Chapter 12
Chandler
I woke up in a sweat, my mind still lingering in the dream I had just woken up from.
I was back in that museum, Gabriella’s soft moans in my ear.
It had been reckless, but necessary. I had known from the first time I saw her at that damn coffee shop, that fucking her would be electric.
And it was. Which was probably why my dreams led me back to two nights ago.
Stretched out in my bed, the morning sun was peeping through the edges of my blackout shades and hitting me square in the right eye. I groaned and shut my eyes, trying to block it out. I knew I had to get up. Had to run a freezing cold shower to get rid of the erection I had woken up with.
I rolled out of bed and strode toward my bathroom, stripping off the briefs I had slept in and turning the shower on.
There was no need to wait for the water to heat up, so I stepped inside, grimacing at the cold water hitting my skin.
The feeling of Gabriella’s fingers tangled in my hair and how tight she clenched around me began to dissipate with each harsh drop of water.
I wondered if our encounter was having the same kind of effect on her.
She had played it cool when we got back to the table, quickly eating her food as if trying to catch up to those who were already onto dessert.
Her father eyed her warily, the same look falling to me, as if trying to figure out what just happened.
I avoided his gaze. It was hard to face him after I had just fucked his daughter’s brains out just a few rooms away.
Gabriella had slipped out of the party before me without a goodbye or a single look in my direction.
I would be lying if I said it didn’t bring me down a peg or two, but I knew what had transpired between us had just made both our lives a hell of a lot more complicated.
It was probably for the best we distanced ourselves from each other.
At least for the weekend because then it would be back to the office, and there would be no avoiding each other.
I turned off the shower and reached for the plush, cream towel hanging from a nearby hook.
I quickly dried off and wrapped it around my waist before walking to my closet to pick out today’s suit.
Just as I was about to skim through the black velvet hangers of Serge’s creations, I heard my phone buzzing from my nightstand.
I quickly went to grab it and saw it was Nathan calling.
“Hey, little bro,” I said.
“We still on for coffee?” he asked groggily.
“Shit. I almost forgot.” I glanced at the time on the clock. “Yeah, I can meet you at our usual spot in thirty.”
“See you soon,” he said before hanging up.
I wondered if he had been up all night writing a paper or studying.
I was surprised he still wanted to go grab coffee when he could sleep in a little longer.
I tossed my phone on my bed and went back to my closet, selecting a navy suit and a crisp, white button-down.
I quickly dressed and washed up at the bathroom sink, then headed down to the parking garage.
The valet brought my car around and I hopped in the driver’s seat.
I drove up and out of the garage, feeling the warmth of the morning sun through my window.
It felt good. I pressed the button on the dash, and the top came down, letting the breeze run through my damp hair.
Fifteen minutes later, I pulled up to the coffee shop.
The same one where my fateful encounter with Gabriella had occurred.
Nathan was standing near the curb waiting.
He spotted me as I parked at a nearby meter.
“You look like the richest prick ever,” he said, as I climbed out and shut the door behind me.
“I take that as a compliment.” I chuckled.
He rolled his eyes and pulled me in for a quick hug before releasing me.
We walked into the coffee shop, which was far less crowded than the last time I was there.
It was too early for morning commuters. We placed our order at the counter, retrieved our drinks, and settled in at a table by the window.
I took a sip of my espresso, dark and steaming in the small cup on its matching saucer.
I didn’t opt for cream or sugar today. I just needed straight liquid caffeine after I had tossed and turned all night, fighting off an imminent arousal.
I pushed the thought of Gabriella’s perfect breasts out of my head and tried to focus on what my brother was saying about his upcoming final.
“I am so ready for it to be over,” he said, his eyes tired as he took a sip of his black coffee. He looked like he could use about ten more cups.
“Almost,” I said reassuringly.
“Yeah, hopefully I finish before the wedding.”
I raised a brow. “Wedding?”
“Yeah. Mom and my dad,” he said nonchalantly, as if this wasn’t surprising news to me.
I looked at him like he was speaking a different language. There was no way my mother was marrying Greg. Hell, they weren’t even engaged. Unless my mother had decided not to tell me. I hated the thought that she would leave me out of something like this.
“What the hell are you talking about?” I asked, setting my espresso cup down on the saucer with a loud clink.
“Shit,” he said with a shake of his head. “You didn’t know…”
I pinched the bridge of my nose as I tried to process what he was trying to tell me.
“They got engaged. Like a few days ago. I thought you she would have called you…”
“Yeah, well, she didn’t,” I muttered.
