by Iona Rose
“Is everything ok?” she purrs.
“Something came up,” I say, pleased that my voice comes out even. “I’m sorry, but you’re going to have to leave.”
“Leave?” she repeats, frowning at me.
She sounds pissed off and I don’t blame her, but I can’t do anything about it now. I can’t bring myself to even look at her, let alone fuck her. Kimberley is back in town.
“Yeah,” I say.
She smiles. That seductive smile that a few hours ago, hell a few minutes ago, was driving me wild. Now it only irritates me. Is she deaf or what? Why won’t she just go away?
“Or I could wait in your bedroom until you’ve fixed whatever crisis has come up. I’ll keep the bed warm and give you something to look forward to,” she says.
She runs her tongue over her lips and I feel nothing.
“For fuck sake Natalie. Take a hint. We’re done here. Just get out,” I snap.
Her face changes from seductive to shocked and then angry.
“You absolute asshole,” she snaps.
She storms back into my bedroom and for a moment, I think she’s still not planning to leave, but then I remember her stripping off her trousers. I’m not going to insist she leaves half naked.
I stand in the hallway, still rooted to the spot. I hear Natalie huffing as she grabs her trousers. She comes back into the hallway with them pressed against her front, her shoes dangling from her hand by her side.
I can see tears shining in her eyes. I don’t think she’s that upset. I think she’s angry and humiliated, and I wish I could make it better, I really do, but I can’t. Anything I say now is only going to make this worse. I keep my mouth shut as she stalks closer to me.
“You really are a first class fuck boy,” she snarls.
I shrug. What is there to say to that? It’s not like she’s wrong, and it’s not like she didn’t know that when she came back here with me. She just didn’t care when she thought she was going to get her way with me.
I don’t say any of that to her. I don’t want to argue with her. I just want her gone. I can smell her perfume and now it doesn’t smell sweet like I thought it did earlier. It’s over powering. Nauseating.
She’s still making no move to leave.
“Well? Don’t you have anything to say for yourself?” she demands.
“Close the door on your way out,” I say.
Her mouth drops open and she shakes her head.
“Wow. Just fucking wow,” she says in a low voice that bristles with anger.
She finally starts to walk away from me. She reaches the top of the stairs and turns back to me. I can see the venom in her expression, the embarrassment in her flushed cheeks.
“You should know I don’t do business with people who are unreliable. The deal is off Sebastian. Don’t bother calling me.”
Dammit. That’s what Matt said would happen. But then again, he was the one who dropped that bombshell on me. What did he think would happen after that? I have no idea, but I know I have to fix this. I’ll give her some sob story, make her feel sorry for me. Maybe I’ll even promise to make it up to her at the weekend when my head isn’t reeling.
“Kimberley wait,” I say, taking a step forwards.
“Did you just call me Kimberley?” Natalie demands.
Fuck. I did. I know I did. There goes any chance I had of rectifying this.
“Natalie,” I say, still not quite ready to give up without at least trying to turn the situation around.
“Fuck you,” she says.
She starts down the stairs. I hear her running down the hallway at the bottom and then I hear the front door open and slam closed. I don’t bother going after her. What’s the point? The deal is off. I screwed up big time. And Kimberley is back in town.
I take a step backwards and my back hits the wall. I slowly slide down it and sit on the ground, my knees drawn up and my elbows resting on them. I run my hands over my face and try to make sense of the swirl of bottomless emotions that flood through me.
Kimberley is back in town.
Chapter Two
Sebastian
I’ve been trying to call Matt for the last hour, but his phone keeps going straight to voicemail. I’ve called his office and his secretary insisted he was in a meeting. I know that’s bullshit. I could hear it in her voice. He’s avoiding my calls on purpose.
