Virgin's Dirty Boss

by Nicole Elliot

  “It was business,” Rocco asserted, fumbling a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe his sweaty brow. “They refused to sell me that goddamn chip. My company was floundering, and our lives would have been ruined. We would have lost everything.”

  “Our lifestyle wasn’t worth murdering for,” Scarlett retorted. “You had a man killed, and another was scarred for life, for the sake of your comfort. I’m ashamed that I share your genes. I’m ashamed to be a Terini, and I wish there was some way that I could magically undo being your daughter.”

  “You ungrateful little bitch.” Rocco balled up his fist. “I’ve done everything for you and your sisters, and this is the gratitude I receive? You embrace my enemy and sell out your own flesh.”

  “Your actions weren’t prompted from concern for us. You did what you did for your own selfish reasons.”

  Rocco’s expression changed, his eyes narrowed, and lines bracketed his mouth. “Did he get his money’s worth?” he asked in a chilling voice.

  Scarlett’s mouth closed, and her last thought flew from her head. “What?”

  “Did Braxton enjoy you? Did he get the full value the money he paid for your virginity?”

  She snorted. “I know all about your offer, Father. Carter told me about it long before we began any relationship. I also know he didn’t pay you a dime, or you wouldn’t have been selling Chrys to the highest bidder.”

  “He did pay me,” Rocco insisted. “He told me he was anxious to ruin the daughter of his greatest enemy, and it was worth paying for.”

  Scarlett shrugged, schooling her face into a bland expression. “You’re a liar,” she said firmly, knowing that Carter had not paid for her virginity. If he’d done so, he wouldn’t have waited so long to claim his prize. “I do love him,” she freely admitted, “And I support him completely. If he wants to destroy you, I’ll be standing by, applauding.” She left him in the sitting room, passing Darren on her way upstairs.

  Carter

  “What’s this all about?” Rocco demanded entering his study. He had sent Darren to retrieve him and now he stood by the door as a precaution. “I don’t appreciate being summoned from my home to waste more than two hours in a car just to meet with you.”

  “It will be worth your time,” Carter said blandly, barely restraining his anger.

  “How so?” Rocco asked, his interest peaked.

  Carter leaned back in his chair, bracing his feet on the desk. “Your daughter came to my home today, begging for protection from you. Scarlett was upset and worried about her sister, so she came to me. I don’t like it when Scarlett is upset.”

  “Why’s that?” Rocco asked calmly.

  “Let’s just say I’ve developed a fondness for Scarlett. I couldn’t allow you to manipulate her sister into a marriage against her will. Scarlett would be upset and might never forgive me.” He grinned at Darren, enjoying himself.

  “What does this all have to do with me?”

  “I’m getting to that,” Carter said coolly. “I’ve spoken with Chrys and realized that she is too young and immature to marry anyone, especially a man thirty years her senior. I was shocked that you would so casually offer her to the wolves to save your own hide once again. I knew you were a ruthless bastard, but I thought even you would have limits.”

  Rocco exploded from his seat. “I didn’t come here to be insulted.”

  “You came here at my request, and you’ll stay until I allow you to leave,” Carter said in a very soft voice. “You’ll take whatever I give you, and you’ll keep your damn mouth shut.”

  “What are you going to do to me?”

  Sighing, Carter swung his legs from the desk, ignoring the pain in his hip, and leaned forward. “Nothing,” he said after a long pause. “I’ve decided to return the deed to your house.”

  “So you’ve had a change of heart?” The sneer playing on his lips told Carter than this is exactly what Rocco had hoped for. He hated the way it made him feel. But Scarlett was far more important.

  Carter smiled, a cold, predatory smile. “No, I’ve decided Scarlett’s happiness is more important than your ruination. I can’t bear to see her unhappy, and I’m willing to give up my torture of you for her. I figure you’ll lose the house within two years to taxes anyway.”

  Pulling open a drawer, Carter extracted the file containing the deed to Terini Manor and scrawled his signature across it. The experience hurt less than he’d expected, and he felt surprisingly free as he watched Rocco sign the papers. He could finally leave Terini in the past and concentrate on his future, a future that included Scarlett.

