by Ella Goode
I lose my appetite at that. Why do I even care if women throw themselves at him? Men never hit on me. Maybe that’s why Bennington caught me off guard. I knew it was his way of trying to get something he wanted but it set me off-kilter.
“Do you think I dress funny?” I ask Trudy as I stand, cleaning up my food. I have my hair pulled back and nestled on top of my head. It’s a wild mass of curls but it’s the only way to keep it out of the way when I work. I basically wear it the same way every day so that it doesn’t bother me.
“You dress normal. Well, your normal.” My normal? What does that mean? She must tell from the look on my face that it hurts my feelings because she goes on. “I just mean you’re always in a tee, yoga pants and sneakers. It’s functional for what you do.”
Trudy is always dressed up but she is in the front with customers more than I am. My clothes often get ruined and snagged so I never put much thought into them. I know I probably look like a hot mess today. I’ve barely slept working on my brother’s ring and getting myself more behind with all of my other work. At least I know now that Mr. Bennington was only hitting on me so that he could get what he wanted from me. Because there is no way he found me remotely attractive in my get-up. Although, he is no one to judge based on his choice of clothing. God, it was so terrible.
“I need sleep and a shower.” I sigh.
“Mape.” Trudy hops up. “You’re beautiful. Don’t let him fuck with your head. That’s what men like him do.”
I know she’s right. What does it matter what I look like? I try to reassure myself. My stupid insecurities try to push through. It wasn't even this morning that I was reminding myself that I’m not looking for a man. Now I can’t stop thinking about one.
I give her a hug. “Thanks.”
“Go.” She pushes me toward the door. “Shower, sleep, read a book.” I pull open the front door knowing she’ll shut the place down.
I make the walk to my place. My feet hurt from all of the standing I did today. I am going to shower then soak in the tub. Hopefully I can manage not to pass out in the process.
“Miss London? Maple London,” a soft voice calls to me. I turn to see an older woman who looks like she’s ready for church. She’s even wearing a flowered hat. She has the nicest smile but it doesn't reach her eyes.
“Yes?” I take a step back, because something feels off.
“You make all the beautiful jewelry?” She beams at me in approval. Still it feels fake.
“That’s me. Can I help you with something?”
“Yes, of course.” She reaches into her purse, pulling out a paper. “You’ve been served.” The smile drops from her face. “Have a good day.” She turns, strolling off.
I stand there in shock for a moment before ripping open the envelope. My mouth falls open when I see who it’s from. It hasn't even been five hours since I saw him last and he’s suing me already! I knew today wasn't the last time I was going to hear from Major Bennington.
I am going to show that man just how much sweetness I really have inside me. He’s going to be sorry he ever walked into my shop when my brother Gavin gets wind of this. I actually chuckle a little to myself because he has no idea what’s coming his way. I’m going to enjoy this more than I should. One arrogant jerk vs another.
Chapter 7
Major
Maple London is beautiful. Magazine, television, runway model beautiful. I bet she stops traffic when she leaves her house. Her brother, Gavin London, hovers protectively over her left shoulder, refusing to sit down. I suppose this is his way of exerting dominance, or, at least, attempting to establish some control in my boardroom.
“What do you think of the view?” I ask, waving my hand toward the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Wall Street.
“Awful. This whole place is awful. It looks like a robot army assembled this soulless place.” She draws her sweater close around her chest and shivers.
Gavin rests a hand on her shoulder and squeezes it. Irritation spikes. My attorney, Rebecca Song, sends me a sharp glare, ordering me to keep silent. I shove my tongue into the side of my cheek so I don’t say anything imprudent.
“The sooner you agree to the terms, the sooner you can leave,” my shark of a lawyer says, honey dripping off of every mean word.
“There’s no basis for this lawsuit and you know it. The minute we get into the courtroom, the judge is going to throw it out,” Gavin growls.
“Judges have been increasingly reluctant to allow bans of any kind in the city. The last time someone refused service, the restaurant had to pay a five-figure fine. Plus, the bad publicity eventually drove the restaurant to close its doors. I don’t want that and neither does Mr. Bennington so let’s come to some agreement.”
“That case involved a gay couple. What’s Mr. Bennington’s protected status?”
“It’s really none of your business.”
“You’ll have to tell us at some point. The court documents don’t allow for secrets.”
While the two lawyers argue, I get up from my seat and approach Maple. She watches warily but doesn’t immediately run off, which I take as a good sign. Rebecca says some legal jargon that has Gavin incensed. Their voices get louder and their sentences more convoluted. I hate the law. I pull out a seat next to Maple.
“I only served you papers because I figured it was the only way you would meet with me,” I admit.
“You weren’t wrong,” she says snippily. Her nose turns up a tiny bit at the end. It’s adorable and I want to kiss it desperately.
“I rarely am. It’s the one thing my sister hates about me so whenever she asks me to do her a favor, I always say yes. In this case, she wanted a particular piece of jewelry from our mother’s latest obsession. My sister, Julia, couldn’t come because she broke her ankle trying to skateboard last week.”
