Either way, I wasn’t going to listen to her views on my relationship with Tyler, just like I never let her dissuade me from fashion. The fact that he happened to be my stepbrother really didn’t matter to me. I mean, it’s not like we’d grown up together. Besides, I was angry with her for abandoning me in my time of need.
There was just one problem with my defiance—being with Tyler would most definitely cause disruption in his company. If he’d had trouble before, I could only imagine what he would be up against now.
Tyler had told me that he wasn’t going down without a fight, assuring me that everything would work out in the end.
Still, I had my doubts. Related by marriage aside, maybe our relationship really wasn’t for the best. Tyler was a known womanizer. I could be the flavor of the week. Was it really worth being involved in a scandal for someone who would discard me when they’d had their fill of me?
Better yet, was the drama worth the damage that our relationship was sure to cause to my career?
Tyler straddled me, bending forward to plant a steamy kiss on my lips. I would’ve protested—after all, he still had my juices all over his lips—but I couldn’t deny the intensity of his advance.
“Come on,” he urged after he pulled back, leaving me breathless. “I’m sporting some serious wood here.”
I stared into his pleading eyes, my heart flipping within my chest. God, he was so handsome. So fucking sexy.
And a fucking heartbreaker, a little voice said in the back of my head. Sure to break mine.
It wasn’t the first time that annoying little voice had reared its head. But it was hard to listen to the warnings of that voice when every molecule in my body screamed in need for this man. This sexy beast. My body refused to resist him.
“A word of caution, Miss Young. Keep messing with Tyler and you’ll likely find yourself without a job. And after everyone finds out you were Tyler’s whore, you’ll only find work on the street corner with the looks you have.”
For some reason, Charles Whitmore’s smug face and insulting words popped in my mind right then, giving me the strength to push Tyler away.
“Good God! The time,” I breathed, scrambling out from under a visibly disappointed Tyler and gathering my clothing scattered on the floor. “Christine is going to kill me. I’m going to be late.”
Tyler sat up in the bed. “Just don’t show up.”
I paused, my bra in my hands, staring at Tyler with disbelief. “What?”
His eyes roved over the curves of my body, making me feel like a piece of meat.
“I’ve been thinking. How would you like to work for me?”
My jaw dropped. “Me?” I gasped incredulously a second later.
Tyler gave me that boyish grin that seemed to make me want to follow him to hell and back and enjoy every moment of it. “It would be the perfect opportunity for the both of us. You get to leave that demanding diva who treats you like shit, and I get to piss everyone off at the same time.” He grinned wider, flashing his perfect, white teeth. “A win-win.”
I should’ve flat out said no. “I-I don’t know,” I stuttered.
“Come on. I could use a smart-mouthed, hot babe like you to keep me in line.”
“Is that what you really think of me? A smart-mouth?”
Tyler grinned. “Among other things, but yes.”
He could insult me and make me love him for it. “Jerk.”
“Seriously, though. I don’t make offers like these lightly.” By the tone in Tyler’s voice, I could tell he was dead serious. He really was offering me a job. “In fact, I’ve never offered anyone a job without going through the proper channels.”
I paused, pondering the gravity of the situation. Though I’d love nothing more than to march into to Christine’s office and tell her off, quitting my job with her would mean the end of my career in fashion. She would see to it. One didn’t simply up and quit on Christine Finnerman.
“But my career . . .” I began to protest.
“I could help you with that.”
I placed a hand on my hip and raised my brow skeptically. “How? What could you possibly know about fashion?”
“Not much.”
“Okay then.”
“But I don’t need to. That’s what you’re for. I have the money to fund any projects you might want to work on to get your name out there.”
The breath left my lungs. “You’d do that?” I asked in disbelief. “For me?”
Tyler nodded. “If you do as I ask.” He scratched absently at his abs. “The way I see it, with my resources and your brains and knowledge of the industry,” he shrugged, his voice gaining excitement as he continued speaking, “who knows? Maybe we can start a new company and I wouldn’t need my father’s approval. I could leave Armex and let it collapse in on itself.”
I nearly swooned as the endless possibilities rolled through my mind. I can’t believe it, I thought. This seems too good to be true. And you know what they say about that.
“We’ll obviously have to work out the details,” Tyler said, watching me intently while I stood there involved with my thoughts. “But I think we can make it work.”
“So in the meantime, let’s say I do come work for you. How much will you pay me?”
“Double whatever you’re making now.” Tyler paused to glance down mischievously, “and there are benefits.”
My heart began pounding inside my chest. This has to be some sort of a dream, I thought, ready to pinch myself to see if I was truly awake. Tyler was offering me everything I could ever hope, or dream of . . . my own career and the man of my dreams.
“What about our parents?” I managed to ask through the turmoil rolling through my mind. “Won’t my coming to work for you complicate matters even further?”
