Chapter 5 #2
Ms. Baker pushes through them with a cup of coffee in each hand.
“I’ll take those,” Brennan says as he strides back through the doors again. “Thank you, Ms. Baker. I need an icepack and a first aid kit as well, please,” he requests.
Her sweet, concerned smile is nothing like the nasty looks she gave me earlier.
“Are you hurt, Mr. Diamond?” she asks.
“No, it’s for Ms. Tripp. Bring them into my office.”
Her expression falls, but she corrects herself and nods. As she turns and skirts around the group of men waiting in the hall, Mr. Williams steps toward me. My skin crawls as he looks me over from top to bottom.
“What happened?” he demands.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Williams, but the CEO’s office isn’t available right now,” Brennan interrupts. “You’ll have to hold your meeting elsewhere. Ms. Tripp, follow me. Now.”
Even if it means choosing the fire over the boiling pot, I follow Brennan through the double doors and shut them behind me.
Alone with the man I swore I never wanted to see again, I cling to the door handles and second guess my decision. Brennan has the power to crush me in ways no one else ever could. I take a deep breath and turn around.
He rises from the mini-fridge and kicks it closed behind him before gesturing me to the armchair. I skirt around the far side of the couch and perch on the edge of the seat. He sits on the couch and places a bottle of juice on the coffee table in front of me.
“Drink,” he commands.
“I’m fi—”
“Just drink the damn juice, Audrey, before you pass out and make me feel like the worst big brother in the world.”
I grind my teeth, and for a moment, I consider reminding him he is the worst brother in the world, but I won’t win by poking the bear, so I twist the bottle open and take a swig.
He waits until I drink half the juice before leaning forward and pinning me in place with his intense blue stare.
“What’s wrong with your contract?”
His question isn’t what I expect. After nearly choking in surprise, I swallow and shake my head.
“Don’t lie to me, baby doll. I watched you as you read it and know there was something you didn’t like. Tell me what it is and I’ll fix it.”
For half a second, I yearn to ask him to waive the educational requirements. It would make the next few weeks so much easier. But I can’t. I refuse to feel beholden to him, and if he makes an exception for me, I’ll always owe him.
Pride also insists I keep my dilemma a secret. I can handle it. I’ll get my GED and qualify for my position, just like everyone else in the office.
I’m ashamed I let myself go so long without the equivalent of a high school education. I pushed so hard to overcome my obvious fears but avoided healing anything else.
After twisting the cap onto the bottle, I set the juice on the table, weave my fingers together in my lap, and meet his gaze.
His intense concern nearly buckles my will, but I firm my spine and loosen my grip on my fingers.
“There’s nothing wrong with my contract.”
He narrows his eyes. My heart pounds against my sternum.
Ms. Baker knocks on the door and brings in the ice packs and first aid kit. She aims a glare at me from behind Mr. Diamond when he dismisses her.
The moment the door closes behind her, he stands.
“Take off your blouse,” he demands.
“Excuse me? No.”
He shrugs out of his suit coat in the most tantalizing motion I’ve ever seen and tosses it over the back of the couch.
I cross my arms over my chest and swallow bile as I war within myself.
“We’re negotiating your contract, not your health. Take off your blouse,” he says.
“You’re crazy,” I growl.
“A crazy monster, yes. That’s me.” I shrink back into the chair when he wraps long fingers around both armrests and leans into my space. My lungs seize and heat blooms in my core.
“Do you really want to test me right now, baby doll? You’re hurt. I’m going to care for you even if you fight me every step of the way.”
My heart gives a prolonged squeeze. I want him to care for me, even though I know I shouldn’t. I can’t trust him. I don’t want to trust him ever again. Tears scratch the back of my eyes, but I tighten my arms around myself and glare at him.
“I’ve been taking care of myself for thirteen years, Brennan. I don’t need your—hey, stop! What are you—”
He ignores me and unbuttons my suit above and below my arms. His thick fingers pinch my chin and lift my face to his. My abdomen grows heavy as his breath ghosts over my lips.
I want his kiss despite the horror streaking through me.
When he closes his hand around my forearm, past and present collide, and for a horrible moment, I can’t move. Can’t think. Can’t breathe.
He tugs my arm away from my torso.
