“Just because I don’t see the motive doesn’t mean there isn’t one,” he said coldly. “You’ve been messing with her for too long, Hunt. If you have any respect for the woman, just leave her alone. She’s already agreed to marry me, so that’s off the table. There’s nothing left for you.”
“She’s not marrying you.”
“Really?” He tilted his head to the side. “Because when we spoke last night before she accused me, she said that’s what she wanted.”
“For now. But I’ll change her mind.”
Thorn shook his head.
“Does that mean you forgive her?”
All I got was a stare.
“If you still plan to marry her…?”
He lowered his fingers from his mouth and rested his hand on the arm of his chair. “I’m still pretty pissed at her. But I’m sure we’ll work it out…eventually.”
“If I tell her to come by your place tonight, will you see her?”
He turned his head away and looked at the bookshelf on the other wall. “Yeah, I guess. If she’s that upset about it, I don’t want her to keep feeling that way. I was just angry, and I let my temper get carried away…”
“She thinks you never want to see her again.”
“She tends to assume the worst possible conclusion.”
I didn’t step closer to his desk, keeping my distance behind one of his armchairs. “I know I said this already, but I didn’t do it.”
Thorn didn’t give me a look of sympathy.
“I need you to believe me.”
“What’s the motive for someone to frame you?” he asked.
I repeated his words back to him. “Just because you don’t see a motive doesn’t mean it’s not there.”
Thorn sighed and rose from his chair. “All I have is your word, Hunt. Everything else stacks up against you, especially that blonde you were kissing.”
“I gave her a ride home. That’s it.”
“That’s not what the photograph showed.”
“Why would I go home with her when I can have Titan every night?” I demanded. “That’s the only field I’m sowing my seeds in. Why would I settle for some ordinary woman when I can have the sexiest woman on the planet? Doesn’t add up.”
“It doesn’t add up to me either. But neither does that photo.”
I would never dig myself out of this hole, not when both of them didn’t believe me. The odds overwhelmed me. Not only did I have to convince Titan I was innocent, but also her closest friend. Now my father wanted to destroy me, and I had to clear my name before I ran out of time. In addition to that, I had to keep running my businesses. It’s not like I could ever take time off from my work. I wanted to scream in frustration, but that wouldn’t get me anywhere.
“I see what Titan means.” He stood behind his desk with both of his hands in his pockets.
I cocked my head to the side, waiting for an elaboration.
“She wants to believe you. There’s something about you that makes her question the evidence staring her right in the face. And I see it too…see something that makes me wonder if you’re telling the truth.”
Hope was just served to me on a platter. It wasn’t much, but it was something. “I am.”
“Then give us something to prove it.”
“It’s not so simple.”
“And it’s not so simple for us to believe you, Hunt.”
* * *
I pulled into Brett’s driveway in Connecticut then walked up to the front door. I rang the doorbell and heard the loud sound through the solid wood door.
“It’s open.”
I walked inside and moved into his living room where he had the game on the enormous TV on the wall. He had two beers on the coffee table, and he popped off the lid of one before he handed it to me. “Here.”
“Thanks.” I took it then set it down again, not interested in drinking. I took a seat. “We need to talk.”
“What’s up?” He drank his beer as he kept his eyes on the game.
I waited for him to look at me, and when he didn’t, I grabbed the remote and turned off the screen.
“What the hell?”
“This is important.”
“It better be pretty damn important because this is the finals.”
It was definitely more important than that. “My father stopped by my office yesterday.”
Brett’s jaw slowly dropped, and his eyes widened in shock. “Vincent Hunt stopped by your office?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh shit.” He set the beer down hard and spilled some of it across the surface. Drops got on his hand, but he didn’t seem to notice the cold liquid. “What happened?”
“He was pissed about the article.”
“No surprise there. Anyone would be pissed.”
“Somehow, he knew exactly why I did it. He knew it was because of Titan.”
“How?”
I shrugged. “I have absolutely no idea. Baffles me. Maybe he’s been keeping tabs on me since Megaland.”
“Do you think he’s the one who actually told the reporter about Titan?”
I hadn’t considered that. “I don’t know. I can’t think of any reason why he would know about that.”
“Well, someone outside the three of you knew about it. So that information was accessible.”
“True…and Jax did warn me he was pissed.”
“Maybe it was him,” Brett said. “I wouldn’t put it past him. He’s a psychopath.”
“I guess it’s possible. If he knew about my relationship with Titan, he might have wanted to sabotage it. But that doesn’t sound like his style. He doesn’t care about my personal relationships. All he cares about is business.”
“That’s true,” Brett said in agreement. “But he does know you’re sleeping with Titan.”
“Maybe he figured it out once that article came out. When I tried to bury her story with my own story, that could have been a red flag to him. He is observant.”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
My life was so simple before Titan walked into it. Now it was more complicated than it’d ever been.
“What do you think he’s going to do?”
“Hopefully, nothing against Titan.”
