by Jamie Knight
She cried out my name—Kane, not Sir, not Mr. McKenzie but Kane. Her pussy contracted so hard, I couldn’t have escaped even if I’d wanted to—and I didn’t want to.
“Don’t stop fucking me, Kane, don’t stop. I love you. I love you.” Her words shocked me, and I momentarily stilled. She loved me? She couldn’t. Love wasn’t something I wanted from her. I shook the sound of the three words away. They were just something said in the height of passion. She wouldn’t even recall saying them.
Aftershocks raced through her body as I eased from her warmth. I wouldn’t let her see that her words had rattled me, shocked me.
Tonight, I would explain that love wasn’t an option for us. I would tell her all about Sadie. I would cherish her, and I would take care of her, but I wouldn’t allow myself to love her. Love caused pain, and I’d had enough pain to last a lifetime.
“Come join me in the shower,” I said, ignoring her declaration.
She picked up her clothes, which had ended up on the floor, and began to dress.
“Maybe later. I should go home and pack some things if I’m going to be spending time at your place.”
“You’d better be naked and waiting for me in the shower when I get home.”
“Is that an order?”
“It’s an order.”
Before leaving my office, she placed a chaste kiss on my lips.
“See you at home, Sir.”
I liked how that sounded—home.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Kane
With Reese gone and headed to my house, I took the time to consider the threats she had been receiving. They obviously had to be coming from someone in the office. Reese had ruled out Sloane, who was the most obvious culprit.
Who was left?
Who would be doing this?
My intercom buzzed as I was staring out the windows at the buildings around us. Melissa’s pleasant and reassuring voice chimed in.
“Mr. McKenzie?”
“Go ahead,” I told her.
“Ashton is on line one.”
She hesitated a moment and I waited for her to elaborate.
“He sounds nervous.”
I frowned and ran my hands through my hair.
“I understand,” I told her. “Don’t worry Melissa, I will take care of everything.”
I took a deep breath, picked up the phone, and punched the button for line one.
“Ashton? To what do I owe the pleasure?”
I kept my voice even and reassuring.
“Kane. I’ve been hearing odd rumors, man,” he said, sounding a bit annoyed.
“Such as?”
I kept calm, not wanting to feed into his feelings.
“Some of my employees, who have already moved into your office— they tell me that there is an inter-office chatroom called Watercooler there…”
I groaned a bit.
“Yes, I created that to try a foster good relations between employees, but it’s turned into a mess of rumors and bullying.”
“Sounds like you should shut it down,” he suggested.
“Indeed,” I agreed. “What nonsense did your employees read and report?”
“That you have an employee stealing money from you.”
My breath hissed out.
How the hell was that on Watercooler?
Only a few people knew about that situation. And certainly none of them were the lower-level employees who chatted on Watercooler.
I sat back in my chair and rubbed my temples.
“I’m sorry, Ashton,” I told him, deciding to go with the truth. “I should have told you sooner. I have my best men looking into it. The culprit will be found soon and dealt with accordingly.”
There was silence on the line for a few moments.
Then Ash let out a deep sigh.
“Kane, did you know about this before you signed the merger papers?” he asked, sounding like he was talking to a child.
My temper started to flare. It was my money, what did he care? This was why I had kept from having a business partner for so long. I didn’t want to answer to anyone else.
“Ashton, don’t make this a big deal. I’m dealing with it and I promise it won’t affect you at all.”
I tapped the arm of my chair with my fingers and tried to keep my temper in check.
“It is a big deal, Kane. I don’t want to merge with a company where my money isn’t secure. If you let this happen, then what other things have gone on there?”
The venom in his voice was harsh.
“What other rumors are true in this stupid chat room?”
Ray walked into my office. I glared at him, surprised at my loss of privacy and the fact that I had had no warning. No one was supposed to be allowed into my office uninvited.
I stood and faced Ray while Ashton continued to yell in my ear. Ray had the good sense to look worried. As I glared at him, he reached back, opened the door and let Melissa in.
My two employees stood in front of my desk fidgeting. Melissa opened her mouth to explain but I held up a single finger and stopped her.
“There are rumors that you are dating an employee. An employee, Kane! Why would you do something so stupid in this day and age? Can I expect lawsuits about your sex life while I’m there, too?”
Ashton was really on a rant now. His voice was heated and loud.
I needed to get him calmed down, and quickly. Ray and Melissa looked at me like the office was burning down. I put a hand to my forehead and turned my back on them. One problem at a time.
“Ash,” I said, as calmly as possible. “I have everything under control. Yes, there is someone stealing money from my company, but Ray will know who it is by the end of the day and I will report them to the police. As far as my dating life. I’ve entered into a committed relationship with a woman, and yes, she is an employee, but she’s signed an NDA. So legally, that’s fine.”