“Don’t worry that pretty little head of yours. I’ll take care of it,” Tyler said with utmost confidence. He got up from the bed, rising like Poseidon from the sea, his magnificent body robbing me of breath. He walked over to me, wrapping his powerful arms around me. “Trust me on this,” he breathed as he delivered a peck on my neck, causing the internal heat in my body to shoot up, his breath hot on my neck. “I’ve got it covered.”
Walking through that door and never coming back is the best thing that will ever happen to you.
Jonathan’s unbidden warning screamed at me to run out and never look back.
The next kiss nearly made me melt into his body, making me want to beg right then and there for him to take me again.
Run! Run far, far, far away, an errant thought cried.
And I almost did. I almost gathered the strength to push away and run. But another seductive nibble and a deft caress of my side melted any rational thought of defiance away, and I swooned as I allowed him to dip me backward and he covered my neck with passionate kisses.
Who do I think I’m fooling? He’s a god. My God.
Tyler had me, hook, line and sinker.
“I’m in,” I breathed.
Chapter 12
Victoria
After leaving Tyler’s, I practically burned rubber to make it to work. One, because I couldn’t wait to see the expression on Christine’s face when I told her to eat shit and die, and two, I was thrumming with excitement over Tyler’s proposal.
I can’t believe it. That door that I’ve been waiting for has swung open! Not quite the way I’d planned, but I’ll finally be free to live out my dreams!
I quickly found my usual parking space and rushed on my way. Jubilation swirled through me as I strutted inside Christine’s swanky building, a giant smile on my face, my heels clicking against the floor.
“What’s got you so chipper today?” a familiar voice behind me demanded as I reached the elevator. “Don’t you realize you’re late?”
I swirled around, only to see April peering at me suspiciously with a stack of dresses in her hand. She looked extra cute today with her hair swept up into a side pony tail, a pale blush to her cheeks and her eyelids covered
in colorful shadow. Besides that, she looked practically stuffed inside the black pants that were a size too small for her. The sad thing was that she was already a size two. That’s the kind of messed up crap girls did working in this industry and for Christine, who was notorious for making the girls around here feel terrible about their weight, myself included.
A smile spread across my face. “Who cares?”
April raised an eyebrow, staring at me like I’d lost my mind. “Excuse me? Christine is going to have your ass for breakfast.”
“Fuck Christine.”
April reared back. “Whoa. What the hell has gotten into you?”
Staring at April’s shocked expression, it became too much. I burst out laughing hysterically.
“What is going on?” April demanded in concern when I doubled over, choking with laughter. “Are you on something?”
“I can’t breathe,” I choked, gasping for breath.
April repositioned the dresses she was holding in one arm and then pounded me on the back. After several rib aching moments, I was finally able to get myself under control.
“What the hell?” April persisted, peering me up and down as if the real me had vanished and had been replaced with some nut from the psych ward. “Do I need to call for help or something?”
“No. I’m fine.”
“Well it doesn’t seem like it,” April muttered, unconvinced. “I’ve never seen you act like this before.”
“That’s because I’ve never been this happy in my entire life!”
“What do you mean? What’s going on?”
“I’m quitting!”
April gaped. “What?”
I grinned. “It’s my last day working for the unbearable witch. The only thing I’ll miss is you and Gabe, but I’m sure we’ll still talk from time to time.”
April frowned. “Vicky . . . are you sure about this? You’re basically giving up your career if you walk out on Christine.”
“No, I’m not.”
“You’re not? You must have really lost your mind then. Christine will make sure you never work in fashion again. You know as well as I do that she has a penchant for being vindictive.”
“I won’t need Christine’s referrals. I’ll be able to make my own work.”
April peered at me warily. “Oh yeah? How’s that? You’re just starting out in this business with virtually no contacts. How in the world do you expect to get the resources to become successful?”
I smiled sweetly as the elevator door opened. “Tyler Locklin.”
“What? Tyler Locklin—Vicky, what have you gotten yourself into?”
“Sorry, April. Gotta’ go. I’m itching to tell the witch what I’ve been wanting to say for months. I’ll be sure to stop by and tell you and Gabe bye before I leave.”
“Vicky, wait! You’re making a very big mistake!”
The elevator doors slid closed on April before she could finish her protest. I really didn’t know why she was bothering. I was done with Christine for good.
On the top floor, ready to kick ass and take names, I marched purposefully to Christine’s office and kicked her door open.
Seated at her desk with a man who looked vaguely familiar standing behind her, Christine jumped, startled by my brazen entry.
What the hell am I doing? I thought in a moment of panic.
“Victoria!” Christine barked with surprise. “What on earth do you think you’re doing marching in here like that?”
“Shut up!” I snapped.
I can’t believe I just said that, I thought, my heart pounding wildly within my chest.
Deafening silence descended upon the room, and the man standing behind Christine turned white with shock.
He probably thinks I’m crazy, talking to the queen of fashion like that, I thought, trying to quell my trembling limbs.
“Pierre, will you please allow me to deal with this . . . problem,” Christine said quietly after a stunned moment.
