I talked no nonsense with the agents who poked around our business. My father always acted nervously as if there was something to hide. That man had many things to hide, I had no doubts. But the company was a thing he made sure ran above board, always.
Once we pulled up to the warehouse I could see the black Tahoe parked outside. I walked in to see Jack talking to the agent with a nervous look on his face.
When he saw me, he looked relieved that I had come to his rescue. The agent saw his face and turned around to see me. “Nicholai Grimm, right,” the agent asked as he extended his hand to me.
I shook the man’s hand, he didn't look familiar to mer. I had never seen that agent before. “And you are?” I asked in an unflattering unpleasant tone.
He chuckled a bit, looking back at Jack. “Just like you said. He is a busy man who gets right to the point.”
I’d told Jack not to talk and he did anyway, which irritated me. The fact he said anything about me, infuriated me. “Goodbye, Jack,” I said, dismissing the man.
I stood, as the agent took a seat at the table in the break room that wasn’t offered to him. The agents liked to come in as if they owned the place. As if they were in charge of all things in the entire world. “Awe, come on, Nicholai take a seat with me. I was brought onto this case because all others are hitting dead ends here. Help me out, man.”
I did not sit down, as I said, “Did it ever occur to your agency that everyone is hitting dead ends because there is nothing to find here?”
“Well, the people who run the FBI think there is something going on here. Illegal gun sales to be exact. I’d like to talk to anyone I can about that.”
“Well, you could’ve come to my office and I would’ve told you there, just as I told the others, your investigation won’t turn up anything. You’re wasting your time and mine. Which, thank God, isn’t slowing down our production.” I gestured to the door. “You can set up a meeting with my secretary. I’ve asked repeatedly for no agents to come to the warehouse or any of our other facilities. We do business at the office. I don’t know what any of you expect to find by coming down here, anyway.”
“So, what you’re saying, is I need to hang around town until I get a meeting set up with you. I wasn’t planning to be here that long, I live in Nantucket, but I have things I can do to entertain myself while I’m stuck here, waiting on you to give me some of your precious time, Nicholai,” he said as he got up and allowed me to escort him to the door.
“I’m a very busy man. I hope you can understand. So, I do hope you enjoy your stay in our fair city. It may be a long visit,” I said with a chuckle.
“I can wait. I have a daughter who goes to school here. I’m sure she could put her old man up for as long as I need to stay to wait for a meeting with you,” he said and something inside me went cold.
“I have an overseas commitment to tend to next week. After that, we have the holiday season and we close our offices for a week during Thanksgiving, and two weeks starting at Christmas. Perhaps you should go home and come back after the first of the year,” I said as I opened the door and let him walk out first. I followed him out and we stood on the sidewalk, sizing each other up.
“There are three more days in this week, Nicholai. Why not make an appointment for us before you leave? I think that would work out much better for us all. Don’t you agree?” he asked as he put his hands in his pockets.
“Like I said, call my secretary,” I held out a business card and he took it. “We’ll see what she can come up with.”
“I’ll do that, Nicholai.” He started to walk away and I realized I didn’t know his name.
“Hey!” I said, making him stop and turn around to look at me. “Who have I just talked to?”
With a smile, he said, “Oh, yes. I forgot to introduce myself. You can look forward to my presence, Nicholai. I’d hate to be on a no-name basis with you. I am Agent Norman Greenwell. I’ll be seeing ya, son.”
My knees locked and I was frozen in place. The man was from Nantucket, his name was the same as Natasha’s father. He was her father and he was investigating my company.
I never saw that coming!
NATASHA
As I walked out of my last class for the day, I turned my phone off silent and saw I’d missed a call from Nic. I returned it, hoping he wasn’t putting me off about dinner that night. I’d made all the adjustments to the bond and I was looking forward to seeing how he reacted to them all.
“Finally,” he said as he answered the phone. “I need to see you. I have my driver waiting in your dorm parking lot. Bring your notes or whatever you wanted to discuss. Just grab those things and come on. No need to change clothes or primp for me or anything. Just hurry and get to me. And talk to no one. Promise me.”
“Why?” I asked as I got to my car and got in. “And I have those things in my car. Why don’t I drive to wherever you are? It’ll save your driver the time taking me back home later.”
“No!” he said, already sounding pissed. “Wait! Yes, do that. Come straight to me, Natasha. Don’t stop anywhere, please. Come to my home.”
“Jeez,” I said as I got behind the wheel. “You sound a bit dramatic.”
“Don’t,” he said, sternly. “Don’t do that right now. I need to see you and explain things to you. So be careful as you drive but try to hurry. No dawdling. Understand?”
His intense tone had me thinking maybe something really was wrong. So I decided to put on my good girl hat and be the woman he seemed to need me to be at that time. “Yes, sir. I am on my way to you as we speak. See you soon.”
“Thank you. Goodbye.” He ended the call and I tossed my phone on the passenger seat.
I had no idea what could have the man so riled up. I did think it might get in the way of us having a real discussion about the new rules for the bond. And I desperately wanted to discuss those things with him.
