“We had sex.”
I blurted it out before I could stop myself. I heard Lily gasp and then try and gather herself.
“You did what?” she whispered.
“We met for a drink. Then we went to his house and had sex,” I replied.
Neither of us responded to that statement. I was waiting to hear what she had to say, while she waited for an explanation. Eventually, she broke.
“Piper I don’t know what to tell you. Why would you do that after what he did to you?”
I could feel tears pricking the backs of my eyelids.
“I don’t know.”
“You were miserable when he broke up with you. You locked yourself in your room for days!”
“I know what I went through, Lily.”
“You refused to listen to reason. He abandoned you out of the blue, and you were heartbroken. Why would you even agree to meet him again?”
I sighed, feeling helpless as I sat there.
“I don’t know what overtook me. I thought I could handle it. I was curious about him, and he was so persistent that we should catch up. But I spent barely half an hour in his company and I realized that my attraction for him, in every way, had not gone away.”
“You wanted to sleep with him?”
“Yes, I did. I also just felt like I wanted to be near him.”
I felt ashamed as I spoke to my sister, even though I knew she would never judge me. I was angry with myself too.
“Are you going to see him again?” Lily asked. I shook my head vigorously.
“No. I don’t think he’s interested in seeing me again. I don't want to ever go through what I did with him before. It’s over, Lily,” I cried.
“It was supposed to be over ten years ago, Piper. This wasn’t supposed to happen,” she said, as firmly as she could.
“I know. I know I’ve been stupid. What am I going to do now? How am I going to get over this?” I was sobbing.
“Listen to me, Piper!” Lily snapped herself into a commanding position. “I want you to stay away from that man. He took advantage of your naivety before, and he’s going to do it again if you let him. Do you understand me? Cliff Evans is not a trustworthy man.”
I wiped the tears from my cheeks.
I knew Lily had every reason to think that way about him, even if I didn’t. I was the one who had gone to her for advice, so I had no choice but to listen to her.
“You’re right. I’m going to stay away from him,” I said.
Chapter 12
Cliff
I was at the office the next morning, and I couldn’t stop thinking about Piper. Nothing felt right about the way we left things.
I shouldn’t have given in to her demands. I shouldn’t have brought her back to my place, as much as I wanted to. It meant that despite us sleeping together, she hated me now even more.
Piper didn’t deserve to be hurt again. Even though I wasn’t trying to, I think that is what I had done to her.
I couldn’t get over this nagging feeling that I wanted to do something for her. I knew that I couldn't be with her, but I wanted to help her. She was all I could think about.
I knew she hated me, and she never wanted to see me again, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t help her in some way. Without her finding out.
A business loan.
Yes!
I was the CEO of an investment firm. That was what I did. I could invest in her cafe idea. I could help her purchase the property she always wanted. Once she accepted my money as a loan, it would be too late to back out of it.
For the sake of both our sanity, I would keep my distance from her. She wouldn’t even have to see me. She wouldn’t have to work with me either.
Given the position I was in right now, it was the least I could do.
I pressed the buzzer on the intercom that connected me to Martin. He was in the office next to mine, my right-hand-man.
“Martin, get in here,” I barked into the phone.
I was beginning to feel good about this.
I was determined to help Piper any way I could, and this was the only solution I could think of right now. If I went to her myself, she would never accept the money.
Martin entered my office. I told him to shut the door behind him.
“What’s up, boss?” he asked.
“Piper Cohen. I want you to find out everything you can about her. She’s a sous chef at Privy restaurant,” I told him.
“Sure, but what is this for?” he asked.
“I want you to make her a business proposal. She has an idea for a cafe, which I think is really going to work. She might try and shoot you down, but I trust you, Martin. I trust you’ll be able to bring her around,” I explained.
Martin nodded.
“Consider it done,” he said to me.
Hearing his confidence relaxed me a little. I was relieved in the knowledge that I could finally help Piper achieve her dreams.
“And whatever you do, do not tell her I sent you. In fact, don’t even tell her where you’re from. Once she agrees to it and when she’s signing the papers, she’ll realize it, but hopefully, it’ll be too late for her to back out. By then she’ll be sold on the idea.”
Martin was smiling as he nodded some more.
“Whatever you want, boss.”
Chapter 13
Piper
A week had gone by, and I heard nothing from Cliff. I was working in the kitchen again, and even though I was still anxious, I felt like I just might be able to get past this.
I wanted to be over this feeling of sensing Cliff everywhere around me and trying to search him out in a crowd. I needed to stop looking through the kitchen door to see if he was in the restaurant. That feeling was thankfully diminishing every day.
I was in the middle of receiving my instructions from Chef regarding the specials menu for tonight, when a man walked in through the doors of the kitchen.
“Now what?” Chef roared. “Who are you?”
I didn’t recognize him, and neither did anyone else in the kitchen seem to. But he stared right at me.
“I was hoping to get a moment of Ms. Cohen’s time, please,” the man said.
The manager came in through the door.
