Olivia turns her head slightly to look at him. “And you think, sliding your hand inside my panties like that is going to settle me?”
“Well, that’s Plan B,” he says amused.
“Oh?”
“Yes. You’ll sleep much better, if we ensure that you’re thoroughly exhausted.”
Chapter Eleven
The following day Ethan sits in his Dublin office of Aurora Technologies. Shannon is on her way in to talk to him about Jessica. What a fucked up situation that is right now, and despite his efforts, it doesn’t seem to be going away. Not long from now he’s going to be a father. Not once, but twice, and his feelings about that are on completely opposite sides of the scale. On top of it all, there’s a new kid in town gunning for his job.
Shannon sits down on the opposite side of his desk and places a large stack of papers in front of him.
“What’s this?”
“That’s what she wants in order to make the accusations of domestic violence go away.”
Shannon doesn’t seem herself today. She’s tense and uptight. Ethan slides the first couple of documents off the top of the pile and begins to read. Head shaking, grumbling and more than a few eyebrow raises take place as he peruses the agreement.
“You have got to be kidding me?” he asks, flipping through a few pages quickly.
“No. She’s dead serious. And she’s given this lots of thought. She even had most of this already written down before I went to see her.”
“I can’t win. Either way she ruins me.” Ethan sits back in his chair and tosses his pen onto the desk. Shannon watches as it slides across the wooden surface and over the edge, on to the floor.
“I tried throwing an obscene amount of money at her for complete dismissal of all current and future accusations,” she advises. “She was on the fence a few times, but it seems to me that there’s something else going on here. I get the feeling that somebody else is the mastermind.”
Ethan leans forward, listening intently. “Oh?”
“You’ve just skimmed through that agreement. Is she this ambitious?”
“I don’t even think she’s this smart.”
“Exactly! I’m going to keep on her. I suspect eventually she’ll fold, or at least give me some clues as to what’s going on.”
“Good idea. Did you get a chance to go through my employment contract with Aurora?”
“Yes. Their out clauses include your failure to meet company sales targets, internationally, for three consecutive quarters.”
“Well, that’s not an issue.”
“No, but this is. She places a copy of his contract in front of him with a paragraph duly highlighted. “Any behavior, action, or misconduct considered by the board of directors to demean, disgrace, or threaten the company’s reputation or good name.”
Ethan rubs his chin. “Being found guilty of domestic violence would qualify.”
“Being accused of domestic violence is enough. So we can keep trying to wear Jessica down and make it go away, but I still think we need to clear your name entirely.”
“Well, well, Miss Quinn. It almost sounds like you believe I’m innocent.”
“I do,” she says sincerely. “I didn’t at first, because you’re a bit of an asshole.”
He cracks a small smile.
“But I think I know who you are now. Plus, I don’t believe John would defend and protect you if he thought that you were capable of that.” Her eyes become dim when she says his name.
“John would be the first one to sign up and testify against me.”
“Right after he kicked your ass.”
“Agreed. Shannon, is everything okay? With you and John?”
“To be honest…I don’t know,” she admits. “He’s always had an issue with the age thing between us, but lately it feels like he’s pulling away. Since he’s come back home, he says it’s because he needs to focus all his attention on his job.”
“Ah, well, things are a little tense right now.”
“He’s at a point in his life where he should be gearing down for retirement, learning to relax, let love in. Instead he’s saying that he can’t take any time off, because every time he does something bad happens.”
“He feels responsible for Sam getting into the restaurant,” Ethan says regretfully.
“Yes, and he feels like he should’ve been with you the night this whole thing unfolded with Jessica. If he had been with you, there would be no question as to your actions, because he wouldn’t have taken you home.”
Ethan’s brow furrows and he frowns. “I’m sorry, Shannon.”
“The man is fiercely loyal, Ethan. I don’t think I can compete with that. You’ll always be his first priority.”
