Takedown: An Enemies to Lovers Dark Romance

by Lana Hartley

  Fuck, I feel as if I’m going completely nuts. I forget for a second that Jessica’s in the room as my focus seems to be on shooting hoops. The only thing that I appear to be doing right at the moment. I’m failing miserably at everything else.

  “You did something stupid, didn’t you?”

  “This is what this thing’s about. The reason why you’re obsessing about the store. It all makes sense now.”

  I sit on the edge of my desk as she towers above me.

  “Yes! He was about to do something to Elia. I wasn’t going to let him do anything to her.”

  “Wow, Elia must be the most beautiful woman in the world, or maybe she’s put a magic spell on you guys; the way that you’re running after her, and not only you, but her boss, too.”

  “So you think it’s okay if she was raped or something?”

  She shakes her head. “I never said that. What I’m saying is the same girl that you’re dating just happens to have a boss who tried to…”

  She’s searching for the words, but I say it for her, “Rape her!”

  “Pursue her, and she’s got you wrapped around her little finger. I gather that's why you sent me out to pick up the iPhone and iPad. It was for her?”I don’t respond, but I can tell she’s getting jealous as her cheeks glow red with my non-confirmation.

  “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. The investors are not happy about the deal. They looked at the paperwork and saw that you’re offering at least double the valued price and feel that you’re over generous. The problem is the legal team thinks of it as a high-risk business due to the finances of the current owner.”

  “What do you mean?”

  I haven’t heard about this until now. Jessica used to be less terse with me, too. I hadn’t ever noticed her acting this way before...and I guess she never cared when I screwed everything with a pussy. Everything but her. Did she think her magic pussy was going to domesticate me?

  “Well, they say that he owes a lot of money. Maybe it has nothing to do with you rescuing Precious Elia,” she pauses probably waiting for a reaction, and I give her none. “He has outstanding gambling debts and not from a bank loan. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  “I understand perfectly. Maybe I should look at another bookstore because this one’s turning out to be a lot more trouble than it’s worth.”

  She smiles. “Exactly.”

  And then she closes my door. I try to shoot one more hoop. I miss not by an inch, but a fucking mile!

  Elia

  Eric picks me up for another dinner date. This time, I wait outside for him so he doesn’t have to walk up to my apartment. I’m just too excited to sit and wait for him inside.

  “Hey, there,” he croons as he draws closer. His voice sounds sexy and judging by the way that his mouth's curved, he’s missed me. I was hoping that he'd be happy to see me because he’s been a bit distant lately.

  “Hey, yourself!”

  I throw my arms around his neck for a quick hug, then pull away to go to my side of the car. He shoots me a long-suffering look, and I giggle because I know that he wants to play the gentleman, but I open the door and get in the car. He gets inside, throwing me another look as he puts the car in drive.

  He takes me to an Italian bistro just like he did on our last date a few days ago. I haven’t seen him since then. And though we have talked and texted, he almost seems...like he’s hiding something. I know that makes me sound crazy.

  It might be my own paranoia, because even though he said that he loves me, I worry that I can’t truly be a part of Eric’s life. Not without meeting his daughter.

  I distract myself from those troubling thoughts by looking at the restaurant that Eric is taking me to tonight. The outside is all red cobblestones and large glass windows. The decor’s in different shades of brown, with tables spread evenly around the restaurant. There are booths pressed against the right wall. We’re led to one of the booths after the hostess confirms Eric's reservation. I lean back in the seat as he slides in across from me.

  “How’s your day been?”

  His hand reaches across the table for mine, and I twine our fingers together.

  “It’s been a long day,” I say with a shrug and a roll of my eyes. “Yours was probably more exciting than mine was. At least a few people came in today, though. What about you?”

  Before he can speak, a waiter shows up to take our orders. We both take a quick glance at our menus and give our order, then the waiter walks away. I turn back to Eric, waiting for his answer.

  He ignores my question and asks, “How are the other girls doing? Are they still acting weird?”

