Possessed By You (Overworld Underground Book 1) (20 page)

I met his eyes. The next few words would likely land me back in unemployment for the second time in a day, but there was no way I could work with side-by-side with this man. He was too tempting. Too gorgeous. Too
everything
. Men could not be trusted. They only played with what amused them before moving on to something new.

Never again.

I would not fall prey to that. I would not let him undo me.

"Because, Mr. Rock, you are the kind of man who uses women and throws them away. I will not be your sexual conquest."

Chapter 18

I wiped my mouth and stood. "I'm sorry for being so blunt, but it's the truth. I truly am grateful for the second chance. But I can't put myself in that position."

He sat there, a slightly stunned look on his face as I turned and walked away.

My stomach clenched tight. What had I done? What sort of idiot was I to turn down such an offer? It was the right decision. It had to be. I would not deal with the pain and shame such a situation would drag me through.

I'd just opened the door to go outside when a hand touched my shoulder. I turned and saw Tyler, his face set with seriousness, as opposed to the amusement he normally wore.

"Why are you leaving?" he asked.

"Because after what I just told you, I don't expect you'll want me to stick around."

"I already told you I value your honesty."

I laughed. "You mean my sharp tongue?"

"Look, if I do anything to make you uncomfortable, you can tell me. I think it'll be great experience for you, learning how to restructure a company and make it more efficient. You won't be a secretary, you'll be an assistant."

Somehow, his tone of voice made me feel the difference he saw in the two positions. He sounded so bloody reasonable and so not evil. I was going to regret it. I just knew it.

"I'd like a raise," I said. The measly salary I was making now wouldn't cut it.

"I'll triple your pay for starters, and if you impress me, I'll raise it more."

It all sounded so good, even if tripling my pay wouldn't be that much extra money. "What would my duties be?"

His body seemed to relax at my tacit agreement. "Kevin and Jack are in charge of revamping their respective departments. You would coordinate between the two, and answer to them. They would answer to me."

"Oh." I felt a bit surprised. His original statement hinted at me reporting to and assisting him. I felt both disappointed and relieved, through truth be told, I felt more of the former than the latter.

"You'll be in good hands with those two. They've worked at the company for a while and know how things work." He regarded me for a moment. "Any other questions?"

"What will become of Mr. Jones?"

"I'll offer him and Mr. Hinkle staff positions in the new departments. But they won't be executives anymore."

"They won't be happy about that."

He shrugged. "They're assholes."

I laughed. "Not precisely a business term."

"It's a perfect business term." He motioned me toward the door. His bodyguard held it open as we passed through. "I want you to take the rest of the day off."

"After everything you just did?" I said. "But there's so much to be done. What if Jack and Kevin need my help today?"

"This isn't a test, Miss Glass." He walked beside me, his intense eyes looking into mine. "You've been through trial by fire today. Fired, hired back, told the new boss off, and then been promoted. It's a lot for anyone to take in. I want you fresh and ready to go tomorrow." He took my hand in his, placing the other hand over it in a comforting gesture.

It felt like so much more. Goosebumps ran up my arm, and my breath hitched in my throat. I heard his sharp intake of air as well. He dropped my hand and backed away a step. Shook his head as if clearing the cobwebs.

"I'll have Joe drive you." He hooked a thumb at his bodyguard.

"What was that?" I said, my knees doing their very best to betray me again.

"What was what?" He resumed walking down the sidewalk, staring straight ahead.

"Whenever you—" I shut my mouth. No time for me to be a foolish girl. "Never mind. Thank you for the rest of the day off. I'll go home and catch up on my reality shows."

He burst into laughter, shaking his head and giving me a sideways look of amusement. "How I missed that."

"Missed what?"

He cleared his throat. "Having a good laugh. Business can be so boring at times."

"Not to mention gut wrenching," I said in a droll voice. "And burdensome and tiresome."

We reached the office building. Joe the bodyguard-slash-driver went into the parking deck and returned a moment later with a black BMW sport-utility vehicle. He got out and held open the rear door for me.

