Bossy Neighbor

by Erika Lynn

  What a joke. I’m finished with trying to please everyone else to the detriment of myself.

  I stormed past him. Or tried to. His hand landed on my arm, twisting me so that I was pulled tight against his body.

  I attempted to pull away but his iron grip refused to release me.

  “Let go of me, now,” I said, voice low and full of disgust. Refusing to look at him, the very accusation turned my stomach sour.

  Dante leaned in. “I can forgive you if you just tell me the truth,” his words low and pained, the smell of whiskey light on his breath.

  Tugging my arm away from him again, I seethed, “There’s nothing to tell. You know the truth.” Finally out of his grasp, I bolted out of his office and the building as fast as my feet could carry me.

  It wasn’t until the cold air hit my lungs that panic set in. An overwhelming fear of what I had just done.

  Did I have a job anymore?

  Did I still want it if I did?

  Since the likelihood was low, I didn’t spend much time worrying about that.

  But I did worry about my bills. Rent would be due soon. I had enough in my savings to float me for a few months, but it could take a while to get a new job.

  I needed to update my resume.

  I hadn’t done so in a few years.

  I started to shake as the weight of what just happened settled over me.

  On auto-pilot, my feet carried me towards Quinn’s apartment.

  I needed wine and a good friend.

  When I knocked on her door twenty minutes later it resulted in a lot of rustling and what sounded like a lamp hitting the floor. I clearly heard Quinn release a few expletives as I waited for her to pull it together.

  Guess I should have called first.

  Quinn’s disheveled hair and rumpled clothes would have given her away if the crashing inside her apartment hadn’t already done so.

  “Bad time?” I asked, my lips threatening to lift themselves into what could only be described as a smile.

  A shirtless Ben peeked around the door and over Quinn’s shoulder. “We were almost done anyway,” he said, flashing a smile before retreating back inside.

  Quinn pulled me into her apartment. “You look like you could use a drink.”

  Just then my worries returned full throttle.

  “I’ll take tequila,” I said.

  Quinn’s eyes about doubled in size. “Okay, now you have to tell me what happened,” she said, walking to the kitchen where she had a minibar set up.

  She got to work making a fun drink that would mask the taste of tequila.

  I wasn’t hard core enough to take a shot on its own and Quinn knew it.

  She was a good friend.

  “Let me guess,” she said as she slid the fancy drink in my direction. “It’s something to do with that hunky boss of yours.”

  Quinn smiled triumphantly when she read the look on my face. “Knew it!”

  I rolled my eyes at her.

  Behind me, I felt someone walk by.

  “I’m going to leave you ladies to it,” Ben said, winking at Quinn, then exiting the apartment.

  Suddenly feeling even worse for putting my friend out, I stood. “I can come back some other time.”

  Quinn sent me a death glare. “Puh-lease we are fine. Ben needs to get some work done anyway. He has some big new client or something,” she said, shrugging her shoulders.

  A small laugh escaped my mouth. Something I couldn’t have thought possible tonight.

  “Take a big sip of this bad boy and tell mama what happened,” my best friend demanded.

  So, I dove in, telling her everything that happened during the day.

  “Wait a second, you saw no fun Jeanine out to lunch with Joel? I didn’t know that uptight bitch had it in her!” Quinn laughed. She’d met Jeanine on the few occasions when she picked me up at work for an impromptu lunch.

  “I think you are missing the point, Quinn. I’m jobless! I don’t have a job, which means I won’t make any money, which means I won’t be able to pay rent, which means I’ll be evicted, which means I’ll be living on the street and then nobody will want to hire me.” I sucked in a breath and then took another pull of my drink.

  She held up a finger. “Do you know for sure you are fired?”

  I huffed. “Dante basically just accused me of corporate espionage.”

  Quinn’s eyebrows shot up. “Well, when you put it like that.” She tipped the bottom of my glass. “Drink up buttercup.”

  That’s exactly what I did.

  All night. Or at least until midnight when Quinn made up the couch for me to sleep on and muttered about how she needed to get some rest.

  As my head hit the pillow, my mind wandered. The pit in my stomach just grew as I replayed the events of the day over and over in my head.

  I resolved to work on my resume first thing in the morning.

  I needed to be proactive. Keep moving forward to stop myself from wallowing about my job and feeling the intense pain of losing Dante.

  Not that I was sure I ever had him in the first place.

  DANTE

  I kicked the trash can and it collided with the wall in a resounding crash.

  “Fuck,” I swore as I ran my fingers through my hair.

  As soon as I accused Kate of leaking the document, I regretted it.

  Part of me thought it could be her. She had been digging through my things clad in all black after all.

  But the rational part of me knew better. Knew sweet, innocent Kate would never betray me, my father or our company like that. The stress of my father’s illness combined with leading the company overnight made me irrational.

  I ordered a car to take me straight to my father’s estate, determined to get his advice.

  I knew I should leave him to recover from his chemo and keep this drama away from him, but I wasn’t a good enough son for that.

  It was late when I entered my father’s house. Expecting him to be asleep, I was surprised to find him yelling at an old game show rerun playing on the TV in the living room.

