by Lisa Lace
“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.
“Mia?”
She looked up from the folder on her desk. Steven was talking to her, but she couldn’t hear him. She felt the heavy beating of her heart and heard only the rushing of the blood in her ears. She watched his lips move but didn’t try comprehending his words. He rushed to her and knelt by her side. When he took her hand, she felt herself come back to reality.
“Mia, what is it? What’s wrong?”
“What?” She turned toward him, a sick feeling surrounding the contents of her stomach.
“Are you feeling okay? You’re white as a ghost.”
She shook her head, screaming inside. Why couldn’t she talk? Why couldn’t she tell him what was happening? She put her hand on the documents, sliding them toward him. He picked them up, his eyes scanning what she was still trying to soak in. She used this time to collect herself.
“That conniving, arrogant, selfish son-of-a-bitch. I knew he was no good.”
“And you didn’t say anything? If you had reservations about the guy, why didn’t you tell me?”
When he took in a deep breath and sat down across from her desk, she knew he was about to come clean on something. She didn’t like the feeling.
“I knew who he was when you said you were dating Eddie.”
“And you let it continue?” Mia’s head pulsated. “How could you?”
&
nbsp; “Honestly, I didn’t think it would come to this. I only knew he was a Donovan.”
“And that should have been enough. Instead, you kept it from me. For what reason?”
“You were so happy. I truly didn’t think he was anything like his father. I wanted to believe what he said. I wanted to believe that he was good, especially after the way I saw him look at you.”
“I don’t believe this.” She pushed away from her desk and turned toward the window, disgusted.
“Mia. I wanted to give it time to unfold on its own. I had planned on telling you after the meeting with him, but everything seemed to be working out, so I left it alone. I had no idea he would do this. I never would have allowed it to continue if I had any clue. I’m sorry.”
She sat silent and motionless.
“Mia? Please.”
“What am I supposed to think, Steven? You knew I was sleeping with the enemy, and you said nothing?” She spun back toward him, her arms still crossed. “Nothing at all?”
“You were so happy.”
“And now I’m not, and we have no company.”
It was Steven’s turn to sit quietly.
“Nothing to say now?”
“I didn’t do it to intentionally harm you. I thought I was doing the right thing.”
Her phone went off, and she glanced at it before picking it up.
I can’t wait to see you tonight. I want to concentrate on us. No business talk tonight.
Her stomach lurched.
“Is that him?”
Mia looked up at Steven. “Why? Do you need to withhold more information from me?”
“Mia, don’t do this. You know me.”
She did. She didn’t mean to be so hard on him. She knew he meant well. “Yeah, it’s him.” She picked her phone up, her fingers running over the keys. Change of plans. Don’t call me. I’ll call you.
She wasn’t sure why she’d sent such a bold text. It left too much unanswered. She could beat around the bush all day long, ignore his texts and calls, but until he knew exactly why she left him hanging, he wouldn’t stop trying. And, sure enough, her phone went off again.
Mia? Has something changed since I left there?
