by Lexy Timms
"I don't know." She picked up her stuff and tugged her bag over her shoulder. "Speaking of shit hitting the fan, how did things work out with Paul yesterday?"
"It's all good. Just a misunderstanding. We spoke a little about him spending too much time at Kristen's desk, and he apologized for that. He loves his job, and he's a good guy. He just got wrapped up in wanting the attention of a pretty girl, I guess." He reached out and touched the side of her neck, his eyes following his fingers as they trailed downward. "I know the feeling all too well."
"You're going to make me blush." She smiled and cupped her hand over his. "I'm going to review résumés. I'll have a handful of them for you by lunch time. I love you."
"I love you more." He moved up and kissed her once more. "I'll be home tonight. I promise. Dinner and some chill-out time on the couch. Sound good?"
"Sounds divine." She turned and walked to the door. "How much longer do we have Kristen? Did she say?"
"I think another couple of weeks. After the drama yesterday, I just steered clear of her. I think she was waiting for me to blow a gasket, and I would have with my brother but not with one of my employees. Just didn't seem right." He shrugged and sat down in his chair. "You look good today, baby. I'm sorry for all the drama in the paper. I'll take care of it."
"Or I can?" She paused by the door, studying him and loving what she saw. He needed rest, but he was strong man, capable of holding a lot on his broad shoulders. For some reason, the realization of that made her only want him more.
"No. You deal with working through the interviewees for the position out front. I'll deal with the paper and the lawyers." He turned his attention from her. "Come get me at six and make me leave with you."
"That's not an easy task. I'd rather deal with the paper." She chuckled as he glanced up.
"Just tell me no sex for a week if I don't get up and leave then." He smirked.
"That's a punishment for us both. Not happening, mister." She opened the door and walked out, pausing to close it and then turning to Kristen. "Everything’s fine. Are those résumés on my desk?"
"Yes. Is he upset with me about yesterday? He didn't say much, but I know the he has a ton going on. I worry about him sometimes." She stood up and shrugged. "What can I do to help? I feel so useless."
"You're doing great. I promise. He just takes on a lot, and there isn't much we can do but keep doing our jobs and supporting him when he needs it." Jamie turned to see Paul walking in from the elevator. "I'll catch up with you later."
"Okay. Let me know if you need anything." Kristen sat down as Jamie turned and caught up with Paul.
"Hey, you." She elbowed him.
"Hey." He glanced over at her, but didn't give any clues to his mood. He was expressionless, and his voice completely deadpan.
"You okay after the drama yesterday?" She stopped by her office, and was glad that he stopped as well.
He turned to face her and shrugged. "I didn't know that Mark was seeing Kristen a few weeks back. No one told me that. I'd have been subtler with my attention if I had."
"Did he tell you that before the fight?" Jamie leaned into her office and turned on the light.
"Yeah. He was angry over some project work, which he had every right to be. I was dragging my ass, and I'm glad he called me out on the floor for it, but the stuff over Kristen didn't have to escalate to that degree. I wouldn't have pushed his buttons at all on something like that." He shrugged once again. "I'm going to get started. Sorry if it disrupted the day."
"Shit happens. Get over it. Mark already has, I promise."
"Yeah, I hope so. I like the guy a lot. We were just starting to become good buds." Paul turned and walked to his office, leaving her standing there with a million things that she wanted to say, but none of them seemed quite appropriate. It would be between Paul and Mark to work out all the shit they were struggling over, namely Kristen.
The sound of someone being less than pleasant caught Jamie's attention, and she let out a short sigh before stepping into her office and setting her stuff down. Christine.
"Really? I can't just have one damn day this week without drama?" Jamie walked out into the hallway and stopped at the opening to the lobby, catching her sister's attention. "Come on back here and stop causing a scene in front of everyone."
"I wouldn't have to cause a scene if you'd answer your damn phone," Christine barked and moved up beside Jamie as they walked back to her office.
