by Lucy Wild
He was waiting for us in the conference room, flanked by two unsmiling men in expensive suits. “Please,” he said without rising. “Won’t you both sit down. Why so gloomy?”
“Because there’s a black hole in the company and you were supposed to fix it,” Greg snapped. “Remind me why we had to come here?”
“Well, I just thought it might be easier. Got all the paperwork in one place, in case we need to run out and get anything.”
“Who are those two?” I asked, nodding at his companions.
“These are trainees, just here to listen in. Don’t worry about them.”
“Bullshit,” Greg said, pulling open his briefcase and digging out his files. “I know lawyers when I smell them. What’s up, Archie? Worried you’re going to have to take the fall for this one?”
“Not at all,” he replied, his smile cracking just a little. “I told you, I’m sure it’ll all sort itself out soon enough. What’s that you’ve got there, Greg?”
Greg set the files down in front of him before leaning back in his chair. I remained where I was. Good cop, bad cop, here we go. The old routine.
“Have you found out where the money’s gone?” he asked while I watched Archibald closely, seeing the way his eyes flicked from side to side. The movement was only slight but it was a dead giveaway. He felt trapped, though the smile remained fixed on his face. That was why the lawyers were there, to stop him from incriminating himself, to protect him. We didn’t need lawyers. There was no way he could wriggle out of this. All we wanted was for him to admit it. We’d get him eventually. It was just a matter of time.
“Not quite yet,” Archibald said. “But don’t worry, I will.”
“I went to see my father,” I said, taking over from Greg. “He said you popped in to visit.”
“I went to see him a while ago, wanted to see how he was doing, you know?”
“How do you think he’s doing?”
“Oh, as well as can be expected. It’s such a shame what’s happened to him, Dominic. He was a great man. One of the best.”
I thought about my father for a moment before shaking the image from my head. No emotion, remember. “He mentioned you asked him to sign a few things, Archibald.”
He shifted in his seat, his eyes flicking again. “Did he? Well, you know what his mind’s like. He probably got confused.”
“So you didn’t ask him to sign anything?”
“Not as far as I can remember.”
“Okay then. Let us know once you find anything.”
Greg put the files back in his briefcase as I stood up, turning to leave.
“Is that it?” Archibald asked. “Is that why you left six voicemails for me, demanding a meeting?”
“That’s it,” Greg said, not looking back as he walked out of the conference room. I followed him and we returned to the lift, neither of us saying a word. We remained silent until we were out in the car park. “What do you think?” Greg asked, leaning against the side of his car. “Enough to scare him into making a mistake?”
“I think he’s a slippery little shit and we need more than a couple of signatures about selling off a few shares to Tempur Associates if we’re going to nail him.”
“He did it though, right?”
“Oh, God, yes he did it. He couldn’t have looked more guilty if he was in a suit with little arrows on.”
“I agree. The question is, what do we do now?”
I sighed. “We keep looking. What else can we do?”
“Right. Are you okay, Dominic? You don’t look quite yourself.”
“I’ve just had a difficult couple of days, that’s all.”
“Tell me about it.” He picked up the briefcase and threw it onto the back seat of his car. “Get some rest. I’ll give you a ring as soon as I find something.”
“Keep smiling and pretend it’s all fine,” I replied. “Don’t worry, I know the drill.”
“That’s right.” He climbed into the driver’s seat and set off, leaving me to walk to my own car. I checked my phone before driving away. Still no reply from Evangeline. Had she moved on? Had she forgotten about me already? I hadn’t forgotten her. In fact, despite everything else that was going on, I’d hardly been able to stop thinking about her. I shook her out of my mind.
Get some rest, I told myself, then you can think about having a conversation with her. If she won’t reply to messages, you could go round there and talk to her in person. What the hell are you frightened of? You’re Dominic fucking Hawke.
I revved the engine and set off, the image of her bare ass returning to me a second later. I should have been thinking about work but it was impossible. I realised I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on sorting Archibald out until I’d gotten the answers I needed from Evangeline. I wasn’t going to see her because I wanted her, I was going to see her because I wanted to get her out of my mind for good. Then I could focus. That was it. I had to see her so I could focus. Not because I was obsessed with her. No, not that at all.
FIFTEEN
EVANGELINE
Shopping might not be the best thing for my bank balance but it made a hell of a difference to my mood. I’d spent two days feeling absolutely awful but I’d gradually turned a corner by the third morning and when Clare told me she was going into town, I decided to join her.
I had a good time. We had a good time. That’s the thing about best friends, you can have a blazing row one day and be laughing together again the next. By the time we were done, I felt much better. I’d almost forgotten about that night with Dominic Hawke. Then we came home.
“What’s that?” Clare asked, pointing at the doorstep as we walked up the path from the street.
“I’ve no idea,” I replied, looking at the gift wrapped monstrosity leaning against our door. Whatever it was, it was taller than me. “What’s the label say?”
“It’s addressed to you.”
“It’s what?”
“See for yourself.”