“What is the meaning of this!” Chef raged. I couldn’t believe this was happening either. It wasn’t Cliff, but who could this be? Why would a stranger want to speak to me in the middle of my work?
“This gentleman would like to speak to Piper,” the manager said. Chef turned to me with pure fury in this eyes.
“What is going on with you, Cohen? Do you even want to work here? There’s an interruption every night, caused by you!”
I stared at him, feeling a rising pride in me. He had no right to speak to me this way, and no reason to blame me for everything that went wrong in his kitchen.
“I do want to work here, Chef. I thought I made it clear through all the hard work I put in. That is why I stand here, taking your rants,” I hissed.
I could see Chef’s eyes widen with anger. He couldn’t believe I would speak to him this way. I looked over his shoulder at the stranger. He was smiling at me.
“Follow me,” I snapped at him.
Then I led him out through the back doors of the kitchen, just like I led Cliff out over a week ago.
Once outside, I pulled my hair-net off and crossed my arms over my breasts.
“Who are you and what do you want from me?” I asked him.
He was a dashing young man, with closely cropped shining blond hair and clear blue eyes. I would have even considered him hot if my head wasn’t so full of Cliff these days.
“Martin Shay,” he said and extended his hand to me.
With crossed brows, I shook his hand.
“Okay, Martin, do I know you?” I asked as his smile widened. He had a certain confidence about him which reminded me of Cliff a little bit.
“Thank you for agreeing to speak to me, Ms. Cohen,” he began as I rolled my eyes.
> “Just get on with it, please, Martin. As you can see, my boss is fuming inside,” I told him.
Martin nodded his head.
“Right. Well, I came here tonight to discuss an investment plan with you. The thing is, Ms. Cohen, we are very interested in going into business with you. We’ve been reading great things about you and the team in the reviews, and we would love to find a way to work with you exclusively. We are quite aware, that it is you, and not Chef Morris, who keeps this place running. You are the real star.”
I was glaring at Martin as he spoke. I couldn’t believe the words coming from his mouth.
“Wait a minute, you want to invest in me?” I snapped. Then he nodded his head and looked pleased with himself.
“Indeed we do, Ms. Cohen, and you shouldn’t look so surprised.”
I breathed in deeply as he continued speaking.
“We would like to discuss a business idea with you. I’m sure you’re bursting with ideas too. We would like to back you on any solo ventures that you have in mind. We think you have great potential and we would like to utilize that.”
This was everything I wanted to hear. It was a dream come true. It was like the Universe had suddenly decided to cut me some slack and turn my life around.
“Who do you work for, Martin?” I asked him.
He looked nervously around him and smiled.
“Well, Ms. Cohen, my employers would appreciate if that is kept confidential for the time being. We don’t want to fall prey to competition. The investment industry is full of sharks. If our competitors find out you’ve been approached, they might outbid us, and we would like to avoid that from happening. I can assure you, Ms. Cohen, that you are in safe hands.”
I nodded, looked down at my feet and then back up at him again.
“You can save yourself the trouble, and save me the bullshit. I know exactly who you work for,” I said to him.
“Excuse me?” he asked, crossing his brows.
“Cliff Evans. That’s who you work for, and he’s sent you here in the hopes that I’ll get into business with him, that he’ll give me the money I need to open my cafe. He is an idiot if he thinks I would fall for something like that!”
My voice was snappy. I was all charged up from the lecture I’d just given Chef Morris.
Martin had that deer-in-the-headlights look in his eyes now. He gulped nervously.
“Ms. Cohen, I can assure you we all have your best interest in our hearts. We just want to see you succeed and help us be successful in turn too,” Martin insisted. I rolled my eyes at him.
“You can tell Cliff that I don’t need his money, and I certainly don’t need his help. I can manage just fine. You’ve wasted your time, Martin,” I told him.
“Ms. Cohen…” he tried, as I walked past him.
“You should leave now,” I snapped before I walked into the kitchen again.
Yes, it did sound like a dream that was too good to be true. What did Cliff think I was going to do? Did he think I would agree to his little plan so I could be indebted to him for life? Did he feel guilty about sleeping with me again?
I had my fists clenched as I walked into the kitchen. I couldn’t believe this was happening, right after I’d had a completely peaceful week!
For a few moments, I forgot about Chef Morris, and now as I entered the kitchen, I saw him again.
He was standing with his legs apart, his arms crossed over his chest, and there was fury in his eyes.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he growled, as I tried to get past him.
“I’m getting back to work,” I said, meeting his eyes with pride.
“You don’t work here anymore, Cohen,” he hissed.
His words stung my skin. I hoped that I had heard him wrong.
“What are you talking about?” I mumbled and tried to get past him again. He grabbed my arm and held me in position.
“You heard me loud and clear, Cohen. You don’t work here anymore.”
I stepped away from him, and he released his grip on my arm. This couldn’t really be happening to me. Not tonight!
“Look, Chef, I apologize for losing my temper. I’ve been under a lot of stress lately,” I argued. I couldn’t lose my job. Not right now. Where was I supposed to go? What was I supposed to do here?
