“Okay, maybe a little.”
“Let’s go then. Before it’s too late.”
“You’re right.” He pulled the presentation items off the table. “Let’s go.”
We got to the Paragon building only five minutes early, which didn’t look the best if you asked me, but at least we made it before the agreed-upon meeting time.
Someone from the company came to the lobby and took us upstairs. The gentleman didn’t say much, just showed us to the conference room and then excused himself.
We were the only ones there, and Seth and I took the opportunity to set up our presentation.
“If he comes in here and tells us we’re moving to a different room,” I said, “I’m going to be mad.”
Seth chuckled. “Even with my reservations, I doubt he would do something like that.”
We were almost finished when Gwyneth Ainsworth walked in. “Hello, Mr. Crawford, Ms. Archer.”
“Hello, Ms. Ainsworth,” Seth said.
“Good afternoon,” I said.
Gwyneth turned back to Seth. “Mr. Crawford, I was instructed to show you to the tech room.”
I looked at Seth. I thought he had just said they were unlikely to make us change rooms.
“Oh no,” Gwyneth said, holding out her hands. “You’re still having the meeting here. I will just be taking you for a quick tour.”
I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Are you ready?” Gwyneth asked Seth. “Or do you need to finish up first?”
“No, we’re good to go.”
“I’m sorry, but only you can come.”
Seth looked at me.
“It’s for liability reasons,” Gwyneth said.
I waved him off. “It’s fine. Go. Look around. I’ll be right here when you’re done.”
Seth mulled it over and finally said, “Fine. Lead the way.”
The two left, and I rechecked everything to make sure we hadn’t forgotten anything.
I heard the door click behind me.
“You’re done alre—” I turned to see Gene Ainsworth standing in front of the closed conference door.
I smiled, but it wasn’t with as much confidence as I would have liked.
“Hello, Ms. Archer.”
“Hello,” I said, moving so the large conference table was between us.
“I was glad to hear that you were here this afternoon, but I was disappointed that you hadn’t contacted me about sightseeing.”
I had to hold in my shudder of revulsion.
“Se—Mr. Crawford and I were busy yesterday. We had another meeting to attend.” Sure, it had been completed by noon, but I was not about to tell this man that Seth and I had gone swimming in the hotel pool and then upstairs to make love.
Mr. Ainsworth tsked. “That’s too bad.” He stepped forward to come around to my side of the table, but I didn’t retreat, as he was still at the other end. “I was looking forward to showing you around.” His smile was dripping with sexuality.
I wanted to vomit.
“Sorry, Mr. Crawford likes to keep me close,” I said curtly, trying to throw hints to leave me alone.
Mr. Ainsworth advanced on me, and I looked to the door.
Please, Seth, come back soon.
Seth
“We need to go back,” I said, cutting off Gwyneth Ainsworth as she showed me some piece of a phone that I cared not one single thing about.
“But we’re not finished,” she said.
“I don’t care. Take me back to the conference room.”
She hesitated.
“Now.”
She nodded and led me out the door and back the way we had come.
As we walked, she wrung her hands. “Did I do something wrong?”
I frowned. “No.”
“Then, why—”
“Because something’s not right, and I don’t feel comfortable, leaving Ms. Archer alone.”
Gwyneth’s head dropped, and I got the impression she knew something.
When we got close, the first thing I noticed was the door to the conference room was closed.
I marched forward and practically threw it open.
The first thing I saw was Gene Ainsworth’s arms around Tessa and his mouth on hers.
Then, I saw red.
I must have made an angry sound because Gene jumped back and held his hands up in surrender.
“I am sorry, but your assistant came on to me. I know I should have said no, but she is very beautiful.”
Tessa gasped, and her eyes flew to mine, pleading with me to believe her.
“Let’s go, Tessa,” I said.
She looked at the presentation items.
“Leave them.”
“But, Seth, all this hard work.”
“I don’t fucking care.” I pointed to the floor. “Get over here now.”
Tessa put her head down and came to my side. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
My brow furrowed. What the fuck?
“If you would like to see your assistant back to the hotel and come back here, we can finish our meeting,” Gene said.
I looked at him in shock. This guy had some big brass balls. Unfortunately, he used them for the wrong thing.
“If you think I’m coming back here, you need a reality check.” I grabbed Tessa’s hand and strode toward the door.
We passed Gwyneth, who stood there with her mouth agape.
Tessa and I kept going, but Gwyneth ran after us.
“Please, don’t go. He’s—he’s not right.”
I let go of Tessa’s hand and spun around. Pointing my finger in Gwyneth’s direction, I said, “You’re correct; he’s not right. But neither are you if you continue to leave him in charge.”
“He’s…he’s my father.”
“And a liability.” I did feel for her because she seemed genuinely distraught. “In this building, you need to figure out if you’re his daughter or the future of this company. You can’t be both. But honestly, I wouldn’t even want that man running around as my father.” I pivoted on my heel. “Let’s go, Tessa. We’re done here.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Tessa
Seth didn’t say a single word on our way back to the hotel. It was the most awkward silence I had ever experienced in my life.