“Certainly.” He bowed his head with respect to Christine and walked out of the room, shaking his head as he passed me.
Christine centered her burning eyes on me like a hawk. “What did you just say to me, young lady?”
“I said shut up,” I repeated.
“Do you realize who you’re talking to?”
I giggled, fighting the tremors of anxiety rolling through my legs. Despite my anxiousness, I felt powerful. I was finally going to be free, and it felt good to be able to tell the witch what I’d been wanting to say since my first day on the job. “Sure I do. An unbearable, miserable, narcissistic, old hag who is so unhappy with her dull life that she makes a career out of giving young girls poor self-esteem issues.”
“How dare you!” Christine raged, jumping to her feet and gripping the edges of her desk with rage, her eyes blazing.
“How dare I?” I demanded, my body shaking from head to toe now. “How dare you! You’ve treated me like shit since I first started working for you and made my life a total hell. You know, at first I thought it was worth it. I thought that, hmmm, maybe working for this vile, evil woman would open doors for me one day, and I’ll only have to suffer for a little while before I can find my own way. But you know what? Eat shit! Because it’s not worth putting up with it anymore. I quit!”
The look of utter shock on Christine’s face made my day and I let out a burst of maniacal laughter that I’m sure made Christine think I’d gone stark-raving mad.
This time, I didn’t laugh as long as I had with April, and when I was done, I turned to leave but stopped to add, “Oh and by the way, you can save your little threats about how you will ruin me and how I will never work in this city again.”
I flashed one last triumphant smile the witch’s way and swirled around and began to leave the office. But the sound of Christine’s voice brought me up short a second later.
“Victoria.”
I should’ve ignored her and kept going. After all, I’d gotten the last word in, and there was no reason to engage her further and listen to her empty threats about how she would ruin me, but for some reason, the tone in her voice made me freeze. I had to hear what she was going to say.
Slowly, I turned around to see Christine regarding me with amusement in her eyes.
Why is she smiling? I wondered. I just told her off. She should be steaming mad and wanting to kick my ass out of her office.
“Do you recall when you first came to work for me?”
“Yeah? It was on a day that—”
She interrupted me, obviously not looking for me to actually answer her question. “You signed a contract.”
Her words were like a sucker punch to the stomach.
I licked my lips that had suddenly gone as dry as a desert. “So? What does that matter?”
Now it looked like Christine was the one holding back maniacal laughter. “Do you recall what was in the contract, Miss Young?”
The room began to spin around me as panic began to seep in.
I’d been so desperate to get the job working for Christine, I hadn’t thought to go read through it all, eager to sign my soul away for the chance at a future career in fashion. A chance at reaching that first step in achieving my dreams.
“No,” I admitted.
Christine grinned. “The terms and conditions were that you cannot terminate your job with me without at least a sixty-day notice for any reason outside of a medical or family emergency without opening yourself to legal ramifications.”
It took a lot to steady myself. Any second and I was going to faint.
Christine looked me over while speaking with glee. “And since the only emergency it looks like you’re in is a dire need to lose another twenty pounds off your enormous rear end . . .” Christine’s smile took over her entire face. “I could sue your fat ass off.”
It was all I could do to stay standing. “Y-y-you can’t do that,” I stammered.
Christine crossed her arms across her chest. “Watch me.”
"That'
s not legal. Besides, it’s not like I actually have anything to sue for.”
Christine uncrossed her arms and leaned forward across her desk, boring into me with suddenly cold, calculating eyes. "Do you really want to take that chance with me, Victoria?”
When I didn't reply, Christine let out a chuckle, a heartless, evil sound that felt like a knife was being jabbed in my side. "I didn't think so." She snapped her fingers and did her customary ‘shoo the fly’ gesture. "Now go make my coffee."
"She's just doing this to keep me chained here!" I sobbed into my hands. “She’s too sadistic to let me out of my contract and pursue my own career elsewhere."
"I'm sorry, Vick," April cooed, "but you should've known better than to try Christine. In fact, I'm in shock that you're still here. Telling Christine to shut up and calling her a miserable hag?" April shook her head and let loose a chuckle of disbelief. "No one has ever dared to say anything like that to her before . . . at least no one who has lived to tell the story, that is."
I sniffed, taking the back of my hand and wiping at my tears.
April and I were sitting at a small table. I had an untouched bagel with cream cheese on it while April had one celery stick. I don’t know why she bothered. She might as well have had a plate of cotton balls in front of her for all the calories it contained.
News of my insubordination had spread like wildfire. I’d had people casting furtive glances my way and whispering to each other. I knew what they were probably saying. Something along the lines of, Did you hear about what Victoria said to Christine? She must have been born with a set of balls.
“I know, right? I should be gone. If anyone else had said what I said, they’d have been fired in a New York minute. But me? She threatens to sue me to keep me working for her. It just goes to show how much she delights in my misery.” I shook my head angrily. “She hates the fact that I’ll be able to make a career for myself without her help."
"Will you though?" asked April skeptically.
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