Endless Obsession

by Alex Grayson

  I almost laugh, but the look in her eyes stops me. She looks like she’d try her best to skin me alive right now if I did; however, I can’t hold back my skeptical look.

  “What?” she snaps. “You don’t believe me? My fiancé is Italian. You know how Italians are. And mine just happens to love me enough to do anything for me.”

  My lips twitch before I can stop them. Before she can reprimand me, I hold my hand up. “I get it, but there’s no need. There’s nothing that could ever make me hurt Poppy again.”

  “You better hope you’re right,” she says. I grit my teeth when she pats my chest as she takes a step back. Her grin says she knows what she’s doing. Before I forcefully remove her hand, she gets smart and drops it. “I’ll go let Mr. Ballard know. I’ll call him this afternoon with another appointment.”

  She turns on her heel.

  “Don’t forget to cancel the rest of my appointments for the day,” I call after her.

  “You got it, Asher,” she says and flicks her hand over her shoulder.

  “You still work for me, Miss Banner,” I remind her.

  She turns and smirks. “I do, but soon you’ll be family.” With that, she winks and turns back and walks to a set of doors I know Mr. Ballard is behind.

  I run my fingers through my hair as I turn back to my office, not sure if being related to that firecracker, even through friendship, is a good or bad thing.

  Two hours later, I’m still sitting at my desk, getting absolutely nothing done for the day when there’s another knock on my door. I drop my glasses on my desk and rub my tired eyes.

  “Come in,” I call, thinking it’s Olivia again. She’s been quiet since our conversation.

  It’s not Olivia, but Eric. He peeks his head in. “You got a minute?”

  “Yes,” I say, gesturing for him to come in.

  Closing the door behind him, he makes his way to the chair across from my desk. Taking his seat, he throws an ankle over his knee, leans back and gets comfortable. I steeple my fingers and wait for him to talk.

  “Have you heard from Poppy?” he asks. I straighten in my seat, not liking hearing her name come out of his mouth.

  “She’s still sick,” I say vaguely. He still doesn’t know of our involvement, and I’m in no mood to enlighten him of it.

  “I’m worried about her. She hasn’t missed a day since she started working here. She comes in even when she’s sick. Are you sure nothing happened while you two were gone? I’ve tried calling her a couple times, but I just get her voicemail.”

  My hackles rise and anger instantly rushes in. This is the first I’m hearing of him calling her. There’s no fucking way I’ll let this continue. I was going to wait to tell him about my connection with Poppy after we worked things out, but obviously, that’s not going to work now.

  “Why are you calling her?” I ask first, needing to know how deep his feelings are.

  He turns his eyes away from me, then shifts in his chair. “Because I’m still interested in her. I never got to take her out—”

  “Stop,” I bark and stand from my seat. This shit stops now. I lean my hands on my desk and drop my head, trying to control the rage coursing through me. It’s not his fault. Poppy is… well, Poppy. She’s beautiful, smart, sweet, and has an innocence about her that draws people in. I know I’m not the only man that sees her as such. Although I recognize all this, I still can’t help the possessiveness I feel. I know other men will look, but it won’t be done right underneath my nose by my employee and friend.

  Fuck no.

  I look up and across my desk into Eric’s eyes. There’s no way he can miss the heat blazing from them. His wide eyes prove that.

  “I’ll tell you this once and only once. You need to forget any interest in Poppy that you have. She’s not available to you or any other man.” My fingers dig into the hard wood as I lean further over the desk to emphasize my next words. “Except me.”

  Eric looks back at me, shock registering on his face. He drops his leg and straightens in his chair, no longer looking relaxed.

  “Shit, Asher, I had no—”

  “It doesn’t matter. The only thing that does matter is you backing off her. Poppy is mine.”

  “Okay, okay,” he says, palms coming up in a ‘calm down’ gesture. “I get it. You’ll get no interference from me.”