He nods, knowing that statement to be true. “Stand by him, Shannon. Don’t give up. Give me a little time to sort through some of this stuff. I’ll need his help. Then I promise, I’ll make sure that he has the time he needs for his own happiness.”
Shannon quickly wipes away a tear before it falls. It breaks Ethan’s heart. Getting to his feet, he walks toward the door. “Okay, Miss Quinn. I have something important to do tonight, I need to get out of here.”
Shannon nods, gets to her feet and follows him to the door. She forces a small smile as she passes, quickly averting her eyes. She’s almost out the door when she stops and turns, looking tormented.
“Shannon?” he asks concerned.
Quickly moving toward him, she throws herself into his arms, and squeezes him tightly. Ethan grunts, surprised at first, then wraps his arms around her in a nurturing hug.
“I’m fairly certain this is a human resources issue, Miss Quinn,” he jokes, when she doesn’t let him go. Shannon takes a stuttered breath and then giggles, releasing her hold. “How about you get back to proving my innocence and saving my ass?”
“Yes, sir. My pleasure.”
Olivia buckles her dance shoes and grumbles, “I don’t know why I’m wasting your time, Maddie. It’s not like I’ve gotten any more graceful overnight.”
“You look like you’re feeling a lot better today. You can do this,” Maddie encourages.
“Where’s Imelda?” Olivia asks looking around the dance studio.
“Oh, well, she’s not coming back.”
Disappointment shows on her face. “I don’t blame her, I suck.”
“Oh, I think you’ll find it’s just a matter of finding the right partner,” his voice says confidently, from behind her.
Startled, her body tenses, she’s afraid to turn around. The smile on Maddie’s face lights the room, and she gives her a nod in confirmation. Slowly she turns. “Ethan, what are you doing here?”
“I’m your new dance partner.” He grins.
Goose bumps form on her skin. “I thought teaching dance wasn’t your thing?”
“It’s not. It’s Maddie’s thing.”
“I’m confused.”
“Leading you, is my thing.” He steps forward and presents his hands in hold position. “Let’s begin.”
Olivia swallows hard, her heart beginning to flutter. “Oh, I really wish you hadn’t said that.”
He furrows his brow, confused. “Why?”
She raises her hands and joins his hold. “Because now I’m thinking about what we did after the last time you said that to me. It’s hard enough for me to concentrate on dancing when I’m not thinking about that kind of stuff.”
“I see,” he says smirking, “Well, here’s the thing. This isn’t much different than that night. You need to be still. Quiet the voices inside you.” The music starts and Olivia tenses. “Stop thinking. Here… you have no control. No voice,” he whispers into her ear. “When you’re in hold, it’s no different then when you’re bound. You’ll listen, respond… serve. You’re going to let me lead.”
“It’s not that easy,” she begins to protest.
Ethan’s eyes lock to hers, never betraying her submissive needs. “Oh, it is that easy. You’re going to know what I wan
t you to do. You’re going to understand exactly how I want you to respond. And you will… because you’re my good girl.”
It’s the night of the charity event and Ethan paces the floor of the ballroom, nervous and uptight.
“Would you settle down?” John finally demands.
“Easy for you to say. What the fuck is he doing here?”
“This is not a family event like Christmas is, Ethan. This is a corporate event for charity. All the employees, sister companies, and business partners were invited.”
“I can’t believe he’d have the nerve to show up here. I have plans for tonight that don’t involve untrustworthy, back stabbing assholes who used to be friends.”
“Again… settle the fuck down. Don’t give him the power to upset you. You moved mountains to make sure everyone else is here for this night. Don’t ruin it by getting so wound up that you’re going to blow a gasket.”
Ethan takes a deep breath. “You’re right. Where is she anyway?”
“Don’t ask me. You agreed to let them spend the day together getting ready,” John chuckles. “We’ll be lucky if they make it here by dinner.”
