“Oh shit, wait, I was going to invite the new girl Isla to lunch,” I said, smacking my forehead.
How could I forget? I wanted to get to know her better and make her feel welcome, and I wanted to find out about her and Luke. She hadn’t looked happy when I’d walked into her office earlier.
“Why don’t you go and get her, and I’ll text Cole to meet us as Jilly’s too?”
“Damn, poor Isla. Cole on the first day?” I groaned. I hope she was still sane and liked me by the end of lunch.
“So, did y’all know each other at school?” I asked Isla, Ren, and Cole, as we sat eating our lunch. Isla had been telling me about her background, and I couldn’t believe that they had all gone to the same school but hadn’t known each other like I’d known my classmates.
“Uh, I was in the same grade as Luke,” Isla replied in her natural raspy voice. Seriously, she could make some serious cash as one of those dirty call handlers with that voice.
Like he was in my head, Cole pulled out his phone and started playing with the screen. “Shit, gorgeous, your voice was made for sin. What’s your number?”
“What the fuck?” barked a voice from behind me, making me jump and spin around to see Luke looking at Cole like he was going to throttle him.
“Oh, hey, man,” Cole said, apparently none the wiser as he was still fiddling with his phone and setting up contact details for Isla, who was looking very uncomfortable and glancing anywhere but at Luke. “Okay, you’re in as ‘I B Sexpot’ because of your initials and the obvious. Just put your number in and hit save,” he said as he slid his phone across the table. She hadn’t even had a chance to pick it up before Luke had it in his hand.
“Unless you want a team of highly skilled surgeons removing your phone from your colon, I’d forget that plan, you little shit,” Luke seethed, leaning over the table towards Cole, who surprisingly didn’t seem that worried by him.
“I need to get going,” Isla whispered as she picked her bag up and started to get out of her chair. I was getting pissed at Luke now; I liked her, but every time Luke was around or was mentioned, she looked like her heart had been torn out. What the hell had he done to her?
Before she could get out of the booth, though, Luke sat down beside her and yelled across the diner at the waitress for his lunch. Surprisingly, the waitress, who looked like she was chewing wasps, grinned and swished into the kitchen. She’d been glaring at us so much since we’d arrived that I inspected my food carefully in case she’d spat or done something to it.
I couldn’t help snorting when I looked back at Luke and saw him realize that he’d pushed Isla closer to Cole when he’d sat down. He tried to correct this mistake by wrapping an arm around her hips and tugging her closer towards him, and Cole looked like he loved this, while Isla was looking longingly out the window at freedom.
Trying to break the tension, I repeated my earlier question. “So, how was it that you didn’t know each other at school?”
Ren looked uncomfortable, as did Luke, but Isla looked downright miserable and just muttered, “Different social circles.”
Cole, as always, broke the tension by looking Isla up and down. “Oh, I knew who Isla Banks was; I used to stare at her ass every time I saw her. In fact, I remember kissing you at Macy Perkins’s party when we were fourteen and played spin the bottle. That kiss has given me loads of spa…” He trailed off when he heard Luke’s growl and saw his fists clench.
Apparently this was what Isla had needed to break out of her shell. “Really? And what was I doing in these memories of—?” But the last words were muffled by Luke’s hand, which was now firmly over her mouth while he struggled to contain his rage.
“We’re leaving,” he barked, pulling Isla out from the booth and not waiting for his lunch to arrive.
“What the hell was that about?” I asked as we all watched him pull her out of the diner and head in the opposite direction of the office.
“I’m not sure, but Isla lived with her Gran when she was in high school, and I remember her and Luke hanging out a lot. Her dad’s a dick, and she didn’t get along with her stepsister, who had a thing for Luke. Anyway, there was an issue at prom or something and Isla left not long after it,” Ren filled me in.
“Who was her stepsister?” Cole asked, frowning at Ren.
He shifted in his chair and rubbed the back of his neck. “Calista Brennan.”
The look on Cole’s face was almost comical. “Are you serious?”
Ren nodded, and Cole said no more, leaving me totally confused about who the hell Calista Brennan was.
