Page 19 of Elevating Eve

Though he supposed his wealth had just as much to do with it, if not more. Jonathan and Leo both came from money and had no problem throwing around their trust funds to get their foot in several important doors. Mason found the whole thing obscene from the start, and Jonathan cringed now at some of the shit he and Leo pulled.

Hard to argue with results, though. By the time they sold the company seven years later, determined to open Fairford Manor instead, they had over five hundred employees.

The three of them never needed to worry about money again.

Eve slid a manila folder across his desk, drawing his mind back to thepresent. “Purchase orders for your approval,” she said, face still aglow with pleasure at his words. “Shoot me a text when you’ve had a chance to go through them, and I’ll pick them up.”

Resting his hands on top of the folder, he smiled at her. “I can bring them to you for once. I assure you I’m capable of walking down two flights of stairs.”

She chuckled. “Just trying to make your life easier. Lainey and I are determined to make this experience the complete opposite of what happened with Frank.”

“I appreciate that.” And he really did, more than he knew how to say. Things improved so much in the last month that he finally had time to start seeing guests again. Thank God for that, because he needed to burn off this energy humming just beneath his skin before he did something monumentally stupid.

Like bend Eve over his desk and fuck her once and for all.

Distraction time. “I talked to Lainey this morning, actually,” he said, leaning back in his chair and stretching out his long legs. “She couldn’t be happier with how easy you’ve made this transition for her crew. There’s potential for you there, I think.”

Her answering grin sent a wave of warmth washing over him. “She’s hinted a couple times now that she might want to hire me permanently. I can’t even believe it. I’dloveto work for Lainey. She’s such a badass.”

“I find it very easy to believe,” he said, reveling in the joy written in every inch of her body. It felt like he’d been half empty all his life, never even realizing it. These little moments with her filled him up a little bit at a time. If this kept up, he’d be full near to bursting before long.

She planted her hands on her hips. “Flattery won’t get you anywhere,” she teased. “You still have to sign the POs.”

“It’s not flattery if it’s true,” he shot back, enjoying the flash of pleasure in her dark eyes. “You’re just as much of a badass as Lainey. Of course she wants you on her team.”

Eve’s lower lip trembled, and for a moment he thought she would start crying. But then she gave the stack of Manor applications on one corner of his desk a pointed look, her whole demeanor shifting like she’d just donned a mask. “And how are things going for you professionally?” A soft, rosy color tinted her cheeks. “Any good contenders lately?”

Jonathan lifted a single eyebrow. “Contenders?” he repeated, one corner of his mouth lifting. “Are we fucking or boxing?”

She rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean. I haven’t seen you with any guests for a while, but it looks like that’s about to change?”

Would it bother you to see me with another woman instead of you?The question almost tumbled out of his mouth, but he thought better of it at the last second. He needed to keep this professional. Picking up the topmost application, he pretended to peruse the first page. “Now that the crisis is over, I need to get back to work,” he said as nonchalantly as he could.

Leaning on the edge of his desk, she plucked the application from his hand. “Miranda Kushner,” she said, eyes moving back and forth as she read the page. “Thirty-one years old. Just ended a ten-year relationship with her Dom and is looking for something commitment free to fill her lonely days. My, my.” She met his gaze and arched her dark brows. “I thought you didn’t like being a rebound.”

A warning alarm started blaring and flashing red in his brain. “I don’t think that’s quite what I said,” he answered carefully, not liking the shrewd look in her eyes. “And you really shouldn’t be looking at the applications, at least not without signing an NDA first.”

“Close enough.” She ignored him when he held out a hand, her gaze returning to the application. “And I did sign an NDA,” she reminded him, flipping through several of the pages without even glancing at them. “I can’t talk about anything I see on Manor property while employed here. Ahh, here we are. Let’s see what Miranda’s into.”

She’d gone straight to the first page of hard and soft limits, as if she knew exactly where to find it. He filed that bit of information away for later.

“Hmm,” Eve said, moving onto the second page of limits, then quickly to the third. “Not a lot of fives on here. What a shame.”

The application had seven full pages of potential sexual activities a guest could engage in with her Dom. Each option got a rating between one and five, giving the Manor’s five Doms insight into whether their kinks were compatible or not. The stack of applications on his desk were all from women who, at a quick glance at least, seemed like a good fit for Jonathan’scurrent mood.

“Honestly, this one seems almost vanilla,” she said with a little tsking noise. “Given what I’ve seen go on around here, I don’t think this is the place for her.”

“Give it back, Eve,” Jonathan said, losing patience with her little act. He held out a hand again. “Now.”

Not even acknowledging that he spoke, she reached for the second application on the stack. Oh, how he wanted to spank her.

This time he caught her wrist in his hand. “Enough. Why are you acting like this?”

Eve went perfectly still, staring at where his fingers wrapped around her wrist for several seconds, eyes big and round. Her breath came in short, quick bursts.

“Look at me, please,” he said, soft and low this time.

It took several seconds for her to comply. Her eyes looked panicked, almost wild.

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