The Seduction 2 (3 page)

She lifts her eyes to me, plaintive.

I step back. For once, claiming her body is
the last thing on my mind.

“I understand,” I say curtly. “I’ll go.”

Keely frowns, like she’s sorry I’m leaving.
She looks so lost and confused standing there, I feel a surge of
something unfamiliar.

Concern.

“You should get some sleep,” I tell her,
softer. “When was the last time you ate?”

“I don’t know,” she replies slowly.
“Yesterday, maybe...”

I pull out my cellphone and speed-dial my
regular Thai takeout place. “Yeah, I need your combo platter. Extra
rice and wontons.”

“Vaughn--” she protests.

I ignore her, giving the directions to her
place and telling them to put in on my tab. I hang up.

“Eat. Sleep,” I order her. “I’ll call you in
the morning.”

I head for the door.

“Thank you.” Her voice comes, soft behind
me, but I don’t turn around. I get the fuck out of there before she
can see what her Ashcroft bombshell has done to me.

Before she can see the truth.

* * *

Ashcroft is dead.

The words echo in my mind as I speed up
through the Hollywood Hills to my place. I park and let myself in,
heading straight for the bar to pour myself a drink.

I gulp down the whiskey straight from the
bottle, ignoring the burn in my throat. The city lights are spread
down in the valley, a million-dollar view, but I don’t see a thing
but darkness and bitter fucking regret.

All these years, I swore I’d have my
revenge. That I’d make the bastard pay for what he did to my
family. One day, I promised myself.

One day.

But I’m too late. That day has passed, and
Ashcroft is gone. He never suffered the way I did. He never had
everything he loved ripped away from him.

I waited too long. I failed.

And now there’s no going back.

6

KEELY

After Vaughn leaves, I feel a strange stab
of regret.

It’s crazy, I know: I ordered him to leave,
but a part of me wishes he had stayed. To keep doing those
incredible things to my body, blocking out the chaos that is my
life right now, making it so I could stop thinking and worrying,
and just let him take control.

I crumple to the floor, lost in thought. Too
much has happened for me to process, and right now, my body is
betraying me: wet and aching for him despite all my doubts.

I still don’t trust him.

Whatever mystery he’s hiding, I know he’s
dangerous. The devastating effect he has on me. The dark power he
wields over my body, his way of making me submit. I’ve never been
this way with any other man, but just one steely look from Vaughn’s
blue eyes makes my knees weak and sends all logic flying from my
mind.

His filthy words. His commanding voice.

I want to surrender.

I catch my breath, still feeling the rough
grip of his hands on me. Hard and dominant; precise and controlled.
God, that man is a miracle. He knows just what buttons to push, the
way to touch me, the dirty, shocking words that make me so utterly
hot. He can drive me to the edge of intense pleasure in moments --
and keep me there until I think I’ll lose my mind.

But what is he hiding?

The doorbell interrupts me. It’s the food
Vaughn ordered for me, enough to feed a dozen people. I lock the
door behind the delivery guy, and spread it out on the coffee
table. It looks delicious, the scent of ginger and garlic hitting
me square in the gut. I dig in, suddenly ravenous.

I flick on the old TV, channel-hopping for
some distraction, but I keep coming back to the phone call I
overheard with Vaughn, the one that made me run.

“I told you, nobody turns
me down. She’s begging for it, just like I said she
would.”

Even now it hurts to remember, but his
explanation makes sense. Bragging to a buddy, guys do it all the
time, and although I don’t like it, I can already feel my resolve
start to slip.

He said he was sorry. Everyone makes
mistakes. We all say things that we later regret.

Do you believe him?
a voice argues.
Or do you
just want him back -- whatever the price?

Either way, I know, it doesn’t matter.
Vaughn made it clear, he won’t stay away any longer. He may have
given me a temporary reprieve tonight, but I’m under no illusions
that this cat and mouse game will end in only one place.

His bedroom.

I shiver, thinking of the last time I was
there, just days ago. When he made me get on my knees, and submit
to him: do the kind of filthy things I’d only ever dreamed about. I
should be ashamed, but instead, my heart is racing, counting down
the minutes until I’ll see him again.

