by Bella Court
"Oh, really?" She scoffed disbelievingly. She was being cold and unnecessarily cruel to him, she knew, but she forged on regardless. She needed to know where they stood. If she was to continue spiraling down this roller coaster that could possibly break her completely, she had to know. "If you don't tell him, he's only going to find out for himself. Or should I just keep on pretending not to know you at work?"
Connor stared at her with those startling eyes of his, which were gradually growing darker. "John is my brother, and I can't change what he did to you. So stop taking out your anger on me, all right?"
"What are we?" Kristen demanded furiously, hating that she was acting out of control and irrational, while Connor was as emotionless as can be. "Am I just your fuck buddy? Was I just the girl you couldn't have so you had to have me? Or was it just to spite me for what I did to you?" The moment that last phrase came out of her mouth, white-hot fear gripped her. Could it…could that be why he was with her? To screw her over in the end? She was beginning to feel out of breath and unsteady.
Her mask didn't hold up. She was visibly upset, and that was what reminded Connor that he wasn't the only one taking a big risk here. She was opening herself up more than she was used to.
Nonetheless, he couldn't hold back his irritation. "Believe it or not, I'm not that spiteful. Can you stop being so selfish for once and stop thinking that everyone is out to get you? I didn't bring you to Rockefeller Center because I wanted to screw you over. I didn't put all this time and effort into chasing after you just so you would be my fuck buddy. I'm not drawn to you because I can't have you, even though you keep pushing me away."
He paused to draw in a breath, "When I told you that I like you, I meant it. I don't play games."
He moved closer to her to cup her cheek. She made a move to brush his hand away, but Connor's hands caught them before she could. She didn't even try to battle him.
She wanted to lose. She wanted him to be there for her. She didn't want to be alone anymore. "We're whatever you want us to be. You want to be friends? Fine. You want to do more than what friends do? Even better. If you want a relationship…well, I think I've made it pretty damn clear what I want."
"What do you want, Kristen?"
She couldn't look away from his eyes. He had trapped her, and she didn't want to get away. The logical part of her mind told her not to do it. That she was already putting herself out there more than she should. He'd hurt her more than John ever could. But her heart and gut told her that if she didn't do it, she would never feel this way again.
She could take the pain. She had the role of the martyr down to a science. Pain was nothing new to her. It was the loneliness that gnawed away at her, eating her from the insides. She didn't want to be lonely anymore, and she didn't want to be ice cold. "You. I want you. I think I'm falling for you,” she whispered.
He heard.
He stayed.
Because she consumed his thoughts and emotions so thoroughly that he could think of nothing else but her.
He waited. Always waiting.
* * *
He really should have known better than to expect more out of his brother, but there was always that hope. That shining beacon of hope that maybe his brother would come through for him one day. That beacon was coming dangerously close to being put out.
Her warm hands clasped over his. He attempted to give her a weak smile, but it came out sorrowful looking. "I'm sure something came up, John," Melissa whispered, knowing how much John was hurting.
"With Connor, you never know," John laughed dryly, his free hand meaninglessly playing with the silverware on the table. They hadn't even ordered any food yet out of courtesy for Connor.
They waited nearly an hour, and no sign of Connor. Distractedly, John glanced at his cell phone once more and was disappointed once more to find that his brother hadn't called. He hadn't even texted.
Suddenly he heard a distinct but faint noise coming from his wife. He glanced at her curiously. She blushed, as she quickly placed a hand over her stomach. Her stomach was growling. She had waited without complaint, despite the fact that they were starving. And Connor never showed up.
"Let's order,” John said decisively, his usually friendly eyes suddenly hard.
"No, really, John. I can wait–"
John ignored her and signaled for the waiter to come over. In brusque tones, he quickly ordered for them, and even though she had tried to convince him otherwise, the look of relief on her face was unmistakable.
John felt tense and furious, and it was quite clear the whole time he sat down to eat lunch, as he shoved the slightly bloody pieces of steak down his throat.