  I guess now wasn’t a bad time after all.

  “What the hell are you doing here? It’s the middle of the damn night,” my father accused in that gruff tone of his.

  “What the hell are you up to is the better question. You need to be resting.” The couch dipped as I sat next to my father.

  Torn between wanting to throttle him for being awake, and relieved I didn’t wake him up with my surprise visit, I opted to just let it go.

  A heavy sigh escaped me. I leaned into the comfort of the couch, enjoying the minute of respite.

  “Is it the company?” my father asked intuitively.

  My head whipped to face his, my neck straining in the process.

  I swallowed hard. “It is.” I nodded.

  My father’s eyes lit up in excitement. “Good, I’m going stir crazy over here.” He shut off the television and turned to face me.

  I gave him a skeptical look over. “Are you sure? I don’t want to add to your stress.” As much as I needed to talk to him, I didn’t want to do anything to undermine his treatment, especially since his immune system was already compromised.

  My father’s bushy brows lifted petulantly.

  I held my hands up. “Okay, I’ll tell you. That’s why I’m here anyway.”

  I started speaking and everything poured out. Everything that had happened in the last week, including my relationship with Kate. If you could even call it that.

  And I absolutely edited out some of my more devious activities with Kate. There was no way in hell I’d share those kind of details with him.

  Then my father did the last thing I expected from him. He laughed.

  I shook my head, trying to reconcile his behavior with what I just shared with him.

  “Son, you’re not as smart as I thought you are if you believe Kate had anything to do with the leak.”

  I ran my hands through my hair again in frustration, then
stood up and began to pace in front of the couch.

  “I’m an idiot.”

  My father nodded.

  “Oh, thanks,” I said on a small laugh, pleased to also see my father look so animated compared to my last visit.

  His company gave him life. Maybe sharing my challenges with him wasn’t a mistake after all.

  “Aren’t you pissed that someone is trying mess with me and the company?”

  My father shrugged. “I suspected something might happen, but wasn’t certain. People’s true colors are revealed in changing times. My abrupt exit must have upset someone.”

  I could barely recognize my father. These certainly weren’t the tough talking words of my youth and adulthood. His nonchalant manner was throwing me for a loop.

  “Well, what should I do about it?”

  He chuckled again, my heart about stopping at the action.

  “Isn’t it obvious?” he asked. “You apologize to Kate and get her to help you figure out who is behind it all. Nobody knows Inferno Construction like Kate. After me, that is.”

  “Do you have any suspects at least?”

  He nodded, but said nothing.

  “Super helpful.” I laughed at the absurdity of our conversation.

  I needed to see Kate right away. To apologize until she forgave me. I told my father as much and caught another glint in his eye.

  “It’s after midnight, you might want to wait until morning,” my father suggested as I made my way to leave.

  ***

  To say it was difficult not to knock on Kate’s door would be the understatement of the century.

  Like a creeper, I cupped my ear to the wooden board that dared to separate us. I heard no movement behind it.

  Forcing myself into my apartment, I fell into a restless sleep waiting for a decent hour when I could march to Kate’s apartment, demanding to be seen.

  But when I woke up the following morning and did just that I didn’t get an answer.

  I wasn’t greeted by her scowling face and sleep mussed copper hair or the smell of coffee wafting from her apartment.

  Nobody was home.

  She must have gone to see Quinn. I sat down outside her apartment and waited for her to return, only going back to my apartment to grab a coffee of my own and my phone to answer work emails while I waited.

  A little after nine in the morning, the elevator chimed announcing Kate’s arrival. The noise sent me scrambling to my feet.

  Our eyes collided across the hallway and I saw a ghost of a wince cross her face as she realized I was there.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked without her usual friendliness, proceeding to pull out her keys and pointedly ignoring me as she approached her door

  She must not have expected me to reply because she jumped when I curved my body around hers, wedging her between the door and my chest.

  Kate released a small mewl I’d recognized immediately.

  She was just as affected by me as I was by her.

  My cock thickened in response to her body. Her smell. Her.

  Without thinking, my hand pulled back a strand of her hair, tucking it behind her ear as my lips lowered to taste her skin.

  Like vanilla, I thought. She smelled like vanilla. Under the hint of lingering alcohol and dew.

  Feathered kisses trailed her neck from her chin to her shoulder. Kate’s body relaxed into mine, her ass grinding into my hard manhood.

  “Open the door, Kate.” My hand enclosed the one she had holding her key in the door lock.

  She gulped audibly but did as she was told. Pushing the door open I moved us forward until we hit the couch, my hands frantically trying to touch every inch of her. They were like a man in the middle of the desert desperate for water.

  My desire for her needed to be quenched.

  I bent her over the sofa, then got to work removing her underwear. When my fingers connected with her wet pussy, she sighed, her limbs relaxing.

  “I’m still mad at you,” she said in a breathy voice.

  I inserted another finger and her hips bucked backward into mine.

  “You deserve to be angry,” I told her. “I’m here to apologize.” I sank to my knees and got to work apologizing. I wasn’t using words, but I was absolutely using my mouth.

