by Claire Adams
"If you say so," she said, turning her attention back to the blueprints on the table.
It took me a quarter of an hour to tame the beast that she'd awoken, but I did it and then sent her off to call on several of our biggest clients in Manhattan. I knew she'd charm them into ordering even more products and that she'd sell them on the idea that we'd be expanding our focus to make our warehouse a one-stop shopping spot for all high-end boutiques in the city.
After Sloan left, I gathered up the plans for construction and headed down to the warehouse.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Leah
"Behold, I bring good tidings of great joy!" Jack boomed as he walked into my office holding a roll of papers that I assumed were the plans for the warehouse renovation.
"Is that so?" I asked turning around to face him. I felt my breath catch in my throat as I looked up at him. He'd let his scruff grow a little wilder than usual, and his eyes were full of mischievous mirth that matched the grin on his full lips. Given the fact that I'd been fantasizing about him for weeks, this felt like a little more than I could take. I cleared my throat and tried to sound businesslike, "What have you got there?"
"These, my lovely warehouse manager, are the plans for the renovation that will be starting over the weekend," he said, proudly holding them up for me to see. "Want to see them?"
"Do I have a choice?" I laughed as my brain stuck on the fact that he'd called me lovely.
"Now, if you look at this you can see how the crew is going to build up and out," he said unrolling the plans on my desk and moving around behind me so that he was forced to bend over my shoulder to point out the various features. I tried to control my breathing as he moved in closer. I could smell his musky scent and felt the warmth radiating from his skin, and it was all I could do to keep my mind focused on the words coming out of his mouth.
"Uh huh," I nodded as he pointed to the various improvements that were to be made.
"And right here," he said, bending so close that his lips were inches from my ear. "Here is your new office!"
"I get a new office?" I asked turning in surprise and nearly brushing my lips across his. We stared at each other for a moment, and then he looked back at the plans.
"Yes, right here, there's going to be a big office with room for a conference table and a bathroom off to one side so that you don't have to share with the warehouse workers," he said smiling. "What do you think?"
"I think it's amazing," I said, wondering how he was going to find the money to pay for all of this. Baby Steps was a profitable company, but I knew that we didn't have the kind of money this renovation would take.
"But you're wondering how we're going to pay for all of it, right?" he asked.
"How did you do that?"
"I know you, Leah," he said leaning down so that he was speaking softly into my ear again. "I know what you're thinking, and I know what you want."
For a moment, I wanted to lose myself in the smooth sound of his seductive voice, and I almost let go. Then a nagging doubt cropped up, and I remembered the way Sloan looked standing in front of his desk up in the office. He wasn't interested in me. He was just interested in the chase.
"Yeah, sure," I said ducking away from him as I pushed my chair back and stood up. "You know that I want a bigger office and my own bathroom. Don't we all?"
Jack's face fell as he stared back at me. I could tell that he was disappointed that I hadn't fallen for his seduction routine, and that annoyed me.
"Well, I thought you'd be a little more excited than this," he admitted.
"When will it be finished?" I asked as I moved back toward my computer and punched a few keys just to distract myself from the fact that he was still standing entirely too close to me. No matter what my mind said, my body was still responding to Jack's presence.
"Did I do something to offend you?" he asked quietly.
"No, what?" I said, spinning around to find him standing right behind me.
"Did I do something to offend you, Leah?" he repeated as he looked down at me. I squirmed as I looked up at him, trapped in his gaze.
I knew I shouldn't. I knew we shouldn't, but in an instant I made a choice and stepped close enough to rest my hands on his chest and raise myself up enough to kiss his lips. Eyes open, I saw his eyes widen with surprise, but he didn't back away. Instead, he kissed me softly without touching me. Our lips became the conduit for all the things we'd been holding back since the wake, but it was soft and sweet rather than the carnal passion I'd imagined every night alone in my bed.
