by Sam Crescent
The action seemed so natural, like he couldn’t handle for her to go. Arthur couldn’t see what he’d done, and Skye looked down at him, begging for him to let her go.
He didn’t want to.
Gritting his teeth, he nearly snapped at Arthur to leave when Teresa opened the door and said that he was needed on the second floor immediately.
Arthur excused himself, asking Skye to stay in his place.
Before she could speak, they were alone. Noah didn’t let go of her wrist.
“Did you know I was buying this company?” he asked.
“I was aware of several companies interested. Arthur gave me the details of what was on offer, and he took the one I advised him to make.” She looked at him. “I didn’t know it was you.”
“Fifteen years, Skye.”
“I know, and you really shouldn’t be holding my wrist. It’s not right. Let me go.”
He didn’t let her go. In fact, he held her wrist a little tighter, refusing to.
“Noah.”
“Skye.”
“I didn’t know you were the one buying this place.”
“You were married?”
“What?”
“Ms. Banks. That’s what he called you.”
“I was married for a short time.”
“Have dinner with me, Skye.”
“Noah, this is not a good thing.”
“Why not? We’re older. We’re no longer children.”
“Nothing good can come from this. You’re going to go through those books, and you’re not going to like the decision you’re going to have to make.” She looked so incredibly sad.
He liked it on her. He wanted to be the one responsible for her emotions, though. This sadness wasn’t controlled by him.
In the years since he’d been stolen, he’d come to realize he relished control, demanded it, exerted it, and no one was allowed to stand in his way.
“Have dinner with me.”
“No.”
“Skye.”
“Noah, we’re not kids anymore. This is not happening. I’m not trying to be a bitch.”
“You’re succeeding without trying.” Still with his hand on her wrist, he stood so she had no choice but to tilt her head back to look at him. She’d grown into a beautiful, curvy woman. “I’m asking for dinner to catch up with an old friend.”
“Noah, we were never friends.”
“We were. We survived together.”
“Then you left with your father’s promotion. You had to leave. I really just want to close that door to the past. I don’t want to keep remembering it.”
“You think I do?”
“I don’t know what it is that you want. Did you know I worked here?” she asked.
“No, I had no clue.” If he had, he wouldn’t have waited around a year to make a final ultimatum to Arthur. The takeover would have been completed months ago.
She tucked some of her hair behind her ear and nibbled her lip.
“I’ll fire you,” he said, offering up that as a solution.
“What?”
“You don’t want to have dinner with me, fine. I can make cutbacks. That’s no problem.”
“Why are you doing this?” she asked.
“Because I can. That’s all I’m asking. Dinner or unemployment.” He watched as she clenched her teeth, clearly pissed off with being given this choice. It wasn’t a hard one. It wasn’t like he’d asked her to fuck a room full of guys and ride that dick all the way to a paycheck.
Nope, just dinner.
“You can’t do this.”
“Why not? I’m checking through the finances. Making cuts.”
“I’m one of the best people for this company. I’ve been able to keep it afloat for so long.” Her hands were clenched into fists. Soon, he’d have her screaming in pleasure. The thought of seeing her naked, struggling beneath him, it flooded his mind, and his dick went impossibly hard.
“And I’m here. I’m the best this company is going to get, so I suggest you either agree to go on a date, or start looking for a new job.”
Silence fell between them, and he knew he had her. Jobs were not that easy to come by. He may still even fire her, but first, he wanted to have dinner, talk.
“Fine.”
“Tonight.”
“Noah, please, give me some time.”
“I’ll pick you up tonight at seven.”
“You don’t even have my address,” she said.
“When you’re me, it’s not that hard to come by.” He held up his cell phone and he already had her details.
Before she could respond Arthur entered the office, and Skye had her excuses to leave. His day had just picked up.
****
Skye stared at her morbid reflection. The dress she wore had been one she’d attended a funeral in a few months ago. It wasn’t that she wanted to be all in black or to have the memory of that bad time, but it was all she could afford.
Arthur Sanderson was a sweet man, a kind man. After her divorce, he’d been a rock to her, and she’d done everything she could think of to help him stay afloat, taking pay cut after pay cut. Laying people off was one of the worst experiences of her life, one she hoped to never repeat.
When he put the multiple options of the buyouts and takeovers, he’d trusted her decision, and somehow, she’d picked Noah’s out of a handful of offers. How was that even possible?
She knew Noah had gone on to achieve greatness. She’d seen his picture on covers of magazines and in news headlines, but really, how could she have picked him? Now he wanted to go on a date as if the last fifteen years hadn’t happened.
Seeing him today, it felt a little similar to waking up inside that cell all that time ago. Of course, there were huge differences. For one, they were not locked away by some predators who were going to abuse them in the worst possible ways. No, she felt locked within his embrace, unable to move.
