by Tia Siren
Chapter Fourteen
Kendall
Saturday
I threw the blanket off in frustration. I was crazy frustrated. Dylan hadn’t bothered coming home until late last night. I’d been sure after the little episode in his office that he’d be coming home earlier. I had been looking forward to another night in his bed.
When he didn’t show, I imagined him doing all kinds of things to another woman. I’d known he was a bit of a player before I ever made that first call. I didn’t know why I ever thought there would be another time with him. He’d had his way with me. He had satisfied his curiosity and now he was over it. It was only a little insulting. While I’d thought he had really enjoyed himself, apparently, I was just another lay.
I propped my head up on a couple pillows and grabbed my phone, checking my email and messages.
It was a little after eight, and I needed to call and check in with my dad. I had been putting it off.
“It’s about damn time!” he hissed.
“Sorry. I can’t risk being caught. You said to stick with him day and night. That doesn’t leave me a lot of time to call you.”
“What’d you find out?”
I grimaced, dreading his reaction. “Nothing. He gave me a list of things to check out.”
“Things?”
“Products. He wants to know if anyone else has them on their radar.”
“What products?”
“I don’t remember,” I mumbled, lying through my teeth.
“Find out! I want to know what he’s up to! He’s scoping out the competition. I bet you those products he’s floating are the ones he stole from me!”
I closed my eyes. “Dad, calm down. You’re going to give yourself a stroke.”
“Kendall! This isn’t funny! Get those products and call me. You only have one job,” he growled.
“It was good to talk to you too, Dad. I’ll call you later. Please take care of yourself.”
I hung up and cradled the phone in my hands. I missed my dad. Not the man on the other end of the phone, but the other man, the one who had raised me and dried my tears after my mom had died. Lately, he had been acting strangely, and it was concerning.
Rolling out of bed, I headed straight for the shower. I was sure Dylan would be sleeping in today after his wild night of doing who knew what. I wasn’t jealous. Not really.
I pulled on a pair of skinny jeans, a flirty blouse, and my favorite wedges. I was doing errands for myself and Dylan today. It was technically my day off, so I didn’t feel the least bit guilty about dressing down.
“Good morning,” Dylan said, nearly scaring the hell out of me.
I looked up to find him standing shirtless in the kitchen, holding a cup in his hands. “You’re up?”
He shrugged. “I slept in a little. What are you doing today?”
I looked at him as if he were crazy. He was talking like he was my best friend. What was his game?
“I’m running errands. You gave me a list yesterday. Don’t you remember?” I asked, a little irritated.
“I’ll go with you.”
I stopped midstride to the coffee pot. “You what?”
“I’d like to tag along, if you don’t mind. We’ll take my car.”
Now I knew he was up to something. “You drive?”
He smiled. “No. I mean, I’m sure I could, but I meant my car—with my driver.”
“You don’t have something more important to do today?”
He leisurely sipped his coffee, leaning against the counter, his legs, clad in a pair of sweats, crossed at the ankles. I don’t think he had ever looked so sexy.
“I don’t. I’d like to spend the day with you,” he said, all smooth and charismatic.
“Fine. Suit yourself,” I said, ready to play his game.
I couldn’t imagine a man like him running mundane errands that included picking up my dry cleaning, dropping off his Rolex for a cleaning and repair, and other completely boring tasks.
“Great. I’ll get dressed and be right out.”
It was a little strange to be running mundane errands while ferried around in a limo. It certainly made picking up the dry cleaning an interesting adventure.
“I’ll grab some drinks,” Dylan said, walking behind me as I strolled toward the UPS store.
Noticing he wasn’t behind me, I stopped, then watched as he reached into his wallet, pulled out a hundred-dollar bill, and handed it to an elderly homeless man. Wrapped up in a blanket filled with holes, the man eagerly accepted the money, tears streaming down his face as he thanked Dylan again and again. The scene brought tears to my eyes.
Dylan walked toward me, not mentioning what he had done. I didn’t say anything about it either. Quickly, I mailed the letters and started toward the car. The homeless man was gone, probably on his way to spend the money.
In the back of the car, I looked at him, really looked at him.
“Do you always do that?” I asked.
“Do what?”
“Give out hundreds to people you see on the street?”
He shrugged. “Not always. Sometimes I only have small bills on me.”
I bit back a laugh. That wasn’t exactly what I meant, but I knew he wasn’t bragging. He was a generous man. There was no way he could fake that. It wasn’t a show.
“I’m surprised. Everyone else ignores people on the street. In fact, my personal experience is that the wealthier the man, the greedier.”
He raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know who you’ve been hanging out with, but that’s not me. I give back every chance I get and always feel guilty for not doing more. Actually, you know what, I’ve not been to the soup kitchen in a few weeks. Are you up for dishing out some hot meals?”
“Doing what?”
He grinned, then pushed the button to talk to the driver and gave the order to head to the inner city. I wasn’t sure I was dressed for the soup kitchen and hoped they didn’t think we were trying to be haughty. I watched out the window, feeling saddened by the destitution I saw. The limo stuck out like a sore thumb, making me feel like I was invading the territory of the locals.