Well he’s not going to be able to avoid me in person. Screw what his secretary has to say. I’m going to have this out with Matt right now. I step out of the elevator and stalk along the corridor. A few associates run back and forth going about their day like the whole world hasn’t just been turned upside down. I return their nods, their good morning greetings. It’s anything but a good morning, but I remind myself how I let my own emotions screw up a deal last night and I keep myself in control now. I don’t want to take my foul mood out on the staff here.
My head is banging from the alcohol last night and the lack of sleep. I was expecting that but I was expecting it to be for a very different reason. The sort of reason that makes the pain bearable.
I move through the open plan centre of the floor, trying to ignore the way the low hubbub of voices pierces my head. Even the sound of computer keys clicking sets my jaw on edge. I reach into my pocket and pull out a strip of painkillers. I dry swallow two and tell myself they’re working.
“Rough night?” Bradley, one of our top accountants, grins when he sees me popping the pills.
I bite my tongue to stop myself from snapping at him that it’s none of his business. Bradley and I go way back and we’ve always had an easy relationship, more like friends than a boss and a worker. Any other day I would have laughed and regaled him with stories of the wild night I’d had last night.
“You could say that,” I reply, forcing a laugh.
He pulls his desk drawer open and hands me a sealed bottle of ice cold water. I’m glad now I didn’t bite his head off.
“Thanks,” I say as I open the top and drink half of the bottle down in one go.
The cool water revives me somewhat and I don’t know if the pills are kicking in quickly or if I was just dehydrated, but the pain in my head begins to recede, becoming a dull ache rather than a sharp pain. I sit down on the edge of Bradley’s desk.
“How’s the report coming along?” I ask.
“It’s looking good,” Bradley says. “I’ll have it over to you by the end of today officially, but unofficially, I’ve been through Benton’s books with a fine tooth comb and they’re a good investment. They’re financially strong, and with a few tweaks, they could be a real cash cow.”
I nod thoughtfully. Bradley is right. I knew it from a quick glance over the figures, but I wanted to do due diligence and be certain there were no skeletons lurking in their books before I began the negotiations. They’re due to get underway in the next week or so.
I feel better about Natalie suddenly. Her company was small fry compared to Benton’s. And if we pull off the Benton merger successfully, no one will give a shit about Natalie. Not even my father.
“Nice work,” I say to Bradley who beams under my praise. “Dot the I’s and cross the T’s and get the report to me by lunch time and take the rest of the day off.”
“Thanks Sebastian,” he says, clearly taken aback.
I laugh and pat him on the shoulder before moving on towards Matt’s office. I feel a little calmer and more in control of myself as I reach Matt’s secretary’s desk, but I’m still in no mood to be fobbed off.
“Morning Sheila,” I say, not stopping.
“Mr Hunter doesn’t want to be disturbed,” she says, jumping up and standing between me and the office door.
“Ah come on now,” I say, giving her my most charming smile. “You know that doesn’t include visits from his baby brother.”
She blushes a little and smiles.
“Well ummm, let me go check with him,” she says.
That’s the confirmation I needed that he’s n
ot with a client. I side step around her and put my hand on the door handle.
“No need,” I grin, slipping inside before she can do anything else to try and stop me.
She hurries in behind me.
“I’m sorry Mr Hunter, I …”
“It’s ok,” Matt cuts her off.
“Right. Thank you. And sorry again. Would you like some refreshments?” Sheila stammers.
“No thank you. Sebastian won’t be staying,” Matt says.
He aims the comment at me. I just smirk at him until Sheila leaves the room pulling the door closed behind her. As the door closes, my smirk fades and I march towards Matt’s desk, ready to demand to know why he’s dodging my calls. Before I can speak, he looks at me disapprovingly.
“You look tired Seb. Late night last night?” he says.
Everyone is a damned comedian it seems.
“Funny. Why the hell are you dodging my calls?” I demand.
“Because I had nothing to say to you. I owe you none of my time Seb. Your actions last night have caused us to lose a client. Natalie Graham called this morning and made it clear we won’t be getting her business.”
