by S. J. Maylee
“I am. Would you come over here, please?”
She turned around and found Ethan standing just inside the janitor’s closet. Leaving her mug, she skipped over. “Does your secretary know where you are?”
“No.” He pulled her in and closed the door. “An out-of-town meeting came up. I’m afraid I’ll have to cancel our lunch date for today and the next few days.”
“Oh, that’s okay.” She looked past him to the stacks of paper towel.
“You’re disappointed. I’m sorry.” He stepped closer to her and she stepped back, keeping the distance. “I’ll make it up to you. I promise.”
“You don’t have to say that.” She pressed her lips together, wishing she could take back the lie. She wanted much more from him than that. Right now in this tiny room, she wanted him to wrap his arms around her and tell her he’d miss her, confess what she meant to him. “That’s not the deal we made.” She fought her desire to change all the rules.
“I know, but I want to. I’ll call when I’m back in town.” His gaze seemed to linger on her lips. Maybe he wanted to change the rules too.
“I’d like that.” She straightened her spine and took a step toward him, eliminating the empty space. He hadn’t opened the door by much, but she wanted to throw it open. “Why don’t you touch me?”
“I touch you all the time.” He angled his head, allowing her to come a little closer.
“Not really,” she whispered. Her focus zeroed in on his luscious mouth. She was certain if she reached out her tongue, she could drag it across his lips. The heat coming from his body and his divine manly scent called her forward. Her heart beat like a wild thing, awakening her pussy and her growing need for more. “You don’t really touch me.”
He took a step toward her and she stumbled back a step, finding the door. His hard body pushed her flat while he raised his arms to brace himself around her. “I’m beginning not to trust myself when I’m around you.” He brushed his nose along hers and his hard cock pressed against her belly. “You’re one giant temptation. I should have known better than to indulge my curiosity.”
“Do you want me to leave you alone?” She breathed a heavy sign, not wanting this moment to end, and feared she’d never get closer.
The sound of a phone ringing filled the small space and he stilled. “I’ll call when I’m back. We’ll figure it out.”
****
Ethan left Nadia in the closet. He wanted to smash his phone for the interruption, but it was better than the alternative. Another minute more and he would have tasted her lips and he doubted he’d be able to stop.
Just two weeks ago, he’d intended to scare her a bit and then fire her for her nosy questions. Now, she was reminding him of some of the happiest times in his life, like when he and his sister used to chase each other and the few kids they could find through the halls of the Art Institute. The memories brought a deep ache to his heart. Back then, his life was less complicated and his head was full of dreams.
When Nadia was around he felt himself dreaming of a life less complicated. A life filled with living life rather than reacting to the actions and intentions of others. His first instinct screamed Nadia would be trouble. Allowing her to continue to work for him was a risk he couldn’t afford, but he couldn’t seem to stay away from the beguiling young woman.
At one time in his life he would have given in to his desires. He would have remained in the closet, tasted her lips, and explored every inch of her body. He wouldn’t have stopped until he learned all the ways he could make her come.
His phone rang again, reminding him his priorities no longer allowed for indiscretions that left him vulnerable. He couldn’t allow himself to become distracted. Ignoring the brutal violence around him had cost his sister her life. Back then, he was blind to the atrocities.
Brooke’s death had woken him from his cushy existence. Instead of building his company to pad his pockets, he used his connections and training to remove threats one at a time. He couldn’t bring his sister back, but he could honor her by keeping his eyes open and saving those within his reach.
He entered his private parking garage at the back of his building and his phone rang again. He found Max leaning against his truck with his arms crossed.
“You knew I was coming down. Did you really have to keep calling?”
“You weren’t coming.” His eyebrow arched up.
“I’m here now. Let’s go.” If Max hadn’t called, he’d probably have taken that first taste and his thoughts filled with how far they’d be by now. He was certain they’d have started removing clothes. He would know the color of her nipples, know how hard he could pinch them before she begged for mercy. He rubbed his cock. Thankfully, Max had no idea.
“You don’t want to talk about it?” He pushed off the truck.
“There’s nothing to talk about.” They got in the truck and headed north. The farther away he got from Nadia, he hoped he’d be able to do a better job of keeping her out of his thoughts.
“I knew something was different about you lately. It’s not the worst thing that could happen.” Max weaved through the traffic, using several different streets to keep them moving. No one seemed to understand Chicago traffic like Max.
“I have no intention of exploring this conversation, not yet anyway.”
“I’m here when you’re ready. I don’t have Aidan and Gavin’s archaic stance.”
“Nonetheless, there are good reasons for it.” They passed a group of ladies walking down the street, shopping bags in their hands. His sister should be enjoying the spoils of Chicago today, not lying deep in the earth.
“True, especially when we first started out. We took a lot of unnecessary risks in the beginning.” Max increased his speed as they finally got on I-94. “I know you made promises to your sister in the end, but what do you think she would say about the sacrifices you keep making in your life?”
“Didn’t I just say I didn’t want to talk about it?” He swallowed against the dry spot in his throat.