When the car pulled to a stop, Dylan opened his door and reached inside to help me out.
“Are you serious about this?” I asked, waiting for him to say he was joking.
“I am. Come on,” he said, opening the door.
We walked into a wide-open area with long tables situated end to end.
“We’re not ready yet,” a woman’s voice called out from somewhere I couldn’t see.
“Hi, Betty! It’s me, Dylan!” he called out, heading to the left where there was a door I assumed led into the kitchen.
“Dylan Parks! What are you doing here?” An older woman with blue hair came bustling out from behind a commercial oven, a huge smile on her face
She walked over and gave Dylan a big bear hug. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. The stern man who was always so serious now looked completely relaxed and happy.
“I wanted to see if you could use a couple extra pairs of hands for dinner tonight.”
Betty was grinning. “You know we could. I wasn’t expecting to see you until next week. I’m glad you came by though. Our volunteers have been hit by a nasty virus and we are shorthanded.”
“Betty, this is my assistant, Kendall. She’s never done this before, but between the two of us, I think we can show her the ropes.”
Betty extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Kendall. Thank you so much for helping out. Every pair of hands we have in the kitchen means we get to serve a few more people.”
“I’m happy to help.”
“Right this way, and we’ll get you two some aprons. How’ve you been, Dylan? I saw that new app is out, and from what I hear, it’s doing really well.”
“It is. Thank you for asking. I’ve been doing okay,” he said, turning back to look at me and smiling in a way I’d never seen before.
Betty gave us our aprons and put me to wor
k heating rolls in a huge oven. Dylan, who had more experience, was put on soup duty. I watched him chat with the other volunteers as he stirred the soup like he’d done it a hundred times before. From the way it sounded, he volunteered with some regularity. I was blown away by the real Dylan and recognized I was walking into dangerous territory. I no longer thought of him as the spawn of Satan, like my father was convinced he was.
“Places everyone!” Betty called out.
I looked at Dylan, having no clue where I was supposed to be.
“You’re on bread duty. Stand here,” he said, taking me to a counter piled high with rolls that smelled way too good. “The people will start on that end.” He pointed down the long counter. “They’ll have trays and make their way through the line, just like a school cafeteria. I know this is going to be really hard, but you can only give one roll per person, even if they ask for more.”
I looked at him, then at the pile of rolls in front of me. “There has to be at least a hundred rolls here with even more in the oven.”
He nodded. “And every single one of them will be handed out.”
My eyes widened. “Really?”
“Yes,” Betty said, coming to stand with us. “We’ll run out before everyone makes it through the line.”
Tears welled in my eyes. “And then what?”
Betty smiled. “Then we’re out of food until tomorrow.”
“So they just don’t eat tonight?” I asked, aghast by the thought.
Dylan nodded his head. “Unfortunately, yes.”
My heart felt like it was being squeezed. How could there be people going hungry at a soup kitchen no less!
“It’s time to serve. Remember, one roll each.”
I nodded my head, feeling like the roll tsar, dreading the first time I had to tell someone they couldn’t have a second roll.
As each person came through, I had this urge to reach out and hug them. There were plenty of children in the mix as well. We ran out of rolls with about thirty people left in line. Fortunately, there was enough soup to make sure those people got something in their bellies even without the rolls.
“You ready to go out there?” Dylan asked.
“To the, uh, cafeteria I guess you call it?” I was a little nervous about the idea.
“Yes. They don’t bite. I’d like to introduce you to a couple people,” he said, taking my hand and leading me out the door.
I felt like I should pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t in some weird dream.
“Brian!” Dylan called out, walking toward a middle-aged man with a scruffy white beard who wore clothes that probably hadn’t been washed in weeks.
Brian stood, and Dylan gave him a bear hug. I had to make sure my mouth wasn’t hanging open. Billionaire Dylan Parks was hugging a man I could smell from ten feet away.
“It’s good to see you, man,” Brian said, his nearly toothless grin on full display. “I wasn’t expecting you until next week.”
Dylan shrugged. “I had some free time and thought I’d stop by. How’ve you been? Did you get to the VA?”
Brian nodded his head. “I’m trying. They have so much red tape,” he said, shaking his head.
“Don’t worry about it. You keep showing up.”
Dylan walked around the area, greeting people by name and introducing himself to others he didn’t know. I was in complete awe. I did my best to be as friendly as he was, but I knew I didn’t have that same vibe. People were naturally drawn to him. Hell, so was I. He was so genuine. Hands down, he was the most generous, caring person I had ever met in my life.
Chapter Fifteen
Dylan
Monday
It was the standard morning meeting between just me and Aaron. It was a good way to start off the week. We got to chat about what we did over the weekend and catch up with one another in general. Since his engagement, I didn’t get to hang out with him a lot. I missed him. It was cheesy, but Aaron was my only true friend, and I missed having him around.
“How was the weekend with our little spy?” Aaron asked, taking a seat on the couch.