“This is the third story you’ve told to try to get a piece of jewelry from me.” The air is still frosty although I don’t know if it’s her or the two lawyers going at it. “First you were married and then it was for your mother.”
“I believe I’ve always maintained it was for my mother.”
Her nose goes up even higher. “Trudy could tell you were a fake a mile away. Look at you now.”
I peer down at my three-piece dark blue suit and the navy on white striped tie tucked into my vest. “I’m wearing a suit,” I acknowledge. “Your brother is wearing one, too.”
“You weren’t the other day.”
“That’s true. I was wearing some godawful thing that my sister thought would appeal to you.”
“Trudy was right to turn you away. You just wanted something you couldn’t get by being yourself.” Her sincerity is a turn-on even if her assumptions about me are totally off-base. She believes in something and that’s damn sexy. Plus, she knows what she wants, which is also arousing. When she wants you, she wants you wholly and completely. I just need to become the object of her desire.
Figuring out how will take time, but as with anything I want, I’m willing to put in the labor. That’s how I built this investment firm from a small seed gifted by my grandfather into the empire it is today.
The thing is that she’s determined to dislike me, or avoid me, and neither of those things are going to work. For the time being, I need to be in close proximity to her, so if that means rigging up a ridiculous lawsuit that I’ll lose, so be it. It’s not like I care about the money that Rebecca’s going to charge. She’s got a cat she has to support anyway.
“You’re right and Trudy was right. That day I was pretending to be some granola hipster in an effort to do my sister a solid. Wouldn’t you do anything for your brother?”
Maple’s certainty starts to crack. She understands sibling love. I can work with that. I press my small advantage. “My sister—”
“Don’t say another word,” Gavin thunders. He has suddenly discovered I am about two inches from his sister’s face. I throw Rebecca a disappointed look. She shrugs sheepishly as if to say sh
e kept him occupied for as long as possible. He grabs Maple’s arm and tugs her to her feet.
“Let’s go, Maple. They have a shit lawsuit and they know it. I have no idea why they’re pursuing this asinine thing but we’ll get it thrown out.” He whips his briefcase off the table and hauls Maple toward the door.
I squeeze my jaw tight so I don’t yell at him. Maple clearly loves her brother and since I want to get into her good graces, insulting her brother isn’t going to help my cause.
With an exaggerated sigh and a flick of my cuffs, I drawl lazily, “It doesn’t matter how many times you win in court, Gavin. I’ve got deep pockets and Rebecca is very good at coming up with creative arguments. You might as well give in now and save yourself a thousand headaches. I can keep you all in court for years.”
Maple throws her hands up in the air. “What is it that you want from me?”
“Everything,” I reply. “But for now I’ll settle for one necklace made while I watch.”
Chapter 8
Maple
What an arrogant jerk, I think to myself as we walk out of his boardroom. I can feel his eyes burning a hole in my back. I’m grateful that Gavin broke up our conversation when he did. Two seconds more and I would have given in to him. Those green eyes had put me under a spell, no matter how hard I tried to resist. He must have seen how close I am to my brother, so he used the whole sibling thing to try to get me to cave. What I don’t understand is why he is going through all of this trouble. I mean, could someone be that full of themselves that they couldn’t go on living because they didn’t get their way? It’s completely mind boggling which is becoming a problem within itself. It’s all I think about. I’m getting nothing done.
“They’ll never win,” Gavin reassures me as he hits the button for the elevator. I know he’s right. This lawsuit is ridiculous.
“But he’s right, isn’t he?” I step onto the elevator with Gavin. I look up to see Major watching us, his eyes locked on mine as the door slides closed. My heart gives a funny pang as he leaves my line of sight and the elevator descends.
“Yeah.” He lets out a long sigh, the one he usually gives when he knows he’s going in for a long battle. “His lawyer Rebecca is no joke.”
“I kinda liked her,” I admit. She was sharp and I’d caught on to her steering Gavin’s attention toward her in order to allow Major to slide in to try and sweettalk me. It was all sneaky and underhanded but I give her credit for being good at what she does.
“Of course you did.” Gavin lets out a chuckle. “You cannot be her friend,” he throws in there.
“I kept picturing the Trinity piece that I made last month on her wrist.” Not all of my jewelry is custom made for specific people. Sometimes I get inspired to craft something so I do it on a whim. I usually name the piece and put it away for safekeeping. I always know who it belongs to the moment I meet the person. The Trinity bracelet is meant to be Rebecca’s. The heavy metals wind together to become one but each of them represent three very distinct things.
“Maple,” Gavin groans, tilting his head back to look at the elevator ceiling.
“What? I can’t help it!” I defend. “Why does she have to work for such a jerk?”
“’Cause that asshole might be just that, an asshole, but he has money. I bet he throws it around at some big charities. He’s a respected asshole, which makes him even more dangerous.”
I scrunch my nose, not sure how to process all of this.
“To be honest I don’t think people are used to him being an asshole because they don’t tell him no, ever. So he doesn’t have to pull that card out,” my brother says as if I’ve done something to bring this out of Major Bennington.
“Oh. So I’m the special someone that makes him that way. How delightful.” I roll my eyes.