  Rocco tucked his copy of the folded deed in his jacket pocket. His smile was feral. “She did a good job, didn’t she?”

  “What are you talking about?” Carter asked warily.

  “We had it all worked out, you see,” Rocco said. “When she came home on Halloween, we sat down and planned it all.”

  “Planned what?” Carter asked in a bored voice, but his stomach dropped to his feet.

  “Your downfall,” Rocco answered with a nasty purr. “She’s always been a good girl, my Scarlett. She was willing to do what had to be done to save her family. It made me sick to think that she would have to allow your beastly hands upon her, but we all made sacrifices.”

  “You’re lying,” Carter said firmly, determined to hide his expression from Rocco. He tried to make Rocco’s words fall on deaf ears, but the part of him that didn’t trust easily, especially a Terini, was listening, even believing.

  “Poor, deluded fool,” Rocco said with pity. “She’ll be out of here so fast your head will spin. Oh, I’m sure she’ll stay for a short time so she doesn’t hurt you too badly. She won’t know I told you, you understand. She’s got a good heart, that Scarlett. She even told me a few minutes ago that she hated to have to hurt you since she feels so sorry for you. Still, she realizes you started this little war.”

  “Darren, show our guest out,” Carter growled, and Darren hurried to comply. It was all lies, he told himself as he poured a glass of scotch. Scarlett had not been in collusion with her father to end his quest for vengeance. She was not that good of an actress, and he refused to allow Rocco to sour his relationship with her. She loved him. “She loves me, dammit,” Carter snarled, flinging the glass against the mantle, where it shattered into a hundred pieces.

  Scarlett

  Much to Scarlett’s horror, Chrys and Lecy chose to leave with Rocco when Darren brought them to their father. When they returned to the bedroom to pack Chrys’s clothes, she tried to reason with them once more. “You don’t have to go,” she repeated again.

  “It’s perfectly safe now,” Chrys said blithely. “We’ll be rich again soon, so there is no need for me to marry Ralf Lemmings. I would rather be in my own home then here with Braxton.”

  “Don’t forget what Carter did for you.” Scarlett didn’t like her sister’s tone or expression.

  “He did it for you or for his own purposes,” Lecy snapped. Those were the first words to come from her mouth since she’d demanded an explanation of Scarlett’s accusations against their father. She’d read the file, and then tossed it across the room, refusing to believe the report. “I know Father, and he’s no murderer,” she’d insisted and refused to speak to Scarlett again.

  “I’m worried about both of you,” Scarlett fretted.

  “Don’t worry for us,” said Lecy. “Worry for yourself, as you wallow in your existence as the man’s plaything.”

  “Don’t talk about him like you know him. I think you’d better leave,” she said coldly. Acting upon her suggestion, they left the bedroom and joined Rocco downstairs.

  “Are you sure you won’t come with us now?” Rocco asked, and Scarlett shook her head. They departed, with only Chrys saying goodbye. She wished they’d left under better terms, but she’d made her decision, and Carter came first.

  “I’m glad that’s over,” said Darren. “My stomach couldn’t have taken much more of your father.”

&nbs
p; “I know the feeling,” Scarlett said wanly.

  She found Carter in his study, watching Edward clean up a shattered glass. “How did it go?” she asked, wrapping her arms around him. Was it her imagination, or did Carter stiffen a bit?

  “It’s over,” he said grimly. “Your father has what he wants, for the most part. I got what I wanted, for the most part.” His eyes honed in on her. “Did you get what you wanted, Scarlett?”

  She frowned at his intensity, waiting until Edward left before answering. “I got you.”

  “Is that what you wanted though?” he demanded, tightening his hold on her.

  “Of course. I love you, Carter.” She looked at him, noticing how agitated he was, “I know how hard this was for you,” she whispered. “I want to thank you for doing the right thing.”

