I have what matters, and tonight, she’ll be in my arms again.
“Good morning, Mr. Ward!” Joanna seems more cheerful than normal. Maybe it’s just a reflection of my own view of the world right now.
“Morning.” I take my coffee from her and nod.
“Dan is waiting in your office.” She motions in that direction.
“Thanks.” I sigh.
I know why Dan is waiting in my office. He’s obviously not happy about Jack’s account. I’ll have to deal with it as tactfully as possible.
“Good morning, Dan.” I step into my office and close the door.
“Ten percent!” Dan throws his arms up. “That’s how much money Jack lost when the market opened this morning. Ten percent of his fucking investment!” Dan taps his tablet. “Wait, no—I’m sorry. Now it’s twelve percent!”
“Pennies in the bucket for him, I’m sure.” I sigh and sit down. “We’ll probably have to ride this out for a couple of days before we try to talk some sense into Jack.”
“By then he may be down fifty percent!” Dan throws his arms up again. It’s an exaggeration; at least, I sure as fuck hope it’s an exaggeration.
“We need his money. Ninety percent is better than nothing—fifty percent is better than nothing.” I take a sip of my coffee and put the cup down on my desk.
“I know we do. I just wish he would let us make him some money instead of lose it.” Dan stands up. “Sorry. That’s my vent session for today.”
“I understand.” I give him a nod. “At least you’ve got plenty of other accounts to keep you busy, so you don’t have to spend all day obsessing over Jack’s losses.”
“I’m going to do that regardless,” he mutters as he walks to the door.
Dan doesn’t like losing money. It’s a good philosophy to have when turning a profit for others is how you stay in business. I don’t like it either, but there is a finesse to using other people’s money to keep your company afloat. A lost investor is a lot worse than a few percentage points that aren’t in your favor because the stock market, or the company you’re invested in, took a nosedive.
The relationships are more important than the dollars—sometimes.
With Dan’s morning meltdown out of the way, I turn my attention to the other parts of the business that need my involvement. It’s nothing major, and my mind wanders to Kiana every time I try to focus elsewhere. Home is where I truly want to be, where she is, or at least where she will be later tonight.
“Mr. Ward.” Joanna pushes my door open.
“Yeah?” I look up from my computer.
“Um.” She steps in my office and closes the door. “You have a visitor.”
“Oh?” I immediately expect it to be Kiana. Why? I’m not sure, but she’s the only one who would stop by unannounced.
“It’s…” Joanna’s words hesitate in a way that makes me worry. “It’s Mr. Brooks.”
“Lawson?” I blink in surprise.
“Yes, sir. He said he needs to talk to you.” She nods.
“Well…” I sigh. “Okay, send him in.”
I grip the edge of my desk, and my heart begins to race the moment Joanna leaves my office. I have no idea why Lawson is here. Does he know about Kiana? Did he find out that she’s spent more time in my bed than her own the last two days?
I’m not afraid of Lawson. I could take him in a fight, but how honorable would it be to beat the shit out of Kiana’s father because he found out about our relationship? I’m not that much of an asshole.
Besides, I don’t think he would give Joanna time to come talk to me if that was the case. He would come through my door with so much fury on his breath that the hinges would come off when he slammed it—if he even bothered to close the door before he came across my desk.
No, that can’t be it.
There has to be another reason that he’s here.
The door opens, and I don’t draw an easy breath until I see that there is no rage burning in Lawson’s eyes. “Hi, Bram. It’s been a while. Thank you for meeting with me.”
“Hey.” I nod. “It has been a while.”
The last time I saw my best friend was the day he signed the paperwork to sell me his share of our company. That feels like a lifetime ago, even if it’s only been five years.
“How have you been? How’s the family?” He closes my door, and I notice that there is a troubled look on his face.
“Good,” I reply with a statement that is as general as possible. “What brings you to my office today?”
Today. Ever. I didn’t think I’d see him in this building again.
“I wish I was here under different circumstances.” He fidgets, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together. It’s one of his ticks. It used to be close to the top of the list of things I hate, but it’s fallen off in recent years since I don’t see it every day. “I’ll just come out and say it. Bram, I need your help. Can you spare a few minutes for an old friend?”
My help? Friend? I didn’t expect either of those things to come out of his mouth when he walked in.
“Of course.” I nod and feel my pulse return to normal. “Have a seat.”
“Thanks.” He sighs and walks toward my desk.
With anyone else, I would sit behind my desk to maintain that illusion of power. That was one of my father’s lessons, one of the few I listened to. I can’t do that with Lawson. We may not be in the same place we once were, but I still have some respect for the man I used to know; although it’s dwindled after hearing how he treated Kiana. Still, we’ve been through a lot, so I owe him my time, at the very least.
“What’s going on?” I slide the chair next to Lawson out and turn it toward him before I sit down.
“Well…” He begins fidgeting again. “I may have misjudged my financial situation when I decided to sell my portion of the company and retire…”
Misjudged? No. You became an enabler for your asshole son who kept gambling until you couldn’t pay his debts anymore, then that fell to your daughter.
