Secret Revenge: An Enemies-to-Lovers Billionaire Romance

10. Emily

My adrenaline shot through the roof as I walked into the grand foyer of the massive Ross building.

I stared up at the tall glass and metal arcs of the entryway that rose several meters into the sky. None of the pictures had done justice to the towering glass structure that glimmered like a stretch of ocean in the sunlight. But the space also felt wasteful and horribly intimidating. I could count the number of times I’d felt so small in my whole life on the fingers of one hand.

The interior screamed ‘wealth.’ The foyer was massive and ornately furnished with powerful works of art that I was sure had cost a fortune. It was obvious that billions of dollars had gone into creating this place.

I cleared security and was met by a lady dressed in one of the sharpest suits I’d ever seen. It made me self-conscious of my own outfit, a simple dress. I thanked my stars I didn’t show up in my jeans and top as I had originally considered doing.

“Good morning. I’m Jessica,” the elegant lady said. “You’re one of the journalists?”

“I am, good morning.” I returned her smile uneasily and she handed me a name tag.

“Please, right this way.” She gestured to a group of people standing in a corner of the massive room. The other invited journalists.

Watching Jessica walk in front of me, I wished I had stepped it up a bit. Fortunately, several of the other journalists seemed to feel the same way. A couple of them actually had shown up in T-shirts and jeans.

I recognized several of the journalists from their byline pictures, and had met a few previously. I said polite hellos, but avoided any heavy mingling with the group.

While we waited, I prayed silently that I wouldn’t bump into Travis. I didn’t think it was likely, seeing how he was the CEO and would have more important business to attend to. I hoped we were met by one of his brothers, neither of whom knew me personally.

The worst thing was, a part of me wanted to see him. That was the part of me that, at this point, could get me and Michael killed if it blew my cover.

I hadn’t been able to get him out of my mind. That wasn’t wholly unusual: I was working on a case about him, after all, and had been low-key obsessed with what his family had done to mine my entire life.

But this was different. My thoughts of Travis would start with burning anger, then change tone as I found the wicked smirk he wore in my head sexy. And then I’d feel his hands on me, and his mouth, and hear that low growl in his throat…

I shook my head, desperate to clear it. From him saving me from Kyle to us ending up in bed together in the craziest one-night stand I ever had in my entire life.

That’s all it was, I told myself. Adrenaline. That was why our one night together had felt so intense. I just had to push through my hormonal urges and do my job.

I gritted my teeth and tried not to imagine how he might have reacted to my disappearing. Probably he had a different girl every night, at least one of them, and was grateful that I hadn’t stuck around to make things complicated.

Probably. But what if. What if he missed me?

Don’t even think about it, Emily. There is no world where you can live happily ever after with him.

I sat up straight in my chair at the conference room table, smiled brightly, and was immensely grateful that nobody in the room could read my thoughts.

Jessica, who had stepped away from the group at some point, returned smiling broadly. “Alright then! Shall we start the tour? Please stay attached to this main group at all times and keep your visitors’ tag on. Thank you.”

Jessica led us away from the foyer on a tour of the company, pointing out floors and rooms she thought were important. She gave an account of the company’s history so far that was so whitewashed it made my skin crawl.She skillfully introduced our group to various key figures, steering us through the corridors with practiced ease

I could barely pay any attention to Jessica as I hung behind the crowd, making a mental map of everything I saw. I fought off the pressing panic and excitement as we moved deeper into the employees-only areas of the building.

Get the information and get out. The sooner you’re out, the less likely you are to be arrested or murdered.

Then the elevator opened onto a floor even grander than the others.

“We are on the executive floor,” Jessica informed us, “and you will have the opportunity to meet with all of the company’s executives personally during the duration of this exercise. They want you to get to know who they really are.”

My stomach did a backflip.

Shit shit shit shit.

What if Travis realized something was up, after I’d personally told him I wouldn’t work for him?

Worse—what if he asked me to dinner again?

I edged closer to the crowd to hear what Jessica was saying as she led us into a large conference room with glass walls at the far end of the plush hallway.

Through the glass, I spotted two men waiting inside the room, and recognized them as Brendan and Jackson, Travis’ younger brothers. I exhaled in relief, thankful that I wouldn”t have to face the challenge of encountering Travis again that day.. Part of me was disappointed by his absence, but that was the part I was doing my best to lock away in a box deep, deep in my subconscious.

I scolded myself quietly, then decided to listen more attentively as we entered the conference room and took our seats. Jackson welcomed us warmly, thanking us for honoring the invitation by showing up. He had a deep voice and a courteous tone like his brother, and just like that I was lost in fantasizing about Travis again. About his wicked smirk, and his strong hands…

Oh boy. This could become a real problem.

To keep myself on task I texted Michael, giving him updates on how things were going so far.

Excited murmurs erupted through the room, causing me to look up from my phone. And almost fell out of my chair.

Travis was standing near the door of the conference room, handsome and commanding.

