At the end of the hall stood my almost-conquest from the night before. Caleb. He looked even more handsome than I remembered—and more severe. Gone was the lazy smile that had accompanied his sinful propositions. He’d slicked back his black hair, and he clenched his chiseled jaw as those deep brown eyes scanned the room with disinterest.
Shocked and confused, it took me longer than I would have liked to admit to put the pieces together.
Patterson. These are the Patterson brothers, I thought, mind racing. Before I could think on it any further, “Caleb” began to walk toward me, his steps sure and powerful, something I hadn’t noticed the night before. He hadn’t looked at me yet, his eyes still sweeping the room as he took in his new surroundings.
He seemed unimpressed.
The man who accompanied him was slightly shorter and seemed to be a couple years younger, baby fat still clinging to his cheeks despite being well out of his teens. He was more relaxed than Caleb and had a more cheerful expression on his face than the one of disdain his brother wore. They had similar bone structure, and their hair color was the same dark hue, giving away their relationship to each other.
“Devon Patterson,” the shorter man said as they both came to a stop in front of my desk, reaching out to shake my hand. “This is my brother, Aaron. We have a meeting with Ronald Pace.”
If the one speaking to me is Devon—that means …
Caleb—Aaron—tore his eyes away from the room to meet my gaze. His expression didn’t change, but his body language did. His shoulders tensed as his dark eyes stared into mine.
My mystery man from last night wasn’t just a handsome stranger looking for a good time. He was Aaron Patterson, The Aaron Patterson, billionaire and CEO of our rival company. The man who struck fear into the hearts of business owners and made women swoon. At least, according to the New York gossip scene—and my own experience from the night before—he did.
I was still so lost in my head that I’d forgotten Devon had spoken to me, and it took a good ten seconds for me to respond. I tore my eyes away from Aaron’s with no small amount of effort.
“Oh, yes, of course. He’s expecting you,” I said, remembering myself. I cleared my throat and tried to pretend I wasn’t having an internal freak-out. “Please, right this way.”
My world swayed as I walked down the hallway in front of the Pattersons. I felt light-headed, but, as much shock as I was in, I also began to feel angry. He had lied to me and not just about his name—that, I had assumed. He had lied about who he really was.
Pushing through my storm of emotions, I knocked on Ronny’s door and waited for his answer. The two seconds I stood in silence, inches away from the Patterson brothers, were agonizing.
“Come in,” Ronny called.
I let myself into the office, Devon and Aaron following close behind. “Mr. Pace,” I said as though I hadn’t been on a first name basis with Ronny since pre-K. “Aaron and Devon Patterson are here to see you.”
Ronny had pulled himself together and was the epitome of professionalism. He smiled as he stood and gestured to the two chairs in front of him. “Welcome, gentlemen,” he said. “Please, have a seat. Can my assistant get you anything? Coffee, water?”
Maybe a swift kick to the balls …
“No, thank you,” Aaron declined.
It was the first time I’d heard his voice since he’d arrived, and it sent shivers down my spine. He had the same commanding tone that had made me weak in the knees. My experience with him last night, and my knowledge of his reputation as a relentless negotiator, told me Ronny would need every ounce of self-confidence he had to keep from folding like a card table under Aaron’s demands.
I backed out of the room, eyes still on Aaron. He didn’t look at me again, only took one of the seats in front of Ronny’s desk and leaned back in it. I didn’t realize I’d been holding my breath until I left the office and shut the door. I let out a shaky exhale and tried to still my racing heart.
Aaron Patterson had flirted with me. No, flirted was too soft a word. He had done much more than flirt. He had propositioned me. Even more than that, he had touched me. And I had let him. I had shamelessly flirted with the wealthiest man in New York. More importantly, I had almost slept with the man who could destroy my cousin’s career.
I had work to do, but I couldn’t bring myself to focus. As the meeting dragged on, I sat at my computer, blankly staring at the screen. I tried to think about what I would do or say when Aaron came out of that office.
So far, silence had worked in my favor, and maybe if I pretended last night hadn’t happened, he would forget about it. I was out of my element here. I had no idea what I should do in this situation. I had no idea what I wanted to do. All I knew was that he would be standing in front of me again very soon.
“Hey, girlie, you okay?”
I looked up to see Caroline standing by my desk. She had been the first person I’d met when I started working here, and we had become close friends. In fact, I’d called her and told her what had happened last night as soon as I had taken care of Ronny. Caroline had been ecstatic. She had even tried to convince me to go back to the bar, but I had refused.
“Um, yeah, I’m fine,” I told her. “Just feeling a little … off.”
“Are you sure?” Caroline asked, hopping onto the edge of my desk and crossing her long legs. She was wearing a skirt that was definitely too short for the office, but she had paired it with a fuzzy cream-colored sweater to tone down the sexy. “You seem a little pale, and I don’t think you’ve blinked in thirty seconds.”
“No, I’m fine,” I insisted. “Just zoned out for a moment.”
“I don’t blame you,” Caroline said. “I zoned out when he walked in, too.”
Alarmed, I kept my voice cool. “What do you mean?”
