Chapter 8
Keri
One year later
I regretted everything. It felt like I had walked away from him forever and that tore at my insides with every waking moment since I’d peeled out of his driveway and hadn’t looked back.
Even though I had told myself that I wouldn’t think about Jaxon Blackwood again, I broke that promise.
He slipped into my thoughts at least once a day and into my dreams just as often.
I stopped dating entirely because no one could compete with him.
Ashleigh even set up a blind date for me, but I’d cancelled that at the first opportunity I could.
There was no one other than him.
Daddy.
Did he think about me? Was I just some chick that he’d spanked and had suck his cock? Did that mean anything to him? Did I mean anything to him?
Men asked me out. I said no. Soon, they stopped even approaching me at all.
Perhaps I’d finally perfected my resting bitch face and that scared them off.
None of them even remotely came close to the type of man Jaxon was.
Not a single one of them could stand toe to toe with me and come out the victor.
He pushed me and he wasn’t afraid to do it.
He’d conquered me in a way that no one else could.
I blinked hard, trying not to think about the way his touch had lingered on my skin.
I tried not to think about the fact that I was actually sad when the redness from his palm had faded to pink and how empty I’d felt when there was nothing left behind at all.
I almost wished he had spanked me hard enough to leave marks because those would have taken much longer to fade.
I sat back in my office chair, looking out at the bright green treetops of Central Park. I was here because of him. I knew that.
Not only had Miranda Parker been transferred out of my department, she had been relocated to Alaska.
A set of risqué pictures had been leaked online the day after I visited him of her with one of the higher-ups and they’d both lost their positions here once Human Resources got word of their affair.
I no longer answered to Colin Harrington either.
I had a new boss now and I adored her. Her name was Evangeline Masters, and she was a powerhouse.
I was proud to work for her because she didn’t let petty nonsense get under her skin and she never let any of the men working in government get a leg up on her.
She worked harder and often much smarter than all of them combined.
I hadn’t gotten the promotion I was vying for.
I’d been promoted several levels above that and when they’d seen the product of my work, I’d risen again.
I was in a position I’d only dreamed of right now, and I knew deep in my heart that it was because of his help.
Sure, I’d excelled because I had the skills and intelligence to make it, but he’d been the one to open that door in the first place.
I’d gotten a new office on a different floor far away from those I used to work for, as well as a massive salary bump too. I wanted for nothing except for one single thing.
Him.
I swallowed and grasped at my coffee mug.
I took a long sip of the mocha latte and sighed.
There was a knock at my door, and I looked up to see my young assistant’s smiling face.
I’d hired her only a week ago, but she’d already proven to be indispensable in organizing my schedule and planning meetings between organizations that I’d been trying to nail down for months.
Her pretty blue eyes sparkled, and I grinned in her direction.
“There’s a call for you on line one. Sounded pretty important so I figured I’d come in and tell you myself,” she explained.
“Thank you, Jenny. I appreciate it,” I grinned.
“Need any more coffee? I can go out and pick lunch up for you too if you’re getting hungry,” she offered.
“No coffee. I’m still working on this delicious latte you made this morning, but lunch sounds fantastic. I’ve been thinking about that chicken curry and rice from that Chinese place down the block,” I murmured, drilling my fingers against the heavy wooden surface of my desk.
“Right on it, boss,” she grinned.
“Keep up the good work,” I winked, and she smiled even wider.
“I will. I’ll leave you to that call now,” she replied.
I turned my eyes to the blinking phone in front of me and picked up the receiver. I cleared my throat and pressed on line one.
“Keri Esposito speaking. How may I help you?” I began.
“Keri…” a male voice sounded on the other line and my blood ran cold.
I knew that voice. I hated that voice with every fiber of my being.
It was my father.
“It’s nice to hear your voice again,” he drawled, and my stomach roiled with nausea.
I sat back and tore my eyes to the calendar.
It was the year he was first eligible for parole.
He’d done eight years of hard time before the possibility of getting out was granted to him and as I listened to the silence on the other end of the line, a cold fear started rising from the tips of my toes at the likelihood that he could or would get out.
“I’ve been reading all about you in the newspapers for years now, my girl,” he continued.
I wasn’t his girl. I was no one’s girl.
“Have you now?” I ventured carefully. I cocked the phone against my ear and leaned back in my chair. I did everything in my power to remain professional even though his voice struck a chord of hatred deep inside me that refused to go away.
“I’ve heard all about your fancy new office from your pretty little assistant, Jenny,” he said boldly, and I froze.
“What do you mean?” I asked as my eyes flashed to the blonde head flouncing into the elevator. Her eyes met mine once more and she grinned knowingly.
Fucking hell.
“Oh, Jenny? She works for me. She’s done you a few favors now, hasn’t she?
She got you that meeting with Harris Realty so you could build a fancy new school in the middle of Manhattan.
Not only that, but with that ritzy group that wants to sponsor education for the poor and needy kids, right? ” he pushed.
My blood ran even colder.
