Page 16

MORTON

The driver waited for us on the platform and loaded our luggage onto a cart. We were walking toward the exit when a glimpse of a familiar face made me jerk to a halt. Jamie stopped by my side.

“What…” he began, but wasn’t allowed to finish.

“Morton! Hiya!” Gary called as he blocked our path, his well-groomed face showing a wide, toothy smile.

“Gary, what the fuck are you doing here?”

“Surprise! I flew in last night.”

His cheery tone only made me angrier. Didn’t he notice the steam coming out of my ears? “You flew . Of course you did. You fly across the country and back on a whim like it’s nothing.”

“Well, I don’t have to keep up appearances and rattle around on trains like someone I know.” He smiled coyly as if his words were a clever joke.

“You think I do it just for PR?”

Finally, a hint of insecurity made it into his gleeful expression. He frowned.

Jamie stepped to the side, probably thinking I needed privacy to deal with Gary. I grabbed his elbow and tugged him close.

Gary’s eyes flicked to Jamie and back to me.

“What are you doing, Morton? Is flaunting a new conquest your way to spice it up between us?”

Was he delusional? I could feel Jamie tensing up against me. That wouldn’t do.

“There is no relationship,” I told my omega firmly. “I used to meet up with Gary casually and canceled our last date when I found out you were single. The last time I saw him was four weeks ago.”

“I believe you,” Jamie said. But he looked nervous, even a little afraid.

“Are you breaking up with me after I flew all the way here?” Gary cried.

I glared at him. “We were never together. Obviously, you don’t even know me! You flew here without an invitation, and you’re making my Jamie uncomfortable. We’re done.”

He spluttered. “Your Jamie? Isn’t this gray mouse your assistant?”

That did it. I had to get rid of him fast if I didn’t want to end up arrested for assault.

“Get out of my sight!” I roared.

Gary must have finally realized he had crossed a line because he jumped out of the way when I led Jamie past him.

“Your Jamie, huh?” my omega muttered as we neared the parking lot.

“Well…”

He paused on the curb, facing me. He didn’t look mad, which was a relief. His smirk even seemed a little playful. “Your assistant Jamie? Your new conquest Jamie? Your baby daddy Jamie?”

“I’m hoping for more than that.”

“Are you?”

“Yes.”

Jamie lifted his eyebrows expectantly.

I cleared my throat. “I’ve been in love with you since forever. Nobody could compare to you in my eyes. And yes, I’d like you to be only mine. My omega, my lover, my partner, maybe someday my husband?”

Jamie’s lips twitched. “Your husband.”

“Yes.”

“Then you’d have to propose to me. Someday. Preferably not right after a showdown with a crazy ex of yours.”

“He’s not even an ex. Even so, I’m sorry about that, Jamie.”

He sighed. “I’ll live.”

I decided then and there that my Jamie would be on the receiving end of the most romantic proposal ever.

Ideas were already running amok in my head. He liked beaches, but it would be winter soon, so I’d have to take him somewhere south. On a train. Wouldn’t it be symbolic to propose on a train? We were going back in a few days. I could buy a ring here in the city and propose on the train ride back…

I tightened my grip on Jamie’s back and kissed his temple.

At the hotel, I drew him a bath and ordered room service. The recovery symptoms must have been worsening because he was pale and had dark circles under his eyes. But he gave me a happy smile as he submerged himself in bubbles.

“I hate to kick you out, Mr. Hartley, but you have work to do.”

“My omega is more important.”

“More important than the future of renewable energy in our country?”

I didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”

Jamie quirked one eyebrow. “I call bullshit. Besides, this omega wants a livable climate for future generations. The conference starts in twenty hours. Go. Work. I’ll join you in a bit.”

“No way. I’ll go, but you’re not doing anything while you’re recovering. You’re on paid leave until the end of the week.”

“Really? Was HR notified?”

“Don’t make me fire you,” I shot back.

Jamie squinted. “You wouldn’t dare. You’d be lost without me.”

That was true in more ways than he realized. I pressed a kiss to his nose. “Rest, darling.”

“Okay,” he murmured, sinking deeper into the bubbles. He must have been more tired than he let on because he would have never given up so easily otherwise.

I did my best to keep my nerves at bay as I went through my notes for the keynote.

The real decisions would be made behind closed doors, in meetings held after the main presentations, but the Prime Minister and the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources would attend the keynote address.

Mistakes were not allowed if I wanted to be taken seriously in the subsequent negotiations.

Jamie appeared after a while, wearing a terrycloth robe. His wet hair curled at the tips, and his cheeks were pink. He stepped behind the armchair, put his hands on my shoulders, and kneaded my muscles.

“Do you want me to go through the Q&A with you?” he asked.

“You should be resting.”

He walked around and settled on his side on the sofa facing me. “I’m rested and a little bored even. We could come up with another reward system.”

Against my will, I perked up. “Yeah?”

“You answer all fourteen questions, and I’ll suck your cock.”

He winked, and I burst out laughing. “We really threw the ethics of this work relationship out the window.”

Smiling, Jamie shrugged. “Yep. Around the time you impregnated me. So, do we have a deal?”

I handed him my laptop with the questions and my notes. “We have a deal.”

He pointed a finger at me. “Before we began, a reminder, Mr. Hartley. Simple words, short sentences. Politicians are not climate scientists.”

“I know.”

“Okay. Ready?”

“Shoot.”

“Would a large-scale use of renewable energy sources cause massive power outages, like what happened two weeks ago in Spain?”

I launched into explanations, and Jamie listened, interrupting me when he wanted me to simplify something.

“They’re not entirely stupid,” I defended.

“You yourself have claimed that most people are, in fact, very stupid. But even if they weren’t, half of the room will be asleep before you finish that sentence. Remember the time you talked to those high schoolers? Answer the questions just like that.”

“These are government officials, Jamie.”

“Exactly. Talk to them like you would to bored, self-centered teenagers, and it’s in the bag.”

Sadly, he had a point.

It took three hours, but we went through every detail. I was just about to ask if I deserved that blow job now, but Jamie’s stomach growled.

“How about I take you out for dinner?”

He smiled, obviously pleased with the suggestion, but shook his head. “When I can sit on a chair again, yes. But tonight, let’s order room service.”

“You’re sore.”

“It’s fine. The recovery will be over in a few days. But I am hungry.”

Jamie craved meat, so we had steak for dinner, which he ate lying sideways on the sofa like a Roman emperor at a feast.

“Time for dessert,” he announced when I set the cutlery aside.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m full.”

He stood and crossed the carpet before lowering himself to his knees. Without another word, he unzipped my pants and mouthed my cock through my boxer briefs.

“Oh. You meant…”

Wrapping his lips around my cockhead, he hummed.

With rewards like this, my work efficiency would be through the roof.