Hard Rules

by Lisa Renee Jones

  We end the call and I make my way to the hallway, pausing to put on my jacket before I head toward the elevator. Once I’m there, I start to push the lobby button and instead punch the seventh level. My phone buzzes with a text from Jessica. Ex-employee who left abruptly a month ago. Confirmation that the deal memo is a front for a payoff. I pocket my phone again as the elevator jolts to a halt. I exit, quickly locating my father’s new rental, and knock on the door. It opens almost instantly and I’m faced with a woman in her twenties with long dark hair wearing jeans and a tank top. She’s also a younger version of my mother with features way too damn similar, and my stomach rolls with the certainty my mother chose her for that reason. My mother, who is far more manipulative than I’ve given her credit for.

  “Can I help you?” she asks.

  “You’re fucking my father because my mother’s paying you to. So here’s what’s going to happen. I’ll double your money, but I want reports on everything you tell my mother and don’t tell her. Understood?”

  She barely blinks. “Okay. How will this work? How do I reach you? How do I get paid?”

  “Seth Cage, my right-hand man, will be your contact. He’ll be in touch. And if you make a deal with anyone else, and I find out, which I will, I’ll go to the med school, and give them proof of how you’re paying your tuition.”

  I turn and walk away, heading for the elevator. Now, time to deal with my father and this deal memo.

  EMILY

  It’s nearly one o’clock in the afternoon, and I’m still chilled to the bone from this morning’s run in the rain, not to mention that my feet in high heels didn’t appreciate it. Just to leave a man I didn’t want to leave, but all is not lost. I have a job now and I’ve made it through human resources and a tour, and my new boss has already given me work, despite never even looking up from his desk to acknowledge that I’m his new assistant.

  So here I am at my new desk, a list of things to do and some comfort in knowing I’m beginning again. Of course, the job comes with the complication of my one-night stand working in the same building, but I’m not going to think of that now. I grab the file in front of me and proof the document that needs to be taken to the courthouse for all the appropriate signatures.

  I start jotting down everything I’ve been told about Brandon Enterprises because writing things down is what my mother said would keep me from missing things. It’s control for me. It’s organization. It’s something I can manage. And right now, things I can manage feel really good. The intercom on my desk buzzes. “Call Shane until you get him to answer.”

  I can almost feel the blood run from my face. Shane. He said Shane. I grab the receiver and pick it up. “I’m sorry. Who is Shane?”

  “My youngest son. He’s in the Rolodex on your desk or he damn well better be. If you can’t get him yourself, walk over to his office and stand at his assistant’s desk until she gets him on the line.”

  “Yes. Yes, sir. On it.” The phone shakes in my trembling hand and I press the receiver to my forehead, squeezing my eyes shut. Oh God. It can’t be my Shane. Actually, how can it not be him? I met him here in this building but I was sure he worked in the law firm, five floors down.

  I lower the receiver to the desk, suck in air, and will myself to calm down. I grab the Rolodex, and I turn right to Shane’s contact information, but I can’t dial him. Tabbing forward, I find his assistant and punch her extension. She answers immediately with, “This is Jessica.”

  “Hi. I’m,” I hesitate on my name considering the circumstances, and settle on, “Mr. Brandon Senior’s new secretary. He’s trying to reach … your boss.”

  She snorts. “Of course he is. Shane’s not here. Tell him he has the deal memo and he’s reviewing it.”

  “Oh. Okay. Learning how this works.”

  “I’ll find you later and give you some survival tips.”

  “Thank you. I’d really appreciate that.”

  The line goes dead and I buzz my new boss’s office. “Shane has the deal memo but he isn’t in right now.”

  “Fuck! Go to Jessica’s desk. Find him.” The intercom goes silent.

  “You just found him.”

  My breath lodges in my throat at the oh so familiar voice. I set the receiver down and look up, finding Shane towering over me, his blue suit fitted to perfection over a body I’ve seen naked. His expression is pure fury.

