“And what would that be?”
Unbending her fingers, I kissed the tips of each one. “These fingers must not touch your pussy. I know you were close, Emma. You were on the edge. I want you close. I want you teetering on the precipice so that your mind is so consumed with wanton need that nothing else matters.” Within her eyes, I saw the taming of a ravaged sea. Her thoughts were going where I led. “And when I return, if you can answer me honestly that you didn’t please yourself in my absence, I promise you a night you won’t forget.” My cheeks rose as a grin formed. “Will you follow that rule?”
Emma nodded as she peered down at our hands. “You know, if you wouldn’t have said anything...I wouldn’t be thinking about it.”
“Good. Think about it. Think about me inside you. Think about our bodies entwined as the sheets become tangled around us. Think about screaming my name as orgasm after orgasm leaves you painfully weary. Imagine what it will be like when you believe you’re too spent to come again and yet you do...” I kissed her forehead. “Think about that.”
After reaching for my jacket, it was as I started to walk away that I heard her.
“You won’t know.”
“I will, Emma, because I’ll ask and you won’t lie to me.”
“And if I don’t follow your rule?”
I reached for the doorknob. “Do you really want to find that answer out on our wedding night?”
Rett
It was my fucking wedding night and I wasn’t where I wanted to be. I wanted to be upstairs with my bride. The tap of my shoes upon the hardwood announced my arrival seconds before I entered the room outside of my inner office. Truly, the cameras in the hallway should have warned my men I was coming—that and the text message I sent for them to meet me here.
“Boss...” Leon said as I entered.
The lifting of my hand and a shake of my head was all I could manage at the moment. I’d purposely put off this conversation for as long as I could. Emma deserved a damn candlelit dinner after her wedding. What she didn’t deserve was the reason I was here now. As two of my most trusted men, Noah and Leon were both present. I would have included Ian, but he was upstairs making certain Mrs. Ramses was not disturbed again.
Henri, the man who’d allowed Boudreau and Ingalls entry into my home was currently on a drive with Carter, another of my men. The question at hand was where that drive would end.
Leon pushed the button. We all turned expectantly as the bookcase slid behind the wall, creating the entry to my inner office. The men waited as I led the way, taking my place behind my desk. Before sitting, I removed my phone from my pocket, then removed the tuxedo jacket, placing it on the back of my chair. Once everyone was within, I sat and closed the door from the control on my desk.
I gestured toward the two chairs opposite my desk. “Sit.”
Silence prevailed as I loosened the bow tie. “I don’t fucking want to be here,” I confessed. “Tell me what’s happened, is happening, and why. I need to decide if Henri’s service to Ramses is over.”
Leon and Noah exchanged a look before Leon took the floor. “Henri fucked up. He knew he did the moment Ingalls pushed into the front door.”
“It was because of McBride,” Noah added. “Henri didn’t want a commotion with the good judge present.”
“If that was his goal, he fucking failed,” I said, standing. “My wife is waiting upstairs.” Looking from Noah to Leon, I walked around the desk. Crossing my arms, I leaned against the large wooden monstrosity. “Henri’s worked for me for over five years. He knows things, too many things. I watched the surveillance video. He fucked up by not recognizing Ingalls. As soon as he saw Boudreau, he called for backup. Henri did everything right up until and immediately after he fucked up.” I waited before adding, “He still fucked up.”
“If you put him back on the streets,” Leon said, “he’s vulnerable.”
I nodded. “That’s not one of my options. He stays put or he’s gone. I can’t risk him giving shit up to Boudreau because he’s upset that he was demoted.” It was a genuine issue with my trusted capos. There was no unknowing the secrets they learned working in close proximity to me. They either succeeded or died.
“Boss,” Leon said, “Henri knows he fucked up. He knows that right now you’re making the decision on whether he comes back from that drive with Carter. Fuck, Carter knows what may go down. Ain’t nobody happy about it. I for one am pissed.” He stood and walked to the bookcase and back. “I also have known Henri for some time, and I think he deserves another chance.”
Letting out a breath, I turned to Noah. “You?”
These two men understood the significance of their presence. The final judgment would be my call. I’d make it. I’d live with it and own it. I wouldn’t pass the fucking buck on to anyone else. However, a lesson I learned in my family journals was that not every decision had to be made alone. Get trusted advisors and utilize them.
It worked on multiple levels.
My confidence in these men was evident in their presence and in my asking their advice. With that confidence came responsibility. By trusting their opinions, it raised their position in my ranks and worked to ensure their loyalty. That in turn increased their stake in the Ramses name and cause.
Noah leaned back, placing one ankle on his knee.
“Comfortable?” I asked, more than a bit put off.
“He fucked up, boss. But I think we can look at this for what it really was.”