Chapter Two
ALEX
Pulling on my suit jacket, I fasten the buttons and knot my plum tie. I’ve been like crap for months. Now I can’t shake off this damn mood every time I walk into this godforsaken office. Sure, I owe my father everything, and I do find work rewarding at times, but then there are other factors that make this a hellhole.
It’s hard to deal with.
It’s hard to live with.
Sure, we might be bringing a huge profit to Scott Enterprises, but at what cost?
The door to my office flies open with brute force as it smashes back against the frame, making me turn. My father storms in. His fiery demeanor leaches off him in waves. So much so, I feel the burn from here. His graying hair is particularly combed over today, and his suit is impeccably tailored as he leans forward aggressively, ready to lash out at me.
It takes merely a millisecond for his voice to rise to where the entire level can hear. “What in the name of all things holy were you thinking, Alex?”
I lean back against my desk, my fingers wrapping around the edge, gripping on tightly to restrain my anger. They turn white, but I’ll contain myself.
I must.
He’s not only my father but my boss, and I’m in the wrong.
At least in his eyes.
“In my defense—”
“There is no defense, Alex! You walked out of the final eviction briefing. Damn you! It was the most important one. The last tenants in the area need to vacate, and they’re being fucking difficult…” His face reddens. Maybe he’s going to have a stroke. “We need them gone, Alex. Like yester-damn-day! You understand this, don’t you? It’s not a difficult concept to grasp.”
I scoff, turning around glancing out my fourteenth-story window overlooking the city of San Francisco. It’s a beautiful spring day, the sun’s shining, but I suspect a sinister storm is brewing in this very room.
“What I don’t understand is why you can’t offer them something more.”
Dad guffaws, rattling the pictures and certificates on my walls. “Something more? Something. More! Boy, we’re offering them a place in the new megacomplex. What more could I give them?” He stops, composes himself, lowers his voice to deadly serious, and continues, “This is all beside the point, Alex. You left the meeting. And for a long fucking time, you disappeared without a goddamn word.” He glances at my desk, and I follow his line of sight at the wad of Saran Wrap sitting there.
I tense as Dad scrunches up his face with a groan. “Keep your damn office tidy, and don’t have fucking trash lying around, Alex. Have some godforsaken pride in your workplace. I don’t know who the hell you’re turning into, boy. You’re such a disappointment to me right now.”
Fuck! That hit right where it was meant to . I may not approve of everything my father does or the way things are run around here, but his approval means everything to me. If he’s disappointed, it fucking stings. So, I pick up the wad of Saran Wrap and throw it toward the trashcan. As I do, my arm grates on the lining of my shirt, and the pressure of my suit jacket sends a sting through my fresh tattoo.
My father steps closer with rage burning red hot in his obviously infuriated eyes. “It was embarrassing, our second-in-charge merely standing up and walking out like that. How fucking irresponsible of you to leave everyone in the damn lurch, boy!”
I spin, anger now igniting inside of me, which I can’t control. I usually try to keep calm, keep everything under control out of respect to my father, but he’s pushing my buttons too hard this time. I slam my fist down on my desk. Hard. The stapler rattles, my pen rolls off the desk, all while I glare at him with intense ferocity. My nostrils flare as the vein in my neck twitches before I stand and move around the desk. “And what about the people whose lives we’re destroying by taking over their businesses with this deal, Dad? Isn’t that irresponsible? Putting hard-working people in distress for nothing more than our gain?”
Dad scoffs, shaking his head. “You’ve never been able to see the bigger picture, son. Sure, some of the retailers who can’t buy into the new megacomplex will have to close up shop.” He shrugs. “But they’ll move on and be fine somewhere else. They’ll get a nice sum of money from us to vacate. They won’t be left in the lurch. And those who can afford to come over and be part of the new megacomplex will be even better off.” He exhales and puffs out his chest. “This initiative isn’t just about our gain, son. It’s also about sustainability for San Francisco. It’s about job growth. About making that area a retail experience for everyone…” He exhales. “There will be far more who benefit than the few who lose out.”
I grunt, turning my back on my father, and move to sit at my desk. “I get it, I do. I know the stats on job growth. I know this megacomplex can only be a good thing, but I’m concerned for the people who will lose out.” My stomach sinks. “It’s not right.”