  “Shane, I can explain.”

  “Follow me,” he commands. “And don’t even think about refusing.”

  “Emily,” Mr. Brandon says over the intercom.

  Shane shakes his head, silently forbidding my reply, and my stomach rolls. I need money. I need this job and I’m about to lose it. He turns and starts walking. I squeeze my eyes shut and swallow hard before jumping to my feet and following him. I glance down at my outfit, confirming my simple light blue dress, paired with a black jacket, is conservative enough for church. No cleavage. No clinging to the wrong places. No wrong message. Well. Except that I slept with him and he thinks … I don’t know what he thinks. And oh yeah. I left without a good-bye when he wanted me to stay. I wanted to stay but I can’t show that and I’m really not sure it matters anymore. And I can’t even explain why I left without lying.

  We pass through the lobby and I don’t even consider looking at the receptionist. I just stare ahead and keep tracking behind him, traveling a hallway that feels eternal. At a fork, Shane cuts left, assuming I’m following, and of course, I do. Almost immediately we’re headed toward a corner office with a striking blonde I assume to be Jessica sitting at a desk outside the entrance. I catch her curious look and quickly cut my gaze.

  Shane doesn’t speak to her, walking directly to what I assume to be his office door. He disappears inside and I follow, hesitating a step before the threshold to steel myself for what is to come. The instant I’m inside, his hand comes down on my arm, and he shuts the door. I blink and I’m against it, and his big body is framing mine, legs trapping my legs, both of his hands now on my shoulders.

  “What kind of game are you playing?”

  “Game? No. No game. I had no idea—”

  “Bullshit. You’re working for my brother.”

  “What? No. It’s your father—”

  “Is that why he showed at the restaurant? Is that how he knew we were there? You told him.”

  “Shane, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Don’t fucking play coy, Emily. What’s the endgame here?”

  “I’m really confused.”

  “I’m not. They want you to get inside my head. Well, it won’t work. They’re in it and they’ve pissed me off. Tell my brother or my father I’m taking over this company and they can’t stop me.”

  “Shane, I really—”

  “You’re a good actress. Because I bought all that innocent, sweet bullshit, and thought you were actually honest. I thought you needed help.”

  “Let me go,” I hiss, shoving at his chest, furious now myself.

  His hands settle on my rib cage just beneath my breasts, scorching me inside and out. “I’m not done with you yet.”

  “I didn’t know who you were.”

  “And yet, as you pointed out, you just happened to be at the security desk when I came downstairs.”

  “I didn’t know who you were,” I repeat. “And I needed this job.”

  “How much did he pay you to fuck me? Do you get a bonus for doing it again?” His hands slide to my breast.

  “Stop!” I shove at his hand, punching his chest. “Stop it damn it, or I’ll shout.”

  He steps back from me, holding up his hands. “Whatever, sweetheart.”

  “Don’t call me sweetheart.” I hug myself, feeling violated by a man who had made me feel special last night. “And you’re the good actor. I actually thought you were charming and sexy and now I just think you’re an asshole.” I turn and reach for the door handle. He’s behind me in an instant, his hard body pressed against mine, my hands flattening on t
he wooden surface. “Stop,” I whisper, and damn it, I flashback to us naked, touching, kissing, and how good he’d felt. How right when he was obviously very, horribly wrong.

  His hands settle at my waist, one finding my belly and flattening.

  “I read you so wrong.”

  “If you say so,” I choke out, emotion balled in my throat.

  He turns me around and worse than touching me, he isn’t touching me. His hand settles on the door, above my head, and those gray eyes I’ve seen blazing with heat are now pure ice. “I do say so.”

  “I’m not what you think I am, Shane, and I need this job, but if I’m fired, just say so and let me start looking for another.”

  “Mr. Brandon to you. Remember that.”

  “Then you remember I’m not your ‘sweetheart.’”

  “Until you’re paid to be, right?”

  “Like I said. How did I not know you’re such an asshole?”