Ashton’s breath over the phone hitched a bit. He seemed thrown off by my use of the word commited.
“You found yourself a girl?” he asked, and I could hear the smile in his voice.
He had known Sadie and he knew what I went through after she died.
“When do I get to meet her?”
I smiled, glad to have my friend back on my side.
“You’re coming to the charity ball, right? You got my invitation?”
“I did and I am.”
“You’ll get to meet her then.”
Knowing that I had him interested, I pushed on and tried to get him completely calm.
“Don’t worry about the money thing, Ash. I’ll have that squared away by the end of the day. I promise.”
He calmed down and we hung up. When I turned back to my employees, they both were so pale they looked ill. Ray held his hands clamped tightly behind his back.
I sat down in my large leather chair and took command of the room again.
“It is my understanding that one must have permission to enter my office.” I looked at them both and steepled my fingers. “That is true, isn’t it, Melissa?”
My PA and Ray exchanged glances. He stepped forward, ready to accept all of my wrath, but when he opened his mouth to speak, nothing came out and he closed it again slowly.
This was bad news.
“Ray?” I asked. “What is going on? You two look like there’s been a bomb threat.”
I smiled at my joke, but neither of them joined in.
I started to really worry.
Ray shifted his weight.
“Is Reese with you?” he asked.
He didn’t look me in the eyes.
“She left about an hour ago.”
He looked around my office like he was checking my words for truth.
“I have some news you’re not going to like.”
He rubbed his hands in front of himself.
Every hair on my body stood on end.
Something must have happened to Reese.
“Spit it out.”
“Reese is behind the missing money.”
What?
I waited for a few minutes to pass before I answered, sure they were making a joke. Neither Ray nor Melissa said anything. They didn’t elaborate. They both just looked at me.
“You jest.”
Melissa stepped forward.
“No, Kane. I looked over Ray’s findings. The computer program that was collecting and moving the money originated from Reese’s computer. The stealing started just after she joined the company.”
I waved my hand and stopped her explanation.
“It’s not Reese. Reese was looking into the inconsistencies. I told her to give her findings to Ray.”
“She never gave me anything, Kane,” Ray explained. “The program we found on her computer had the same password as her desktop. And that’s not the worst of it.”
I raised my eyebrow as an indication for him to continue. I didn’t trust my voice at the moment. I clenched my hands together and waited.
“The off-shore company, Investpex, that we traced the funds to… it’s in Simon Harper’s name. We think that they were in on this together. They… she set you up, Kane.”
Ray put a hand on my desk and looked down. He knew this would hurt me. Just when I was starting to trust someone new, this happened.
“Reese working with Simon?” I scoffed, unable to accept what they were telling me. “She would never work with that lout.”
Melissa frowned and inched towards my desk.
“It’s true, Kane. This whole thing was a set up. She’s smart and a good actress. She fooled us all. I liked her, Kane, you know I did, but the evidence is against her. There was an email that just showed up in her inbox that contained confirmation for her ticket to the Cayman Islands. I called the airline; Simon has the seat next to her reserved.”
I stood and turned to stare out the window.
My chest felt tight, like someone was squeezing my heart.
Reese played me?
Was she just another woman after my money?
I was stupid enough to have thought she cared for me.
Just minutes before this, less than an hour ago, she had said she loved me.
Loved me!
I thought she said that by accident, goaded on by good sex, but maybe she was just trying to get me to accept her into my life more, and it had worked. I asked her to move in with me. Now, she was at my house—alone.
I grabbed my car keys and stormed out of the office, leaving Ray and Melissa with their mouths hanging open. I didn’t want to believe them. There had to be an explanation. No way would Reese do this to me. No way.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Reese
On the ride to Kane’s house, I skimmed through apps on my phone, not really paying attention to anything, but when I checked my inbox, another angry email waited for me.
You thought he was yours.
When I’m done, he’ll never be yours.
You’ll never see him again.
Whatever.
I forwarded the email to Melissa.
A few minutes after I hit send, Melissa called. Hopefully, she had some news for me.
“Hey there,” I said, trying to sound cheerful and not as scared as I actually was. “Have you found anything out?”
For a few seconds, there was only silence.
“There was nothing in the email, Reese. The body was empty.”
Her usually musical voice was stern and cold.
“But… that can’t be right… hold on a second.”
I set my phone to speaker and clicked into my inbox. The email was right in front of my eyes.
“It must be encrypted or is something that only I could read. I can take a screenshot to show you.”
“There’s no need. You had us all fooled, didn’t you?”
She hung up.
My body stiffened in surprise and worry.
What the fuck did that mean? How did I have them all fooled?
Desperate, I rang back, but the call went straight to voicemail.
Damn it.
What was going on with her?
Perhaps my screaming Kane’s name during my orgasm had been heard throughout the penthouse. I would be pissed if I’d heard that echoing through the hallway while I was trying to work.