"I didn't see that you called, and lower your voice or I swear I'm going to drop you to the ground and sit on you like I did when we were kids." Jamie closed the door to her office behind her sister and walked to the window, not wanting to sit down. They weren't going to talk long, and the chance of it being pleasant at all was slim.
"I want you to stay away from my husband. This is me asking nicely." Christine pressed her hands to her narrow hips and narrowed her eyes a little. "I'm serious."
"What?" Jamie gawked at her sister. Was this chick for real? "What are you talking about? Your piece of shit husband submitted lies about me to a national newspaper and said he had sex tapes, Chris. If he has that tape, which he’d better not, then he got it illegally by recording us while we were dating."
"I don't want to hear about the glory days, Jamie. I'm serious. All he talks about is you. It's getting old. At first it was just him mentioning from time to time that he wished I could fuck like you, or take a dick like you." She reached up and brushed a tear from her cheek. "I'm not you, and I'll never be."
"Nor would you want to be." Jamie walked to her desk and plopped down in her chair. The idea that Stephen was even thinking about how she used to work him in the bedroom was sickening to think about. He'd promised her his heart, but it was a lie. All of it. He was a damn lie.
"I'm not here to talk about your pitiful life as the soon-to-be-wife of a billionaire. I'm here to tell you that you’d better back the fuck up, or I'm going to make your life miserable."
Jamie came out of her stupor and smirked. "Oh yeah? And please do tell me what you're going to do. How could you possibly make my life more miserable than Stephen's already working to do?"
"I'll figure something out. He's mine. You have your own man. Stay the hell away from mine." Christine had tears running down her face as she pointed a finger a Jamie, and shook with what looked like barely-contained rage.
"I've not gone near him since I was at the house for Christmas, and I didn't see him then. Remember? I was with you the whole time, trying to make you feel better. You've lost your mind. Get out and don't come here again. I'll see you in court when Alex and I sue him for what he's done, unless you're not coming that day."
"He's not going to court. You're not the only one with big-time lawyers, Jamie. Uncle Jon is going to help us with the case. Daddy's brother. Remember him?" She moved toward the desk and Jamie stood, not wanting their fight to turn physical, but more than ready to dish out an ass-whooping should her sister think otherwise.
"Uncle Jon is a child custody lawyer. You can't be serious right now." She moved around the desk as Christine backed up and almost tripped.
"Shut up. You don't know anything, you stupid, fat cow. Leave my man alone. He didn't want you, remember? You disgust him, just like you disgust me." She turned and walked to the door. "I hope the press continues to tear you apart. You deserve it. Stupid whore."
"Right. Enjoy your day, and if you need lessons in the bedroom on how to make Stephen scream like an animal in heat, just let me know." Jamie regretted the words once they were out, but there was no taking them back. “Next time you come to this office, security will escort you out of the building. You aren’t allowed back in here. Do I need to get them now?” She sat back down, starting to type on her keyboard as her sister slammed the door and left her to stew in the insanity that was her life.
"Why? What have I done to deserve all of this?" She pressed her hands to her face and took slow, deep breaths. "It's going to be fine. It's going to be—"
The sound of the fire alarm blaring from above her head caused her heart to almost stop.
"No way... What now?"
Chapter 9
"Freakin’ false alarm." Mark moved in front of her door as she gathered her things quickly. The alarm stopped suddenly, as if Mark’s words controlled them.
"What happened?"
"No clue, but there are a couple of older gentlemen up front asking for Alex, and one is getting rather testy. I'm thinking maybe you might want to help Kristen out. She can't find the boss."
"Testy? Why?" Jamie dropped her purse into her seat and hurried out into the hall to find people shuffling back to their offices. "Why would the fire alarm go off? Is it just damned to be one of those weeks?"
"Or one of those lives?" Mark chuckled before ducking into another office as Jamie continued her trek to the front. She half expected the sound of raised voices to greet her, but there was nothing of the sort.