The last time they spoke was in that hospital bed when she knew she had to let him go. There was no way she could have allowed him to stay. He deserved a life far away from the one they lived.
High school in his absence had been a nightmare. Random people kept asking her what happened, or saying shit that she didn’t need to hear. They all wanted the dirty details. She worked her ass off to be able to graduate when others did, got a full ride out of town, and took business courses to where she was today.
The sound of her doorbell pulled her out of her thoughts. She lived in an apartment block that didn’t have much security. People could come and go as they pleased, and for the most part, she loved it like that. She didn’t have the irritating sound of someone pressing her buzzer at three in the morning, completely drunk but wanting to be let in.
With her bag in hand and jacket, she opened the door and found Noah standing right there.
“Don’t you have, like, a security team?” she asked.
“I do, but I try to keep them on the downlow. I’m the one who invited you to dinner.” He offered his arm. “You look beautiful.”
She wasn’t about to tell him that the dress was from a funeral, the last piece of clothing she was able to afford on the salary she was paid.
They cleared the building without encountering anyone. She didn’t know if that was a good thing or not. Maybe a distraction was what he needed, but it never came.
He held the passenger door for her.
“Again, no security?”
“No security. I only took them to the Sanderson building today in case of any disgruntled employees.”
“Arthur has tried his hardest not to fire anyone unnecessarily,” she said, feeling defensive of the older man.
“Oh, I know. He’s the good man, right?”
“Don’t mock him, Noah.”
He smirked, and she had no choice but to climb into the car or make a scene. She just wanted to go back to her apartment and read the latest romance novel that she’d borrowed from the library. He closed the door, and she tapped her fing
ers on her leg, trying to think of a million different reasons as to why she shouldn’t be in the car, or anywhere near him.
Of course, she kept coming up with a blank.
Noah climbed into the driver’s side, and her chance for escape was gone.
“Nice car.”
“Thanks.”
“You’re not going to tell me about it?” she asked.
He chuckled. “Skye, you have no interest in my car. You’re just trying to get me to talk about all the mundane things in life. I can tell you about my sports car, how much it cost, how fast it goes. It means shit to me. It’s money.”
“It’s a status.”
“True, but again, I’ve not asked you on a date for that.”
“A date?”
“What’s up with that?” he asked.
“I thought this was dinner.”
“It is. It’s a dinner date.”
“Noah—”
“Stop freaking out, Skye. It’s not a big deal.”
“It is a big deal.”
“You’re reading far too much into it.” He shrugged. “We’re going to enjoy good food and each other’s company. Stop making it a big deal.”
She sighed. “Fine.” She’d left her hair down, and it was in serious need of a cut. It had been a long time since she grew it out. Most of the time, she wore it short as the length always brought back times of it being pulled against her will.
“Will you be tearing down Sanderson’s company?” she asked.
He chuckled. “That’s not something I’m going to discuss with you.”
“Why not?”
“With all due respect, until I see what the problem is, I don’t trust anyone.”
“You think someone’s stealing from the company?”
“I believe someone has some underhanded dealings with the company. I don’t see the pure genius that Arthur is going in the red. He commands respect within the technological world, and yet here we are—he’s not been able to stay afloat. Someone with his expertise shouldn’t be struggling.”
She liked that he had faith in him.
“Just like I know you’ve been taking a pay cut. How are you staying afloat? Is that why you’re in a shitty neighborhood?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“You like Arthur, don’t you?”
“Of course. He’s a good man.”
“He’s fucking grumpy.”
“Because he doesn’t know where it all went wrong. Wouldn’t you be feeling a little grumpy because of that, if someone has to come into your work and tell you how to run it?”
“I’ve no intention of doing that.”
“Oh, please, the moment you see a weakness you’re going to change it,” she said.
“Of course I am. I’ve got a lot of money riding on this success, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to fuck it up to make myself feel better. I’m going to fix it so I know he’s strong, that the company is strong, and in doing so, I’ll be making a profit. Everyone needs a profit.”
“I know that.”
He brought the car to a stop outside a very nice Italian restaurant. There were no press waiting for him to snap a picture, which she was thankful for. The last thing she wanted was for their pictures to start circling. It could bring up the past, and she wanted to keep that firmly behind her.
Noah climbed out of his car, handing the keys over. She couldn’t believe how confident and self-assured he was. When they were younger, he’d been the star of their high school. Now he was just the star of his own little universe that he’d created. He didn’t go on into football.
His path took a different turn, one she’d been so damn proud of.
He opened her door and held out his hand. She took it, feeling that brief moment of safety he always brought to her. No one had been able to make her feel like this. He helped her out of the car, hand to her back as they made their way into the restaurant. Within a matter of seconds, the maître d’ was by his side, offering his thanks and escorting them to the table. Waiters came to his side, and he shook their hands.
He held her chair out for her, and she had so many questions. They were handed menus and finally were alone.