  “Holy shit,” Kate swore as my flat tongue ran against her seam, her hand reaching back to touch me.

  I held Kate’s wrist to her thigh as I continued to work her with my mouth. Teasing, sucking, doing everything I could to drawl out her moans. She lowered herself so that she practically sat on my face, giving me even more access to her body.

  And when her breath hitched and her legs began to shake, I knew she was almost there.

  Before I let her come, I stood up, leaving her bare and cold. She began to protest, but then I replaced my mouth with my member, driving into her.

  Her hand reached around to cusp the back of my neck, as I bent her further over the couch. Our movements almost animalistic as we got reacquainted. As if the one night apart was too much for either of us to handle.

  It didn’t take very long for us to come—our bodies unraveling at the same time, our chests heaving to catch our breath in the aftermath.

  Finally, I stepped back from where my body covered hers. Slowly, she turned around and our eyes clashed.

  This time, the animosity had been replaced with amusement.

  “If you think you can just come waltzing in here and fuck me and make it all better, you have it all wrong buddy.” She poked my chest.

  But then a wave of something more serious crossed her face.

  “I need coffee if we are going to talk,” she said. Then she subtly sniffed her underarms. “And maybe a shower.”

  I nodded. “I’ll wait.”

  The slight lift in her eyebrow was the only indication that she was surprised by my reaction.

  While Kate jumped into the shower, I brewed a pot of coffee, pouring myself a cup as Kate emerged in a robe, her copper hair still damp from the shower.

  I gulped taking in the sight of her. She was more stunning than she knew.

  I poured a second cup for her and brought it over to the couch. The same couch I’d never look at the same way again.

  Kind of like my desk.

  Forever haunted by our sexual past.

  But in a good way.

  I smiled to myself as Kate got comfortable, pulling a plaid blanket over her legs that were tucked to her side on the plush sofa.

  “You know I didn’t leak anything, right?” Kate said.

  I nodded solemnly. “I know,” I said. “And I’m an asshole for accusing you of doing something like that in the first place.”

  Her lips tugged. “Well, we agree on that then.”

  My fisted hand relaxed. I hadn’t even realized how nervous I was until that moment.

  “I’m so sorry, Kate.” I scooted closer so that her knee collided with my thigh.

  She swallowed, then nodded. “Okay.”

  I shook her leg. “No, not ‘okay.’ What I did was unacceptable and I am so sorry. You didn’t deserve it and it will never happen again.”

  Looking relieved, Kate nodded again. “Good.” Then she shook her head. “Wait, does this mean I’m not fired then?”

  “Fired?” I practically shouted, sending Kate protectively backward. “God, no.” I swore again. She had thought she was fired? Well, I guess given what I accused her of, that made sense, but still. Didn’t she know how much I needed her? Both at work and outside of work?

  I needed her in my life.

  The thought surprised me, sending a shockwave to my core.

  Of course, I needed her in my life. My whole world had been turned upside down in the past two weeks.

  Uprooting my life, moving back to the city I called home, taking the helm of Inferno Construction, digesting the news of my father’s cancer and meeting Kate.

  Above everything came Kate.

  I pulled my hands in hers. “Will you help me
find out who the leak is?”

  Kate leaned forward, a broad smile on her face. “I thought you’d never ask.”

  KATE

  Okay, so finding the leak was easier said than done.

  Seriously, espionage was an art in and of itself. And frankly, my organizational skills didn’t necessarily translate to sleuthing skills.

  But still, I tried.

  After consuming my bodyweight in coffee and scarfing down some breakfast, Dante and I made our way to the office, determined to turn over every leaf to see if there was any clue about who released Inferno Construction’s proprietary information. And since it was the weekend, we could do so in relative privacy, without drawing weird looks and questions from staff.

  By mid-day we had turned up nothing.

  “I think I’m going to do another coffee run,” I told Dante, leaning against the door jamb to his office.

  One quick nod in affirmation, “I’ll be here.” He picked up his phone, likely calling IT again to see if they could track anything down from their end.

  Snagging my purse from my drawer, I made my way out of the building. Needing a break from the office, I opted to go to another one of my favorite coffee shops. It was further than a run to get coffee needed to be, but I relished the walk and the fresh air.

  My head buried in my phone as I waited for our drinks, I almost didn’t see them. It wasn’t until Jeanine’s distinct laugh sounded that I bothered to look up. It was distinct because you didn’t hear it often, the normally serious Jeanine not exactly known for her sense of humor.

  My eyes didn’t deceive me. In the corner sat Jeanine and Joel. Her cuddled up next to him.

  What the hell?

  My mind spun.

  Are they together?

  I knew I saw them the other day at lunch, but this. This was different. This was serious.

  Then it was like a light switch had gone on in my brain.

  They did it together. They were in it together.

  Joel served as Victor’s right hand for years. Then suddenly, he’d been supplanted by Dante.

  Jeanine had access to everything. Confidential files, schedules, everything. And she had a view of Dante’s office from where she sat, making it easy for her to see when he came and went. Strategically rescheduling meetings when he wasn’t at his desk and on email.