“She’s not involved in your feud, so I think she’s safe. She is a powerful business guru in his world. Doesn’t make sense for him to make enemies with her when he’s already got to deal with you.”
That comforted me—just a little.
“I say he’s only going to go after you.”
It was a testament to my love for her that I was actually relieved by that notion. All I wanted was to be with Titan, even if everything was stripped away from me. My father could do his worst to destroy my empire, but it didn’t matter. None of that meant as much as it did before.
“Have you told her?”
“No.”
“Why?” he asked.
When I planned to open my heart to her, she was already heartbroken. The last thing she needed was to worry about my problems when she had her own. “I haven’t had a chance. A lot of other things are going on right now.”
“What’s your next plan?”
I shook my head. “Not a clue. Everything is so fucked up right now.” I dragged my hand across my temple and into my hair.
“Where do the two of you stand?”
“We’re together…but barely.”
“That’s good. Covering up her story must have meant something to her.”
“Yeah…but she doesn’t trust me. We’re kinda just hooking up right now. Everything is different. It’s like she’s walking on eggshells all the time.”
“She’ll come around.”
“I don’t know…”
“If she’s still with you after everything that’s happened, then that’s a good sign. She loves you, and there’s no way she doesn’t know that you love her too.” He wiped his arm with a napkin then took a drink of his beer.
“I hope you’re right.”
“The dust has to settle eventually. You just have to find out who pulled the trigger, and everything will go back to what it was.”
“If only it were that easy…”
“You suspect Bruce Carol?”
I nodded. “I can’t think of anyone else. Thought it could be Thorn, but that was a dead end.”
“Then question him.”
“I’m trying to figure out how. Maybe I’ll just have my guy tail him.”
“But the damage has been done. I think interrogation is the only thing that will work.”
I nodded in agreement.
“And maybe you should take Titan with you. Because if you get anything out of him, she’s going to want that evidence for herself.”
Could I get Titan to come along with me? I’d already convinced her to accuse Thorn, and that blew up in her face. The odds of getting her to interrogate a man she hated seemed unlikely. “I’ll see what I can do.”
12
Titan
The second I got home, I made a drink.
I wasn’t cutting back anymore.
Feeling that burn down my throat, the tingle in my fingertips, the fog in the back of my eyes…kept me sane. All day, I wore my authoritative mask with a feminine smile. I got work done without anyone questioning my wellness. No one had a clue that I was barely keeping my head above water.
I wanted to call Thorn so many times.
He needed space, so I refrained from smothering him with my apologies. I knew him better than anyone, and he needed time to cool off before he could have a reasonable conversation. Since I’d accused him of something so awful, he would need at least a week to come back down to earth.
Being patient had never been so difficult.
I slipped off my heels in my living room and pulled my knees to my chest. A cherry floated on the surface of my drink, and an orange peel was wedged onto the glass. I stared at the ice cubes as they slowly melted and shifted.
The light above the elevator brightened, and a quiet sound beeped into my penthouse. Someone was just about to step into my home. Only two people had access to my elevator. Thorn was one of the two, but he definitely wasn’t coming by for a visit.
Which meant it was Hunt.
The doors opened, and Thorn walked inside, still dressed in his suit and tie. His hair was styled, his eyes were bright, and he stepped into my penthouse with his hands in his pockets.
I stared at him blankly, unsure if I was really looking at him. After our difficult conversation yesterday, I didn’t expect to see him for a while. And I definitely didn’t expect him to come to me.
I returned my feet to the floor and straightened in the chair. I watched him walk toward me, hostility absent from his expression. I was usually good with words, but now I couldn’t think of a single coherent sentence to utter. The surprise hadn’t washed away just yet.
He sat in the armchair facing the couch and crossed his ankle on the opposite knee. His black suit fit him perfectly, and he looked completely at home in my penthouse. His eyes scanned the room for a moment, as if looking to see if someone else was there. Then his eyes settled on me, without anger.
Now that he was planted in the armchair with no intention of leaving, I finally found my voice. “It’s really nice to see you.”
His hands came together in front of him while his elbows rested on the armrests.
“I was just sitting here thinking about you.”
“I’ve been thinking about you a lot too.”
I swallowed since my throat was dry. Thorn was the only person in the world who made me feel truly at ease. I didn’t need to erect a single wall because there was no need for protection. Knowing that I might have lost something so rare was utterly terrifying. “I already apologized, but I’ll say it again. I’m sorry, Thorn. I never should have even entertained the idea that you would do something like that…”
He slightly raised his hand, silencing me. “It’s okay, Titan. I forgive you.”
He did? He kicked me out of his penthouse yesterday. He turned his back on me and gave me the cold shoulder. What happened between yesterday and today? “Really?”
“Really.”
“I feel like I’m missing something.” I searched Thorn’s gaze for an answer, needing an explanation for the sudden shift.
He rubbed the knuckles of his left hand. “Hunt stopped by my office today.”
