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Subject: {ASSM} [STORY] The New Partner, by Ice Phoenix  [1/1] (MF, romantic)
Date: Wed, 24 Dec 2003 23:10:03 -0500
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*** FROM THE ARCHIVES OF WWW.EWPUB.ORG ***

Posted with permission of the author: Ice Phoenix

EWP Rating: X - strong sexual content
Story Codes: romantic
Story Genre: Drama, Romance
Pairing Codes: MF
Story Type: Short Story

The New Partner, by Ice Phoenix: The law firm has a new female partner, 
and when she and a colleague get caught in the office by a major winter 
storm, the pair get to know each other very well.

*** COPYRIGHT (C) 2003 BY ICE PHOENIX ***

For a full copyright notice, for more stories by this author, or other 
great authors, please visit our site: http://www.ewpub.org

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*** FROM THE ARCHIVES OF WWW.EWPUB.ORG ***

                          _The New Partner_
 

	"So, unless you have further questions concerning the contractual
obligations of working for this firm...?"
 
	"No, sir. I understand all of this perfectly. I'm very excited to be
working for Harrison & Hamill."
 
	"You don't just *work* here, young lady," Mr. Harrison said with a
smile. "You're a partner!"
 
	Bianca signed the contract, and passed it over to Mr. Hamill, who
affixed his signature, and then gave it to Mr. Tippling, who filed it
away into its proper folder.
 
	"Now then. It was good of you to come in on Christmas Eve to sign
the paperwork and to get up to speed."
 
	"I don't want to slow anything down, sir. I know this firm is
responsible for several major pending cases, and I want to be useful
as quickly as possible."
 
	"Very good. We have to go to a charity banquet, and the office is
closed. Mr. Tippling will remain, to fill you in on everything you
need to know." The two senior partners rose, and hands were shaken
all around. "We'll leave you two to your work. Merry Christmas."
 
	"Merry Christmas," the junior partners said in unison.
 
	"I'm sorry to make you work on Christmas Eve, Mr. Tippling," Bianca
said.
 
	"Look, the only reason I'm not the most junior partner in the firm
is because *you* are now the most junior partner in the firm. Call me
Gary, Mrs. Ross."
 
	"Bianca." The two smiled, and then Gary turned to a new stack of
paperwork.
 
	"First thing's first. We have to fill out all of your paperwork for
insurance and benefits and... well, you get the idea. This should
take us until... oh, I'd say spring..."
 
	Bianca laughed at his joke, and smiled. "It's okay. I'm used to
doing lots of paperwork. I worked as a paralegal before I got my
degree. Let's just get started, shall we?"
 
	The two sat down and began to sort through all of it, one horrid
document at a time.
 



	The pair had been working for four straight hours before they
decided to take a break. They had filled out all the necessary
paperwork, and had begun to review the important cases the firm was
currently involved with. Bianca straightened up, and put her hand to
her lower back, trying to ease the pain from sitting so long.
 
	"You'd think they could buy more comfortable chairs," she said
ruefully.
 
	"Oh, they have them," he said. "The senior partners have chairs that
cost two grand a piece. Us peons get the cheapies."
 
	"I'm going to get a soda. You want anything?"
 
	"No, thanks."
 
	Bianca walked down to the soda machine, which sat in a niche. As she
turned away from the soda machine, her eyes glanced out the nearby
window. What she saw made her freeze in place. She walked stiffly
over to the window, unbelieving of what she saw.
 
	"Gary?" she called out, loudly enough for him to hear her down the
hallway.
 
	Gary walked casually down the hall, figuring she was having some
kind of problem with the machine. He found her staring out the window.
 
	"Look," she said, her voice hushed in awe. Gary looked out the
window, and his jaw dropped.
 
	The pair had been working in a room with no windows, in the interior
of the building. They had not heard the howling winds raging outside.
When they looked out, what they saw was a world of white. They could
not see the ground from where they were standing on the twelfth
floor; the snow was blowing that heavily. Pressing his hand against
the glass, Gary could feel it shake; the winds had to be above gale
force strength.
 
	"I wonder how bad it really is," he said, his voice as subdued as
hers had been. "Let's go downstairs and see."
 
	Bianca nodded, but didn't speak. She stayed right behind Gary as he
led her to the elevator, and she stood close to him on the trip down.
She didn't like storms, and had moved from Florida to get away from
the threat of hurricanes. She'd forgotten that northern blizzards
were almost worse.
 
	There was no need to do something as foolish as step outside to find
out how bad the storm was. In truth, they could not step outside: a
drift of snow had piled up against the front entrance, completely
blocking access. They walked around the ground floor until they found
a door that wasn't blocked, only to find snow two feet deep greeting
them.
 
	"Two feet... in four hours. My god, what a storm." Gary said this
after he'd managed to lever the door shut against the blowing winds.
 
