“Hey,” I say, wanting to let him know I’m here.
He doesn’t respond. He just keeps his head down, reading over the paperwork.
“Look, man,” I start as I walk closer to his desk. He still doesn’t look my way.
“Your sister and I, it wasn’t planned. I’d never do something like this to you intentionally.”
His head pops up. “How did it even begin, Cal? Because last I knew, you wanted to fire her.”
I collapse in the seat across from his desk. “It started that weekend she went to the club. Nothing happened between us, but something changed then. Suddenly, she wasn’t annoying or trying to ruin my life. When we stopped trying to get at one another, we were able to start a friendship. We found we had a lot of things in common. I just, I got to see her in a different light, I guess. That’s when the dreams started. I had these dreams that we were together, like a couple, and I was happy. I can still remember the tingling in my chest from it. Seeing her smile made my heart pound. I told myself no, I did everything I could to get her out of my head, but nothing worked. I knew that I couldn’t have the same relationship with her. I kicked her out of my office so I didn’t have to look up and see her. I tried being with other women as a way to replace what I really wanted. Nothing worked, and that’s why I was going to fire her. I knew that if I couldn’t keep my hands to myself, I wouldn’t be able to be near her. So I did. I fired her, and then she stormed my house and demanded an answer. All I was trying to do is to get some space to let the feelings pass, but she wouldn’t allow space. That’s the night everything started.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asks, seeming to relax a little.
I shrug. “Neither of us even knew what we were doing. At first, we both thought it was a one-time thing, but then it was like we took turns running to each other. I wanted to commit, and she was scared to. I knew it wouldn’t be cool with you if we were just fucking around. I wanted to wait until we were in a good place.”
“Are you telling me that you and Val, you’re in a real relationship?”
I nod. “Neither of us have even looked at anyone else in over a month. She’s the one I want, period. I’m going to marry her one day, Ben.”
He nods once. “Okay. Hearing all this, it does make it a bit easier to accept, but Cal, I’m still not happy about it. I’m just going to need some time to adjust and accept this. But now, we have to figure out how in the hell to save this account.” He shakes his head and begins rubbing his temples.
The doors open and Levi, the company lawyer, walks in. “How the hell did you lose a twenty million-dollar account, Ben?” he asks around a smile.
I raise my hand. “It may have been my fault,” I say.
Levi looks at me, smile still in place as he holds out his hand to shake. “Callan, how’ve you been?”
I shrug and shake his hand. “I’ve been better, as you can imagine.”
He laughs and slips off his jacket. “Move, Ben. Let me look over everything.”
Bennet stands up and lets Levi sit down at the desk. “If you can get me out of this one, Levi, you get a bonus,” he says around his smile.
Levi winks. “Bennet don’t worry, you know there’s a clause that protects the company from this kind of reckless behavior. If he doesn’t want to take his money out he’ll either pay you a very hefty fine or he’ll be hit with a lawsuit. Don’t worry about it, I’ll go through the contract.”
Bennet walks over to the drink cart and motions for me to follow him. I stand up and walk across the room, wanting to leave Levi alone so he can figure a way out of this mess.
Bennet pours two drinks and hands me one before we sit in the seating section of his office.
“I’m sorry about all this, man,” I tell him, once again.
He waves a hand through the air, dismissing my apologizes. “If that had been Maddie and me, I would’ve reacted the same way. That’s just another reason why you two should’ve come clean. I mean, do I seem like a total douche to you? I don’t understand why you didn’t tell me. Were you afraid I’d fire you? Did you think I had the power to make her break up with you?”
I laugh. “Honestly, I thought you’d kick my ass with them boxing skills. Then run me over with a race car.”
He laughs but remembers we need to be quiet for Levi to concentrate. He takes a sip of his drink. “It’s kind of cool, actually. I mean, if you two are as committed as you say you are. It’d be nice to have my best friend as a brother in law.”
