Page 6 of Worth the Risk

“They passed on me. I didn’t get it.” My fingers dig into her waist, my others against the wall behind her.

“Fuck, I’m sorry.” I feel like an ass for going on and on about my good news. No wonder she looked so conflicted on the couch earlier. She was probably trying to hide her own disappointment while I was celebrating.

“Do you still need a lawyer?” she says with a little laugh, and my hands still on her body.

I groan which turns into a laugh because I know what she’s going to say. “I very much need a lawyer, especially one like you.”

“Then we probably shouldn’t…”

“Yeah.” Reluctantly, I release my grasp on her, stepping away to take a few deep breaths and redirect the blood flow away from my cock. “You’re probably right.” I drag my hands down my face, my back toward her as I try to refocus my thoughts.

“So… business partners it is, then.”

I turn back around to look at her, her skin still flush with desire, her shirt askew from where my hands were gripping her.She looks sexy, a touch undone, and I have this overwhelming desire to sayfuck itand pull her to me again so I can taste her lips.

“Business partners.” I smile, holding my hand out toward her.

CHAPTER 3

Taylor

PRESENT DAY…

“Where’d you get this couch again?” Austin groans, settling back into the love seat in my office. “It’s so comfortable.” His legs stretch out long and wide in front of him, his body in a heavily slouched position. He runs both hands through his wavy hair before leaning his head back and closing his eyes, just like he does every Friday around the same time.

“For the hundredth time,” I half mumble as I flip through an endless stack of papers in front of me, “I found it online. Someone was selling it.”

“That’s not code forI found it on the street, is it?” His nose scrunches with the question.

“No. I just said someone was selling it. It’s an Audo Copenhagen.” He stares at me blankly. “It’s a ten-thousand-dollar couch I got for less than three.”

“Damn.” He picks at a piece of lint on the cushion before smoothing his hand over the cream material. It’s the same couch I’ve had for almost a year and at least once a month he comments how comfortable it is. “I need to have you help mefurnish my place. Not only do you have good taste, but you know how to find the best deals.”

“It was just a casualty of divorce. I’m not particularly good at finding sales. Hey.” I look up from the current contract I’ve been buried in for the last few weeks. “Did Tyson end up signing with us? I didn’t see anything come across from my de?—”

“You know the rule,” he interrupts, lifting his hand, his head still back with eyes closed. “This time is sacred.”

“For the record, I never agreed toyourrule. You decided that Fridays at four thirty p.m. in my office was a no-work time for you. I don’t have that privilege.” I try not to let the evidence of my failed relationship seep into my work life but lately, I can’t deny that it’s taking a toll on my mood.

“You have a paralegal and an assistant. I believe I’ve told you more than once to hire on a second attorney so that you can have a better work-life balance, but you’ve chosen not to.”

“Well, if you’d stop bringing in rich assholes with insane amounts of money to manage, I wouldn’t be so stressed.” A smile splits his lips, his eyes still closed as he chuckles. “And hiring another attorney won’t fix my work-life balance; we both know that. It’s a control thing.”

“Then what will?” He eyes me. “Besides removing the giant stick up your ass which we both know you’ve come to enjoy.” When I don’t give him the response he’s looking for, he presses further. “Fine, maybe being in a relationship with a man who doesn’t make you want to work late all the time.”

“Excuse me?” I glance over the papers in my hand.

“Oh, please.” He finally lifts his head with a huff. “Nothing will at this point; you’re a workaholic and we both know it.”

“One of us has to be.” I smile dryly, returning my attention back to the file in my hands.

“Why not finally get that kitten you’ve always wanted?”

I furrow my brow in sadness, Noah’s constant empty promise of adopting a cat with me another one of those carrots he’d dangle in front of me if I wasn’t home enough or performing as I should have been as a girlfriend.

“Maybe.” I shrug.

Since we started this wealth management firm five years ago, it’s grown at a rate that neither of us expected… even if Austin likes to pretend he knew it would happen. We’ve brought on an entire team of financial experts, moved to a high-rise office building in the middle of The Loop in the financial district of Chicago, and become one of the top firms in the city.

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