Soon, he promised, he would show me what a
real man was made of.

Soon can’t come fast enough.

* * *

I spend a sleepless night thinking of
Vaughn, tossing and turning in my crappy Craigslist hand-me-down
bed.

I wake up with my back aching and yawn. The
first thing I do when I get any money is buy a decent mattress. And
some pillows. And maybe even some fancy linen sheets...

I stop dead. It hits me for the first
time.

I could be rich.

I know I’ve had days to process it, but for
some reason, it hasn’t been real. It’s all legal papers and lawyers
arguing, but now, right now, I get it.

Five hundred million dollars.

Holy crap.

That’s life-changing money. I could do
anything with it. Pay for law school and an army of tutors to get
me there. Donate to charity, set up foundations to help
under-privileged kids -- and still have more than enough left over
for a house, a car, new clothes...

I gulp, overwhelmed. For a blissful few
minutes, Vaughn made me forget about Ashcroft and the will, but
that time has passed. The real world is still out there, with me
dropped bang in the center of a bitter legal battle. And judging by
Brent Ashcroft’s angry outbursts in the meeting yesterday, he’s
going to fight me to the bitter end.

I drive to work, still thinking about the
money. I’m not shallow, but I’ve spent too many years scraping by,
paying attention to every dollar not to relish the thought of
suddenly being wealthy beyond my wildest dreams.

No more silent prayers that my paycheck will
clear before the rent comes due. No more sweltering in the summer
heat because I can’t afford AC. No more buying produce at the end
of the day when it’s cheaper, or skipping out on dinner plans with
friends to avoid the embarrassing moment when the check comes.

My parents never wanted me to live like
this. They were the kind of people to plan ahead: they had a modest
life insurance policy, and when they died, it seemed like I would
be set. But college tuition doesn’t come cheap, and with their
credit card debts to clear and a mortgage to pay off, it didn’t
last long. I’ve learned to get by with my wages as a paralegal,
tutoring a little on the side, but I have to admit, I’ve watched
the partners at the firm with envy -- their designer clothes, and
expensive dinners, and vacations to exotic foreign cities I’ve
never been.

London. Paris. Rome. I feel a shiver of
excitement. I could go anywhere, do anything.

But only if it’s really mine.

* * *

The moment I walk into the office, I can
tell something’s wrong. People stop to stare as I pass, whispering
the minute I’m out of earshot.

I feel a surge of dread.

Justine is over by her office. I walk fast,
pulling her aside. “What’s wrong? Why is everyone looking at
me?”

She looks around, leaning in to drop her
voice. “They know.”

“About Ashcroft?”

She nods. “There was a partner meeting,
first thing. I don’t know what happened, everyone’s keeping quiet.
But they’re not happy.”

“Oh shit.”

My stomach lurches. I knew it would come out
eventually. After all, Hudgens, Cartwright and Abrams were
Ashcroft’s lawyers on the case: they prepared the original will,
and even if Ashcroft had my name added after without anyone
knowing, news like this would travel fast.

“What should I do?” I ask, panicking.

“Stay calm. I have court this morning, but
I’ll come find you later, see what I can find. The secretaries
always talk,” Justine adds, with a comforting grin.

“Thanks,” I say. She picks up her briefcase
and heads out, leaving me alone to face the whispers and
gossip.

I force myself not to react, walking slowly
to my office cubicle with the other paralegals. But I haven’t even
booted up my computer when my phone rings. It’s my boss,
Carter.

“Get in here, now!”

He hangs up.

Oh crap.

I get up, and head down the hallway to his
office, feeling like I’m walking to my execution. With every step,
my nerves grow, until by the time I reach his door, I swear my
hands are shaking.

“Miss Fawes.” Carter is waiting for me, with
a weird smug smile on his face. He gestures me ahead of him with
mock-politeness. “After you.”

I step inside the room. Usually Carter
doesn’t come in until noon, after his racket-ball game and
appointment with his personal ‘masseuse.’ But it’s barely nine AM
and he’s wide awake and leering at me like I’m the entertainment of
the day.

This is bad. Really bad.