"Nicolas." She stopped at the entrance to the hall. The ex-shareholder had proven to be far more of a detriment to the firm than any of the other scandals that had rocked them over the last year. He'd almost seemed to make it his personal mission to pin Alex as a greedy, womanizing bastard. It had almost worked in more ways than she cared to recount.
"Good morning, Jamie! Is Mr. Reid in today, or is he taking a day off?" A smirk played at the side of the older man's mouth. It was an expression that didn't become him. He was handsome and professional in his appearance and demeanor.
"I'm not sure where Alex is, but maybe I can help you?" She ran her hand over the top of the counter beside her and moved to stand beside them, extending her hand to the gentleman he was with. "I'm Jamie Connors, Mr. Reid's assistant."
"Jerry Donahue, legal counsel." He shook her hand and gave a curt nod.
Jamie thought fast. Nic here with legal counsel couldn’t mean anything good. “Let’s get you guys in a conference room. Would you like a cup of coffee? I’ll get you into a room and then go locate Alex." She gave Kristen a smile to let the girl know that everything was okay before turning and walking back down the hall. Why were Nicholas and his lawyer there? Were they looking to settle? Was that even a possibility? The situation was more than just being involved in collusion and fraud, right? Or was it more of a civil suit that Alex had the power to close down if Nic offered him enough money or restitution?
"Right here." She opened the door and moved back, avoiding Nicholas's hard stare. She had a million things she wanted to say to him, but held her tongue. He was a wolf in sheep’s clothing like none other she'd encountered. That he would use Gina to get to Alex showed the depths of his character, including every nasty flaw in it.
"You look nice." Nic nodded and walked into the room.
"Coffee?" She glanced down the hall, hoping like hell she might find Alex headed her way. Surely he had to know that Nicholas was coming in today.
"Sure. Black." The lawyer unbuttoned his coat and sat down, pulling a stack of files toward him.
"I'm fine." Nicholas walked toward the window, looking back at her through the reflection on the glass.
Jamie turned and walked to Alex's office, finding him gone, which wasn't a surprise. "Any clue where he is?"
Kristen stood up. "I think he's down at security on the bottom floor trying to figure out what happened with the alarm on the building. Want me to call his cell?"
"No. I'll go get him. Can you get a cup of black coffee to the guy in the dark blue suit in conference room three?" She walked to the elevator as Kristen agreed to help out.
Jamie pressed her back to wall behind her and let out a slow breath, wishing for a few minutes of peace. A night in the arms of the man she loved would be even better, but that wasn't going to happen in the near future. She made another mental note to talk with him about his schedule again. Being a nagging wife wasn't her desire, but having more of him for herself was going to have to become the case. They needed it. It centered both of them.
The elevator opened on the fourth floor, and a pretty girl walked on, her eyes lighting up as she stopped in front of Jamie.
"Oh wow. You're Jamie Connors." She offered her hand. "I was just reading all about you this morning."
Jamie cringed internally. "Lucky me!" she joked as she shook the girl's hand and tried to discern who the stranger might be. The building was mostly taken up by Reid associates, but they had recently decided to lease out the twelfth floor. Maybe the girl worked for one of their sublease tenants.
"Just the story that People magazine ran. It was honestly a great piece. Made me want to be a princess all over again." Her cheeks colored pink.
"A princess? Is that why they said I was?" Jamie chuckled. "Let me guess... Cinderella?"
"Yeah. It was really good. We were all talking about it this morning. It's great to know that good men still exist." She shrugged and got off the elevator before turning back and smiling. "Nice to meet you. Congrats on scoring big time."
"Thanks." Jamie turned and headed to the security booth to see that no one was there but an older guy with a look of disdain on his face. "Hi there. I'm looking for Mr. Reid."
"Back there, last door on the left." He pointed behind him without even focusing on her.
"Thanks," she mumbled and walked down the hall in the direction the guy had pointed.
Cinderella. Ugh. The poor girl with no class or standing meets a prince who changes everything.
And Alex had changed everything for her. Why was she struggling so much with the papers making her look like a lower-class citizen? Who cares if they considered her a princess; at least Cinderella had a happy ending.
