Liberated Heart (Windy City Book 4)

by Measha Stone

  It was her turn to laugh. "You know if I have to explain then so does Alex. He's owned that club for months now and didn't say a word to any of us."

  "Let's just first get everyone in one room." He eyed her. "Don't forget, if you get another envelope…"

  "I know, I know. Don't open it and call you right away." She waved a hand in the air and turned to leave, but his hand gripped her arm, spinning her back to face him.

  "You interrupt me a lot." He said with narrowed eyes. "Perhaps you've forgotten who is on top and who is on the bottom around here."

  A chill ran through her and for a moment she forgot how to breathe. "I'm sorry, sir." She focused on his lips, wanting the warmth of them on hers.

  "Hmm. I'm sure you aren't. But we'll have a lesson in manners soon enough." He gave her a grin that electrified her senses, then brought his lips down on hers. It didn't last long, the kiss, but the effects of it would last her at least through lunch. He walked her to the front door and gave her a pat on the ass to get her moving down the stairs where George stood holding open the car door.

  *

  Erin made it through most of the day without worrying about the house or the threatening letters she received. She even managed to get two projects completed and began a third that had been slotted for the following week. After thinking to herself she should start every morning off with a spanking to keep her productivity up, she was caught laughing in her office. Alone.

  "Um. Everything okay?" Brenda asked, placing the mail and a coffee on Erin's work table.

  "Oh. Yeah. Just remembering something funny." Erin waved a hand hoping to dismiss the topic, but Brenda must have noticed a change in Erin and wouldn't let it go.

  "Hmm. I don't think so. I think there's a reason you haven't been taking Jonathan's calls, and I think that reason is standing out by my desk."

  "What?" Would he have come to her work? Blood drained from her face, her cheeks flushed. She walked around her desk, making a small attempt to look casual as she headed for Brenda's desk. When all she found was a large bouquet of flowers, she sighed. In relief? In disappointment? She couldn't quite figure out which. They'd agreed just that morning to keep their relationship going, to let it ride and see where it took them, so why was she so skittish about him appearing at work?

  "Wow, he must be some guy." Brenda plucked the card from the flowers and handed it to Erin with a grin.

  "How do you know they aren't from Jonathan?" Erin held the card in her hand.

  Brenda snorted. "Right. I've known you for five years, and not once has he sent so much as an email to this office for you. I'm not sure what happened, but whatever it was, I can't say that I'm sorry it didn't work out for the two of you." Brenda shrugged. "Sorry. It's just, well, it never seemed like he was as invested as you. The more you tried, the more he ignored the effort."

  How did Brenda see that so clearly with only minimal exposure to him, and it took for him to walk on Erin for her to see it? "No. You're right. We broke up a few weeks ago, but he checked out months ago."

  "Did he hurt you?" Brenda's protective side shone through. Having only a causal relationship with her assistant, Erin wouldn't have expected such loyalty, but she could see that Brenda would gladly smash in Jonathan's nose if she told her the whole truth.

  "He did, but it didn't last long. Turns out, he did me a favor." Erin smiled.

  "So who's this guy?" Brenda pointed to the envelope. "Open it."

  Erin felt her face flush again as she tore open the envelope and pulled out the card.

  I hope for his sake you've kept your mouth shut. Enjoy the flowers. The florist next to the funeral home does wonderful work.

  "Erin?"

  Brenda's voice sounded to Erin like it came from miles away. Erin turned and walked into her office, leaving the flowers on Brenda's desk and gripping the card so hard she nearly tore the paper.

  "Erin, you okay?"

  "Fine. I'm fine." Erin shut her door and went to her chair, sinking into it and pulling out her phone. She needed to tell Bradley, she'd promised him. Before it had just been her reputation at stake, but now it was his life. If whoever was sending these letters found out she told him, he could be killed.

  "Jonathan's on line two." Brenda interrupted her panic attack with round two. "Not in?"

