"Mitch, I like you."
His heart stopped beating and he stared into her warm brown eyes. He liked her, too. He kissed her forehead. "Good. My girlfriend should like me."
Her lips curled into a huge smile. "Girlfriend? So you’re planning on sticking around?"
If she always beamed that smile at him and made him feel like this, he'd never leave. "I do have my own jet. Be warned, though."
Her gaze narrowed. "About?"
He winked. "I intend to steal you away from Morgan Enterprises so you can devote your life to me."
Her lips parted, but she averted her gaze. His phone rang again. He grasped her hand. "We'll talk about that later."
"See you tonight." She stared at him with a glassy expression. Tonight, he’d make this up to her. For now, he opened the door and walked out.
The instant he was on the stairs, he answered his phone. "Stanley, what's going on?"
"Are you on a computer?"
He hopped into the back seat of his waiting car and slammed the door. The driver took off. "Not yet. I'm heading back to my hotel room now. What happened?"
Stanley's voice rose an octave as he spoke. "Someone is buying all the stock of your company. If it continues at this rate, you'll lose United Trust before dinner."
“What?” He had built United Trust Bank from scratch. His brothers’ real estate deals were tied into his investments, so this would let them down. His heart sped up. He intended to be the banker so each of them might build their own empires, and he refused to let someone steal from him.
His shoulders slumped. "How do we stop it?"
"Get to a computer and call me back. I'll do my best to find out who is behind this."
Stanley hung up. Mitch closed his eyes and prayed. When the car stopped at his hotel, he jumped out and ran through the marble lobby. He headed to his room. The second he opened his laptop, he called Stanley. On the second ring, he heard the click. "I'm here now."
"Someone named Tess Taylor has been buying everything. As soon as I find out more—"
“Tess?” Doing it in her own name meant she wanted him to know what she’d done. He didn’t hear anything else as his collar tightened. Was everything about her a lie? Had he been played? Her warm, inviting gaze burned in his mind, her soft hands that touched his hard skin... Was she just a distraction so his half-brother could steal his company?
He tugged at his collar. "Tess Taylor?"
"Yeah. Do you know her?"
This was his own fault. Angels didn’t exist. Her pretty face had been a ploy. He logged onto his work database. "Show me what's going on."
Stanley directed him to various links. "Look here and here."
The chart opened on his screen. His bank account would be filled with more billions then he could possibly spend, but he'd not have his company. Stanley was right. None of this made sense.
"How come this many shares were available for public order, Stanley?"
"If you remember, we were in the middle of buying Tropical. Unfortunately, to buy that stock, we had to inflate our stock and temporarily put more share for sale on the open market to make it legal, though we had a procedure to ensure we bought them back. It’s like someone knew our move and snuck in."
Tess. That meant he’d dropped the ball and allowed her to steal his bank from him. He closed his eyes. "Never mind that right now. How do we halt the process?"
"We can't...unless you can somehow convince her to stop.”
Her job was important to her. He had said business and personal was separate, and he’d known she was in mergers and acquisitions. Her body should never have distracted him. He leaned forward in his seat, unsure of how to broach the subject with the woman he’d been about to make love to, before this call.
"Is that the only way?"
"At this point, yes,” Stanley said. “I've run out of options."
He massaged his temples as he stood and stared out the window of the hotel, out at a tropical paradise of palm trees. How had he been so wrong?
"She's at work,” Mitch said, his tone gruff. “At Morgan Enterprises.”
"So this is a hostile takeover."
Mitch’s gut churned and his muscles tightened. He’d been wrong. Stanley's words echoed over and over. There was no going back. Tess had taken everything from him. He'd been blind and stupid and never should have allowed her into his heart.
"She did her job perfectly.” Mitch said in disbelief, “I misread everything."
Right now, red-hot fury ran through his veins. He had to see her once more. This time, he’d look for the evil that ran in her heart hidden by her angel face.
16
Tess bought a coffee downstairs at the local coffee shop before going up to her office. Everything was perfect. Life was good. Once the elevator doors opened, she strolled out with a bounce in her step. The smile on her face refused to dissipate. Mitch cared about her, and they would see each other in just a few hours for dinner. And more, if she had her way.
She waved to a few people she passed in the halls, walked into her office, and closed the door.
With her coffee still in her hand, she sat and flipped on her computer. She hummed the entire time it took for her to open her emails and her computer program on real-time analysis of her deals to fire up.
The moment the program opened, she saw her name in red on the screen. Her brows furrowed. She hadn't started a merger to trace today. She leaned closer to the screen. When she started to put her coffee down, she almost missed her desk. She couldn't look away. The numbers kept increasing. How was this happening? She was taking Mitch's company from him right at this moment.
Her mind swirled. This was impossible. She’d only sent Belle a proposal. How had this happened?
She bit her lip. The more important question was what could she do to stop it? There had to be something. As the number kept increasing, she changed her screen to her email. Belle Morgan had sent her an email earlier this morning while Tess had been at the fake burial. Tess read the instructions and felt adrenaline pumping in her veins. Belle had ordered the secretary to start the process knowing Tess would be out of the office. Mitch had been at the burial when this started. No wonder he ran out of her apartment without a word.