But I can’t say any of that. There’s no way for me to know.
“Really?” I pretend to be surprised.
“Yeah. What can I say? I got two kids and a wife with expensive tastes.” He grimaces, but smiles; it seems to be so easy for him to lie. Then again, we’re both lying through our teeth right now.
“Your expenses have always been rather high.” I nod as if I’m agreeing with him.
“Bottom line, Bram? I need a job. Something to get me out of the house every day, if nothing else. The extra money won’t hurt, obviously.” His smile might as well be plastic.
“A job!?” I exhale sharply.
I didn’t see that coming. I was expecting him to ask me for a loan or something.
“Come on, man. I know you could use my help. I hear things…” He leans back in his chair.
Yeah. People talk. He’s still got friends here at the company, even if he abandoned them all when he left. Fuck.
“Plus, I miss you. If I’m being honest. I hate how we left things...” He looks down and sighs.
“How you left things.” It’s an instant reaction, not the carefully worded response I should have given him, but I can’t take it back once I say it.
“I know. It’s my fault. I had my reasons.” He sighs again and brings his hands together.
“I’m sure you did.” I narrow my eyes.
I know what they are. Every fucking one of the details. I shouldn’t, but I’m more involved than he realizes. I was the one who had to clean up his mess after he blew his fortune to keep Hudson’s head attached to his neck. Now Lawson is sitting in front of me with his proverbial hat in his hand—fidgeting.
“I know it may be awkward at first, especially between the two of us, but I believe we can get this company back to where it used to be. I’ll put in the time—I’ll put in the work. You have my word on that.” He nods with his usual glare of assurance.
“Things are different now, Lawson.” I look down
for a moment.
More than he realizes. More than I want him to realize—especially right now. If he finds out that I’m involved with his daughter, then the business relationship will be the last thing on his mind.
On top of that, I’m still pissed off. Not just because of how he left things when he sold me his shares—I know what was going on behind closed doors at his house. I know how he was treating his family. But, at the end of the day, the man in front of me is the same man who served beside me in the desert. He watched my back. That’s not something I can just ignore, and I can’t turn him away, no matter how complicated bringing him back to the company will make things.
“Please, Bram. I don’t deserve a second chance after I left you high and dry, but I still consider you a friend. I hope you feel the same.” His jaw quivers and he fidgets faster, a sure sign he’s nervous.
“Yeah.” I nod. “I do.”
Fuck. It’s the truth, no matter what he’s done.
He won’t call me friend for long—not after he finds out about Kiana. I just can’t turn him away when he’s literally begging for me to be his saving grace. He has no idea what I’ve already done to protect his family, but that probably won’t matter when he finds out I claimed his daughter’s innocence.
“Then do you have an office for me?” He raises his eyebrows hopefully.
“Your old one is still empty.” I sigh. “I never felt right giving it to anyone else—it’s not like we needed the room. We had to let a few people go after you left.”
Lawson extends his hand. I shake it. The deal is made. It’s probably temporary, just a brief moment where he thinks everything is going to be okay before the other shoe drops.
“Thank you. I promise I’ll do everything I can to earn this.” A smile finally forms on the edge of his lips. “I assume I can start today?”
“Sure.” I exhale sharply. “I’ll have Joanna contact HR to make the arrangements.”
He may be starting today, but there’s still a lot to work out. Salary. Accounts. Rules that I’ve put in place since he’s left to make sure we don’t have to call Keaton every time a high-profile client is in town. Things will never be the way they once were. I’m literally playing with fire right now, but I don’t have a choice. The last thing I expected was for Lawson to walk through my door today. The only thing I can do is find a way to make it work—for now.
But I have to tell Kiana…
That’s going to be the hardest part. I have no idea how she’ll take the news. I assume she still loves her father despite everything he’s done. If he’s here, then he has no other way to provide for his family. I don’t think Kiana wants her parents to lose their home or starve because they handled their money poorly. She doesn’t have an ounce of cruelty in her, so I believe she’ll understand—but will we survive it?
It was easy to pretend that we were living in a bubble and our relationship was safely within the sphere. Now there is one giant pin ready to pop it. The pin could be pushed in by Lawson, or Kiana herself. Her father working for me again will be a constant reminder that the girl in my bed is my best friend’s daughter.
I won’t hide from it.
I’m falling for Kiana. The only way for our relationship to move from forbidden to real is to confront the problem head on. Maybe the problem could have been danced around like an elephant in the room we ignored when Lawson Brooks was safe behind those closed doors Kiana learned to despise. It won’t be possible now. I’m man enough to tell him how I feel about daughter, but I’m not the only one who will be impacted by that discussion.
I have to tell Kiana the truth and let her decide what is best—when it is best. The sooner the better if she feels what I feel. I’ll deal with the repercussions. Lawson won’t want to work with me, or for me, when he finds out what has been going on while his attention was elsewhere. At least he won’t ever know that his daughter was dancing on a stage. I’ve saved them both that heartache, even if I don’t get to hold her in my arms when everything is brought to light.
