I spring up from my chair, and this time it sails backward to smack into the windowsill. "I am going to sort this Raisa nonsense right now."
"You can't." Elena waves a file folder at me. "We need to go over this research before your appointment with Arvid Klausen at eleven o'clock. After lunch, you're in court for two hearings. If there's time after that, we need to go over the depositions for the Cutler case."
Fuck. I forgot about all of that. The second I realized Raisa was interfering with my weekend with Elena, everything else fled my brain. I've never let work slide, for any reason.
"I'm not going anywhere," I say. "If you can't go, then I'm not going either."
"Weren't you listening a minute ago? I don't want you to give up visiting your family for me."
My parents are excited about my visit, but the thought of going without Elena, of leaving her here to be Raisa's slave... I feel a strange pressure in my chest when I think about it. She's right, though. I can't speak to Raisa today to sort this mess, and I don't want to let my family down either.
"All right," I say, feeling like a condemned man about to eat his final meal. "I'll go. But we will both confront Raisa Monday morning and tell her about us. It's time."
"I agree." Elena hands me the folder. "Now, let's get to work."
I manage to focus on work, but as the hours go by, that pressure gets heavier and heavier.
Chapter Fourteen
Elena
After a weekend of serving Raisa, like a Roman slave girl without the toga, I can't wait to see Chance again. Despite knowing Raisa has been faking her illness---she has a bottle of cold medicine on her living room table but never took the plastic seal off it---I still feel bad for her. Yeah, okay, I'm a sap. She cheated on her husband and ordered me to help her win him back, but she's also a human being. I get the feeling she honestly regrets ruining her marriage and losing Chance.
I also get the sneaking suspicion she knows I'm the one Chance is seeing.
Sunday evening, Raisa frees me from my servitude, at least until tomorrow.
Chance's flight arrives at eight o'clock, an hour from now, and I can't wait until tomorrow to see him. I run across the street to the hotel and sip a margarita at the bar while I wait. When I see him walk through the automatic doors, I jump up and run to him. Okay, I fling my entire body at him.
He catches me, chuckling, and says, "I'm happy to see you too."
"God, I missed you so much."
I kiss him like we haven't seen each other in months, not caring one bit who sees us making out in the lobby. Chance keeps one arm around me while we get in the elevator and head up to the nineteenth floor. He kisses me even more passionately in the elevator, since there's no one around, and I wish he'd take me like he did that first night. He doesn't---at least, not until we get inside his room.
We've barely spoken to each other, but I'm so happy to be with him again that I don't care. Who needs words? Our bodies say everything that matters.
After sex, we lie naked on the bed with no covers over us, entangled in each other's arms.
"How was your trip?" I ask.
"It was good to see my family." He nuzzles my hair. "But I missed you."
"Raisa kept me busy all weekend." I lift my head off his chest to look at him. "I think she knows about us."
"I think so too."
"That means tomorrow is doomsday."
He cups my chin, his blue eyes intent on mine. "Everything will be fine, you'll see."
"You're awfully confident about that. Did you talk to Raisa already?"
"No." He rolls over so I'm under him. "Let's not talk about my ex-wife anymore. There will be plenty of time for that tomorrow. Tonight, I want to make up for lost time, two days' worth of not shagging you."
We make up for lots of missed shagging, and I fall asleep in his arms.
The banging of a fist on the door wakes us both at six a.m.