She felt her hand begin to jitter as she changed back to the merger program. There had to be something she could do.
She heard her secretary laughing with one of her coworkers. Someone passed her office, talking on his phone.
Tess stood and locked her office door. No one could stop her if she modified the program. But to be successful, she'd have to sit here and wait it out. This could be as long as five minutes, but as short as sixty seconds. A lot depended on the user numbers at the time. She massaged her arms and plopped into her chair. She read what had already happened. The program was almost done buying the stock, but it hadn't begun to sell them to Morgan Enterprises yet.
Right now, they were all in her name. Mitch must know it was her.
If she modified anything, she'd lose her job, probably her license. She sucked in a breath. This might be theft. It was also possible she'd go to jail.
If she made it out of the office, she'd tell Mitch, then call Emily—her lawyer friend might know what to do. Her forehead grew hot as she stared at the modify icon. If she stopped this right now, she’d give Mitch a chance to save his company.
Her cell phone rang. She glanced at the screen and saw it was Mitch. He must know. He probably hated her.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and lifted her chin. Peter Morgan was his half-brother. Stealing from family ought to be illegal, not that she could tell them that. He was her boss.
She closed her eyes and said a fast prayer. It was now or never.
She turned her phone off and hit the edit button in the program.
With a few fast clicks, she canceled the sale and rerouted her name to a stored vault she firewalled. Finished, she put a password on her computer account and added another layer of security to h
er vault where the stock purchases were stored to ensure no one else had access.
Her spine was rigid as the program finished. Three minutes ticked by. Her heart raced.
Once she saw “complete” on her screen, she logged off. It was time to get out before Belle called security and she’d be sent to jail. She was aware of noises outside her office door again. Someone was talking, probably on a phone. Alarmed, she stood near her office door and checked to ensure she appeared normal. She picked up her coffee cup. If anyone asked, she had no idea what to say. She’d leave as fast as she could.
She opened the door and her heels clicked on the floor. Her secretary stared at her in question, and Tess tried to pretend she wasn't running as she sped-walked to the elevator. She hit the button and shifted back and forth on her feet while she waited.
Perhaps Kevin had been right about her ruining his future. There was zero possibility she'd ever get a job dealing with anything financial again. Finally, the elevator opened and she slipped in. No one joined her. She held the rail tightly the entire ride down.
“Girlfriend” meant Mitch might fall in love with her. She winced, knowing how angry he must be at her right now. She had to try to explain this. She stepped out into the busy lobby. Her heart stopped when she saw who waited for the car going up.
Peter’s brown eyes met hers. Her heart beat fast as he simply nodded. "Good afternoon, Tess."
You should treat family as equals almost flew out of her mouth. She lowered her gaze and prayed he couldn't see through her. She had to leave. Her lips parted as she forced herself to speak.
"Afternoon, Mr. Morgan. I hope California was nice?"
"We flew back early this morning." He walked past her and entered the elevator.
“Good. I’m off to get more coffee.” She held up her full cup, bit her lip, and turned to leave. Any minute now, he'd call her back. Fire her. He had to know what she’d done. She wished she were as brave on the outside as she was on the inside. She took a few steps and waved. "Goodbye, sir."
"You don't have to call me sir. Have a good day, Tess." He pressed the button in the elevator as she rushed through the lobby toward the exit.
Freedom beckoned. Her heels slipped on the marble but she made it outside into the blazing heat of the sun. She turned on her phone to call for a car. Her phone flashed. She had five voicemails from Mitch. Before she could listen to one, her phone rang and his name was on her screen.
She walked down the sidewalk and toward an empty side street to hail a car away from her office building. "Hello?"
"Get inside,” Mitch said. A car with tinted windows pulled up and the door opened.
She walked toward the vehicle slowly. “Mitch?”
"Get in, Tess.” His head popped out of the back seat.
Her stomach flipped. She needed him to hold her, but as she adjusted in her seat and the car took off, she saw his cold, steely blue eyes. She prayed he listened.
"Mitch, I need your help."
He ignored her and told the driver in a hard voice, "Biltmore."
Without another word, the limo drove away from Morgan Enterprises. Her heart beat so fast she was sure she’d have a heart attack. This was it. Everything she had done was for Mitch, but the way he glared at her ate her up inside.
"You know. About the takeover."
"I know."
He couldn't even look at her. Her stomach twisted into knots and goose bumps grew on her arms. She reached out to touch him, but his muscles twitched. She folded her hands in her lap. "There has been a mistake. To fix it, I need your help."
He finally gave her a quizzical gaze. "We'll talk when we're alone."
His tone was clipped. If she disappeared into molten lava at this moment, she’d end her misery. There was no way he knew everything. She’d give him a chance. She'd tell him he had time to get his company back, and if he still hated her, she’d run before getting arrested. Most planes in Miami went to South America. While her Spanish was passable, she'd need to practice more to be proficient. At least she had a plan. She fixed her glasses and prayed her eyes did not water.