As with any other time his name was mentioned, I went rigid. No other man made me feel so weak and so strong at the same time. He had a potent effect on me. My heart was wrapped around his finger and tied by an unbreakable knot. “Oh?”
“Said he was the one with the suspicion. That he pressured you to mention it to me.”
Once again, Hunt did something extremely sweet for me. All of his actions directly contradicted the crimes he was accused of. He didn’t have to go to Thorn at all, but he suffered a difficult conversation just to make me happy.
“He also said how much you were hurting.” He looked into my gaze with his piercing eyes. “Said you were on the verge of tears.”
I didn’t let the emotion creep into my face now. I was embarrassed I’d shed so many tears in the past month. It wasn’t like me at all. “You know how much I love you, Thorn. You’re all I have in this cruel world. We have something special. I’d be devastated if I lost it. You’re my brother, my father, my everything. You’re the only stable thing I have in my life. You’re my rock. I don’t want to picture my life without you in it.”
Thorn continued to watch me with his icy gaze, his palms slowly sliding past one another. His anger was gone, but there was something else that had replaced it. “I was hurt by the accusation because it’s so ridiculous.”
“I know…”
“It confuses me that so much has changed since Hunt came into the picture. It used to be the two of us against the world. And now everything is so complicated. I miss our old simplicity.”
“I know what you mean.”
“I want it to be the way it was,” he said quietly. “I want it to be the two of us first—Hunt second. There’s so much distrust surrounding him, and neither one of us knows what to make of it. We can’t let it affect our lives like this. He could be trying to rip us apart on purpose, and we nearly allowed him to do it.”
“I don’t think he’s trying to rip us apart.”
“I don’t think so either. But he could be. The fact that I’m not sure worries me. Nothing about him is concrete. And the weirdest part is…a part of me wants to believe him.”
I wanted to believe him too.
“But this isn’t us. We don’t take risks. We don’t make bets unless we already know the outcome. We’re changing our lives because of this one guy. Unless he has something specific to provide us, we can’t keep moving backward.”
“I know.”
“So we need to decide what we’re going to do—together.”
I crossed my legs, feeling like we were in a meeting. “What do you mean?”
“About Hunt. Do you think there’s any truth to what he’s saying?”
“I…I don’t know. Sometimes I think he could be telling the truth. Sometimes I believe him. But since I’m in love with him…my judgment isn’t the best.”
Thorn rested his fingertips against his temple. “There are too many unknowns. I think there’s a slight possibility he could be telling the truth, but I wouldn’t gamble on it. We can’t change our lives for such a slim possibility.”
“Change our lives how?” I asked.
“By not turning on each other. By getting married. We need to move forward with our plans and not let him affect our lives anymore.”
My gaze shifted to my hands.
“We need to give him a timetable to clear his name. If he doesn’t do it in that time frame, we need to move on with our lives. We’re falling behind. We were supposed to be engaged a month ago.”
“How much time should we give him?”
Thorn paused as he consider
ed it. “Two weeks.”
Two weeks wasn’t much time, but we’d already given him the past month.
“After that, I’m not waiting around anymore. You can keep him as a plaything as long as he doesn’t interfere with our lives anymore. Do we have an understanding?”
Thorn had been more than patient with me over Hunt. I’d accused Thorn of something hideous, and he still forgave me for it. I couldn’t ask him to be patient any longer. My loyalty should be to him, my friend for the past ten years. “Yes, we have an understanding.”
“Good.” He rose to his feet and straightened his sleeves. “I’ll see you later.”
I left the couch and moved into his chest. I wrapped my arms around his waist and hugged him tightly, my face pressed right against his sternum. Thorn and I didn’t hug often. Even when we were in public, affection was minimal. It made me realize I didn’t show him much how much I cared about him as often as I should. “It’ll always be us against the world.”
His arms eventually moved around my shoulders, and he rested his chin on my head. A quiet sigh escaped his lips. “I know, Titan.”
* * *
I had the access code to his elevator, so we rode it to the top floor of his building. Hunt told me I could come by anytime, so I took that offer seriously. The doors opened to his living room, where he had three large sofas situated around an enormous flat-screen TV.
He was sitting on the couch in just his sweatpants, his muscled chest chiseled and powerful. The light from the TV reflected against his tanned skin, highlighting the endless grooves alone his trim waist. His hair was shaggy because he dried it with a towel the second he got out of the shower. A glass of amber liquid sat on the table in front of him, probably whiskey. He looked at us like he’d been expecting us even though he had no idea we were coming.
Whenever I looked at him, it always took me a moment to think of something to say. His handsomeness blinded me, made me forget how to be in control. He was the only man in the world who made me want to submit, made me want to be pinned down and lavished with endless kisses at the hollow of my throat and my shoulders. Those brown eyes were dark and brooding, but I found such beauty in that darkness. He stared at me like he didn’t notice Thorn beside me. He made me feel like the only person in the room when we were surrounded by hundreds of people. “Is this a bad time?”
Boss Woman Page 14