  "No, ask him to shoot me an email. Tell him I'm in meetings all day." Maybe that would get him to leave her alone for a while. "Brenda? Throw those flowers away."

  Putting her head down on her desk, she took a few calming breaths. But the walls continued to push inward on her.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Erin checked on the chicken baking in the oven for the third time before turning her attention to the potatoes simmering on the stove top. The clock reminded her she had only twenty minutes before everyone would start arriving. Dinner would be ready on time, she had no worry there. It was the inquisition that would take place once everyone arrived that turned her stomach.

  Bradley, sensing her concerns, promised her he wouldn't let the questions get out of hand. If she became uncomfortable she was to signal him, and he would steer the conversation on to other things. As glad for his help as she was, she knew his idea of uncomfortable and her idea were probably two very different ideas. He had told her more than once that she needed to work through her discomfort, both in and out of bed. She held no doubt that this evening would be another instance where she would have to push herself through it.

  The doorbell rang. Her stomach felt like it shot straight to her shoes. "Ready?" Bradley waltzed into the kitchen wearing his black slacks and blue button down shirt. He hadn't changed from his afternoon meeting, except to remove his tie and coat. It occurred to her that she hadn't asked him about his meetings. She knew very little about what was going one with the club, other than he and Alex were making some sort of a deal with the other owners.

  Fearing for his life, having to bring him the worry from the arrivals of the flowers, and avoiding Jonathan had taken up all of her time, leaving her to be completely selfish and ignorant of what was happening with him. He stood near the double oven and smiled. "Damn, that smells good. Now come on, let's greet our guests." He held out his hand to her. She wiped her hands on the dish rag and walked around the island to slide her fingers into his.

  "I'm sorry." She gave him a soft kiss on the cheek.

  He wrinkled his brow. "For what?"

  "I never asked you how your meeting went. I was preoccupied with my own problems. I'm sorry for that."

  He gave her hand a squeeze. "You did nothing to be sorry for. You've had a lot on your plate this past week and have taken it all beautifully." He brushed a curl from her cheek. He'd been so proud of her when she told him about the flowers, the shine in his eyes had sent her heart fluttering as though he'd stroked her body with his fingers. "I owe you an apology though. I never told you how beautiful your new hair cut is."

  She felt the heat in her cheeks and looked away as they walked down the hall to greet her friends. George had already opened the door and allowed the entire bunch into the hall. "Shared a cab," Kelly explained before Erin could even ask.

  "Well, come in." She forced a smile and let go of Bradley's hand to take a bottle of wine each from both Kelly and Jessica. Both ladies eyed Bradley with suspicion as he led them to the living room while Erin went to get glasses.

  When she returned to the living room with glasses in hand, she placed them on the bar. "Uh. Bradley, would you mind opening the bottle for me?" He took the bottle from her trembling hands and gave her a slow wink and a nod toward the empty chair next to where he sat.

  "Go on, I'll get the wine."

  "I can do it."

  "I'm aware you can serve the wine, but I'm telling you to go over there." The command was given in a low enough voice the others didn't overhear, but with enough force for her to know he wasn't going to argue the point.

  "Okay." She put the bottle down and moved over to where they were all staring at her. Jessica and K
elly sat on the loveseat with Kendrick and Royce perched on the arms while Alex and Alyssa sat on the couch. The plate of cheeses and fruit went untouched on the coffee table.

  "So?" Kelly took the glass of wine from Bradley and kept staring at Erin. "Are you going to finally tell us what the hell has been going on?" Kendrick groaned and gave Kelly a little nudge with his elbow, but it barely deterred her.

  "Obviously, Jonathan and I broke up." Erin decided it best to just get it all out. The sooner she went through the whole thing, the sooner the awkwardness could go away. "He found someone else." She had expected the words to sting when she said them, instead she found it no less irritating than telling them anything else.

  "Who?" Kelly demanded to know, gripping the wine glass so tightly Erin waited for it to snap in half. Of all of them, Kelly would be the one who would want blood from Jonathan for what he did. Erin found that trait both endearing and annoying.