  My jaw still tics, but I try to push the anger back. I still don’t like knowing he still may have lingering feelings. Or him looking at her and imaging her in anything other than a professional manner. But there’s nothing I can do about it. I’ll keep an eye on him for a while. If I sense there’s more coming from him, I’ll take care of it.

  “How long has this been going on?” He looks at me with interest.

  I take my seat and force my body to relax against the leather.

  “I’ve had feelings for her since the beginning, but haven’t made them known to her until Dallas.”

  “Wow,” he mutters. “I really had no idea.”

  I shrug. My phone pings on my desk and I grab it to check the message.

  Rex: That guy Sam just pulled up.

  Me: Keep an eye on things. Let me know if something feels off.

  As soon as Olivia and I were done with our conversation earlier, I came into my office and phoned Rex to update him on the situation. When I told him the creep somehow slipped past his men, he was livid. After investigating and finding footprints and talking with his men, we found out the guy came from the back of Poppy’s property and scaled her fence. He knew where to avoid Rex’s men. That’s what has us confused. How in the hell does this guy know of my protective measures? He also knew about the cameras and where to avoid them so he wasn’t seen.

  “Why did it take you so long to pursue her?” Eric asks curiously, pulling me from my thoughts.

  I give him a knowing look. He catches my meaning and nods. “Understandable. I wouldn’t want to start a relationship either if my future was so unstable.”

  I stay quiet.

  “So, what’s the real reason she hasn’t been in?”

  I just stare at him, not answering his question. It’s not his business. Nothing to do with Poppy is.

  When I keep my mouth shut, he finally gets it. He slaps the arms of the chair before getting to his feet. “Right. Well, good talk then.”

  He takes a step closer to the desk and extends his hand for me to take. “I’m happy for you, Ash. It’ll be nice to finally see you settle down with a woman.”

  I reach out and clasp his hand in mine. I may have gripped his a little tighter than necessary, but what can I say? What man wouldn’t want to assert his power over another man that has an interest in his woman?

  It’s barely noticeable, but Eric winces, sending satisfaction racing through me. Call me barbaric, and I’ll say fuck you.

  I release his hand and he flexes it a couple times before stepping back and heading to the door.

  “I’m done for the day. If you need me for anything, call my cell.”

  He salutes me with a finger to his forehead. “You got it. See you tomorrow.”

  Once he leaves, I slide my phone back to me and pull up Poppy’s number. The fight to message her wins over.

  Me: I love you, Beautiful.

  I hit send and pocket my phone. I don’t expect a reply, but I still need her to know I’m thinking about her.

  I grab my jacket and make sure my laptop is shut off before leaving my office. I hope tomorrow will be a more productive day than today was.

  I sit in my car in an old video store parking lot. I’m a couple blocks away from where Poppy is. I grip the steering wheel with white knuckles. I’m so close to her, yet so far away. I’m trying to talk myself out of going to see her, but I’m not doing a very good job. If I could just have a small glimpse of her, I know I could get control of this incessant need to be in her presence.

  When I left work, I was a good little boy and went straight home. I didn’t make any detours to Olivia’s house li
ke I desperately wanted to. I went home, took a shower, went down to the gym in my apartment building and worked out until my body felt like it was going to break. I went back and took another shower, then tried to watch a movie. Then I got hungry. I had no food in my house, so that meant I needed to go out and get something. Yes, I could have ordered in, but I was going crazy in my apartment and needed to get out. Now, my takeout is sitting in the seat beside me getting cold, and I’m two seconds away from breaking my promise to both Poppy and Olivia by going to see her. Maybe I can just take a peek in her window, see her beautiful face, then silently leave. No one would be the wiser.

  She’ll never want anything to do with you again if you do. You’ll lose her trust forever, my stupid mind whispers.

  I bang my head on the steering wheel, causing the already dull ache to intensify. I have got to get control of myself. I’m a grown fucking man; I should be able to control my emotions. I’ve always been in control of every aspect of my life, until Poppy came along. She’s stripped me of all reasoning and has turned my life into one hurricane of a mess after another. It’s a destruction on my senses that I’ll gladly live with for the rest of my life, but until I get to the part where I have her where I want her, I fear I may combust.

