Bad Boy Valentine Wedding (The Hard and Dirty Holidays #3) Read online

  She smiled, her teeth white and perfect. “I think I can manage.”

  Her expression changed, softened, but her eyes remained sharp, focused. It was just what I wanted. I snapped a few more shots, moving around her as her gaze followed me. A few more clicks and we were done.

  I stepped back and scrolled through the photos on my screen. I would have put money on one of the shots in the last set; it would make the cover.

  “All right, Sadie. We’re done here. Go ahead and get dressed.” I smiled and gave her a small salute as another assistant hurried to her with a towel.

  Turning, I walked to the makeshift tent we’d set up along the shore. Once in the shade, I transferred the images from my camera to my laptop. Some of the images had promise, but I wanted to get to the last set. Yes. Her expression was perfect, an enticing smile to match the rest of her. The very last photo was the right one, the light giving her an effervescence that translated perfectly through my lens.

  “Anything noteworthy?” The magazine editor sat beneath the tent, filling his face with random bits of food from the craft table.

  “I think you’ll find some keepers in here.” I saved the best shots to my hard drive for editing later in my office at home. I loved working with Jess in my lap or peeking over my shoulder. She always had great input on my photos.

  “So, we’re done?” The editor asked and brushed coffee cake crumbs from his shirt.

  I closed my laptop. “Yes. I’ll have the best shots to you tomorrow.”

  “Good. You coming to Rio next week for that shoot?” He stood, his portly belly bulging over his belt. He was over fifty, but flirted with the models like he was my age.

  Forcing a smile, I said, “Sorry. I can’t. I’m getting married in two days, then off to our honeymoon in Thailand.”

  He coughed and shook his head. “Why would a young man like you be taking the plunge when you’re constantly surrounded with the choicest pussy?”

  I stopped packing my camera and stared at him. “My personal life is none of your business, but I can assure you Jess is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’m lucky to have her.”

  He ran a hand through his thinning hair and looked at me over his sunglasses. “Son, here’s a bit of advice. There is nothing in this world better than strange, and model strange?” He eyed Layla, one of the models, as she cut across the sand next to the tent and lowered his voice. “That’s the best of all. Don’t go fucking it up by getting married.”

  “Thanks for the input.” My hands fisted but I forced my fingers to relax before grabbing my laptop bag and camera. Showing him my revulsion wasn’t an option, especially since I wanted to get more work from the magazine. “I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

  “Okay then.” He grinned. “Think about what I said.”

  I walked away, out of the shade from the tent and into the sun. “Will do,” I called behind me.

  The sand was warm on my bare feet. It would have been a nice day at the beach if I’d spent it with Jess. Instead, I was beat and ready to get home to her. I checked my watch. She’d be done at her job in half an hour unless her crusty boss made her work late. Maybe I could make her dinner. I smiled just thinking of how surprised she’d be at a home cooked meal.

  “Michael?”

  I looked over my shoulder. Sadie was running through the sand to catch up. I slowed and glanced behind her where the editor stood, grinning at me from beneath the tent. Sadie wore a tiny pair of shorts and a white tank top, her nipples still as hard as they were when I was taking her picture.

  “What is it, Sadie?”

  “Oh, I just um, I just wanted to say thanks for the shoot.” She walked to my elbow and we trudged together toward the parking lot along the scenic drive.

  “Sure.”

  “Any of them seem like contenders?” She hooked her arm through mine.

  I stopped. “Sadie.”

  “What?” She lowered her sunglasses and flashed her light amber eyes.

  I disentangled my arm from hers. “Sadie, you know I’ve got a girl.”

  She pouted and stared at the ground. “I know you do. I just wondered if you think any of my photos were good.”

  “Oh.” I pulled the laptop bag strap higher on my shoulder. “I think several were, actually. One from that last set has a lot of promise.”

  “For the cover?” She looked up at me.

  “Yeah, I think for the cover.”

  She squealed and launched herself at me. I caught her in my arms as she pressed a big kiss to my cheek. “Thanks, Michael! You’re the best.”