She set her coffee into the cup holder and rubbed the steam off her glasses with her shirt. "Okay. Mitch, I'm sorry."
"Please wait." His hand brushed against hers.
The one touch steadied her, but her cheeks were wet from her own tears. There was no way to stop them now. Even if Mitch hated her, she'd live with the consequences of her actions. Now she knew the truth. Business wasn’t just business because her heart became involved. She’d rather go to prison herself than hurt Mitch.
17
Coldness crept into Mitch’s skin as he opened his suite and let Tess walk into his room. In the car, she’d seemed a wreck. Either she was a great actress or she meant what she said. She needed his help. His skin still tingled from her touch, but he saw her complexion was whiter than normal. She held her stomach and forehead as she made her way to the couch. He closed the door and followed.
"Tess..."
The moment she sat, she let go of her head, but clenched her hands. "Mitch, I don't know what to do."
Her tears continued down her face. He reached for a tissue and handed it to her. "You are very good at your job."
"I didn’t do this, though. Yes, it was my plan, but I didn’t execute anything." She wiped her eyes and hesitated. “It wasn’t just business, not for me, not with you.”
Right now, the new billions in his company’s coffers meant he’d lost control of United Trust. His father would have shown no mercy, just like Peter. Tess seemed so beaten. He huffed and tried to hold onto his anger.
"First, you discover the exact moment my company might be vulnerable."
Her lips parted. "Researching and predicting market plans is part of my job, yes, but I didn’t know you when I found that out."
“But you executed it brilliantly.” At least she hadn't denied anything. He held his shoulders straight. "Then you implement a plan, disappear from my mother’s funeral to see that it’s done, then you seduced me so I didn’t notice."
"Excuse me?" She put her hands down and glared at him. She shook her head in disbelief. "Well, now I can’t believe I just threw my career away because I couldn’t live with hurting you.”
He reached for her hand. Threw her career away? "What did you do?"
"A lot. I sent a memo outlining the plan to start a hostile takeover." She held her stomach again. “It makes me sick to even think about that.” She lowered her head. "After you said no to an acquisition—the morning we flew here? I didn’t implement anything, but when I went to work I saw everything was happening without my approval. The live buying was in action. I tried to stop it. When I couldn’t, I stole everything and put it in a trust where no one at Morgan Enterprises can touch it."
He gripped her hand a little harder, but let go so he wouldn’t hurt her. "What, Tess?"
She scooted closer to him. "I didn't want to hurt you. I assume Morgan Enterprises already knows about the 'theft’."
"Theft?" He clenched his jaw. This was all his fault. He processed what she said and nodded. She was not going to go to jail, not for him. "Tell me exactly what happened."
She held onto his grip. "My job was to be the middleman and buy your shares."
He lifted her chin. “I know. I saw your name on all the paperwork, but explain what happened next so I can help."
Her eyes widened. She stayed silent and chewed on her lip. He stayed quiet, even though his pulse pounded in his chest. Her hands began to shake. "I stopped the automatic sale of those shares to Morgan Enterprises and edited the program to give you time."
He brushed her hair out of her face. "You stopped the transfer so everything is now in your name?"
She dropped her head again. "Yes. As I don’t have the money, it’s technically a theft."
This would ruin her career, possibly worse. He’d do whatever he could to ensure nothing else happened. He wrapped his arms around her. "Why did you do this?"
"Because I don't hurt people I love.”
Love? His heart pumped hard, and the need to protect her took over every cell in his body. No one had truly loved him before. His former girlfriends preferred his money, but she’d sacrificed herself for him. He'd get her out of this.
"Tess..."
She ended the hug and wiped her face. "Don't be nice to me."
“I'm sorry." Their knees touched. "I’m sorry for being angry with you—all I could see was how quickly I’d lost everything." She was very good at her job.
Tess studied the carpet. "SEC rules are pretty clear on day trading, and while I put passwords on everything and used an electronic vault, there is no guarantee."
He brushed his hand against her cheek, which was still damp from her tears. "Tess, you wanted my help. Let me help you."
Her gaze narrowed. "How?"
Right now, all his mind could think about was who would know what to do with all the intricate details. In a blink of an eye, he stood from the couch. He fished out his phone from his back pocket. "Let me call Stanley. He's my finance guru. Together, we can come up with a plan."
She stood next to him. "Mitch, you told me business was business and pleasure was pleasure."
"That was a stupid thing to say.” He kissed her forehead.
"I agree." She hugged his free arm. "I couldn’t allow myself to be a part of stealing your hard work."
Mitch called him and the phone rang. He motioned for his laptop behind her. She turned and grabbed it, then handed it to him. He walked to the kitchen area and placed it on the table to fire it up. The second Stanley answered, Mitch put the phone on speaker.
"Stanley, Tess is with me."
Tess stared at him with concern. He leaned on the table and ensured his computer was ready to open his programs.
Stanley asked, "What happened?"
"Well, she interrupted the hostile takeover plans. All the stock is now in her name."
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