  The phone sitting up in the dock of my dash rings.

  Mom calling

  My knuckles hurt as I force them from around the steering wheel and grab my phone.

  “Hey, Mom,” I sigh into the device.

  “Ash, honey, how are you?” she asks, her southern drawl slipping out.

  I lean my head back against the headrest and close my eyes, exhaustion settling in. “I’m good. Everything all right at home?”

  “It is. I was just calling to remind you of the get-together next week. You’re still coming, right?” Her voice sounds hopeful. I hate to disappoint her, but if Poppy still hasn’t accepted my apology, then I highly doubt I’ll be in any mood to be around anyone.

  “I’ll have to let you know. I have some things going on at the moment that may prevent me from coming.”

  “Oh no,” she says sadly. “I hope everything is okay with Poppy…”

  She trails off, hoping I’ll enlighten her on the situation. I love my mom, and I’d do anything for her, but I’m not telling her my current problems with Poppy. She’ll only try to interfere. That, or I’ll never hear the end to her rants about keeping my feelings from Poppy quiet in the first place.

  “I’ll let you know in a few days,” I inform her, going no further with it and changing the subject. “How well did Owen take to Kia being interested in that Noah boy?”

  She huffs out a strained laugh, and I’m grateful she drops the Poppy topic.

  “You should have seen his face when Bea told him. I thought he was going to pop a blood vessel. Of course he flatly refused to let her have anything to do with him at first. Kia threw a fit and screamed she hated him as she stomped off to her room. It took Bea hours to calm him enough to talk reasonably to her. He reluctantly agreed, but under the stipulation that she’s never to be alone with him.”

  My lips tip up into a smirk. Owen is extremely protective of his girls, but I’m not surprised Bea was able to talk him down. He loves my sister and can never say no to her for long.

  “He gave in easier than I would have. My daughter’s not dating until she’s thirty, and only if I like the guy.”

  “Honey, there will never be a man that you like for your daughter. You’re setting her up to fail before she’s even born,” she notes, laughing.

  “Well, then, it looks like she’s destined to never get married,” I mutter.

  “Asher!” she scolds. “You can’t expect her to never marry just because you won’t accept she’s growing up.”

  “Why are we even discussing this? I’m not even married yet, let alone have a kid.”

  Not that it won’t be long before that happens. Once I have Poppy back, I want to get her pregnant as soon as possible.

  I hear a beep and pull the phone away from my ear to look at the screen. Pulling down the notification screen, I see it’s a text from Poppy.

  “Mom, I’ve got to go. I’ll call you later,” I tell her quickly, already pulling the phone away from my ear to hang up.

  “Wait!” she yells. I growl in frustration and put it back to my ear. “Whatever is happening between you and Poppy, it’ll work itself out,” she rushes out.

  “I won’t have it any other way,” I say with conviction. “Love you, Mom, but I’m hanging up now.”

  “Love you, too, sweetie.”

  I end the call and immediately go to my messages. I leave moisture behind on the screen from my nervous, sweaty fingertips as I tap mine and Poppy’s text thread. There are only a few messages in the folder, and the ones that are there are business related. All the others are on the phone I used as Sterling.

  My heart leaps in my chest as I see Poppy’s text and a smile breaks across my face.

  Poppy: I miss you.

  After staring at the phone for several seconds to ensure I read it right, I drop it to the seat. My hands go to my keys, and I start my car.

  She misses me. That has to say something, right? After seeing that, there’s no way I can stay away.

  Two minutes later, I’m parking my car one house down from Olivia’s. The sun set about an hour ago, so it’s dark out, but the streetlights illuminate the streets pretty well. Indecision starts worming its way in. Olivia’s words from earlier has my hand slowing on the door handle. Am I making a mistake coming here? Will it push her further away?