Before I could ask, though, Grouchy Smurf sashayed up with Luke’s lunch in a paper bag and dropped it in front of me as she snapped, “Take this to Luke and tell him Trinny did it just the way he likes it, as always,” and sashayed off again. What was her problem?
I needed to head back to the office to get the huge workload off my desk so I could leave some time before midnight. “Sorry, guys, I have to go.”
Cole stood up and gave me a hug goodbye while Ren threw down money for lunch and said he’d walk me back, which he did, giving me a sweet goodbye kiss outside the building.
When I got to Luke’s office, his door was shut, so I knocked and waited. When I didn’t get a reply, I knocked again and shouted, “Luke it’s me! I’ve got your lunch, and the sour-faced diner chick said to say something like she did it just the way you liked. Oh, and she added ‘as always’ afterward.”
Instead of the ‘come in’ that I’d been expecting, the door opened, and a red-faced Isla came out, giving me a quick smile, and rushed to her office, leaving me with a furious Luke.
“Sorry, did I interrupt?” I asked, knowing full well that I had. For the first time, Luke turned his angry expression on me, making me take a step back, and then slammed his office door shut. Oh, this was going to be interesting.
As I settled back into doing the mockups of Ren’s house and looking at suggestions for Cole’s, George called me to an office meeting, which was just frigging typical—calling me away when the pile of work on my desk was so ugly that even Stephen King couldn’t do it justice.
Once we were all in the conference room, he began by introducing Isla to the office as the head of the Legal Department and explained that her father, Geoffrey Banks, was the director of our offices in Italy. I saw her getting a lot of appreciative looks from the male staff members, and the same glares from the females that I’d received when I’d started, but what made me chuckle was Luke’s glares around the office at the male members of staff, which stopped on one in particular called Gabe.
He opened his mouth to say something when my uncle said, “We have just received confirmation that we have won the contract for a law firm called Billings and Associates, who have offices in New York and Houston. Apparently they require more substantial buildings in all locations, and the buildings that they’ve found need to undergo a lot of work.
“Isla, you will handle the legal side of negotiations, from planning permission to contract agreements. Luke, I need you to look at the blueprints of the locations and meet with the clients next week to get an idea of what work they want to be done. Maya, they need the interiors to be overhauled as soon as work is completed on the renovations. Gabe, you can help Luke and also Isla, as you have background knowledge of projects like this,” George said, looking at the four of us. “Although I have assigned four members of staff to this, we will all be needed to jump in as required. Our existing contracts are important, however; there were eight other companies considered for this contract, so I would like to get the ball rolling as soon as possible. We have also been awarded a huge build in Italy, courtesy of Geoffrey and his team, so today is a fantastic day for us.” Hearing her father’s name, I saw Isla shift and look down at the table in front of her, not looking proud of her father’s success, which was understandable after hearing about her family briefly at lunch.
After the meeting, I went back to my desk and printed off the pictur
es for Ren’s house and then bound them and the ideas for Cole’s to make sure that nothing went missing. I still had a couple more potential clients to reply to and a load of designs to look at, and then I could go home. Yawning, I looked at the clock and got back down to it.
Chapter Thirteen
?
T he panoramic views of the New York skyline out of the windows of my office meant nothing to me. That bastard George Banks had stolen from me again, and it was time to put in motion the plan that had taken me twenty-eight years to devise. I was going to take everything away from him like he’d done to me.
Picking up the phone, I dialed as excitement filled me. “It’s time. Business and family; leave him with nothing,” I barked, and slammed the phone down because there was nothing else that needed to be said. I wanted him to suffer and for his heart to be torn out the same way he’d done to me all of those years ago.
Breathing deeply and slowly to calm the shaking, I reached for the photo that I’d carried with me for all of these years. It was time…
Chapter Fourteen
Maya
I ’d just pressed send on the final email of the day and was packing up when my cell went off with a text from Cole.
Cole: Ma wants u at hers 4 dinner. I think she wants 2 make sure that Ren’s wood is in good hands ;-
I couldn’t help laughing, and even though I was tired, I liked them all, so it wouldn’t be a hardship staying awake for a couple more hours.
