Thrust: Bad Boy Racing Romance (Fastlane Series Book 2)

by Sloan Storm

  “Very well, Dani,” Bernard said, the words coming from his mouth with the same emotion he might use when ordering a bowl of soup. “In light of the circumstances, and the demands of Mrs. Rhys, we believe that we have no alternative but to terminate your employment with the firm, effective immediately.”

  I felt my eyes widen in their sockets. Unsure I’d heard him correctly, I leaned forward.

  “What’s that?”

  “You heard what Bernard said, Dani,” Leopold began, angling his upper body over the conference table and locking eyes with me. “Save yourself the embarrassment, and don't make this situation anymore awkward than it already is.”

  Still trying to process what was happening, I shook my head. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. It just couldn’t be true.

  “Dani,” Bernard said, gesturing towards the conference room door. “Please excuse us, and return to your office. Leopold and I will be in to discuss your situation once we've concluded the matter at hand with Mrs. Rhys.”

  I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach, betrayed. Not only by Serena and whatever spying she’d engaged in but also by Bernard and Leopold. I couldn’t believe my bosses were willing to overlook all of the work I’d done for the firm, all the millions of dollars of business I’d brought to their company. In less than five minutes, they’d fired me like they would a summer intern.

  Bernard cleared his throat. “Dani?” he began, looking at me and raising his eyebrows. “We'll be in to discuss this with you.”

  DANI

  I looked away from him and reached down, wrapping my fingers around the arms of the chair. Without a word, I pushed myself into a standing position. I worried that my first step would send me to the ground. My knees shook. Feeling half-faint, I shuffled for the first few steps until I made my way around the conference table. I didn’t bother looking at anyone while I headed towards the door.

  Just before I reached it, I passed by Serena. She grabbed hold of my forearm, startling me. She locked eyes with me, looking at me in silence for a second or two before letting go of my arm not long after.

  “I told you Marco was incapable of love.” she began, smugness dripping from her words. “And now, you see, exactly what kind of man he really is.”

  Part of me wanted to scream and slap her in the face. The other part of me wanted to do the same to Marco. Until that instant, the depth of his deception hadn’t dawned on me. Maybe I’d been so shocked by everything else, I hadn't had time to think about it.

  I almost couldn’t believe that the woman in front of me was the same tear filled victim I met that first night in his condominium. During the course of the short meeting, she’d transformed herself from a helpless, hopelessly in-love ex-girlfriend to a vindictive and cunning… wife.

  Wife.

  W. I. F. E.

  It still didn’t seem real. I began to feel nauseous all over again. Even so, I had no intention of allowing myself to be portrayed as a homewrecker. I didn’t care what was on the video she'd shown to them. I was misled by Marco, and since I was going to be fired anyway, I decided to speak my mind.

  “Serena,” I said, crossing my arms while looking down at her. “I’ve already apologized to you once. I meant what I said. I cannot begin to tell you how bad I feel. For what it’s worth, I hope someday you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”

  Serena looked away from me while I spoke, crossing her arms as well.

  “But what you’re doing here… punishing me for something that is really your husband’s fault, that’s just not fair. You have no right to come in here and try to rob me of my livelihood. None at all.”

  No sooner had I finished saying that then she looked up at me, glaring in my direction.

  “Dani,” Leopold began, standing from his chair. “It really is time for you to go. There aren’t going to be any more discussions about this issue and…”

  “No! Leopold, no!” I exclaimed, pointing at him. Adrenaline surged through me, strengthening my resolve to defend myself.

  “What Serena’s done, it’s basically entrapment. She is essentially trying to blackmail this firm, destroying my career and my reputation in the process. I'm not going to allow it! If you think you can just get away with this, Serena, you are sorely mistaken!”

  “That’s enough, Dani!” Bernard demanded.

  Soon the mood in the room changed from awkward silence to full-on confrontation.

