked again, he had shifted so
that he was faced more toward her as he began working the other arm. She watched the muscles in his bicep bunch and flex with each repetition. His face was set in concentration and sweat dripped off his brow. His lips were parted and his breathing was quick. She could practically feel his panting breaths against her neck as he hovered over her.
What? Stop. Stop, stop, stop.
Her face felt like it was on fire and she quickly wiped it with her towel and jabbed buttons on the machine until it stopped. So much for her cooldown. Before she could escape to the bathroom to regroup, Janie grabbed her and urged her to another set of machines. Alexandra groaned.
“Really? I hate these.”
“I know you do,” Janie patted her shoulder. “But they’re fantastic for your ass.”
Alexandra rolled her eyes and climbed on the stair machine. At least it faced the opposite direction so she wouldn’t be tortured watching Connor flex and sweat right in front of her. She left the earbuds out and chatted with Janie about her love life-- what else?-- while also dodging questions about Connor until they were both too out of breath for conversation.
She paused for a moment to put her earbuds back in and select a new song. She got going again only to notice Connor was now in front of her, at the opposite side of the gym from where he had been.
This time he was pulling two ropes attached to weights down and across until his hands met in front of his body. Every time he extended his arms and then began pulling them together again, he flexed his glutes and shifted his pelvis forward, engaging his core. Alexandra felt it in her core as well. All those images from early came flooding back and then some.
She forced her eyes closed and focused on going through the motions of the machine. It worked for a few minutes until a certain song popped up on her playlist and she listened to Ed Sheeran and Camila Cabello sing about going south of the border.
Suddenly she was imagining a beach in Mexico with fruity drinks, warm sand, and a shirtless Connor walking in slow motion out of the ocean, water dripping from his hair and running in rivulets down his chest and over ripped abs right down to that delicious v at his hips. Then they were both down in the sand and her hand was in his dark, wet hair as he trails kissed down her neck.
A warm hand on her shoulder startled her out of her revery so quickly that she almost fell off the machine. She pulled out an earbud and was treated to a throaty, masculine chuckle.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.” Connor grinned. His eyes were positively devilish and she could feel her face burning. She wanted to slink away and take a cold shower for the next decade. Instead, she tried very hard to remember that he couldn’t possibly know what she’d been thinking and for all he knew her face was flushed from the workout.
He handed her a cold bottle of water and she thanked him before twisting off the cap and downing half the bottle.
“You alright, babe? You’re looking really flushed?” His brow was creased in concern but his eyes were still amused. Oh, damn you.
“I’m fine.” She said breezily. “These machines are just a lot of work.”
“I bet.” He gave her a half smile.
“What’s next, Janie?” She turned to her friend for rescue. Janie gave her a positively evil grin.
“You know what comes next. Warm-up, Booty work-”
“Ugh,” Alexandra grunted. “Abs. I hate abs.”
“You hate them all.” Janie pointed out. “But you do it anyway.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Alexandra saluted. She followed Janie to the mats without a backward glance at Connor and began the routine that Janie had put together. It was a combination of pilates, yoga and basic calisthenics, but it was all abs. And it hurt more than a brazillian wax performed by a cranky epileptic.
✽✽✽
Connor felt like the top of his head was going to pop off in an explosion of sexual frustration. He’d handled the treadmill incident only for Alexandra to turn around, literally, and show off that perfect ass of hers by climbing on the stairmaster. Then, he’d repositioned again to avoid an embarrassing hard-on only to catch her ogling him in the mirror.
He had suspected all the blushing she did was an indication that she at least found him attractive, but the look of pure hunger on her face had startled him. And made him stand at attention yet again. He couldn’t think with her looking at him like that.
So when she’d closed her eyes-- and God would he like to know what she’d been thinking about that put that look on her face-- he’d taken a break to down a bottle of water and cool down.
He’d intended to yank her off that damn machine and call it a day, but the surprise on her face followed by that fecking adorable blush made him think maybe them being alone in a car together might not be wise just then. So instead he’d enjoyed the peek into her active imagination and went back to his workout.
They hit the mats and Janie tortured Alexandra with her drill sergeant routine-- which, given he’d actually met drill sergeants, was pretty accurate-- while he ran a couple miles on the treadmill. He kept a decent pace but didn’t want to exhaust himself given he was still on duty. He kept an eye on the door and on the girls until they were done.