I looked at the label. She was right. “What the hell is it?”
“Well are you going to open it or keep guessing forever?”
“Should we take it inside first?”
“What if it’s a trick?”
“What kind of a trick, Clare?”
“It could be one of those Trojan thingies.”
“A Trojan Horse?”
“Exactly.”
“What, some weirdly organised burglar has posted himself here in the hope we’d carry him inside so he can what? Steal the contents of our knicker drawers? Raid my Greek Philosophy books?”
“You joke all you like but if there’s a man inside there, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
I rolled my eyes before unlocking the front door, dragging the parcel in with Clare’s help, dumping it on the hallway carpet. I tore at the wrapping paper, ripping portions away to reveal the world’s largest teddy bear. “Oh my God,” Clare said. “Why did you order that?”
“I didn’t.”
“Look, he’s got a nametag. What’s he called?”
“She is called Evangeline. Hold on, there’s a note. Oh, no.”
“What? What does it say?” She snatched it from me and read it out loud. “Dear Evangeline, From Daddy. Who’s Daddy?”
“It’s him. It’s Dominic.”
“Daddy?”
“He made me call him that.”
“I see.”
She left the words hanging in the air, walking through to the kitchen and leaving me to work out what to do with the enormous teddy bear that was filling our hallway. In the end I left it leaning against the sofa in the living room, before joining Clare in the kitchen a minute later. “It’s not weird, is it?” I asked her as she poured milk into her mug.
“A six foot teddy bear? It is a bit weird but on the plus side, I’ll have some company next time you’re out with ‘Daddy.’”
“I’m not going out with him again.”
“Oh, come on, Evangeline. I saw the look on your face w
hen you found out it was from him.”
“What? What look?”
“You couldn’t have looked any happier. I haven’t seen you smile like that in ages.”
“Did I?”
“You did and much as it pains me to tell you this after what he did to you, you clearly have a thing for him. I don’t understand why, but you do.”
“Can I tell you something?” I asked, hardly able to look her in the eye but needing to tell someone, anyone.
“Of course you can. Do we need biscuits?”
“Possibly.”
“Crumbs, this is serious. Do you see what I did there? Biscuits. Crumbs. Never mind. What did you want to tell me?”
I sighed, trying to think how to word it. “Have you ever been spanked before?”
“I love you very much, Evangeline, but I draw the line at letting you spank me. Besides, I said I was going to wash up, didn’t I?”
“No, listen. I’ve never been spanked before.”
“I’ve never been to Guildford. I’m not sure what your point is.”
“Forget it. Forget I mentioned it.”
“No, I’m sorry. I’m talking rubbish. Come on, share with me. I’m listening.”
“Well, when he hit me with the crop…” My voice trailed away.
“What?” she asked, sliding her hand over mine. “What is it?”
“I liked it,” I muttered.
“Sorry, I didn’t catch that. It sounded like you said you liked it.”
“I did. I liked it.” I felt my cheeks burning with embarrassment.
“So? What’s the problem?”
“Well, you’re not supposed to like being hurt, are you?”
She squeezed my hand. “Listen to me, Evangeline. Love is a funny thing. Sex is even funnier. Especially with some of my exes. You can like whatever you like. As long as it’s legal and safe, what does it matter?”
“Really? You don’t think I’m weird?”
“I do think you’re weird but not because of that.”
“Thanks.”
“I have a question for you though.”
“Go on,” I said, feeling suddenly nervous.
“If you liked it, why did you tell him to stop?”
“Because I…I don’t know. I couldn’t handle it, I felt ashamed at liking it. It was too much. I don’t know, Clare. What the hell am I doing?”
“Not drinking your tea. Now, come on, before it gets cold.”
We spent the rest of the afternoon watching a cheesy rom-com, the teddy bear version of me sat between us on the sofa. The credits were just beginning to roll when the doorbell rang.
“Who’s that?” Clare asked. “Are you expecting anyone?”
“Nope.”
“Maybe it’s another teddy bear for you.”
“God, I hope not,” I said, getting to my feet. “We haven’t got enough furniture for any more.” I walked out into the hallway and pulled open the front door, finding my feet turning to lead as I looked up at Dominic Hawke.
An ice age passed. “Hi,” he said at last when he realised my mouth wasn’t open so I could speak, it was just stuck in that position. “Is this a bad time?”
“No, no,” I managed to say. “What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to talk to you. Can I come in?”
“Erm,” I said, stalling for time. I glanced behind me to see Clare’s face peek round the living room door and then vanish again a moment later. “Let’s talk outside.”
“Okay,” he replied, taking a step back to let me close the front door behind me. I stood on the doormat, looking up at that handsome face of his and my legs turned to jelly yet again. I had been naked in front of him. His cock had pressed between my legs. Oh God, the thought of it was enough to make me wet.
“What are you doing here?” I asked again.
“You didn’t reply to my messages.”
“Ah, yes. My phone might be a bit broken.”
“What is it with you and phones?”
