It hurt knowing that after their two year relationship, Casey had been unfaithful. Rachel had finally managed to get the truth out of him on the weekend (or so she thought). It was a Saturday of Hell, and Sunday was even worse because she had to wake up realizing that she was literally in Hell.
Casey had begged her to give him another chance. He had explained that he’d felt like they had grown distant because of her demanding work and school schedule. But Rachel felt that was no excuse for him to compulsively lie to her, break her heart, and break her trust. Even though Casey had confessed to sleeping with his secretary, she did not tell him about what had happened inside Gabriel’s office… on his desk. Of course, she felt a tad guilty, yet Rachel managed to convince herself that what she did with Gabriel was nowhere as bad as the body of lies that Casey had buried underneath the crumbling foundations of their relationship.
You can’t stay with him for shallow reasons, her conscience spoke through the noise pollution in her head. Casey was an attractive man: tall, fit, blonde, brown eyes, addictive personality, and he loved to cuddle. There were lots of winning qualities about him that had made Rachel fall in love with him. But she feared that those amazing traits that he used to possess were either dying away, or were officially dead.
Which means our relationship is doomed, Rachel sighed. She tried to put the upsetting ordeal out of her mind as the elevator reached her floor with a ding.
Distracted with her iPhone, she wasn’t paying attention when she suddenly collided into a suited, hard chest. He was dressed in a dark, pinstripe suit… smelling of Gucci, Guilty.
“Oh my God!” Rachel looked horrified. “Gabriel, I am so…”
“You need to watch where you’re going,” he sternly said, pivoting around her to get inside the elevator.
Hearing his words had brought on whiplash for Rachel. Gabriel’s demeanor, the way he spoke to her, the tone he used had sounded so contemptuous and mean. She didn’t bother looking back because she did not want to look into those hypnotic green eyes that only radiated nothing but irritation.
Great way to start off my morning—pissing off the boss. Rachel sighed and walked through the busy floor until she reached her office. Case files would soon pile up on her desk, and it was going to be a very long day.
~oOo~
Gabriel tried to rip Rachel out of his thoughts as he sat inside the passenger seat of a moving Lincoln, driven by his chauffer, Albert. He’d just finished his meeting with a client and was headed back to the firm when he told his driver to change direction.
“On second thought, drop me off at the Zimmerman firm, please, Albert.”
“Yes, sir.” The white mustached man took a few short cuts to dodge impeding traffic, and soon he pulled up to a curb, parking right across Gabriel’s destination. “Shall I wait for you?”
“Yes. I won’t be too long.”
He got out of the vehicle and looked up at the monstrous building. The October air was a little chillier than usual, but soon Gabriel was inside and taking the elevator up to the floor that led to Casey Levy’s office.
He was now in enemy territory, and some of the associates were giving him dirty looks, not afraid to let Gabriel King know that he did not belong in their law firm. “Hyenas,” he muttered under his breath.
Casey’s heated conversation could be heard as he approached his door. He’d been on the telephone for the past ten minutes, and his temper was splintering by the second. “I will personally sue your ass myself if I have to!” he bellowed. “Yeah? Well, fuck you very much!” Casey slammed the telephone down and looked up to find his former boss staring at him, hands hidden in his front pant pockets, leaning against the doorframe.
“Bad timing?” Gabriel asked.
“I can’t tell you how glad I am to see you right now.” He exhaled, loosening his tie. “Come in.”
Gabriel looked over his shoulder at the glaring hyenas. “If looks could kill.”
“That surprises you every time, Gabe.” Casey chuckled. “You already know that everyone hates you here. You walked in with a bulls-eye on your back.”
“I dunno… I’m pretty confident I could win them over.”
“So is that why you’re here? You and Victor have finally agreed on something… stealing our employees?”
“I don’t see your name up on that wall yet, Levy. You sure you want to stay here? You could always return to the firm.”
He was only teasing him, but in some way Gabriel was desperate to have his friend batting for the same team again. He’d decided that if Casey came back, the risk of engaging in an extremely inappropriate relationship with Rachel would virtually become nonexistent.