“Do you know why you’re here?” Carter asks,
sitting back in his chair and resting his feet on the desk.

I shake my head, not trusting myself to
speak. It’s something to do with Ashcroft, I’m sure, but I have no
idea what.

“One of our clients has brought a serious
charge against you,” Carter sneers. “Brent Ashcroft says you
exerted undue influence over his father. His weak, invalid
father.”

“That’s not true.” I speak firmly. “I didn’t
even know he was putting me in the will.”

“Sure,” Carter sneers, clearly not believing
me. “That’s why he cut off his devoted children and left his
fortune to you, a young, nubile assistant he’s barely known a few
months.”

“It’s not like that--” I try to interrupt,
but Carter doesn’t stop.

“I don’t know what you did to get in that
old man’s good graces.” His eyes slip down over my body, making my
skin crawl. “I can only imagine you have a few tricks up your
sleeve. It’s a shame you didn’t bring some of the same diligence to
work,” he adds with a leer.

I shudder. God, he’s a pig.

“It won’t affect my job.” I try to change
the subject. “I still have work to do on your cases, and they tell
me it might take months, or even years to settle. I’m not going
anywhere.”

“Are you serious?” Carter stares at me, then
bursts out laughing. “You really think you’ve still got a job?
Honey, you’re done here. Finished. Fucking a client to steal his
money is a deal breaker with the partners.”

I don’t believe it. “But I didn’t sleep with
him! I didn’t do anything wrong, I swear.”

“Tell that to the security guys clearing out
your desk as we speak.” Carter is clearly relishing this. “You’re
fired.”

“No,” I whisper, reeling.

“The Ashcroft kids will get the will thrown
out of court, but you, you’ll never work in this town again. And
don’t even think about law school,” Carter smirks. “I can make a
call to any dean in the country, and have you blacklisted for
life.”

“Please...” Tears sting the corners of my
eyes, but I try my best not to cry. “You can’t do this. You don’t
have proof, anything but Brent’s complaint!”

“Not just Brent,” Carter replies. “We’re
reviewing all the clients you worked with. And if we find even a
hint of improper behavior, you won’t just be blacklisted, we’ll sue
you for breach of contract and Hudgens, Cartwright and Abrams.
We’ll take everything you have, and then some.”

I freeze.

Vaughn.

He came to the firm as a client -- and wound
up pinning me to the library stacks with his face between my
thighs. If they find out what happened, it could ruin me.

“Anything you want to say?” Carter demands.
I silently shake my head.

“Good. Now get the fuck out!”

I stumble from the office, my mind racing.
Losing my job here is suddenly the least terrifying thing that’s
happened today. I can see security heading my way to escort me from
the building, so I grab my phone and dial.

“Vaughn? I need to see you. Now.”

7

VAUGHN

I meet her at a park downtown. She’s pacing
when I arrive, nervous as hell with her hair scraped back and
another of her prim work outfits hiding that luscious body.

Still, the first thing I think of is those
juicy lips wrapped around my cock.

“Public places, huh?” I tease her, looking
around at the scene. Nannies pushing strollers, some college kids
hanging out on the steps. I grin. “I didn’t know you were so kinky,
but sure, we can give it a try.”

I pull her into my arms, but Keely pushes me
away.

“Did you talk to Carter?” she demands.

“Who?”

“My boss at the firm.” She looks around
anxiously. “Did you tell him about... About us?”

I shake my head, confused as fuck. “What the
hell does that jackass have to do with anything?”

Keely exhales, clearly relieved. “They fired
me. Said I’d been having an inappropriate relationship with a
client. That they were investigating to see who else I’d been
seeing.”

“You fucked another guy from work?” I grip
her arm, suddenly mad as hell.

“No!” Keely’s eyes are wide, upset. “It’s
all a lie. But if they find out about you, they say they’ll sue me.
I could lose my future, everything.”

I don’t know what the hell she’s talking
about, but I can tell, she’s in desperate need of a release. The
girl is wound so tight, she’s about to implode.

“Relax,” I order her, holding her tight
against me until I can feel her calm down. “I haven’t said a thing.
I’m your dirty little secret, remember?”