  Carter continued to brood for the next couple of days, and Scarlett tried to be patient with him. She knew he was disappointed about the outcome of his plans for Rocco, but it was more than that. He was distant from her, and he seemed to have moved out of the room he’d moved her into. He hadn’t slept with her for the past three nights, and she was worried.

  She tried not to think about it, but at times she couldn’t help wondering if she’d been a game to Carter after all. Had he enjoyed defiling Terini’s daughter, but was now tired of her and hoping she would leave on her own? That didn’t seem reasonable, and Scarlett tried not to push those thoughts from her mind. Until her father’s arrival, she’d been absolutely certain of Carter’s feelings, and she’d been secure in the knowledge that he loved her as much as she loved him.

  For the fourth night in a row, Scarlett prepared for bed alone, having decided that if he didn’t join her tonight, she would move back to her old room tomorrow. This was his room, and if he didn’t want to sleep with her, he still had the right to the master suite. She only hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

  By one a.m. there was still no sign of Carter, and she gave up, getting into the bed, missing his solid presence. Tomorrow, they were going to have to talk, and she wouldn’t accept his excuses of being too busy. They had to settle their future, because this endless drifting was slowly eating at her.

  Sounds in the night awoke Scarlett, and she sat up in the bed, fuzzily focusing on the clock, surprised to see it was only a little after three. She heard raised voices downstairs and grabbed her robe from the closet, pulling it on as she rushed down to the first floor.

  She found Carter and Darren donning their coats. “What’s wrong?” she asked around a yawn.

  “There’s been a fire,” Carter bit out.

  “Here?” Scarlett asked, throwing off the last traces of sleep.

  “At Roche,” Darren said. “In the Research and Development building.”

  “You might have already known that,” Carter said coldly.

  “What?” Scarlett asked in confusion.

  “Don’t you find it coincidental that a fire destroyed Roche’s first building, and shortly after making my presence known to Terini, another fire occurs?” Carter asked sarcastically.

  “You think my father did this?” Scarlett asked in stupefaction.

  “You don’t believe him capable?” Carter mocked.

  Scarlett bit her knuckle. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

  “Save the condolences,” Carter snapped. “The business isn’t in trouble. R&D files are archived elsewhere. At most, your father cost me a few months in production time.”

  “That’s good.” Scarlett wondered why he seemed angry with her.

  “We’d better go, Carter,” Darren prompted.

  They returned after six in the morning, and Scarlett was up waiting for them. They were both sweaty, and traces of soot were smeared on their faces and clothes. “How bad was it?”

  “The building is a complete wash,” said Carter. “It was deliberately set. They called in the bomb squad and found a device in the main building. It was so close to going off that I don’t even want to think about it.”

  “Did you tell them about my father?” asked Scarlett, hoping he didn’t plan to pursue justice on his own once more.

  “Yes,” Carter answered wearily. “They’ll check it out, but I didn’t tell them about his past attack on the business. The police might get very curious about why I didn’t involve them before now.”

  “What did you tell them about him?” asked Scarlett.

  When Carter made no move to answer, Darren jumped in. “He told them he’d recently assumed your father’s company through a hostile take-over. They said they’d look into it, but doubted it was Terini. Men like him usually only commit white-collar crimes,” he said sarcastically.

  “It didn’t affect your business too much?” Scarlett fretted.

  “No, Rocco wasn’t nearly as successful as I’m sure he hoped to be,” Carter bit out. “I’m going to bed,” he said abruptly.

  Scarlett followed him upstairs and into the master bedroom. As she undressed, he looked over at her. “I haven’t slept more than two hours,” she explained. “I’m tired too, and I’d love for you to just hold me.”

  “I’m too tired to comfort you, Scarlett,” he said tersely.

  Biting back her hurt, Scarlett nodded complacently. “Then I’ll be content to lie beside you.”

  “I’d prefer to sleep alone at the moment.” He was uncompromising. “I’m dirty, and I don’t feel like taking a shower.”

  “I see.” Scarlett gulped, fighting back tears. “Then I’ll return to my old room.”

  “That would be best,” he agreed tonelessly, keeping his face blank as she threw on her shirt and left.

