by L. P. Dover
Before reaching the table, my phone vibrated in my purse. Daniel was tapping his leg under the table so I knew it was going to be him. I pulled out my phone and read the text.
Daniel: We need to talk. DON’T tell him who I am.
Gritting my teeth, I glared at him and reluctantly nodded. What am I doing? I should’ve just told Brett to begin with, but now I was curious to know why Daniel wanted me to keep quiet. However, if I didn’t tell Brett soon he was going to be very upset with me. Oh, the mess I always get myself in to.
“Mr. O’Briene, it is good to see you,” Brett greeted, extending his hand.
Daniel stood and accepted Brett’s outstretched hand while staring at me just a little too long. To Brett, he said, “Good evening, Mr. Walker, I’m so glad you two could join us, and please call me Daniel.” He turned and reluctantly looked down at his date after sheepishly looking my way. He cleared his throat before saying, “And this is my date for the evening, Ashley Wells.” She smiled at us both and took my hand in greeting.
Daniel continued, “I thought it would be a little more enjoyable here instead of sitting in a stuffy office discussing business matters.”
Chuckling, Brett agreed, “Yeah, I see enough of mine as it is.” Gazing over at me, Brett put his arm around my waist and glanced over at Daniel to make our introductions. “And this here with me is my date, Melissa Ashford.”
Daniel’s smile faded slightly when he held out his hand to shake mine. Inwardly, I groaned and held out my hand, clasping it with his. His touch was warm and just a little too personal with his thumb grazing over my skin. “It’s very nice to meet you, Melissa,” he acknowledged a little too affectionately.
“Likewise,” I replied blandly, trying to loosen my hand. He let me go, but not before Brett noticed the somewhat uncomfortable exchange.
After the awkward introductions, we all sat down and ordered a few drinks. Daniel’s date kept talking to me, but what she was saying went in one ear and out the other. I tried to imagine that I wasn’t sitting across from the scum of the earth, but every time he looked at me I could feel his gaze searing through my skin. How dare he say he wanted me back and then go out with other women?
I hadn’t seen him in a while but his hair was still bleach blond from being out in the sun all the time and his brown eyes were still dark and brooding. They used to be sexy and sweet when I knew him in college, but it was amazing how greed and money could affect one’s life.
Downing a couple of glasses of my favorite wine, I tried to zone out as best I could. I was shocked that Daniel didn’t want to come out and say he knew me, or better yet say that I was his, but I could tell he had something else in mind. Only when he mentioned building on his family’s land out in California did I perk up and pay attention.
“Excuse me? What did you say?” I asked, furrowing my brow. “Where did you say you wanted to build?”
Brett and Daniel both laughed, but Daniel’s chuckle was a little hesitant. Narrowing his eyes in warning, he said, “My project will be on my family’s estate out by their vineyards. I have plans to build out there.”
How the hell did he get that land?
It was all supposed to go to his sister when his parents died, which meant that if he had the land now then something must’ve happened to his mother. Oh, no! Tears built behind my eyes, but I knew I couldn’t let them fall. Please don’t let his mother be dead.
As far as his family went, I really liked his sister and his mother. They were actually really nice women, and his mother had spent more time with me while Daniel and I had been together than my own mother. I loved her. How could I not have known if she passed away? Surely, someone would’ve told me.
Swallowing hard, I asked, “So do you still have family that live out there?”
He looked away for a second and then back to me. He knew what I was asking. “Only my sister lives out there now.” He hesitated for a moment and said, “My mother just passed away a couple of weeks ago.”
Brett stiffened beside me at the mention of the death of Daniel’s mother. I could only imagine the thoughts of his own mother passing away coursing through his mind. His lip tilted into a frown and he sighed. “I’m really sorry for your loss. I lost mine as well many years ago,” he explained. The same haunted expression I’d seen in his pictures passed across his face, but he recovered quickly. I squeezed his hand under the table to let him know I was there for him, even though he had no clue I already knew about his mother.
Daniel nodded at Brett. When he glanced at me, I murmured wholeheartedly, “I’m so sorry about your mother.”
She was a wonderful woman and I knew without a doubt that she wouldn’t leave her precious land to the likes of her son. His sister was supposed to inherit the land when their mother passed. She had some really good ideas for when she was going to take over the business side of the vineyards.
I knew the vineyards and his family’s land like the back of my hand. Daniel and I spent a lot of time out there, and while he was busy doing the things he liked to do, I was busy traipsing out in the vineyards and exploring the wide open fields in wonder.
What was he up to now? I wondered.
I tried my best to hold back the sarcasm and accusation when I asked, “So how did you come to acquiring the land. Did your sister inherit some as well?”
He shifted in his seat but didn’t miss a beat. Avoiding all eye contact with me, it was a sure sign he was lying through his teeth when he turned to Brett and answered, “I inherited it from my grandparents. Since my mother recently just passed it was said that once she was gone I would be the sole owner of the vineyards. I have a real serious investor that is very interested in partnering up with me for some valuable real estate out there.”
Standing from my seat, Brett furrowed his brows and stood with me. “Are you okay?” he questioned, taking my elbow.