“You’re a challenge. He’s bored and rich and someone is telling him no. He’s got nothing better to do.”
“Except waste your time.” We step off the elevator together. “He can do what he’s threatening. Bring lawsuit after lawsuit. Eating away at your time,” I remind Gavin. Of course he doesn’t charge me but it is still his time that he could be with other clients or with his new fiancé planning their wedding. Time is money and technically Mr. Bennington is eating into my brother’s and will keep doing so until I relent. I can’t allow this to go on. I know Gavin will do this for me until I put a stop to it.
“Can you find out about his mother and sister for me?”
Gavin stops walking to turn and look down at me.
“You’re not making that asshole shit.” I can tell this is going to be a fight. If I were to do it, I am going to have to go around my brother without him knowing.
“I could make him shit. He didn’t specify what the necklace has to be made of.” I shrug my shoulders, teasing Gavin. That gets me a smile and a small chuckle. “Can you get some information on them for me?” This isn’t something I normally do but I am having a harder time than normal reading Major. I get glimpses of a sweet man only to be pulled back to his arrogant self. It is all a façade. I need the truth before I can even continue to entertain the possibility of doing this.
“His father is a bigger asshole than him if you can even believe that's possible. Left the mom for some nineteen-year-old girl. Word is she stopped going to functions and has become a recluse.” My heart feels sad for her. “Twenty-something years of marriage and he walks away for some young thing that didn’t last. I heard she dumped him last week.”
“That sounds sad all around for everyone.” Of course it’s the hardest for Major’s mom, but to have your parents split up and watch your mom go through that must be hard. No wonder they are trying so hard to do something to cheer her up. That’s if what Gavin is saying is all true. You never know with gossip. I might have to do some peeking around myself.
“You’re still not making him anything.”
“It isn’t for him. It’s for his mother,” I remind Gavin. The thought of being married to someone for so long and them walking away so easily scares the crap out of me. I’m not sure I would have the heart to take such a loss.
“Maybe she shouldn’t have raised such a dick and he could have gotten her a necklace no problem.”
I smack Gavin’s arm. “You’re a jerk sometimes too.”
He smirks as if I’m complimenting him.
“Come on, we’re going to lunch. I want more information on the Bennington family.”
“I’m picking.”
“Whatever.” I roll my eyes. He never likes the restaurants I pick.
We head out of the building together. Gavin holds open the town car door for me, telling the driver where to take us before sliding in behind me.
He shifts to look at me. “Be straight with me.” I know this tone. It’s not his lawyer one or his teasing one. This is his older brother tone. “You want information on the Benningtons or are you fishing for stuff on Major?”
My cheeks warm.
“Fucking hell,” he grumbles.
“He’s handsome. I can’t help it!” I jerk my seatbelt on angrily. I’m upset with myself for being lured in by those stupid green eyes. Especially when his eyes get all soft when he talks about his sister. Dang him. “Okay. I admit it. I want to know more about Major too.” I lean back in my seat. “But if what you say is true about his mother, that her heart is broken and I can do something to help heal it, I’ll make her a necklace. But I need to know more about her.”
“So we’re going to give in to what this asshat wants?”
“See, this is where we differ Gavin. Yes, I think Major is an asshole but I won’t let that stop me from doing something nice for his mom. Sometimes we can’t help who we’re related to.” I smirk at him. He narrows his eyes on me. I crack a smile about the same time he does.
“It’s not just about the necklace, Maple. He wants you too.”
“We can’t all have what we want, now can we? I’ll give him his necklace but that’s all he’ll be getting from me.
” I am firmly hoping that I didn’t just make a liar out of myself.
Chapter 9
Major
“You win,” Rebecca sighs.
“You’re my attorney. You should be celebrating.” I know I am. I shove my arms into my gray suit coat, double check my wallet is in my breast pocket and breeze out of my office. “I’m out for the rest of the day,” I tell my assistant, Jason. “Please don’t lose three million dollars like you did the last time I left the shop unattended.”
“I thought you said buy, not goodbye,” he says.
“Don’t sell or buy anything and we will be good.”
“Even if the market crashes?”
“Especially if the market crashes.” If the market does crash, as it threatens to do every damn day given the political climate, I will have to return to the office, but that’s the only thing that’s getting me back here today and hopefully for the rest of the week.
“I thought you fired that guy,” Rebecca grouses in my ear. “I hate how many chances you give people.”
“People who make mistakes are less likely to repeat them.” Take me, for example. I’m never listening to my sister’s fashion advice again. My private elevator dings and I step inside. One of the perks of being the owner of this building is that even though I’m on the top floor of this high-rise, I never have to wait for anything, including a ride down to my car.
“Not true at all. Your endless faith in humankind is disturbing. I hope you know this.”
“Rebecca, you have been my legal counsel for almost a decade and you remind me of it almost daily, so I do know.”
She grumbles something unintelligible under her breath, but I can guess it’s something along the lines of Why do I put up with this dumbass? or I do not make enough money for this.
“Also, if you think I should always be firing people who make mistakes, why is it a bad thing when I’ve won again?”