	"What are we going to do? How do we get home?" Bianca asked, her
voice under tight control.
 
	Gary let out a short bark of a laugh. "In this shit, you don't. You
stay put, unless you like winding up a popsicle. C'mon, let's head
back upstairs."
 
	In the elevator, Gary wondered at Bianca's seeming inability to cope
with a simple snowstorm. He didn't yet know enough of her history to
realize it was her first. He walked down to one of the offices, which
was unlocked, of course, and then picked up a phone. Luckily, it
still worked.
 
	"Who are you calling?" Bianca asked. He hadn't realized that she'd
followed him.
 
	"My wife. You should probably call home, too, so they won't worry.
We're not getting out of here today... or maybe even tomorrow. This
could take a while to clear out."
 
	Bianca hadn't considered that, and walked away, twisting the ring on
her finger in worry. She didn't like being stuck in a building, no
matter its size. The word *trapped* kept echoing in her mind.
 
	Back in the office, Gary had reached his house. "Hey, Darla. It's
me. I'm still at work. What's the weather look like at home?"
 
	"A little bit of snow. No big deal, really. Why?" Gary Tippling
lived well outside of the city; he wasn't surprised the storm had
missed his home.
 
	"It's a complete white-out here, Honey. We've got like two feet of
snow on the ground already."
 
	"Well, you'd better get moving, before all the roads are closed!"
 
	"Darla, I don't think you understand. There *aren't* any roads here.
Everything's covered in two solid feet of snow. I couldn't even tell
which car was mine in the parking lot. I'd need a snow plow just to
get onto a street."
 
	"Gary, tomorrow is *Christmas*! You've got to be home!"
 
	"Honey, I want to be home as much as you do, but I'm not superman. I
can't magically clear a path through the blizzard."
 
	"But we have *commitments!* The Adlers are expecting us! And we were
going to the Hoffman party, too! Do you realize how bad it's going to
look if we don't show?"
 
	Gary took a deep breath, trying to control his temper. Here he was,
stuck in the middle of a snowstorm, and all his wife was worried
about were their social engagements. "Darla, I'm aware of all that.
Somehow, I think they'll understand that I wasn't able to make it."
 
	"You're not even willing to *try*, are you?" Darla accused him. "I
bet it's not even as bad as all that. You just don't care. I've spent
two years building up our social status, and you're willing to throw
it all away for-"
 
	"Darla," Gary said, interrupting her angrily, "I don't feel like
listening to you rant about how this will affect our 'social status.'
Maybe you don't get it, but this is a serious storm! If I was going
to go out in it, I would certainly get stuck, and probably freeze to
death!"
 
	"Oh, let's not be melodramatic, Gary. It can't possibly be that bad,
or the phone lines would be down."
 
	"The phones," Gary tried not to snarl, "are underground. Now, I'm
going to hang up, before one or the other of us says something he
will regret later. I'll call you later. Good-bye."
 
	Gary hung up the phone before his wife could respond. He marched out
of the office, ignoring Bianca, who was sitting at a chair across the
way, and walked down the hall, muttering to himself angrily about the
stupidity and sheer arrogance of his wife. Bianca sat with her arms
wrapped around herself, waiting for him to come back. She didn't like
being alone in this place with a storm outside.
 
	After about ten minutes, Gary did come back, with Bianca's soda,
which she had left on the window sill. He had one of his own now.
 
	"Sorry about that," he said calmly. "Darla really knows how to press
all the right buttons to piss me off."
 
	"Sounds like it. What's her deal?"
 
	"Darla married me for status. I thought she loved me at the time,
and I know I was in love... well, I was in love with what I thought
she was. Anyway, we go to a lot of gatherings of young couples... you
know, the kind who don't have kids yet. We stand around and talk shop
and brag to each other about how we're going to take over the company
one day. It's all bullshit, really, but Darla believes in it. We were
invited to three separate Christmas parties for tomorrow. Of course,
she's mortified that I can't take her now."
 
	"Christmas parties, on Christmas Day?"
 
	"Like I said, these couples don't have kids, and they're old enough
not to want to do the whole mom and dad thing. So, why not?"
 
	"I suppose. So, she's really upset?"
 
	"Yeah. She thinks I'm concocting the whole snowstorm just to cheat
her out of her parties. Shit, I don't know what she was going to
accuse me of... maybe she thinks I'm having an affair."
 
	They both laughed a little nervously at that thought.
 
	"How did your husband take it?" Gary asked. He had seen the ring on
her hand; it was obvious she was married.
 
	"I didn't call him."
 
	"Don't you think you should?"
 
	"Why bother? He hardly notices when I'm at home, anyway. So long as
the food doesn't run out, he'll be fine. Hell, why interrupt him?
He's probably busy screwing the maid, anyway. It's our third maid.
He's felt compelled to fire each one when I've caught them together.
I think he thinks I won't know he's just going to fuck the next one,
as well."
 