  I shake my head.

  “It’s a little better since we last spoke about it. Maybe things are turning around.” I nod, thinking that maybe before I was feeling a little paranoid about the situation.

  “That’s good,” Eric says encouragingly. “Everything seems to be falling into place. I think that once the purchase goes through then things will get a lot better.”

  I’m a bit surprised that he’s talking like this. Especially when he hasn’t bought the store yet. No one seems to know where Ryan is at the moment.

  Anxiety builds in my stomach as I open my mouth to ask, but the efficient waiter appears with our order. Once I see the pasta in front of my eyes, the last thing on my mind is a discussion about Ryan.

  I take a bite and lose all senses. It’s partly because the food is good, and because of the way Eric fixates on my lips. I chew slowly and take my time as soon as I digest it and lick my lips. He wants me. Lust is written all over his face.

  He hums, tasting some of his food. “You don’t know how much you’re turning me on right now.”

  I move my head to the side and see him adjusting his pants.

  “I think I have a pretty good idea.”

  I chew on my lower lip, and his eyes once against latch onto my lips. He puts his elbows on the table and leans closer while lowering his voice.

  “If you keep doing that, then I’ll have to drag you into the bathroom and show you how much you’re turning me on right now.”

  I put my fork down and smile. “Promises, promises.”

  I lick my lips once again this time slower. We could be in the restaurant alone as he moves his chair closer to mine.

  “One more time, Elia!” he growls in my ear.

  “What’s stopping you?”

  He clears his throat. “I told you I have a lot of work at the moment. I have pressure from every corner, and I need to focus. I need to focus so badly.”

  I grab his hand and slip it between my legs. I’m sure other diners are looking, but I don’t care. I only have eyes for one man, and his hand is in between my leg right now.

  “Fuck! You’re so fucking wet.”

  I nod innocently. “That’s what you do to me.”

  “I can feel it through your dress…”

  He snarls as he rides my dress up above my knee slowly, higher. The woman at the table next to us makes a loud noise. Maybe with her plate or something? But loud enough for us to know that we have an audience. One that’s not enjoying the show right now.

  “What are you going to do about it?”He shakes his head. “Elia, I brought you out to eat.”

  He pushes my chair away from him. I feel disappointed that I’m not having that effect on him. I worry that maybe something’s really wrong with us. First there’s no sex after he tells me that he loves me. He’s hiding something for sure. But then again, as he stops eating and keeps looking at me, I have a feeling that Eric will want a dessert and it won’t be something that’s on the menu.

  “Babe, the truth is, I wanted to approach this subject better, but my mother is bringing my daughter, Rose, back tonight. I want...I want you to meet her. That summer camp they went to seem to go on forever...and I don’t want Rose to feel like she’s missing time with me. But you matter to me. I don’t know if I’m crazy or moving too fast or if you even want to meet my daughter, but if you’re with me,
Rose is my family. I...I have never had to say this to anyone before and I have no idea if I’m doing it right.” Eric looks so stressed out right now that I wouldn’t be surprised if steam shot out of his ears, if only to relieve some of the pressure.

  Wow. This explains why Eric has been acting weird. Even though the bookstore used to be my only dream, my desire to be in a real, committed relationship with Eric has started to become just as important to me. And he finally brought up me meeting his daughter.

  “Eric, I-”

  “You don’t have to say anything,” Eric says, smiling. “I sprung this all on you.” He rubs his temples.

  I place my hand over his, trying to comfort him. “Of course you and Rose are a package deal. I’m honored you want me to meet her. You figure out what’s best as far as doing that without encroaching goes,” I say, nibbling on my lip and feeling myself start to get nervous. “What if Rose doesn’t like me?” Now, I’m worried.

  “Impossible. I think she could meet you right now and you two would have so much fun,” Eric says. His face lights up in a way I’ve never seen before, and for a second, I think I might cry.

  I feel the moisture welling up in my eyes. “I love you, Eric.”

