He rose to his full height, his physique stretching over me. He was the same height as Thorn, but he somehow felt like the tallest person in the room. His eyes were reserved for me, ignoring Thorn like he was insignificant. “There’s never a bad time for you to visit.” He took me in a moment longer, focusing on the tightness of my sweater across my chest. He glimpsed up to my neck, his eyes kissing me where his lips couldn’t. After he was full of my appearance, he acknowledged Thorn by extending his hand.
Thorn eyed it and took nearly ten seconds before he reciprocated. He took a seat on one of the sofas, ignoring the baseball game on the screen.
Hunt didn’t touch me, but it seemed like he wanted to. His eyes did all the touching, exploring my body through my clothes. The stare was searing, as if he was branding me like cattle.
“Thank you for talking to Thorn.” I spoke with projected confidence. I could walk into a room with a dozen male executives and not flinch at their sexist comments and backhanded insults. But when Hunt was in front of me, I didn’t feel like the badass woman who was taking over the world. I didn’t feel like Titan—just Tatum.
“I wouldn’t let you lose the most important person in your life. He’s a good man. I sleep better at night knowing you have him.”
I didn’t glance at Thorn’s expression to see his reaction, even though I was curious. I kept my eyes glued to the face I saw in my dreams. His chin had just been shaved, and he was nothing but smooth skin and chiseled bone structure. I wanted to run my kisses along that jawline, to enjoy him the way he wanted to enjoy me.
“I’m sorry I accused him in the first place. Just had to make sure.” His arms remained by his sides, but I saw them shake slightly, like he wanted to grab me and pull me against his chest.
“Well…now you know.”
Hunt sat down again, his flawless physique looking impeccable even in a seated position.
I didn’t know where to sit. I felt an unspoken divide between the two men. I should sit beside Thorn, but I also wanted to sit beside Hunt. I moved to the third sofa and sat in the center, taking the neutral position. I crossed my legs and felt Hunt’s ruthless stare all over my body.
Thorn leaned back into the cushions and rested his ankle on the opposite knee. “Titan and I had a long conversation about the three of us. We thought we would share it with you.”
Hunt’s eyes were still on me. “Alright.”
“Titan and I have our future planned out. We both know exactly what we want, and everything was fine until you showed up.” Thorn propped his elbow on the armrest with his fingertips resting against his temple. “Now everything is a mess, and we don’t like it.”
“I don’t like it either.” Hunt rested his elbows on his knees and leaned forward, his searing gaze reserved for me.
Thorn continued. “Titan and I think the evidence is overwhelming, but a small part of us thinks there’s a possibility you’re innocent.”
He didn’t blink. “I am innocent.”
“We’re going to give you a chance to prove it,” I said. “You have two weeks to give us suitable evidence. But once the two weeks is over, that’s it. Thorn and I are moving forward. We can’t keep waiting around anymore.”
His expression didn’t change, but his anger slightly expanded in the room. “I’ll do the best I can. But there’s always the possibility that I can’t find anything strong enough to exonerate me. You need to trust me, Titan. I know that’s a lot to ask, but you need to have a little faith.”
There were times when I couldn’t believe he would ever do anything to hurt me. But when I remembered what had happened, I couldn’t overlook it. “Those papers were sitting in your desk, Hunt. How can you expect me to believe you when I found them there?”
It was the first time he dropped his gaze, the disappointment heavy on his shoulders. “I already explained that.”
“And your explanation wasn’t good enough,” I said calmly. “You hired someone to dig up everything they could on me. You had those papers at your disposal. After all that work, you really put those papers in your drawer and never looked at them?” I asked incredulously. “As much as I want to believe you, that’s not a sufficient explanation for me.”
“And me,” Thorn added. “It’s a strange coincidence that the exact same story was given to the newspapers under your name. Too much of a coincidence…”
I held Hunt’s gaze and watched his jaw clench. “And then that woman—”
“It didn’t happen,” he said. “I dropped her off at home. That’s it.” His eyes fired up with outrage. “Of all things, I need you to know I’ve always been faithful to you. There’s only one woman on this planet that I want—and she’s looking at me.”
Now it was my turn to bow my head.
Thorn stepped in. “This is what I think. I think you originally had it out for Titan. She’s a competitor, and you wanted to sabotage her. We all know how ambitious you are, Hunt. You got close to her, gained her trust, and then betrayed her. But in the process, you actually started to care about her. Fell in love with her. And now you’re trying to undo everything you did in order to win her back. That’s the only explanation I can think of. But if you really love her, you should just come clean about it. That way we’d know the truth and could decide how to move forward. I know Titan loves you. She might be able to forgive you and give you another chance if you just told her what really happened.”
Hunt massaged his hands as he shook his head. “Even if she forgave me and gave me another chance, I still couldn’t say that—because it’s not true. I never betrayed her. And I will never betray her.”
As always, my heart turned to mush inside my chest.
“If you’re so certain I’m a traitor, why are you giving me two weeks?” It was the first time Hunt looked at Thorn.
