Chapter 98

I woke up refreshed and had a shower with Tamara. It had been along time since we enjoyed each other. There was a lot of tenderness. I made sure I caressed her every curve. I had almost forgotten how much just merely touching her caused my heartstrings to be strummed.

Though she was waiting until our wedding night, I still used my fingers to bring her to orgasm while my lips were locked with hers. She melted into me and said, "I love you so much."

"I love you too. Only four days until you'll be my wife."

She cooed and we rewashed each other. After dressing, we went out to the kitchen where everyone was already eating breakfast.

"Well, today is the day we have been waiting for," Susan said. "I'm so excited about us officially moving into the office."

"I am too," I concurred.

It was almost like a ribbon cutting when we arrived at the office. Tom, Bob, and George were waiting for us. I was extremely impressed with the job Susan had done. The office looked like something out of a magazine.

Christina greeted us as we got off the elevator on the fourth floor. The reception area was better than I had planned. We were able to walk to the window and look towards downtown Albuquerque. The valley spread out before us.

Susan then led the tour to the Eagle area. Lisa was already there and was sitting in her office. She greeted us and showed us Lena's office. She then led us down the hall to Bob's office. He looked overwhelmed.

She next showed us the conference room. It was exquisite. It was perfect. The most impressive thing was the conference table. While the rest were oohing and ahhing, I pulled Susan aside and asked her where she got it. She said she didn't. She said Lisa found it.

I went to see Lisa. When I questioned her about it, she said that her father made it. She said woodworking was his hobby and that he had started this table for the governor of New Mexico but didn't get it finished before the governor was voted out of office. She said she asked him to put the finishing touches on it for me. I thanked her and decided I would discuss it further with her later.

Tom's area was next and there was no furniture yet. Susan said Tom wanted to bring a lot of the furniture from his other office. Tom's corner office was done in rich mahogany. It was gorgeous and stately.

Tamara's area was next. Trish was already in her office and greeted us. Trish took over the tour and showed Tamara to her office. They had gone all out to furnish her it. It looked more like a parlor than an office. It was plush and yet functional.

The next office was Steve's. He too was sitting at his desk. His office was very functional, with no frills. Being a manager, he rated a nice set up. I would ask him later why he chose a more modest set arrangement.

Lena and Trish opened the door to my suite. Audrey was seated at her desk and rose when the door opened. Her portion of the suite would have fit in any CEO's corporate office in the land. Her desk was arranged so that anyone venturing to my office would have to pass in front of her desk. There was a sitting area just inside the door to the left and then her desk was maybe ten feet further. My office was another ten feet further.

The double doors to my office were a dark wood. Susan made a sweeping move to open them. There in my office was some of the most beautiful furniture I had ever seen in an office. There was a small table to the left as we walked in. The desk was sort of angled so that my back would be to the corner of the office building. The wet bar was done to perfection. I walked around my desk and sat in my chair. I felt like I was sitting on a cloud.

Christina came in with a bucket of champagne. Donna and Tracy followed with champagne glasses. After opening the champagne and pouring everyone a glass, I held my glass up and said, "I wish to thank everyone for this day and especially Susan. Christina and Lena have also put in long hours to get this office ready. Here's to long and prosperous business ventures on this floor."

Slowly, all but the women of my circle left the office. When it was just Tamara, Audrey, Lena, and Susan remaining, Susan shut the door. She then walked over to the door by the wet bar. She opened it to show a small washroom and toilet. She then led the way to the other end of the wet bar. There she pressed on a small panel and it swung inward. She led the way through and the women followed. I was the last to enter and was pleasantly surprised to see the apartment I wanted next to my office. There was a king size bed, that when the drapes were open, looked out at the Sandia Mountains. The other amenities were lost to me at the time because the women I had grown to love were all sitting on the bed.

"Well?" Tamara asked.

"I'm speechless. I used to go to the offices of the executives of the companies I worked for and had been envious of their surroundings. I don't think any of them had anything to compare to this. Thank you all."

The women swarmed me giving me hugs and kisses. Mr. Happy definitely wanted to play but I knew it was not the right time. I would have to wait to christen the new bed. Besides I wanted Tamara to be the first.