I sit up, resting my elbows on my knees as I hold my glass with two hands. “I’m dead serious, Ben. She’s it for me.”
He smiles. “Good, but I’ll tell ya the same thing Damon told me when he found out about Maddie and me.”
“What’s that?”
“You break her heart, I’ll kill ya.” His green eyes seem to darken, and his smile falls.
I hold out my hand to shake. “It’ll never happen,” I promise.
That seems to be all we need to break the ice. The rest of the afternoon, we sit back and chat while Levi does his best to get us out of the mess we’re in. We talk about him and Maddie, me and Val, and trips we can take as a couple—he even offers to rent the yacht he and Maddie sailed away on for three months.
Looking back now, it seems silly not telling him. While we both had the time of our lives hiding our secret relationship for a month, this seems even better. Now, we can leave the house. We can go to dinner and hold hands, kiss, and dance like a real couple instead of two business partners having a meeting over a meal. I can go to her family functions and don’t have to worry about slipping up and saying the wrong thing. Everything just seems like it will be so much easier now.
“Has your mom been told about us yet?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “I talked to her this morning and told her about this account, just so she feels left in the loop. I mean, it’s not anyone’s fault we’re about to lose it. This kid is irresponsible and just wanting money since his dad passed. His dad may have left him a billion dollar estate but the trust has some serious strings attached so he can’t touch it at the moment. But, I didn’t tell her about you and Val. I figured that would be for you two to do. I don’t see her having a problem with it, though. She’s always loved you. You know that.”
I smile and nod, happy that nobody will be in our way. Now, we can just be together. We’re free to fall deeper in love, to get married, have children, do whatever we want with the rest of our lives. It’s funny, before Val, I never wanted marriage or kids or anything to do with being a responsible adult. But now, all I want is her, and I’ll do anything, give her anything, to keep her at my side.
“Found something,” Levi says, interrupting my thoughts.
Bennet stands and practically runs back to his desk. He places one hand flat on the top as he leaves over and reads the documents.
“I knew your dad had to have snuck something in here to prevent losing that much in one quarter.”
Bennet looks up at me, eyes wide and brows arched high. “There’s a clause. He can only take a quarter of his money every three months until the funds are paid. It’ll take him a year to get all the money, and I have a feeling that after the first one or two withdraws, he’ll get bored and forget about it completely.”
I stand up with a smile. “Excellent.”
“Now, it’s time to contact his lawyer,” Bennet says, picking up the phone.
It takes several hours of talking on the phone, but we finally get the message across. The contract we have is ironclad, and there’s no getting out of it. For now, Geo is only able to take a quarter of his money, which pacifies Bennet.
When everything is done, the three of us stand and shake hands.
“How about we all go grab some dinner and a drink?” Bennet asks. “On me for all of your hard work on a Saturday.”
We all agree and head down the street for some BBQ. We’re seated at a table on the quiet side of the restaurant. It seems that half the restaurant is a bar with a liv
e band playing. The other side is an actual restaurant. I slide into the booth and Bennet takes the seat next to me while Levi sits across from us. Before picking up a menu, I send Val a text.
We’re done for the night, but Bennet insisted on buying us dinner and drinks. I’ll be home soon. I love you.
I slide my phone into my pocket and pick up the menu just as the waitress is heading over.
“What can I get ya’ll to drink tonight?” she asks in her Southern drawl.
“I think I’ll take an Old Fashioned,” I order as I start to check out the menu.
The other two guys place their drink orders, and the waitress walks away to fill them.
“Levi, thank you for helping us out today on such short notice,” Bennet says.
Levi waves his hand through the air. “It’s not a problem. That’s what I’m here for.”
“Well, I’m sure you had something better to do on a Saturday night,” Bennet says.
“Nah, not really. Me and my buddy, Nick, were just going to order some food, grab some beer, and sit on his couch and watch the game. But I’m not exactly upset that I missed it.”
