The Duke of New York_A Contemporary Bad Boy Royal Romance

by Lisa Lace

  “Your brother? Why do you say that?”

  “He’s pissed that I gained control of Donovan Technologies.”

  “He expected it?”

  “He did.”

  “So your father willed it to you. He can’t do anything about it now, can he? I mean, I know he has a say in what happens, but he can’t take it from you, can he?” Mia sat at the table so she’d have a good view of the crowd, mainly Jack.

  “He’s been trying to buy stock from the other members by promising them a bigger gain once he gets control of your company.”

  “Can he do that?” She stayed attentive to Edward but kept her eye on Jack every chance she got. She wanted to feel him out, see what made him tick. She hadn’t had the chance to talk to him one on one yet. Maybe this was the perfect opportunity.

  “If he convinces enough of them and acquires enough stock, yes, I’d no longer have majority control.”

  “Edward. That can’t happen. How do you know this?”

  “I have some insiders who’ve been talking to him.”

  “Will he manage it?”

  “Not if I can help it.”

  As the evening wore on and the fundraiser was well underway, Mia was enjoying the last of her dinner and finished her champagne.

  “Would you like something more from the bar?” Edward was so attentive.

  “Maybe just a sparkling water, thank you.”

  He got up, and she watched as he walked away. She scanned the room and noticed Jack get up from his table. He disappeared out of the large room, and Mia jumped up to follow him.

  Once she was in the hallway, she looked around, catching him disappearing into the men’s room. She leaned against the wall and waited, smiling and nodding as a couple walked past her and back into the banquet hall.

  When Jack finally came out, Mia’s heart jumped. She pushed herself off the wall and stood tall.

  Jack smiled deviously and sashayed over toward her, his eyes looking her up and down. “Waiting for me?”

  “Actually, yes. I wanted to say hello and tell you, again, how sorry I am for the loss of your father.”

  “Cut the crap.” He leaned toward her, putting his hand on the wall behind her, imprisoning her between him and the wall. He was so close she could smell the whiskey on his breath. “I know you aren’t waiting out here just to make small talk, and you’re too into my brother to be flirting with me and hoping I’ll take you home, so what do you want?”

  Mia’s heart raced. “Okay. Fine. I want to know what your intentions are for my company.”

  He nodded his head, smiling down at her. “Well, if you must know, I plan on continuing the takeover. But don’t you worry your pretty little head.” He ran a fingertip across her jawbone. “I want to save your company. Invest in it and help you. That is if you want to help me.” He leaned into her, his body touching hers. “Do you want to help me, Mia? It could be like old times.”

  She turned her head away from him, her palms flat against the wall. “Jack, please don’t do this.”

  He backed away, giving her the room she needed to get away from him.

  “I shouldn’t have come out here. I just want to save my company.”

  He raised his eyebrows, not offering a promise either way. She turned away from him and went back into the banquet hall with him close behind her. She made her way toward Edward, who was waiting for her at their table when Jack grabbed her arm and turned her back to face him.

  “Don’t think for one minute that I plan on backing down.”

  Mia pulled away from him, but he wasn’t letting go.

  “We could be a hell of a team, you and I.” He looked down at her chest, then back at her. “Think about it.”

  She yanked her arm from his grasp and turned back toward Edward, who was headed straight for the both of them.

  “What’s going on here, Jack?” Edward pushed past Mia and stood between them.

  “Not much, little brother. I was just chatting with our newest business partner here. Letting her in on our plan for her company.”

  “Stay out of this. I’m warning you.”

  “It’s not going to happen. I’m in this as much as you are. I was telling her how much we’re looking forward to helping her company get back on its feet.”

  “That’s bullshit, and you know it. Tell her.” Edward stepped out of the way.

  “I already have, and she seems to be on board with it. She seems to have a lot to offer a man.”

  “Tell her the truth, Jack. Tell her about your plans for her company.”

  “Okay.” He shook his head and downed the rest of his whiskey. “Truth is, she doesn’t know how to run a company. Never has. Worthless, if you ask me. I’m going to make so much money when I pick it apart and sell it in pieces, just like Father would have done.” He glared at Mia. “I’m doing you a favor, little darlin’. You should be thanking me.”

  Mia wished she wasn’t wearing an elegant evening gown. She wanted to slug Jack.

  Edward pushed him back. “I think you should sit down.”

  “Oh, little brother is getting brave.”

  “Sit down before you embarrass yourself.” He glanced toward the paparazzi that seemed to pick up on the hostility forming in the middle of the crowded room. As they descended toward them, Jack stepped back and put his hands up.

  “I was just leaving anyway.”

  Edward stood his ground until Jack walked through the crowd and disappeared outside.

  “I’m sorry, Edward. I wasn’t trying to start anything. I had to find out.”

  “Now that we know what his true plans are, we have to stop him, stop it from happening.”

  “But how?”

  “Trust me. I may have a plan.”

  Edward

  Edward stood in Mia’s office doorway, watching as she sat at her desk. He felt a stir in his loins and had to interrupt the feeling before it got too real.

  “Good morning.” His deep voice made her smile before she even looked up at him.

