Celebration (14 page)

“Don’t worry so much. You deserve a surprise, too, Rex.” Rex gave her a look, but Athena only smiled. She gathered up a group of files and handed them to him. “Dinner’s at eight.”

“I’ll be there.” Rex headed back to his room and dove in.

* * *

Julius yawned one more time. He was going to be jet-lagged for the foreseeable future, but he didn’t really mind. Seeing Athena at regular intervals was worth it—and invigorating, too. It was his last day in the office before heading to London yet again, this time for Athena’s opening night party at her new establishment. Julius smiled to himself, wondering what delights she would come up with to celebrate her fresh start.

“There’s someone here to see you,” Sophie said from the doorway.

Julius turned in surprise. “I don’t have any more appointments, not until I get back in ten days.”

Sophie winced. “I know, but she says she has to see you and that she won’t leave until she does.” She leaned closer. “She’s quite vehement.”

Julius saw that his secretary was afraid of this arrival, and wondered why. “I’ll come out,” he said in his most reassuring tone. “Why don’t you close up for the day? I know you have vacation plans, too.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Julius didn’t bother with his suit jacket, but just stepped out into the reception area in his shirtsleeves. A woman with dark skin and dark eyes sat glowering at Sophie. She wasn’t tall or muscular, but looked as if she’d be stronger than expected. There was something vaguely familiar about her, but Julius couldn’t put his finger on it.

Until she stood up. He saw that she was pregnant just as she spoke.

“You’re Rex’s lawyer, aren’t you? The one who drew up the custody deal?”

“Leya,” Julius guessed and she nodded. “To what do I owe this pleasure?” He caught a glimpse of Sophie’s smile as she turned away.

Leya strode toward him and slapped a familiar legal envelope on Sophie’s desk. “I want to change the terms.”

“I’m on my way out of the country,” Julius said. “This will have to wait for a few weeks. Sophie perhaps can book you an appointment...”

“No,” Leya said. “This happens now or not at all.”

Julius gave her a stern look. “If you want better terms, I’m not at liberty to discuss any improvement. My client has been more than generous...”

“I want to change the terms. I want Rex to take full custody of his son.”

Julius blinked. Sophie froze. Leya glared at both of them.

Julius straightened. “You fought most vigorously against even the most modest of visitation requests.”

“I’ve changed my mind.”

“You’ll forgive me for saying that seems uncharacteristic.”

“It is. I won’t pretend otherwise. But I don’t want this child anymore, and I can’t legally terminate.”

“You’re too far along,” Sophie whispered.

Leya nodded and shoved the envelope closer. “So, either you and I make a deal tonight, for me acting as surrogate, or I solve this illegally.”

Julius caught his breath and picked up the envelope. “You do have a talent for being persuasive,” he said.

“I’ll stay,” Sophie said, putting down her coat and booting up her computer again. “You’ll need the new contract printed and witnessed before you go.”

“I doubt this will take long,” Leya said.

“I’m sure you have a very good idea of what you want in exchange,” Julius said. She nodded once, the set of her lips telling him that this hadn’t been an easy choice for her to make.

“Something beyond your control changed your mind?” he ventured to guess.

She jabbed a finger at him, her eyes flashing. “I don’t owe you an explanation.”

But she’d already given him one. As he pulled up the appropriate files, Julius wondered what Rex would make of this development.

The other man had enough money to see his son raised well, but Julius had to wonder what influence a baby would have on Rex’s own decisions.

Probably none. In his own way, Rex was as self-determining and stubborn as the mother of his son. He was glad to be seeing the old Rex return, his resolve and confidence growing again after the set-back he’d suffered.

One for which this woman was at least partly responsible.

The boy might prove to be quite a handful.

The deal was going to skew hard in Rex’s favor. Julius smiled in anticipation of the terms.

“This isn’t funny,” Leya said hotly.

“I apologize. I’m trying to imagine Rex with a baby and I just can’t.”

“That’s the problem,” Leya said quietly, turning to look out the window. “I can.” There was an ache in her voice, a yearning for something she’d never have, and for a heartbeat, Julius felt sorry for her.

Then she named her terms, an audacious expectation that was completely unacceptable. Julius was outraged, insulted, and ready to fight for his client once again.

* * *

Mike was taking it slow. He was sipping his second beer, not wanting to get loaded at his own stag. The last thing he wanted was to have a hangover for the wedding the next day. He reminded himself that he trusted Joanna, and that her collaboration with Rex would work out just fine. She’d been sweet and affectionate at the rehearsal tonight, a little bit mischievous, and he’d lost his heart all over again.

They were going to have a marriage for the duration.

“Mr. Life of the Party,” Eric said as he came to sit beside Mike. He set down two shooters and Mike guessed the contents were tequila.

“I’m not getting smashed tonight.” Mike pushed one shooter back toward Eric.

“Because you have to perform tomorrow.” Eric nodded, then picked up his own shooter. “But two beers and one tequila won’t sideline you. Come on. One for old times.” He clicked his glass against the second shooter, pushing it back toward Mike.

Mike studied his friend. “Why do I have the definite sense that you’re up to something?”

Eric grinned. “Who? Me?” He tried to look innocent and failed so badly that Mike laughed out loud. “Come on. Bottom’s up.”

“Okay, just one.” Mike picked up the glass, clicked it against Eric’s and tossed it back. It burned slowly, all the way down.

Eric leaned back in his chair, shaking his head with mock despair at the pair of strippers who were dancing for the guys. “You’ve got to agree that it was a strategic error to not let me plan the stag.”

Mike gave him a look. “You know I couldn’t let you do that.”

