Authors: Claire Adams
CHAPTER
TWENTY-ONE
"
Do
not ever show up at my mother's house
unannounced again," I said as Sloan walked into my office. She was wearing
a suit that was obviously tailor-made and fit her like a glove. The blouse
dipped low enough to show the promise of something underneath, but not so low
as to give away the store. She was wearing shiny black stilettos that made her
legs look a mile long, and her hair and makeup were impeccably done.
"Do not ever
order me to do or not do anything again," she replied as she set her bag
down on the edge of my desk and gave me an icy look. "I’m not the hired
help. I’m a businesswoman who has a substantial amount of knowledge and who is
willing to help you guide this company into the twenty-first century. You will
treat me with the respect I deserve."
"Then quit
acting like some kind of dominatrix whore," I replied. She glared at me as
I stood and walked around the desk. "You and I are business partners. Act
like it."
"You're
nothing more than a self-absorbed playboy who seeks revenge for the hurt his
daddy caused," she said as she laid a palm on my chest. "You're not
capable of running this company nor are you capable of turning a profit. I'm
the reason you're going to keep this going long enough to cash out and move on.
Don't forget it."
"You really
are an arrogant bitch, aren't you?" I said, smiling at her as if I were
indulging a child. "You think that I have nothing to offer, and you can
sweep in here and save me from myself so that you can claim to be the hero,
don't you?"
"I thought we
were on the same side," she said suddenly switching tactics. "We're
working together, Jack. We want the same thing."
"No, I don't
think we do, Sloan," I said moving her hand off of my chest and backing
out of her reach. "I think you're running some kind of game. I just don't
know what it is."
"I'm not, I
swear I'm not," she said looking down as she bit her lip. "Jack,
listen to me. I'm tired of having to maintain this ice queen image. I just want
to prove that I can do something worthwhile. I want to earn my reputation
separate from my father’s and
succeed on
my own terms. You can understand that, can't you?"
"Nice try.
I'll give you an A for effort and acting," I said as I walked around the
desk and picked up a stack of papers.
"I'm being
honest, Jack," she said as she dropped down into the chair across from my
desk and put her head in her hands. "I'm sick of this, Jack. I'm sick of
always having to be the bitch or the attack dog. Can't I just be me and do what
I do best? I know how to sell things. I know how to bring in new business.
Can't I just do that?"
"Sure, you go
right ahead, sweetheart," I said as I looked at her, trying to decide if
she was being real or simply playing me again. "I just don't want to be
your little lap dog, so let's keep this on the up and up and steer clear of all
the sexual games you like to play, okay?"
"But you said
you liked it!" she cried. "I keep pursuing you because you liked
it!"
"No, you keep
pursuing me because you know how to manipulate me," I said dryly.
"And when it comes to you, unfortunately, I have little control over the
physical response. You know that, and you use it to your advantage. I'm on to
you, Sloan, and I'm done with this little push pull game you play."
"Jack, I do
care about you," she said, standing up and coming around the desk.
"I'm not lying about that. I do find you irresistibly attractive, and I do
want things with you that I've never wanted with anyone else."
"You have a
funny way of showing it, Sloan," I said, grabbing her wrists and pushing
them down by her sides. The intoxicating scent of her perfume permeated the
room, and as she moved closer to press her body against mine, I felt my resolve
lessening. She was undeniably beautiful and drove me crazy like no woman I'd
ever met, but I knew that to possess her would be more than I'd ever hoped for.
"Don't you
want me, Jack?" she whispered into my neck as she brushed my skin with her
lips. "Don't you want to own me? Just once?"
It was the last
question that brought me crashing back to reality. Just once. I could own her,
but it would only be once.
"Stop it,
Sloan," I ordered as I shoved her a little more roughly than I'd intended.
She stumbled but caught herself on my desk. "I don't want this. I told
you. We're not meant to be together. You know it. I know it. Just leave me
alone."
"What about
our deal?" she said coolly. "You offered to service me any time I
wanted. Are you going to back out of it now?"
"Not this
morning, dear, I've got a headache," I said in a flat voice. Sloan
narrowed her eyes, gathered herself, walked back around the desk, and picked up
her purse before crossing the room.
"I would not
fuck with me if I were you," she said quietly.
"Oh, I have
zero plans to do that," I said without a smile. "But then I think
that's been clear from the start."
She shot me a look
that was so filled with hatred I felt it run down my spine. Then she turned and
stormed out of the room, slamming the door so hard that two of my father's
awards came crashing down off the wall.
"Jack! Are
you okay, darlin?" Norma called from the front office. She came bustling
through the door looking around as she declared, "What did you do, Jack?
That woman left here madder than a wet hen!"
"It's okay,
Norma," I said. "Sloan and I are old friends, and we were having a
disagreement about the business. It'll all be fine by tomorrow."
"I sure hope
so," Norma said. "No good comes from having a woman like that mad at
you! Oh, and you need to get down to the warehouse. The construction crew
showed up, and Leah is wondering what on earth she's going to do while they
work on the renovation!"
"I'll go down
and see her right now," I said as I gathered up the plans.
What I hadn't told
Sloan, or maybe hadn't even admitted to myself, was that after kissing Leah,
something had shifted. I had no idea what it meant, but I intended to find out.
*
"
Who
are you?" the thin girl asked as I walked
into Leah's office.
"I'm
Jack," I replied. "You don't look like Leah."