I walked around from behind my desk and sat in one of the chairs facing the couch. “I took her to the soup kitchen.”
Aaron raised an eyebrow. “For dinner?”
I rolled my eyes. “No, to serve. I wanted her to see that whatever opinion she has of me is wrong. I think her daddy sent her in here with the idea that I’m a bad guy. I’m not a bad guy,” I said, realizing I sounded a little childish.
Aaron shook his head. “No, you’re not a bad guy, but why do you care what she thinks about you?”
I shrugged one shoulder. “I don’t know.”
“I do. You like her,” he said with all the confidence in the world.
“I do not.”
“You’ve never taken me to the soup kitchen,” he said.
“That’s because you’re a pretentious ass. She was a little stiff at first, but once she relaxed a bit and realized the homeless and less fortunate didn’t bite—well, most of them anyway—she had fun. I had fun. It was fun to be there with her, doing something good for others.”
I heard myself talking and realized I sounded a lot like Aaron did when he talked about Jessica.
“You like her. You’re attracted to her. I’m not saying I blame you. She is a beautiful woman, but she’s here to take you down.”
“We don’t know that for sure.”
“She’s using a fake name. She was or still is a department head at Adams Enterprises. She certainly isn’t here to learn from you or fetch your coffee. She’s a plant. She’s lying, and that is something you need to be concerned with. Don’t be fooled by the pretty face,” he warned.
I chuckled. “You know me. I’ve seen plenty of gorgeous women in my day. They are great for one thing and one thing only. I’m not trying to get myself tied down—like you.”
“Ha!” he said, shaking his head. “I was once like you, buddy. I’m telling you now, when the right woman comes along, you can’t deny it. You can’t run from it, and, really, you won’t want to. You’re going to find yourself thinking about her every damn day. You’re going to see something and think to yourself, she would or wouldn’t like that. You’ll start referring to yourself as we instead of I. It got me. It’s going to get you. It’s only a matter of time.”
I smirked. “I’m not you. I’m not the type of guy who’s going to fall head over heels in love with some woman and change who I am.”
He laughed. “I didn’t think it could happen to me either. It did. I’m getting married in two months. I still can’t believe it when I say it. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. Hell, I wish we were getting married tomorrow.”
I groaned. “You are one of those lovesick idiots. I’m not going to get that way. I’m having a little fun with Kendall. It will never go further than that.”
Aaron looked down at his feet. I knew when he had something on his mind and waited. He’d tell me if he wanted to.
“I don’t want you to get hurt,” he mumbled.
I used my hand to cover the smile that had spread across my face. He had been sounding more and more like a girl lately, and that statement was another nail in his masculine coffin.
“Aaron?”
He wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“Aaron, would you please look at me?”
He looked up, a sheepish expression on his face. “I’m only telling you what I feel—or think, I mean. I’m telling you what I think.”
I smiled, not bothering to hide it. “I get it. I appreciate you looking out for me, but I’ve got it handled. I’m having fun with her, because despite all this other stuff, she’s actually a fun woman to hang out with.”
“That’s what I’m saying. You’re completely ignoring the fact that she’s trying to take you down. That’s a problem. It’s not fun. It’s dangerous. You’re not the kind of guy who lets himself get caught up in crap like this.” His face showed his strain.
“Relax. It’ll be f
ine. I’m being careful, and I won’t let her get too close. Her dad already has our product list and I don’t think it came from her. We may have another mole to worry about.”
Aaron’s mouth dropped open. “How the hell did he get that list?”
“I don’t know, but I’m working on finding out. Help me keep an eye on her. Watch to see if she is more friendly or familiar with one of our people. IT is on it and I have a PI working on the outside, gathering evidence and information,” I said.
Aaron nodded his head. “Good. That makes sense. You could have told me that before instead of letting me worry.”
“You really need to chill. I thought a guy on the verge of getting married was supposed to be happy and all that. You are wound way too tight. You need to get laid,” I told him, trying not to smile.
“I get laid plenty.”
“Trust me on this. I’ll handle Kendall. In the meantime, I’m having a little fun. She likes me. Who knows, maybe she’ll take it easy on me and drop whatever it is her dad’s got her doing.”
Aaron let out a long sigh. “She’s trouble. Big trouble. Don’t get caught up in her lies. I don’t trust her. I don’t like that she’s living with you, and I really don’t like that she has access to our files.”
“Not everything. I’m not that stupid. Her security clearance is almost nothing on that company iPad. She’s not getting into anything she shouldn’t.”
“Do you know that for sure?” he asked, his gaze holding mine.
“Mostly.”
“Exactly my point,” he shot back.
We didn’t get to discuss it further. Kendall knocked on the door and came right in. I immediately noticed her makeup was smudged. She didn’t have that cool exterior she normally wore. The woman standing in my office doorway looked sad and vulnerable.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Am I interrupting something?”
“No. You’re fine.” I rose and move backed to my desk. “Aaron was just leaving.”
Aaron shot me one last warning look before walking out of the office.
“He really doesn’t like me,” Kendall murmured. “I could have come back later.”