With Abandon: With or Without, Book 4

leaned close and whispered again as they stopped in front of the inlaid walnut doors. “Come
    on, you want a quickie as much as I do. Admit it.”
    Glancing at his watch, Aubrey hit the down button. “Ah hell, it’s not a case of admitting it, but I can’t, I’m sorry. I was supposed to be back in Atlanta two hours ago.”
    Carson turned to face Aubrey and waggled his eyebrows. “I’ll make it worth your while.” His voice
    took on a singsong tone that made Aubrey chuckle.
    “I have absolutely no doubt ab—”
    “Ahem.” Carson scooted backward and his gaze strayed past Aubrey’s left shoulder. The scent of his
    lust took on a tangy, nervous quality. “CEOs at six o’clock,” he mumbled. Pulling his laptop case in front of his groin, he asked, “Did you rent a box for the Falcons games this season?”
    Aubrey smelled the two board members before he heard or saw them. One was human, the other was
    the only fellow pack member in the company, Orin Boskie. Great. Just what Aubrey needed, a wolf who could smell Carson’s arousal. Oh well, at least he hadn’t let himself get worked up. As far as the other wolf was concerned, Carson was young and human. The wind could blow and get him aroused.
    Aubrey caught the words “too young” and “untried” before turning his attention back to Carson.
    “Nah, last season Tara and I ended up staying at my place to watch the games more often than not. I
    decided it was a waste of money. Besides, my dad rented a box for company use again.”
    “Reynolds. Lopez.” Ralph Katchum drew up beside them.
    “Boskie. Katchum.” Carson nodded a hello.
    With Abandon
    Aubrey tipped his chin in acknowledgment. “Ralph. Orin.” He’d always been taught to call his elders
    by the more formal address, mister or missus—as were most Southern children—so the personal address
    made it much harder for the men to be dismissive. And hopefully it kept the fact that he was now head of Reynolds Inc. foremost in their minds.
    “Gentlemen.” Sidling up to Katchum, Boskie bobbed his sandy-brown head and lifted the hand that
    wasn’t holding his briefcase.
    Where the hell was the elevator? Aubrey had been cooped up with these two and their reluctance to
    agree on the new agenda all morning. He shifted his weight, leaning a bit closer to the green marble wall next to the doors. It shouldn’t be taking this long. They may be on the top floor, but it was a private elevator.
    As if reading Aubrey’s mind, Katchum pushed the button. The newspaper he’d held under his arm fell
    to the floor in front of him. “Well, damn.” He began to stoop, but his knees popped and creaked, making him straighten back up.
    “Here, let me get that.” Aubrey knelt to retrieve the paper. The big bold headline read, Dennison
    resigns after sex scandal. Skimming the page, Aubrey stood. James Dennison was a CEO of a rival company.
    “Damned sad state of affairs.” Katchum pointed at the paper. “He was a hell of a businessman. A real
    asset to Glencorp.”
    “Yes. Nice man too.” Aubrey had met Dennison a few times at fundraisers. Aubrey frowned and tore
    his attention away from the print, rolled the paper up and offered it to the older man.
    Katchum waved it away. “Keep it. I’ve read it.”
    “Thank you.” Aubrey tucked the paper into the open pocket of his laptop bag. “When did this happen
    with Dennison?”
    “Where’ve you been? It’s been going on for the past two days.” Boskie scoffed and rolled his eyes.
    The reaction was more fitting to a teen than a fifty-year-old man. He must be spending too much time with his granddaughter.
    Aubrey clenched his teeth. He’d been busy planning for the board meeting and Matt’s arrival. He
    hadn’t caught the stocks much less the news in a couple of days.
    Boskie continued, oblivious to Aubrey’s reaction. “He got caught in his office with an intern. A male intern.”
    Katchum nodded. “They were going to fire him for gross misconduct, but he resigned before anything
    could come of it. Such a shame after twenty-four years with the company. The board probably would’ve
    left it be if he’d been having an affair with a woman. Just last month one of the other CEOs was in the news for having an affair with his secretary and he wasn’t even reprimanded.”

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    11
    J.L. Langley
    “Serves him right if you ask me,” Boskie sneered. “The man is stupid. This is Georgia, not California.
    That stuff doesn’t fly