"…I realize that, but the reason I pay for so much security is because I have to. Don't let it happen again, or all of you can look for new jobs." Alex's voice boomed from the doorway just down the hall. He walked out and stopped short as she moved toward him. "Oh. Hey."
"Hey. Nicholas is upstairs in a conference room with his lawyer." She turned and walked beside him as they moved out into the large ornate lobby of the building.
"Damn. All this fire alarm crap and I forgot about him coming. Why didn't Kristen try to get a hold of me?" He pulled out his phone and glanced down at it as he absently rubbed at his chest. "Oh. She did."
They got in the elevator, and Jamie moved up to press herself to the front of him. "What's up with your chest? You okay?"
He let out a soft huff before nodding and finally focusing on her. His blue eyes were filled with warring emotions, which only tugged at the deepest parts of her to open him up more. To nestle herself so deep in his heart that there was no possibility of anything ever happening to them. "Just a few pains here and there. I'll have it checked. I'm sure it's just indigestion." He touched the side of her face. "Damn, you're beautiful. How’d I get so lucky?"
She reached back and hit the emergency stop on the elevator before turning back to him. "I don't know, but I miss you. Come home tonight?"
"Yes." He pulled her against him. "I'd like to stay in this elevator for a couple of hours too, but Nicholas is waiting."
She brushed her cheek by his before pressing her lips to his neck and breathing in. "I know. He can wait just a minute. I just want to feel you against me."
"Okay, baby." His strong arms locked her against him, and he turned them, pressing her to the wall and moving just enough to line his face up with hers. His kiss was passionate, but sweet, loving. His tongue pressed against her sealed lips, and she opened up, letting him in as a groan left her.
There was no one like Alex Reid. He had power and raw masculinity, and yet he had a soft side, a subtle humility that not many people got to witness.
But she did.
"I love you," he whispered against her lips as he pressed his forehead to hers.
"Me more." She nipped at his lips once more before turning and pressing the button to release the elevator to move. "Why is Nicholas here?"
Alex let out a long sigh as he ran his hands through his hair. "He's hoping to entice me w
ith a plea bargain. People with wealth never want to go to court for anything. It's too much of a reputation detriment. If we can settle out of court, it will leave him more intact than if we go in there and the jury finds him guilty."
"And you're considering settling after all he's done?" She moved out of the elevator and down the hall with him beside her.
"I'm not sure yet. I'll make the call when the time is right. I'm not an emotional negotiator, Jamie. I'm a businessman, and this is simply business." He paused outside the closed door. "I'll check in with you later."
"Do you want me in there with you?" Concern laced her voice as Alex rubbed at his chest again.
"No. I hate the way he watches you. Vulture." Alex winked and turned, walking into the room. "Gentlemen."
Jamie stood there for a few more minutes before walking back into her office and sitting down in her chair. She was nibbling at her lips, thinking a million things, most of them unhealthy.
Her family was being ridiculous about Stephen, everyone but her father.
"Speaking of." She got up and closed her door before pulling her phone out and calling her dad. An update would be good.
"Pumpkin?" Her father's voice was softer than usual.
"Hi, Dad. I was just checking in. I know Alex went ahead with the suit on Stephen and I wanted to see how everyone was handling it." She walked to the window and let her eyes move across the city. It was a beautiful day, and the need to get out and breathe a bit of fresh air on a long walk later that afternoon left her feeling needy.
"About as well as you would expect. Stephen’s a weasel. He doesn't see the wrong in what he did, but you knew he wouldn't. He's shouting that the world should know that the media lies." He grumbled something that she couldn't make out.
"That sounds about like him. I guess he was served papers?" Jamie brushed her fingers by her lip as her stomach sickened a little. Her family was already messed up enough. They didn't need anything else adding fuel to the fire.
"Yes. He was at the house when it happened, and your mother was actually excited about the trial. I swear she's gone off her rocker." Another sad sigh. "It's like any publicity is good publicity, and yet everything that's happening is so far from center of where I live my life."