Casey smirked at him. “Don’t even think about bribing me, bro.”
“Me? Bribe you?” Gabriel grinned like the Cheshire cat. “Come on, Casey. I’m an upstanding guy, a man of the law…”
“Yeah, yeah, I know your bag of tricks. You taught me them, remember?”
“Not everything.”
“Is that so?”
“That is.” Gabriel walked around Casey’s office. It wasn’t as big as his own or as nice looking, but his old office couldn’t compete with this one. Zachary Zimmerman had sweetened Casey’s job offer in that sense.
“So what’s it like working for Donald Trump’s long lost twin?” Gabriel joked, turning away from the window to look at the frustrated lawyer.
“Donald Trump?” Casey raised his eyebrows, resisting a laugh.
“Yeah, he’s always got that comb-over hairdo from hell going on.”
Casey chuckled and Gabriel smiled amusingly. “I’m surprised you haven’t cracked a joke about it first.”
“He’s my boss, Gabe. I’m not on a suicide mission here.”
“You worked with me and we tag teamed Vic on a regular basis!”
“I hope you mean that in a metaphorically heterosexual way,” Casey teased.
Gabriel rolled his eyes. “It’s okay to admit that you have homoerotic fantasies about me. In fact, many men do. So really, I’m not surprised. Your secret’s safe with me.” He winked.
Casey chortled, shaking his head.
“Get off your high horse,” Gabe added. “You were always making fun of Vic.”
“Yeah, because you were technically my boss, and if memory serves me well, you were the one who was constantly complaining about Victor, so I just joined you on the harassment to keep you in a better mood with me.” Now it was Casey’s turn to grin.
“Well, whoop-dee-do. Remind me to bring you a plaque next time: Casey Levy-World Class Asshole.”
“What crawled up your ass this morning? Did you not get laid last night? Ménage à trois gone awry?” Casey laughed, folding his hands behind his head. “Let me guess, she had a dick?”
“Very funny. At least I am having threesomes.”
“Enjoy it while you can, bro. I’m not missing out. I’ve got Rachel.”
If she’s so important to you, then why’d you fuck around on her, you moron! Gabriel put the jokes aside and sat across his friend in a chair. “How are you two doing, by the way?”
“Well, to be honest, my weekend was a shit storm. Somehow Rachel found out that I had slept with Karen. She threatened to walk out on me if I didn’t come clean… so I did.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah. I think it’s possible that Karen may have anonymously texted her to clue her in. I was worried she would do that when I told her that we can’t sleep together again.”
“Has it happened again?”
Casey grimaced. “No. I told you, it was a onetime thing,” he lied.
“Casey, listen, if you’re not happy with Rachel then mayb—”
“I’m not breaking up with her.”
Casey loved Rachel, in his own twisted way. He was a sex addict who was in dire need of some counseling, but he wasn’t willing to admit that he had a problem. He wanted a wife, a family, the beautiful dream house and cars… including his whores.
“I’m just saying,” Gabriel began, “sometimes it’s better to call it quits than to try and salvage something that is unsalvageable.”
Casey looked annoyed. “Since when did you volunteer to be my therapist?” He folded his arms in his chest, defensively. “Don’t answer that—what are you doing here, anyway?”
“I was in the neighborhood.”
“So you decided to just drop in?” Casey snickered under his breath. “Come on, Gabe. What do you need?”
“Why do you automatically assume that I want something from you? We’re friends, remember?” He smiled charismatically. “I’m Batman, you’re Robin.” The only response he got was an irritated eye roll. “What?” Gabriel reached for a mint on Casey’s desk. He unwrapped it and tossed it up, catching it in his mouth. “Okay, I guess Robin won’t do now that you’re working for the bad guys, which means that you’re officially…” He cocked his head to the side. “Two-Face.”
“Please,” Casey scoffed. “Don’t insult me.”
“All right, all right… The Riddler, then.”
“If you’re going to peg me as the villain, at least do me the courtesy of labeling me as a real badass character like The Joker.”
“Hmm, Jack Nicholson ‘Joker’ or Heath Ledger ‘Joker’?”
