Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 116455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
I huffed. So annoying.
Since I read “Jon” in Flynn’s deep voice, I also may have chubbed up a little beneath my suit pants, and that was annoying, too.
Firecracker: How late are you working?
I blew out a breath. The time at the top of the phone read 10:30.
I had three contract renewals to finish up, two of which were urgent. I also had a metric shit-ton of research Alice had emailed, which I needed to review. Working until 1:00 a.m. (or 2:00 a.m. or later) was something I did once or twice a week, and since there were at least two other people still working on the floor, I knew I wasn’t alone. In a competitive field like this, not only did I have to work long hours to make deals, but I also had to make sure it didn’t seem like I was slacking off amongst my peers.
Me: Another couple hours probably. Why?
Firecracker: No reason. You should get back to it. Goodnight.
My shoulders slumped. Right. Yeah. I should get back to work. I would.
But I didn’t immediately put the phone down, which meant I saw the next text pop up a few moments later.
Firecracker: Fuck it. I was just thinking it’s nearly closing time, and if you wanted to FaceTime, you could keep me company while I did setup for tomorrow. That’s all.
Firecracker: But it’s NOT a big deal.
Firecracker: In fact, the more I think about it, the stupider it sounds.
Firecracker: The work would take ten times as long with you distracting me and trying to pump me for info on the new varietal.
Firecracker: Forget I mentioned it. Bye.
Firecracker was always prickliest when he wanted something most.
I loved that I knew that about him. I loved what it meant even more.
I stood, unplugged my laptop, and grabbed my suit jacket from the back of my chair.
Me: Leaving now. Call you in 30.
“Arnold Findlay is looking at our contract very favorably.” Jasmine Reyes casually smoothed the cuff of her purple jacket. “He’ll sign within the week.”
“And Gemstone Distillery will join the Fortress family.” Conrad Schaeffer slapped the conference table exuberantly with his palm. “Excellent news, Jasmine. Great work. Keep me posted. So, Jeff, how’s it going with Archdale?”
Had quarterly update meetings always been this monotonous? Or was it just that I hadn’t closed my eyes until four o’clock and I had to fight the urge to sleep with every blink?
When my phone buzzed, I surreptitiously extracted it from my pocket and held it under the table.
Firecracker: Pretty sure I’m dead. Killed. I’m typing this from beyond the grave so the police know that you’re the top suspect and that death by orgasm is real.
I pressed my lips together and pretended to be fascinated by Jeff’s report for a moment until my heart quit hammering.
Me: I won’t let you pin this on me, Honeycutt. If the police wanna find the real culprit, they need to look at the impressive toy collection in your top drawer. I witnessed the whole thing.
As in, I’d watched with my hand on my cock and my tongue hanging out of my mouth as he worked himself for a fucking hour until I’d given him permission to come.
Turned out, FaceTiming with Flynn while he did setup was pretty distracting. For both of us. And very, very rewarding.
Firecracker: I’ve had all those toys for years and I’ve never had this issue because I’ve also never been with anyone who got off on edging me like you do. It’s annoying as fuck.
Me: Mmmm. You sure seemed annoyed. So annoyed you were dripping and whining, begging for it, LETTING me edge you. Christ, the way you looked when I finally let you jerk yourself, Firecracker. Hngh.
Firecracker: Fuck off. You were just as bad. WORSE. You were practically drooling, ready to jump through the screen. You were out of your mind for me.
Oh yeah. I’d been right there, dancing along the path to insanity alongside him. I’d never dreamed that video sex could be so fucking thrilling.
“Wellbridge? Jonathan, are you with us?” Conrad demanded, leaning toward me and waving a hand in front of my face.
I jerked to awareness to find every eye in the conference room on me. Shit. I slid my phone back in my pocket guiltily. “Yes, sir. I apologize. I was just texting a, um, business contact.”
“Excellent. But Jeff, here, is having a little problem with Archdale Vineyards. Maybe he could use a little advice.”
“Archdale?” I frowned at my coworker. “I talked to Harrison Yang for three months before I… passed that lead off to you.” I’d been about to say before Conrad redistributed my leads so I could spend the summer in Honeybridge, but I refrained. “He was ready to sign on the dotted line.”
Jeff’s mouth tightened, and his fingers tapped the table. “Any idiot would sign at the percentage you were offering.”