Melissa stayed quiet, trying her best to ooze waves of comfort to her husband. It wasn't working. If anything, John seemed to be getting more antsy and upset as more time went by.
Sympathy washed over her. John always tried so hard to establish a better relationship with Connor, but Connor could not be more standoffish. But that was just his way, and neither of them could change that.
Finally, the phone vibrated against John's hip. With calm fluidity, John put down his fork and took his phone out of his pocket.
Connor Wilde flashed across the caller id screen. Sliding his phone open, John growled, "Where the hell are you?"
"Hey, sorry man, I lost track of time–"
John hung up the phone.
Chapter Eight
"To the left," Kristen instructed, as the movers brought the furniture into the reception area on the top floor. Gingerly, they laid the cream colored couches as directed.
Nell smiled at the young decorator, as she walked in that morning. The walls had been painted a soft peachy color, and the lighting had been rearranged to make for a much more comfortable environment. Fresh flowers were in abundance everywhere, and Nell couldn't imagine going back to the drabness that used to hang over the office.
"Morning, dear. Is my nephew in, yet?"
Kristen straightened. Nell had a nephew? "Who's your nephew?"
Nell's tinkling laugh, so much like Jade's, rang through the crisp morning air. "Reece, of course. Didn't you know?"
Kristen shook her head, as a broad grin came over her face. The puzzle piece fell into place. So that was why Reece always seemed to be so affectionate with Nell, and why he always heeded her commands.
"Reece! There you are, we were just talking about you!" Nell exclaimed.
"Nothing bad, I hope," Reece mumbled, walking over to his aunt to give her an obligatory kiss on the cheek.
Kristen did a double take. She almost didn't recognize him. Gone was the clean-cut, boyish looking man who always had a smile on his face. Bags encircled Reece's sapphire colored eyes, which looked weary and blank. Stubble and hair grew lightly along his jaw, and his hair looked flat and not styled one bit. He didn't look too happy, and Kristen could see why.
Reece's eyes glanced cautiously towards Kristen, and he offered a weak smile, which did wonders for his appearance. "Morning, babe. This place looks good."
"Thanks."
Silence stretched, but Nell took no mind. She flitted off to get some coffee, leaving the two alone.
Reece heaved a heavy sigh. "I don't know what to do about Jade."
Kristen arched an eyebrow, she hadn't heard from Jade since Saturday.
"You better tell me exactly what happened Saturday, or I will personally make sure that children are not in your near future."
Reece winced, and he exhaustedly sunk into one of the new couches, "I ran after her. I couldn't just let her leave thinking that I just wanted to hit it and quit it. I apologized, but…I didn't know what to say to her after that. Kristen, I like Jade, I do, but I'm not a relationship kind of guy. I don't do commitment. The thought of it scares the shit out of me."
Kristen could relate.
"So we had some breakfast, and we talked, laughed, but we didn't say anything about the night before after that. I guess we're just pretending like it never happened."
Kristen seriously
doubted that Jade felt as nonchalant, as she seemed to be acting.
"You honestly think she's going to forget it all happened?" Kristen asked, giving Reece an incredulous look.
Reece ran another hand through his disheveled hair. "No, and she shouldn't. I was her first. What should I do? Should I ask her out on a date or something? But damn, I don't want to be in a relationship."
Kristen had to fight the urge to keep her hand from connecting with his firm cheek. He was so unbelievably full of himself to think that Jade would be falling over herself to go on a date with him, as if that would be the solution to all their problems.
"Did you ever stop to consider that maybe she doesn't like you all that much? I mean, if the girl doesn't even like you, why would she go on a date with you?" Kristen blurted the words without thinking, her anger at his arrogance coming out.
"What? Come on, she–” His voice had started out strong, overconfident, and then he stopped. Something dawned on him, as sudden comprehension came over his eyes. "She doesn't like me?"
Kristen shrugged, unsure of whether or not to correct her words. Of course Jade liked him, but neither of them had truly shown romantic interest and flirtation towards one another until Jade's party.