“Ledger.”
Gabriel raised an eyebrow. “I don’t see it. But okay. Maybe if you smear some lipstick and baby powder on your…”
“Okay, enough.” Casey leaned back in his chair. “You hate coming here, and if Victor knew where you were he would…”
“Have a calf in his office,” Gabriel sarcastically stated.
“It’s bad enough that he thinks you’re conspiring against him.”
“Don’t worry about Vic. I can handle him.” He stood up and reached into his pocket before sliding two tickets in front of his friend.
“Opera tickets?”
“A client gave them to me—take Rachel out tomorrow night. Chicks love that boring crap.”
“I wish these were court-side seats to a Knicks game.” Casey examined the shiny tickets and then looked at Gabe. “Thanks, though. Rachel will love it. I’ll let her know they were from you.”
“Uh, don’t do that.” Gabriel appeared uncomfortable. “That sort of defeats the purpose of my visit. If I’d wanted to give them to her, I would have saved myself the trouble of coming over here. You two are going through a hard time right now, do something nice for your girlfriend, buy her something nice—a necklace—and surprise her with the tickets.”
“Thanks man.”
“Don’t mention it.” He walked toward the door. “Oh and, Casey?”
“Yeah?”
“I may have the bigger office, bigger condo, bigger bank account… bigger cock…”
“Shut up!”
“… Hell, just bigger everything!”
“Get to the point, Gabe.” He huffed.
“But I envy you.”
“Why’s that?”
“You’ve got something that money can’t buy.”
Casey took a moment to let his words sink in, smiling in understanding. “I know, and I’m never letting her go.”
~oOo~
Rachel had spaced out as she photocopied some documents in the filing room. Her work day had been long and stressful, but five o’clock was soon approaching, and in no time she would be out of there.
I am not going to stay in late like last Friday, she told herself. Throughout the afternoon, her interaction with Gabriel had been minimal. She’d gone to his office frequently to drop off some files and have him review some contracts, but his attitude toward her had been very cold and standoffish. It was as if nothing had happened between them. If Gabriel was strict and arrogant before, he was more so than ever. Rachel felt like he didn’t even want to tolerate her presence, let alone look at her.
I never should have kissed him. Stupid, stupid Rachel.
A sad little sigh escaped her lips as she finished photocopying and turned around.
“Ahhh!”
Papers went flying out of her hands.
“Shoot, I’m sorry!” said Richard, reaching down to help his colleague pick up the papers. “I shouldn’t have sneaked up on you like that.”
“It’s all right. I keep bumping into people today like a klutz.” She laughed nervously.
Once all the papers were back in Rachel’s possession, Richard asked, “Red thong, or green thong?”
She gave him the queerest look. “I beg your pardon?”
Richard exhaled and lowered his voice. “I’m thinking about buying some lingerie to surprise Pedro for our two week anniversary.”
Two week anniversary? Rachel giggled. At least he didn’t ask me what I’m wearing.
Black lace panties from La Vie En Rose.
“Um…” She tried to imagine her balding, overweight friend in women’s underwear.
“Maybe I should just go with blue—to like—you know, make my eye color really pop.”
Richard was not the most attractive man. In fact, he was the most unattractive suit on that entire floor (possibly entire firm). But he was open about his sexuality, and much to everyone’s surprise, his new boyfriend was an extremely hot, international runway model.
“I know it’s silly to do a week to week anniversary thing,” Richard spoke with a hint of a lisp. “But life is so short. I mean, I could die of a heart attack tomorrow, or Pedro could OD on heroin and coke—not that he’s an addict! But he’s in the industry, so ya never know! You get what I’m saying, right?”
“Oh yes!” Rachel nodded emphatically, desperate to finish the conversation and get out of there.
“I just think it’s crucial to make the most of the time that we do have, ya know?”
“Mhm, absolutely.” She kept nodding, looking seemingly invested in everything he had to say.
Richard brushed his clean shaved chin with thumb and index.
Oh dear Lord, way too much information!
“That’s… great.” She forced a smile. “I’m happy for you, Richard. Now, if you excuse me, I have to get back to work.”