“You didn’t think she was doing that on her own, did you?” he accused.
Fuck him.
“What do you want?” I asked coldly.
“I scratch your back, Keri, you scratch mine. I called in a few favors for you and now you’ll call in a few for me,” he demanded.
“I’m not going to help you,” I answered.
“I’m going to tell you how this is going to go.
You’re going to accept a few donations from a few new businesses in the city.
You’ll take those names and add them to whatever lists you need to ensure that no one ever takes a second look at them.
You’ll use whatever connections you got to make sure that people look the other way when they have large payments come in from Mexico or Jamaica or Grand Cayman or wherever the fuck they come from and you’ll do it in a way that ensures that I remain in business for a long time,” he said, his voice hard.
There wasn’t an ounce of emotion in that voice, just unabashed danger and expectation that only a monster like him was capable of.
“I can’t do that,” I replied, still keeping my voice as strong as I dared.
“You will, daughter. You abso-fucking-lutely will do everything I ask unless you want to wind up dead,” he said.
I swallowed heavily.
“Look at the desk in front of you. Tell me what you see,” he instructed and there was something decidedly evil in his tone that made my blood run cold as ice.
I did what he said and looked down. There was a tiny red laser dot on my desk. I watched it move side to side and I finally turned to look out of the corner of my office. Through that window, I could see a man in the neighboring building.
He was holding a massive sniper rifle and as that laser flickered across my chest, I knew that I was just a trigger pull away from death.
“Do you see it, daughter?” my father asked, and I froze there in my chair, awash in chilling fear that refused to abate.
“I see it,” I replied, my voice devoid of all emotion.
“A long time ago, I told you that you were expendable, that anyone could be replaced, even a kingpin’s daughter. I didn’t need you to marry the Battistas. I could take them myself if I wanted to, but that was a long time ago, wasn’t it?”
“Yes. A long time ago,” I echoed.
“I’ve had a long time to think about what I would do when I got out,” he murmured.
“You’re out on parole,” I breathed.
“That I am. They let me out on good behavior. I have to wear this stupid ankle bracelet, but it’s nice to fucking walk the streets of New York again,” he went on.
“I see.”
“You know, the view of Central Park you have is great and all, but there’s nothing like walking through the park itself, ya know.
Why don’t you look out your window and wave at your father?
It’s been a long time since you’ve seen me, especially since you never took the time to visit me in prison, you goddamn ungrateful bitch,” he spat.
I swallowed heavily and glanced down. I was on the fifteenth floor and the people were just barely visible from up here, but I didn’t want the man with the rifle trained right on me to report anything different. Finally, my gaze landed on the one man who could only be my father.
“You’ll do as you’re told. I’ll call you next week and I expect to hear all about what you’ve accomplished in the time since we last spoke. Do you understand, Keri?” he threatened.
“I understand,” I replied.
I stayed still, watching as the tiny red dot bounced around my chest until it finally disappeared.
The man in the window vanished, but I remained frozen in my chair for a long while after that.
When I was finally able, I lifted my eyes to the clock only to see that it was well past lunch now. It was nearly three o’clock.
Jenny had never come back. She’d done her job and now it was over. I needed to get out of here. I pushed my chair back, grabbed my purse, and walked out of the office.
“Something has come up. I had an emergency meeting uptown. Move my conference call to tomorrow afternoon,” I declared to the secretary sitting outside.
“Isn’t that Jenny’s job?” she asked.
“She’s fired,” I replied, and a look of shock swiftly passed over the older woman’s face.
“Have a good rest of your afternoon,” she responded quickly.
“You too, Nancy,” I smiled tensely.
* * *
I climbed into my car and sat at the wheel for a long time.
Finally, I drove myself home and when I pulled into the garage, I couldn’t bring myself to get out of the car.
Even though my building had world class security, I had a feeling that it wouldn’t be enough.
If my father could sneak a girl into my office building and pull enough strings to have her hired as my assistant, I wasn’t safe here.
He’d probably have another sniper trained on my apartment, or even worse he’d have someone hidden inside waiting for me.
Going home or back to work wasn’t safe.
I could only think of one person that might be able to help me now. When I got there, he would probably slam the door in my face.
I could use my own connections to deal with my father, but it could get messy.
I’d have to get my hands dirty and probably do far more than I was willing just to put him behind bars forever, which could prove far more dangerous than even now.
I chewed my lip and closed my eyes, trying to think of whatever avenue I could to handle him, but nothing better came to mind.
With a few calls, one man could make it all go away.
I needed Daddy.
I pulled out of my assigned parking space and circled back around in the garage. I started driving in his direction and in no time at all, I had pulled up in front of his house. I sat in my car for at least a half hour before I convinced myself to get out and walk up to that front door.
I prepared myself for rejection, for his anger, and for whatever else he wanted to throw back at me. I was ready for the door to slam in my face and for him to tell me to deal with it myself. I lifted my hand and tentatively rang the bell.
This time the butler didn’t answer the door.
This time, Jaxon Blackwood answered it himself.