He looked ruthless as he stood there over me.
“I don’t give a flying fuck. This is my kitchen. You work for me and clearly, you can’t. So, pack up your things and leave.”
He held his hand out to me, and I knew what he wanted.
With trembling hands, I slid my jacket off and handed it to him. I could sense everyone’s eyes on me. As much as they sympathized with me, they were also grateful they weren’t in my position.
“Chef if you’ll just let me explain,” I murmured.
“I don’t need an explanation. You’ve explained yourself very well. You seem to think you’re amazing. I’ll tell you this much, Cohen, you’re nothing without me!” he growled.
I could feel those tears returning again. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Manny at the kitchen door. The color had drained from his face.
“And I’m going to make sure everyone in town knows it too. You’re not going to find a job in Boston. Heck, you might never find another one in the country once word gets out!” he continued to roar.
I tried to slip away from him, running into the small changing room at the back of the kitchen where my things were.
“You’re going to have to leave this city, Cohen. You will remember all your life what you gave up when you dared to talk down to me. And let this be a lesson to all of you! All of you!”
He continued to rant while I packed my things. I could hear his voice in the kitchen, while tears streamed down my cheeks. He was right, I would never be able to work in Boston again.
Chapter 14
Cliff
The others had come over to my place, and we were having drinks. Sawyer brought Faye and Isaac brought Margo. Vince came alone. The kids were with babysitters, which meant this was going to be one long drunken night as per tradition.
I was in a better mood tonight. According to Martin, he was going to speak with Piper this evening, which meant that there was a good chance the deal could be finalized in the next few days. I was looking forward to it. Piper’s dreams could be set in motion in a matter of days. I just wanted her to be happy.
We were sitting in my living room, drinking and talking loudly. Faye was on Sawyer’s lap, while Margo and Isaac sat huddled together on the couch. Vince was in charge of making sure our glasses were never empty, and he was doing an excellent job of it.
Isaac was in the middle of relating some long-winded story about a lecture he recently gave in Barcelona on Shakespeare. As always, it was boring the rest of us to death except Margo, who hung on his every word. That’s what love did to you, I thought with a smile.
The doorbell rang, and I looked over at Vince.
“Did you invite somebody?” I asked him. He shrugged and laughed.
“You kidding me? Who do I have to invite?” he declared.
Margo rolled her eyes at him.
“It’s because you’re not looking, Vince!” she scolded him, and he laughed some more.
“I’ll steer clear of the love bug. Thank you very much!” he said.
I had a smile on my lips when I walked to the front door. The ice clinked in the glass in my hand.
When I opened the door, the last person I was expecting to find standing there was Piper.
I hadn’t noticed it was raining outside, but it was pouring. She was completely soaked. Her golden hair was matted and stuck to the sides of her cheeks. The white shirt she had on was transparent and wet. I could see the black bra she was wearing underneath and her pebbled nipples. My cock moved.
“Piper!” I said her name and stepped away from the door. She didn’t make a move to enter my house.
“Spare me the look of shock, Cliff! You know exactly why I’m here
!”
From the clipped tone of her voice, I could sense she was upset with me. Martin! What did that bastard do?!
“Honestly, Piper, I have no idea,” I said. Her jeans were wet too. Her face glistened with moisture. Mascara was running in puddles down her cheeks, but she still looked beautiful. I still wanted her.
“You sent him to my kitchen!” she snapped. She shuddered, I could see she was cold in the breeze.
“Piper, please come inside and dry yourself first. Then we can talk,” I insisted. I hoped she’d be able to see how much I just wanted her to be happy.
“I am not stepping into your house. I need you to admit what you did!” she raged. Her eyes were wide with anger, she had her fists clenched. I had never seen her this angry before. This time, I royally messed it up.
“Okay, I’ll tell you everything. I’ll explain. Please, just come inside,” I begged her, but she refused to budge.
“Tell me the truth! You sent Martin Shay to my kitchen, to offer me that phony investment!”
“It wasn’t phony. It was supposed to be a legitimate business deal!” I shouted back.
Piper’s eyes relaxed. She heard everything she needed to hear from me.
“Good. I’m glad you’ve admitted it. That’s all I needed,” she snapped. Piper was about to turn away and leave, but there was a voice behind me, at the end of the hallway.
“Oh God! You’re drenched!”
It was Margo.
Piper stopped in her tracks and looked at me. I could see what she was thinking. She noticed the whiskey in my hand and the glass of wine in Margo’s. She must have assumed Margo was my date for the night.
Margo came rushing up to us.
“Come in, come in out of the rain,” she said, reaching for Piper’s hands. Margo, with her calm insistence, was able to bring Piper in. I could tell that she didn’t want to, but at the same time couldn’t reject Margo either.
“Cliff, why don’t you go and bring her some towels. Maybe one of your shirts for her to change into?” she suggested.
Daddy CEO: A BILLIONAIRE SECOND CHANCE BABY ROMANCE Page 5