“Just like you couldn’t have me as best man?”

“You’d scare the shit out of all of them,” Mike said, dropping his voice to a murmur. “You know and I know how it is, but these are Joanna’s cousins and our co-workers and people who have no clue what we do at night.”

Eric said nothing.

“It didn’t hurt your feelings, did it?” Mike asked. “I mean, I was sure you’d understand.”

“I do. Joanna likes her cover stories.”

Mike watched Eric for a long moment, not trusting his friend’s apparent complacence. “What
are
you up to?”

Eric nodded at the strippers hired by the best man. “We’ll each take a lap dance from each of them, then pretend to be really really drunk.”

“And?”

“And that’s when you get your real stag, you lucky bastard.” Eric stood up, claimed Mike’s beer and finished it. He cast Mike a devilish look. “Go ahead and argue. I don’t mind taking you there trussed and bound.”

“You wouldn’t,” Mike retorted, his anticipating rising.

Eric laughed. “Go ahead and try me.”

“All right. We’re going to be so drunk that we have a fight,” Mike said, a challenge in his voice. It had been a long time since he’d wrestled with Eric. A good fight with no rules was a great way to expend energy and stress.

Eric feigned a pout. “I’m so wounded that you chose another friend to be your best man. Boo hoo.”

Mike laughed. “No one’s going to believe that.” He stepped toward the dancers, noting how one smiled coyly at him. “But they’ll believe you’d take issue if both girls preferred me.”

“Or if we run off with the girls.”

Mike gave Eric a look. “That’s probably against their contracts.”

“Nobody says we have to bang them. We just have to get out of here, with a plausible excuse.”

“But where will we go?”

“Leave that to me,” Eric said. Mike considered him for a moment, then nodded and they strode toward the women together.

* * *

Eric was having a great time, even at the lame stag Dan had planned for Mike. Two strippers was a far cry from the erotic pleasures he and Mike knew from the Plume and the past. He was looking forward to giving Mike a real blast after they got out of here.

The two strippers were pretty, in a hard way, and he thought it a waste that they weren’t having any fun. They looked weary—another night, another tacky job, another bunch of drunken losers trying to grab their tits. The one grinding away on his lap was smiling down at him, but her gaze was distant. Her hair was long and blonde, probably not naturally that color, and she was heavily made up.

“Are you stoned?” Eric whispered.

She blinked, smiled, and turned her attention on him. “Of course not.”

“Really relaxed, though.” Eric held her gaze, commanding her attention. “What’s your name?”

“Melissa.”

Eric wondered whether that was the truth, where Melissa lived, what she liked and what she did in her spare time. He knew she wouldn’t tell him any of that.

She sighed and lifted her arms over her head, lowering her hips closer to his groin as she gyrated with feigned enthusiasm. The other guys hooted and drank. It was a damn waste as far as Eric was concerned. This could have been a lot more fun.

He spared a glance at Mike and the other girl, seeing that it was all pretty similar.

“You could give a guy a complex, you know,” Eric said softly. Melissa was visibly startled again. “Seeing that you’re not really enjoying this.”

“Of course I am.” She leaned close to purr appreciatively. “You’re so hot.”

Eric laughed out loud. He couldn’t help it. “I’ll bet you say that to all the losers who pay for lap dances.”

She looked away, clearly uncertain what to say to that. She kept flicking glances down at him, and Eric knew he’d gotten her attention.

He ran a finger along the edge of her g-string.

“No touching!”

“What if I made it fun for both of us?”

“This is strictly business,” she said, straightening so that there was more distance between them. “We dance and that’s it. No touching...”

While she was protesting, Eric pulled a one hundred dollar bill out of the pocket of his jeans. She stared as he tucked it into the little gold chain that hung around her waist.

“Everything isn’t for sale...” she continued after a moment. The fact that she needed that moment to decide told Eric everything he needed to know.

Eric added another bill, arranging them so that there was one over each of Melissa’s pelvic bones. “Symmetry,” he said to her. “I like symmetry.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I have a feeling you’re going to tell me what else you like.”

“It’s all about the view. But really, I like to see women come.” Melissa arched a brow and Eric fingered the two bills, as if he’d retrieve them. She looked worried. “There’s nothing hotter than watching a woman lose it and knowing I’m responsible.”

“I hope you don’t expect eternal gratitude.”

“Five or ten minutes will do.”

She laughed as if she didn’t want to.

“But if you’re not interested...” Eric began to tug the bills out of the gold chain.

Melissa licked her lips. “No entry,” she said quickly. “Your jeans stay on.”

“But your g-string comes off.”

Her gaze locked with Eric’s and held. She wasn’t dazed anymore and there was a glint of interest in her eyes. “You should know that I’m not easy,” she warned with a smile.

“I was hoping for that.” He touched the bills. “Not cheap either.”

She laughed again.

Eric held her gaze. “You should know that I’ll know if you fake it.”

“Oh, please.” Melissa was impatient with the idea. “Guys
never
know.”

“Okay. A third bill to make a set if I’m convinced you come.”

Melissa looked skeptical. “So, this is an acting job. Who knew?”

“No. All you have to do is surrender to the moment.” He surreptitiously put a little bit of the unguent from the Plume on his fingertip, glad he’d tucked the vial into his pocket.

Melissa watched him with suspicion. “What’s that?”

“A little souvenir from the Plume to heighten a lady’s pleasure.”

Her eyes lit with interest. “You’ve been there?”

“Oh yeah.” Eric watched as she smiled.

“Huh. Maybe there
is
more to you than meets the eye.”