15. ASH
15
ASH
B y 9:00 a.m., I'd been in the office for three hours. I'd reviewed the information Sasha had provided and was as ready as I could be to see my father. I'd called my car service to pick up Eve, but I still had to think about what to say to her.
I grabbed my phone from my pocket, and there were nine unread text messages from Eve from last night and this morning. I didn't have the energy to look at them. I knew Sasha would make some scene when she saw how close Eve and I were. So, I had to rein it in today, and hopefully, Eve would arrive before the others so we could talk.
"Stella, can you let me know when Eve arrives?" I say, pressing my phone's intercom.
"Yes, sir."
I pace back and forth, the anticipation building as I wait for whoever arrives first.
"She's just arrived," I hear Stella announce on the intercom.
My mind switches over to lover mode, waiting for her to enter my lobby. As soon as I reach the door to open it, she also opens it simultaneously. Walking past me, her typically warm eyes now look dark, and her mouth is tightly drawn.
"Eve, I'm sorry," I offer as she walks past me to her desk like I wasn't standing there.
"It's over." She sits down in her seat a little too hard with a wince on her face. "I'm here to work."
"Because I didn't text you?" I lean on her desk, slightly surprised at how childish she's behaving. It wasn't over, not even close.
"I won't be ignored." She straightens her jacket and starts up her computer. "Do you have work for me, or should I see if Stella needs help?" Her perfectly plucked eyebrows perk up.
"That’s it? I can’t even explain?”
“I’ll ask Stella.” She grabs the handle of her phone, but I place my hand on hers, putting it back on the hook.
“The client is coming in today.” With my hand still on hers, I feel her warmth before delicately sliding my fingers between hers.
She shakes her head and pauses, looking like she is searching for words, maybe understanding my silence since yesterday. The client never comes to my office, and I’ve drilled it into her head that she can never meet the client, but that’s all about to change today.
She’ll meet my father and Sasha shortly. I want to lie to her about Sasha because I know Eve will compare herself to her. Eve was fucking beautiful but had no clue, which made it more endearing. But her jealousy irritated me. If I wanted someone else, I would be with someone else.
“What should I do?” She stands up, glancing at the door as if expecting my answer.
“I’ll take the meeting in my office. You will stay here and pretend like you’re an excellent secretary.” A faint grin forms at the corner of my mouth at the idea of her doing well in the office. I put both my hands on her hips and pull her closer to me, and to my surprise, she doesn’t fight me. “My father will be here.”
Looking up at me, she keeps her red lips tightly closed, and the silence hangs heavy in the air. Her gaze lingers on my face, searching for any hint of my feelings. “Do you need me to help with anything?” she finally says.
“I need to get through this day, then curl up with you in bed tonight. I don’t even care if we fuck, Eve. I just want to hold you.” My lips touch down on her cheek, and the sweet smell of vanilla reminds me of her naked body, and my cock stands at attention, even though it’s the last thing I need right now.
I need to tell her about Sasha. I gently pull away from her and tuck strands of her hair behind her flawless face. How do I break the news that my ex, the last person who meant anything to me, would walk through that door any minute, and that she was the client?
A knock on the door interrupts our moment. I step away from Eve and wait till she is seated before I call out, “Yes?”
Stella opens the door. “Five minutes till they are here, Mr. McKenzie. Where should I seat them?”
“My office for now and the large boardroom once the greetings are over.” I observe Stella's eyes darting between Eve and me. “Is there something else?”
Stella steps forward and motions for me to lean into her. “What about…” She points to Eve. “She’s not ready to meet your father in any capacity.”
“We’ll protect her.” My smile widens, and I am happy that Stella has actually taken a liking to Eve despite her daily criticisms.
Stella nods before walking out of my lobby.
“I'll order coffee?” Standing at her desk, Eve fidgets with her phone, ready to receive my instructions.
“Yes, please.” I walk back into my office, aware of the elephant about to trample into this room. As soon as Sasha sees how sweet and shy Eve is and clues into my affection toward her, she’ll try to fuck it up.
“Umm. How many people, sir?” She emphasizes the last word a bit, and reminds me of our night together.
We hadn’t really gotten into any submissive sex talk yet, but she’d know how to drive me fucking crazy. But I didn’t need a hard-on right now. I may need to distance myself from her today just to think straight. Play time will be tonight. I’ll gladly push her to her limits in bed. She does not have to do anything tonight but enjoy herself after dealing with Sasha.
“Let’s do it for ten. I’m not sure of the exact numbers. My brothers might be here too.” I sit down and avoid looking at her, hoping my hard-on goes away before they arrive, although seeing my father for the first time in years should help with that.
“Yes, sir,” she says sweetly with those red plump lips.
“Please close the door,” I ask, then feel her glare at me. It's something I never ask her to do, but she must realize today is different. I may need to act differently; I don’t need her to witness that.
The soft closing of the door is followed by a distinct click that breaks the silence. At that moment, all I can think about is standing up from my desk, taking her in my arms, and running away from this place with her. Getting through the day feels like an overwhelming task, but it is necessary.
I open my computer to print off some notes from my last meeting with Carl, and notice an e-mail from Sasha.
Ash,
I’m sorry things didn’t go well tonight. I was sad you were so upset to see me. It’s been a while, so I hoped you would forgive me. Maybe we can call a truce, since we must work together to close this deal. It was nice to see you. It brought back some wonderful memories.
Maybe we can catch up after our meeting?
Sasha
Fuck. I take a deep breath in and slam my laptop shut. She will not fuck with me again. I never want to be around her again, let alone have to pretend to be nice to her to close this deal.
My father loved the idea of us together and even blamed me when she cheated. His dreams of our families coming together were dashed. I’m sure he had names for our kids already planned. So far, none of his sons had children—that we knew about. A disappointment he loved to point out. Sometimes, he’d threaten to give it all to whoever had kids first, or more specifically, a boy—to carry on his name. I’ll never put that pressure on my kids with Eve. Where the fuck did that come from?
Eve doesn’t even know who I really am, and if she did, she’d run away quick. This wasn’t a life for sweet Eve. I can never give her the life she deserves. I also can’t let her go.
“Mr. McKenzie?” Stella’s voice on the intercom interrupts my thoughts.
“Yes.” Her voice is tinged with fear, making my stomach churn with nervousness. I knew what she was about to announce.
“Your father and Sasha are here,” she confirms.