I bowed my head awkwardly, trying to hide my face. Travis politely greeted the journalists one by one, so I realized he’d see me eventually. I felt myself blushing, terror and excitement mingling into a surprisingly pleasant feeling in my gut..

I hated that I liked this.

Travis worked his way through the crowd and finally spotted me. He smiled and approached me. I tried my best to hide the fact that I was simultaneously horny and panicking.

Travis’s smile widened and took on just a hint of wickedness. I had expected him to be angry or suspicious, but it looked to me like his head was exactly where mine was..

Shit.

His lips curled up slightly into a knowing smile and I hoped no one else noticed the clear recognition on his face.

“Hello,” he said, extending a hand for a shake. “I’d love to welcome you to the company. Please, don’t hesitate to ask me for anything you need. Anything at all.” His eyes glittered.

A tingling sensation spread through my body when Travis took my hand and spoke to me in his rumbling voice.

“Will do,” I replied as calmly as I could.

Travis looked like he wanted me to say more, but I stayed as quiet as the others. He took a long look at me before turning around and facing everyone else. “I wish all you journalists the best with your work at Ross Industries.” He turned, waved and left the conference room.

I watched him leave. It felt as if my heart had stopped beating for a bit, only functioning again after Travis left the room.

Well. Now we won’t have to meet them again, right? Surely the billionaires themselves wouldn’t be hanging around checking our work. But Travis did read his own emails…

I snapped out of my thought to find Jessica addressing the group. She explained Travis’ instructions to us as we took down notes.

Our job was simple. We were to show up at the company for the next few weeks and observe the operations, while paying attention to how we were treated as well as the treatment of the staff. We would also have privileged access to company files that showed what was going on internally.

At the end of the exercise, we would write individual and independent reports based off our investigations. The resulting articles should be as sincere or as scathing as they need to be, so long as it was the truth.

That’s what Jessica said, anyway.

The purpose of the whole exercise was for us to assess the work culture of the company, how the company was run, and the treatment of the employees and ourselves. We were supposed to see if the day-to-day realities and the budget sheets we were given access to matched the shiny image projected by the Ross brothers in their own PR campaigns.

Despite how nice Jessica’s words sounded, I believed the entire exercise was an act for the media. I doubted the files they gave us access to would tell the whole truth—but that was okay. Once I got Michael into the system, he could help with that.

After the introduction and office tour, I was both tired and charged up. I walked out of the building with the other journalists. but I was waved to the side by a security officer. He informed me that my presence was required immediately.

I followed him, my heart pounding as I scanned for exits.

They couldn’t possibly have figured anything out, I told myself. At worst they’re suspicious of me. There is nothing linking me to Michael’s attempted hack, or anything else.

My mind raced while I walked behind the guard, telling myself that was all true.

He led me towards a deserted parking lot and pointed between a row of cars.

This was very strange. It wasn’t a place you would take someone if you didn’t want them to be able to run. But it wasn’t exactly a place for an up-and-up interview either.

As I walked down the row of cars alone, glancing anxiously back over my shoulder, someone grabbed my arm. I yelped in surprise and stopped about an inch short of punching Travis Ross in the face.

“Looks like you couldn’t wait to see me again,” Travis said, a hint of amusement in his voice as he releases my arm and stepped back. His smile was playful yet cautious.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I shot back.

“Oh yeah? Well, yours was the last face I expected to see today.” He leaned on his shiny, black SUV, his eyes dancing as he asked me a thousand silent questions. He tapped his feet incessantly. “I remember you telling me you were uninterested in this project. Why did you change your mind?”

I shrugged and smiled coyly. I had no intention of showing him how much I’d been thinking about him, so I remained silent.

“You have got nothing to say?” he asked with feigned disappointment. “Looks to me like I was able to change your mind about coming here, after all.”

“Seems to me like you’re being entirely too cocky for your own good.” I crossed my arms across my chest like a barrier between us.

“I bet you didn’t think I was too cocky when we were together,” Travis teased in a low voice.

I prayed he couldn’t see me blush in the dim light of the parking lot. “Okay, timeout,” I said. “Whatever happened to the man who once told me to be professional? Because this doesn’t sound too professional.”

Travis looked around the car pack suspiciously, then turned to me. “Would you like to see how unprofessional I can be?”

And just like that, the images I had been keeping at bay all day were back. Travis’s hands on me, ripping my clothes off?—

Then Travis’s hands really were on me, moving me to press my back against his car. When I didn’t try to punch him again, he opened the car door and playfully shoved me into the backseat.

No no no!I thought. But it was myself I was yelling at. Because I definitely wasn’t going to walk away from this.

Travis crawled into the back seat after me, then shut the door behind him.

“This isn’t safe,” I hissed. “Anyone could walk by!”

“That’s part of the fun, isn’t it?” Travis asked with that wicked grin I’d been fantasizing about. And started unbuttoning his shirt.

Shit.

Well, at least this assignment was going to be interesting.