  She dropped to the ground and hurried away to her car. I laughed and followed, slipping my sandals on before following her into the gravel parking lot. Sadie waved as she reversed in her little sports car and got on the road, headed back to the city.

  I dropped my equipment in my passenger seat and knocked the rest of the sand from my legs and feet. A burst of movement to my right caught my attention. The familiar flash of sun on a lens told me what was going on. The paparazzi were here.

  “So, Michael, you and Sadie together now?” The paparazzo yelled from what he likely considered was a “safe” distance. I wanted to wring his neck. How long had he been spying?

  “Get bent, motherfucker.” I flipped him off and took a few menacing steps toward his car. He dropped inside in a hurry, slamming his door.

  I snatched up a rock from the lot and tossed it at him. It pinged off the roof of his car as he backed up and sped out onto the highway in a swirl of dust and screeching tires. I wanted to drag him out and crush his camera under my heel, but I couldn’t. Even though I’d changed my ways and hadn’t done anything interesting in years, the paparazzi still shadowed me, especially when I was spending the day with models. And now, thanks to Sadie’s exuberance, they had some ammunition. Fuck.

  Stalking to my car, I sank into the driver seat and pounded the steering wheel with my palm. Of all the days for this sort of a fuck up. Just forty-eight hours before our wedding, I would have to explain to Jess that I wasn’t fucking a model.

  Chapter Four

  Jess

  I hurried down the hallway. It was already long past five, but the partner I worked for was staying late and expected me to do the same. I’d wanted to leave early and do something special for Michael, especially with all the hectic wedding planning we’d been doing lately, but it wasn’t going to happen. Mr. Avery had exacting standards, and I needed to meet them if I had any chance of a future at his law firm.

  The office was empty for the day, most of the staff having already left right at five and the overworked associates leaving soon after. I hoped I wouldn’t have to stay too much later.

  The click clack of my heels echoed down the marble hall as I made my way past the cubicles and offices toward the corner where Mr. Avery was located. His dark wooden door was shut, so I knocked.

  “Jess?” he called.

  “Yes sir.”

  “Come in.”

  I opened the door and crossed the short distance to his mahogany desk. His office was mostly windows, looking out onto the city from the thirty-third floor. He was one of the firm’s founders, and I was lucky he’d hired me straight out of law school.

  “I have all the pleadings you asked for, including their discovery responses from March of last year.” I placed the neat stack of pages on the corner of his well-organized desk.

  He leaned back in his plush leather chair. “Have a seat, Jess.”

  Shit. At this rate, I’d barely get to see Michael at all and the next day would be filled with tons of pre-wedding preparation. I did as instructed and sank onto his leather couch, but perched on the edge. Maybe he would notice my anxiousness and let me go for the evening.

  Mr. Avery was a fit fifty, attractive with only light graying in his dark hair. He wore a dark gray suit and a tie, always impeccably dressed.

  “Jess, as you know, I’ll need someone to help me cover the depositions in the Frost case next month.”


  I couldn’t stop my smile. The Frost case concerned an electrical infrastructure project that had gone bad based on improper voltage specifications. Seemed boring, but the case—and all the witnesses—was located on the island of Maui. I had never dreamt of getting such a plum assignment so early in my career, though I’d daydreamed about it with Michael. He’d assured me that if I got a chance to go, he’d come along with me and show me the sights. He’d been to Maui several times for shoots.

  “So, is that something you’d be interested in?” He stood and walked around his desk before sitting beside me on the sofa.

  “Yes!” I exclaimed before calming my tone. “I mean, yes, Mr. Avery. I’d love that.”

  “I would need you to be available at all hours. The contract workers with the most information about the project problems work all sorts of different shifts. We’ll have to take testimony on their time. So it’s a twenty-four hour job while we’re out there. Can you handle that?”

  “I can do that.” I tucked a lock of my dark brown hair behind my ear. “I’m so excited.”

  “I’m glad. You’ve been an exceptional associate so far.” He smiled, something he rarely did.