I shove his face away with both hands and lunge out of the chair, but his arm bands around my midsection and yanks me backward. I squeak as I collide against his chest, and for a horrible moment we both freefall, but he lands on the couch with me in his lap.
My head and hip throb. I wriggle for freedom, but he tightens his arm around me, stealing my breath.
“I’m sorry, Audrey. I don’t know what you’ve been through, but the way you fight… I’m sorry I can’t keep my hands off you.”
His chest vibrates against my back as he speaks in a deep, guttural voice. I dig my nails into the back of his hand and try to control my fight-or-flight response. Every inch of me screams for me to run for the door despite how nice it feels to be in his lap.
When his words finally register through my panic, I swallow sudden tears and shake my head.
“Hush, love. You’re safe with me. All I want right now is to ice your hip and talk business. Nothing else.”
I dig my nails deeper into his flesh as disbelief and want war within me.
After a deep breath—which shifts me against his hard body and highlights our differences—I extract my nails from the back of his hands and encircle his wrists with my fingers.
He’s too big. My digits don’t reach all the way around. My heart gives a heavy thump.
“My hip is fine, but if you insist, then let me up. I’ll sit in the chair and do it myself while you watch,” I say.
He loosens his arm from my stomach but doesn’t release me.
“Sometimes watching is enough, but not this time, baby doll. I hurt you. I need to be the one to fix it,” he murmurs.
“This is wrong. What if someone comes in and—”
“Would you rather I lock the door?” he asks.
I shake my head. The thought of being locked away alone with this massive man is too much.
He drops his cheek to the top of my head and whispers, “Then be a good little baby doll and let me take care of you.”
Yearning floods my soul. Once upon a time, I loved sitting in his lap. He made me feel cherished. Adored. Safe.
I’m not a na?ve little girl anymore. I don’t trust men—especially not him—and I need this job.
I harden my heart and curl my hands into fists.
“How long?” I ask.
“Forever,” he answers without hesitation.
I scoff and jab him with my elbow.
“That’s not what I meant. How long for the ice?”
“Fifteen minutes,” he says.
“In your lap?” I ask incredulously.
“Yes. In my lap,” he responds.
“I’m not taking off my jacket. The ice will work over my clothes,” I demand.
He hums his displeasure before lifting his cheek off my head.
“Then you’ll have to sit on my lap longer. Extra layers of fabric mean it takes longer to reach your skin,” he argues.
I huff.
“No. I’ll push my jacket aside, but my blouse, pants, and belt remain fastened.”
“You’re the only person I’d accept unfavorable negotiations with, you know that, right, lil stepsis?”
“Just shut up and put the ice on already,” I snarl.
He chuckles. Embarrassment and arousal jangle through me as my ass shifts against his hard thighs. I cross my arms over my chest and grit my teeth. Brennan takes mercy on me and grabs the ice pack off the coffee table.
“Lift your jacket.”
His throaty rumble tumbles through my abdomen. I part my coat and wince as he presses the ice to my bruised hip.
With his arm still around my waist and his body bracketing mine, I check my watch before forcing my muscles to relax.
“Now tell me, what’s wrong with your employment contract?”
I sigh and roll my eyes.
“You’re really not going to let this go, are you?”
“Nope,” he answers.
I rub my forehead. Today has been too much, but with such an unexpected and drastic change, I doubt the next few days will be any better. As the secretary’s CEO, the change in leadership will definitely throw my entire schedule out of whack.
I might as well negotiate with my new boss while I have the opportunity.
Because he is my new boss. My ex-stepbrother, the boy who broke my trust and abandoned me to his abusive father, is now the man who owns and is soon to be the CEO of the company I’ve worked at since before my sixteenth birthday.
There’s no escaping him, but maybe I can buy enough time to secure my job and prove I don’t need him in my life. At all. Maybe by the time the acquisition is complete and the company is trending the way he wants it, he’ll move on to his next business endeavor and forget all about me.
He did it before. Hopefully he’ll do it again.
Not a single cell in my body believes my nonsense, but I cling to the idea as though it’s my only lifeline.
I’ll accept Brennan Diamond as my new boss but deny him in all other aspects of my life.
What my body and soul want mean nothing. He is nothing to me.
I don’t want him. I’ve never missed him. He’s a cold-hearted liar who only thinks about himself. I hate him.
I have too much to lose if he learns the truth.