	"Sorry."
 
	She waved her hand. "Ross married me for money. I wish I'd realized
that at the time, but, like you, I was in love with an image that
didn't last."
 
	"You refer to your husband by his last name?" Gary asked
incredulously.
 
	Bianca arched an eyebrow at him. "His family calls him Ross the
Third. They call him that not because there are two others before
him, but because they named him Ross... Ross... Ross. I don't know
who was drunk when they were naming the child, but..."
 
	Gary couldn't strangle the laugh that he was holding in, and finally
he had to let it out before he hurt himself. He tried to apologize to
Bianca when he settled down, but she wouldn't let him.
 
	"I suppose it is funny to others. To me it's just pathetic... but
then, I've had to put up with his family."
 
	"I'm sorry, really. But... naming your kid Ross Ross Ross... is..."
Gary broke off in a fit of giggles again. Bianca smiled wanly at him;
his laugh was somewhat infectious. After a little bit, she was
chuckling, too.
 
	When they had both finally settled down, Bianca grinned at him.
"Thanks. I needed that."
 
	"No problem." Gary took a deep breath, and let it out. "Well, we're
stuck here. You want to try to get some more work done?"
 
	"Might as well. Not much else to do. Which case were we working on?"
 
	"Simpson v. Skinner. Now, this is interesting..."
 



	Over the course of the next several hours, the two kept working.
Bianca tried to focus her mind solely on their task, to try to push
the thoughts of the storm outside out of her head. For the most part,
it worked, until they would pause to stretch, or get a soda, and then
the thought of it would come crashing back in on her, and she would
have to hug herself to keep from shivering.
 
	Gary had noticed this behavior, but had been afraid to mention it.
He didn't want to pry into her private life, and a person's fears are
the most private thing about them. When it started to grow dark
outside, though, he figured they'd worked enough.
 
	"What say we raid the snack machine? I'm hungry."
 
	"Oh, there's nutrition for you!" Bianca said with a laugh.
 
	Gary laughed with her. "It's either that, or we go down to the
cafeteria, and you can make me dinner, since I can barely cook things
that come out of a box with directions on it!"
 
	Bianca laughed lightly. Normally, such a comment would have set off
her 'sexism' alert, but coming from Gary, it came out as the
self-deprecating joke he had meant it as. "No, I don't think that
will work, either. I'm not much of a chef myself. Okay, Cheetos it
is!"
 
	The two gathered a fair collection of junk food on a table, and
began munching. Once they started, they both realized that they were
fairly hungry, even for this completely worthless collection of
foodstuffs.
 
	"Bianca," Gary said, trying to approach the subject obliquely,
without prying. "Why does this storm bother you so bad? I mean, it's
nasty, but it's just a winter storm..."
 
	"It's my first," she said simply. Seeing the shock on his face, she
explained. "I was born in Kissimmee, Florida. When I was eight, we
moved to Ft. Myers. I did college at the University of Miami, and law
school in Florida, as well. I've spent my whole life in a place where
it never snows. I came up here to get away from hurricanes, and look
what I get myself into!" She shuddered as the building creaked ever
so slightly in the winds.
 
	Gary unconsciously reached out and put his hand on her arm. "It's
okay. This'll pass. So, you grew up in Florida, huh? I've been there
on vacation a couple times... did the Spring Break thing once in Ft.
Lauderdale, but... seemed nice enough. I suppose the hurricanes would
be a problem."
 
	"I was nearly caught in Andrew. I got out of the area only six hours
before it hit. That was it for me. I knew I wanted to live somewhere
that didn't get leveled every few years. Now look where I am."
 
	"Well, it could be worse. We have light, heat, shelter, food - such
as it is - and good company... well, at least I have good company,"
he said with a smile.
 
	Bianca giggled at him. "What about you? How did you end up here?"
 
	"My parents always wanted their son to grow up to be President.
Well, of course, the best career for a lying politician is a lying
attorney, so... I didn't get a whole lot of say in the matter; I was
raised with a goal in mind. I don't much mind, though... I like being
an attorney. Didn't expect to marry a bitch... oops, sorry, didn't
mean to..."
 
	Bianca waved it off. "Can't be any worse than the bastard I'm stuck
with. How did you meet her?"
 
	"We met in college. She came up to me during a dance one night and,
well, things progressed from there. I think back on it and realize
that she must have scouted me or something, like I was some kind of
football player. She had planned out every phase of our relationship,
and I, being the self-conscious type that didn't know any better,
just went along with what she wanted. I was popping the question
before I ever really knew what had happened, and she's just sort of
always held the reins in our relationship."
 
	"That's got to get old."
 