"I'd prefer to sit in the front, if you don't mind."

"Not at all, Miss Glass." He held the passenger door open for me, and I climbed inside.

"Until tomorrow, Miss Glass," Tyler said.

I smiled as Joe closed the door.
I'll see you in my dreams
. I could dream about him, couldn't I? About his hands touching mine. About that electric feeling when he touched me. Heat blossomed in my stomach. I crossed my legs and tried not to think about Tyler. I closed my eyes, and saw those green eyes smiling back at me.

This man is going to be trouble.

"Where are we going, Miss Glass?"

I jerked from my trance, and gave Joe directions. He put the vehicle in motion, pulling into traffic. It was all I could do not to think of Tyler as we drove the few short blocks back to my place. What was it about that man that seemed so familiar? Had I seen him on the news before?
Am I going mental?

"Here we are, ma'am," Joe said a few minutes later. He wasn't the most talkative person ever, but then again, I supposed he wasn't a taxi driver either. He worked for a powerful man, and those people had to keep their mouths shut. Joe opened the door for me.

"Thank you, Joe."

He held open the door to the building for me. "My pleasure. Have a pleasant evening."

I watched as he pulled away.
What a surreal day!
My eyes caught on a familiar form standing on the sidewalk and I realized it might get even stranger. I almost ignored the beckoning glance from George Walker, but curiosity won the moment. I'd tried to stun him but he hadn't retaliated or actually tried to hurt me in any way, which probably meant he wasn't a threat. Stephen, however, was most definitely another matter. With the last attack from him still weighing on my mind, it might be best to get George and company to help me.

I stepped outside and walked the half block to where he stood. "You're persistent."

He grinned. "I have to be. It's in my job title."

"Director of Persistence?"

"Something like that." He folded his arms and gave me a once-over. "Have you thought about our last conversation?"

"Thought about it?" I laughed. "My life has been a mess ever since your government friends chased down Thomas and brainwashed him."

"Once again, that was not my agency." He retained an affable smile, but there was something steely beneath it. "I'd like to offer you a position with us."

I shook my head. "Not interested. For one thing, I wouldn't want to work with dangerous diseases. For another, I just received a promotion at work today."

"You have a gift—"

I stepped closer to him. "You never explained how you knew about my intuition."

"It was obvious from the way you spoke about your encounter with Stephen and from the way you react to my presence." He tilted his head slightly. "What do you sense about me?"

This was all so very odd. I felt stupid for even speaking to him about it. They were just feelings, really, nothing special.

"You can tell me, Miss Glass."

I sighed. "Fine. I sometimes envision a burning white orb when you're near. Your ID shocked me as well, as if it was electrically charged."

"Impressive." He held out a hand. "Does anything change if you touch me?"

I was quite uneasy about touching him, but did so anyway. The moment I did, I felt a raw crackling heat. The outline of a human form with a sizzling white core flashed into my head. I snatched back my finger. "What the bloody hell is going on?" I shook off the strange sensations. "I must be losing my mind."

"What did you see?"

I shook my head. "You'll have me committed if I say."

"Absolutely not." He folded his arms. "Please, tell me what you saw."

"Some sort of energy, like a white star at your center." I backed away a step, certain he'd restrain me and have me wrapped in a straight-jacket.

"You're actually quite sane." George gave me a reassuring smile. "You're simply very empathic. You can see more to people than their outward appearance."

"Or perhaps my tea was laced with narcotics this morning." A slight headache formed in my forehead. "I don't know what's going on with me."

"We can help you realize your full potential."

"If I'm seeing more to you than meets the eye, what is the meaning of the white orb?"

He opened his mouth as if to speak and paused. "I can't tell you that quite yet. Let me say that me and some of my people have been enhanced."

I flinched. "Like robot people?"
How horrific!

George chuckled. "Not precisely."

"Who are you truly with?" I asked. "Tell me that and perhaps I'll consider your offer." I really had no intention of leaving my new position at OnTech, but desperately wanted to know what in the Dickens was wrong with me.