“And who’s fault is that?” I say.
“Umm yours,” Matt says, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah I’m pretty sure I’m not the one who interrupted us with a phone call. Let’s just say after that, the mood was kind of ruined.”
“I wonder why that was,” Matt says.
I ignore the jibe. This is nothing to do with Kimberley. This is about the business.
“You accused me of putting my personal life above the business, and now you’re dodging my calls in work time because you’re annoyed that I called off a one night stand?”
“I’m annoyed that you put yourself in a position to lose us business,” Matt counters.
I shrug and sit down in the seat opposite his.
“Whatever,” I say. “Natalie’s business was a drop in the ocean compared to the Benton merger. I was calling you to see how close we are to getting the first meetings set up. Bradley has just about finished up the financial report and everything is looking as good as we hoped it would.”
“We’re almost there. The preliminary talks have gone well and we’re looking to get started early next week,” Matt says. He grins. “But you know all of that. So why don’t you tell me what you really want.”
“That was what I really wanted. To call you out on ignoring my calls,” I lie.
“Ok, I hear you loud and clear. So if that’s it then, I’ve kind of got work to do,” Matt says.
I can tell by the gleam in his eye he knows why I’m really here. I mean sure I was annoyed at him dodging my calls, but he’s right. I didn’t need to ask about the Benton merger. I knew all of that. And if the meetings got pushed forward, of course someone would have reached out to me and let me know. I’m annoyed at him for dodging my calls because I wanted to ask him about one thing. Her. Kimberley.
I eye Matt as I try to work out a way to bring the conversation around to Kimberley without it being obvious I’ve thought of nothing but her all damned night. His lips curl up slightly at the corners and I know he’s enjoying my discomfort. I suppose this is his pay back for all the times I’ve embarrassed him over the years with new girlfriends. And for all the flirting I do with his fiancé, Callie.
I don’t want to give him the satisfaction of asking him for more details about Kimberley, but I know I can’t just get up and walk out of here without hearing everything there is to know about her return. I look down into my lap.
“Is it true what you said last night? Is Kimberley really back in town?” I say.
Matt doesn’t answer immediately and I force myself to look up and meet his eye. His amused look pisses me off but I bite my tongue, waiting for an answer.
“It’s true,” he says.
I feel a mixture of emotions flood me. I’m happy to hear that she’s back, and at the same time, I’m apprehensive to know that I might run into her. I am also fuming that she’s made no effort to contact me. But then why would she after what happened between us?
“Have you seen her?” I ask.
Matt seems to be determined to make me ask the questions to get the information from him, even though he must know it’s killing me to have to practically beg him for the information.
“Yeah I’ve seen her. I ran into her a couple of days ago. She looks good Seb. Damned good. She still has that shock of red hair; it’s right down almost to her ass now. And she’s filled out in all of the right places if you get my drift.”
Oh I get his drift alright. My cock is twitching just thinking about Kimberley all grown up.
“She’s really grown into herself. She’s beautiful now,” Matt says.
“She was always beautiful,” I say before I can stop myself.
Matt grins at my words.
“But then all of the women I sleep with are beautiful,” I add, more for my own benefit than his.
If I thought he was going to let me save face that easily, I was sorely mistaken. He is most definitely enjoying my discomfort. He nods, an exaggerated nod.
“Yeah I’m sure they are, but not like Kimberley. She’s … something else,” he says.
“Maybe I should be calling up Callie and telling her she’s got competition,” I say.
Matt laughs.
“I don’t think she’d be even close to how jealous you are right now,” he says. “About our chat I mean.”
“You spoke to her?” I say, again ignoring his jibe.
“Sure,” Matt says. “I told you I ran into her. What did you think I did? Just ignored her?”
I shrug. I hadn’t thought that for a minute, but I just wanted to find out what they had to talk about without having to come out and ask, but Matt pauses again, clearly waiting for me to ask. God sometimes I really fucking hate Matt. He loves to watch me squirm and today is no exception.