  “You are a whore,” Serena snarled. “It doesn’t matter whether or not Marco was married. You were willing to do anything to get him to sign the contract.”

  I snapped. Without a single thought, I slapped Serena, hard, across the face. She gasped and tried to get to her feet. Her attorney grabbed hold of her, and I stood there, readying myself for a fight.

  “I will sue you for everything you have!” Serena began, holding the side of her face where I’d hit her. “You will owe me for the rest of your life, you bitch!”

  While Serena threatened me, Bernard and Leopold hustled in my direction.

  “Don’t come near me!” I warned, pointing at them. “Either one of you!”

  Eventually they stopped, looking at me with expressions of utter shock. I turned my attention back to Serena. With a calm, even tone, I responded to her threats.

  “I am not a prostitute. I am also not a bitch. I have explained the situation. I have apologized. The real guilty party here is not me, it's your husband.”

  Serena flinched, trying to get free of her attorney’s grasp while I continued.

  “If anyone is a prostitute in this situation, Serena, it’s you. You’re willing to stay married to a man who cheats on you, so you can get his money. If that’s not a prostitute, I don’t know what is.”

  Serena thinned her lips, but before she could say anything, I interrupted her.

  “You will never see a single penny from me. I feel sorry for you, Serena. You are a pathetic excuse for a human being.”

  “Why you…” Serena began, her voice escalating.

  “That’s enough! That is enough!” Bernard yelled. “Dani, get your things from your office, and get out.”

  I was just numb to everything. In that moment, the only thing that mattered to me was defending my good name. If they wanted to fire me, fine. I said nothing for several seconds, until at last I walked towards the conference room door.

  Turning one last time, I looked at Serena. “He broke my heart, Serena. Isn’t that enough for you?”

  With that, I yanked on the door handle and exited, slamming it behind me.

  DANI

  Staggering into the hallway, all of the anger and rage I’d vented at Serena drained from my body. In its place, emptiness, numbness, and disbelief coursed through my veins, nearly bringing me to my knees. I braced myself against the wall, pressing my palms flat.

  I had to get to my office, not only to clean out my desk, but also I felt like I was on the verge of a breakdown. The last thing I wanted to do was degenerate into a sniveling mess in front of my coworkers. Gathering myself, I walked to my office as quickly as possible, closing the door behind me. I pressed my upper back into it, resting my head against it for a few seconds.

  Not only did the room feel like it was spinning, but so did my life. Somehow, I had to keep myself under control just long enough to leave the firm with my dignity intact. I exhaled and shoved myself away from the door. I still had one thing to do - a final call to make.

  Rounding my desk, I picked up my cell phone and swiped it on. I eased into my chair and brought it to my ear, readying myself to unload on Marco the instant he answered.

  Only, the fucker didn’t.

  After the fifth ring, his voicemail picked up. Whereas before the sound of his voice had always stirred me in the most satisfying of ways, this time, hearing it made my skin crawl. At the last second, I almost lost my nerve.

  I thought maybe it would be better if I just never spoke to him again. After all, what difference would make? He was married, and
I was out of a job. Just then, an even more horrific thought occurred to me and strengthened what little resolve remained. The ‘beep’ to leave a message sounded and I wasted no time.

  “I don’t even know where to begin, Marco. You lying, asshole! Right up until this instant, it didn’t even occur to me that you would be involved with what Serena has done. If you are, that would probably make you one of the most sadistic and twisted people I’ve ever come in contact with in my entire life. Just know that I never want to speak to you again, so don’t bother returning my call.”

  I paused for a moment and sucked in the biggest breath I could before continuing.

  “I came into work today to meet with Bernard and Leopold and present them the signature page of your agreement. To my utter shock, someone you introduced to me not long ago was already seated at the table. Can you guess who that was, Marco? I’ll give you one hint… Her name rhymes with Serena. That’s right. Serena! You can imagine how surprised I was to see her there. After all, I’d only met her once, and by the way you acted, that was the only time I was ever going to see her. But guess what else I found out, Marco? I found out that she wasn’t just some fling or hook up for you. No. She is actually your wife.”