He stood stock-still and let his lips lead the way. Gently kissing, and then flicking his tongue across my bottom lip before taking it between his teeth and gently pulling. I moaned softly into his mouth, and still he didn't move a muscle. I could feel his heart pounding wildly beneath the palms of my hands, but I followed his lead and didn't move. He urged my lips apart with his tongue and then teased the inside of my mouth when I acquiesced. He licked, sucked, and nibbled my lips as I reciprocated, eyes wide open as neither of us moved anything but our mouths.
I'd never felt such an erotic intoxication in my life, and I didn't want it to end. The sound of a slamming door caused us to jump apart. Startled by the noise and uncertain about what we'd just done, I looked down at the construction plans.
"These look great!" I said in a voice that was a little too loud. "I can't wait to see how this turns out."
"Um, okay," Jack said, tilting his head as he gave me a confused look. "Do you want to …?”
"I really need to get these orders entered in the computer, and I've got a ton of calls to make," I said rushing to fill the space where the question I didn't know how to answer lay. "I'll check in with you later, and we'll talk about the way we're going to accommodate our orders while the construction's going on, okay? Okay!"
"Okay, Leah," he said with a confused grin spreading across his face. He nodded and then grabbed the plans off of my desk and rolled them up as he headed out the door.
"You just let me know when you want to talk," he said before he turned and walked down the hallway. I could have sworn I heard him chuckling all the way back to his office.
*
Hours later, on the train home, I could still feel the heat of the kiss. I'd wanted more than just the kiss, and in the private, little part of my brain, I'd gone to the place where that kiss had led to something far steamier and satisfying. As the train pulled into the station, I pushed aside the movie I'd created, and with reddened cheeks, looked around to see if anyone had noticed. I was safe.
At first, after Jack had left my office, I'd wondered if I was going to get fired, but then as I thought more about it, I couldn't figure out why he hadn't said more afterward. He'd held back and then just left the office rather than taking charge and sweeping me off my feet.
"Okay, get a grip, Walsh," I muttered to myself as I walked the few blocks between the train station and the house. "We're in the twenty-first century, after all. Guys don't always take control. Sometimes women have to."
I continued the self-therapy session until I opened the front door and found Mama standing over Riley shouting at her.
"You stupid, good for nothing, useless idiot!" Mama yelled. "What in the hell is wrong with you? Answer me!"
Riley sat on the tile floor in the entryway with her back against the wall. She was staring straight ahead her arms wrapped around her knees, which were pulled up against her chest. Her mute response told me that she'd disappeared somewhere in her mind.
"Mama! What are you doing?" I shouted as I pushed the door closed behind me. The house looked like a tornado had gone through it while I'd been a work. There were dishes piled up on the coffee table, several vodka bottles under it, and all of Mama's bedding on the couch. It looked like she'd permanently relocated to the living room.
"This stupid child dumped the last of my bottle into the sink while I was sleeping!" she yelled. "That was money she poured down the drain, and now I have to go get more!"<
br />
"First of all, dial it down a notch, Mama," I said sternly. "She's not stupid. Second, if she did do it, then she's just looking out for you."
"By destroying my property?" Mama shouted, completely disregarding my desire to try and have a reasonable conversation. "She's an ungrateful, little bitch and I'm sick of this shit!"
"Mama," I warned. "In this house we talk to each other with respect, not insults."
"Oh do shut the fuck up, Leah," my mother said waving her hand in front of my face. It was the last straw. I grabbed my mother by the collar of her dirty polo shirt and pushed her all the way back to the couch where I shoved her hard enough to send her sprawling back into the messy lump of bedclothes that lined the couch.
"What the fuck?" my mother yelled in outrage.
"No! You sit down and listen to me, lady!" I growled. "I've had enough of your shit, and now we're going to have the talk that we should have had long ago. You are a drunk, Mama. You are an alcoholic, and you are drinking yourself into an early grave. It has to stop!"
"Who are you to go getting into everyone's business, little Miss Nosy Pants?" my mother retorted. "It's not like you're so perfect."
