by Gage Grayson
“I’ll take that as a yes,” my mother says, eyebrows raised.
Then she hugs me tightly, kisses me on the cheek…
And kicks me out of her apartment.
So much for familial love.
But the conversation with my mother has cleared up my head a lot.
I didn’t get to where I was by relying on other people. I did it all off the skin of my own back. Passive is not a word I’d have ever used to describe me, and I’m not about to change that now.
I have the power to fix this, even if I would rather not have to call Oberon Lawson and tell him, in no uncertain terms, that I’m not selling any land to him.
I make my way to Hampton Properties, though it’s Sunday. It actually suits me that nobody will be in the office—all the better to have a conversation with Oberon.
Not to mention the shit-ton of paperwork I’ll need to write up and send over to Erik so that it’s on his desk first thing tomorrow morning.
I spend the first hour or so identifying all the properties and land that Erik had wanted, but that were promised to Oberon. I pull up clean, new paperwork for all of them, look up Oberon’s initial paperwork—none of which had been finalized—then take a deep breath.
Time to call Oberon.
My heart is beating too quickly—am I really doing this? Never mind what it could mean for my career; there’s no telling what Oberon might do in retaliation when I destroy his property deals. He could hurt my family. Or worse…
But he was bribing me, so as long as I stick to my guns, I’d have a solid case against him in a court. And, none of the paperwork was finalized, anyway.
It’ll be fine. It’ll all be fine.
Ha. If only it were that easy.
I pick up my cell phone and call Oberon before I have another opportunity to doubt myself.
The phone rings once. Twice. And then—
“Miss Clark,” Oberon’s silky, confident voice croons over the phone. “I’m assuming this call means you managed to shake off Erik Storm?”
I take a deep breath.
“No. Our deal is off, Oberon.”
“I’ve already said I’ll double your payment,” he replies, immediately icy. “I won’t go higher than that.”
“Good. I won’t do it. You’re done. You should have insisted on finalizing your paperwork on the spot.”
“You know I’m a powerful man, Miss Clark. And you’re a smart girl. Don’t do anything that may warrant…unpleasant consequences.”
Oh. It didn’t take long for the man to start threatening me. What a nasty piece of work.
“You don’t have a legal leg to stand on. You have no signed paperwork, and you were bribing me. That won’t cast a particularly good light on you in court. So just take the loss, and find somewhere else to turn into your private playground.”
“Miss Clark—”
“Good-bye, Mr. Lawson.”
I hang up on him before he can say anything else. God, it feels satisfying.
With a grim smile and adrenaline pumping through my system, I shred Oberon’s paperwork sheet by sheet. That’s also incredibly satisfying.
I am meticulous with the construction of Erik’s paperwork—I don’t want there to be a single mistake. I want his signature and for the deal to be done.
The final piece of paperwork I write up is for the beachfront property that we spent that wonderful morning in. I know it must sting for Erik to know that Oberon so easily waltzed in and took the other house—the one with the hot tub he had wanted to use.
I sit up straight as I have an idea. A ridiculous, crazy idea.
Hot tubs can’t be that expensive, right?
A quick Internet search solidly refutes that thought. They are very, very expensive. Especially if I want one recessed into the terrace floor.
But everything that’s happened has been my fault, so far. The hot tub would literally eat up my entire savings account, but…
I buy one anyway. Holy shit, I buy one anyway.
It’s for Erik. And me. It’s for us.
I just have to hope that, after receiving the paperwork, Erik will be inclined to listen to me.
I pray that it’s not too late.
My mom was right—I’m a handful. But Erik seemed to revel in that. He loved it. My heart hurts merely thinking about it, which only reaffirms that I have to work hard to fix this.
And with a large dose of luck, maybe, just maybe, Erik will accept me once more.
A girl can dream, after all.
My heart is still hammering in my chest as I send all the paperwork over to Erik’s assistant, with the specific instructions that he looks over the documents as soon as he gets to his office in the morning.
I can’t give Oberon any opportunity to mess things up. Not after this.
It’s going to be a long, sleepless night while I wait to hear from Erik.
If he gets in contact at all.
17
Erik
It’s with a struggle that I force myself out of bed. Sunlight is streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows of my New York penthouse, insisting that it is indeed time for me to get up and head to work.
But today is the board meeting. I have to tell everyone my plans have failed.
I have never wanted to go to work less than I do today.
With a groan, I turn on the shower, standing under the slew of steaming, high-pressure water for far longer than is strictly warranted.
I inspect my body critically as I dry myself after, thinking about Rose’s wandering fingers against my skin, running through my hair and sliding gracefully over my—
Ah, great. Just what I needed. A boner from thinking about a woman I desperately want to forget about.
Thanks, Rose.
Sighing, I shave, brush my teeth, and get dressed, calling a car to take me to the office via a coffee house, which is decidedly better than the filth my assistant has been making me.