I’ll tell her tonight.
I hate it, especially after the emotional unraveling she experienced when we were in bed last night. Part of me that wants to ignore it, but I know that isn’t the right thing to do. Every day that passes will make it more difficult to hide, more difficult to explain when the truth is finally revealed. Kiana may not be brave enough to face it, and that may be our undoing. I hope it isn’t. I’ll endure Lawson’s hatred if it means I get his daughter’s love in return. It’s one heartbreak or the other, and my choice is easy.
I choose her.
Now. Forever. Even if it costs me my oldest friend.
Chapter Seventeen
Bram
My life wasn’t the one that needed to be saved, but I feel like I’m breathing new air. I can taste my freedom, and it’s the sweetest oxygen that has ever filled my lungs. It’s because of Bram. He’s the reason I no longer feel like I’m going to asphyxiate on my own breath or something far more putrid.
Hudson is safe. I’m safe. The disappointment my parents used to control me is no longer a vice that keeps me from living my own life. I was a fool to even let that part of my past exist in my present once I left home. I had my own apartment, paid my own bills, and I still felt trapped inside an invisible prison. Hudson’s debt took center stage when I should have been exploring the life I was meant to have.
Now I can. I have Bram to thank for that.
And I plan to show him a lot more gratitude than tears tonight.
After Bram leaves for work, I find myself alone in his house. I could stay here, but I really do need to go to my apartment to handle a few things. There are bills to be paid, and a change of clothes would be nice.
The taxi picks me up in front of Bram’s house, and the ride to my apartment feels more liberating than ever. There are some things to sort out. I’m having fun with Bram, but I will need to look for another source of income soon. The only good part of it is that I do have a little money in reserve—money that would have gone to Mr. Diaz as soon as it was time for the next payment.
I should save what I have, but it has been so long since I’ve bought something for myself that I decide to spend some time downtown before I return to Bram’s house. I do some window shopping, some actual shopping, and get back to his place with time to spare. That gives me an hour or so to relax. When I finally hear his car outside, my heart literally skips a couple of beats—like it used to do when he would show up at my parents’ house when I was younger.
“Welcome home.” I smile when he walks through the door and pull the bathrobe I’m wearing tight around my body.
“Hey.” He exhales sharply and closes the door.
“Is something wrong?” I tilt my head slightly as I walk toward him.
“I had an interesting day at the office.” He shakes his head. “We should talk about it.”
“I don’t want to talk.” I look up at him and grin. “There’s something else I want to do a whole lot more.”
I pull the tie that is holding my bathrobe in place and give him a glimpse of what I’m wearing under it. His eyes open wide at the sight of my outfit—one that is damn close to what I wore every time I took the stage at Max’s club.
“Damn.” He puts a hand on the fold of my bathrobe and takes a closer look.
“Are you sure you want to talk right now?” I slide part of the bathrobe off my shoulder and let it cascade down my body.
“We really should…” A gasp echoes in his throat.
“We could talk later.” My grin gets a little more devious. “I was a very bad girl today while you were at work, and my behavior needs to be addressed immediately. Don’t you think so, Daddy?”
Bram lets his hand slowly slide along the fold of the bathrobe, and it falls to the floor at my feet. If Bram had something to talk to me about, it fades away in the heat of the moment. Nothing that happens at the office can be that important anyway—not for us, at least. I would normally be happy to le
t him vent, but I can think of something else that will take his mind off the office.
Something that should’ve happened last night, before my emotional moment ruined everything.
“Yes.” Bram finally seems to let go of whatever it is he wants to talk about. “Your naughty behavior definitely needs to be addressed…”
Bram’s lips find mine. He kisses me tenderly at first, and then it becomes more forceful. His tongue begins to ravage my mouth as we make our way to the stairs and rapidly ascend them.
I don’t feel the need to bring the fire out of him like I did last night. It’s a different kind of desire, a more sensual form of excitement. The need to be punished isn’t there, and I’m not tangled up in my own emotions. I’m free to explore the fantasy without being afraid of having it come crashing down around me.
“Am I going to get a spanking, Daddy?” I gasp as we enter the bedroom and move toward the bed.
“That depends.” His hand moves down to squeeze my ass through my tartan skirt. “Just how naughty have you been today?”
“Naughty enough to know I’d be in trouble when my daddy got home.” I lean closer. “Does that answer your question?”
“I think it does.” He takes a seat on the bed, and I’m across his knee in an instant. Exactly where I want to be.
I feel the same sense of excitement I felt the last time I was in this position. Just thinking about the spanking was enough to make my pussy wet before he walked through the door. Now I’m practically dripping. The emotional connection is completely different; it’s filling me with a sense of exhilaration instead of pulling me into the abyss of my past.
“Let’s see if this will teach you to behave while I’m at work.” Bram folds my tartan skirt at the waist, which exposes my panties, and then I feel his hand come down on my them.
SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! They’re firmer than the ones I got yesterday. Hard enough to feel the sting through my panties.
Daddy's Possessive Friend (Once Upon a Daddy Book 12) Page 11