Caroline rolled her eyes. “A hot man just walked by, that’s what I mean. I’ll have some of that, yes, please!”
Paranoia gone for the moment, I allowed myself to laugh at her rampant thirst. Caroline was unrepentantly man crazy, and it was endearing on days when she hadn’t set her sights on a target I was more tangled up with than I would have liked to be.
“You do know who that is, right?” I asked. “Aaron Patterson? The man who owns our largest competitor?”
Caroline didn’t seem to care. She shrugged, gnawing on a thumbnail painted the palest petal pink. “That makes it better.”
It was my turn to roll my eyes. “You should get back to your desk.” I laughed. “If Ronny catches you hanging around my desk again, he’ll throw a fit.”
“I see what you’re doing,” Caroline accused with a smirk. “You want him all to yourself.”
“Ronny doesn’t play for our team, Care. Also, he’s my cousin. Gross.”
“Not him.” Caroline waved away my teasing, her long nails glinting in the fluorescent light. “Patterson. The first truly magnificent specimen to step foot in here in months and you try to shoo me away. I see what game you’re playin’.”
I tried to keep my face neutral. She was teasing. Of course she was teasing. She had no idea he was the one I’d met last night, and, at that point, there was no way I was going to tell her.
“You know if I wanted to call dibs, I would tell you to your face,” I teased. “Trust me—this is purely work related.”
Caroline chuckled as she hopped down from my desk. “I swear, you’re part machine,” she said. “Even you have to admit you’d take a piece of that if you had the chance.”
She had no idea how close I had been to doing just that the night before. Well, she did on some level.
“If I’m part machine, I don’t need a man,” I shot back. “I already have all the tools I need.”
Caroline laughed and walked away, hips swaying. Her appreciation of my joke made me shake my head, an affectionate smile on my face. Caroline was something else.
I was so lost in thought I didn’t notice the door to Ronny’s office open.
“We need to ta
lk,” said a deep voice.
The lingering smile from my conversation with Caroline was gone in an instant. I swiveled around in my chair and looked up into Aaron’s dark eyes. He was looking at me as if he had every right to be there, as if he was doing me a courtesy by speaking to me.
I pursed my lips. “I’m working,” I said in a low voice. I wasn’t on the fence about what to do about Aaron and my near tryst anymore. His attitude had just decided for me.
“I didn’t ask.”
“You’re right, you didn’t. But that’s beside the point. Even if you had asked politely, the answer would still be no.”
Aaron didn’t seem amused. He glanced around, almost as if he were checking to see if we were being watched. Thankfully, we weren’t. Everyone’s cubicles prevented them from seeing me unless they tried, and Caroline had already disappeared into the elevator. It was just the two of us.
Aaron moved closer to my desk, resting the fingertips of one hand on it. It was a small, possessive gesture, one that irritated me all the more. This was my space in my office at the company I worked for. He had no right.
“We … need … to talk,” he said slowly as if I hadn’t heard him the first time.
“I don’t think we do, actually.” I kept my voice icy and professional. “There’s nothing to talk about unless you, Mr. Pace, and Mr. Patterson require my services for the meeting. That, I would be happy to help you with.”
I was a liar. There was a lot to talk about, and there was no way I would help him with anything—even the meeting. But, I didn’t want to make a scene in front of my coworkers. I certainly wasn’t going to talk to him because he demanded it—I could be just as stubborn as he was when I put my mind to it.
“We can do it in private, or we can do it here,” he said, his voice pitched low, just as it had been the night before. The insinuation was hard to miss. “The choice is yours.”
Memories from the bar hit me hard, and my body’s reaction was instant. I felt the same rush of desire, a little tremor down my spine, and heat blossoming between my thighs. Damn, he had a way about him. I hated my body for betraying me. Resigned, I rose to my feet. I could spare him two minutes for a conversation, but that was all.
“This way.”
He followed me down the hall as I led him into the conference room. He closed the door behind us, and I spun around to face him.
“Caleb?” I hissed, sounding like a jilted lover despite my promise to myself to stay professional. “You said your name was Caleb.”
“I said a lot of things last night. Things I’m sure will stay between us.”
“As if I would want anyone to know I almost slept with one of the vilest men in the city.”
Aaron didn’t seem insulted. In fact, he looked amused. “I got the impression at the bar that you didn’t know who I was,” he said. “And now, suddenly, I’m the devil?”
“Yeah, that about sums it up,” I said. “Are we done here? I have to get back to work.” I tried to push past him, but he blocked my way.
His mouth twitched up into a smirk, and his body language shifted. Although he had kept his distance before, now he drew in close, letting me feel the heat radiating off his body. The same powerful urges I’d felt last night came rushing back. I didn’t know if I wanted to kiss him or smack that smug smile off his face.
Both. Definitely both.
“You can act hostile all you want,” Aaron said. “But I remember what you looked like when I touched you. You want me.”
I scoffed. “Wanted. Past tense. I don’t anymore.”
“Sure, you don’t.”
His cockiness last night might have charmed me, but now, all it did was make me want to murder him. A thought popped into my head, and I took a step back to put distance between us once more.
“Did you know?”
“Did I know what?”
