Page 4 of Beneath the Flames
He raised an eyebrow. “I trust you haven’t called me out of my office to subject me to one of your jokes, Ms. Taylor.”
“No, Sir Davis! Although, I do have a real doozy for you if you’d like me to share it.”
“I’ll pass,” he answered drolly as he took a seat beside Brie and gave her a private smirk.
Brie knew Sir secretly enjoyed teasing Lea.
“Now that I’ve got both of your attention…” She pulled an envelope out of her large purse and handed it to Sir. “…I want to give you this, compliments of Hunter.”
Sir furrowed his brow as he stared at the envelope. “What is it?”
“You have to open it to find out, Sir Davis,” Lea squeaked, glancing at Brie excitedly.
Sir tore open the envelope and pulled out four tickets, fanning them out so Brie could see what they were.
Brie giggled. “Why the heck would Hunter buy us and our children tickets for a Mexican cruise?”
Lea glanced at the front door. “I bet you could use some time away from the craziness, don’t you think?”
Her eyes were twinkling when she pulled a golden envelope from out of her purse. Holding it out to Brie, she gushed, “Hunter has been secretly planning this for quite a while!”
Brie took the envelope from Lea and glanced at Sir in amusement, wondering if this was some kind of elaborate joke Lea was setting up.
Her friend stared at her eagerly while Brie broke the seal and pulled out an invitation. Her eyes grew wide when she realized what she was holding. “Oh, my goodness, Lea!”
“I know! It’s happening. It’s really happening!” Lea squealed, jumping up and down.
Brie handed it to Sir, telling him excitedly, “We’ve been invited to a collaring!”
Sir immediately set Hope down and stood up, holding out his hand to Lea. “Congratulations are in order, Ms. Taylor.”
Lea shook his hand enthusiastically. “I’m so happy, Sir Davis. I feel like I am about to burst into a million pieces!”
Brie jumped up off the couch and wrapped her arms around Lea. “I’m thrilled for you, girlfriend.”
Lea returned her hug, nearly squeezing the breath out of her before letting go. “After Ms. Clark and then Liam, I thought I was the unluckiest girl alive and only destined for heartbreak…”
Lea’s face was radiant when she declared, “But Hunter changed all that!”
Sir stared at the tickets for a moment, then tried to hand them back to her. “We can’t allow you to pay for these.”
Lea refused to take them back, her grin growing wider. “Hunter insists.”
“Allow me to pay for the children at the very least.”
“Nope! Hunter refuses to break up your sweet little family over this, and he chose this cruise line because it has a stellar children’s program.”
“Who else will be attending your collaring?” Brie asked her.
“Master Nosh and his wife.”
Brie chuckled. “Is that all?”
Lea nodded, and explained, “Hunter and I decided to keep it private, but we both wanted to invite the two people who were instrumental in our development during our training.”
Sir nodded to Lea. “I am sincerely honored, Ms. Taylor.”
“So that means you’ll come, Sir Davis?” she begged.