Me: You’re obsessed with your brothers wood! Tell her thanks and I would love to come. Do I need to bring anything with me?
Cole: Hey all that was offered was food. U cumming is up 2 Ren, but if he can’t get it right then, I’ll gladly help u out. No just bring urself, underwear optional.
Me: You’re disgusting! I’m showing Ren.
Cole: NO DON’T!
Me: Too late
And purely because it was Cole, I added in a devil smiley face at the end.
I figured it would be smarter not to show Ren the texts and just to let Cole panic as I locked up my office and picked up the folder to show Colette. I knew our meeting wasn’t until tomorrow, but if I was going to be there anyway, I may as well show her, and then they didn’t have to put their day on hold for the meeting tomorrow.
Turning to leave, I saw Isla, who was also on her way out and looked as exhausted as I felt as we walked towards the exit. “How was your first day?” I asked, remembering how overwhelmed I’d been on mine not that long ago.
“Unexpected,” she mumbled.
“Hey, listen, I’m going to a club called Sheeve’s on Friday with a girl called Ava. I know you might not know her, but why don’t you come along?” Ava wouldn’t mind, and maybe I could get Scarlett to join us, too.
“Hell, no,” Luke growled from behind us. Turning around with my hand on my heart, I saw Luke storming towards us, looking furious.
“What the hell, Luke?” I shouted. “You almost gave us a heart attack.”
“Neither of you are going to that place. You’ll be molested and mauled by every guy in the county. No way.” He stopped in front of us with his hands on his hips and glared, making it obvious that he wasn’t going to budge.
“Know what, Maya,” Isla said, turning to me, “I’d love to go. I’ll give you my number tomorrow, and we can make the arrangements. Have a good night.” And with that she walked off in the direction of her car as Luke cursed and jogged after her.
As I drove out of the parking lot, I passed Isla’s car and saw Luke standing pressed up against her, holding her face in both hands. There was definitely a story there, and I really wanted to know what it was.
Ren
The men were sitting in the den, relaxing after dinner, while Maya helped Mom tidy up the kitchen. I had offered to help, but Mom had waved me off and sent me to follow Dad and Cole. There was definitely something up with the little shit tonight; he kept giving me nervous looks and then looking at Maya. If the little bastard had done something to Maya, I’d kill him.
“So, uh, Ren, how was your day?” The shithead in question asked me, eyeballing the doorway and rubbing the back of his neck.
“What have you done?”
“Nothing, man, just wondered. Hey, you’re looking awfully tense over there,” he said, giving me a cocky grin as his shoulders sagged with…was that relief?
“You’ve done something, haven’t you? You’re never this nice, you little shit.”
“Ren’s right, son, you’ve got that guilty look you used to get as a kid when you accidentally picked up one of your Mom’s books,” Dad piped up from his recliner in the corner.
“Hey, I didn’t know that she left them lying around under my books!” Cole turned red and shifted in his chair. “And I always gave them back,” the brat continued, crossing his arms and pouting.
“No, you didn’t, darling,” Mom interrupted as she walked in with Maya, who came and sat down next to me. I couldn’t stop myself putting my arm around her and pulling her closer to me; I’d done the same thing at dinner, which had led to Cole saying some shithead remark and Mom grinning at me while Dad shook his head and chuckled.
“I would always get them back a couple of months later, and in a well-used state, too.” Mom raised an eyebrow at Cole, daring him to say otherwise. I could feel Maya laughing beside me, seeing the deep red color that his face has turned; he hardly ever blushed, so this was a priceless moment. I couldn’t wait to tell my sister and brothers; they’d be so pissed that they’d missed it. I wondered if I could take a picture on my phone.
“That wasn’t me; it was Layla—and Tom,” Cole whined. Seriously, how the hell was I related to this guy?
“If you say so. Oh, I’ve got a new one, by the way. Good luck finding it, though,” Mom laughed as she finally sat down.