Dad exhales while stepping over in front of my desk, glaring right at me, his gray-blue eyes appearing old and worn with the number of lines around them. “I see so much of your mother in you. Your compassion and unwavering loyalty are admirable, but… it’s also something you can’t afford to have in this business. If you want to head this company…” he stands taller, his chest puffing out again, any tenderness of before gone, “… you have to pull your head out of your ass. I don’t know where you go when you run off, but Alex, you need to focus. I’m counting on you to see this through, son.”
Glancing into my father’s eyes, I simply nod. Guilt riddles me. It flows through every part of my being—toward my father for not working as hard as I should, and of course, for Tomi. Because I actually like her. Guilt because this megacomplex is going ahead whether I like it or not, and it’s going to wipe out Hope & Faith Ink. It’s going to take away the place her parents helped her build, including the memories of her family.
This is the part of business I fucking hate.
And she’s going to have nothing to do with me if she ever finds out.
So she never can.
Tomi’s far too perfect.
“Pull yourself together, Alex. This is all business,” Dad relays, then turns, storming out of my office.
I glance over at Sasha, my personal assistant, who’s peering over her high desk and watching on, but when she spots my eyes on her, she turns back to her computer and starts typing.
Letting out a long exhale, I sink back into my chair.
This is the job I signed up for.
It’s not pretty, but with the bad comes the good.
Some people have to suffer for good to flourish. When this megacomplex is built, the job opportunities will be tremendous. I know that, but the people losing their jobs because of the complex is what’s getting to me.
I can’t be here anymore.
Today’s been a day of crazy highs and dramatic lows. I need to go home, have a drink, and relax. So, I turn off the screen on my computer and hit the buzzer on my desk to call for Henry, my driver. Yes, I’m that fucking uppity. I hate myself for it sometimes, but Father insists if you’re the Vice President of Scott Enterprises, you must play the part. That includes the penthouse apartment and having a fucking driver at my disposal. Personally, I’d rather drive myself, though Henry’s been with me for an incredibly long time, and he’s more of a friend these days.
And don’t get me wrong, I’ve worked hard to get here. It wasn’t handed to me on a silver platter. But am I suited to it like my father? I know when I’m the president of the company, I will run things differently, especially when dealing with business acquisitions.
Grabbing my briefcase and duffle bag, I head out the door, dipping my head to my personal assistant on my way. “Night, Sasha.”
“Evening, Mr. Scott, see you in the morning,” she chimes with a toothy grin that could light up the entire room. She’s a beauty for sure, a little ditsy sometimes, but she gets shit done, and that’s all I care about.
I stride past her toward the elevator, then ride it to the parking garage. The doors slide open, and Henry’s waiting in his black Audi, as always.
Smiling, I open the rear door and jump in. At the start, Henry always opened the door for me, but I quickly put a stop to that shit. I’m not fucking royalty, and I have a hard enough time with the idea of him driving me around, so I’m good to open a damn door by myself. Though I must admit, I do like his company.
“Evening, Henry, how was your day?”
“Hello, sir. Quite pleasant, thank you. Straight home tonight?” he questions.
My answer is typically yes, but tonight, something clicks in my mind. All day since seeing Tomi and having her tattoo my arm, I haven’t been able to get her out of my mind. So, I make a choice. “Not tonight, Henry. Can you drive me to the megacomplex site, I want to check something out?”
“Certainly, sir.” Henry pulls out, then drives up the ramp and out onto the city streets. The pale moonlight shines through the glow of the streetlamps, giving the night a harmonious hue. My chest squeezes at the idea of seeing her twice in one day. It’s usually weeks, sometimes months, between visits. I don’t even know why I’m going to see her.
I just know that I want to.
I need to.
We drive for a short time—it’s not far from the office to the megacomplex. With every turn of the tires, my heart beats a little faster. My breath quickens. I haven’t had a female in my life for a long time. I’m twenty-seven, and my last girlfriend was in high school. I’ve been far too focused on work and occupied with getting where I need to be to impress my father and to be the man I need to be for him. Sure, I’ve had women in my bed, but none I’ve wanted any more from. There’s something about Tomi—a definite attraction. I care about her. We may have only had a few interactions, but in those, I’ve gotten to see the real woman. She’s not fake or hiding anything. She is who she is, and she makes no apologies for it.