  Stopping yet again, I shot to my feet and slammed the top of my desk with my fist.

  “Your fucking wife! You fucking asshole!”

  I yanked the phone away from my ear, hanging it up. With my free hand clenched into a fist, I struggled to keep my rage from getting the better of me. I took a few deep breaths, even trying to count backwards from ten.

  Nothing worked.

  I wasn’t finished speaking my mind. I called him back. Again, the call went to voice mail and I picked up right where I left off.

  “I’m in love with you. Do you understand me you selfish, hurtful, evil prick? Even though I’m standing here speaking these words to you, it just doesn't seem real. How, Marco? Why? What would you have to gain by hurting me like this? And what about Serena? Are you still in love with her? What kind of sick, twisted relationship do the two of you have? Do you know what she did? She filmed us having sex with each other!”

  Shaking my head, I walked around the front of my desk.

  “Was that your idea? Did the two of you plan this with each other? None of this makes any sense to me, Marco. It never will. Not in a million years. I can’t believe I let myself fall for you. I almost want to know why. But, at the same time, I’m so completely repulsed by you and your miserable excuse for a wife, I just don’t know what I want. I can promise you this though. What you’ve done to my life, I’m not going to allow it to stand. I will do everything in my power to make yours a miserable, living, hell. I am quite sure that I can find an attorney who would be more than happy to pursue a civil case against you and Serena. For now, though, Marco, I just want you to know something… I loved you in a way I’ve never loved any other man. It was the closest thing I’ve ever come to feeling pure joy with another person. You’ve crushed my spirit and stepped on my heart but you haven’t won. You never will.”

  Unlike the first time I hung up, this time, my hand fell away from my ear and after disconnecting, I dropped the phone to the floor. The hard plastic case popped off and rattled around. Listless, I collapsed to the floor, sitting and leaning against my desk. I had no idea how much time I had before Bernard and Leopold would have me escorted from the office but for the time being, I didn't care.

  Drawing my knees towards my body, I wrapped my arms around them and pulled them close. In less than a day, I had gone from being thrilled about my future and everything I’d done to make it become a reality to utter confusion and total despair.

  Leaving aside what was happening with my father and trying to come to terms with what Serena had done, I had to face the reality of what this might mean for my career. Nothing is ever truly confidential, and I had little doubt that the word about what happened between Marco and me would spread like wildfire in the small world I occupied.

  Basically, my career was over.

  Turning my head, I rested it on top of my knees and began to rock back and forth. Before long, the tears came. I didn’t bother trying to stop them.

  DANI

  Back in my apartment a few hours and a half a bottle of wine later, I’d just decided to take a shower when my phone started to ring on the kitchen table. I froze in place, unsure of whether or not I should look to see who it was.

  If it was Marco, I didn’t know what more I could have said. I’d pretty much told him everything I wanted. Mulling it over for another moment, I decided not to answer and instead let the call go to voice mail. However, whoever it was didn’t bother to leave a message. They called back, almost immediately.

  Shit.

  It had to be him. I had no doubt about it. I closed my eyes, biting the inside of my lip and curling my fingers into fists.

  “Asshole.” I muttered, turning my gaze towards the annoying device while it chimed and vibrated.

  Don’t answer it. Don’t answer it. Don’t answer it.

  For a fraction of a second, my rational mind nearly won out. However, each ring was like a deafening reminder of what he’d done. No matter how much I tried to convince myself, in the end my intellect was no match for my anger. Taking a final deep breath, I reached for the phone just ahead of the ring that would have sent it to voice mail. Without even bothering to look at it, I swiped it on and went on a rampage.