  "Some girl he met at a coffee house." Erin took a long pull of her own wine glass before she went on. "He moved out the night he told me about her."

  "When was this?" Jessica spoke with a steady calm. Erin expected no less from her.

  "A few weeks ago."

  "You didn't tell us? You've been avoiding us, and now you're with him?" Kelly's voice rose as she jerked a thumb in Bradley's direction. Other than raising his brow, he showed no reaction to her outburst. Erin hadn't given him any indication she needed him to intervene, and he was keeping his promise.

  "Kelly, calm down." Kendrick placed a hand on her shoulder, which only seemed to incite her more.

  "You knew she was here! You knew she'd gone home with this guy after the auction."

  "Correct your tone, now." Kendrick's eyes flashed at her. Erin looked at Jessica thinking she would jump to Kelly's defense, but she seemed content to watch them work it out themselves. Kelly never let anyone talk to her like that.

  "Why didn't you tell me?" Kelly's voice lowered and softened, amazing Erin at how easily Kendrick had soothed her. How had she missed this part of their relationship before?

  "Because the last thing Erin needed was you two mother hens running off to try and save her." Kendrick pointed at Kelly and Jessica.

  "Wait." She turned to face Royce. "Did you know, too?"

  "Not what Jonathan did, but that she was here, yes. Kendrick assured me Bradley wasn't some serial killer, so I left it be."

  "So the two of you decided to just take it upon yourselves to keep this from us?" Both women stood up and faced their men. Each man's expression darkened, but they didn't move. Erin took another long gulp of her wine, which Bradley took from her when she tried to put it down on the table.

  "Jessica, Kelly, stop it." Alex got up from the couch.

  "You knew too?" Jessica turned around to glare at him. Erin watched the entire scene before her with mild amusement. Who knew the evening would turn into a really bad episode of Friends?

  "No. I just found out a day or so ago when Bradley told me. Now just calm down. They were doing what they thought best for Erin and for you two. If you had known she was here, you would have charged in and bullied her until she gave you answers she obviously wasn't ready to give."

  "How did you end up at the auction?" Kelly turned the tables back on Erin and sank back into her seat, ignoring the glare Kendrick was giving her. Erin knew that look and said a silent thanks for not being on the receiving end of it this time.

  "That's a long story. Short version? I went to Top Floor to talk to Alex. He was busy or something so Bradley met with me. He told me about the auction. I decided to go." The short version was easier to explain.

  "When was this?" Alex kept his gaze on Erin as though to deliberately not look at Bradley.

  "A few days before the auction."

  "Why didn't you tell me she came by? How did she even know about the club?" Alex did turn his firing eyes at Bradley then.

  "She can tell you how she found out about the club. I didn't tell you because you were otherwise occupied, and I had the situation under control." He gave a meaningful glance in Alyssa's direction.

  Alex turned his gaze back on Erin, looking her over, assessing. "Okay, my dear Erin, we'll stop bickering. Tell us everything." The casual grin and softness of his voice put her a bit more at ease. The tension lowered just by Alex leaning back against the couch and wrapping his arms over the back, and hooking his foot over his knee. Jessica shot him a glare but also softened her positioning with Kelly following suit.

  "When Jonathan first left, I was devastated. At least I thought I was. The truth of it was he'd left me months ago; I just hadn't realized it. All those dinners I missed were because he was out working late, which apparently meant fucking the barista." Alex grinned at her sudden force and choice of words. "We hadn't been fighting, but we barely talked. I never even brought up the wedding anymore."

  "Okay, I hate him, but I can see it's not the worst thing that could happen." Kelly nodded. "I'm still going to kick his ass." Kendrick gave her hair a little yank, and she clamped her mouth shut, but not before muttering bully.

  "I decided to give the auction a try. Apparently you all were just as curious, or more so, at some point. I would take this moment to point out that you all had your own secrets. Alex with the club, Jessica and Kelly both had this dynamic that they hid. So you really can't be that upset with me."