"Let me show you the alternate exit," Susan said. She opened the door to a small corridor that led to another door. "This allows for extra security and soundproofing. No one on the other side of this door can hear anything going on inside the apartment." She entered a code and a sound came from inside the door. "Jeff installed this door. It has a special security lock. In the event of a power outage, the door can still be opened because it has internal power cells built into it. He said that it would take a lot to get past its security."

The door opened into one of the stairwells. I could come and go without having to go through the lobby if I wanted. Susan pointed to the brackets in the corners of the stairwells.

"Dan and Jeff are in the process of getting the building wired for cameras and sensors. You'll have access to the cameras on your computer but the real monitoring will be from Dan's offices," Susan continued.

We went back into the apartment and then into my office. From there we exited through Audrey's area. Tracy and Donna were sitting at the table and greeted us. Tracy was going on and on about how beautiful everything was.

Tamara left us to go talk with Trish. Audrey stayed with Tracy while Donna stayed with me. I walked through the areas again. I found Tom standing in his office.

"John, I don't know what to say. This is even better than I imagined. I'm trying to envision where I'm going to put everything."

"Welcome to my dream world," I said. "You will probably have more outside visitors than the rest of us. Please feel free to make suggestions to Susan concerning anything you need for a waiting area."

"Thanks. I guess all those gratis lawyer things I've done for you have paid off. I can't wait to get moved in."

We shook hands and I left to find Bob.

I found him and Lisa in his new office. As I walked in, he was telling Lisa what he needed for office supplies. When he was through, Lisa turned to leave. I opened my arms and she came into them for a hug.

"Thanks. I needed that," she said as she left.

I noticed Donna was just standing quietly at the door. I turned to Bob and said, "Well, I hope this will do. It's not much, but what can I say?"

He laughed and said, "John, I don't know if I can work in such dreary conditions."

We sat and talked a few minutes about the upcoming honeymoon trip.

"Everything should be okay. The funds you wanted will be ready Friday. I have made sure you won't have any problems in Tahiti accessing any of your accounts. Do you have any specifics on the Scottsdale projects that you want done?"

"I think those are all in good shape. Audrey has been doing a daily check on them. Lisa's work with the title company and bank has been finalized. I expect you will need to follow up with Sean and Scott once a week."

He acknowledged that and made a note on his planner.

"I need to you do something about Ralph. I'm worried about him."

"I have looked into moving him here. Dan said he has a friend who owns an assisted living community. Dan and I figure Ralph will need to stay there at least six months. The doctor that examined him after your trip found some other problems that may need surgery to correct."

"Please do what you need to do. I feel that my dealings with McKenzie caused most of these problems."

"Don't let it get to you. We'll take care of him," Bob assured me. "By the way, I was impressed at how the meeting at the club went. It seems that almost all the club members believe in you."

"I was surprised. The next thing I want to talk about with you is not to go beyond you and me. I want you to make inquiries about buying the club."

"What? Why?"

"I want Eagle to make it the second investment in their portfolio, if it's feasible. I'll put up the money as a loan to Eagle if necessary."

"That's out of the blue. I'll check into it."

On my way back to the lobby, I stopped in the conference room. I had to look at the table again. I examined the construction and it was as if it were sculptured out of one piece of wood. It was a work of art.

I stuck my head in Lena's door and said, "Nice office."

"Thank you. I want you to know I'll be out of the office for a month. I have a trip planned with my lover."

"Okay, but I'll have to dock your pay. You haven't earned enough vacation for a month." She wadded a piece of paper and threw it at me.

As Donna and I were walking down the hallway she said, "You're an amazing man. With all of this going on, you remain so cool and collected. Plus, you find time to soothe Lisa's jitters and flirt with Lena."

"I'm motivated by the love that surrounds me. Thank you for noticing though."

Christina looked regal at the reception desk. Her choice of attire was impeccable. She informed me she was enrolled at the University of New Mexico for the fall semester. She mentioned that Susan would be interviewing another girl later that day to fill in when she had class.

I glanced into Tamara's area and saw her and Trish chatting in her office. I left to see Steve. He was on the phone when I walked in. He motioned for me to sit and he talked for another minute and hung up.