  “Good morning.” She stood up and walked to him. “Come in, please. Thank you for setting up this meeting. I think it’ll be good for all of us.”

  “Yes, I agree. We need to fix this before Jack gets his hands too deep into it.”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t tell Steven you were coming.”

  “Slip your pretty little mind, did it?” He leaned in and kissed her, wanting to take her off guard.

  “No. I didn’t want him to dwell on it, and get the wrong idea in his mind as to why you’re here. But if you keep that up, he just may never know. I’ll lock you in here with me for the rest of the day.”

  “We could reschedule the meeting.” His hands snaked around her waist, pulling her tighter into him.

  “As amazing and delicious as that sounds, my daughter will be here very soon as well.”

  “Emily?”

  “They have a half day, and I told her she could spend the rest of the day here with me. She likes to come in once in a while.”

  “If I had known, I would have brought her something.”

  “You don’t have to buy my daughter gifts.”

  “A lollipop is hardly a gift. I adore her. Would it be a problem if I did?”

  “Let’s go to Steven’s office. He should be back from lunch by now.”

  Edward raised his eyebrow at Mia, following her out of the room and down the hall.

  “Edward.” Steven stood up when they walked into his office. He shook his hand and looked at Mia with confusion in his eyes. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

  The look on Steven’s face didn’t suggest that he was pleased to see him. Edward didn’t like the tension between them, and the questions he still had about how close Steven and Mia were still brewed around in the back of his mind. “Mia and I were talking, and I think if we work together we can save your company.”

  “You want to help us?”

  “Yes. I told you that.”

  “Forgive me if I still
have my doubts.”

  “I understand. But my word is true. I want to fight for MWSA Cosmetics. I will fight for it, but I need your help.”

  “How do I know I can trust that?”

  “I can continue with the takeover and rip your company apart without your presence or your approval, for that matter.” He saw Steven’s jawline clench tightly. “I will say that it is what my brother has in mind. I’m trying to stop that. Why would I be here in front of you now if it were my intention as well?”

  “Okay. I’m listening. What do we need to do?”

  “I want to build a team consisting of you, Mia, your top stockholders, and a few of mine.”

  Emily ran into the office with her apple from her lunch and the rest of her juice box, Mia’s secretary close behind her.

  “Emily just arrived, Miss Walker.”

  “Thank you.” She knelt in front of her and kissed her forehead. “How was school, honey?”

  “Good.” She looked up at Edward, and a smile took over her face.

  “Well, hello, Emily. It’s so nice to see you again.” Edward put his hand out toward her and gave her a business-like shake.

  “It’s nice to see you, too.” She kept her head down, her shy demeanor melting his heart.

  “Why don’t you sit over there, and I’ll get you some paper and markers to color with?” Mia patted the seat of a chair for Emily to sit on.

  They continued their meeting after Mia got Emily set up, but Emily didn’t seem to want to color with the two highlighters, one blue pen, and one red pen Mia was able to find. Edward watched her fidget until an idea came to him. He pulled his phone from his pocket and hit some buttons.

  “Ya know, Emily. I have this really cool app on my phone that I’ve been meaning to play. I wondered if you would like to check it out for me? Maybe later, you can let me know if it’s any good or not?”

  She jumped up off the chair and walked to him with wonder in her eyes. She took his phone, the lights from the screen dancing in her eyes as the small characters jumped around the screen. “I can do that. Thank you.”

  He watched her walk back before turning his attention back to Steven and Mia.

  Steven seemed impressed. “She seems to really like you.”

  Edward looked back at her. He adored her. “I hope so because she sure is pulling at my heartstrings.”

  “So, what are your ideas, Edward?” Mia sat next to him, her hands folding together in her lap.

  “Like I said earlier, I want to put a team together. We need to take some control away from my brother, so he doesn’t have such a powerful say in this. If we can do that, he will be powerless, and I can destroy the takeover before it goes through.”

  They worked a few more hours until a plan was in place. Edward stood up and shook Steven’s hand.

  “Thank you for coming in, Edward. I’m glad we had this opportunity to talk. It opened my eyes to some issues I had.”

  Edward opened his mouth to ask, but thought better of it and left it alone. “It was my pleasure. I look forward to working with you.”

  “I’ll walk you out. Emily, Mr. Donovan needs his phone back.”

  She jumped up and reluctantly handed it back to him.

  “So, what did you think? Is it a good game? Worth my time?”

  “Yes. It was fun.”

  “What do you say to Mr. Donovan?” Mia’s mama-voice came out.

  “Thank you.”

  “You are very welcome.”

  “I’ll be right back, okay? Sit tight.” Mia looked at Steven for a silent approval. When he nodded and smiled up at her, she followed Edward out to the front of the building.

  “Are you busy tonight?”

  “Why Mr. Donovan, are you asking me out on a date?”

  “I think I am.” He took her hands in his, pulled them up to his mouth and kissed them. “Have dinner with me.”

  “I’d love to.”

  “Great. I’ll call you later to let you know what time.”

  They walked to the front lobby, Mia’s arms crossed, her body tense. “Do you think this will work?”