  I pull the handle and my door opens soundlessly. I’m here. I can’t be here and not see her. It’s physically impossible to just drive away now. I take my phone with me as I walk across the street, waving at the two men in the SUV parked in the empty driveway across from Liv’s house. I had Rex put another man on Poppy.

  The houses and properties are big in this neighborhood, so it would be hard to spot me loitering. I stop outside the window Rex told me was Poppy’s. I don’t know if she’s inside her room, or if she’s in another part of the house, but standing here makes me feel closer to her. Instead of looking into the window, I force my back against the wall beside it. I send her a message.

  Me: I’m here.

  I stand and glance around as I wait for Poppy’s reply, hoping she doesn’t come storming out to tell me to leave, or worse, send Tony out. At least if Poppy comes out I would get to see her, even if she is mad. Olivia’s car is parked in the driveway so I know she’s home. I’m not sure about Tony, though.

  My phone dings, and I hold my breath at Poppy’s reply.

  Poppy: Where?

  I wonder if Olivia told Poppy of our conversation, and if she knows I know she’s here.

  Me: At Olivia’s.

  Fuck! I hope I don’t regret this.

  I look down when my phone pings again.

  Poppy: You shouldn’t be here.

  My heart plummets to my stomach, making me feel sick. Then she sends another message.

  Poppy: Why did you come?

  I slowly type out my reply.

  Me: Because I need to see you. I can’t think straight anymore. I tried, I swear I tried, Beautiful. Please, just let me look at you.

  I sound like a pathetic obsessed creep, but I’m past the point of caring.

  Poppy: Where are you?

  I wonder if this is a trick question. Will she send Tony out here and have him tell me to leave? I’m not scared of him, but I’d prefer not to have to hurt Poppy’s best friend’s fiancé. That certainly won’t help my image in Poppy’s eyes. Not to mention, Olivia would get pissed, which would upset Poppy even more.

  Praying I’m doing the right thing, I respond.

  Me: Outside your window. And before you freak out, I haven’t looked inside. I’m standing here with my back against the wall, but it’s taking everything in me to not turn around and look.

  Poppy deserves the truth and that’s what she’ll get.

&
nbsp; Seconds later, I see a shadow appear on the ground beside me. I lift my head from the wall and turn it. I can’t see her that well, but there she is. I take a step forward and it feels like time stands still as she comes into view. The weight I’ve felt on my chest the last few days lightens dramatically. She looks more beautiful than I remember. She has on a black tank top with short white shorts. A small portion of her tanned stomach peeks out and my cock hardens at the sight. Her braid is thrown over one shoulder. Her face is free of makeup and looks fresh. But her eyes look sad and slightly swollen. She looks broken. A piercing pain hits my chest, damn near causing me to stumble.

  She stands there as I slowly walk closer to the window. I watch her reaction, making sure that my being here doesn’t upset her more. The window is slightly taller than me, so she has to look down to meet my eyes. Once I’m as close as I can get, I stop and just look at her, taking in her beauty.

  I hold my breath as she lifts a hand and places her palm on the glass. Tears swim in her eyes, making my legs weak with the look. I fucking hate this distance between us.

  I lift my hand and slowly bring it to the glass to place it over hers. I swear I can feel her heat through it. She bites her lip as she looks at our hands, so close to touching, yet still seeming miles away.

  I still have my phone in my hand. I bring it up and briefly take my eyes off her as I tap her name to call her. She jerks, but doesn’t move to answer the ringing phone I can barely hear through the window. I spy it on the bed behind her.

  When it goes to voicemail, I press the phone icon again and beg with a whisper, “Please.” She can’t hear me, but she can read the plea on my lips.

  Pain and indecision are written all over her face. Just when I think she’s not going to answer, sending my heart to lodge in my throat, she drops her hand and walks over to the bed and picks it up. Bringing it to her ear, she turns around and looks back at me. She stays silent, but I can hear her rapid breathing. Her chest rising and falling attests to her heavy breaths.

  “Poppy.” I breathe her name and hear her breath catch at my voice. “Come closer.”