“That I work here. Last night, you approached me. Did you know I worked at Pace?”
“Even if I had, it wouldn’t have changed anything.”
I didn’t know if I believed him, and, honestly, I didn’t care if he was telling the truth. All I wanted was to be far away from him. In the back of my mind, I realized Ronny was still alone with Devon, and I cursed myself for forgetting about my cousin. I needed to get back to my desk to make sure he was okay.
“I never want to see you around here again.” I gave him my best death stare.
“I don’t think that’s up to you.” Aaron chuckled. “But I like that you’re trying.”
His arrogance, once again, squashed any lingering lust I may have felt.
“Just stay away,” I warned. “Stay away from Pace.”
“What about you?” He angled his body toward me as I tried to walk past him. His eyes flicked down to take in my figure. “Do you want me to stay away from you?”
“Yeah, I do,” I said. “We’re done here.”
“That’s a shame.” He moved closer again as if to remind me how much my body liked to betray me. It took all my willpower not to lean into him. “We had great chemistry.”
He was the one to walk away this time, leaving me alone in the conference room, an unsettling mix of frustration and disgust churning within me.
3
Aaron
I sat in my office, plans for Matrix Publishing displayed on the screen in front of me. I had been angling for the Matrix account for what felt like ages, but now that I had all their secrets and plans laid out in front of me, I had barely looked at the files.
Devon and I had met with Ronny Pace last Friday and had presented a very favorable proposition. He could either join with Patterson or fade into obscurity. After all, that was where his company was headed if he lost any more clients, and if he refused to adapt his old-fashioned advertising methods to the digital age. He had remained calm, much to my surprise, and then he had politely declined.
It was a stupid decision on his part. Combining our businesses made good sense. Patterson was growing bigger by the day and turning Pace into another branch would divide the workload and double the profits for all parties involved. But Ronny Pace was a traditionalist, preferring vague, sentimental ideas about loyalty to cold, hard profit margins. That was one of the reasons he was floundering.
I had assumed Pace wouldn’t go for a partnership. I had only entertained the meeting at Devon’s insistence, confident it would take Pace a few more months of slow death to give in to our tempting offer.
The potential merger aside, I found myself distracted for another reason.
I had been thinking about Audrey, Ronny’s pretty, brown-haired assistant, more than I cared to admit. Seeing her sitting at that desk had taken me by surprise. When I woke up that morning, I hadn’t expected to run into the same woman I had almost bedded the night before. Not that I felt any embarrassment at running into her again. I was too busy, and life was too short to waste time on embarrassment. My taking her aside had nothing to do with embarrassment, and everything to do with not wanting to fuel any gossip about our encounter.
But her reaction to me had me dwelling on our meeting.
I had expected agitation from her. But her cold demeanor made me curious. She should have felt all too lucky even to have almost slept with me, yet she acted as if she didn’t want anyone to know. I supposed it was because she saw me as a threat to her boss—which I was.
But she also had a sense of pride about her that I found intriguing. She didn’t want me to charm or chase her, not even after learning who I was.
Scowling at myself, I put Audrey out of my mind and turned my focus back to work. I had the month’s financials to look through, and they required all of my attention. I had a meeting with the board at the end of the month to discuss the projected revenue for the next six months. I began to comb through the data my accountants had compiled, pleased to see revenue had increased across the board. However, there were a few dips between this month and the last few months that I needed to look into.
As time dragged
on, and I dug further, I noticed a few numbers that made me pause. When I reviewed the average service costs, several of them weren’t as high as they should have been. I had set the pricing the previous year, and I knew what the averages should be.
I picked up my desk phone. “Nora,” I barked. “Call a meeting with the sales staff right now.”
Nora took a second to make sense of what I had shouted at her. “Do I need to tell them what it’s regarding?”
“Their jobs.”
I slammed the phone down and glowered at the computer screen. If the average for services was lower than it should have been, it meant one of two things: either my staff was giving away unauthorized discounts, or my accountants were bad at math. Seeing as I’d had the same accounting staff since I’d started, I doubted they were to blame.
Five minutes later, I strolled into the conference room, radiating anger. Nora had turned on the display screen for me, and I walked over to it and brought up the report my accountants had provided me that morning.
“Can anyone explain what I’m seeing here?” I gestured to the screen.
No one spoke. The air was filled with tension and several people shifted uncomfortably in their seats. The associates glanced at Jillian and Seth, waiting to see if they would respond. They were privy to the same reports as I was and no doubt would have noticed the change in averages, if they had been looking hard enough.
“Really? No one has anything to say?”
I was met with more silence. Jillian pursed her lips—which she usually did when she knew what I was getting at but didn’t want to be the focus of my rage. Seth stared at the report as if he had never seen it before, eyes growing wide as realization dawned on him.
“Let me tell you what I see,” I continued. “We set the prices for services a year in advance. They have not and will not be changed until we reevaluate them for the New Year. Which means, on a month-to-month basis, the average pricing should be relatively similar, allowing for a reasonable margin of fluctuation. You’ll notice that this month and last month they are showing lower averages than they should be.”
Sweetest Obsessions - Anthology Page 209