  Edward knew she was worried. He set his case in one of the chairs that lined the wall and put his hands on Mia’s arms. “I still have majority control, and I’ll do everything I can.”

  “I hope so.”

  “You look worried.”

  “I don’t want Jack to get a hold of my company, Edward. He can’t.”

  “Why are you so worried about Jack? What did he say to you last night?”

  Mia held her head down, giving Edward a bad feeling in his gut.

  “I have something I think I should tell you.”

  “Mia?” He leaned back to look at her face. He didn’t like the tone in her voice. “What is it? Did he touch you? Did he hurt you?” He felt the anger start to spread.

  “No, I mean not last night.”

  He clenched his hands together in fists of steel.

  “Edward. Listen to me. Please. It was years ago.”

  “What? Years ago? You’ve met Jack before?”

  “Yes. When I was twenty-one.” She studied his face. “We have a history together, and it’s not a very good one.”

  Edward felt numb. He was hearing the words come from her mouth, but it was more of a story than a confession from the woman he was falling in love with. “What happened?”

  “I was young. I thought he was a good guy. He said everything right, did everything right. He swept me off my feet. He even went to one of my classes in school and interrupted the class just to give me a bouquet of flowers.”

  The more Edward heard, the angrier he got.

  “I knew I should have waited, but he was persuasive.” She lowered her head. “I was only with him once. I didn’t like it, so I ended it.”

  The heat he felt rising up from inside took over his senses.

  “He was aggressive, and didn’t stop when I asked him to.”

  “He raped you?” He felt sick to his stomach and felt the rushing of his own blood in his ears. He couldn’t see the beautiful woman in front of him any longer; his hands felt numb. The man he despised growing up, his own brother, flesh and blood, had touched the sweetest thing Edward had known in his life. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes. It took me a while to get over it, to realize it wasn’t my fault, but I didn’t tell anyone.”

  “It explains why he wants your company so badly. Why didn’t you tell me this before?”

  “It was a part of my life I wanted to erase. My relationship with you has been growing into this amazingly beautiful love. I didn’t want to jeopardize it. I’m surprised he hasn’t said anything to you about me.” She crossed her arms.

  “So am I.” Edward stared at her, not wanting to feel anger and disgust. “He’s hiding it from me. But I’m not sure why?”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”

  They were interrupted by Edward’s phone. His nostrils flared when he looked at the caller ID. He turned away from her and walked out the door, leaving his case on the chair in the lobby. “Jack.” He clenched his teeth together.

  “Hey, little brother. I was just thinking about our little deal, and I do believe we should get together real soon. I have some information I think you need to hear and don’t think it’s appropriate to tell you in front of Mia.”

  “I have some things to talk to you about as well.”

  “Oh, well, good then. Let’s meet.”

  “Caledonia on Second Avenue. Give me an hour.”

  “You got it, buddy.”

  Edward hung his phone up and looked around the area. He knew this wasn’t going to be pretty, but this was too much. Brother or not, Edward wanted nothing to do with Jack any longer, and he was going to do whatever it took to sever all ties. He grabbed the front door and whipped it open, going back inside. Mia wasn’t waiting for him in the lobby, so he grabbed his case and went back to her office.

  “I’m sorry about the interruption,” he said, standing in
the doorway.

  “It’s okay.”

  “Everything all right?”

  “Yes. Yep.” She smiled.

  “Okay. I hate doing this again, but I have to go. I have some business to attend to, and it can’t wait. Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “I’m fine. I’ll meet you later.”

  “Sounds good.” He forced a smile and left the building with full determination to destroy Jack and everything he wanted to accomplish.

  Mia

  After Edward left, Mia calmed her racing heart. She knew it was wrong, and her inner voice told her not to touch it. It screamed at her to put the manila folder back into Edward’s case when it fell over, but she didn’t listen. All she had to do was shove it back inside and walk away, but it stuck out enough for her to read the label, taunting her. MWSA Project. She trusted Edward, and she believed him when he said he was going to help her. She had no reason to pry. So why was she pulling it out and shoving it inside her jacket?

  She left the lobby and got to her office before pulling it out and opening it. She mumbled to herself as she read the documents.

  Ownership, control, and shareholder value. Merge Inc’s hostile takeover of MWSA Cosmetics Inc.

  “What?” She flipped to the next page. She read about her company and about Merge Inc. She saw the bid information and the set date. “What the hell?”

  She flipped to another page and saw an intercompany memo on Merge Inc. letterhead. Regarding MWSA inventory, all purchases will be stopped upon successful acquisition to avoid further expenses and an overstated revenue vs. cost of goods sold on the financials.

  “I don’t understand this.” She put her hand to her forehead and leaned over the paperwork as she continued to read.

  HR will take care of all employees, offering severance pay to those employed longer than five years.

  “This can’t be happening. He lied to me?” She looked at the bottom of the memo and saw Edward’s signature. She flipped through the other documents, picking up a copy of a check for $1.5 million from Merge Inc. signed by Edward and Claire.

  Mia felt reality begin to pull away from her. She dropped the paper on her desk as everything she believed and trusted in came crashing down around her.