Thorn held Hunt’s gaze with his fingertips still against his temple. “Just in case I’m wrong. I don’t want Titan to lose the man she loves for no reason at all. And if you can’t clear yourself, then she’ll have the closure she needs to move on.”
Hunt turned back to me, his shoulders not as broad as they usually were. He leaned back against the couch and released a heavy sigh. When he looked at me, his mind didn’t seem to be there anymore. He appeared lost.
The three of us sat in tense silence as the minutes stretched on. Hunt covered his lips with his fingertips and looked across his living room but didn’t focus on anything in particular. His eyes were heavy-lidded, and he seemed removed from the situation completely.
I watched him even though I didn’t expect him to say anything more. If only I could read his mind, I would have all the answers I needed.
Thorn left the couch and walked out of the living room. “I’ll leave you two alone.” He hit the button on the wall and stepped into the elevator. The doors closed, and then the mechanism shifted as it began its descent.
Now, we were alone together, the TV playing quietly in the background.
Hunt grabbed the remote and turned it off.
Now it was just silent.
I could hear him breathe. He could probably hear me breathe too.
Now that Thorn was gone, Hunt looked at me again.
I stared back. We only sat this far away from each other when there were witnesses in the room. When it was just the two of us, it felt strange to be apart like this. He was on the other side of the living room, but it seemed like he was on another planet. The tension pulled at both of us, an invisible cord yanking us closer together.
Hunt patted his thigh, silently beckoning me to come to him.
I didn’t move.
“Baby, come here,” he whispered. “Or I’ll walk over there and make you.”
I’d just told him all the reasons why I didn’t trust him, but I still wanted to cross that room and drop into his lap. I still wanted to be smothered with all those kisses. I wanted to tell him I loved him and listen to him say it back. I crossed the room and straddled his hips before I lowered myself to his lap.<
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His hands circled my waist, and he positioned me on top of him, getting me close to his chest. He stared into my face before he leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to my mouth, a kiss that was simple but filled with unspoken emotion. He kissed my upper lip before he pulled the bottom one into his mouth. He gave it a gentle tug before he released it.
I rested my forehead against his and closed my eyes. “I hate you…” The sudden emotion came from deep inside my chest. It came directly from my heart, the source of all my pain. “I hate that I love you. I hate the way you have this effect on me. I can’t think straight when it comes to you. If you were anyone else, I would have turned my back a long time ago. But I’m still here because you have this power over me. I just want to be happy again. I want to have all the things we promised we would have. But I can’t trust you. I hate that I can’t trust you…”
He moved his lips to my temple and kissed me. “I don’t have any power over you, Titan. The reason you’re still here isn’t just because you love me. It’s because that brilliant brain of yours is telling you I’m the right man for you. It’s telling you that I’m innocent. It perceives more than you can comprehend.” His hand slid across my cheek to direct my gaze toward him. “I’ll get the evidence that you need. You’ll see. And then you’ll know that you were right.”
* * *
I walked into the conference room at Stratosphere and saw Hunt standing near the window. He had an open folder in his hands, and he was reading something, his eyes shifting from left to right. In a black suit with a cream collared shirt underneath, he looked like he owned the whole city. Black was a great color on him. It complimented his dark eyes and hair. The tanned skin of his neck and knuckles only made the color look more stunning on him. I couldn’t think of another man I found nearly as attractive. The men I’d slept with were all handsome and masculine, but Hunt was a completely different breed.
He set the folder on the table when he realized I was in the room. He greeted me with a look instead of words. Whenever we were alone together, we didn’t have extensive conversations. We could communicate in silence and make our thoughts perfectly clear. Hunt was a pro at it.
I sat down and pulled my tablet out of my bag.
“I’m going to talk to Bruce Carol.”
My eyes shifted up to him.
“I want you to come with me. If he admits anything, I want you to see for yourself. If he acts guilty, I want you to see that with your own eyes too.”
“You’re just going to walk in there and make an allegation like that?” I asked incredulously.
“Yep.”
“Is there a more tactful way to do this?”
“No.” He lowered himself into the chair across from me. “It’s pretty simple. We’re going to walk in and assume he’s the one responsible. We’ll say we know it’s him and see what his reaction is. If it’s not Thorn, I can’t think of anyone else. Carol’s our man.”
“Should Thorn come along for this?”
“That’s up to you.”
Instead of looking at the report on my tablet, I stared at Hunt across from me. After Thorn left last night, Hunt and I hit the sheets, and he buried me in his bed. He pinned me down with his muscular body and took me slow and deep. My knees were positioned against my waist, and he hit me hard with every stroke. It was impossible to look at him without thinking about our sweaty bodies moving together.
And the way I’d said his name a dozen times.
“Let’s do it tomorrow.”
“Where?” I asked.
“He still has his apartment here in the city. We’ll start there.”
“Alright.”
“Since he’s unemployed, I say we hit him in the middle of the day. He won’t expect it, and he won’t have any company.”
“His wife and kids,” I noted.
“She left him. Took the kids with her.”