I smiled and waved him off. “Oh yeah, I’m fine. I just need to be excused for a moment.” More like make a phone call. And once I found out the truth I was going to tell Brett everything.
Narrowing his eyes, he let me go, but not before kissing me firmly on the lips. I noticed Daniel fuming out of the corner of my eye, but I was too anxious and upset to rub it in Daniel’s face. Instead, I paid him no mind and gave Brett a heart rendering smile before sauntering off to the ladies room. I passed the hostess at the front and stopped when I got to the restrooms. Once I found my phone in my purse, I pulled it out and scrolled through my contacts. Surely, I didn’t delete his sister’s number when I switched phones.
“Shit,” I hissed quietly when I couldn’t find it.
I wanted to call her and ask her how Daniel was able to get the inheritance from her or if she willingly gave it to him. If I couldn’t find her number I knew of someone who could. My cousin, Mason, was a police detective and I was sure he’d do everything possible to help me since he despised Daniel.
When I was about to put my phone back in my purse, a set of arms wrapped around my waist and hauled me into the ladies bathroom. “What the …” I snapped, and then when I turned around I had the pleasure of seeing my ex-husband, red-faced and furious.
After he locked us in the bathroom, he stalked toward me angrily, but I stood my ground. “What the fuck are you doing out there? And why haven’t you answered any of my calls. I’ve been trying to tell you about my mother for days.”
“I know, and I’m sorry about your mother,” I replied sadly.
He ran his hands through his hair and sighed. “Yeah, well it’s over and done with now. I was also trying to see if you would be my date for the evening tonight, but I guess you would’ve said no considering you’re with someone else.”
“Yes, I am,” I snapped. “Which is why you need to stop calling me all the damn time.”
Exasperated, he huffed, “When are you going to get over what I did to you and move on? I said I was sorry and that I would do anything to get you back. Why won’t you let me try?”
I scof
fed, “Because you cheated on me, Daniel. And you’re also here with another woman. That doesn’t exactly make me want you back.”
“I don’t care about that whore out there, Melissa. I care about you and I want you to give me another chance. I wanted you to come with me tonight but you didn’t answer your fucking phone. Just think about all we could do together with my family’s land. You had some really good ideas floating around in that head of yours when we were married. You could make them all real now, especially with you by my side and with my sister’s help.”
Scowling, I crossed my arms over my chest and snapped, “I don’t love you anymore, Daniel. I’m happy with Brett and it’s going to stay that way. You need to respect that and give me my space. As far as helping you with your project, are you insane? I don’t know how you inherited that land, but I do know it was supposed to go to your sister. I can see it in your eyes that you’re up to something. How did you do it?”
Daniel’s whole mood flipped and he hissed, “You know what? That’s not any of your concern anymore. Since you refuse to let me back in your life, you don’t get the pleasure of knowing anything about mine.”
He stepped closer and pinned me to the wall with his arms on either side of me, caging me in. With a wolfish smile gleaming on his face, he remarked, “Why didn’t you tell Brett that I was your husband? You’re a stubborn woman that always did what she wanted and never once did you ever listen to me when we were married. What made you listen to me now?”
I held up my hand and pushed against his chest. “First off, you’re my ex-husband,” I spat at him. “And Brett’s been looking forward to this account with you and I didn’t want to come between that. If I tell him that you’re my ex it’ll make this really awkward for him, especially if I tell him that something scandalous is going on. I know you don’t have rights to that land, Daniel. There’s no way your sister would give it up that easily. You forget that I spent most of my time with her when we went out there. Her dreams of that land are something she wouldn’t just let go to a brother that couldn’t give a shit about it.”
Shaking his head, Daniel smirked and pressed his body to mine. “Oh, my sweet Melissa, what am I ever going to do with you?” When I tried to speak, he placed a finger over my lips. “Okay, here’s what’s going to happen. First, that land is mine and I can prove it. It’s written as plain as day in my mother’s will.” Yeah, I’d like to see proof of that, I thought to myself. I rolled my eyes while he continued to rant.
“Second, you’re not going to tell Brett anything about me and you while this project is in the works. My investor was adamant on getting Brett to do the designing, and I’m not going to let you or anyone else come between that. I have a lot riding on this deal, and if you screw it up there’s going to be some dire consequences. I’ll make sure you go down with me.”
I tried to get out of his grasp, but he held me tighter against the wall. “You’re lying. You can’t take me down with you. So help me God if you don’t let me go I’m going to scream. You can’t stop me from telling, Brett,” I said through clenched teeth.
Daniel sneered, “Oh no? Are you sure about that?” His hands trailed down the sides of my body and he grabbed a hold of my ass and squeezed. “I think you might want to reconsider that, my dear. You see … if you don’t keep that trap of yours shut, you’re going to make me resort to other means and I really don’t want to have to do that. I don’t want to hurt you, Mel, but if you force it I’m going to have no choice. Please don’t make me do it.”
“Do what?” I asked nervously.
He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “There are lots of things I could do, baby. For starters, I could tell the school board about a so called scandalous relationship with one of your male students.”