"I never said I was, but you've been abusive for long enough," I said. "You never cut me any slack or see any of the work I put into keeping this family together!"
"Oh, boo-hoo," she mocked. "You're upset because you had to step up and take charge. Well, welcome to the real world, girl. We all have to be the bosses of our own big selves."
"What is wrong with you?" I whispered horrified by the unbridled meanness coming out of my mother's mouth. I knew she'd been unhappy, but I didn't know to what extent. "How can you talk to us like this?"
"How can I talk to you like this?" she laughed. "Oh that's a good one, Leah. How can I talk to you like this? After all of the crap I put up with, and you wonder why I'm angry? You children sucked the life out of me. You ruined my chances of ever having an acting career—or any career, really—and now you want to know why I'm angry and resentful."
"Mama, stop …" I said as I realized that Riley was still sitting on the floor in the entryway. "Please don't do this."
"You started it, Leah," she said narrowing her eyes before she grabbed the glass sitting in front of her and took a big swig. "You and that useless sister of yours. At least you stuck around to try and clean up her mess."
"Mama! Enough!" I shouted. "That's enough!"
"And that one," she said pointing at Riley who now had her head pressed against her knees. "She's headed down the same exact road as her mother. Might as well just toss her out into the streets right now. She's going to wind up there sooner or later. Might as well save time."
"MAMA! SHUT THE HELL UP!" I screamed as I turned and ran to Riley. I pulled her up off of the floor and gathered her in my arms before walking her upstairs to her bedroom. I whispered quietly as we walked, "She's not in her right mind. She's drunk, and she doesn't know what she's saying. Do not believe a word she says, Riley. Do you hear me?"
Riley nodded, but didn't say a word. I could see the storm building inside her. She was just like her mother in that way, and I was thankful that I recognized what was going on. I sat Riley down on the bed, closed her door, and returned to kneel in front of her.
"Riley, this is not your life," I said as I took her hands in mine and gripped them tightly. "This is not how it's going to be forever. I'm going to get Gram some help, and you and I are going to have some peace around her. Do you understand?"
Riley nodded again, but remained mute.
"Your mother was a good person, and she did everything she could to keep you safe," I said as I looked up at her. The tears began to drip down her cheeks as I reminded her of how much Molly had loved her and how hard she'd fought. "You know this, right? You're not a bad person, Riley."
"Yes, I am!" she wailed. The declaration surprised me, and I hopped up off of the floor and sat next to her on the bed wrapping my arms around her. "I'm a bad person, Leah! Gram isn't lying. I got kicked out of school."
"What do you mean?" I asked. Riley got up off of the bed and walked over to her backpack. She unzipped it and removed a sheet of paper from the pack and handed it to me.
"I got suspended," she said flatly.
I took the letter from her and read over it. She'd been suspended for fighting and would not be allowed to return to class for a week. I looked up at her, feeling helpless and very alone, and saw that she had collapsed into a pile on the floor. I moved off of the bed and sat down next to her, rubbing her back as she cried.
"Riley, we'll figure it out," I said. "I'm not going to leave you. We'll figure this out, together. You hear me?"
All I got in response was a small nod of her head, but that was enough to steel my nerves. As I sat on the floor waiting for the sobs to subside, I mapped the next steps that I would take.
Riley would not be the one to pay the price for my mother's pain.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Jack
When I got home from work, I pulled on my running gear and went out to clear my mind. I couldn't stop thinking about Leah's lips on mine, and how badly I'd wanted to do more than just kiss her. I'd been chastising myself for not taking advantage of her forwardness, but there was something in me that knew better than to do that.
The question was why had I held back?
I'd never been shy about sex with anyone, Sloan notwithstanding, but she was a whole different matter. I'd always enjoyed sex anywhere and everywhere I'd wanted it, so not following my desire this afternoon — especially after Sloan had gotten me worked up — was confusing. As I ran, I told myself that the reason I'd held back was because I didn't know what Leah wanted and I didn't want to risk any kind of accusations of impropriety.