  I didn’t think I could grin any bigger, but I did. He rarely praised anyone. “Thank you, sir.”

  “And I hope that on this trip.” He put his hand on my knee, meeting the bare skin beneath the hem of my black skirt. “We can get to know each other even better.”

  My grin faded and my cheeks heated with something other than excitement. Oh, god. “Mr. Avery, I don’t think you mean—”

  “I know exactly what I mean.” His grip tightened on my leg. “You’re exceptional. We’ll be spending a couple of weeks in the most beautiful spot on the planet. When I said I needed you at all hours, Jess, I meant it.”

  I batted his hand off my leg and rose, my heart racing. “I think we’ve had a misunderstanding.” Disappointment warred with anger inside me, and I couldn’t look him in the eye.

  He stood. “Come now, Jess. Walking around here in those short skirts, batting your eyelashes at me—I haven’t been imagining these things have I?”

  “I-I’m afraid you have. I’m getting married in two days to the man I love.” I finally met his eye. “I have no interest in you other than professionally speaking.”

  He frowned and stepped closer. My gorge rose but I swallowed hard.

  “That’s a shame. I suppose I’ll have to give the Frost case to Emilia.” He placed his finger under my chin. “Unless you’ll reconsider your position?”

  My skin crawled. “No, I won’t. I’m not here to be your mistress or to fuck my way up the ladder.” Anger rose inside me and spilled into my words. “Don’t give me the assignment. I don’t want it with its extra duties.” I was burning my bridge with this firm, possibly getting myself blackballed, but I would never agree to what he was suggesting.

  Before I had a chance to back away, he kissed me. I shoved at his chest but he wrapped his arms around me, pressing me against him. He tried to stick his tongue in my mouth, but when I tried to bite him, he let me go.

  “Jess?”

  I whirled. Michael stood in the doorway behind me, an inscrutable look on his face.

  Fuck.

  “Michael. It’s not what it looks like.” This was bad. Why would I say the thing that the guilty party always says?

  Michael strode into the room, his presence filling the room to bursting with what I realized was rage. Mr. Avery cleared his throat.

  “Really? Because what it looks like to me is a dirty old man threatening a young female associate to try and get her to sleep with him. Sound accurate?” He held his hand out to me.

  I ran to him and took it. He pulled me around behind him and placed a hand on my hip.

  “That’s actually … Perfectly accurate.” I whispered as relief coursed through me. He squeezed my hip.

  I stood on my tiptoes and peeked over Michael’s shoulder. His tattoos swirled out of the neckline of his shirt, the ink seemingly alive as his veins pumped double time underneath. He was like a furnace ready to blow.

  “She has come onto me time and time again.” Mr. Avery’s voice quavered. “I was simply informing her that I wasn’t the sort of man to cheat on my wife with an associate. That’s all this was.”

  “You’re going to lie about my girl to my face?” Michael dropped his hand from my hip and advanced on Mr. Avery.

  Mr. Avery stumbled backwards and landed heavily on his couch. Michael kept walking until he loomed over the other man.

  “Michael, don’t hurt him.” I had never seen him so angry, every muscle in his body drawn so tight he practically vibrated with malice.

  He stopped and stretched his fingers before balling them into fists. Mr. Avery cowered beneath him.

  “If you ever treat Jess like anything less than a lawyer deserving of respect, I’ll come back here. Understand? For that matter, if I hear you’ve treated any associate the way you’ve treated my girl, I’ll be back.” He leaned down and stabbed his index finger in Mr. Avery’s face. “I asked you a question.”

  “Y-yes, I understand.” Mr. Avery squeaked.

  “Now, apologize to Jess.” Michael straightened and crossed his arms over his broad chest. “I’ll wait.”

  Mr. Avery glanced to me and then dropped his gaze to the floor. “I’m sorry, Jess.”

  “Good. Jess won’t be working for you any more, but I expect a stellar recommendation letter. If I hear any different, I’ll give you three guesses of what will happen.” Michael bored into Mr. Avery with his eyes. “Go on, guess.”