My mom was one of the best people I knew. She’d never once needed time away from being a huge ranch and oil owner’s wife, and always met each problem and hurdle head on. I still hadn’t told Maya about my family’s oil; my great-grandfather on my dad’s side had bought land when he’d first settled in the States, and when my Grandad was born, they’d discovered it had oil. My brother Brett had taken over the business side of it after he’d graduated, along with my cousin Dex, and the rest us concentrated on the ranch and our own businesses and lives.
Women had tried to use us for that money, but Mom could spot their game a mile away and used to help us out. Brett had once brought home this chick from Houston, where his offices were, and she had looked like the perfect Stepford wife and was from a wealthy family herself. She had acted like butter wouldn’t melt, when the truth was even the devil himself couldn’t have roasted the butter as quick as she could. I don’t know how Mom had found out her plans to ‘accidentally’ get pregnant and claim that it was Brett’s when it would have, in fact, been her driver Jose’s, but after the showdown, we’d never seen the bitch again. That had been the worst incident, and it had soured Brett towards relationships, but no matter how little we showed the family’s wealth, women still tried. Maya wasn’t like that, though, and it would be unfair not to tell her soon, but I didn’t know how.
“Mom,” Cole whined, interrupting my thoughts.
“In fact, I’m going to trash them all and get one of those Kindle things. Not that I’ve got many left to throw away, since they keep ending up under a jacket, or you wind up picking them up to bring to me so that I can ‘take a load off and relax’,” Mom said, looking at Cole the whole time.
Maya laughed so hard that she started coughing, bringing Cole’s attention to her. “Well, Ren’s not looking after Maya’s needs,” he said, pointing at her, and all heads turned our way as Maya froze and turned red.
“You’re the one that said that, not me, you ass,” she hissed at him.
“What the fuck?”
“Cole texted me about tonight and made an innuendo,” Maya said, passing me her phone.
As I read through the texts, Cole snickered and replied wit
h the old, “In-YOUR-endo.” Dick!
When I get to the end of the messages, I looked up at Captain Colon. “Oh shit,” he yelped, and ran out of the room before I could go and hurt him.
He had to fall asleep at some point, so I’d deal with him later, but for now…
“Dash!” I yelled. “Find Cole.” Hearing the sound of his nails scraping on the floor as he ran after the asshole gave me no small measure of satisfaction.
“No, these are my favorite jeans! I’ll get you a girlfriend. She’ll be hot, I swear,” we all heard yelled from outside the window as Cole ran past it with Dash jumping up at him. “I’m not that kind of guy,” he squealed. I’d never loved that dog more in my life.
Before she went home, Maya showed us the printouts of her ideas for my house and some furniture selections. I’ve got to say, I was blown away by it all. I had never thought of moving the study upstairs and making the room downstairs into a bathroom. I hated having to walk up to the first bedroom to take a leak, and I hardly spent any time in the study anyway, so it would be convenient to make the change.
I also liked the idea of breaking up the living room from the dining area and extending the kitchen around a bit. Agreeing to look over the furniture ideas and think about the building work—although I already knew that I wanted it all done—I sat back and enjoyed the time with her and my parents without Cole around. In fact, Dash hadn’t even come home yet; I wondered how far he had chased him this time.
Maya
Two weeks later…
One night, Ren took me to an Italian restaurant in a town half an hour away from Piersville, and as soon as we walked in, my mouth started watering. Another half hour later, our food had just arrived, and we were laughing Ren’s stories from his childhood when someone walked up to the table, making Ren and me turn around. I quickly lost my appetite when I saw Francheska and her ‘friends’—more like prisoners—standing there.
“Aw, how sweet,” she sneered, looking at Ren holding my hand on the table, and then dismissing me as she flashed him the sweetest smile. “We were just reminiscing, Ren. Do you remember Dave Housen’s party when you, me, and Bianca snuck into his parents’ room? What was it he said, B?” she asked, turning to the girl beside her, who was wearing the tiniest dress I’d ever seen and was twisting a strand of hair in her fingers and staring at Ren.
Providence Series Books 1-4 Page 9