“Oh, yeah, I almost forgot.” He bounced his palm on his head. “Gabriel’s looking for you. He wants to see you in his office. And just to give you a heads up, he did not sound too happy.”
Oh gods of all law students, please don’t let him go off on me, Rachel thought in anguish as she thanked Richard for letting her know before leaving the filing room.
~oOo~
The sun was setting in the horizon, shining its last few rays of light before it would finally go down, and the sky would descend into darkness. Rachel’s red pumps clicked behind her as she walked with confidence toward Gabriel King’s office.
Rhonda noticed the pretty brunette passing by. “I tried to tell him to go easy on you!”
Rachel swallowed hard, bracing herself for possible termination of employment. She pushed through the polished glass door and stood in front of Gabriel’s desk. He was on the phone having a calm conversation. His green eyes darted up at her, making Rachel’s skin flare up in heat.
“Don’t sweat the deposition, Carter… I’m you’re attorney, I get paid to make sure my clients win… Of course!… Stop worrying, he’ll cave, there is no way I am going to let you lose your company…”
She nervously rubbed the back of her neck and folded her arms in her chest. But that only caused her noticeable cleavage to press together, and Gabriel had noticed all right.
“You’re in good hands,” he continued. “Just let me do my job… You’ll be drinking mimosas under a palm tree in Belize a week from now, thanking me…”
Rachel wondered if she should turn around and come back another time since he seemed to be having an important phone call. She reached for the notepad on Gabriel’s desk and wrote with a pen:
Rich said you were looking for me.
Don’t want to disturb you.
Will come back later?
He kept speaking into the telephone as she ripped the paper off and slowly slipped it toward him on the desk.
“Mhm… Right…” He glanced at the note and read it. “Yes, I understand.” Gabriel’s voice was calm and collected, but his body language was the exact opposite. He pulverized the paper in his fist and tossed it into the trash bin that was approximately ten feet away. Then he looked up at Rachel with burning green eyes, thrusting an angry finger at the chair across from him, demanding that she sit.
His reaction had only worsened her nerves, but like the good intern that she desired to be, Rachel obediently sat down, crossed one thigh over the other, and patiently waited for her fuming boss to finish his telephone call.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Carter. Get a good night’s sleep.” Click. Gabriel was now off the phone and staring right at Rachel Rose. She wondered if his silence was foreshadowing a massive meltdown, or if he was just trying to calm himself.
Please don’t rip me to shreds.
He opened the file that was on his desk and slid over the contract she had handed him earlier. “This is unacceptable.”
“Why?” Her voice squeaked before she cleared her throat.
Gabriel scowled and then scoffed. “You’re kidding me, right? How the hell did you even get this job if you can’t even revise a contract that I asked you to draw up properly?” He raised his voice and Rachel was afraid that he would soon explode like a volcano. In the rare moments when she’d seen Gabriel’s rage firsthand, she had prayed that he would never lose his temper on her like that.
Rachel swiftly skimmed over the documents, looking just as confused as he was. “I… I don’t understand… this isn’t the same contract I had typed out and printed for you.”
He folded his arms in his chest. “You mean to tell me that someone stole those documents and replaced them with this garbage?”
She blushed again in embarrassment. “I don’t know what to say, I just… I swear this contract is not the one I had typed out!” Rachel suddenly remembered that before she had gone to Gabriel’s office, she had taken a break and gone to the ladies room. Someone must have switched the files with her. But who would have done such a thing? Rachel Rose was the sweetest employee next to Rhonda Peters. Who could have been so malicious as to stoop to such a level and jeopardize her job?
“Look,” Gabriel began, “I’m not trying to be an asshole here, but you have to understand why this would piss me off. This case is extremely important, Rachel. I can’t fuck it up. If you can’t take this seriously then perhaps you should consider another career.”
His words stung her like a thousand killer bees. Becoming a lawyer was all she’d ever wanted ever since she was thirteen. Someone else had deliberately tried to sabotage her position, and now Rachel was paying the price and receiving Gabriel’s wrath.