Reece seemed to recognize this, and an adorable look of confusion crossed his blue eyes. Reece had been knocked down a peg or two by the possibility that Jade might not even like him.
"But she slept with me, that counts for something, right?" Reece asked, his voice suddenly urgent.
"She was also incredibly intoxicated as were you," Kristen pointed out, inwardly grinning. It was perfect. Reece wanted what he couldn't have, and the notion that Jade might not even like him when he was in distress over her did not sit well with Reece.
"Well who else is there?" Reece demanded arrogantly.
Kristen shrugged one shoulder, the knowing smirk coming to her face naturally. She gave off the aura of knowing something he didn't, and that only served to infuriate him more.
As if on cue, Jade strutted into the office, looking very ruffled and frustrated. "Hey, Kristen," Jade called, completely ignoring Reece.
Kristen got up to give Jade a quick hug. "Bad morning?"
"Walter woke me up. He's been such a bad little boy, lately." Jade brushed her growing bangs out of her eyes, while Reece's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. Oh, this was too perfect.
"Hey, Jade," Reece called a little too loudly to be casual, "Who's Walter?"
Jade shot him a dirty look and replied coldly, "Someone very special to me, what's it to you?"
"Well on account of us sleeping together and all, I was just interested." Reece replied icily, his fierce green eyes matching his disposition.
"Oh, are we acknowledging that now? I thought we were pretending it never happened," Jade shot back.
Reece didn't say a word, as Jade flitted off to get coffee from the workroom. As soon as she was out of earshot, Reece turned to Kristen. "Who the hell is Walter?"
Kristen gave him the same cool shrug that made him growl. He didn't need to know that Walter was Jade's pet Scottish terrier, who was an absolute menace to all things domestic.
Instead, she diverted his attention by asking him questions about his office and if he was satisfied with Jade's choice in design, but Reece was too distracted to answer her questions coherently. Instead, he seemed to be staring at the doorway to the waiting room, his foot tapping anxiously, waiting for Jade so that he could bombard her with more questions while acting like he didn't care.
He straightened when footsteps were heard coming from the corridor, his eyes squared for battle, but he slumped when he realized it was just his familiar dark haired boss.
"Well, how's our favorite stealer of virginity?" Connor said teasingly, slapping Reece on the back.
"Great," Reece said sarcastically, underneath his breath he muttered. "Who the fuck is Walter and doesn't she know coffee gives you the runs?"
Connor's eyes met Kristen's, and she couldn't stop the grin that was tugging at the corners of her lips.
"Morning," Kristen purred, giving him a long, slow smile.
"Morning to you, too."
Even in his cloud of self-pity, Reece was distinctly startled by the sudden sexual tension that charged the air. If there was anyone who could identify something even remotely sexual, it was Reece.
That, and the fact that a smile now graced Kristen's pretty features, making her look even more radiant and beautiful. Connor looked extremely satisfied, and he wasn't rocketing off to take care of business matters. In fact, both of them were actually acting like they knew one another. All this perked Reece's interest.
"How was your weekend?" Reece asked slowly, his eyes darting back and forth between the two.
"Fine." The two echoed in unison.
Reece didn't believe them. He watched Kristen nervously pull out an invisible wrinkle in her perfect pantsuit, and Connor watching her every move as if he couldn't get enough of her.
A slow smile spread across Reece's face. "Just fine, huh? Connor, you losing your touch?"
"Maybe you should just worry about you and Jade at the moment, Romeo,” Kristen replied sweetly.
The grin dropped from Reece's face to be replaced by the sulky glare that seemed to be a permanent fixture on his face all morning. "Thanks for bringing that back up. Well, I'm happy for the two of you, someone around here should have a non dysfunctional relationship."
The irony of it all was too much.
"You seriously have no idea what you're talking about,” Connor said, shaking his head at the non-dysfunctional comment.