	"Tell me about it. I hate to admit that her accusation is somewhat
true; I do try to spend as much time working as I can, just to get
away from her. And I'm not all that sorry that I'll be missing
tomorrow's little get-togethers. Most of those people are arrogant
assholes."
 
	"Why do you put up with it?"
 
	Gary shrugged. "Mainly, because of the pre-nup. She would get half
of everything, and probably manage to get the *better* half, if you
know what I mean."
 
	"Any good lawyer should be able to bust that pre-nup apart, if it's
that unfair... hell, you're a good lawyer, or you wouldn't be here..."
 
	Gary shrugged again. "I know... I think I just don't want the stress
in my life... I dunno, divorce always seems like such a lonely thing
to do."
 
	"I suppose."
 
	"How did you meet Mr. Ross?" Gary asked, chuckling again. Bianca
smiled; he had a way of making the annoying funny.
 
	"Bar scene. I was lonely, he was there... call it a one-night stand
that turned into a standing nightmare."
 
	"Is he abusive?"
 
	"No. He knows better. I'm not one of those women who'd put up with
that kind of shit. I'd have him drawn and quartered, and *then*
sentenced to two years in county lockup. But he plays around
constantly. He doesn't even try to hide it very well. I wasn't
kidding when I said he was probably screwing the maid. One time I
caught him doing it with her in *our bed*. I really let loose on him
that night. Hell, I can't remember the last time he and I had sex."
 
	"Do you ever...?"
 
	Bianca shook her head. "And don't ask me why I don't, because I
don't know. He sure as hell wouldn't care, assuming he ever found
out, and he wouldn't try. All he cares about is the money. The cars,
the clothes, the house: so long as all that stuff is there, he
couldn't give a rat's ass about me."
 
	"So, why don't you kick him to the curb?"
 
	"Pretty much the same reason you don't. He told me one time that he
was boffing this lawyer, said she told him how much alimony he'd get
from me if we divorced... It was a not-so-veiled threat; he knows
he's got me over a barrel."
 
	"Sounds like a prize dirt-bag."
 
	"He is that."
 
	Gary picked up his soda, and gestured to make a toast. "Here's to
spouses. God's punishment for having fun in our youth!"
 
	"Amen!" Bianca said with a smile, clinking her can against his.
 



	The pair talked for a while after their "meal", and then they each
logged on to the Internet, to see if they could get weather reports
concerning the storm. It soon became obvious that they would be
trapped for at least the next day or so; the storm wasn't easing off.
For a while, they involved themselves in purely personal web surfing,
just to kill time, but soon enough they realized how futile it was,
and decided simply to go to bed.
 
	"Maybe we'll get lucky, and the storm will quit early."
 
	"Don't hold your breath," Bianca said glumly. "Storms generally
don't cooperate very well."
 
	Gary smiled. "Well, whatever. I'm taking the couch in Mr. Martin's
office. You might want to use the one in Ms. Lewis' office... it
looks pretty comfortable."
 
	"Okay. See you in the morning?"
 
	"If the building doesn't fall down," he said with a smile.
 
	"Thanks a lot!" she said, but smiled at him anyway.
 
	Gary took off his shoes, and settled down onto the couch. Even as
early as it was, it was easy for him to become sleepy; the wind
outside was a noise he'd grown up with, and it was lulling him
quickly into a stupor.
 
	He didn't know how long it was before he felt a soft hand on his
shoulder. He blinked a few times, and then rolled to look up at
Bianca.
 
	"Whatsa matter?" he said drowsily.
 
	"I'm sorry. There's no way I can sleep alone in this wind. You mind
if I take a piece of the floor?"
 
	Now, Gary was a little too much of a gentleman. He rolled to a
sitting position. "No, you take the couch. I'll take the floor."
 
	"That's hardly fair," she said. "After all, I'm the one who's
changing things around."
 
	"There's no way I can let a lady sleep on the floor when I have the
couch, okay? Call me a chauvinist pig, but that's the way my mom
raised me."
 
	"Well, I'm not going to take the couch, either!" she said firmly.
Both of them looked at each other in exasperation, and then laughed.
 
	"You want that part of the floor, or this part?" Gary said with a
smile.
 
	"I'll take this part here."
 
	"Okay." Gary lay down on the floor right next to the couch. It was
ridiculous that neither of them would now be comfortable, but he
accepted that as a matter of course. He would not be seen to be rude.
 
	In only a few minutes, they both realized that sleeping on the floor
wasn't all that uncomfortable, since the rugs were thick, but it was
*cold*. The heat didn't seem to make it all the way to the floor.
Gary got up after only a couple minutes.
 
	"I'll be right back. There are some emergency supplies in the hall
closet. Maybe there are some blankets."
 
	"Okay," Bianca said, shivering to herself. She looked over at the
couch, but she'd be damned if she would take the only comfortable
'bed' after she'd forced him out of it.
 