Plus, I love her pin-up, retro vibe. She doesn’t wear dresses, but more skinny jeans with flannel shirts. Her platinum-blonde hair is always pulled up in a ponytail with bangs and a red bandana around her head. Not to mention the bright red lipstick she always wears with the killer red heels to match. She’s drop-dead gorgeous. Her unique style is her own, and it suits her perfectly.
As Henry pulls up to the megacomplex designated area, I direct him toward Hope & Faith Ink. But as we get closer, I spy Tomi on the side of the street, hopping into a bright red and black Mini Cooper. The car is just her style as I lean forward toward the driver’s seat. “Henry, see that red Mini?”
He glances at me, then at the Mini that Tomi has disappeared into. “Yes, sir.”
Taking a deep breath, I steady my shoulders. “Follow it.”
Henry nods as Tomi takes off down the road, and Henry follows safely behind. My heart hammers. This is new territory for me—being a stalker. I didn’t know I had it in me or that my night would turn into this. I came here to talk to her, but I don’t want to stop her from going home if that’s where she’s heading. Plus, I’m still in my suit.
That’s kind of a problem.
So, now, I’m in my car following hers like some creeper.
Good one, Alex.
Eventually, she pulls up at a medium-sized home. It’s a nice place as Henry stops across the street so I can watch. Luckily, the car’s windows are tinted, so even if she tried, she couldn’t see inside the car. My crazy stalking is safe for now.
She slides out of the car, then walks around helping Levi. With his trusty backpack over his shoulders, and his blue fidget spinner in his hand, they race to the front door like a pair of young siblings, not ones with a nine-year age gap. The way she cares for him is special.
They enter the house as I sit watching. The front window is a bay, and it’s wide-fucking-open for me to see right in. Shaking my head at Tomi’s inability to keep her private life private, I swallow a lump hard as she helps Levi with his backpack, kicks off her heels, then pulls Levi to her. They start bouncing around the living room together to something that’s playing on the television.
Sinking into my seat, it warms my heart to see how a woman so full of life, so full of fight and bravado, can come home and simply give her younger ‘special needs’ brother so much attention. It’s making me feel things I didn’t know I had in me.
I’m an only child, and I’ve never known what it’s like to have someone to grow up with. But I can imagine if I did, our lives would have been very different from Tomi and Levi’s. My parents were strict, tough, though fair. But playing wasn’t something that was permitted very often. I had to work to get what I wanted in life, to get to where I wanted to be. Maybe it’s why I rebelled against my father—I never truly got to live growing up.
Dad has no idea about my tattoos. If he saw them, he would lose his shit. He doesn’t like that I do things which aren’t considered upper class, elite, and his version of normal.
I just want to live my life.
To express myself in a different way than normal.
Maybe even to bounce around a room like an idiot and enjoy myself like Tomi and Levi.
Suddenly, Tomi peeks out the window.
I tense up. Even though I know she can’t possibly spot me, she’s staring straight at me. The hairs on my arm stand at the way she studies the vehicle. She stops, moves to the window, and presses her hand against the pane to pry further.
My muscles seize as my breath catches.
She’s on to me.
I don’t want to scare her, so I make the call.
I’ve gotten my fix.
This will tide me over until I can see her again.
I hope.
“Take me home, Henry,” I instruct, keeping my eyes locked on Tomi. It’s as if she’s staring right at me even though I know she can’t see through the tint. If only she could. I feel this unbelievable connection, like magnetism, pulling me toward her. I’m not quite sure I know what it is just yet, but there’s something there, and I want to protect her. I want nothing to stop her from living the life she’s supposed to.
I wish I could tell her.
I want to tell her everything.
I’m Just Xander to her, but she also knows me as Alex-asshole-Scott from Scott Enterprises.
I’m the man ruining her life.
I’m the man evicting her.
I’m the man who’s going to come in and stop her from having everything she’s ever wanted.
And it definitely makes me a fucking asshole.