“So how is she? What’s she up to?” I ask, doing my best to sound like I’m just making casual conversation.
“You seem awfully interested in her,” Matt says.
“She’s an old friend. Why wouldn’t I be interested in how she’s doing?” I ask.
“You weren’t interested when I told you I ran into Bobby St Clair a couple of weeks ago.”
“Who?”
“Exactly. You don’t even remember half of the people you used to know. But Kimberley …”
“Is different,” I finish.
My small confession softens Matt slightly and he begins to tell me about their run in without me having to keep digging for more.
“She’s good. She’s done well for herself. She’s the CFO at a big company. She’s in town on business actually. She’s staying at the Hilton on Mercer Way. She always did like her luxuries. And now she’s living the jetsetter lifestyle. She’s just got back from a three month tour of Europe. Rome, Paris, Madrid, Prague. You name it, she’s been there.”
“Sounds like she’s really made it,” I say.
“Yeah she has. You should see her tan. She was glowing,” Matt adds,
There’s one more thing I want to ask, but I am afraid of the answer. I think I know the answer. Kimberley was never really the settling down and getting married type, but people change. I’ve changed. Maybe she has too. I have to know.
“So does she have any kids?” I ask, skirting around the topic.
“Kimberley the workaholic with a kid? Are you kidding me?” Matt laughs.
Despite myself, I find myself laughing along with him. Nothing about Kimberley says maternal. She never hated children, she just hated the idea of having her own. Being tied to a tiny human instead of a desk was never her idea of a life she wanted.
“It was a dumb question,” I admit.
And not at all the one I wanted to ask.
“I wonder how her partner feels about her aversion to kids,” I say.
I was going for casual, but I can hear the tremor in my voice as I say it and I know
Matt must hear it too.
“She hasn’t got a partner currently. And when she finds one, she’s not exactly backwards in coming forwards. I’m sure she’ll make it known early enough in the relationship that if it’s a deal breaker, the guy can flee.”
“Yeah,” I laugh. “Kimberley doesn’t hold back. If she wants something, then everyone knows it. And equally if she doesn’t want something then everyone knows it.”
Like when she no longer wanted me.
I push the thought aside, concentrating instead on the joy of hearing that she’s not taken. Not that it matters. I’m well and truly over Kimberley and I don’t want to go back there. Not even a little bit. I was just curious that’s all.
I try to convince myself my thoughts are true. It’s hard work, but I think if I tell myself it often enough, I can start to believe it. Because no matter what happens, no matter what old feelings hearing Kimberley’s name stirs up inside of me, it’s in the past. She’s in the past. And I won’t risk going there again.
I’ve heard enough and although hearing Kimberley isn’t married stirred a warmth inside of me, a warmth I haven’t felt for a long time, I know the idea of running into her is dangerous. I stand up abruptly.
“Well I best be getting on. Listen Matt, I’m going to organise a business trip out of town.”
“What?” Matt demands.
“You heard me. I don’t need a reminder of the past Matt. I’ll be going somewhere far away and staying gone until Kimberley goes back to wherever the hell she came from.”
Matt jumps up and crosses his office, standing in front of the door so I can’t walk out. What is it with people standing in front of doors today?
“Look Seb, I know I’ve been winding you up about this, but come on. Think rationally. The Benton merger is reliant on you being here and you know it.”
I shrug. I’m really past caring right now.
“You’re not seriously telling me you’re going to leave town and blow a deal this big over some girl are you?” Matt says, an eyebrow raised.
I sigh. He knows exactly which buttons to press in me to get me to come around when it matters. Because he knows as well as I do that I’m not going to do that. I’ve worked too hard on the preliminary stuff for the merger. I can’t just walk away and let it all fall apart now. Losing Natalie’s business was one thing, but losing the Benton merger isn’t something I can come back from.