“Hell, that sounds like a good time to me,” Bennet replies, bumping my elbow with his. I nod my head in agreement.
“Me and Nick, we haven’t been in the same place lately. He’s really changing and getting on my nerves. The only reason he even invited me is because I’ve been dodging him lately.”
Bennet looks over at me. “Sounds like us recently, huh?”
The waitress comes back with our drinks, and I don’t waste any time in picking mine up and swallowing down a gulp.
Levi laughs and takes a swig of his drink. “What’s going on with you two? Haven’t you been like best friends since childhood?”
I pick up my drink. “I’ve been dating his little sister behind his back,” I say, wanting to admit it before he can call me out.
“Oh,” Levi says, eyes widening with surprise.
Bennet smiles and nods. “Yeah, nice, huh?” He takes a drink. “So, what’s going on with you and Nick?”
Levi suddenly looks nervous as he puts all of his attention on the glass between his two hands. “Honestly, I don’t even know. He got this job on Wall Street, and he’s just been slowly changing for months now. He used to be cool and laid back, but now all he cares about is money and his social status. His girlfriend, Danielle, she’s beautiful and amazing—they’ve been together for years—he’s suddenly treating her like shit. And now, it’s at the point where I feel like she’s my friend too, and I hate watching her get talked down to by him. It pisses me off just having to be around them,” he confesses.
“You got a thing for this girl, don’t ya?” I ask, already picking up on the issue.
He shakes his head. “No, it’s not like that. She’s just been around for years, and I’ve grown to like her as a friend. I mean, if you have a friend that’s a girl, and you had to sit and watch as her boyfriend called her names and cheated on her, how would you feel?”
I hold up my hands, showing him my palms. “Hey, I’m right there with you. I just think it’s bothering you as much as it is because you secretly have a thing for her. And either way, you’re fucked. You steal her away, you have to deal with him. If you wait for them to break up, and then you two get together, that’s a problem too. Bro code and all.” I laugh.
He nods and opens his mouth to say something else, but the waitress is back and ready to take our order.
Levi and Bennet start placing their order, and I pull out my phone to see that Val still hasn’t texted me back. Again, I type out another message.
Hey, are you okay? Are you mad at me for being out so late? I’m sorry, it wasn’t planned. Please, answer me.
I set the phone down on the table next to me so I’ll see it light up when she replies.
“How about you, dear?” the waitress asks me.
“I’ll take a BBQ sandwich with honey-buffalo sauce, some baked beans, slaw, and onion rings.”
We all put our menus away, and the two other guys carry on with their conversations, but I’m too distracted by my phone and wondering why Val hasn’t answered me.
17
Valerie
Krista and I get in my car and she gives me directions to the party. The house is outside of the city, in the suburbs, which means the traffic leaving the city will probably hold us up a good hour—something completely fine by me because I’m not exactly in a hurry to get to a party I’d rather not go to. On the ride, we sit in the car and talk about nothing. We listen to music and sing along with the radio. Finally, there’s a break in traffic, and she directs me the rest of the way. I pull onto the road the house is on, and cars are lined up and down the side street. We have to walk almost a block, but finally the house comes into view. I know which one it is based on the crowd on the lawn along with the mix of red plastic cups littering the bushes.
My feet stop walking on their own. “I don’t know about this, Kris. I mean, this party looks a little wild.”
She grabs my wrist and pulls me forward. “It’s not wild. We can’t hear the music from here, and there’s no sign of people fucking on the lawn. This is one of the more mellow parties we’ve gone to. Come on.” She wraps her arm around my shoulders, keeping me close to her side.
It feels like the second we step onto the lawn, everyone is looking at us.
“Come on, let’s go inside,” Kris says, releasing me.
I follow along behind her, up across the lawn, up the front porch, and into the house.
“Hey, baby,” some guy says as we walk past, but I don’t turn around or acknowledge him in any way.