“I apologize,” she said. “I’m not sure what happened. I left my office for a moment and when I came back I—”
“I don’t want excuses,” he interjected.
Gabriel could not hide the hunger in his eyes as his gaze wandered toward Rachel’s sheer white blouse. One of the buttons had accidentally come undone, and he was able to see the black lace bra that was salaciously teasing him.
So supple… so lickable. He imperceptibly adjusted himself down below and focused his attention back on her crestfallen face.
“Are you firing me?” Her voice trembled.
He realized right then that he was perhaps being a little too harsh. In truth, he could have handled it much better because the problem was easily solvable, and Gabriel was a problem solver. Having legal issues? Do you want to sue the pants off of someone? Go to Gabriel King. He was New York’s finest.
“Please just let me show you the document on my computer.” She desperately tried to save her job.
“That won’t be necessary.”
“Gabriel, please…”
“I’m not firing you, Rachel, relax.”
Oh, thank you, God. Thank you. She slowly breathed out, waiting for her parasympathetic nervous system to regulate her heartbeat. It was difficult to be in his office now after what happened last Friday. Every time she looked at Gabriel, all she could think about was his burning lips against hers, his hands tracing every curve of her body, the taste of his lust dipping off his tongue…
“Just draft me a proper contract before you leave,” he requested.
“Yes, I’ll get on that right now.” Rachel stood up, avoiding his eyes.
The smell of her perfume had permeated Gabriel’s office, even when she left, the sweet scent of roses lingered. He sat at his desk, closing his eyes for a moment, remembering the way she had moaned for him when he’d touched her sodden panties.
Something twitched inside his boxer briefs.
Fuck me, he cursed in his head, I need to get laid.
~oOo~
Rachel had printed up the right contract, just like she said she would. She’d been relieved to see that Gabriel was not in his office when she’d gone to drop it off. But her anxiety skyrocketed through the roof when she walked toward the elevators and found him standing there, waiting.
This must be my karma for kissing him, she thought, as she kept a safe distance away from her sexy boss. Both of them stood in silence, making no exchanges.
The elevator was taking its sweet time to reach their floor, so Gabriel stole an opportunity to glance over at her. But still, he made no effort to initiate a conversation.
When the metal doors finally opened, Rachel hesitated to step in first.
“After you.” He gestured with his hand.
After they were both inside, Gabriel pressed the “G” button that led to the ground floor. The doors were now closed.
Ding… ding… ding…
Rachel prayed that the elevator would stop at another floor and allow other employees to take the ride down with them. But her prayers were not answered. She could feel such intense sexual tension between them, and it only amplified in the closed space they were sharing.
Gabriel wanted nothing more than to press the emergency stop, push Rachel back, and wrap those long sex legs around his waist. He wanted to hear her skirt tear as he’d hike it up, slip her panties to the side, and fuck the fuck out of her. He wouldn’t cum until he’d beat her wanton pussy till she was good and sore, moaning his name, begging him to go harder… deeper.
“Gabriel?” Rachel finally spoke, pulling him out of his X-rated fantasy. He turned his head and looked at her. “I just wanted to apologize again for last Friday. I…”
“I’ve moved on from it, Rachel. I suggest you do as well.” He cleared his throat.
Ding!
The elevator finally reached their floor. “Enjoy your evening,” said Gabriel, stepping out first, leather briefcase in hand.
She walked out of the building feeling slightly hurt that their almost sexual encounter had meant nothing to him.
Why would it? He’s Gabriel-fucking-King, and you’re his intern! A very much taken and unavailable intern! Her subconscious declared, tapping an irritated heel.
~oOo~
Rachel walked into her apartment feeling exhausted as usual. She kicked off her pumps, hung up her white trench coat, and was about to head into the kitchen when she noticed something on the coffee table. It was a black shopping bag with recognizable Italic font written in the middle:
Forever Diamonds
Like a magnet, she found herself hovering above the shopping bag, and pulling out a black velvet box. Rachel opened it and her heart almost stopped. It was a diamond encrusted bracelet. She admired it, lightly brushing her fingers over the diamonds in disbelief that she now owned something so expensive.