I shoved the emails and Melissa’s words from my mind and focused on all the lucky things that had happened to me in the past few weeks. I pulled on my star pendant and let its points sink sharply into my fingers.
I’d met a man I loved. I hadn’t expected to blurt it out during sex or have him say he loved me back. Perhaps spilling my guts during sex was the wrong thing to do, but the emotion of the moment took over. I was sure Kane would forget all about it.
I couldn’t and wouldn’t be some needy little girlfriend. I had to show him I could take care of myself and that I was independent. I didn’t need him to tell me he loved me. Hopefully, in time, he would eventually say those same words to me, and mean them. I could wait, because I had enough love for the both of us.
Max pulled up to the front of Kane’s beachside house. He opened the car door for me.
“Mr. McKenzie said to make yourself at home. He should be home within the next few hours.”
“Thanks, Max. Can you pop open the trunk and I’ll grab my bag?”
“No need to; I’ll bring it in for you, Ms. Peterson.”
I was about to protest, but he held up his hand as if he knew what I was about to say.
“It’s my job.”
“Okay, thank you. I’m not used to being waited on. It’s a strange experience.”
I smiled at him.
When we got to the front door, Max opened it for me, and I went inside. The last time I was here, I’d mostly been blindfolded or in the bedroom and I had had little time to explore or take in the splendor.
I started in the living room. Light tan colored couches sat arranged for conversation, among the off-white walls and paintings. I wondered, briefly, if Kane’s niece, the one who owned the gallery, also picked out the art for his house. Each painting was obviously an original and expertly complimented the next.
While the house was ornate and beautiful, it was also comfortable. The couches were soft, with throw pillows and blankets to keep out the winder chill. The living room had a large fireplace and a stack of freshly cut wood to burn.
I wandered towards the hallway. Max had said that Kane said I should make myself at home, so I would. I was curious to find out more about Kane because he’d always been so reserved when it came to revealing any details about his life prior to me.
I decided I would explore the many rooms upstairs. I wasn’t snooping, I was just trying to find my way around the house I would be staying at for the next while.
I climbed up one of the sets of stairs surrounding the foyer and looked around. There were at least ten rooms to choose from. I decided to work from right to left.
The first five or so rooms were beautiful guestrooms with their own bathrooms. Not a speck of dust anywhere. My entire apartment would’ve fit into each room twice over.
In the middle of the upstairs hallway was a set of double doors. I tried to open them, but they were locked.
What was hidden in there?
Curiosity got the better of me, and I ran my hand along the top of the door frame and, bingo, I found a key.
I giggled to myself as I put the key in the lock. Locked doors meant stay away, but I would be out of there before Kane came home, and if going in there would give me some insight into his world, then I would look.
Inside the doors was an office.
So disappointing.
But what had I been expecting to find? A room filled with sex toys and torture devices?
I strode into the room. A beautiful picture window overlooked the ocean, and the entire space was stunning and welcoming.
Kane had a large wooden desk that looked like it had been hand made. Seated across from the desk was a low gray couch similar to
the one he had at his office at work. Art, mostly landscapes, lined the walls in here as well. It was all very pleasant and homey.
I could get used to living with Kane. Waking up with him. Reading the newspapers with him. Sipping my coffee on the patio and sharing our plans for the day.
I sat on the leather chair behind his desk. The top of the desk was sparse. It had a clock and a calendar and nothing much else; no ornamentation or decoration. There wasn’t anything that would tell me anything I didn’t already know about Kane.
I opened doors and drawers of the desk not sure what I was looking for. Maybe some pictures and mementos. Some hint of what his family was like. There was some paperwork, some stationary but nothing of importance.
“Looking for something?” Kane stood by the door and glared at me.
Shit.
I jumped.
I didn’t blame him for being angry.
“Oh, I—” I started to explain.
“This is my private office, and the doors were locked.”
His chocolate eyes bore into me with a different kind of heat. Instead of desire, anger radiated off of him.
Embarrassment heated my cheeks.
“I found the key. I’m sorry. I was just trying to find out more about you.”
“And what were you trying to find out?” he asked, stalking into the room with his fists clenched at his sides.
The fury emanating from him was palpable. I’d really stepped over the line and I was sure my punishment would be severe. My pussy clenched at the thought of it.
“It’s just that you’re always pretty reserved when it comes to talking about your past. I don’t know anything about your family or your life growing up. If I’m going to be living here, I guess I wanted to know more. I don’t know anything about your parents or your siblings.”
He stood tall in front of his desk and crossed his muscular arms in front of his chest.
“You know enough. I’ll have Max take you back to your apartment.”
His lips twisted. I dropped my head, ashamed of pushing his limits. Instead of getting punished by him in a good way – sexually – I was being banished from his house. He must have been really mad that I was snooping.