It’s still no Hamptons corner coffee, but it’s a marked improvement. At the very least, the coffee helps to clear my head and wakes me up as I dolefully drudge into the company building. With my lack of enthusiasm, you’d think I was a typical 9 to 5 worker, rather than the CEO of my own multi-billion-dollar company.
I guess everyone has days they don’t want to work, no matter how high their station.
My current mood must be overly apparent on my face, for nobody bothers me on my way up to my private office. I guess there are some benefits to having a dour look on your face, then.
Though I imagine people would be far less inclined to help me out if I looked like this all the time.
It’s with some relief that I reach the safety of my office, coffee in-hand and with plans to insist that nobody bother me until lunch. The board meeting is in the afternoon, so I want a blessedly quiet morning before facing the rest of the people responsible for my company.
Of course, my assistant has other ideas.
“Mr. Storm, some important documents came in for—”
“Not right now, David,” I interrupt my young, over-eager assistant who makes terrible coffee. “It can wait. You know I have that board meeting this afternoon. I just need a couple of hours of peace and quiet.”
“But, sir—”
I give him a look.
“They can wait.”
I close the door to my office behind me. I’m sure to feel bad for snapping at David later, but right now I simply don’t care.
I’ve barely sat down behind my desk when my cellphone rings. I have to physically restrain myself from breaking my phone in two, but then I see who’s calling.
Oberon fucking Lawson.
Probably calling to gloat. Knowing him, that’s definitely what this is about.
And yet…
Despite knowing what he’s probably going to say, I answer the call.
“What do you want, Lawson?”
“Clever of you to fuck the real estate agent to get what you want, Storm,” Oberon quips.
“Didn’t know you’d stoop so low. I’m impressed.”
I frown at the phone, confused.
“I’m afraid I don’t—”
But then, I see my assistant standing behind my glass door, clutching a sheaf of documents with a pained expression on his face. Clearly, those important documents really are important.
Wordlessly, I wave David in. He places the documents on my desk and hurries out without a noise.
Damn, now I definitely feel bad for snapping at him. He really is a good assistant…even if he does make bad coffee.
I glance down at the documents he brought in.
And almost burst out laughing.
It’s the paperwork for every plot of land and property I wanted to buy. Every single one of them.
And then, I do laugh. Right down the phone at Oberon Lawson.
“Ahh, Lawson, you’re right. Sleeping with Rosewas very low of me. So much lower than bribing her to get what I want. Must sting that she fucked you over.”
And, then, I hang up without allowing Oberon to get another word in.
I usher David back into my office with a wave of my hand. I smile at him apologetically when he enters.
“I’m sorry, David. You didn’t deserve me being so short with you. Can you get a notary into my office as soon as possible?”
He nods his head.
“Before or after the board meeting?”
“Before. Definitely. You can take the afternoon off after this paperwork is signed—it’s your girlfriend’s birthday, right?”
David looks at me, surprised.
“How did you know that?”
I grin.
“You might want to reconsider not having personal phone calls at your desk. I can hear you from my office sometimes.”
David’s face flushes bashfully.
“Noted. And—thanks. I’ll get a notary sorted immediately.”
After he vacates my office, I stretch luxuriously in my chair, smiling in satisfaction down at the paperwork.
That was a ballsy move on Rose’s behalf. And, I know what it had to have cost her. She didn’t have to do this.
But she did.
She did it for me. And my dream.
I know where I’m flying to straight after my board meeting. I grin, thinking about the look on Rosa’s face when I show up at her door. The end of the day can’t come quickly enough.
I head down to reception a few hours in advance of the board meeting to request some champagne and a lavish lunch spread brought up—half in celebration, and half to rub it in the faces of the board members who wished that I would fail. I’m sure Rose would approve.
But it is on my way down to reception that I notice several of my board members talking quietly and inconspicuously.
‘Conspiring’ is the word that comes to mind.
Something causes me to stalk down the corridor as quietly as I can, sliding into a vacant office to hide behind the door as I listen attentively.
“Look, as soon as Storm shows us the signed paperwork, we’ll have grounds to vote for no confidence. He’ll be out.”
“But, Larsson and Johnson are behind him—”
“Not anymore. That’s been handled.”
“So, we’re good to go?”
“Absolutely. Storm has no place at the head of a multi-billion-dollar company if he has no interest in making any profit. He’s out.”
Shit.
So much for gleefully wanting to rub my victory in their faces. The bunch of snakes have been planning to skewer me on a stake from the beginning. All they needed were the grounds to do so.
Frantically, I try and think of a solution. They plan to vote me out of my own company this afternoon, as soon as I—
As soon as I show them the signed Hamptons paperwork. But if I never sign it on behalf of the company…
I rush back to my office as quietly as I can.
“David, David, cancel the notary and called the helicopter to the helipad.”
David has the sense not to question what I’m doing.
Just as well, because neither am I.