  “You’ll be back.” The quaver in his voice had turned into a shudder. I wondered if he might piss himself. Mr. Avery likely wasn’t used to large, tattooed, pierced men with fauxhawks threatening him over his dirty deeds.

  “That’s right.” Michael slapped Mr. Avery on the shoulder. The man jumped and paled. “You’re a quick study, Mr. Avery.”

  Michael turned back to me, not giving another glance to my ghostly white boss.

  “Come on. Let’s get your stuff and get the hell out of here.” He took my hand. It was only then I realized I’d been shaking. Was it with anger or fear? I couldn’t tell.

  He pulled me into the hallway and stopped. “Which way to your office?”

  He’d never visited me at work before, no matter how many times I’d begged him to come see me. He was too worried the stuffy attorneys would judge his appearance and hold it against me. Why had he chanced it tonight?

  He ran his hand down my cheek, the concern in his eyes making me melt for him like I did on the first day we met. “You okay?”

  “Now that you’re here, yes.” I placed my hand against his chest, feeling the rapid beat of his heart. “Thank you for not hurting him.”

  He smirked and kissed my forehead. “He’s lucky you said something or I would be committing a felony right now.”

  “Come on.” I pulled him down the hall, away from Mr. Avery. I didn’t want to risk any more run-ins.

  It didn’t take long to pack my few personal items. I hated giving up my job, especially when it was Mr. Avery’s fault, but I couldn’t stay here. I knew that much. Michael tucked my framed diplomas under his arm and I carried a small box of my belongings. I stood in the doorway for a few seconds, saying goodbye to my closet-sized, windowless office.

  Michael wrapped his arm around my waist. “I’m sorry this happened. It’s not fair.”

  “It’s okay.” I blinked back my tears. There were other jobs, ones that didn’t come with a dickhead for a boss. I leaned against him.

  “It’s not, but it will be. I promise. You’re a catch for any firm in this town. You’ll have another job in no time.”

  “You always say the right thing.” I smiled up at him. “You do the right thing, too.”

  He tensed for a moment, then led me down the corridor toward the elevators.

  “Let’s get home. Put this shit behind us. We have a wedding, a honeymoon, and a
staggering amount of sex in our imminent future.”

  I laughed as we walked into the elevator. “I love you.”

  He leaned down and kissed my neck beneath my ear, sending goose bumps down my body. “I love you, too.”

  Chapter Five

  Michael

  I held her close, breathing in her scent after I’d sated her that night. I needed to tell her about what happened with Sadie, but she was so shaken up about the shit her boss pulled that I didn’t want to make it any worse.

  I nuzzled into her hair, wanting her to feel how much she meant to me, how much I loved her. She had saved me. The moment I’d seen her deep blue eyes I knew I had to turn my life around, to strive to be good enough to earn her trust.

  I smiled remembering the first time we’d been together, when I’d taken her virginity. She’d been so shy, but I knew my wildcat was in there somewhere. I pulled her to my chest and she sighed, the sound of an angel.

  I smoothed my palms up and down her back as she breathed deeply. I couldn’t wait to make her my wife. Not to mention the fireworks I had planned for our honeymoon. I dropped one more kiss into her fragrant hair and drifted off to sleep.

  ***

  Giggles erupted in the living room. I woke to the morning sun streaming through the windows of the penthouse I shared with Jess. She was gone, the bed cold next to me. I hated waking up without her.

  “Now, girls, calm down. We have to be at the spa in fifteen minutes.” My mother’s voice rang out, authoritative but also tinged with the sort of joy I hadn’t heard from her in a while.

  “Jess, you ready?” One of her friends asked.

  “Yeah, let me kiss Michael goodbye.”

  More laughter rang out as Jess re-entered our bedroom. She radiated happiness, all the problems of the previous day erased from her beautiful face. My cock hardened as I watched how she moved. She wore a demure white dress with some medium white heels. Something about the propriety of the dress made me want to rip it off her. I wouldn’t, but I’d get at least a taste.