Fashionably late, the girls make their way through the lobby, strutting their stuff. One by one, they stop and wait to be escorted down the stairs. Olivia stands last in line, feeling very nervous. She’s never experienced anything like this before, and she feels way out of her league. She catches her reflection in an antique mirror hanging in the hallway and reaches up to hold the pendant that he gave her. It calms her. She stares at the woman in front of her and sees the Irish princess she is in her dreams, wearing an evening gown of delicate pink lace. Her long, normally unruly, hair is curled to perfection and sweeps seductively across her shoulders. Something that always pleases Ethan. A thin black liner and thick dramatic eyelashes accentuate her hazel eyes, making them dance and sparkle.
When she walks out of her dream into the grand ballroom, a hush falls over the crowd as everyone stops to admire her. Ethan enters from an adjoining room and turns to look at what everyone’s staring at. His drink slips from his hand and drops to the floor as she captures his gaze. It’s as if he’s just been propelled a hundred years back in time. If there was ever any doubt that she existed in his past life; there isn’t any more. He’s been here before; the memory is so clearly burned into his mind.
Ethan hears none of the bustling around him, as the staff scrambles to clean up the broken glass. He walks past them, as if they don’t exist. She waits on the bottom step for him to extend his hand and escort her into the room. Chatter picks up as people return to their conversations.
“That was a little terrifying,” Olivia admits.
Ethan kisses her, without concern for proper etiquette or who may still be watching. It’s deep, it’s desirous, and it’s very, very possessive. Every man in the room will know, without doubt, that she belongs to him. Something he’s very eager for them to know. “You look beautiful,” Ethan says, completely enamored. Olivia blushes and it stirs that beast inside him. Down, boy. Keep your shit together tonight.
The next few hours are filled with food, drinks, and conversation. Ethan keeps her close to his side, as he makes good on his expected social interactions. After dinner, he’s stolen away for a few moments by an older patron, who has a few business propositions for him. Boy talk he says. wink wink. Ethan shrugs hesitantly as he’s led to a quieter corner of the room.
Annoyed, Olivia looks at the line up for the bar and sighs. That’s no longer an option. “Dessert it is.” She walks along the endless table of sugary desserts with a plate in her hand.
“Someone as lovely as you, certainly makes these confections look a lot less appetizing.”
Olivia smiles at the handsome man who has joined her perusal of sweets. “Oh, you’re very smooth.”
“Wasn’t intending to be,” he admits sincerely. “It’s just an observation. That was quite an entrance. I can honestly say, that it’s the first time I’ve ever seen some of these stuffed shirts at a loss for words.”
Olivia smiles and her face starts to warm.
“Oh, you best be careful. That blush could get you in an awful lot of trouble with a man inclined to pursue it.”
Olivia takes a step back, to give herself some space and hits a solid muscular wall of security watchdog.
“Hi, John,” she say sheepishly as she looks up at him.
“Hello, Olivia. I see you’ve met Reese Wilson.”
Olivia feels all the air leave her lungs. Her head snaps back to look at him. His charming smile has morphed into a mischievous grin. “You’re an asshole,” she blurts out rather loudly.
“Oh? And how have you come to that conclusion? We’ve just met.”
“You knew I was here with Ethan.”
“Yes, I did.”
“How could you show up here tonight, after what you did?”
“What I did? You mean what Ethan thinks I did,” he clarifies.
“Olivia, keep your voice down, you’re causing a scene,” John warns.
She turns to walk away and Reese reaches out and grabs her arm. “Wait, Love.”
“Don’t call me Love and get your hands off me.”
Reese lets her go and raises his hands. “Okay. But you need to know that Ethan was my best friend. I would never betray him like that. That crazy bitch concocted some ridiculous story about her and I, and Ethan took her word for it. He never even asked me if it was true, he just assumed it was.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Because he won’t believe me. You need to let him know that he’s investigating the wrong guy. The more time he wastes on me, the less likely it is he’s going to find the real guy behind what happened.”
