Page 261 of Theirs to Desire (Club M: Boxed Set)

THEO

“ N o.” My mouth forms the word before my brain kicks into gear. She thinks we have an ulterior motive? “Shane and I have never been your lawyers. You’re Catherine’s client, not ours.”

“The boutique firm of Gaffney, Anber, & Keppel represented me,” she replies, her jaw tight. “It has three partners.” She pauses for a breath. “I’m looking at two of them.”

She’s about to walk away, and I don’t want her to.

“Let me explain. Please. The one thing Catherine, Shane, and I have in common is that we’re stubbornly independent.

I practice in the UK, and Shane heads up the Dublin office.

Catherine is in charge of the New York office.

She decides who to represent. She doesn’t talk to us about her cases.

I knew you were her client, but that’s the extent of my involvement in the matter. ”

“Am I supposed to believe you want to sleep with me, and it has nothing to do with who I am?”

Shane stalks over to the couch and sits down, his expression closed off. “Let’s establish some facts,” he says, his voice clipped. “You are a very wealthy woman. You can buy and sell us several times over.”

Adelaide looks at him for a long minute and then perches on the edge of an overstuffed armchair, her arms folded across her chest. She’s closed off in a way she wasn’t before.

I can’t say I blame her. The world taught her to be guarded.

Everything about her now is controlled. Even her hair is pulled into a ruthlessly tight bun.

But it leaves her neck bare. I have a sudden desire to sink my teeth into her. I want to kiss the hollow of her throat. Nibble my way down her soft curves and see her eyes dilate with lust. I want her to set down the hardness she wears as armor and reveal the woman underneath.

“Nonetheless, Theo and I are not interested in your money,” Shane continues.

“We’re not in your league, but we do okay.

Is it really that much of a surprise that we’d want to scene with you, Ms. Byard?

You’re very beautiful, an experienced submissive, and you know your limits.

If we got together, I wouldn’t have to baby you. ”

She leans back ever so slightly. “There are a lot of beautiful women in the world, Mr. Gaffney, and there’s no shortage of them at Club M. I’m still not sure why you approached me . While I’m very grateful for what your firm did, I don’t think?—”

Shock ricochets through me. “You don't owe us anything.

Catherine billed you for her work, and as far as I know, she's been paid.” I take a deep breath.

I am a solicitor. I am skilled at drawing the other person out and keeping my emotions hidden, but this meeting is going sideways in a hurry, and we desperately need a different approach.

Time to put all my cards on the table. “I saw you at Club M once.”

“You did? When?”

“Three, maybe four years ago.” I still remember the day. April seventeenth. “You were wearing a green dress. It sparkled, and it had a slit up the side, one that came almost to your hip.”

“Go on.”

“You were here with Elliott Meyer. He tilted up your chin and kissed you. Then he whispered something in your ear. Whatever he said, it made you laugh. You kissed him back, and then you walked up on the center stage, and you said?—”

“I've been a bad girl, and I need to be punished.” She smiles for the very first time. “I remember that night. Before the scene started, Elliott blindfolded me so I couldn't see.” Her eyebrow quirks. “Were you among the volunteers that day?”

I shake my head. “No, the center stage isn't really my scene. I don't share that way.”

Her green eyes flicker from Shane to me. “But you do share,” she murmurs. “There are two of you in this room.”

“That's different.”

“Is it? In what way?”

I quote a line from her first and only novel. “In a way that seems as mysterious and magical as a baby’s first smile.”

“You’ve read my book?”

“I enjoyed it very much.”

“I didn't think anyone read it.” She laughs self-deprecatingly. “According to the reviews, it was a tortured, convoluted mess.”

Her story was about a girl on the cusp of womanhood, trying different personas to figure out who she was. The writing was stark and unflinchingly honest. “I found it fascinating,” I tell her.

A blush stains her cheeks. “Thank you, I think.” Her gaze transfers to Shane.

“When Xavier said that you wanted to scene with me, I looked both of you up.

I had no previous connection to Mr. Keppel, but that wasn't the same in your case. Before you founded your firm, you used to work at Weddell Burke. Meyer Industries was their largest client. You were working on the Meyer account when you quit abruptly.”

Her eyes narrow. “You've worked with Elliott before. Is this some kind of elaborate power-play? Am I a tool to you? A way to get revenge on a dead man by hate-fucking his submissive?”