Fallen

by Natasha Grace

  “You just can’t stop it, can you?” Cindy said, laughing. “Even when you’re eating, you’re working.”

  “Sorry. I’ve started investing a little bit.” Remembering that her sister had met Luke a few times, she suddenly wondered what her sister thought of him before she quickly shook the thought off. It didn’t matter what Cindy thought of Luke, because Sam wasn’t seeing Luke.

  “Oh! That’s awesome! Can I start telling people about you?”

  “I’m sorry. What?”

  “About your investing,” Cindy clarified. “People—you know, like the Jacksons—are always asking about investing with Harkin, but since I know they don’t meet the requirements for the hedge fund, I just tell them that it’s closed to new clients.”

  Sam smiled at her sister’s thoughtfulness. She’d been telling the truth without hurting anyone’s feelings. The SEC had strict rules about who could invest in hedge funds, taking into account people’s net worth and salaries. They wanted to make sure that the investors knew and could handle the risks they were taking. And though Sam knew that what her parents’ neighbors were willing to invest wasn’t small to them, she very much doubted that the retired couple would meet the SEC’s requirements.

  “Then they ask me for stock tips, which I know absolutely nothing about.” Cindy shrugged as she gestured towards her. “It would be great if I could point them to you.”

  “I can’t. I mean, I’ve barely been doing this for a month.” Even Luke and Jason had invested their own money for a couple years before they’d started managing other people’s money.

  But the idea was definitely intriguing. She loved the thought of helping a hard–working family grow their savings instead of helping the rich clientele hedge funds catered to get richer.

  “But isn’t that what you did at Harkin?”

  “I researched companies, but I never actually handled the buying and selling part.”

  “I figure that should be the easy part.”

  “I’ll think about it,” she hedged. It was one thing to trade her own money to see if she could make a decent income and quite another to handle someone else’s life savings. She’d have to take a much more conservative route than the one she’d taken for herself if she decided to do it. Though her portfolio was mostly filled with stable companies, she also had a few wild cards in there as well, which had big potential upsides and big potential downsides.

  She’d have to see how her investments fared and make sure that she really wanted to do this before she agreed to handle anyone’s money. “But in the meantime, tell them to invest in index funds.” Historically, it was the best way to go. Only the best of the best could beat the market year after year.

  “Believe me, I have, but you know how people are.”

  She nodded. “I know. People are always out to make the quickest—” She was interrupted by the ringing of her phone and sighed. It had better not be another reporter who’d gotten hold of her new number or there’d be hell to pay.

  She got her phone and felt her heart skip a beat when she saw Luke’s name. Though he’d been on her mind constantly, they hadn’t actually spoken since he’d brushed off her invitation to lunch. The weird thing was, she’d actually thought that he’d had a good time when they’d gone out, but she’d obviously thought wrong.

  “Aren’t you going to answer it?” Cindy asked.

  Sam knew she was being a coward, but she hated how twisted up he made her. She was supposed to be getting over men and instead, it seemed as if she’d fallen for the next guy she’d seen.

  “I—of course.” It could be something at the office or a problem with one of the donations. “I’m sorry,” she murmured to her sister as she swiped her phone. “It’s Luke.”

  Cindy waved her off. “Of course.”

  Smiling her thanks, Sam pressed the phone to her ear and answered. “Hi, Luke.”

  “Hey, Sam. Do you have a date for the Children’s Society gala?” he asked without preamble and she couldn’t help but smile. It was so him. He always went straight down to business without wasting time on small talk.

  “No.” She actually didn’t want to go. But since a big reason for that was because she didn’t want to run into one of the women Jason had been having an affair with, she was forcing herself to go. Not that she intended to confront Carla. She just needed to prove to herself that she wasn’t hiding. Besides, her in–laws expected her to be there. There was going to be some kind of tribute for Jason.

  “Do you want to go together?”

  Her heart sped at the thought of seeing Luke again before she frowned. “But you hate these things.” The only reason he’d gone in the past was because Jason had twisted his arm. Now that Jason was gone, she figured he’d burn all his tuxes.

  “I do, but they have that tribute thing for Jason,” he said.

  Of course. It had been crazy to think that his invitation had anything to do with her. He’d made it more than clear that he had no interest in being friends with her.

  There was a brief pause before he added, “And I was hoping to set down a rumor that there’s some friction between us.”

  “What rumor?”

  “That you left because you didn’t agree with the way I was managing the company. There was an article in the Times.”

  Guilt bit her at the knowledge that he wouldn’t have had this problem if she’d stayed at Harkin. “I’m so sorry, Luke.” She shouldn’t have pressed to leave, but she’d been desperate.

  “Excuse me,” a voice interrupted. “Can I take this chair?”

  Sam looked up to see a man in a suit pointing at the chair beside her. Cindy put down the croissant she was eating and answered, “Yes” the same time Luke asked, “Who’s that?”

  A thrill ran down Sam’s spine. Was it just her or did he sound jealous?

  The thought had barely registered before she cursed herself. She shouldn’t enjoy the thought of him being jealous, because there was no them. Why couldn’t she seem to get that through that thick head of hers?