  “How dare you call me? You horrible, awful, despicable excuse for a human being! Do you have any idea, any, how much you’ve hurt me? What more do you want from me? I’ve already told you that I’m in love with you and that you’ve crushed me. Isn’t that enough? Aren’t you satisfied? You played me. You won. That’s all you really care about, isn’t it? Isn’t it, Marco?”

  Using up the last of my breath with my question, I paused.

  “Uhhh,” a female voice said in response. “You’re in love with Marco? He played you? He’s awful and despicable?”

  I dropped my head into my hand.

  “Oh my God, I-I… Chloe, I didn’t,” I stammered, completely horrified at what I’d said. “It’s nothing I, I don’t want to talk about it.”

  A half hour later, my best friend knocked at my door. I opened the door and she wasted no time walking in and wrapping her arms around me. We embraced for a few seconds and then she leaned away from me, frowning.

  “Have you been drinking?”

  “Not in the last five minutes,” I replied, turning my back on her and walking towards the kitchen.

  I picked up the wine bottle, swirling what remained in the bottom of the bottle. I raised my eyebrows at her.

  “Want some?”

  Chloe shook her head.

  “No,” she began, walking towards me. “I think at least one of us needs to be sober right now.”

  I chuckled and poured the rest of the bottle into my wine glass.

  “Suit yourself.”

  I passed by her. While I walked, I heard Chloe following behind me, the rubber on the bottom of her shoes squeaking on the floor.

  “Talk to me, Dani.”

  I stopped in front of my couch, spinning in place and plopping down into it.

  “There’s nothing to talk about.”

  Chloe squeezed between my kneecaps and the table across from my couch.

  “Excuse me,” she said, edging past me.

  A second later, she sat.

  “Nothing to talk about?” she began, leaning away from me and scowling. “Hmm, what about… How dare you call me? Do you have any idea how much you hurt me? Isn’t that enough? You played me? You won? I’m in love with you, Marco…”

  She finished speaking, crossed her arms and her legs at the same time.

  “Uhh yeah, Dani, like, we have something to talk about.”

  The words came so fast, without thought, from the deepest, most damaged part of me. What was worse was that Chloe only knew half of it. She still had no idea about what had happened to my job, my
career, my dreams.

  I didn’t even know where to begin with her. Not because I didn’t think she wouldn’t do everything a friend should. She would. Rather, I felt ashamed, like I’d been played.

  Duped.

  Chloe’s posture eased. She reached for me, leaning in my direction at the same time.

  “Whatever it is, Dani,” she said, taking one of my hands in hers. “I don’t care. It doesn’t matter to me how bad you think things are. Whatever’s happened with Marco, it will never get any better if you don’t talk about it. You know? Like, keeping that stuff bottled up inside is totally the worst thing you can do.”

  I looked at her and kept my composure for a full two seconds before breaking down, leaning into her and crying tears from the depths of my soul. For several seconds, Chloe cradled me, holding me close without saying anything. Just then, my phone rang.

  Exhausted, I broke free of Chloe and turn my head in the direction of the phone. I started to stand, sniffling, “Be right back.”

  Chloe extended her arm across my chest, pinning me in place.

  “No,” she began, shaking her head back and forth. “You need to just sit there. I’ll get it.”

  I was too tired to fight, let alone stand. I didn’t even bother to say anything. Chloe stood and seconds later, she picked up the phone. Without turning back towards me, she answered it.

  “What the hell do you want?”

  I snapped my head towards her, the fog of my despair lifting.

  Marco?

  I scrambled to my feet, walking towards her and motioning for Chloe to hand me the phone.

  “Give it to me,” I whispered. “Is it him?”

  Chloe backed away from me, showing me her palm while keeping the phone against her ear.

  “I want to talk to him. Chloe, give me the phone!”

  Her face softened with sadness. She didn’t bother to fight, passing the phone to me but not without a warning.

  “Please be careful,” she whispered.

  I took it from her and rotated my hand until the display came into full view, his name displayed across it.