A week and half later...
Another one of these Wednesday morning partner meetings, she couldn't stand meetings. Violet swivels in her chair waiting for the other straggling partners to make it in for the weekly partner meeting at Brookes and Smithmeyer, LLP. As a partner in her law firm, she's come a long way from waiting tables for tips to pay for law school night classes. But she'd worked hard and had been rewarded, sometimes she thinks it's not the reward she wanted, but she's proud and her mom is extremely proud of her, her only daughter a partner in a law firm. There are twelve partners in the firm, Harmon Brookes and Arnold Smithmeyer being the names on the sign over the door. Most she likes, but some can be kind of stuck up, wondering what a 34 year old black woman is doing becoming a partner in their old boys network. There are 44 attorneys at her firm, pretty good size and 12 are partners. It's a lot of hard work to be a partner, late nights, weekends, no life whatsoever, but she guesses the paycheck is worth it. Maybe one day she'll go out on her own, she thinks about Violet Maxwell, Attorney at Law, it's a nice dream but today she's just a partner. A 5 ft. 8 in, 175 lbs, not too skinny, not too fat, mid length black hair, cute face, nice smile, that wears reading glasses, partner.
"Okay, everyone listen up." It's Grant Carlyle, he's the managing attorney and a total dick when he wants to be. A little power went straight to his head. "We're going to do things differently today, usually we start with a report from everyone regarding their case load and any cases they may be managing with senior and junior associates but we have a surprise."
"Whoopee." Violet thinks, she looks over at Pam, she and Pam are the only two women of color as partners in this firm and the only 4 people of color that are partners, period. Pam Takahara is Japanese, tiny and sharp as a whip, and she don't take no crap from anybody, she heads the real estate division. They both smirk and roll their eyes. Surprises usually mean more work and maybe less pay. No one likes surprises.
"We have someone new joining our firm. He comes from a firm in Australia and has almost 17 years experience in his field. He's not coming in as an associate he'll be joining us as a partner."
As Carlyle drones on about the wonderful new partner from Australia, her mind wonders back to the Borders bathroom. She's been thinking about that lately, she's been thinking about it quite a bit. "I wonder what happened to him, I should have told him my name, gave him my phone number, man could he eat some pussy. What was his name again Peter, Patrick..."
"...Paul Dudley."
She looks up at the mention of the name Paul that was it Paul, and there he is standing in front of her all 6 ft. 2 inches, glowing gold skin, blonde hair, and green eyes of him, Paul. "Good god, what is he doing here?" she thinks, "Is he the new partner?" Her head goes down so fast and she feels Pam lean over and say in a whisper, "Well, hello there partner. He is fine, too bad I have a boyfriend."
She doesn't look up, if she could turn red she would, beet red, "I can't believe this the one time I'm naughty and it's come back to haunt me for the rest of my life." She hears him speak again and it's just like the first time, so smooth, masculine and sweet, her panties start to get wet. She has to look up again, she does and as she does they catch eyes and she sees that something clicks in his brain and he smiles, not a nice "I'm the new partner smile" but a "I'm the spider, you're the fly" smile.
"I'm so happy to be joining the Brookes and Smithmeyer team, I've known Harmon Brookes for many years, he mentored me and it's a privilege to be working under him again. I look forward to getting to know everyone and working with you." He says with an air of professionalism she hasn't seen in awhile, he doesn't even look nervous or the least bit perturbed at his knowing.
"Paul will be heading up our International law division since the recent departure of William Monahan and will be working closely with the acquisitions and mergers department. And Violet..." Carlyle looks at her, she knows she looks like a deer caught in headlights, "He'll be working closely with you on the Tri-Gear/Swisz Athletics merger since one of the companies is Swiss owned and we need his international law expertise." She can feel her eyes visibly expand into saucers. Her worse nightmare has come true. "Paul this is Violet Maxwell, she heads up Mergers and Acquisitions. She's one of our best." Carlyle says and it almost sounds like he's gagging as he's saying it. Paul moves to come around the conference table to shake hands with Violet, she stands and shakes his hand and he takes his other hand to caress the back of the one she's shaking with, it's an intimate move that only she notices. He smiles that devil may care smile again and she thinks, "These underwear are ruined."
"Why don't you sit by Violet, Paul and as the meeting goes on she can bring you up to speed on what's going on with that merger."
Paul pulls up a chair next to her, he leans over and says "May I have a couple of pieces of paper to take notes, I forgot to bring a notepad with me." Violet can feel the heat radiating off his body, she has to tighten her thighs or she's going to walk out of this room with a wet stain on her skirt.
"Sure, no problem" she snatches a couple of pages off and hands them to him without looking directly at him.
He leans into her ear and says "Thank you, love."
'Why doesn't the floor just open and swallow me whole,' Violet thinks.
After the meeting, Violet rushes back her office like the devil is on her heels. She sits behind her desk and thinks, "what am I going to do, I have to work with this man." Pam walks in with Violet's legal secretary and part time drag queen, Leonard toddling behind.
"What the hell was that all about, you shot out of there like the cops were after you." Pam says and she sits and so does Leonard.
"What, what happened at the meeting?" Leonard says with the excitement of man that loves gossip in his voice.
"Nothing, nothing happened at the meeting? And what do you mean, like the cops were after me? I left that meeting like I leave all the others, calm, cool, and collected." She says, trying to convince herself the lie is true.
"Knock, knock." They all turn to look at the door and standing there is Paul Dudley, looking better than any man should in a 3 piece Armani suit, it's got to be Armani. "Oh, I'm sorry I thought I'd stop by and talk a little bit more about the Tri Gear/Swisz merger, if you have time?"
"Oh, I have time to talk," she says fast and nervous, Pam and Leonard turn and look at Violet curiously. "Leonard don't you need to be typing up that contract for me?"
"Oh yea!" He says. As he passes Paul he sticks out his hand and says. "Hello, I'm Leonard Finkelstein her legal secretary and body guard." And he giggles, he actually giggles.
"Pam, I'll speak to you this evening at our regular meeting."
Pam looks confused and then it dawns on her their girl's night is tonight with honorary girl Leonard, Violet, Violet's best friend Nedra, and Pam at the The Pink Martini Bar. "Oooh, okay, that meeting, yea I'll see you tonight," she turns to leave and says to Paul, "Welcome to our family Paul." He smiles.
Violet stands to come around the desk and Paul rakes his gaze over her, if he thought she looked cute at Borders, she was damn near stunning standing in this office with a black pencil skirt, hot pink blouse that clung to those luscious breasts he didn't get an opportunity to experience and pair of black high heel sling backs, she wasn't wearing any stockings which he found very captivating staring at those toned legs. There was split up the side of her skirt that just gave a look at just enough of her thigh to remember what they felt like in his hands. As she came around her desk to walk over to some files, he tried his hardest not to stare at that spectacular ass of hers, it was round and high and made for loving. "Ahem" his head popped up, uh oh he'd been caught, he smiled sheepishly. She looked so adorable being stern, what a stroke of luck it was for him to have found her again. After those electrifying moments in the bathroom at Borders, he thought he'd never see her again, this had to be kismet.
"Mr. Dudley, the Tri Gear/Swisz merger is a very delicate one." She said in her stern attorney voice.