He stopped and waved to Janie as she gathered her things. He assumed they’d be heading out as well. He was wrong.
“Ready?” He asked, drinking from his third bottle of water.
“Not yet. I have about five minutes before my training session.” She panted. She looked after Janie with murder in her eyes before taking a sip from her own bottle.
“Training?”
“Yeah. Kickboxing. 45 minutes in a private room. I’ll be fine, you can keep going and I’ll meet you here when I’m done.”
“No can do.” Connor replied, shaking his head. “I go where you go.”
“So, you’re just going to watch?” She asked. Her face was blank, but she shifted her weight from foot to foot like she was nervous.
“Unless you want me to train you myself.” He shrugged. “I could throw in some Tae Kwon Do, Jiu Jitsu or some Muay Thai in there if you want. Spice it up.” She gave him a skeptical look.
“We could grapple.” He grinned. “It might be fun.”
She frowned, blushing. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” He asked innocently.
“You’re much bigger than me. You’re more experienced than I am. You’d have an unfair advantage.”
“That’s the point. It would be good to practice against someone larger. There are no weight classes when it comes to a real fight.” He pointed out.
“True. But I think I’ll stick with Trey this time.” She patted his arm and headed for the vending machines. She tossed her empty bottle in the recycling bin and grabbed a full one out of the cooler.
“So Janie doesn’t take kickboxing with you?” Connor asked.
“No. She doesn’t like violence.” Alexandra sighed.
“Nobody does.”
“That’s not true.” Alexandra murmured. Before he could ask what that meant, she went on. “She’s one of those idealistic types that thinks violence isn’t the answer. That a frank discussion should, and could, solve almost everything.”
“Naive of her.” He snorted.
“Not any more than I used to be.” She shrugged.
“You, naive? Never.”
“If you only knew.” Alexandra chuckled bitterly. “That’s part of why I became a lawyer. I used to have this great faith in the justice system. I knew it wasn’t perfect but I thought that as a whole it was this noble institution leveling the playing field to make sure everyone was treated fairly.”
“You don’t think that anymore?” Connor asked carefully. She thought for a moment.
“I was disabused of that notion fairly quickly. There are too many broken parts for it to run the way it should. I went to law school thinking I could help make some repairs.” She picked at the label of her bottle as she snagged a chair at one of the metal bistro tables in the main area.
Connor took the other chair and positioned it on the other side of the table, between her and the door.
“You think it’s possible?”
“My father thinks so. It’s been his life’s mission to try, at any rate, especially now that he’s a senior partner at his own firm. He doesn’t have to answer to anyone but the other partners, and even them only nominally. He’s gearing up right now for a Supreme Court case next month.”
“Impressive.”
“That’s my father.”
“Is that the other reason you became a lawyer?”
“No. God, no.” Alexandra laughed. “Everyone always assumes I was pushed into the law. Family business, someone to take up the mantle once the old man retired, all that. Truth is, he didn’t give a damn what we did. When I was applying for colleges and trying to decide on a major for undergrad I talked to him about it.
I thought he’d be disappointed if I didn’t follow in his footsteps. He told me that he hadn’t worked so damn hard and earned all this money just to let it sit around in the bank. That it was no good if it meant his kids couldn’t do whatever they wanted with their lives. He told me that as long as whatever I did was something I was passionate about and that I was giving it my all, he didn’t want me to worry about whether or not I’d be able to make a living at it.”
“Wow.” Few parents were unconditionally supportive of their children, especially powerful parents. He always thought it was odd that the people who could most afford to let their children be children and then let them grow up to do and be whatever they wanted, often pressured their children to be as successful as they were.
“Yeah. He’s been pretty great. But, it doesn’t mean he wasn’t absolutely over the moon when I told him I was going to law school, and that it was my own choice.”
“I bet.” Connor nodded. “So why did you, aside from your desire to fix a broken system?”
And what would convince a young woman that it needed fixing in the first place?
“It was a challenge.” She shrugged. “It was competitive and fast-paced. No two cases are the same even if on the surface they appear to be. There are genuine opportunities to be a champion for someone who needs it, despite the sleazy attorney stereotype.”
Her Protector Page 6
