We’re leaving the bank after cashing Cambria’s check and heading back towards downtown to drop off Dorian at his shop. It’s going to be our first test on the distance nonsense now that we’re supernaturally chipped like dogs waiting for a shock. Of all of us, Dorian is half in love with the girl already and loving everything about this fucked up situation, so we don’t need to worry about intent where he’s concerned. That man would willingly sell his store, skip happily to the fae world, and never look back.
I drive slowly and keep glancing at Cambria from the corner of my eye to assess if she gives any indication she’s in pain. Not so much as a blip by the time we need to drop Atlas back at his place. He already missed two days of work and it doesn’t matter how good he is at his job; if he misses another day on the construction site of a project this important, he’ll be fired.
They never worry about these things, always so convinced that things will simply work out without a plan or effort.
“Feeling alright?”
She nods and I breathe easier. This won’t be as much of a problem as I thought.
We pull up to my house and I quickly throw my cell phone on the charger for a few minutes while I shower and change, anxious to get back to the office and deal with what will no doubt be a cosmic fuck-ton of messages and problems.
“Help yourself to anything in the kitchen,” I offer distractedly while tossing her the remote. “Make yourself at home, I’ll likely be back late.” I scrawl all of our numbers on a piece of paper and lay it next to the house phone. “Here, in case there are any problems.”
She gives me a thumbs up and walks into the kitchen. I shut and lock the door, heading back downtown. Not five minutes later my phone rings and I hit the button on my steering wheel to activate the Bluetooth.
“Lucien?” Cambria asks and my foot eases up on the gas, anticipating the words that are about to come out of her mouth.
“At least one of us needs to be near you, I take it?” I sigh.
I can practically hear her grimace. “Seems that way.”
Smacking my hand on the steering wheel, I turn around to go back for her. “Be ready in five then and please, wear something respectable.”
She snorts. “You act like I dress like a stripper. T-shirt and shorts are perfectly normal human attire, I’m not that far removed from your world,” she argues.
“No,” I concede, “but they aren’t appropriate for an office.”
“You do realize I didn’t bring any fancy ball gowns with me, right? I packed a bag for a few days and it has the basics.”
I sigh and rub my temple, pulling up to the house and waiting for her to get in. Pushing the speed limit more than I’m comfortable with, we swing into the first place that’s open. I toss a button up shirt that complements her outlandish hair and a black, pleated skirt into her hands, practically shoving her into the fitting room.
When she emerges, spinning once sarcastically while flipping me off, I have to fight the stab of irritation her lack of respect instills in me. “There, happy now? Not sure how this is any more respectable; I’ve seen this porno. Do you know how many girls get bent over a desk in a getup like this?”
I actively ignore her as well as try not to picture it because the last thing any of us needs is to make an already complicated situation messier. She’s gorgeous, no doubt about that, but I’ve gotten by in life just fine until now and I attribute that to not thinking with my dick.
Paying quickly we leave, soon after pulling up to my office, already over an hour late. As we get out of the car, I realize that in my haste, I never came up with a reasonable explanation of where I’ve been over the last few days or why Cambria would be here with me.
Something changes in her face, going from annoyed to understanding. “Don’t worry, I can handle this part. Part of my skill set.” She winks and exits the car, following me towards the building.
My secretary looks visibly relieved when I walk in the door. With as quickly as she hops to her feet, you’d never know she was pushing fifty. Her light brown hair is escaping her bun, looking frazzled already despite the day just beginning; not that I blame her with the fires she must have been frantically putting out left and right.
She pauses when she catches sight of Cambria. “Sir, where have you been? There are urgent matters that we’ve tried to buy time on, but if you don’t address them soon we are going to lose several accounts.”
I open my mouth, but Cambria beats me to it. She looks down at the floor submissively and fiddles with her skirt, the simple act appearing to shave years off of her, making her appear no older than a college freshman.
“Please don’t be upset with Lucien, it’s my fault. My parents were in an awful wreck, and,” she stifles a sob. “And I didn’t have anywhere else to go. I’ve never been on my own before, and I just,” she starts actively crying and it takes me a minute to remember that it’s all an act. After a moment, she wipes away her tears and looks right at Belinda whose hand is on her chest in pity. “Lucien has been a friend of the family for as long as I can remember and I couldn’t think of who else to call. He came to get me and took me in until I can figure out what to do.”
The secretary looks at me with respect I haven’t earned. “Mr. Avrell has always been the responsible sort. You should see those boys he takes care of, always needing to bail them out of some trouble or another. What’s your name, sweetheart?”
She gratefully accepts the tissue offered and dabs at her face. “Cambria, ma’am. I apologize for keeping him from his responsibilities, I just wasn’t ready to be alone yet.”
I bite my cheek, needing to address the age thing. Even if she appears younger at the moment, she still certainly appears legal. “Her family coddled her far too much growing up and now she’s unprepared for the real world. It will take some time, but hard work does wonders.”
Belinda nods and puts an arm around Cambria’s shoulders while addressing me. “Just leave things to me, Mr. Avrell. I’ll watch over her while you get caught up and start showing her the ropes.”
I applaud the fact that she reads the room that easily and anticipates what I was going to ask from her before I even had to utter a word. I make a mental note to put in the request to give her a raise; good help is hard to find.
Turning to Cambria with a stern look, I warn, “Stay out of trouble. I’ll be in my office if you need me.”
She looks at me with a sly smile and winks. “I’d never dream of causing you trouble, Lucien.” She sobers her expression before turning back to Belinda. “I don’t want to give Lucien any reason to punish me, so please, put me straight to work, ma’am.
Cambria follows my secretary behind the desk as Belinda gives me a harsh look, like I’m some cruel monster. I narrow my eyes at Cambria before realizing it isn’t helping my case and give up.
Walking to my office and closing the door, I sigh at the sight of the massive stack of files piled up on my desk before settling in. I turn to my answering machine first, grabbing out my notepad and pen before tapping the button.
“You have one hundred seventy-two new messages.”
Fuck, this is going to be a long day.
***
There’s a soft knock at the door before Belinda enters, wringing her hands nervously. My hand stills, my pen hovering just above the paper as I wait for her to explain whatever has her so nervous.