Same as you and hearts, I thought, cringing at my own internal melodrama. “I’ll pay you for it,” I said.
“Don’t worry. I can afford it.” He paused, a half smile crossing his lips. “That explains why you didn’t reply. I did wonder.”
“What did your message say?”
“Well, I wanted to know why you ran off.”
“I didn’t run. You took me home.”
“You know what I mean.”
I opened my mouth to reply, not even sure what I was going to say. Before the first word could come out, his phone went off in his pocket. He held up a finger. “One second.” Pulling the phone out, he swore loudly before meeting my eyes again. “Don’t go anywhere.”
SIXTEEN
DOMINIC
It was the worst possible timing for Greg to ring me. I’d told him I was going round to see her. Was he that desperate to know how I’d got on that he couldn’t wait? All I wanted to do was get off the phone but what he said stopped me dead just as I was about to tell him to get lost.
He’d come round to mine the previous evening, bringing more paperwork to run through with me. “I’m so close,” he said, rifling through one document after another. “It’s all in here somewhere. I just need to put the pieces together.”
“What is all this?” I asked, looking at the reams of paper cascading from my coffee table to the rug underneath.
“Emails, some of it. Contracts over there. And that, that’s the pizza menu. Choose something, we might be here a while.”
It was gone midnight before we finally stopped working, my eyes stinging from concentrating for so long. He sat back on the sofa and finished the last slice of cold pizza. “Damn it,” he said, pushing the box closed. “I was so sure.”
I didn’t answer, picking up my can of cola instead and draining it in one gulp. “Flat,” I said. “Not good.”
“What’s up with you?” he asked. “What happened to that girl of yours?”
“Who?”
“The one you were supposed in a relationship with, the one Archibald told me about. What was her name? Ellen was it?”
“She’s called Evangeline.”
“That’s the one. What happened? Refused to suck your dick?”
“No,” I snapped. “Nothing like that.”
“Something happened though. You’ve been like a bear with a sore head for days. What’s going on, Dominic? I need you concentrating and you’ve got your head in the clouds, I can tell just by looking at you.”
“You don’t want to know.”
“I’m not just your business partner, Dom. I’m also your friend. If there’s something up, you can talk to me about it. No judgement here.”
“Fuck, I can’t believe I’m telling you this but fine, you asked for it. I thought I had something with her, Greg. I really did.”
“So? What’s the problem? I’ve never known a woman who could turn you down.”
“She did.”
“Bullshit.”
“She did.”
He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Back up. What happened?”
“I took her to Archibald’s party. It was all going fine. Then I took her back to mine and…and, well, she wasn’t into it.”
“What? Have you lost your magic moves?”
“We didn’t even get that far. I did something stupid and she told me to take her home.”
“What was it? Burp in her face? Leave the toilet seat up? Come on, I need more than that.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Fine. Suit yourself. That explains it though. The first woman in the world to turn you down. No wonder you’ve been in such a foul mood.”
“What do I do ,Greg?”
“You like her, right?”
I nodded. “I really like her.”
“This thing you did, can you come back from it?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.”
“Then you buy her a gift, you grovel a bit and then you reel her back in. Job
done.”
“Simple as that, huh?”
He nodded. “I know a bit about women, Dom. Get her a few flowers, some chocolates, a bit of perfume, maybe.”
“She’s not that kind of girl.”
“What kind of girl is she?”
I sighed, saying quietly, “She was my little girl.”
“Little?” he said, his eyebrows rising. “Get her a teddy bear then. Just don’t let her teacher know you sent it.”
“Very funny,” I replied but the more I thought about what he’d said, the more it made sense. I bet she would like a teddy bear from her Daddy. So the next morning, I ended up in a toy shop, standing before a man so thin, if he’d turned sideways, I doubt I’d have been able to see him. “Can I help you, Sir?” he asked as behind me some kid screamed.
“Hi, yeah, I’m looking for a teddy bear.”
“Of course, Sir. Might I ask what size you’re interested in?”
“Give me the biggest one you’ve got.”
“A wise choice. Is it a gift? I only ask because we have a delivery service at a very reasonable rate for our most special customers.”
I gave him Evangeline’s address and he guaranteed me it would be at her house by three. “I’ve heard that before,” I said, thinking of how I’d first met her. I waited until just after three before driving to hers. When she answered the door, my cock began to harden at once. The sight of her was enough to take me back, her on her front, me pressing myself between her legs, the sweet, delicate scent of her innocence.
Then Greg rang and ruined it. “You need to get round here,” he said when I answered.
“Your timing’s impeccable. Can’t this wait? I’m busy.”
“No, it can’t wait. I think I’ve found it at last, Dominic.”
“Found what?”
“Proof, what do you think?”
“Really?”
“I went to see your father. One of the nurses was keeping a file for him. It’s got everything in it, Dominic.”
“What do you mean, everything?”
“It’s all here in black and white. He agrees that if the company loses ten percent of its value, he’ll sell it to Archibald.”
