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“All you can do? I don’t have time for ‘all you can do.’ I need you to march in there and persuade him to see me before my project and the months of effort that went into it fall apart.”
“I understand your frustration. I’m sorry. Unfortunately, as I said, Mr. Knight isn’t to be disturbed, period.”
Dan’s jaw twitches, and it’s obvious he’s grinding his teeth. “Why do you suck at your job? You never seem able to make shit happen when I need it. This project is forhisbenefit. He’s the one who assigned it to me and designated it a top priority. And now that it’s all coming together, he’s holed up, and you don’t have the sway to even mention to him that this might all go down the toilet?” He sighs, then mutters under his breath, “Worthless cunt.”
I gape at him. Granted, he didn’t direct his wordsatme, but he said them about me. “Excuse me? What did you just call me?”
“Oh, don’t think you’re going to turn your ineptitude on me. I’m entitled to my opinion, goddamn it!” He slams his fists on my desk.
The bang of his temper spikes my adrenaline, seizes my heart, and sends the pictures of my family and friends clattering across my desk before my favorite, one of me with my parents at my college graduation, tumbles to the floor. Vaguely, I hear glass shatter, and I’m angry. That frame was a gift from my older sister, Alyson. But I can’t deal with that now. I don’t dare look away with Dan snarling in my face. I’ve never worried about him before, but now I’m seriously anxious that he intends to come across my desk to…do something. Would he physically hurt me?
Jonathan
“You okay, man?” Jake asks over the phone. “You seemed pretty shaken this morning.”
Damn it, I knew this question was coming. I canceled my appointments for the rest of the day so this situation would have time to blow over while I came up with a cover story. And, of course, tried not to freak out.
But it’s too late for that, isn’t it?
Son of a bitch. I came in this morning fully confident that Friday night was a fluke and I had enough distance to be totally cool and professional with Kiera. But the moment she walked in and I set eyes on her, my train of thought—along with my verbal skills—dissolved. Sure, I’ve got them back now that she isn’t brain-scramblingly close. But I fucking hope no one guesses that my assistant rocking my world is the reason for this morning’s outburst.
“I’ve got a lot going on.” That’s true; I do. I just hope my best friend buys this until I can think of a better excuse.
“About what? If you’ve got too much on your plate, I can pitch in.”
It’s a hell of an offer, especially since I know Jake is incredibly busy, too. My immediate instinct is to thank him and promise I’ll get everything under control. But I hesitate. At some point, I have to say something to Jake about Kiera. I feel like shit that I haven’t. After all, he suggested I take her to the wedding, not take her to bed. Never owning up to the truth would make me a liar and a traitor. I’m neither.
On the other hand, I should protect Kiera, too. She’d be so embarrassed if anyone found out about her sex life. And I don’t want her future at KH Industries to be adversely impacted because I didn’t keep my mouth shut.
But half this company belongs to Jake, and my agreement with her is a potential liability, so he deserves to know. I doubt Kiera would sue me for giving her the orgasms she asked for, especially since I have the email to prove it. Still, I can’t guarantee that.
Ugh. Because I’m not sure what to say yet or how to say it, now isn’t the best time to let the cat out of the bag. But I can set Jake at ease. Besides, he’s kind of given me the perfect opening. I can give him a good chunk of the truth.
That’s better than nothing, right?
“I appreciate that, but I need to fix this. That’s why I intended to wait and say something when the deal was more official. I didn’t want to get your hopes up only to dash them again, like last time, but…I ran into Maya Thompson the other day. She wants to talk business.”
“Holy shit, dude. Are you serious? Really?”
“Yeah. Funny thing… I thought about your suggestion. You know, finding a date for Amber’s wedding in the hopes of running into Maya. So I took your advice, and I discussed it with Ms. Young over lunch last Tuesday. I explained the situation and asked if she would be my plus-one. You were right. She completely understood and agreed to pitch in. Not even a minute later, Maya saw us and approached me at our table.”
It’s not a lie…it’s just not the whole truth. I will confess all—minus the juicy details—but not until I’ve made up for it by bringing this business back to KH Industries, where it belongs. Since I somehow bungled it the first time, it seems only right that I make it happen now.
“Did you have any idea Maya would be there?”
“No, it was pure coincidence, man. The universe was looking out for me that day.”
“No shit. That’s incredible. And the fact that Kiera had agreed only minutes before…”
“Right? Just in case Maya planned to attend Amber’s big day, Kiera introduced herself as my girlfriend.”
“Initiating the cover story early. That’s perfect. She’s smart.”
He’s eating up my words.It’s for the greater good, Jake. You’ll thank me one day.
“It’s definitely a step in the right direction.”
“So where did you two leave things?”