The Uber driver tried to make conversation a couple of times, but when I gave polite, one-worded answers and Seth only grunted, he gave up.
When we got to the hotel, Seth exited the vehicle first and held the door open for me, but he wouldn’t look me in the eye.
I was already worried because I wasn’t sure what he thought he’d seen back there. When Gene Ainsworth had put his hands on me, I had been ready to slap him for touching me, job or no job, but Seth had burst through the door first.
I felt sick to my stomach.
The elevator ride up was just as bad as the car ride. The silence was deafening.
I didn’t know what to do or say. I wished Seth would just talk to me.
He unlocked the suite door, and once again, he held it open for me, but his gaze was directed at the big windows facing the street. He let go, and the door shut with a loud click behind us.
“Seth…”
He walked past me and went into his room, where he slammed the door.
My shoulders sagged. He wasn’t even going to let me explain.
Feeling defeated, I went to my own bedroom, not knowing what else to do. I sat down on the bed and stared at the wall, unsure of where to go from here.
There was a ring that made me jump, and it took me a minute to realize it was the hotel phone.
“Hello?” I answered.
“This is Doug. I believe we spoke the day of your arrival.”
It took me a second. “Oh, yes. Yes, Doug. How can I help you?”
“Well, ma’am, I believe I can help you.” I could hear the smile in his voice. “We just had a room open up. It’s a single—”
I started laughing.
“Ma’
am, are you okay?”
I pursed my lips to try to stop, but the timing couldn’t have been any better. I also knew I was laughing because it beat crying.
“I’m sorry. I’m okay.” I huffed out a big breath. “You were saying?”
“We have a single room. It has a king-size bed and—”
“I’ll take it.”
“You don’t need to hear anything else?”
“Nope. I’ll take it.”
“Excellent. Shall I expect you soon?”
I looked around. I needed to pack up my stuff in the bedroom and the bathroom. I also needed my computer and a couple of other things in the main room. “Give me a half hour. Will that work?”
“Yes. I will see you in a half hour.”
I hung up and closed my eyes. While the hotel room was a relief, I still felt sick about what had happened at Paragon.
I was pretty sure I was out of a job, so there went the down payment Alexis and I needed. I had flown to California on the company’s money, but now, I was going to have to fly to Minneapolis on my own dime. But the worst part was, Seth probably hated me.
I had completely ruined everything.
I straightened my spine. One thing at a time.
First things first. I needed to get packed and out of there. At least I wouldn’t have to face Seth’s disappointment anymore. Once I was settled in my own room—which I was also going to have to pay for myself—I could figure out the rest.
I couldn’t afford to stay in California more than one night. We were going home anyway, but now, I needed to book the first flight back to Minnesota.
I found my phone and turned on some music, hoping it would calm me some. Then, I set my suitcase on the bed and began folding my clothes.
When I finished with my clothes, I turned to head to the bathroom to pack those items next but gasped when I saw Seth, standing in my doorway.
My music wasn’t loud, but I hadn’t heard him coming toward my room, and I wasn’t prepared to see him. I had wanted to leave before he came out of his bedroom.
“What are you doing?” he asked in a low voice.
I scrambled for my phone and quickly turned it off.
I pushed my hair behind my ear. “I’m packing up. The front desk found me another room. I’ll be out of your hair in about fifteen minutes.”
Seth did that thing where he simply watched me and didn’t speak. He stood perfectly still, and I had no idea what he was thinking.
Shifting from one foot to the other, I said, “I’ll also get my own flight back home, and I can go into the office Monday morning and turn in my badge and pick up my personal items.”
He turned away and rubbed his chin. He looked so strong and handsome, and I wanted to throw myself into his arms and cry.
Why couldn’t he have stayed in his bedroom for just a little bit longer?
It didn’t matter now, and the only thing I could do was finish collecting my things and get out of there.
I headed for the bathroom. “Excuse me,” I said, trying to slip past him.
He stopped me by shooting his arm out and resting it on the doorframe.
I didn’t attempt to keep moving, but I couldn’t look at him.
“I’m sorry,” he said in a low voice.
My head jerked up. “What?”
“I’m sorry. I knew something wasn’t right, but I let you come with me today anyway. I should have never done that.”
I fell back against the open door. “You’re not mad at me?”
Fire burned in his eyes. “Why the fuck would I be mad at you? I’m mad at myself. And I’m very angry with Paragon and the Ainsworths. But, no, I’m not angry with you.”
“But you…” I looked down at my feet. “But you wouldn’t touch me. Or speak to me. And when we got back here, you slammed the door when you went to your room.” I took a deep breath and lifted my chin. “I know I messed this deal up for you. I’m the one who’s sorry.”
