Inevitable – Autumn
Inevitable
Autumn
R yder looks completely out of place in the cereal aisle, and if I wasn’t suffering from mental overload, I’d be sprinting for the exit.
“Hello, Autumn.” His eyes meet mine. “Are you planning to come closer to me?”
“I can address you just fine from here.”
“I’d prefer it if you didn’t.” He picks up a box of Cap’n Crunch, but I don’t move any closer.
“I don’t want to talk to you for a while.” I keep my voice firm. “I haven’t had a day to myself since I did the Miami job for you, and I feel like my hours are running on acid and speed. I don’t even know how many days have gone by because it all feels like one never-ending fucking saga.”
He arches a brow.
“I meant what I said about enjoying the orgasms so far, but I can’t be with another guy who insists on keeping secrets, a guy who is having me surveilled at every turn, a guy who literally refuses to tell me the simplest things so…
” I pause. “Consider this my two weeks’ notice for working under you. ”
His expression doesn’t shift.
“And as far as a relationship—i.e., dating you, I’ll need some time to think about that…”
“That’s all I have to say for now.” I stare at him, waiting for a rebuttal, but he’s standing so still and tight that he might as well be a statue.
Okay, then.
“Glad you’re being understanding about this.” I push my cart forward and past him, and he grips the handle before I can get away.
“If it was this easy for you to walk away from me, I would’ve let you do it a long time ago,” he says.
“I haven’t known you that long.”
“I’ve known you.” His voice is terse, and the way he’s said that line makes me slightly uneasy. “Nonetheless…”
He lets go of the cart and moves closer, caging me in against shelves of oatmeal.
Tilting my chin up with his fingertips, he looks deep into my eyes.
“We haven’t even begun to have sex, so you shouldn’t look at the few orgasms you’ve had as anything more than a taste…” His mouth brushes against mine as he speaks, as if he’s imprinting his sentences onto my mouth.
“You can have some time off,” he says, “but it’ll always depend on what needs to be done. And you will be surveilled—whether you like it or not—because that’s a non-negotiable part of being with me.”
“I’m not making a request.”
“Then you’re wasting your breath.”
“Ryder—”
“I protect anyone and everyone who I care about, and that now includes you—” he doesn’t let me finish. “This isn’t a fucking punishment.”
“Then it’s a complete disregard of privacy.”
“My men aren’t getting into bed with you or listening to your phone calls.”
I have a feeling that might be next. “You can’t force me to work under you,” I say instead.
“We’ll agree to disagree,” he says. “Why did you pack a getaway bag?”
My eyes widen. “What?”
“You heard me,” he says. “Are you planning to go somewhere when you leave this store tonight?”
“This is exactly what I mean about lack of privacy…” My voice falters. “Since your men tell you everything I do, ask them.”
“Okay.” He slips a hand around my neck, craning my head closer to his, rendering me powerless with his touch. “I’m not going to ask you again.”
“How about you answer some of the hundreds I’ve asked you first?”
“Your ex-husband’s firm owed me money,” he says. “That’s how we know each other. Satisfied?”
“How much money?”
“An excessive amount.”
“Can I get a ballpark figure?”
“After you tell me that you’ll unpack your bag.”
“Fine.” I shrug. “I’ll unpack it.”
“Good.” He pulls a few hundred-dollar bills from his wallet and slips them into my pocket. “I don’t like the idea of you paying for anything, so use those, and I’ll see you soon.”
“What about?—”
He presses a finger against my lips before I can ask the question.
“Twenty-six million dollars,” he says, looking upset, but then his expression softly shifts as he steps back. “I’ll be waiting for you at the estate.”
I nod, my mind spinning from the amount as he walks away.
“Oh, and Autumn?” he says, looking over his shoulder.
“Yes?”
“Don’t ever pack another bag to get away from me…”
End of Episode 10