	Gary was back in a few minutes. "Good news and bad news. Which would
you like first?"
 
	"The bad news."
 
	"There's only one blanket."
 
	"Hmm. Well, what was the *good* news?"
 
	"There was a blanket. You were supposed to ask for that first," he
said with a grin. She giggled. "It's a good-size blanket. I think
we're adult enough to sleep side-by-side in order to share it, don't
you?"
 
	"Yes, I think so."
 
	Gary unfolded the blanket, and then dropped down to the floor. He
flicked the blanket to spread it over both of them, and then lay
down. He turned his back to her, and he could feel her bottom pushing
against his; they huddled close together to keep warm. He would have
laughed, but he didn't want to offend her. After only a few more
minutes, he was sound asleep.
 
	Bianca knew that this would be humorous to anyone who saw it; she
was sure she was the only person in the state who was terrified just
then. She pushed herself back until she was fully pressed up against
Gary. His warmth and bulk - what there was of it - were reassuring to
her. She closed her eyes, and after a long period of restlessness,
was able to go to sleep.
 



                          ...---===EWPUB.ORG===---...
 



	When Gary began to wake up, he did so in his usual way, slowly and
somewhat groggily. He felt a warm body pressed against him, and in
his sleepy state, he just assumed it was his wife. Unusual as it was
for her to be frisky, he knew he should take advantage of it while he
could. He rubbed his hands up and down her back and pulled her close
to him.
 
	In only another moment, he realized his bed wasn't this hard or
furry, and that he wasn't sleeping with his wife. His eyes shot open,
to be confronted by a just-awakening Bianca, who could feel his
hands, which had nearly reached her ass. He blushed crimson, and
tried to move away from her, only to find that, during the night,
they had tangled themselves in the blanket.
 
	By the time Gary managed to get himself free of the blanket, he was
totally flustered. He made a few unintelligible noises, and departed
from the room, to take care of his morning needs, and to hopefully
let some of the blood retreat from his face into the rest of his body.
 
	When he returned, he found Bianca sitting on the floor, stretching a
little to loosen up. He couldn't really look her in the eyes, but he
felt he should say something.
 
	"Uh, I'm sorry about that... when we woke up, I mean. I tend to be a
little out of it in the morning, and... I guess I didn't really
remember who you were... I... aw, shit," he said, finally, turning
away because he was blushing again. He didn't see Bianca trying to
hold in her giggles.
 
	As Gary turned back, Bianca held out her hand. He took it and helped
her to her feet. She continued to hold on to his hand, and then she
very, very lightly smacked it with her other one.
 
	"Bad hands," she said, scolding them seriously. Gary smiled. His
smiled was erased by confusion when Bianca embraced him and kissed
him on the cheek.
 
	"Good boy," she said with a grin. "Thank you for putting up with me
last night. I guess I'm just not a bad-weather person."
 
	Gary tried to regain his composure as she let him go. "It's okay.
Everyone has their little pet peeves."
 
	"It's still coming down like crazy out there," Bianca said, staring
out the window. "I wonder how many feet of snow are out there now."
 
	"You'd probably rather not know."
 
	"We're going to be stuck here until June!" she said glumly.
 
	"I could think of worse people to be stuck with," Gary muttered to
himself.
 
	"What?" Bianca asked, not having heard him.
 
	"Nothing. I'm going to go start the coffee machine. Then... hell, I
don't know. Might as well do some more work."
 
	As he was about to leave the room, Bianca's voice stopped him.
"Gary?"
 
	He turned back. "Yeah?"
 
	She smiled sweetly at him. "Merry Christmas."
 
	Gary blushed, then he said, "Merry Christmas to you, too." He
retreated from the room before she could make him blush for yet
another time this morning. *What is it with me and women? I can't
keep control of myself around them no matter what! That was pretty
much how Darla roped me in the first place.*
 
	That line of thought led Gary to things he didn't want to think
about, so he focused on making the coffee.
 



	The two coworkers returned to their study of cases for about half of
the morning, but after that, they had run out of material to go over.
They each took a little personal time, just to be alone, review
email, and see what was going on outside their whited-out ping-pong
ball of a world. The snow kept coming down, and even Gary couldn't
believe it. He estimated, after walking down to the second floor,
that there was at least four feet of snow on the ground. This was
ridiculous; he'd never heard of such a storm. It had to be the worst
in over a hundred years.
 
	They broke for lunch, which consisted of another batch of junk food.
Gary had made a raid on the cafeteria, and had at least managed to
get them something decent to drink. They sat together, munching away,
lost in thought.
 
	"I'd never have thought, six months ago," Bianca finally said, "that
I'd be stuck in my office quite this literally."
 
	Gary chuckled. "Yeah. This wasn't really how I planned my life to
turn out, either."
 
	"What *did* you expect?" she asked, apparently interested.
 