  “It’s just a guy from another table,” she said off–handedly. “But I really am sorry about all this. I shouldn’t have been so forceful in making you buy me out.”

  “That’s all right. I probably would’ve done the same thing if I’d been in your shoes.” The fact that he was trying to make her feel better made her feel even worse. But she guessed that was just the kind of person he was. She’d just been too blind to see it all these years. “Hell. I’m sorry, Sam, but isn’t this Carla’s charity? Forget what I said. I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” she assured him. “I was going to go anyway, and I would rather go with you if I had the choice.” No matter how much she told herself that it didn’t matter that one of the women Jason had been seeing would be at the gala, it did, and it would be nice to not have to go alone.

  “Thanks, Samantha. I really appreciate it.”

  “Do you want me to issue some kind of a statement?”

  “No. I figure going to the gala together should be enough to settle any rumors. A statement would just be overkill.”

  He was probably right. One of the things she looked at as an analyst was how a company’s management handled certain situations. If it seemed as if they were overcompensating for something, it was usually because they were.

  “Is everything all right?” Cindy asked when she hung up a minute later.

  Sam sighed as she put her phone away. “Luke is facing some backlash over me selling Jason’s half of the company to him.”

  “That sucks.”

  “Yeah. He’s hoping the press seeing us together at a gala will help clear the air.”

  Cindy laughed. “How will you sniping at him in public be good for him?”

  “I don’t snipe.”

  Her sister shrugged. “Generally you don’t, but Luke is another matter. I’ve only met him a few times, and most of those times, you’ve had something bad to say about him if not
to him.”

  Sam winced at the reminder of how badly she’d treated Luke over the years. She’d thought he was the bad guy when, in fact, he was the best of the best.

  “I made a mistake,” she admitted. “He’s a good guy.”

  “I doubt it, but I get it. You’ve never been the kind of person to say something bad about someone until this Luke guy. It was only time until you returned to your normal self. I’m just surprised it lasted this long. Now, finish your croissant. I don’t want to be late to the show.”

  Sam quickly ate her croissant and finished her drink, but as they left the coffee shop, guilt crept into her. It seemed as if she couldn’t do anything right where Luke was concerned. First, with calling him a liar. Then, with sleeping with him. And if that weren’t enough, she’d practically forced him to buy her out.

  She sure hoped going to the gala with him would clear the rumors. She hated to think of all the troubles she’d given to him while she’d gotten away from everything scot–free. She glanced at her sister and sighed when she saw the excitement in Cindy’s eyes as she took in the theater’s marquee. At least, she’d gotten something right.

  Chapter Thirteen

  He shouldn’t have invited Sam to the gala.

  Luke inwardly cursed as he got out of the elevator in Sam’s apartment building. He should’ve just allowed her to issue some kind of a statement. Instead, he’d leapt at the chance to spend time with her. It didn’t seem to matter that she wasn’t interested in him in the romantic sense and that he was only fooling himself—hoping for things that wouldn’t be. The plain truth was that he’d missed her.

  And that desire to see her again was making him do crazy things. When he normally went to a gala, he usually just grabbed the first tux he saw in his closet. But with Sam, he actually cared about how he looked. Maybe it was because she was used to going with Jason, who’d always dressed to the nines, but Luke had wanted to look good for her and had gotten a new tux and shoes even though he had plenty of perfectly good ones at home.

  He shook his head at his own foolishness and rapped on her apartment door. This was the last time he did something like this again. It was too much effort and for what? To impress someone who’d already told him that she didn’t want to be with him?

  Insane. He was definitely insane.

  The door opened a moment later and his throat dried at the sight. She was wearing a beautiful white gown that ran from her shoulders to her toes, skimming her curves in all the right places. He ached to have her in his arms once again and he was suddenly grateful for putting the extra effort into dressing up tonight. Hell, he’d go through that stupid tux fitting a hundred times just to hold her for five minutes. Remembering just how well her body molded to his, he groaned. He wasn’t sure how he was going to make it through the night without trying something he shouldn’t.

  * * *

  Sam’s breath hitched at the heat in Luke’s eyes as he took in her gown. He was looking at her as if she were a dessert—one he’d very much like to devour. Though she’d been hoping that he’d like the dress, she’d never thought that this would be the reaction she’d get and was suddenly grateful that she’d chosen to go with the unknown designer. Luke blinked, and the heat in his eyes disappeared and was replaced by a cool, impassive gaze.

  “You ready?” he asked.

  She sighed. What had she been hoping for? That he’d take one look at her, take her into his arms, and kiss her the way he’d done two months ago? That he wouldn’t be able to resist her and drag her to the nearest bedroom? She would’ve laughed if she wasn’t being so ridiculous. The only reason he was with her tonight was to quell a business rumor—not date her and she would do well to remember that.

  “Yeah,” she murmured, trying not to let the hurt dig into her. She didn’t know why she was disappointed. It wasn’t as if she were ready for a relationship anyway. Getting a new gown to impress him had been a crazy idea when she already had enough gowns for a lifetime.