“You don’t think that Ethan did it?”
“I’ve known Ethan for many years. There’s no way in hell that he hurt Jessica. I can’t prove it, but she’s lying.”
Olivia walks away, leaving Reese standing alone at the dessert table. Something is really bothering her. She turns, looking him straight in the eye. She sees a man who seems to be sincere. His eyes tell the story of his loyalty, his concern. But then, he is an experienced Dom. King of the mind fuck, she bets. John presses his hand against the small of her back and gently urges her to keep moving.
Ethan returns to the room and anxiously searches for her. He finds her engaged in a conversation with his father and a few of his business partners. They all nod their heads, completely engrossed in whatever story that she’s telling. Even his father is smiling; that’s somewhat of a rare sight as of late. Ethan watches from the distance, but she senses him, looking past the group and locking eyes. Lifting her hand she gives him a little wave and a flirtatious smile.
There’s a sudden burst of laughter, and he watches in awe as his father lifts her hand to his mouth for a kiss. She’s the light in the room that everybody gravitates toward. It only stands to reason that his family would love her as much as he does. Ethan’s chest expands with pride. He continues to admire her from across the room, the conversational goddess, captivating her audience.
His father guides her to another group of people to make introductions. She glides through the crowd like an angel. Grace in her every movement, and her dress clinging to every curve of her body. He cherishes every one of those curves, as his eyes take the glorious journey, stopping at her ass. He blinks several times, moving his head to look at her from different angles. No matter how hard he looks, he can’t see what he’s looking for. Furious that she’d defy him, he makes his way across the floor in lightening speed, startling her with his arrival.
“We need to talk,” he whispers into her ear from behind.
“Now? Can’t it wait?”
Ethan answers by gripping her by the elbow and steering her across the room and down the hallway. She struggles to keep up with his steps in her heels. She keeps smiling so as not to alarm anyone. “Ethan? What’s going on?”
“I’m pissed.”
“I ca
n see that, I don’t understand why?”
Suddenly aware that people are watching, he releases her, letting her walk under her own power. He opens a door to one of the small meeting rooms and follows her in. He slams the door behind him with an angered force, making Olivia jump. Before she can say anything, he begins to yell, “How could you do that when you know how much it would upset me? Are you trying to drive me completely crazy?”
Olivia searches his face for some kind of a clue, but she’s completely lost. “What did I do?”
He walks toward her, making her back up until she hits the wall.
“Please, just tell me,” she begs, her voice desperate for answers.
Ethan runs his hands down her sides and around to her back, pulling her against him and away from the wall. He caresses his hands across her hips and then down over her cheeks, rubbing and kneading them, still not finding what he’s looking for. “This!” he says loudly.
Suddenly she realizes why he’s so angry. Her shoulders relax and she tries not to smile. “Ethan, you’re overreacting.”
“Don’t tell me I’m overreacting,” he says annoyed. “I made it perfectly clear how I felt about you being out in public like this.”
“Ethan! Settle down. I’m wearing panties, just not the kind I normally wear.”
He continues to hold her captive; the tension in his muscles still taut.
She knows how to disarm her man’s temper. Her words soften. “Look, I’ll show you.” She puts her hands on his chest and tries to gently push him away. He holds tight not releasing her.
“Ethan, let me go… I’ll show you.”
Reluctantly, his hands drop to his side and she steps back, putting some space between them. Lifting the bottom of her dress, she wiggles her hips, easing the hem up to her waist. “See?”
Chapter Twelve
Ethan sees nothing. He takes a step back so that he can finally see what she’s revealing. It’s an extremely skimpy pink thong. The delicate string that holds around the waist and down the back is no thicker than a piece of dental floss. She can’t remember the last time Ethan O’Connell was speechless. Finally, he raises his eyes to meet hers.
Indivisible Souls: Book 3 of the Bound4Ireland Series Page 11