	Gary set down his chips. "Well, the whole lawyer thing, as I said,
was a given. But I think I more expected to be a trial attorney,
maybe a prosecutor."
 
	"Criminal law?"
 
	"Yeah. Protecting the public, that whole thing. But... well, Darla
talked me out of that. She didn't see any social future in being a
DA."
 
	"Geez, what's she been smokin'?"
 
	Gary shrugged. "Anyway, she managed to talk me out of it, and so
here I am, shuffling corporate paperwork back and forth, doing the
occasional contractual dispute and a lot of work with corporations
negotiating this or that. It's dull, most of the time."
 
	"Why don't you change?"
 
	He shrugged again. "Just caught in the rut, I guess. Plus it would
mean a nice long battle with Darla, and I don't know as I feel I'm up
to that."
 
	"You can't let her run your *whole* life," Bianca said, before she
could stop herself.
 
	Gary just nodded. "I know. I guess I'm just a little too
easygoing... it's too easy for her to push me in the direction she
wants to go."
 
	Bianca nodded. "At least she seems to be gentle about her
manipulation. Ross does his through thinly veiled threats about my
career and my future."
 
	"He's not what you wanted in a husband, is he?"
 
	"Not hardly. When I was in my teens... you know, those 'formative
years', I always dreamed that my husband and I would do things
together, that we'd sit on the couch and talk about things. I thought
we'd spend time at the park, or at the zoo..."
 
	"Definitely not at socialite parties?" he asked with a grin.
 
	"No, none of those!" she laughed. "Darla's not what you wished for,
either, is she?"
 
	"No. Darla has no ambitions other than her own self-importance. She
wants to look big in other people's eyes without actually doing
anything. I had hoped that my wife would be my equal. Darla isn't,
really... she just expects me to treat her like she is. She's
shallow, vain, and not terribly bright, when I'm honest about it.
Trying to explain one of our cases to *her* would take all day."
 
	Bianca nodded. "I know the feeling. Ross is smart enough, but he
doesn't give enough of a shit about me to *want* to discuss a case."
They each looked down, and then they looked at each other. It was a
moment of mutual blushing.
 
	"Listen to us," Gary said. "We sound like two old-timers, bitching
about what could have been."
 
	Bianca laughed. "Too true. We do have something in common with those
old-timers, though."
 
	"What's that?"
 
	"Neither of us seems to be able to do anything about it."
 
	"Going it alone's kind of a scary proposition."
 
	"Yeah."
 
	The two lapsed into silence for a long moment. After an
uncomfortably long pause, Gary said, "Look, we can't just *sit* here.
I know we worked our asses off never to have to do paralegal work
again, but..."
 
	"But it will keep us from going completely nuts. You're right. Let's
do it."
 



	Gary was in the middle of a lengthy email to his brother, who lived
in Hawaii - the bastard - when the computer turned itself off. Gary
cursed at length until he realized that the computer wasn't the only
thing that was off. He hadn't bothered turning on the room light, but
he now realized that the lights in the hall were also out. He stepped
out into the hallway, and muttered under his breath. It was apparent
that main power had gone out in the building, and the only
illumination came from the emergency floods at each end of the
hallway.
 
	With a sigh and another muttered curse, he decided he should find
Bianca, to make sure she wasn't stuck somewhere without power. After
banging his shins on two trash cans and a desk, he finally made his
way over to the maintenance closet, where he grabbed the flashlight
kept there. He wandered down the hallway, looking for her in each
office. They'd separated for some more 'alone time' about a half hour
before. When he got to the conference room, he stepped in. He didn't
see her, but the sight out the window caught his attention.
 
	Walking to the window, he set the flashlight down and stared out.
The snow had turned to sleet. It was an ice storm; worse by far than
a snowstorm. The snow was something they could deal with, but it was
obvious that the ice had taken down the transmission lines outside of
town. There was no electric light to be seen within his view, which
covered a dozen city blocks.
 
	"Aw, hell," he sighed. Just then, he heard a whimper coming from
behind him. He turned quickly, and with his eyes now adjusted to the
darkness, he saw her sitting on the edge of the conference table,
holding herself and shivering uncontrollably. He knew she didn't like
storms, but this was far worse than she'd been.
 
	Gary moved to her side, and put his arm on her shoulder. "It's okay,
Bianca."
 
	"What happened to the lights?"
 
	"The storm must have knocked out power. We'll be okay. The heat here
runs on a separate emergency system."
 
	"Turn the lights back on," she said. It was as if she hadn't even
heard him.
 
	"I can't, Bianca," he said calmly, quietly. "The power went off."
 
	Bianca's shivers turned into shudders, and Gary felt compelled to
wrap his arms around her. He sat next to her on the table, holding
her against himself.
 