  "It's not that we hid the dynamic, we didn't think you'd agree with it. You were such a feminist."

  "I am a feminist. I believe every woman should be exactly who they are without having to change themselves for anyone, man or woman."

  "Well damn. She has a point," Kelly muttered. "If I had told you about me and Kendrick, you wouldn't have given me any problems?"

  "If you had told me, I would have asked a lot of questions. Then I probably would have found this out about myself a lot sooner. Then Jonathan could have left me earlier for being the freak that I am."

  Bradley placed his hand on her shaking knee and gripped. "You are not a freak."

  "I know that." She waved him away. "Those were his words, not mine."

  "So you live here now?" Jessica asked.

  "No, not really. Just until I sell the house and find a place out here."

  Alyssa gave a little laugh. Having only met Alyssa once or twice, Erin wasn't sure what was so funny. "That's what they say to get you into the house, but once you're there they won't let you leave." She grinned at Alex, who gave her a glare that only made her laugh again.

  "This is entirely different," Alex argued.

  "It's only different because it's Erin," Alyssa continued. "For you, it's fine. Kelly finding Kendrick at a sex club, that was fine too, but for Erin to meet Bradley at your own club and to find her living with him only weeks after her fiancé walked out? That's entirely different. You dote on her, think of her as your kid sister."

  Erin watched Alyssa through a new lens. She hit the nail directly on the head.

  "Not true." Alex shook his head. "If she was my kid sister I would have hauled her ass out of Bradley's house already."

  "Why?" Erin couldn't help but ask. What was it about Bradley that concerned him? He had shown nothing but caring and consideration toward her. Did he have some dark secret that she wasn't aware of?

  "Wait. I still want to know why you didn't tell us. I mean we're your closest friends, why didn't you call us when Jonathan left you?" Jessica held out a hand to still Alex's interference and kept her stare on Erin.

  The oven buzzer sounded and Erin grinned. "I'll be right back." She scooted off to the kitchen before anyone could stop her. Bradley excused himself and followed her, catching the kitchen door as it swung back at him.

  "I can do this all by myself." She forced a smile.

  "You are avoiding their questions." He crossed his arms over his chest and gave her the very look she knew would be her undoing. His eyebrows furrowed together, several deep wrinkles covered his brow, and the stark blue eyes that dazzled when he smiled darkened.

/>   "You know, I would think you'd look less menacing with your head shaved like that, but I think it actually makes it worse." The heat from the oven blasted her face, and she turned away to recover.

  "What makes you so nervous? You've known these people for your entire adult life."

  "I'm not nervous." She shrugged and took the chicken out of the oven, sliding the roasting pan onto the counter. "This needs to rest a few minutes then we can slice it." She checked on the other dishes and smoothed her hands over the apron that covered her skirt. "I think we can move into the dining room and by the time you're done carving this we'll be seated and can eat."

  "You're changing the subject." He hadn't moved.

  "And you're not cooperating." She pointed a finger at him. "You promised you'd stay out of it."

  "Unless you needed help, and if you won't answer them, if you keep avoiding the issue, then I'll assume you need help." He pursed his lips together.

  "Seriously? You're getting mad?" She wanted to laugh. The stress of the evening was beginning to take its toll.

  "I'm getting annoyed that you are disregarding what I'm telling you. Leave the chicken here and get back out there." He nodded to the door.

  "Please don't push this," she whispered, keeping her eyes on the floor. He wouldn't understand.

  "Eyes," he snapped, and she lifted her gaze to his. The darkness began to subside, but his fierceness hadn't softened. "I will push you whenever I want to, whenever you need it, and you need it. You don't have to believe me, but you should trust me at this point to do what's best."

  "After a week?" Her fingers twisted into the apron, but she managed not to look away. The truth of the matter was that she did trust him, had trusted him from the moment she'd met him. His body, his eyes, everything just told her he'd never hurt her, he'd protect her from everything and all she had to do was be honest and open with him.

  "Don't you?" He asked her.