"I want out of this damn business," I exhaled as I ran. "I don't need to get tied up in a problematic office romance."
Satisfied with my rationalization, I turned and headed back towards home. On the way back, I tried to come up with a way to keep Sloan at a distance. I didn't mind serving her needs every now and again, but it was going to become problematic if she started pushing the boundaries. I could draw all the boundaries I wanted, but when it came down to it, she was still an attractive woman who turned me on, and even I had limits. I came up with a solution that I thought would work, and as I ran up the front drive, I felt satisfied that I'd solved the two most pressing issues.
As I rounded the drive, I saw Sloan's car parked in front of the house and groaned inwardly. I'd been looking forward to meeting up with Brittany, one of the attractive young women who'd accompanied me to the Mediterranean, at a club in Brooklyn. I figured it would kill two birds with one stone by getting me out of the house for a night of fun and relaxation, and, hopefully, release some sexual tension. This threw a wrench in the plan.
"What are you doing here?" I blurted out as I entered the sitting room, still sweaty from my run.
"Well, hello, darling," my mother smiled. "Look who stopped by to visit!"
"I see. What are you doing here, Sloan?" I repeated as I stared pointedly at her.
"Is that any way to greet your business partner?" she asked as she turned and looked up at me. With her back to my mother, she gave me the once over with her hungry roving eyes then licked her lips as she stared at my crotch. I knew that I wasn't going to be able to control the response she was looking to generate, so I moved back toward the hall.
"I'm going to go shower," I said.
"Will you join us for dinner, Jack?" my mother asked. "Sloan is staying and the cook made your favorite!"
I rolled my eyes, but didn't respond. I wasn't sure what I was going to do, yet, but by the time I'd showered and changed, I knew there was no way in hell I was going to leave Sloan alone with my mother.
All through dinner, Sloan made subtle comments about what a great partnership we had and how well we worked together.
"You two do make a lovely coupled, dear," my mother said, smiling across the table at me. "Yo
ur father would have absolutely approved."
"I see," I said, looking down at the poached salmon and steamed asparagus on my plate. My mother was right, it was my favorite, but tonight I didn't feel much like eating. "Well, you know how much his approval means to me."
"Don't be rude, dear," my mother scolded as she held up her wine glass for a refill. "We have a guest."
"Sloan isn't a guest, she's like family, Mother," I said sticking a fork into the fish as I decided to eat, hungry or not. "Besides, she knows what a miserable bastard Pop was. Don't you, Sloan? Mother drinks to cover it all up, but we know the truth."
"Jack, there's no need to be rude," Sloan said quietly as she ate her dinner.
The rest of the meal was passed with uncomfortable small talk as my mother proceeded to drink herself into a state of numbness yet again. I watched as Sloan carried the conversation as best she could, and once the dishes were cleared, I excused myself. Sloan followed me to the front hallway.
"Why do you have to be so miserable to your mother?" she whispered. "Don't you think she's suffered enough?"
"Why are we all pretending that my father was a wonderful man who left nothing but happy memories for us all?" I shot back. "I'm sick of the lies. Can't you see how miserable she is? It's been that way for years."
"You're just mad because you're pent up," she said, sliding her hand between my thighs and feeling me instantly respond.
"Stop it, Sloan," I growled. "This is unacceptable."
"This is?" she asked as she rubbed my crotch and felt me harden at her touch. "Are you sure?"
"Sloan …" I warned. "Knock it off!"
"Mmm, you know what I'd like to do with this?" she whispered as she moved her hand to the zipper of my pants. I grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand away as I twisted it. She cried out, "Ouch, you're hurting me!"
"Good, then maybe it will finally get through your thick skull that no means no," I hissed. "I told you what the deal was, Sloan. Now stop pushing me or I'll be forced to deal with you in a way that you won't like."