“I’m sorry, bro. I know things between you and my dad aren’t exactly peachy, but he’s my dad. And I’m happy for them. I hope you can be too.”
I slowly nodded, not saying anything. I didn’t want to make any more of a big deal out of it, knowing that Nathan was Greg’s son. He loved his dad. He was in an uncomfortable situation.
“It’s fine. It’s great,” I said, before looking out the window and thinking it was anything but fine.
An hour and a half later, I strode into work.
My feelings about my mother’s surprise engagement had been stewing since I left Nathan at the coffee shop to come to work.
Now that he wasn’t around and I didn’t have to play pretend about our “big, happy family,” I was on a warpath.
I kept my head down, ignoring the greetings from employees and settled into the privacy of my office to stew.
Why hadn’t my mother fucking told me? And why did she have to marry Greg of all people? He was so…average. I rolled my eyes at the sight of his annoying face. I was muttering profanities to myself when there was a quick knock at the door and Gabriella entered.
“I didn’t say come in,” I snapped.
She looked taken aback by my less than warm welcome.
I wondered if she had expected more from me since we had sex, but she was sorely mistaken.
Especially today. Her quiet surprise quickly turned to defensiveness as she lifted her chin and narrowed her gaze at me.
I shifted slightly in my seat under the intensity of her green eyes, the same ones I had made roll back in her head just three days ago.
“We have shit to get done,” she said, settling in the chair in front of me, looking utterly delectable in a black dress that strained across her full breasts. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and looked down at her iPad, opening up the calendar.
She started reading off the day’s agenda, but I only half heard her. I didn’t care about the meetings or the afternoon conference.
“You’re surprisingly slow this morning,” I sneered as I impatiently interrupted her.
“Really? Because I’m still waiting for you to catch up,” she bit back.
I let out a laugh under my breath as I glared back at her. She was such an easy target. She gave as good as she got. She was sharp as a knife and quick as hell. It was exactly what I needed today when I had a lot to take out on someone.
She stood up from her chair and strode for the door. My eyes immediately draw to the swish of her hips. I wondered if the impressions of my fingers were still there.
She whipped her head around. “You coming?”
“Where?” I asked, raising a brow.
She sighed impatiently. “The morning meeting that I just fucking told you about.”
I fought the smile that was threatening to spread across my lips. She was feisty this morning. She walked out the door without another word, and I was forced to follow after her to whatever this meeting was.
Gabriella led me wordlessly to the conference room where all the junior associates sat, cautious and expectant.
She took a seat to the right of the head of the table, leaving the large leather chair open for me.
I settled into it, aware of how the air shifted between us.
I tried to ignore the tension there, and the smell of her ridiculously intoxicating perfume.
She filled the silence by greeting everybody and practically running the meeting herself.
I ignored the fact that she did it so well, listening to everyone and addressing their questions about their quarterly goals.
I interjected a few times, especially when I found associate’s questions to be boring or self-explanatory.
It was satisfying watching them grimace as I cut in.
They were looking to be coddled, and that was not what I was there for.
I could feel Gabriella’s eyes on me, a rage simmering in them.
I ignored her, boring into the associates further before waving them away dismissively, long before the meeting was supposed to wrap up.
Once the room had cleared out, Gabriella looked at me, her rage now bubbling over.
“What the hell is your problem?” she spat.
“I thought it went well.” I shrugged smugly.
“They were looking for guidance and you were a total prick.”
“I’m not here to guide anyone. They should know their fucking jobs, and their silly little goals, without someone spoon-feeding it to them.”
“Do you even know what a CEO is?” she asked, shaking her head.
“I know it’s what you’re not. Because if you were CEO, you would be leading little kumbaya circles and passing around a feelings stick. You’d run this place into the fucking ground.”
“You don’t know how I would run things,” she said through clenched teeth.
“And thankfully, I never will.”
She sat back in her chair and muttered under her breath. “I thought things would be different after the gala…”
I knew we had crossed a line we shouldn’t have, but that night there was no stopping us from crashing into each other. I just had to prevent it from happening again, as much as I wanted it to.
“About that…it’s probably best we only communicate through phone or email. This clearly isn’t working.” I pointed between the two of us.
Her eyes snapped up to mine. Confusion, anger, and hurt lay there. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was practically demoting her or because she wanted more from me. More than I couldn’t give.
“I know what you’re trying to do,” she said pointedly. “You’re trying to make my life here hell so you can push me out. But it’s not going to happen.”
She stood from her chair and stormed out of the room. I watched her go, letting out a frustrated sigh. I just wanted to run the company without her interfering, and without wanting to fuck that pretty mouth of hers.