  “DAAADDDDY!!” A squeal breaks through the restaurant.

  A tiny girl in a princess dress, golden hair in little ringlets, runs up and wraps her arm around Eric’s neck.

  An older woman that I would immediately know was Eric’s mom looks at me with a huge smile on her face. It even seems genuine. “Elia!” she says, and she hugs me. Like wraps her arms around me and squeezes me. “So you’re the girl that finally tamed my dastardly son, Eric!”

  “Mom,” Eric says, but he’s smiling.

  “I had a feeling by your secretary’s pissy tone that you were here with Elia. You really should have hired a man, since that girl is so hung up on you that she can’t think straight. And you don’t even notice!”

  A waiter brings a kid’s plastic cup of water and a glass goblet for Eric’s mom.

  “I’m Virginia. So nice to meet you finally. Eric has told me so much about you.”

  Okay, I really am crying now. It takes me a second but I finally sputter out, “I’m Elia.” I wanted to introduce Eric to my parents, but this is incredible. Eric told his mother about me? She brought Rose here, knowing I would be here. This was all a test.

  I kind of love this woman. That’s the ballsy move of a woman that wants her son to settle down.

  Well, me too.

  “Hi Lee-ya!” Rose says. She hands me a picture.

  There’s two princesses and a prince, and she wrote ‘Mommy and Daddy with Rose’ on it. “Don’t cry Lee-ya! Gammaw says you’re probably going to be my Mommy because Daddy doesn’t date any girls but he likes you.”

  “Well, that’s very nice of Gammaw to say. I’m so glad to meet you, Rose,” I say. I know it must be incredibly awkward for Eric, so I decide to put the picture in my purse and start telling Rose facts I know about sharks and random sea life. I read a lot of the fun facts books in the children’s book section, and it seems like they’re finally going to come in handy.

  I haven’t been around kids much except for the ones that come in the store, but I immediately like Rose. She’s smart and loves laughing and really reminds me of myself when I was little. I think she’s just about the sweetest little girl I’ve ever met.

  The one second that I look up from the conversation with Rose, only because I’m grabbing the dessert menu, I see that Eric is holding Virginia’s hand, and they are both beaming.

  Well…I guess they’re both grateful that this didn’t turn out to be a total disaster. I know that I am. For tonight, the problems with work seem to be so very small, because I’m excited.

  If Eric wants it, too, I could be little Roses’s mom. And while I know that Eric is a wonderful parent, I also know that a little girl should have a mom.

  I don’t know if I would be a good mom, but I want to be, and that’s got to count for something. The stakes in this relationship just got incredibly high. I have to make sure that Eric knows that I’m all in.

  “Chocolate cake?” I mouthe to Eric.

  “CHOCOLATE CAKE! Please, Daddy,” Rose says. She folds her hands in her lap and sits pretty, and I swallow the giggle I have at just how cute that whole display was.

  “Yes, Rose, of course you can have something special as a treat for your first day back with Daddy,” Eric says. He beams at his daughter.

  I think my heart could swell right out of my chest, I am so in love right now.

  And don’t judge me, but seeing Eric as a father is the biggest turn on that I have ever seen in my life. If he thought I was turned on before, good grief, my engines are revving now.

  “I have to go!” Virginia says, kissing the top of her son’s head, then Rose’s, and giving me a hug. “So lovely to meet you.”

  “You as well, thank you,” I say, giving her a broad smile. My face is almost hurting from how hard I’m smiling. But I don’t think I’ve ever been happier in my life.

  Eric

  When I wake up, I hate discovering that I’m sleeping alone. This is a thing that I used to do all the time, and it’s second nature to me. Sleeping alone used to be the best thing ever; now it’s the fucking worst.

  God!

  Maybe Jessica’s right and Elia’s put a magic spell on me.

  I grab my shorts and then decide to go on a five mile run on the treadmill. I soon change my mind when I enter the room. I grab my sneakers and decide to go for a run around town. Today’s a big fucking day, and I need a clear mind. Ryan's signing over the store and getting the money that he wants, that’s the good news for him. The bad news for me is the fact that everyone’s jerking my chain over it.