	"God I hate the dark," she whispered, over and over again. Gary
pulled her more tightly to himself, and began to stroke her hair. He
couldn't really think of anything to say at this point, so he just
kept holding her. His hand strayed from her hair down onto her back,
and she seemed to ease a little at that. He didn't really know what
he was doing now; he only knew that he had to keep her calm, so she
wouldn't panic on him.
 
	As Gary continued to rub her back, Bianca slid against him, pushing
herself more firmly into his grasp. He didn't really mind that,
though his mind was a little confused about what he should do at this
point. Part of him told him just to go with it, and another part told
him that she wasn't thinking straight.
 
	His hand, however, was now caressing her lower back, very close to
the spot it had reached that morning. At that point, Bianca turned
her face up to look at him. It was too dark for him to read her
expression, but he didn't think she was angry. Her one hand came up
to caress his cheek, and she craned her neck upward. He automatically
tilted his head down, and their lips touched. The kiss began soft,
but it soon deepened into a passionate exchange. When Gary let his
tongue slip out to brush against her lips, she opened her mouth
immediately to welcome it. Their tongues were soon dancing wetly,
first in her mouth, then in his, then back in hers.
 
	Gary resolved himself not to make the first move, but he didn't have
to. Bianca shifted herself, raising her body up to be more in line
with his, and pressed herself tightly against him. She embraced him,
and began to caress his back. He kept his hands moving across her
back, as well, though he made sure not to go too far down.
 
	Bianca was having none of that. She kept her arms around him as she
leaned backward, pulling him down on top of her. He moved his arms
out from under her to support his weight, and continued to kiss her.
 
	By this point, it was obvious to Gary that she was going to let
him... or more accurately, probably going to *encourage* him... to
take liberties with her. He had never cheated on his wife, but this
wasn't due so much to any sense of honor or loyalty to her, as much
as it was that he simply didn't go looking for trouble. Now, with
this attractive, vulnerable, and friendly woman urging him on, he
simply couldn't resist.
 
	Gary moved his hand softly upward, until it was cupping Bianca's
breast through her clothes. She moaned into his mouth, enticing him
to move more vigorously. His hand kneaded the flesh beneath it, and
she groaned, arching her back to push her tit into his hand.
 
	Emboldened, Gary let his hand move from her breast to the buttons on
her blouse. She almost objected at first, until she realized where
his hand had gone. At that, she allowed her own hands to begin
pulling on his shirt, trying to free it from his slacks. By the time
he had all of her buttons undone, she had managed to get his shirt
loose, and had already undone both of the cuffs.
 
	The pair broke their kiss for a brief moment, so they could both
remove their shirts. Nothing was said, and it was too dark to
exchange glances, though Gary could see the outline of her body,
waiting for him. He reached out and pulled her up to him, embracing
her and returning his lips to hers. As their tongues reacquainted
themselves, he found the clasp for her bra and unhooked it. She
squirmed against him, helping him to slip the garment off her body
without breaking their embrace. He suddenly felt the hot points of
her nipples pressing deliciously into his bare chest, and that
aroused him in a way that he had not felt in quite some time.
 
	Eager now, Gary's hands reached down and found the clasp on her
skirt, which was undone in under a second, and was soon followed by
the zipper. Bianca wrapped her arms around Gary and physically lifted
herself off the table, allowing her skirt to be yanked clear of her
body. She wasn't able to settle before Gary had also grabbed the
waistband of her panties and dragged them clear. As she settled onto
the cold mahogany of the table, she shivered slightly.
 
	Gary broke their kiss, and stepped back just a bit. He kept in
contact with Bianca, so she wouldn't think he was leaving, but there
was something he wanted to do. His wife didn't much care for anything
more than just missionary-position sex, and she would never have done
anything so decadent as to screw on the dining room table, let alone
a conference table.
 
	Gary let his hands trail across her body as he knelt. He carefully
pulled her forward, until her pussy was just at the edge of the
table. Bianca wasn't quite sure what he had in mind, but when his
fingers started dancing across her breasts, she didn't much care what
else he was doing.
 
	That is, until Gary leaned forward, and his tongue swiped gently
across her swollen pussy lips. Bianca squealed in surprise and
pleasure, and her hands flew to the back of Gary's head, pushing him
firmly against her crotch.
 
	Gary smiled to himself, and continued to move his tongue back and
forth. He didn't need to see what he was doing for this; he'd known
several girls in college who had loved his tongue. He stiffened it,
and thrust his tongue into Bianca's dripping cunt like a small cock.
She groaned out loudly in joy as he began to move his head back and
forth, fucking her with his tongue. Bianca was rolling her hips,
trying to push him more deeply into her.
 
	After a little while, Gary sensed she was almost there, and so he
pulled his tongue out - a difficult task, with her hands mashing him
against her pussy - and moved upward. His tongue quickly found her
clit, and began to wiggle against the very tip of it. Bianca's head
rolled backward, and she had to let go of his head so she could use
her arms to support herself, as her back arched and she nearly fell
flat onto the table. Gary kept up his ministrations, and Bianca
screamed in bliss, awash in the wonderful sensations he was causing
between her legs.
 
