I couldn’t even imagine. “Let him know we’re here for him if he needs us.”
Although we were partners, we were still friends. Even if things had gotten a little rough around here lately. The four of us would stick together no matter what. We’d known that since the beginning.
“So, how are things with you? Need any help picking up the slack?”
Ben smiled. “Actually, Luci’s been doing a phenomenal job with that. She contacted all of Justin’s managers to let them know he’s temporarily out of the office and should they need anything they could call her. She asked if she could send out daily updates regarding the things Justin’s been working on, to ensure they are being followed up on.”
Landon glanced over at me and I knew what he was thinking. Luci was a keeper. The girl didn’t let anything keep her down. She was always pitching in, learning whatever she needed to in order to make things simpler around here.
It was one of the many reasons I loved her.
Yeah. I fucking said it. I loved that girl.
“How’re things with Luci?” Ben cocked an eyebrow. “Outside of the office?”
“She’s doin’ all right,” I told him, not bothering to pretend I didn’t know what he was referring to. “I went to her apartment last night to check on her. She was upset.”
“I can understand why,” Ben said, his eyes dropping to the desk. “She apologized this morning for storming out the way she did.”
“To me as well,” Landon noted. “However, I intend to go to her place tonight. Although I appreciate her owning up to it, I have plans to punish her for it.” Landon leaned forward. “She ran out for reasons that were not related to work. Therefore, I want to ensure she understands a simple apology won’t cut it.”
“I think she needs that,” Ben replied.
I was surprised by his response. Landon and I had talked earlier and I thought for sure Ben was going to come to Luci’s defense when it came to her punishment.
“I agree.” And I did. Luci needed to know that her actions meant something to us. And by providing punishment when it was necessary, there would be no way for her to mistake it. “I’m gonna give her a break. Rather than step into the role as her Dom for the next two weeks, I’m gonna hold off. Not that I intend to leave her alone, but I think she needs some time to think it all through.”
Not to mention, I needed time. It wasn’t easy for me to admit that I was ready to take things to the next level with Luci. I had no intention of getting to the point where Ben would be her Dom for any length of time. As far as I was concerned, that game was over.
Although Luci hadn’t been with Justin for long, it fucking killed me to know that she was. Last night, I’d hated to see her cry, but I wasn’t disappointed to learn that things between her and Justin hadn’t worked out. Landon and I had every intention of stepping up our game with Luci because neither of us could sit back and watch while another man took what we believed was rightfully ours.
However, as I’d mentioned, I wasn’t quite ready to take that step. But I would be.
Soon.
Forty-Four
“OH, TRUST ME,” I TOLD Kristen. “I’m well aware that I screwed up.”
“Did they punish you?”
“What?” I reached into the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water. “Why would they punish me?”
Switching the phone to my other ear, I held it with my shoulder and opened the bottle.
“Oh, honey, if you were my submissive, I would’ve paddled your ass red.”
“It’s not like that. We were at work.”
“Exactly.” Kristen’s chuckle echoed over the phone. “And since your running out of there had nothing to do with work, you’ve earned a punishment.”
The thought of punishment from one of my bosses wasn’t a bad one. No, I didn’t look forward to it; however, it would mean—at least to me—that what I did bothered them on a level that had nothing to do with work. And Kristen was right. I’d run out of there because Justin hurt my feelings. Which had nothing to do with work.
“Well,” I said, standing tall, “Langston came over last night and he didn’t punish me.” I chuckled. “Unless you count what he did to me in the shower this morning punishment.” I certainly didn’t. It had been amazing.
“So, you’re having casual encounters with Langston now?”
“He came to check up on me. I was upset.”
“Right. Because that’s what all bosses do. They go to their employees’ homes and spend the night to ensure they’re all right.”
Fine. When she put it that way…
“Whatever. It’s all good now. I apologized.”
There was a knock on my door, causing me to spin around and stare at it.