I gasped, my blood instantly boiling with anger. “What the hell are you talking about? I would never do anything like that with one of my students,” I hissed.
The thought of having sex with one of my students was appalling. If Daniel leaked those lies I would lose my job and go to jail. Holy shit.
“Exactly, but the school board doesn’t know that. I don’t want to ruin you, and the last thing I want to do is push you away, but I need to know you won’t cause problems. This would all be easy if you just stayed quiet.”
“You’re a prick, you know that?” I growled, pushing against his chest. “Your accusation could put me in jail and ruin me for the rest of my life. How could you threaten me with that if you loved me?”
Daniel backed off and let me out of his grasp. When I reached for the door, he stopped me with his next words. “I do love you. There’s another way we can handle this,” he suggested.
I should’ve just walked out, but I didn’t. I glared at him as I turned around. “And what other twisted way to fuck me over would that be?”
Smirking, he trailed his gaze down my body and then back up. “It’s not a way to fuck you over, I promise,” he remarked. I scoffed, but he ignored it and continued, “Everything in my life rides on this deal, Melissa. I have to see it through, and by God I wish you could understand that. There’s so much you don’t know and I want to explain it to you, but I can’t right now. All I’m asking is for you to let me prove to you that I’m worthy. This would all go differently if you just …”
I huffed and waved my hand impatiently. “Get on with it and tell me already.”
He bit his lip and smiled. “Come back to me. Let me love you again. I can give you everything you want and you wouldn’t even have to work anymore. We can make a life together, move to California, and live on the vineyards like you always wanted to do. Brett can’t give you all that I can.”
I was about to protest when his mouth closed over mine in that next instant, all hot and demanding. His hands held my face firmly as he pushed his weight against me, trying to wear me down by forcing his tongue in my mouth. I gasped and immediately pulled away, glaring at him in disgust and wiping my mouth off with the back of my hand.
“You must really think I’m stupid don’t you?”
Nonchalantly, he appeared unfazed at what he just did and stood there smiling innocently. “No, you’re actually a very clever woman, and you’re smart enough to know that I’m not going to stop. One way or another I will have you again. It’s just a matter of time. I know you still have feelings for me somewhere in that body of yours.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, my face was a stony mask as I glared at him. He wasn’t going to manipulate me. For the moment I’d keep my mouth shut even though it was against my nature to do so, at least until I found out the information I needed to bust his ass.
“This isn’t over, Daniel. And just so you know, I have no plans of sleeping with you or letting you back into my life, let alone touch me, so you can get that thought out of your mind. It’s not going to happen.”
Striding up to the door, Daniel unlocked it and held it open for me. “After you, sweetheart,” he said, his face beaming as if he’d won. He fingered the strap of my dress and caressed my skin, making me cringe. “Just keep all of this to yourself and everything will be fine. I personally like the alternative.”
“The answer is no,” I repeated more firmly. “You can threaten me all you want, but my decision is not going to change. If this is how you try to get me back in your bed, you’re going about it the wrong way, asshole.”
I stormed off but he kept his pace beside me. I groaned when I realized he was going to walk with me back to the table; not to mention he was just a little too close. Before we got within ear shot of Brett and Ashley, he lowered his voice and said, “By the time I’m done with you I’ll have you worn down and saying yes before you know it.”
I don’t think so.
Fourteen
“What took you so long?” Brett asked as both Daniel and I walked up. He glanced at Daniel and narrowed his eyes for just a second before turning back to me.
Before I could speak, Daniel cut in, “There was a slight problem, but I took
care of it.”
I wanted to roll my eyes, but refrained from it. Standing and pulling out my chair like the gentleman he was, Brett questioned, “What happened? Are you okay?”
“She’s okay,” Daniel interrupted, waving dismissively. “Just some guy who was a little drunk tried to hit on her. I made him leave.”
Brett gritted his teeth and scowled. I didn’t know if it was from Daniel not letting me speak or if it was the thought of another guy bothering me, but it looked like both. Brett moved his chair closer to me and whispered in my ear, “That guy better be glad it wasn’t me that found him hitting on you or else I’d probably be in jail right now.”
In a way I wished he was there to catch Daniel, but my life would be severely ruined if Daniel leaked his lies about me out to the world. I had to play my cards right to get out of the mess I was in. Smiling, I grabbed a hold of Brett’s hand, but looked over at Daniel. “I’m sure I could’ve handled it on my own. I was two seconds away from kicking the guy in the balls. In a way I wish I would have so he’d have gotten the picture earlier.”
Ashley, Daniel’s date, piped in, “Yeah, you should have, honey. Men these days just don’t know how to treat a lady.” Daniel rolled his eyes behind her back and threw back his gin and tonic, setting the glass down hard on the table.
“I agree, Ashley, but you just have to find the right one,” I said, turning my head to smile at Brett.
He grinned back, but it didn’t reach his eyes. I could tell he felt the tension and wanted to ask about it, but he refrained. Instead, he smiled and nodded toward the waiter. We ordered our food, but I was too angry and impatient to eat so I just swirled it around my plate and pretended. I spent most of the time gritting my teeth every time Daniel opened his mouth.
Could the night go any slower?