“I’ve planted the seed. My work is done.” Max grabbed hold of his shoulder. “We’ve got about an hour and a half before we reach the cabin. Why don’t you try and get some rest. It’s going to be a long night.”
Thanks to Max’s unrequested advice, Ethan drifted off to sleep thinking about opening his life up and letting Nadia all the way in. A deep breath relaxed his body.
“Wake up!”
“I’m awake.” Ethan reached his arms out to the side, trying to stop the rolling feeling in his gut. “What the hell?”
“Didn’t mean to startle you, but you were starting to moan. Besides, we’re here.” Max got out of the truck. “You’ve got it bad.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” He rubbed his hands on his pants and got out of the truck, rolling his shoulders and shaking off a sense of dread left from his deep dream. There was plenty of work to keep him busy and his mind off the temptress waiting for him at home.
“You’re right, I don’t and I’m the poorer for it too.” He pulled several boxes from the truck. “After we unload everything, I’ll head out to set up the outside motion detectors and then you can help me set up the cameras next-door.”
Ethan got out of the truck and took off his coat and unbuttoned his white shirt. For the next few days he’d be in either camouflage or all black clothing. He was looking forward to the break-in routine. He clearly needed to be reminded of his mission.
Max’s surveillance of the newcomers in their territory had led them to a house on the other side of the woods. They’d rented this place through the internet. It was only a few minutes from downtown Milwaukee. It wouldn’t be the first time they’d found gun runners up here and the miscreants almost always fed into the gangs of Chicago.
During one of their first jobs up there, they’d run into the ATF and all four of them had landed in jail. It had taken all of their connections to keep their butts out of prison and off reports giving them any credit fo
r the bust. The job had been a success and had created several lucky connections, but it hadn’t been their last lesson.
The four had taken plenty of hits through the years. Most of them left valuable scars, but they’d learned from each and remained diligent to their cause.
Over the next several hours, he busied himself with setting up the monitors and organizing the kitchen. He sat at the desk and played with his phone while he waited for Max to return. The office’s video surveillance app caught his attention. His security officer insisted on the app, but he’d never had a desire to use it until today.
After checking his watch he realized Nadia should still be at work. He tapped on the app. His office appeared first, empty as it should be. He scrolled through the screens, proud his staff hadn’t taken off early. Even Nadia was right where she should be, sorting through his mail.
The camera angle gave him a cropped view of her desk and he couldn’t see her clearly, but he could see her peaches-and-cream complexion. Several minutes went by as he watched her. Every once in a while, she looked to the left side of her desk. He wondered what was capturing her attention. However, knowing she was safe in the city settled his nerves, and by the time Max was back, he was ready to get back to work.
The next twenty-four hours were quiet until finally, a little before midnight, their first monitor detected a car.
****
The day he left, she tried to ignore the loss churning in her stomach. She shouldn’t be so attached. It couldn’t be healthy for either of them.
She’d spent her whole lunch hour that day at the Art Institute exploring every exhibit except the windows in a sad attempt to distance herself from her growing addiction. She’d hoped by staying away from the things they’d done together would help her to loosen the hold he seemed to have on her.
On her way out of the institute that day and yesterday too, she’d spent a few minutes admiring her favorite bracelet, something she hadn’t done since she met him. The beauty of the piece brought her a short respite. Another customer even commented how pretty it looked on her wrist, but it was no longer what she wanted most. She wanted her time back with Ethan.
On her way out of the museum shop yesterday, a postcard of the windows caught her eye. It had only taken a few dollars to purchase and she now had the beautiful array of colors close to her as she worked. It was a simple little token, but it reminded her not to tamp down her feelings. Their time together was real. She only had to be patient a bit longer and then he’d be back and they could talk it all out.
His presence seemed all around her now. Even her dreams were of Ethan and they were as wet as they come. Just that morning, she woke with lingering dreams of Ethan fucking her in the closet. She liked to imagine if his phone hadn’t interrupted them that he would have told her what she meant to him and taken her right there, over and over again.
She had a hell of a time sorting the mail and now she was finding items in the wrong spot on her cart and had to go back to the accounting office twice. When she finally made it to the executive offices, they seemed awfully busy compared to yesterday. She searched around for the cause and noticed a new secretary, not an unusual sight. Then, movement in Ethan’s office caught her eye.
She moved her cart toward his office, needing to know immediately if he’d returned. She moved around her cart and searched the expansive office. Standing near the window, hands on his hips, his shoulders seemed as tense as she’d ever seen them. She hoped he’d turn around and see her.
“Turn around.” She whispered.
“Can you move the cart, please?"
“Sure.” Without taking her gaze from him, she pushed the cart back and bumped into one of the desks.
He turned and spotted her. His expression was dark and grippingly sexy, immediately she wanted to touch him. Then she spotted the dark, purplish bruise high across his cheek bone. She pressed her hand against her mouth. Holding back her gasp, she moved toward him. His office door was wide open and she walked right in.
