“Some of those clients that you don’t care for include Chablis.”
“I had no idea you did work for her.”
He nodded, but didn’t go into explanation, the same way he was with all his clients.
“Why did you bring me here?”
He reached across the table and took my hand in his. “I wanted to show you how much I appreciate you, and I wanted to honor you tonight. You’ve worked hard for that promotion, and you deserve it. I understand that you’re going to be busy the next few months becoming acclimated to your new position. Kenni, I just want you to know that I’ve got your back.”
“I know that you do, baby. I love you more than words can say, and I know that only time will tell, but trust me when I say that you will always be first in my life.”
“I trust you, sweetheart.”
We ordered our meal, were served a red wine, and just sat together watching the stars sparkle in the sky. Bryson wrapped his arm around my chair when we were finished.
“I can’t believe that I almost lost a good thing,” he whispered.
“Only to yourself.”
He chuckled lightly. “No matter who I lost you to, it would have been devastating.”
I leaned into him and then linked our fingers together. “I will love and honor you forever, Bryse.”
“I know that you will. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. Do you remember Sloan Remington?”
“The tall dark-skinned lawyer with the deep dimples and the loud laugh?”
“One and the same. I’ve been thinking about bringing her into the firm. How do you feel about that?”
My head jerked sideways as I stared at him. “I can’t believe you’re asking my opinion.”
“This is me operating differently.”
“She’s brilliant, sharp, charming, and no one ever sees her coming. I think that she’ll be an amazing addition to your firm. But why are you asking me, and why now?”
“I want to start bringing my decisions and thoughts to you before I make any major changes in my life, baby. Bringing Sloan on will ease my workload, and it will also decrease the number of criminal clients that I take on.”
“How’s that?” I asked before sipping my wine.
“She represents that same type of clientele, but she wants to go deeper. I know that she’s got what it takes.”
“Does that mean you’ll be in a little less danger?”
Bryson laughed. “Yes, baby. Less danger, more time with you, and the ability to focus on us.”
“I like that a lot. I say bring her on.”
We were quiet for a while before he asked me, “Whatever happened to that Lawrence dude? The designer?”
“I told Milicent back then what happened, and she said that she wasn’t interested in working with him. She was thankful that we never got a chance to sign the contract. When he approachedher later about it, she told him that we would never be interested in working with anyone who would harass one of our staff and any other person, for that matter. He tried to make up some lie, but she didn’t buy it.”
“Good for her, and good for you.” He kissed my forehead, and we relaxed against one another for the rest of the evening. “You still mad at me about that night?”
“I haven’t been mad about that in a long time. I love that you come to my rescue. I may not have loved it then, but I love it now.”
He leaned down and kissed my lips.
Chapter 21