  Scarlett returned to her old room, but she couldn’t sleep. She packed a small suitcase with a few outfits, before unpacking. After everything was put away, she ended up yanking the carry-on from the closet again and refilling it. She didn’t want to run away from Carter, but she couldn’t continue to deal with his sudden unrelenting hostility. He seemed to hold her partially responsible for the fire simply because he suspected Rocco had set it.

  Sighing, Scarlett sat down on the bed, refusing to cry. To her surprise, she started feeling sleepy, so she stretched out, leaving the suitcase on the foot of the bed.

  It was several hours later when her eyes opened, and Scarlett groaned as she discovered an ache in her neck from sleeping in a strange position. She rose from the bed and stretched, noticing the suitcase and remembering she’d considering running away.

  She couldn’t leave without talking to Carter, or she would lose him forever. Ignoring her rumpled clothes and bed hair, Scarlett walked down the hall and knocked on Carter’s door. She figured he would already be awake and busy downstairs, but he opened the door. Scarlett’s body throbbed when she saw he was wearing only a toweling robe, and his dark hair was sleek and wet. “We need to talk,” she said, pushing her way past him before he could object.

  “I don’t have time,” he protested.

  “Make time,” Scarlett snapped. “I’ve been patient for the last few days, but I’m tired of waiting for you to make time for me. I need to know what’s going to happen between us.”

  “Now is not the time,” he said firmly. “I’m going to be quite busy for the next few days, so I suggest you entertain yourself as best you can until I can deal with you.”

  “I’m not a child.”

  “Dammit, Scarlett,” Carter snapped, glancing at the clock by the bed. “I have to go soon.”

  Taking a deep breath, Scarlett raised her head. “Since you’re going to be so busy for the next few days, I’m going to go visit my sisters.”

  Carter’s eyes narrowed, and his head snapped up, “I see,” he said coldly. “Mission accomplished, so you’re on your merry way?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You had me fooled.” Carter shook his head. “I honestly believed you loved me for a while, but your father spilled your big secret. I know you were manipulating me all along.”

  Scarlett’s mouth hung open. “You�
�re an idiot to believe him. You’re the one who showed me what a liar he is! Don’t do this, Carter. Don’t throw away our relationship because of my father. He’s done enough to you. Don’t let him ruin this too.”

  “I’ll have the car return you to Terini Manor,” Carter said distantly.

  “I only wanted to visit my sisters,” she said, desperation nearly choking her. Swallowing, Scarlett said, “That isn’t even true. I was just hoping to jar you out of this funk you’ve been in. I don’t want to leave.”

  “Very convincing performance.” He clapped mockingly. “If you were an actress, you’d be packing the theater. Your conscience can be absolved of hurting me. You never meant enough to me to allow me to be hurt by you.”

  “That’s not true,” Scarlett cried. “You love me.”

  “You’re not the only actor, Scarlett.”

  “You must love me, or you wouldn’t have given Father his house back.”

  “That’s all part of my plan,” he dismissed. “Now, the car will be waiting for you shortly, so I suggest you pack.”

  “Don’t send me away,” Scarlett begged.

  “Don’t ever come back,” he said with such finality that she literally crumpled to the floor.

  Scarlett eventually pulled herself up from the floor and went to her room. Amid a storm of weeping, she threw her clothes together, leaving the luggage and clothing Carter had purchased for her. It was only as she lugged the heavy suitcase downstairs and saw the concerned expressions of Edward and Ann that she realized she had nowhere to go.

  She’d denounced her father, siding squarely with Carter, thinking their love was the most important thing in her life. She’d alienated her sisters by accusing Rocco of murder, and she had no other family nearby. Scarlett’s wallet was empty, and she was destitute. There was only one place she could go, and though it hurt her pride, she knew she had no choice.

  Scarlett went down the stairs, refusing Edward’s help with her case, but allowing the chauffeur to stow it in the trunk. Reluctantly, she gave her father’s house as her destination and put up the privacy screen so the chauffeur couldn’t hear her sobs or see her tears.