George paused for a long moment. "I'm with an organization that protects everyday citizens. We're called Custodians."

Stephen's accusation sprang back to mind. "Do you protect us by keeping our bathrooms tidy, and our carpets well vacuumed?" I looked back toward my building. "I have quite a number of chores for you in our flat."

He chuckled. "In a sense, we
are
in charge of cleanup. Some situations require more sanitizing than others."

"You could start by tracking down the lunatic who attacked me and my friend."

"We labeled him as an active threat," George said. "Unfortunately, he's been a slippery one to catch."

I felt my eyes widen. "Has he done this before?" I jabbed a finger into George's chest and was surprised to find muscle hiding beneath the suit. "If you find this creep, I will consider helping you."

George nodded. "I'll devote more resources toward the hunt." He raised an eyebrow. "You told me you felt a cold sensation from this Stephen fellow. Was there anything more to it?"

"Cold. Lustful." I shuddered. "Almost like he's part reptile."

"Ah." George pursed his lips as if my explanation made all the sense in the world. "I'll let you know when we catch him, Miss Glass. Please give some thought to my proposal."

"Oh, I will." It was worth it to get one more sexual offender off the streets. I watched George like a hawk as he turned and strode down the street to see if he got into a car similar to the ones that had chased Thomas. Instead, he walked around a corner and into a blind alley.

I jogged after him and peeked around the corner. Aside from a dumpster, there was nothing to hide behind and no doors to use. George, however, was nowhere to be seen. After conducting a quick search of the place, I found a sewer grate and wondered if he'd gone down below. The lid appeared to be firmly in place and I didn't bother testing to see if I could move it. If George was so desperate to exude a mysterious disappearing act that he'd go into the sewers to preserve it, let him. I imagined him standing in a puddle of human excrement below, patiently waiting for me to go away.

I couldn't help but laugh at the vivid thought.

I returned to the flat. Once inside, I stripped off my clothes and took a long, hot shower. In reality, I probably needed a cold one as well due to lingering thoughts of Tyler. Thank goodness I wouldn't have to see my new boss every day or I'd likely lose control. I'd always thought I was so strong. That I'd tempered myself into an armored untouchable statue. And this man penetrated my shield without even trying. Just like Thomas. Was I losing control? Had I held on to my emotions so tightly that they were slipping from my grasp?

Isabel returned home a couple of hours later.

"I need a drink," I said, the moment she came inside.

Her eyes brightened. "Really? Me too! Oh my God has it been a Monday."

"You wouldn't believe the half of it," I said in agreement.

We made our way down to Gronsky's and grabbed seats at the bar. Alex came over, a grin on his face. "Long time no see."

"Hey, Alex!" Isabel gave him a hug across the bar. "We need emergency drinks, stat."

"That kind of a Monday, huh?" He chuckled. "How about a couple of Choco-Bombs?"

Isabel grinned and rubbed her hands together. "Perfect."

I decided not to ask what those were. "So, how was your day?"

"Ugh! My boss wanted me to get all these papers filed, then she left for a gyno appointment, and I had to take all her calls, too. It was crazy. And everyone kept coming to me asking where she was because she hadn't told anyone she'd be out for the afternoon getting her cooch examined." Isabel glanced toward Alex as he made the drinks, a hungry look on her face. "I want to get drunk, but we're only at Monday."

I laughed. "Well, I had an interesting day today."

"Was that Jones guy being an ass again?"

"An utter pile of dog shit."

Alex dropped off two small shots of chocolate liquid. "Anything else, ladies?"

We ordered martinis, and he left to make them.

"Bombs away." Isabel clinked her glass against mine.

"Here's to Mondays," I said. We gulped them down. Chocolate fire burned down my throat in a pleasant wave. When it reached my belly, it seemed to radiate in all directions.

"So, dish," Isabel said. "I want to hear what Jackass Jones has been up to."

By the time I finished my tale, Isabel was beside herself with giddy excitement. "Girl, you're living the dream! A promotion and a hot new boss all in one day? Where do I sign up?"