He took a step toward her and then stopped and looked to his right. She followed his line of sight and found a man sitting in the guest chair watching her.
“Hello. I’m sorry.” She looked back at Ethan. “I didn’t realize you had company.” She backed up a step.
“Don’t leave on my account. Ethan, please introduce me to this pretty young woman.”
“Certainly. Nadia Duskin from the mail room, this is my friend Gavin.”
Gavin stood and walked toward her, inspecting her from head to toe. He took hold of her hand and raised it to his lips. “It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Duskin.”
“It’s nice to meet you too.” She pulled her hand free and turned to Ethan hoping he’d give her their sign, but he just stood there. She looked down at her shoes anyway. “I’m sorry for the intrusion. I should get back to work.”
Without waiting for his response, she fled his office and didn’t look back until she was safe in her mailroom. She shook her hands, trying to release the trembling that had taken hold.
The man had been completely polite, but something about him made her uncomfortable. She had no idea what he was doing in Ethan’s office, but she was certain he didn’t like her presence there.
She grabbed onto the edge of her desk and lowered slowly to her seat. A glance at her postcard reminded her she had something with Ethan regardless of what had just happened. There was no need to rush to conclusions. Even though her intuition told her things would no longer be the same between them.
Chapter Four
“What do you think you're doing?”
“I'm not getting into this with you.”
“Do you even know who she is?”
“Of course I do. We do background checks on everyone who works here. It’s the same protocol Max asked us all to follow. She’s not a threat.”
“I completely disagree.” He followed Ethan across the room. “There’s a million different ways a woman like that can be a threat.”
“I’ve never been fucking celibate.”
“If you were just fucking her I wouldn’t be so concerned, but you haven’t done it yet, have you?”
“What is it with everyone? I don’t play kiss and tell.” He turned back to the window, wishing the conversation was already over.
“That’s rubbish. You can’t hide this, Ethan. Anyone who sees the two of you together will know she’s your weakness. You can’t hide feelings like that.”
“You would know.”
“That’s right, dammit.” He heard Gavin come closer. “Learn from my mistakes. I don’t want you living with another regret.” He stepped next to him at the window. “One is plenty, don’t you think? And that’s enough of memory lane, by the way.”
“I know you’re just trying to look out for me.” He wrapped his arm around Gavin, tugging him closer. “For the record, I didn’t say her name. I wasn’t trying to be cruel.”
“I know and neither am I. This mess in Milwaukee has us all on edge.” He pulled away and raked his fingers through his hair. “Unfortunately, we’re not done with this conversation.” Gavin walked over to his briefcase.
“Oh yes we are.”
“Take a look at these.” He threw several pictures onto his desk. “Aidan took them.”
“That’s the drunk blonde from Nevins a few weeks ago, right?”
“It is and if I’m not mistaken, she’s talking to your pretty Ms. Duskin.” Gavin took a seat. “Aidan figured out what’s been pulling your attention lately and decided to keep an eye on her while you and Max were out of town.”
“Shit.” He picked up the picture of Nadia and the blonde. It looked like it was taken at the museum shop.
“I can ask Aidan to start an in depth on her.”
“Fine.” The invasion of privacy would be immense, but the risks from the unknown didn’t give him a choice.
“Once you know if the pair are connected, you’ll know what to do next.”
“Okay.” His grip cru
mpled the picture in his hand. “This doesn’t prove anything.”
“But we don’t like coincidences.” Gavin sat back in one of the guest chairs. “This wasn’t actually why I came today.”
“I know.” He collected the photos and flipped them over. “Any news?”
“The two of you could have put up a better fight.” Gavin shook his head. “You didn’t have to let that many punches land. I think Max has a cracked rib.”
“Shit, really? That was my idea actually. I didn’t want them getting suspicious.”
“On that count, it looks like you succeeded. The poor fight combined with the theft from their barn was excellent quick thinking. They can’t seem to stop talking about the pathetic, small-town criminals who tried to take them. It appears they’ve dismissed your presence as a simple robbery. You guys took one hell of a risk getting that close.”
“I know, but we weren’t getting anything on the recording. We only saw the big van coming and going. Our camera angles were all wrong. We were going to have nothing to hand over.”
“Too bad you didn’t find anything.”
Ethan’s cell phone and laptop rang out an alarm code. “Shit.”
“Is that your customer alarm?”
“Yes, Janet Windthrop just activated her alert signal.” On his office phone, he called his security officer. “Where is she?”
“She’s at home, sir. Our team is three minutes out.”
“Send the medical team immediately. There’s no telling what the bastard will have done by then.”
“Will do, sir.”
“I want a report the second our team is in the door. Tell them I’ll be there in fifteen.” He disconnected his phone and looked at his friend. “Walk out with me?”
Gavin stepped in front of him and grabbed him by the shoulders. “Whatever this asshole is doing now is not your fault.”
“Bullshit, I should have pushed her to up the timeline or found a way to get her out of there.” He shook his head. “I’ve been distracted.”