Seth moved so fast that I yelped. He caged me against the door with his hands over my head and his body pressed against mine.
“I need you to listen to me,” he said.
I nodded.
“You did nothing wrong. I know that he touched you without consent. I know you wouldn’t willingly involve yourself with that asshole.” He dropped his forehead to mine. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”
“But—”
“No buts. I didn’t touch you or say anything because we were in public and all I wanted to do was take you to bed. I had to go in my own room and calm down. Because I want to kiss away his touch and replace it with my own. I want to come all over you and in you to let him know he needs to stay away.” He rubbed his nose against mine. “It’s not rational. It’s not romantic. And it’s selfish of me and not very considerate of you.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I want the same thing.”
Seth growled, picked me up in his arms, and carried me to his bed.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Seth
Tessa and I exited the airplane and headed toward baggage claim.
“You remembered to tell your brother not to pick you up?” I asked.
“Yes. I told him that I was getting a ride from you.”
Seeing as her brother seemed a little protective of her, I also asked, “And how did he take it?”
“He didn’t care. It saved him the trip of coming here.”
Maybe I was wrong. “Some brother,” I said.
She laughed. “Okay, real truth. I didn’t tell him. I told his girlfriend, and she told him. And then he sent me a text, telling me to be careful.”
“Why didn’t you say so?”
She shrugged. “I don’t want my brother and…my boss to not like one another.”
I wanted to throw my arm around her and kiss her, but we were in public and back in Minnesota. I didn’t need word to get out that I was sleeping with my assistant.
“Actually, I like your brother more now, knowing he worries about you.” I stepped a little closer. “And I’m more than your boss.”
She looked up at me. “Yeah, I know; you’re my friend.”
I snorted. “I’m also your lover,” I corrected in a low voice.
Her eyes rounded. “Does that mean we’re going to continue this now that we’re home?”
“You bet your ass we are. I thought I’d made it pretty apparent last night that I want you for more than just the week.”
She blushed and looked away in embarrassment.
After I’d caught Tessa packing and I’d cleared up the misunderstanding, I’d made love to her. Holding her in my arms all night had helped to push away the vision of Ainsworth putting his hands on her, but it would probably take some time for me to not feel like punching a wall every time I thought of it.
“But if you don’t feel the same way, I want you to know, there will be no consequences at work or otherwise. The ball is completely in your court.”
“Can I decide later?” she asked with a smile.
“Why? What are you thinking?”
“It’s Friday, which means it’s the weekend. Can we just pretend we’re still on vacation and make real-life decisions on Monday?”
“If that means you’re spending the night at my place, the answer is yes.”
She cringed.
“What?”
“I need to get back to my place. My neighbor has been taking care of my cats, but she went out of town for the weekend.” She bit her lip. “I know. I can go home, feed my cats, and come to your place.”
I shrugged. “Or we can just spend the night at your house?” I liked the idea of being in her home.
“You saw my house the day you dropped me off, right?”
I laughed. “The outside, yes.”
“It’s small. I have three tiny bedrooms. I don’t know if you’re going to like it there.”
“I’m going to love it,” I said.
After Tessa and I picked up our luggage, we went outside
to wait for the car service I’d ordered. I liked Uber when I was out of town, but when I was in the Twin Cities area, I liked to use one particular business that always did a good job. The driver already had my address and knew where to go. I needed to drop off my luggage and get some clean clothes.
When we pulled up to my apartment, Tessa asked, “Where are we?”
“My building.”
“Do you have more than one home?”
I frowned and shook my head. “No.” I got out of the car, and I helped the driver unload our stuff from the trunk.
After I tipped the driver, he took off, and Tessa looked around, as if she was wondering what to do.
“Sorry, but my vehicle is in the parking garage down below. We’ll have to take your stuff upstairs for a few minutes.”
“That is not my problem,” she said.
I raised my brow. “Your problem? I wasn’t aware you had one.”
She stomped her foot. “Seth, the day you took me home after work, you told me you lived close.”
I laughed, having completely forgotten about that. “Sorry. I knew you wouldn’t let me take you home if you knew where I lived, and you were too tired to drive.”
“I could have called a ride.”
I grabbed the handle of my suitcase and headed for the front of the building. “You wouldn’t have though,” I pointed out.
Tessa followed me into the building.
“Wow,” she said. “This place is state of the art.”
I smiled and said, “Come on.” After being on the airplane and losing two hours, I really wanted to get to her place.
In the elevator, I pressed the button for the top floor.
“Let me guess…you live in the penthouse.”
“I do.”
Her eyes bugged out. “I was joking. This isn’t New York. I didn’t think those existed in Minnesota.”
I chuckled. “Well, they do.”
We got to my apartment, and the look of wonder continued to show on her face. I knew I needed to get out of there as soon as possible before she started to worry again about the difference in how much money we had. I quickly packed some new clothes and exited my bedroom.
Not Another Billionaire (Not Another Romance) Page 12