“I can’t believe I’m here on a freaking Friday night,” a sweet but irritated voice huffed adorably. “Not that I had better plans, but she didn’t know that. Okay, that was a little mean. Bingeing with Snowball is a great activity.”
She didn’t sound convinced, and it curled the corners of my mouth up.
The scent of cinnamon and vanilla suddenly got stronger, and I realized that the small desk out front must have been hers. Fuck, it was making me hungry.
After a second, she sighed, and I nearly stumbled backward when my dick jumped to life. Was that what she would sound like after being thoroughly satisfied in bed?
For fuck’s sake! What are you thinking, Lawson?
Apparently, my cock was doing all the thinking. And it only got worse when the lights flipped on and the mystery woman came into view.
4
Oakley
I’d never been in the office when nobody else was around, and I quickly discovered that I wasn’t a fan of being alone in the dark, empty space. When I flicked on the lights, some of my nerves settled but not all. The sooner I made those copies, the sooner I could leave. So I hurried over to my desk to drop my purse on the corner and pulled my chair out, swiveling it around toward me. As I dropped onto the seat, I glanced up. I had a direct view of the judge’s office from my little spot in the corner.
I had been too irritated by the fact that I’d had to go all the way across town to the courthouse to notice that his door was open until I was staring right at it. Judge Timkins was a stickler about staff not invading his privacy, and he kept his door closed most of the time when he was working. One of the first rules I was given when I’d been assigned to his team was to use the ridiculous knocker to announce my presence and wait for the judge to give me permission to enter.
I couldn’t recall a single time when he didn’t lock that door before he left. “That’s weird.”
Padding across the room, I paused at the doorway. I was in a lose-lose situation and wasn’t sure what the best course of action was.
If the judge found out that I went into his office when he wasn’t there, I could lose my internship. But if he learned that the door was open and I didn’t check to make sure everything was okay, then I could lose my internship. Either way, my future was at risk, so I figured I might as well assuage my curiosity.
After taking a few steps into the judge’s office, I paused to scan the room. With only the moonlight coming through the windows, I couldn’t see much, but nothing seemed out of place. I didn’t hear anything, either. But I couldn’t shake off the eerie feeling that I wasn’t alone.
Huffing out a breath that ruffled my bangs, I muttered, “I really should’ve ignored Miss Stuchy’s call. If I hadn’t answered right away, she probably would’ve just moved on to the next person, and then I’d still be cuddled on the couch with Snowball.”
I heard the slightest sound near the desk, and my head jerked in that direction. Squinting my eyes, I finally realized the large shadow I was staring at was actually the body of a man. At the realization that I wasn't alone, I pressed my trembling fingers against my lips.
The guy shouldn’t have been able to hide so easily with how big he was. And he definitely shouldn’t have been able to move so quickly, either. But before I had the chance to react, he was across the room, wrapping a hand around my biceps and placing the other over my mouth.
Now that he was close enough, I could see what he looked like. And oh my goodness, was he hot. With his thick, dark hair, short-trimmed beard and mustache, dark eyes, and big, muscular body covered in dark leather clothing, he was like a sexy spy but with rougher edges.
He stared at me intently, and somehow, I knew he was silently asking me not to scream. There must have been something seriously wrong with me because instead of yelling at the top of my lungs, I was eating him up with my eyes. It took a lot of effort to gather my scattered wits, but I nodded, and he hesitantly uncovered my mouth and took hold of my other arm.
“What are you doing in here? The judge’s chambers are off-limits.” I glanced over my shoulder at the room I’d come from. “And the building is closed. Did the security guard let you in? He didn’t mention there was anyone else around when he let me in.”
“I think the better question is what are you doing here?” His voice was low and gritty, sending tingles straight to my core.