“Ohh…” I didn’t keep tabs on my old enemies. Bruce Carol would have gotten a much better deal if he hadn’t insulted me like a pig. All he had to do was treat me with respect, and we could have had a strong business relationship. I shouldn’t feel bad where he ended up—even though I did. I sympathized with his family, the ones who were punished because of his mistake.
“He’ll be alone.” He opened the folder he’d been examining and slid the first page toward me. “Should we start with this, or did you have something you’d like to discuss first?” Hunt respected my decision to remain professional while we were working, but that look he reserved only for me was always in his eyes. Even if he wanted to wipe it away, he probably couldn’t.
And I wouldn’t want him to.
* * *
I finished a meeting that went longer than I anticipated, and Jessica had lunch waiting for me in my office. It was a Cobb salad with dressing on the side—along with a glass of water. I shouldn’t let Hunt’s words get to me, but his concern wormed its way to my heart. Hunt had the uncanny ability to get past all my defenses when no one else could make a single dent.
I’d barely taken a few bites before Jessica spoke into my intercom. “Titan, Mr. Hunt is here to see you.”
I just saw him a few hours ago. Why did he need to see me in person? If he needed something, he could just send me a message. Even a phone call would be fine. “Send him in.”
“Yes, Titan.”
I took a few more bites of my food since I didn’t need to impress Hunt. My desk could be a mess, and my lunch could be all over the place. My favorite drink, along with the entire decanter, could be there too, and it wouldn’t matter.
Jessica opened the door and ushered him inside.
I looked up and saw the brown eyes that occupied my dreams, the eyes that looked into mine when he was burying his desire between my legs every night. But the appearance was slightly harsher, colder.
When I took in the rest of his appearance, I realized I wasn’t looking at Hunt at all. This man had a similar appearance, with the same height, musculature, and facial expression. The same hard bones shaped his face, the same dark hair sat on top of his head. He was strong and lean, possessing natural power that filled every corner of the room. He was intimidating just by his appearance. He could make an entire speech without uttering a single word.
This wasn’t Diesel Hunt.
It was Vincent Hunt.
Even if Jessica had clarified, I wouldn’t have been prepared for this meeting. I probably wouldn’t have agreed to see him and called Hunt instead. But now we were face-to-face, and there was nothing I could but meet his look head on.
In addition to Diesel’s tales about his childhood, I knew Vincent Hunt was one of the most successful businessmen in the world. He was a self-made billionaire just the way I was. He stood on his own two feet and turned the path to gold. His interests exceeded our borders and reached all over the world. He had investments in foreign markets, factories overseas, and luxury resorts all over Europe. The only reason why I knew those things was because I watched my competitors as closely as I watched myself.
He stopped in front of my desk, wearing a light gray suit with a black tie. He was Hunt’s height, so he exceeded mine by at least a foot. The look he gave me was nothing like the one his son gave me. He studied every inch of my face like a competitor. He sized me up as if we were going to battle.
I refused to be intimidated by anyone, especially the man who caused Hunt so much pain. I locked our gazes with my head held high, my shoulders back. I rose to my feet and regarded him coolly. “Mr. Hunt. It’s a pleasure.”
He shook my hand as he cracked a smile. It was handsome just the way Hunt’s was. His jaw was free of hair, and he maintained a neat appearance. He must have been in his fifties, but he could easily pass for a much younger age. His hair was still dark, and judging from his looks, confidence, and wealth, he was probably still seeing women in their twenties. “No, Ms. Titan. The pleasure is entirely mine.” He had a firm grip, ironclad but not suffocating. He pulled away and took a seat in the armchair fac
ing my desk. His posture never slouched. His shoulders were broad and masculine, packed with muscle that hadn’t deteriorated with age.
“You can call me Titan.”
“Very well.” He stared at me like he expected me to lead the conversation even though he was the one who’d dropped by without an appointment.
If he were trying to play games with me, I wouldn’t allow it to happen. I would sit there in silence until he spoke first. Jessica could cancel my schedule for the rest of the day if it came to that. I never walked away from a match unless I was the winner.
A hint of a smile stretched across his lips. “Your name suits you perfectly.”
Damn right, it does.
“I have a business proposition for you.”
There was no way this was a coincidence. Vincent Hunt and I had never met, and now he was in my office with a business opportunity. This had something to do with Diesel, and obviously, something to do with that interview he gave. I didn’t know how Vincent Hunt connected me to his son, especially since they weren’t on speaking terms. He must have figured it out on his own. “I’m listening.”
“I’m a fan of Illuminance. As the biggest American cosmetics company, it’s an enterprise that’s never going to go out of business. Women will always want to look beautiful, and men will always want them to feel pressured to look beautiful. It’s easy to mark up prices on something that everyone thinks they need.” He was a smooth-talker, speaking eloquently and flawlessly. Diesel had the same attributes, and now I knew where he’d learned it from. Vincent Hunt had the same magnetic effect as his son. He owned the room—and he knew it.
But that was about to change. “You can skip the flattery, Mr. Hunt. I’m as knowledgeable about your business empire as you are about mine. We don’t need to compare notes.”
The corner of his mouth rose in a smile, amused rather than insulted. “I like a woman who gets right to the point.”
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