"John, these offices are great."

"Just out of curiosity, were these furnishings your choice?"

"As a matter of fact, they are better than what I wanted. Susan wouldn't let me downgrade anymore. I don't feel comfortable in posh surroundings. Not that your office is too much, it's just me."

I acknowledged his comment but didn't want to offend him by continuing the conversation in that area. "Where do we stand on the leasing company?"

"Everything is on track. We actually received payments from Trish. I had to figure out what to do with the checks. It's all under control now. The dealership thing is still a little weird for me. I have set up a schedule for my visits." He handed me a piece of paper with the schedule on it.

I studied it for a moment and noticed the last one he had listed was the guy I had the uneasy feeling about. Steve must have noticed a change in my expression because he spoke up, "If you are looking at the last one, I scheduled that one then so Dan would have time to check the guy out."

I liked having people around me that thought for themselves. I like to be informed but if I couldn't trust them then I had picked the wrong people.

We talked about what would be going on during my absence and I got up and walked out after we finished.

Donna seemed to anticipate my movements and was quietly behind me. I didn't see the need for her to be doing this in the office. I went to my office and said hi to Tracy and Audrey as we walked through. Once inside I asked Donna to sit.

"I noticed you were right on my heels throughout the morning. What gives?"

"I'm studying you. If I'm going to be your security person, I need to understand how you move in all situations."

"I understand. You probably noticed that I'm not really used to having a bodyguard."

"I'm not your bodyguard. I'm part of your security team. A bodyguard ensures that you are protected. A security advisor ensures the area around you is safe. Call it semantics if you will, but very few celebrities have true security. They usually hire big men that can manhandle overzealous fans. Those guys are bodyguards.

"I feel I need to understand what you do and your movements. I know that if trouble arises, you will most likely react to it by moving towards it. I understand that. I feel my job will be to intercept any other outside force that may come from your flank or behind you. Sam told me about the last incident in Santa Fe. That you intercepted the attacking force and let him handle the flanking assailants. I saw a training film made for the military on such tactics while I was in school that promoted the same tactics.

"I contacted my professor and asked him to get me a copy. I received it Monday and watched it again. You photograph very well."

I was taken aback. I thought back to when that film crew had dogged us around the training facility but never imagined it was going to get made into a training film. "I had no idea that anything had ever been done with that footage."

"Your face is covered as were all the rest in the video. So have you kept up with any of your old team?"

"I ran into Mac a few weeks back. Other than that I haven't."

"I talked to Dan about the video and he decided to track down the guys you served with. One of the men is now in a high position in the CIA. Dan thinks he is the one that is running interference for you. Dan said he would discuss that with you at a later date."

The phone startled me. I picked it up and it was Tamara calling from her office. She wanted to know what the plans were for lunch. I asked her what she wanted to do. She said she wanted to take the entire office to lunch to celebrate. I said that would be a good idea and she said she would make the arrangements.

I told Donna we'd be going to lunch soon and we could finish our conversation later. She got up and as she walked out, I noticed how professional she looked. That thought branched into thoughts of the rest of my circle. I had been so engrossed with the new office that I hadn't noticed that Audrey, Lena, and Susan were wearing dresses or skirts. I then realized Lisa had also had on a skirt. Maybe I was used to them showing a lot of leg around me. I made a mental note to individually compliment each one.

Audrey walked in as I was thinking. She walked across the office like the goddess she was. Mr. Happy acknowledged how much I enjoyed the view. She sat in one of the chairs in front of my desk and crossed her legs. I noticed the thigh-highs and bare thigh that briefly flashed. When I looked up to her face, she was smiling.

"I was beginning to think you would never notice," she said in a pouting manner.

"I'm sorry, sweetness. I just am so overwhelmed by the results here."

"We will let you slide this time," she said as she broke out in to a big grin. "So, what do you think about the layout?"

"It's great. I will definitively try to spend a little more time here. Especially since all my ladies will be in and out of here. Your mother is planning on taking the group to lunch to celebrate."

"I know. I came in to tell you we'd be leaving in about thirty minutes. Do you want your morning update now?"