How could he afford this? She wondered.
Rachel peered inside the bag again and retrieved a little card:
Babe, I know you said that we should take it slow,
and I want that as well. I want to earn your trust again.
But I just need you to know that you are the diamond in my life, and just like
a diamond, that is how I want to cherish you. Please accept
my gift and do me the honor of wearing this bracelet tomorrow night
when I take you to the opera.
I love you, Rachel
-C
Her eyes welled up with tears. She was overwhelmed. She felt elated, sad, grateful, and guilty.
A pair of masculine arms wrapped around her waist from behind, surprising her.
“I see you found my present.” Casey kissed her neck, pulling her closer to him.
“You didn’t have to do this.”
“I did, and I wanted to. You deserve so much more, Rache.” He sensually kissed her skin again, but the contact seemed to bother her.
“I’m sorry, it’s just…”
“Too soon,” he answered. “I get it.” Casey sighed and pulled out the opera tickets. “If you don’t want to go to this, I completely understand.” He was hoping she would decline.
Rachel loved the performing arts, and she’d always wanted to go to an opera with Casey. “I’d love to go with you.” She smiled softly.
“Then it’s a date?”
She nodded, beaming now. “It’s a date.”
Casey caressed her face and kissed her forehead lovingly. “Let me cook you up some dinner. You must be starving.”
“I am.”
He wound up cooking some fettuccine Alfredo with a freshly tossed Caesar salad and red wine. Rachel thoroughly enjoyed the dinner and they talked like a normal couple for once without arguing back and forth. It had felt like old times again. When she looked into his dark eyes, he seemed familiar to her again. And for a brief while, she was able to convince her bleeding heart that it was never broken, that Casey Levy was her one true love, and that their dream was never shattered.
But when bedtime approached, Rachel slipped under the covers, turned out her bedside lamp, and slept on her side, facing the window instead of curling into the arms of her “beloved.”
Casey switched off his lamp as well and twisted his body to kiss Rachel’s head. “Goodnight, sweetie.”
“’Night.” She felt him shift around on the mattress until he finally got comfortable.
Rachel closed her eyes and tried to sleep. She should have been thinking about Casey and his romantic gestures, but the only person who was occupying her thoughts so late… was Gabriel.
~oOo~
The most melancholy overture of violin strings echoed from Gabriel King’s luxurious living room. It was a song composed by history’s Classical genius, Mozart. A choir of Soprano voices began to sing Lacrimosa in unison; their voices heightening to a crescendo.
Gabriel stood by his floor to ceiling window, drink in hand, watching the nightlife in meditative thought. He closed his eyes for a brief moment. The only time he was able to feel anything so deeply was when he was listening to music. It was his sanctuary in a way. As depressing as this song was, it gave him an odd sense of comfort.
He finished his drink and sauntered toward the kitchen. The floor plan had an open concept design, and all his furniture was very modern and masculine. There was no trace of a woman’s touch or any photos of friends and family members on display. He was a wealthy and lonely bachelor, who had a love hate relationship with monogamy. Sure, he had slept with a variety of women, but he never led them on. Gabriel was always honest about his intentions. In all his years of practice, no woman had managed to lock him down. Not even Rhonda Peters.
He knew that he was emotionally crippled and he did not want to be a dead weight that some poor young woman would have to drag around, nor did he want a clingy sort of chick to anchor him down. Single life suited him. It had grown on him like the expensive suits that hung in his closet.
But ever since that evening when he and Rachel had almost crossed the line… he couldn’t get her out of his mind.
I need to get outta here. He switched off his music, grabbed his jacket, and headed out the door to venture to one of his favorite bars. Once there, he would pick up a promiscuous but desirable young woman who would satisfy his every desire in the bedroom until sun up.
~oOo~
Authors Note: What will Gabriel do when Casey calls him to take his place as Rachel’s date, since he won’t be able to make it? Will Gabriel show up at that opera house in suit and tie, escorting his intern? Or will Rachel find herself attending the show alone, sadly disappointed? Find out in chapter three of “Illicit Affair” !