"Probably
because I'm not," she said as she looked up from the papers spread out on
the desk. She studied me. "What's your job around here?"
"I'm the guy
in charge of stuff," I said. She did, in fact, look like Leah, in a family
resemblance sort of way. She had short, brown hair that took off in different
directions and looked like it would require some coaxing and lots of gel to lay
flat. Her eyes were big and blue, and she had the same smattering of freckles
across the bridge of her nose as Leah. She didn't smile at me, but she did
consider me carefully before nodding and returning to the work in front of her.
I watched for a moment, and then asked, "Who are you?"
"I'm
Riley," she said as she carefully wrote something on the paper. "I'm
Leah's niece."
"I see,"
I said, suddenly wondering where Leah was. "And what exactly are you doing
here?"
"I got
suspended," she said solemnly as she looked up at me. "I got in a
fight with some girls who were bullying me, and I punched the biggest one. We
all got suspended, so Leah said that if I'm not in school, then I need to be at
work."
"I see,"
I nodded. "Do you regret what you did?"
"No, why
would I?" she said shaking her head. "I didn't bully anyone, they
did. I was just standing up for myself."
"But you
punched a girl," I said, wondering why I was having this conversation with
a young girl I'd never met before. "Don't you feel bad about that?"
"Look, I know
you adults get all high and mighty about antiviolence stuff," she said in
an exasperated tone. "But do you really have any idea what goes on in
schools? I don't think so. Do I wish those girls would have left me alone? Yep.
Would I take the punch back if I could? Nope. They got what they asked for, and
now other kids will leave me alone, too."
"It sounds
like school is pretty brutal," I said, marveling at the oddly mature way
Riley had explained the problem.
"You have no
idea," she sighed as she rolled her eyes. "It's murder of the
soul."
"Is that
right?" I said, biting my lip to keep from laughing out loud at her
dramatic assessment of the situation. "Well, you should be reassured by
the fact that it won't last forever, and that someday these girls will all be
parents who will be trying to save their own kids from the school yard bully."
"You'd think
it would work that way, wouldn't you?" she said looking at me intently.
"But that's just bullshit, and adults know it."
"Riley!"
Leah exclaimed as she walked into the office and overheard Riley's assessment
of my lack of understanding. "You cannot talk to people that way, young
lady!"
"I'm sorry,
Leah," she said hanging her head before mumbling. "Sorry, Jack."
"It's
cool," I shrugged, trying not to make a big deal of it.
"No, it's
definitely not cool," Leah said, giving me a warning look. "You
cannot talk to adults that way. I will not tolerate it."
"I said I'm
sorry!" Riley whined as she squirmed in her chair. Then quickly turning
the conversation to a new topic, she asked, "Can I get something to eat?
I'm starving!"
"There's food
in the fridge out in the warehouse," Leah said. "You can get your bag
and have a snack. Just don't bug the guys while they're working. And don't
leave the warehouse!"
"Okay, thanks
Leah!" she said as she shot out of the chair and ran down the hallway toward
her waiting snack.
"Nice
kid," I said smiling. "How'd you wind up with her today?"
"She's my
sister's daughter," Leah said without smiling back. "Molly
disappeared three years ago, so I took over while we looked for her. I guess
it's just parenting by default."
"I'm sorry, I
had no idea," I said, looking down at the floor and feeling embarrassed
that I didn't know more about her.
"It's okay, I
don't make it public knowledge usually," she shrugged before giving me a
questioning look. "Was there some reason you needed to see me?"
"Norma said
you wanted to know where you'd be working during the renovation," I
replied as I tried hard to avoid staring at Leah's face. What I wanted more
than anything was to feel her hands on my chest and her lips on mine again, but
I knew we were a long way from that happening. The problem was that no matter
how hard I tried to push it out of my mind, I always found myself right back at
the moment when Leah's lips were pressed against mine and everything felt
possible.
"So? Are you
going to show me?" she asked.
"Oh, yeah,
come see what they're going to do today," I said shaking my head to clear
the image as best I could.
I led the way to
an area that the crew was quickly putting together and showed her all of the
amenities they'd be installing. The new office was five times the size of the
little closet she now occupied.
"Bathroom,” I
said as I showed her the large room where the work crew was installing a stand
up shower in addition to the usual elements. "And over here they're going
to create a conference area with a big table that will seat all of the workers
on your team. Then over on the other side, there will be a seating area with a
couch and some chairs so you can have customers here for meetings, if you want.
And on the far wall will be your desk."
"You're
kidding me?" she said looking around the room with wide eyes and a shocked
look on her face. "All of this is mine? Why?"
"Yes, it's
all yours," I nodded. "I just figured that you are here working like
mad to keep the warehouse running smoothly, and you deserve to work in a space
that respects your position rather than being shoved in a closet that resembles
offices at the DMV."
"It hasn't
bothered me before," she said defensively. "Your father didn't work
in a luxury office, so I didn't feel like I was entitled to anything more than
he had."
"Yes, well,
my father was a miser," I said, rolling my eyes much like Riley had done
earlier, and when I realized it, I laughed out loud.
"It's
funny?" Leah asked, eyeing my suspiciously.
"No, just
something your niece said," I tried to explain, but decided to let it go.
"Look, the business is doing well, and that's thanks, in large part, to
the job you do down here. I just wanted you to know that you're appreciated and
for you to have a place to work where you feel valued."
"Thank you,
Jack," she said as her eyes swept around the room and then settled back on
me. "I appreciate that."