  “The same way I didn’t know you’re—”

  His intercom buzzes and Jessica says, “Seth is here and he says it’s urgent.”

  Shane squeezes his eyes shut, the lines of his handsome face all sharp edges and anger.

  “I was what?” I demand.

  His lashes lift, his eyes hard, and even colder than before. “Like everyone else. And this conversation isn’t over. Meet me at seven o’clock tonight in the parking garage.” He pushes off the door, grabs me, and turns me so that my back is to his front, his hand back on my belly, his head lowering, intimately close to mine as he orders, “Be there.” Then he reaches around me and opens the door.

  A moment later, Shane is no longer touching me and a tall, intimidating blond man in a suit is standing in front of me, blocking my path. “Excuse me,” I say. And damn it, he doesn’t move, his hard stare fixed on my face.

  “You’re Brandon Senior’s new secretary.”

  I have no idea how he knows this and right now, I really don’t care. “And I need to get back to work,” I say, and then repeat, “Excuse me.”

  “Emily,” Shane says, his voice radiating along my spine. “Make sure you do go back to work.”

  I don’t turn. “Yes, Mr. Brandon.”

  The man in front of me eyes him over my head and several beats pass like hours, before Shane gives the okay for him to release me. Finally, he steps aside and I am free to go. Only I’m not free at all. Not even close.

  I don’t wanna be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.

  —Frank Costello

  CHAPTER NINE

  SHANE

  I watch Emily round the corner, adrenaline coursing through me like liquid fire and acid, and I slowly become aware of Seth and Jessica staring at me. Forcefully, I shift my attention to them. Seth is arching a brow at me while Jessica stands at her desk, holding on to it and looking confused and concerned. Obviously, I haven’t been discreet and I have no option but to offer an explanation. “She found herself inserted between me and my father,” I explain, and I’m really damn ready to know the details.

  “Oh no,” Jessica says. “Shane, she’s new and I promised to help her learn her boundaries.”

  “A little late for that, I’d say.” I’d laugh at the irony of that statement if every muscle in my body wasn’t clenched thanks to the scent of Emily’s perfume clinging to my clothes.

  “Should I—” she begins.

  “No,” I supply. “My father wants his deal memo. Tell him I read it and he can go fuck himself.”

  She blanched. “Shane, not even I can—”

  “Tell him I’m still reviewing it.” I motion to Seth and walk into my office, making a beeline for the window, where I stand, arms crossed, and will the adrenaline coursing through me to calm the fuck down.

  Silent seconds tick by, and I can feel Seth at my back, just as I can feel Emily’s presence in this building, like she were standing right here next to me.

  “What just happened?” Seth asks.

  Yes. What the hell just happened? I’ve made a career out of reading people, and I don’t know how I got it wrong with Emily—unless I didn’t get it wrong and I was just a total dick. Whatever the case, there is too much on the line for me to be a fool with this woman, and yet, when I turn to face Seth, I go another direction. “I went to see the ‘other woman,’ as you called her. I offered her double what my mother’s paying her to give us the same information she’s giving my mother, but my mother isn’t to know.”

  “What’s to stop Derek from doing the same?”

  “I told her I’d ruin her medical career. She’s expecting your call.”

  His eyes sharpen. “Gloves off. Now we’re playing like New Yorkers. Good thing.” He lifts a folder. “You aren’t going to like this.”

  “Just get to it,” I snap irritably. “I can do without any more dramatics today.”

  He drops the folder on my desk and flips it open to yet another photo of my brother, this time with a very young, pretty, dark-haired woman. “Teresa Martina,” he says. “He’s quite friendly with her.”

  “And I care why?”

  “Because she’s the daughter of Roberto Martina, the kingpin for one of the largest cartels in existence. And while Roberto favors Mexico, her brother Adrian runs the U.S. operations from right here in Denver.”

  Anger rips through me and I press my fists to the desk. “Has he dragged the BP division into the cartel?”