At this point, nothing could convince Reece otherwise that the two weren't involved somehow. Easily, he let the words flow from his mouth, "Oh? I don't? So you're saying that if I kissed Kristen right now…"
"Why don't you try it, then?" Connor challenged.
Reece's hand reached towards Kristen, and she quickly batted it away with a sharp hit that made Reece cry out.
"You'd get kneed in the balls,” Kristen said sweetly, "and I speak for myself and Jade."
"Damn," Reece muttered, while Connor laughed heartily.
It was this scene of warmth and liveliness that greeted an already irritated John Wilde. He was more than a little surprised to find his brother laughing with Reece and Kristen, of all people.
Reece straightened when he heard the approach of footsteps, but once again slumped over to find that it was not Jade Gray standing still in the doorway.
"Hey, John," Reece greeted, and that simple phrase made the light in Kristen's eyes vanish.
"Reece,” John said tightly. He ignored the other two and stalked to his office, waves of tension cutting its way through the previously lively atmosphere.
Connor's eyes had hardened, and his strong mouth was now drawn in a taut line.
"What's wrong with him?" Reece muttered.
"He's being a little bitch because he's pissed that I missed lunch with him and Melissa,” Connor replied, his eyes chillingly cold.
"Why'd you miss it?" Reece questioned.
"Busy,” Connor said roughly, leaving no room for conversation.
"Did you call at least?"
"Tried. More than once. He hung up on me, so fuck him."
From the hard look on his face, it was clear that his pride would not let him go to his brother to apologize, even though Connor knew he was partly to blame for not calling early enough to cancel. There was absolutely nothing vital about that lunch, so why was John making such a big deal out of it?
The next week was one filled with startling tension between the two brothers that seeped into all aspects of the workplace. Reece struggled to mediate between the two non-speaking brothers during business meetings, while trying to get back into Jade's good favor.
All of Wilde Finances knew that something was off kilter between the two brothers, and the cold exchanges between the two managed to set an uncomfortable atmosphere for the workplace.
Connor refu
sed to go apologize to his brother, and this only served to increase John's ire over his brother's lack of caring. John just didn't understand why his brother was so difficult. Was it so fucking hard to apologize? To admit that yes, you could be fallible and make mistakes? John, ever the kind hearted sibling, would have reluctantly forgiven Connor if he would have just admitted he was in the wrong. John had put up with Connor's bullshit for so long, and he was tired of feeling like he had to fight to be able to get to know his brother.
After all this time, he still knew nothing about his brother, and it frustrated him immensely to realize that this was the exact reason his relationship with Kristen had come to an end.
"Mr. Garrison wanted the money to be spread over different bank accounts to increase security," Connor explained to the members of the board, his eyes sweeping over the group of men in the meeting room, his eyes conveniently skipping over that of his brother's. "So what we need–”
"Actually, when I spoke to him, I was under the impression that he would prefer that the money be transferred to his J.P Morgan account immediately." John interrupted frostily.
Connor's eyes narrowed. Michael Garrison, a personal friend of John and Connor's, did no such thing, and if he did, he surely would have come to see Connor instead of John.
"If he had wanted to do that, I'm sure he would have specified with the C.E.O of Wilde Finances," Connor bit back, his tone still purely professional, but no one could miss the ice-cold glare directed across the boardroom. Connor Wilde's look had coerced stronger men than John to succumb to his demands. And no one could miss the blatantly superior tone in Connor's voice. It clearly said, 'I am the head here, end of story.' In any other case, it should have shut anyone down.
It wasn't end of story, and John could feel himself flaring up. It was a struggle to keep up the air of professionalism that Connor seemed to be so very fond of. "Well, as a good friend of Michael's, I think it would be in his best interest to just secure the money in his personal account," John insisted.
"That's not what Mr. Garrison and his board members have agreed on, and thus, we will proceed with the original plan." Connor's eyes hadn't lost the hard look in his eyes, and his jaw was clenched so tight that he could feel an ache begin to develop in the back of his mouth.