Walking into the house, the loud techno music fills my ears, and it causes my heart to start pounding. Every inch of the place is crowded with people dancing, couples making out, or groups standing around talking and drinking. She leads me through the entryway, into the dining room, and kitchen, and out to the fenced-in backyard. There’s a massive pool that has people swimming in it, kegs all along the fence, and the pool house has smoke escaping the windows and doors.
“There’s Gemma,” Kris says, rushing to a woman that’s wearing nothing but a white bikini and heels. She’s surrounded by good-looking men, and her hair and makeup are done to perfection. It’s easy to tell that she isn’t dressed this way to swim. She’s just looking for attention.
Kris quickly gives her a hug, and they catch up while I stand back with my arms crossed. I don’t know why, but I feel awkward—it’s like this is my first party.
“I brought Valerie with me,” Kris says, turning to look over her shoulder at me.
I smile and wave.
“What are you doing back there? Come say hi,” Kris yells.
I close the distance between us and shake her hand. “How are you?” I ask to be polite.
She smiles. “Really good. Thanks for coming. There’s alcohol all over this house. Help yourself.”
“Thanks, but I don’t drink. I was just bringing Kris, and she talked me into coming in for a sec.”
“You’re more than welcome to stay. The more the merrier…until the cops get called anyway,” she laughs out.
I force a smile and nod my head.
“Let’s go find me a drink,” Kris says, wrapping her hand around the crook of my arm and leading me off to a keg.
We wait in line until she’s handed a red cup, then we take a seat at a patio table.
“Have you seen Scott yet?” I ask, praying that she has so I can get out of here.
She shakes her head and takes a drink. “Not yet. You’ll just have to hang out a little bit longer.” She smiles wide, causing me to roll my eyes.
We sit and talk while watching everyone at the party do ridiculous things like keg stands. They jump in the pool, play beer pong, and play flip cup. After a couple hours of this, the party gets even crazier. People are now making out and dry humping one another in the outdoor lounge chairs, the music goes from loud to louder, and everyone i
s stumbling into things, slurring their words, fighting, crying, or puking. Finally, I’ve had enough.
“Sorry, Kris. But I have to go. Callan will be getting home soon, and we have plans of our own.” I quickly stand up.
Her smile falls. “Really? Already? It’s not even ten yet,” she complains.
I shake my head. “I’m sorry, but this doesn’t do it for me. I don’t like drinking or partying anymore. And I can’t get it out of my head that someone is watching me. I’ve felt it all night. The hairs on the back of my neck haven’t laid down since we walked in here.”
She holds out her arms for a hug.
“Do you want a ride home?” I ask, hugging her.
She shakes her head. “Scott will be here soon, and if not, I’ll crash with Gemma. But thanks for hanging out with me though.”
I smile as I pull away. “Of course.”
“Do you want me to walk you out?” she asks, standing up but falling back into her seat.
“No, please don’t move…for the rest of the night. I don’t want your drunk ass falling into the pool and drowning,” I joke.
She laughs. “Call me tomorrow.”
“I will,” I promise, smiling and waving as I turn around to leave.
Walking out of the house, I take the same route. I walk through the kitchen, dining room, entryway, and out the front door, where there’s a ton of people drinking on the porch and lawn.
“There she is. I was wondering when I’d be seeing you again,” a guy says as I walk down the steps.
Again, I ignore him and keep walking. I take my keys from my pocket and realize that I left my cell in my car. I wrap my arms around myself as I push myself down the sidewalk as quickly as possible. The further away from the house I get, the darker the street gets, and the quieter the night becomes. Before I can reach my car, I can no longer hear the party, and my racing heart begins to calm, but the hairs on my neck still aren’t laying down.
I hear the sound of a twig snapping, and I inhale quickly as I spin around to see where the noise came from. I see nothing but grass, trees, and shrubbery. A long breath leaves me, and I shake my head at myself.
My Boss’s Sister: Make Her Mine Series-Book 3 Page 11