The car ride took nearly an hour with traffic and when I made it up to his penthouse, I was met by the doorman who wore a wide smile. “Hello, Miss Greenwell. What a pleasure it is to see you again. And so soon. Please come in, the master is in his office. Have a seat and I shall get him.”
I took a seat on the white leather sofa and placed my purse and the box on the coffee table in front of me. The way the doorman, or butler, or whatever he was, called Nic, the master, had me laughing inside.
That man liked to have the entire enchilada when it came to the lifestyle he was a part of. Even down to living his home-life like an eighteenth century Lord.
Gazing around the eloquently furnished living room, I noticed even more about the way he liked to live. Old paintings, of what looked to be his ancestors, lined one wall. The man in the middle of them had to be his father.
It was larger than the rest and much newer. Such a distinguished looking group of men, I don’t recall ever seeing. His roots were deep. I supposed he could follow them straight back to Germany. His accent was American with the slightest hint of German to it. It was one of the many things that made him so damn sexy and dominant.
That curt way he spoke. It jolted me almost every time when he’d bark a word at me.
“Natasha!” he said from behind me. Jolting me yet again and I jumped to my feet and turned to see him making swift strides to get to me.
I walked towards him to close the distance and found his arms around me, holding me close. His hand cupped the back of my head and held it to his chest where his heart was thumping like mad.
Wrapping my arms around him, I felt him relax a little. “Nic, what’s wrong?”
“My father is coming over in just a little while.” He let me go but grabbed my hand and led me out of the room. I looked over my shoulder as we passed the things I’d laid on the table.
“Nic, I shouldn’t leave that lying around,” I said as I gestured to the white box.
“Nonsense, they’re fine there. I want to talk to you in private.” He continued to pull me with him until we came to a hallway and he open
ed the first door on the left.
A massive bed sat in the middle. Dark oak wood made up the canopy. Ornate carvings ran down each square post, matching the canopy. The room was all him. Manly, dark, and exquisite.
“Your bedroom, I suppose,” I said as he sat me down on the comfortable bed. I ran my hand over the jacquard print on the deep green fabric which covered the bed. “Is this made of real down?”
“Yes, now I need to tell you about what happened today. I met your father,” he said, making my head snap up.
“Why?” I asked in near horror. My father would never approve of what we were doing. Surely, he didn’t track my father down for some reason.
“He came to one of our warehouses. He’s taken on the case the FBI is struggling to put together on my family’s company. Nearly my entire family makes their living from that company. If we lost it, it would devastate so many people who mean everything to me.” His hands moved over my head, stroking me like a puppy in an effort to calm himself.
“Are you doing anything wrong?” I asked. If he was, then my father would catch him. My father was like a bloodhound. He didn’t stop until his cases were solved.
“No, we’re clean as far as I know. My father has always kept things extremely kosher where the business is concerned. It affects too many people in his family to mess around with after all. I’m not worried about that. I’m worried about your father figuring out about you and me,” he said then sat on the bed next to me.
So there it was. He was breaking things off with me because of my father. I understood but I wasn’t happy about it at all. “I see what you’re saying, Nic. I understand your position. I will leave you alone.”
“Leave me alone?” he asked. “No, that’s the last thing I want you to do.”
I was relieved. “Oh, so what do you want?”
“I want you to tell him about us. I want you to tell him you and I met at that interview and we hit it off and are madly in love. I want you to tell him you’re moving in with me and that we are very serious about one another. You can be the person who gets our company off the FBI’s hit list.” His smile was huge and I found it incredible for him to ask such a thing from me.
“You want me to lie to my father?” I asked as I nervously twisted my hands in my lap. “He’s like a human lie detector, Nic. You don’t know the man. He’ll see right through me and when he does he will go after you harder than he would if I was never brought into your little game.”
“I don’t think so.” He looked at me with those dark eyes and took my hands in his. “I think you do love me, Natasha.”
I choked with his words. I felt something for the man but love was too strong of a word. I wanted more than only sex from him but I wasn’t sure I’d ever get that.
The sound of the doorbell ringing had me looking away from him. “But you don’t love me, Nic. And I’m not sure if I love you or merely lust after you at this point. We will never be able to pull such a thing off. It’s better if we stop going any further with our bond until things are settled between you and the FBI.”
“My father is here.” He got up and held out his hand. I took it and went with him. “I’m not stopping things with you now. I can’t. This will work. I am pretty good at acting. And we can still have our agreement, we’ll enjoy that in private, and in public we can be a couple of star-crossed lovers. It will work. And you working for the company is the cherry on top.”
I knew he was wrong. I knew it but he was so sure and upbeat and it felt whimsical as he took me down the hallway to meet his father.
“Father, I’m so glad you made it. I have great news for our company. I do believe we’ve found us something to finally end our battles with the FBI,” Nic said as he took me into the living room.
His father was standing at the bar, swirling his finger around in a short glass of clear liquid. Vodka, I guessed. His light blue eyes penetrated mine as we looked at one another.
“Are you bringing home people you should not be, Nicholai?” he asked his son as he continued to stare at me.