“Wow, you’re a celebrity here.”
“I guess in a way I am. I helped save this restaurant from ruin.”
“You did?”
“I like good food, and sometimes the only way to get it is to find the right cook.” He looked over the menu. “I’ll always have a seat here, and the cook will make me whatever I want. It’s a sweet deal.”
She chuckled and looked down at her menu. “It sounds like it.”
“You like Italian, right? I seem to recall you mentioning it a time or two.”
She flashed back to the time they were lying together on that worn mattress, hunger eating at each of them, talking about what they would love to have if they ever escaped.
“Yes, I do.”
“You’re shocked I remember.”
“I’m shocked about a lot of things nowadays.” She licked her suddenly dry lips, and Noah clicked his fingers.
Water was on the table, and she rubbed at her temple, trying to understand everything that was going on.
“So, tell me, what’s been going on in your life? You were married.”
“Yes, I was married. I heard you were as well.”
“Yep. She tried to take me to the cleaners, but I got off on a one-off payment. Turns out infidelity doesn’t pay.”
“Were you faithful?” she asked.
“Every single day. It was her that couldn’t keep her pants on.”
“Oh, wow, I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not sad about it. It was a bad match. I shouldn’t have gotten married, but I thought at the time it was the right thing to do.”
“Right thing to do?”
“Yes, it’s one of those things that just happened, but she wasn’t right for me and I’ve not seen her in years. Not since the divorce when she got what she wanted out of me. You got married as well.”
She stared down at her drink, wondering what to say. “I did. For a short time at least.”
“Bad breakup?”
She nibbled her lip, not really sure how best to approach it. “We…”
“Wanted different things?” he asked.
Skye chuckled. “No, we wanted the same things. A career, a couple of dogs, kids, the whole family dream, we just didn’t mesh well.”
“Mesh well?”
Locking her fingers together, she held them up. “We didn’t click. We were two different people and wanted things from each other that we couldn’t give each other.” She wasn’t about to tell him the arguments she had with Martin, the late nights filled with tears and emptiness where he begged her to let him in.
“But you both wanted the same things,” Noah said. “How could you not have worked if you were both the same?”
“It wasn’t the same. We weren’t compatible.”
“How long were you married?”
“Five years.” She took a sip of water. “Can we move on? We don’t need to talk about my marriage.”
“You’re very defensive.”
“I just don’t want to talk about my failed marriage.”
“Is that how you see it, failed?”
“I’m not married anymore. How else would you see it?”
Noah tilted his head to the side, watching her.
“Don’t do that,” she said, hating his scrutiny. She could handle everything else, but the way he looked at her, it unnerved her. Did he see through her vague reasons?
Martin had been such a good guy. Kind, sweet, charming, loving. He’d been every woman’s dream, and she’d fallen for him. The first year had been a whirlwind of romance. She’d felt like she could finally move on from the past that always seemed to drag her down.
After their wedding and into the second and third year of their marriage, it had become a disaster. Martin had always been a considerate lover, and he wa
nted to know everything, only, he couldn’t bring her to orgasm. Not once.
Looking back, it was such a stupid reason to divorce, and yet, that was the start of their failure. She refused to open up to him about what happened, and before long, their arguments became a daily activity until they finally decided to end it.
“There’s more to your story,” he said.
“I’m not going to tell you, Noah. I don’t owe you anything.”
“We’re old friends. Survivors.”
“Don’t!” She snapped the word out before she could stop herself. The couple at the table next to them gave her a concerned look. Sipping her water, she placed the glass down slowly. “Don’t bring that up. It’s in the past.”
“Is that why you and your ex didn’t survive?”
Staring at him, she shook her head. “I don’t need to sit here to listen to this.” She went to get up, but he grabbed her wrist, stopping her.
“Sit,” he said.
“I don’t know who you think you are, but just because we haven’t seen each other in a long time doesn’t give you the right to pry into my life.”
“We went through hell together.”
“Fifteen years ago, Noah. I’m over it,” she said.
“You’re lying.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Her heart started to race, and the flood of heat rushing through her body scared her.
She’d not been this aroused in a long time. She refused to think about the last time she felt like this. She stared down at his hand. He held her too tightly. For strangers, this was crossing a line, but with their history, this was the norm.
Slowly, he released her hand, and his fingers had left marks. Not bruises but red marks where his fingers had been. She touched the marks and looked up at him. She didn’t have to say a word as the waiter chose that moment to come back to them.
Instead of giving her order, she left it in Noah’s capable hands. Handing over the menu, she sat back waiting, staring at Noah.
“You’ve become a very successful businessman.”
“He couldn’t hurt you, could he?” Noah asked.
She gritted her teeth. “How does it feel being able to own whatever the hell you want to?”
“You weren’t compatible because your body remembers the touch it got from me, and I bet no man has ever been able to appeal to that first time.”