  “He has a relationship with Adrian, though I don’t yet know the extent.”

  “In other words, if he hasn’t, he’s working on it. He has to have someone inside BP involved in this.”

  “Agreed,” Seth says, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “William Nichols, your head of research and development, had some activity on the surveillance footage I find of interest, but nothing I can say is related to this.”

  “What kind of activity?”

  “Taking calls outside while pacing and appearing on edge, but the man could be going through something personal. We’re putting him under watch.”

  “I know this security team we’ve hired signed the contracts I drew up, but make damn sure they aren’t for sale to the highest bidder.”

  “I know the owner personally. I promise you. We’re golden.” He narrows his gaze on me. “You don’t just walk away from a cartel, Shane. I dealt with these people when I was with the CIA. And if that’s where we’re at, our problems are far bigger than the police.”

  “I’m aware of that.” I push off the desk and turn to the window, unbuttoning my jacket and settling my hands on my hips. Seth joins me, both of us staring at the thick, black clouds. “What I don’t understand,” I say, “is how the hell Derek isn’t.” My mind tracks back to my father’s office yesterday. “Derek made a point of reminding me that BP is my acquisition and I’m linked to anything that happens there.”

  “A threat,” Seth says wryly, leaning a shoulder on the steel beam running along the window. “You could walk away, Shane. Get the hell out of here.”

  “If I do that, my father and brother will end up dead. And my mother could end up collateral damage.”

  “What about you? What happens when they ruin your life?”

  “I’ll take my chances.” I turn to face him, hands still on my hips. “At this point, we don’t know anything. Derek aspiring to work with the Martina family and doing it are two different things. And as much as I’d like to take the direct approach and bulldoze him for answers, he won’t be honest and it will only alert anyone who might be helping him to stay off our radar.”

  Seth gives me a disapproving look. “There are a lot of things I could say to you right now, but I won’t.”

  “Good decision.” I glance at my desk where the envelope Jessica brought me lies, realization coming with cold, hard clarity. “Son of a bitch. My father just gave me the proposed paperwork for an investment that’s an obvious cover for a payoff.”

  “That Nina person,” Seth assumes.

  “Yes. That Nina
person, who left the trucking division abruptly a month ago and is suddenly worth the hundred and fifty thousand dollar investment my father wants to make.”

  “And the trucking company is a perfect target for running drugs. It would be easy to come to the conclusion there’s already activity happening there.”

  “Whether there is or not, if we are thinking about this, then Martina will be thinking about this.” I scrub my jaw. “I need to shed that division.”

  “Not only will that send up red flags to your brother, and your father if he’s involved, but it’ll risk a potential rift with Martina that you don’t want to go into blindly, if at all.”

  “Which means I need to control them instead.”

  He reaches into his pocket and offers me a flash drive. “That has enough damning information on Riker Ward, the CEO of that division, to do that and more. It also has equally invasive information on the rest of the board, aside from Mike, and therefore, offers you the power to command them all.”

  “Unless my brother, or father, beat me to the punch,” I say, accepting it.

  “Derek’s too busy paying everyone off to know how to really control them.”

  “Don’t underestimate Derek, and since my father handled this payoff for the trucking division, I lean toward his involvement. And he is all about control. Which brings me back to my questions about Mike. But the highest priority right now is finding out if we’re already in bed with Martina.”

  “Which, in turn, brings me back to the transportation division. Send me to Boulder, and I promise you, with the dirt I have on Riker, he’ll tell us exactly what’s going on up there and what that payoff is for as well.”

  I lift the flash drive. “Spare me the reading time,” I say, placing it in my pocket. “What’s the dirt you’re referencing?”

  “Riker’s gay,” he says. “Which wouldn’t be a problem except for a few important details. He’s not only in the closet, he’s married to a woman, has three kids with her, and a father who’s a conservative politician. And yes, I have proof. The man is in bed with so many men I wonder how his wife doesn’t know. And before you ask, I’m thorough. She doesn’t.”