Page 123 of Handsome Devil

After five days of being deserted, the last thing I wanted to do was help him, but I needed to put myself aside for my passion project.

I nodded. “Stay tuned.”

“Now, tell me what all this is about.” He gestured to the room full of people, who watched the entire spectacle with their mouths agape.

“We want you to recognize our union and start negotiating better health care and working conditions.” I stood up straight.

“You’re violating your employee’s textbook,” he shot drily.

“I retained a lawyer who found a loophole,” I countered, bracing myself for a bitter argument.

“Fine.”

“If you don’t agree, we’ll file an election petition with the NLRB offi—wait, what?” I cocked my head sideways.

“I said fine.” He rolled his sleeves up his elbows and took a seat at my desk, picking up the forty-page folder I prepared with our demands. “I have twenty minutes to look at your asks. I’ll get back to you by the end of the month with an official counteroffer once legal tears it apart.”

Everyone in the room was stunned into silence. A few people whispered in shock. Hank, an elderly employee, looked like he was about to faint.

“You’re not going to balk?” I asked.

My husband was not a businessman. He was a vulture profiteering from other people’s misery.

He flipped through the pages of my demands, grabbing a red Sharpie and making notes on the margins. “Do you want me to?”

“No.” A frown kissed my forehead. “You’re usually less agreeable, though.”

“What can I say? Fucking the woman of my dreams regularly has made me considerably less prickly.”

Gasps and giggles erupted from our audience. Enzo smirked from his place by the door, swiveling in an office chair like a child. I wanted to crawl under a rock and hide there forever.

“Tate,” I chided, swatting his shoulder.

“Apricity,” he answered, looking up to scan the room in boredom. “Don’t sound so shocked. We’re married, young, and attractive. Why wouldn’t we be fucking like rabbits?”

More giggles and awkward laughs.

“You’re not that young,” I muttered. “And you’re sexually harassing the staff right now.”

“Bullshit. No one in this room is fuckable to me other than you.” He crossed out an entire paragraph about shorter working hours and possible remote work.

“How am I supposed to look these people in the eye after what they heard?” I leaned into his space, whisper-shouting.

“If it’s an issue, I can fire all of them and hire oth—”

“You know what? Just concentrate on my proposal.”

I let him read through the rest of the document silently, afraid he’d divulge more information about our private life. You know, like give me pointers about oral sex in front of the entire HR department. Tate was quick and eagle-eyed.

“Anything else?” He stood up, offering me back the folder with his comments.

I plucked it from between his fingers. “No.”

“Scan this and send it back to me so I can pass it through legal. I’m waiting by the elevator. Congratulations on your union.”

Claps erupted in the room. As soon as he walked out of my office, everyone clamored to hug and cheer for me.

“This is going to be such a game changer!” Monica from customer service was in actual tears.