  “Let me just get my clutch.” She let go of the door and went to get her bag. “So…do you have a game plan for tonight?” she asked as she walked back towards him and tried not to think about how well he filled his tux. She was a sucker for a man in a tux and Luke filled his out nicely. The jacket hugged his broad shoulders and she couldn’t help but remember how strong those muscles had felt when she’d run her hands all over him.

  Dark eyebrows rose. “Game plan?”

  Her cheeks burning as though he could read her thoughts, she forced herself to look away from those shoulders and meet his eyes. “You know, people you want to talk with.” She shrugged. “People you want to avoid…”

  “Not really, although Hank did tell me to make myself more accessible.”

  She could just imagine how that talk must have gone. Before Jason’s death, Luke had always done his best to avoid meeting their clients. He hadn’t wanted to take time away from important work for what he regarded as hand–holding.

  “Not that it really matters,” he continued as they made their way towards the door. “People always seem to find me at these things anyways. How about you? Any CEOs or CFOs you want to corner?”

  Touched that he remembered that she’d started investing on her own, she smiled. “No. This is strictly personal for me. Jason’s parents expect me to be there.”

  But this year would be the last time she did anything like this. Just because she wouldn’t tell them about Jason’s affairs didn’t mean she intended to play the grieving widow forever. She needed time away from all of this to find herself again.

  “Have you talked with them recently?” Luke asked as she locked the door to her apartment.

  “Jessica calls about once a week.” Which was a lot better than when she used to visit every day. Sam loved her mother–in–law, but she had no desire to hear any more stories about the woman’s beloved son.

  Luke sighed. “I know I should visit them, but I’ve been busy.”

  Sam waved him off. “I’m sure they understand. Besides, you’ll see them tonight. I’m sure they’ll want to thank you when they hear about the new hospital wing that’ll be named after Jason.”

  “I was just continuing Jason’s donations,” he said and Sam’s lips quirked.

  She knew he’d donated a lot more than what Jason usually had or they wouldn’t be naming a hospital wing after Jason. But as always, Luke was being modest.

  “Let me know if tonight becomes too much. I can pretend that I have to leave for work and that you offered to help.”

  She laughed. “I vaguely remember you using work as an excuse to leave early last year, and possibly the year before.” He’d often disappear as soon as they’d finished their hellos.

  Luke shrugged. “Hey, it works. Just let me know if you want to get out, okay?”

  The fact that Luke was prepared to let her call the shots eased some of her anxiety about whom she might run into tonight. It was reassuring to know that she could leave at any time.

  “All right. Thank you.”

  * * *

  Sam froze as they walked into the glitzy ballroom and she saw all the beautiful women there. Exactly how many of them had slept with Jason?

  She suddenly felt sick as she remembered all the names and pictures she’d seen on his phone. She wasn’t ready for this. She was about to take a step back when Luke tightened his arm around her and murmured, “Do you want to get something to drink?”

  His hot breath tickled her skin, sending shivers down her spine, and she was grateful for the opportunity to focus on something other than her tempestuous thoughts.

  “Sure.” One night. All she had to do was survive tonight and she wouldn’t force herself to do anything like this ever again.

  Without loosening his hold, Luke guided her towards the bar at the back of the room. Though she knew that it was just a PR stunt, she smiled at the realization that he wasn’t going to leave her the way Jason always had at these things. Jason had often said that he was going to get th
em drinks before he’d get drawn into a conversation and forget all about her until it was time for dinner.

  Some people stopped to greet her and Luke. There were a few pitying looks, but not as many as she’d expected. The majority of them wanted to grill Luke about Harkin or to ask how he felt about a certain industry or company. It didn’t take long before she realized that his grip around her tightened whenever someone new approached. It was as if he were drawing strength from her or perhaps he was trying to remember his reason for being there in case he felt the urge to snap at them.

  She could just imagine how thin his patience must be running. She’d seen him in more client meetings during her last few weeks at Harkin than she’d had in all the years she’d worked at the company. And as if that weren’t enough, he now had to attend these functions and make small talk as well?

  It was so different than what she was used to seeing of him, and she couldn’t help but admire him for everything that he was doing to save Harkin. While other hedge fund managers would’ve just downsized their companies without a thought to the people who’d lose their jobs, Luke was probably already operating at a loss. She doubted that the management fees they’d make this year would cover their payroll and yet, he hadn’t laid a single person off.

  She knew that he was trying to get back the business that they’d lost, and hoped he was successful. There was no one she knew who was more deserving.

  They had just gotten their drinks when a woman in a revealing black dress bumped into Luke. The blonde’s hands rose to his chest and Sam didn’t miss the napkin the woman put in the pocket of his tuxedo as she patted him.

  “Excuse me,” she murmured as she looked at Luke with bedroom eyes and trailed her hands down his tux. The woman glanced at Sam then, as if she didn’t see her as a threat, looked back at Luke, and mouthed, “Call me,” before walking away, her hips swaying seductively.

  Jealousy stabbed Sam. Even if Luke didn’t call this woman, she knew that there were plenty of other gorgeous women who were interested in him—many of them in this room. She hadn’t missed the glances they’d thrown his way tonight.