	In only a few more seconds, Bianca gave a loud shriek of ecstasy,
and her body twisted and bucked, lost in the throes of orgasm. Gary
continued to flick her clit with his tongue throughout her climax,
only letting her go when she started to come down. He could hear her
breathing heavily as he rose from his position on the floor.
Silently, he unfastened and removed his slacks. His cock was as hard
as he could ever remember it being, and he hoped she wasn't done for
the night.
 
	He needn't have worried; Bianca was far from through. After a few
moments to catch her breath, which Gary filled by toying with her
nipples and rubbing little circles in her thighs with his fingertips,
she was more than ready for more. His patience and caresses were
rewarded. She wrapped her hands around his neck and pulled herself up
to him, embracing him and giving him a deep, soul-burning kiss. It
was then that she felt his stiff rod trapped between them.
 
	Breaking their kiss, she asked coyly, "Is that for me?"
 
	"Only if you want it," he said with an unseen grin.
 
	Bianca rocked her hips, rubbing his hard cock through her pussy
hair. "I want it," she said with a low growl, "*inside me*."
 
	Gary didn't need to be told twice. He leaned back slightly, and
Bianca reached down to grab his rock-hard prick. She slipped it into
position, aimed right at her waiting hole. As Gary moved forward, she
let her hand slide along his length as he slid into her, slowly and
gently. Bianca was tight, but she was also wet and very aroused.
Gary's slow movements were not enough for her.
 
	Rocking her hips, she moved her hand back up to his neck. She then
leaned back until she was lying on the table, with him bent over her.
She wrapped her legs around his waist, and purred deep in her throat.
 
	"I think this kitten needs to be fucked," she said huskily.
 
	Gary got the message, and he began to pound into her furiously.
Bianca was immediately panting and groaning, her head twisting side
to side as Gary thrust into her as hard as he could. He straightened
up slightly, to give him a better angle, and he thrust even harder.
Bianca's legs came unwrapped from his waist as she was lost in the
passion. He grabbed them, and pulled them up until her ankles were on
his shoulders. This tightened her pussy around him even more - as if
that was necessary - and increased the feeling for both of them.
 
	Bianca was screaming almost constantly now, lost in the waves of
ecstasy rolling over her. When Gary reached out and tweaked both her
nipples at the same time, she lost it. Her body quivered and shook as
a massive orgasm tore through her. Gary kept pounding into her as she
climaxed, sending her higher and higher.
 
	Even as Bianca finally started to come down from her high, Gary
didn't stop; he was getting close to his own climax, and he didn't
want to slow down now. Bianca didn't have the strength - nor the
desire - to stop him, and she simply rode the wave as he pushed her
over the brink one more time. Her body was wracked with spasms, and
her cunt rippled along his shaft. Gary finally reached the edge, and
plunged off into his own world of white-hot pleasure. His cum spewed
deep into Bianca's pussy, and her body shuddered at the feel of it
splashing within her depths.
 
	The couple writhed together for long moments before they were able
to come down from their climaxes. Gary gently moved Bianca's legs to
the side, and she wrapped them around his waist again, trapping him
inside her. He leaned down, and took her into his arms, kissing her
passionately. Their kiss didn't lead to anything more only because
both of them were thoroughly out of breath.
 
	When Gary finally released her lips, she lay back on the table, and
looked up at his shadow. Her eyes misted slightly, as she realized
how comfortable she felt being with this man. *I've known him for
less than two days, and he already treats me better than Ross ever
has. I could see us together in a way that I never really did with
Ross.* Bianca lifted her hands to run them gently over Gary's chest.
*I only wish he felt the same way.*
 
	Gary looked down at the lovely woman beneath him. He couldn't see
her expression, but he could feel the way her body reacted to him.
*She's so incredible. She's the perfect woman.* Gary studied her body
with the tips of his fingers, noting the slight shivers this caused
in her. For a fleeting moment, he thought about his wife, but he held
her up against the woman beneath him, and her image faded instantly
into the mists of unimportance.
 
	Gary sighed contentedly, and said, "This is going to be..." he
faltered for a word.
 
	"Interesting? Exciting? Fun?" Bianca offered.
 
	"Complicated," he said. He gave another unseen grin, and then leaned
down and kissed her again. When he released her this time, he stayed
closer to her. He said, "But at least I won't feel so alone anymore."
 
	"No. Neither will I. Merry Christmas, Gary," she said, repeating her
earlier comment.
 
	"Merry Christmas. And welcome to the firm," he said with another
kiss.
 



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*** COPYRIGHT (C) 2003 BY ICE PHOENIX  ***

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