  The lawyers.

  Investors.

  Even Jessica!

  It’s such a high risk, and everyone’s not happy about the purchase. But I don’t give a fuck because it’s exactly what I need right now. Something to make Elia happy and I’m determined to do that right now. Nothing and no one will stop me from doing the one thing that I’ve had on my mind for weeks.

  After my run, I feel as if I’m a man on a mission. There’s only one thing I need to worry about today. How to tell Elia that she owns the store once the deal’s sealed. Maybe I’ll take her away and surprise her.

  Fuck!

  I’ll just sign the paperwork and then take it from there. Anything else is sure to drive me insane today. It’s going to be a fucking tough day, but one that I’m willing to face and fight anyone who stands in my way.

  Elia’s going to be over the moon when she finds out the truth. I’m doing this for her. She’ll be the happiest woman in Austin, and that means I’ll be the happiest man. I head into the shower thinking that this time it’ll be a battle worth participating in so the woman that I'm crazy about is happier than she's ever been in her life. As the water pours all over my body, I don’t even turn up the temperature, but keep it cool to keep me in the right frame of mind.

  Prepared and focused on the mission today.

  I come out and decide that I’m going to take out my gray suit. Elia says that she loves me in that suit, and I'm seeing her later on tonight. Elia's worked long and hard, but just not always in the right direction. I hope this helps her find it. I’m just laying the ground for her. She’ll have to roll with it, and if ever she gets stuck, I’ll be on board to give her a helping hand.

  * * *

  I take out the champagne. The one I planned to share with Elia when I told her about today. I wasn’t sure if it was happening today, so I didn’t ask to meet her in my office. Part of me doubted it, something I rarely do, but on this occasion, there were so many things that weren't in my favor. Every fucking deal is always a risk right down to the last minute, but the way that Will was digging dirt on Ryan and he kept disappearing, I didn't think he was going to show up today to sign on the dotted line.

  “Jessica, we fucking did it!”


  She nods. “You did it, and I didn’t think it was going to happen.”

  I sigh, “He must have needed the money and decided that the only way out was to sell. Will said that Ryan didn't stay in his apartment last night.”

  She conquers, “Did you see the look on his face when you said that you were keeping it as a bookstore. He was laughing and mocking you until you put him in his place.”

  I nod. "I'm going to take the store to new heights."

  I leave out the detail about handing it over to Elia, someone with no experience of running her own business, as I give Jessica the glasses. I shake the bottle and get rid of all thoughts of that disgusting pig, Ryan, putting his hands anywhere near Elia ever again. He’s out of her life for good.

  The champagne spills everywhere and I pour it into two glasses. We’re laughing so hard that we don’t hear the knock on the door or even her voice, and we're startled as Elia enters and says, “Is this a private party or can anyone join?”

  Elia

  Here I stand in the middle of Eric’s office, looking him straight in the eye now that Jessica is gone and I can have my way with Eric. That’s what I came here for and I tell myself not to be paranoid about whatever they were doing.

  My heart is pounding a mile a minute; it’s now or never I tell myself. The sound of him calling my name brings me back from my thoughts.

  “Elia,” he calls out to me as walks from behind his desk. Leaning against his desk, his dark suit takes center stage. The creases are perfectly lined up, and his dress shirt clings to his chiseled chest. Shaking my head, I remember why I’m here. I want him all to myself, that is the only focus right now.

  I slowly saunter over to stand in front of Eric, seductively running my fingers down his neck and moving my mouth so close to his ear he can feel me breathing.

  “Eric,” I whisper, “I have an absolutely naughty idea, can you guess what it is?" My fingers strum up and down his chest toward his slacks as I pull his earlobe into my mouth. With it in between my teeth, I ask, "Do you want to guess, Eric?" The sound of his gasp makes me know that I’m well on my way to completing my mission.