My entire plan rests on the shoulders of Rose Clark.
18
Rose
I still haven’t heard from Erik, and it’s killing me.
I’d have thought I’d hear from him by now for sure.
And yet, at three in the afternoon, my phone has been radio-silent. Earlier in the office, I was so restless that Claire sent me home after finding out that I had spent hours working the day before when I shouldn’t have been in.
I try calming down by going for a bath, but the steaming water simply makes me hot and bothered.
I try eating something, but my stomach is churning to the point that I feel too sick to eat.
I try sleeping, but my brain is racing with too many hypothetical situations—what Erik might be doing now, why he might be ignoring the property paperwork—that sleep escapes me entirely.
So, I lie on my sofa, watching the television and feeling utterly like a waste of space.
I’ve never been a patient woman, especially not when I could achieve so much by being proactive and doing everything myself. But now I have to rely on someone else—Erik—to act.
And I can’t stand it.
For want of anything better to do, I straighten my hair and do my makeup, as if I were going on a night out.
Maybe I should go on a night out…
It would certainly distract me. I might even find a decent guy.
But who am I kidding? All I’d end up doing is compare them to Erik.
Also, it’s Monday.
Belatedly, I look at myself in the mirror, my hair and makeup flawless and completely at odds with the oversized T-shirt and tiny pair of shorts I wear when I’m in my apartment, before throwing myself back onto the couch. I groan loudly at my restlessness.
I glance at my fridge. It’s never too early for alcohol, right? And besides, it’s mid-afternoon.
Screw Monday! Any day is acceptable for drinking.
I barely make it over to my fridge when the doorbell rings.
“Strange…” I mutter, frowning.
I have no idea who it could be, and I’m certainly not expecting anyone. With one last forlorn look at my fridge, I buzz whoever is outside the building, then stand by my door until I hear a knock on it.
The last person I expect to see was Erik, but when I swing the door open, there he is.
Erik Storm is standing outside my apartment.
I don’t even know what to say.
“You weren’t at the office,” Erik says. I notice he’s a little out of breath.
“Claire sent me home early,” I explain. “Did you—did you run here? In a suit? In this heat?”
“From your office. Maybe. But this is important.”
Stunned to silence, I stand away from the doorframe to let Erik in. He glances at me, taking in my hair and makeup and entirely unmatched clothes.
“Were you going somewhere?”
I find myself smiling somewhat wryly.
“I had a date with a bottle of tequila, but that’s about it.”
Neither of us speaks for a few moments; all we do is look at each other.
And then…
“Rose, I’m sor—”
“Erik, I’m sorry.”
We both pause, surprised. I recover first.
“What do you have to be sorry for, Erik?”
He laughs. It’s not the reaction I was expecting, to be fair.
“Because I was an idiot,” he says, loosening his tie as he sits down on my sofa, while I stay standing. “I gave you little reason to throw away your family’s security for my sake. Had I been more forthcoming from the beginning, then all of this could have been avoided.”
“Erik, you don’t have to say that for my sake. I’ve come to terms with what I did. Even if my intentions were good, I shouldn’t have made that deal with Oberon.”
“Then somebody else would have, and they might
not have pulled the rug from under his feet and called the deal off. And that would have been even worse for me.”
Huh. I haven’t thought about it like that.
“Did you get the paperwork I sent you, then?” I ask. “I had expected you to call me…maybe.”
Erik’s eyes light up with such fervor that I’m somewhat taken aback. He beckons me over to sit beside him.
“You’ll never fucking believe what happened, Rosa.”
I quirk an eyebrow.
“God, I love it when you look at me like that.”
I can’t help but blush at the sudden comment. I look away.
“So what happened?”
Erik shakes his head slightly, as if only just remembering what he was meant to say.
“I overheard a conversation in the office. My board of directors are planning on betraying me. As soon as I sign for the land in Verona Falls, they plan to vote me out.”
I stare at him, horrified.
“Erik, that’s awful—”
“No, Rose, that’s where you’re wrong,” Erik interrupts, but then he laughs. “Well, you’re not wrong—they’re all a bunch of snakes and can rot in hell—but don’t you see? Had you actually allowed me to sign for the property when I had wanted to, then their plan would have succeeded. But I haven’t signed the paperwork yet.”
Okay, I’m confused.
“But this means you can’t sign for the land, if they’ll vote you out of your own company for doing so.”
“I know. That’s where you come in.”
“Huh?”
“How quickly can you draft up new paperwork?”
“For everything?”
“Yes, everything.”
I consider for a moment.
How long did it take to draft everything yesterday?
“I could do it in two or three hours if you have all information to hand for the person or business that’s buying them. Speaking of, who is buying them?”
“Me.”
What?
“But you just said—”
“I don’t mean me in my capacity as CEO. I mean me personally.”
I look at Erik seriously.
“Erik, that’s a lot of…a lot of money.”