I never let my eyes fall away from his. I held them on him until Nic pulled my face to his and kissed me on the mouth. I was shocked he’d do such a thing. “No, Father. I am not bringing home people I shouldn’t. My good fortune was found at the BBC one night a couple of weeks ago. I had no idea who I was branding that night. The daughter of an FBI agent. The man who has taken over the investigation of our company.”
“I don’t see that as a good thing, Nicholai. I see that as a thing that should end, immediately.” His father took a drink from the glass and moved to sit on the sofa.
Nic grabbed two beers from the mini fridge at the bar and opened them both, handing me one of them. He took my hand and led me to sit on the love seat across from his father. He pointed at the white box. “She and I have a bond. We’re about to sign it.”
“I wouldn’t do that,” his father said as he shook his head. “I doubt her father would approve of such a thing. Most don’t.”
“Her father doesn’t need to know about this part of us. He only needs to know about the part of us that is a happy couple. And she is an intern at the company already so it will work out perfectly. You’ll see,” Nic said with a certainty that his father nor I felt at all.
But I kept my mouth closed as his father was an intimidating man. “A happy couple?” he asked. “What do you mean by that?”
“I mean we will come out as a real couple,” Nic said, as his father frowned.
“She is your whore, Nicholai. She is not the material wives are made of,” his father’s words were harsh and I was appalled.
“You do not know her, Father,” Nic defended me. “She was duped into going to the club by Daniella Day, who is her dorm mate.”
“You branded her that night, Nicholai. I was there too if you recall. She allowed you to fuck her that night. I noticed it wasn’t even long after her arrival. That is a whore, son.” He leveled his eyes on me and I looked right back at him with anger in mine. “He may not know what’s best for our company but I do. You and he are through you little bitch.”
“Father!” Nic shouted as he jumped up. “That’s not up to you and I will not stand for you calling her names.”
His father didn’t bother to get up as he took another drink then said, “You are CEO only because I am allowing that, boy. Now sit your ass down and confer with me as a gentleman would or I will have your job.”
I pulled at Nic’s hand and he sat down. His entire body was shaking and I had no idea what to do about anything. “It’s okay,” I whispered to him.
“Okay?” his father asked with a deep laugh. “It’s most definitely not okay. So you have an internship at our company, do you, girl?”
“I do, sir,” I said in an attempt to get him to see I knew some of the rules the kind of man he was required.
“Perhaps that could be of use to us. Perhaps you could tell your father you’d be a spy on the inside for him,” his father said as he looked up, thinking. “If he thought you were taking care of his dirty work, he’d back off and end our troubles. But if your father is anything like most, he will find out everything he can about my Nicholai and he will find out he’s in the BBC and he will come at us with a vengeance only a father can.”
I looked at Nic as I knew what his father was saying was true. “He’s right you know.”
The look on Nic’s face went straight to my heart. He was devastated. And I got the feeling this loving couple he was saying he wanted us to portray was anything but a lie. I thought he was falling in love with me and thought that might be a great way out of the bond and all that went with it.
“I’ll quit the club,” he said as he looked at me. “I’ll end my membership today. How could your father come at me for anything I did in the past? All I have to say is that I was a troubled man until I met you and you pulled me out of a sinful life and into one that was good and wholesome.”
His father and I asked at the same time, “You’d quit
the club?”
NICHOLAI
The words had left my mouth before I had thought them through. Would I really quit the club I’d known since I began my career at Grimm Defense and Technology?
The woman who sat next to me was looking at me with shock on her gorgeous face. And I was looking back at her with my soul bared to her. “I don’t want this to end. I don’t want to see you every day at work and not be able to touch you. I can’t do that, Natasha.”
My father stood up with a loud huffing sound. “This is ridiculous, Nicholai. She is just a whore you found in the club. Stop acting as if you’ve found the love of your life. Take it from me, there are no soul mates, no great loves. There are women you use to fuck and women you use to give you children. No love is involved in either.”
NATASHA
Nic’s chin was quivering he was so mad but he wasn’t saying a word as his father paced on the other side of the coffee table, lecturing about things he knew nothing of.
“There is love, sir,” I said, quietly. “I’m sorry you’ve never found it but it does exist.”
“Why are you talking, slave?” he asked me as he glared at me.
I ducked my head and felt belittled and humiliated and Nic’s hand that was holding mine was shaking. It gave me the courage to stand up to the old man who thought he could rule us.
I stood up even as Nic pulled at me not to. “Sir, I will say this one time and one time only, I am no man’s slave. I am a strong woman who will work this out with your son on our own. You should go now.”
His father’s eyes grew to the size of quarters as I spoke to him in a low and even tone that told him it was I who was taking control of the situation. He looked at Nic who’d stood up next to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “Are you going to allow this?”
Nic smiled and said, “She is no man’s slave, Father. That is the truth. And I’d also like you to leave. She and I have much to discuss and your way of thinking will only lead us to a decision that will leave me more broken than I already am.”
The Surgeon’s Secrets Page 16