Page 25 of Three Souls Who Break

The walk to Perry’s office wasn’t long. Most of the executives were up here. Stefen wasn’t since he was the head of R&D. He was in the other building with us.

Peyton stood as we approached, a growl bubbling up when he saw Dominic holding on to Corbin. I suddenly got the urge to out alpha him, so I stepped in front of Corbin and faced Peyton.

“Don’t get growly because Dom’s holding on to Corbin,” I said. “Corbin would be walking next to me, but your partner decided to drag him up here when all he really came here for was lunch with me.” I crossed my arms and stubbornly lifted my chin. I had neither height nor weight on Peyton, but I was scrappy as fuck and quick. If he wanted a challenge, I’d give him one.

Peyton cocked an eyebrow at me and leaned forward with his hands planted on his desk. I heard Perry’s door open but didn’t bother looking. “You testing me, Val?”

“So what if I am?”

“Corbin’s with you?”

“He sure as fuck isn’t with Dom.” I probably could have said that a little quieter. I didn’t think Greer heard me in his office across the floor. To prove my point, I took Corbin’s hand in mine. He held me gently, which was very him.

Instead of responding to me, Peyton looked at Dominic. “Why are you walking around with another man’s arm through yours? You know how I get, vixen.”

Dominic released Corbin and mimicked Peyton’s stance, hands on the desk, leaning forward until they were face-to-face. “And you know I love it when you’re possessive.” He pressed a quick kiss to Peyton’s lips. Peyton tried to deepen it but Dominic pulled back so he could turn and kiss Perry who was leaning against his doorframe, watching this unfold.

Like a bee buzzing around, Dominic went to Carissa next to see how she was doing. She had taken over the job of being Perry’s executive assistant when Dominic left to dance at Dexen’s club full time.

“Val,” Perry nodded. “Corbin, it’s good to see you here. I’m guessing Dom gave you the half-assed tour so all you really saw were the people he wanted to run into.”

A tennis ball flew at Perry’s head. That was Greer’s thing, but I wasn’t surprised they were nearby since Greer probably came over here often. Perry didn’t duck fast enough, and it hit him on the forehead. Peyton covered his smile while Dominic went back to talking with Carissa. Of course, Perry didn’t take the shot lying down. He went into his office and came back a moment later with a pencil in his hand, one I recognized, and honestly didn’t understand the appeal of. It was what Dominic loved to use when he’d worked here.

“Don’t you dare,” Dominic said, leveling Perry with a glare.

“You threw a fucking tennis ball at my head. In front of my employees.” He lifted the pencil to make a show of it and snapped it in half. Dominic moved so fast he was almost a blur, shoving Perry into his office. Peyton stepped around his desk and followed them inside without a word, pushing the door closed behind him. The lock engaged with a resoundingclick.

“What just happened?” Corbin asked.

“Foreplay,” was my response. I was still holding his hand, so I waved to Carissa and pulled Corbin toward the elevator. I’d had enough office bullshit. None of this counted as my lunch break. It would start the second my feet carried me outside. “Where are we going for lunch?” I asked when the doors closed us in the elevator.

Corbin blushed. It was fast becoming one of my favorite things and a tell-tale sign he was about to say something I’d like. “I made us a picnic. It sounds cheesy now that I’m saying it out loud. We could go to a restaurant if you want.”

I leaned close and pressed a kiss to his cheek. I liked being able to do that. “A picnic sounds good, Doc.”

“Have you been to the park not far from here? We can walk. I go there to run sometimes.”

“I haven’t. Where’s the food?”

“I left it in my truck. I didn’t expect to be inside for that long. I’m glad I decided to use ice packs.” It wasn’t hot out but depending on where he’d parked, and if the sun was hitting his truck, the food could spoil.

Corbin grabbed the cooler from his truck. It was a flexible one with a strap he looped over his shoulder. I took his hand again and we left Altair Plaza for the walk down two blocks to the park. Other people were out walking during their lunch hour. Vehicles drove by reminding me, even though we were about to sit in a park, we were still very much in the city.

The light turned, indicating we could go so we started across the crosswalk, but the sound of a car accelerating caught my attention. I looked to my left in time to see a dark blue Challenger barreling toward us. The lane was clear, but the light was red. They didn’t care. I quickly pulled Corbin back, who was talking to me about the weather, just in time or he would have been hit.

“What the fuck?” I yelled then quickly looked at Corbin. “Are you okay?”

He nodded; eyes wide. “They almost hit us.”

I looked around quick, noting how we were the only ones in the crosswalk. I also saw the camera on the traffic light. We made sure the coast was clear and finished crossing the road. The moment we were in the park, I pulled out my phone to call JJ.

He answered on the second ring. “Shouldn’t you be enjoying time with Corbin?”

“Can your boyfriend hack shit?” There was no keeping the anger out of my tone. Corbin could have been hurt. I was vibrating over it.

“What? Why?”

“Because someone just tried to run us over and there’s a camera on the traffic light. I’m wondering if Greer can hack into the city system and grab the plate number. I was too shocked to take a picture.” It would have probably come out blurry if I had managed to get one.

---