by Lyra Parish
“Or you can just walk around like that. I much prefer the bra and blue jeans look, anyway.”
I reached my hands behind my back and removed my bra. I had found my courage, and I wanted control. I held the lace, navy-blue bra on the edge of my finger as Parker’s eyes widened at the sight of my bare breasts.
“Might as well trade favorites for favorites then,” I said, and his mouth dropped open.
Parker took his time as he walked to me. His hands slowly moved up my stomach until my breasts were in his hands. My nipples hardened from the contact, but I stood strong.
“We have to take us one day at a time. We wouldn’t have had sex regardless if my brother would have come home or not,” Parker whispered as he kissed up my neck.
“I know.” And I did know. There was too much at stake to worry about the future and I knew his golden rule, but we were so close.
“As much as I want to lay you down on my bed and fuck you until the sun comes up, I can’t, plus we have a trip first thing in the morning, so I should take you home. I haven’t even packed yet.”
I slipped the soft gray shirt over my body, and my nipples poked out. I crossed my arms and gave Parker a smile. “I knew the night would end like this.”
He crossed his arms in the same fashion. “I don’t want it to, trust me.”
His words pleased me more than they should have and irritated me at the same time. Parker was in control of this. Then again, maybe he knew that I loved the chase but after the act, I was done. Maybe he was prolonging the inevitable? Parker ran his fingers through my hair. Instinctively, I leaned into his touch.
“We will see each other in eight hours.” He pressed his lips to my forehead, and I closed my eyes.
“You’re right.” I let out a breath, and Parker opened the door. Sounds of laughter traveled up the stairs, and he grabbed my hand as he led me past the kitchen.
“It was nice meeting you, Roxane,” Ross said and waved at me as Parker pulled me faster down the hall. Before he was out of sight, I turned and waved back. “You, too.”
“He’s going to see you again,” Parker said as he shut the front door behind him.
I put my hands in my pockets. “Can you guarantee that, Mr. Williams?”
“I’ll guarantee it with my life.” I held back a smile but was glad to know that this wasn’t over. No, this was far from over. Who was I kidding?
The lights on the Porsche flashed, and he opened my door. I sat inside, and the leather seats were cold on my body. Parker pushed a few buttons and before long, everything was warm. Heated seats were magic.
The high-rise was lit like a beacon in the night with all the lights on in everyone’s condos. I got out of the car and Parker did too. I punched the code into the main door and we slipped inside the elevator. Surprisingly, Hugh didn’t get on.
We stepped off the elevator and Parker walked me all the way to my door with his hand in mine. When we got there, I noticed there was a note taped on the outside. I gave Parker a strange look and peeled it off.
RoxI’m not giving up on us, not yet. I can’t. I won’t. What we had was a good thing. I love you. Please call me.
Your Jake
My nostrils flared. Your Jake my ass. I crumpled the piece of paper into a tight ball and threw it into the trash by the elevator. My mood instantly went sour.
“Will you be okay to stay here by yourself? I think this is getting a little out of control, don’t you?”
“I don’t think he would hurt me. I just think he’s becoming a little too obsessive. I should have never—”
Parker swallowed. I watched his Adam’s apple move in his throat. I didn’t even have to finish my sentence.
“When?”
“It’s been weeks and weeks and weeks now. Before you started at the firm.”
I wanted him to know that it hadn’t been since we’d happened. I’ve actually been committed to him in some odd way. I knew my words made him happy by the little tug on his lip.
“I told him before that we wouldn’t go anywhere. There were no false pretenses going into it. It was a lapse of judgment on my part, one that will never, and I mean never, happen again.”
My back pressed against the outside of the door. The foyer was silent. His lips brushed against mine, teasing me before we temporarily lost control. I closed my eyes ready for more of Parker. My eyes bolted opened when I realized he was being pushed away from my body. Parker turned around, and Jake stood there, huffing and puffing as if he would blow my house down.
“Jake. What the fuck!” I yelled and moved past Parker.
“Stay away from her,” Jake screamed while running toward Parker. He pushed Parker’s back against the wall, and my mouth dropped open in horror and shock when Jake pulled out a knife. Parker put both hands up in the air and stood there watching Jake’s every move. I pulled out my phone and began dialing 9-1-1. Jake snatched my phone from my hand and ended the call. He was hysterical and was acting insane. I tried to stay calm, completely calm, because Jake was far from that.
“Jake. Please put down the knife. You don’t know what you’re doing.” I wanted him to focus on me before someone got hurt.
“Shut up, Roxane.”
When Jake turned to look at me, Parker moved forward and tackled him to the ground. He straddled Jake’s chest and maneuvered the knife from his hand, then allowed his fist to connect with Jake’s face. The sound of knuckles and face connecting made me sick.
“Stay away from her,” Parker said between gritted teeth, while forcing his fist into Jake’s nose one last time.
Jake lay on the ground, not moving, then Parker stood and took a few steps back. I picked my phone up from the ground and dialed 9-1-1 again. I quickly let the woman know what had happened. I was in a panic, my adrenaline was pumping, and my hand was shaking with fear.
I called Stacey after I’d hung up with the police. My voice came out in a jumble.
“Stace. Jake just attacked Parker with a knife. I-I-I’m in shock, I think.”
“What? Oh my god. Where are you?”
“Outside of my condo. I called the police. They are on the way.”
It didn’t take long for the men in black uniforms to come bustling in from the elevator. Jake began moving and making sounds of pain.
“I’m Officer Bryant. Tell me exactly what happened, Ms. VanBuren.”
“Parker walked me to the door, and my ex attacked him with a pocket knife. Jake turned and knocked my phone out of my hand. When he wasn’t paying attention, Parker deflected the knife and they got into a scuffle.”
Jake’s eyes widened when he realized the people in the foyer were men from the Houston Police Department.
“So he attacked the two of you?” Officer Bryant asked.
“Yes. He did.”
“Doesn’t look like he ever had a chance by the looks of his face.” Bryant turned and glanced at Jake.
I looked at Parker, who was leaning against the wall by my door. He had already been questioned.
“You’re lucky. Sometimes incidents don’t turn out quite like this,” Bryant said.
I looked at Jake, really looked at him, and what Parker had done to his face. His skin was pink and puffy, and his eyes were already discolored. Parker hadn’t held back, but I can’t say I would have reacted any differently.
Stacey waltzed off the elevator in five-inch heels. She almost towered over everyone in the room in her tight skirt and baggy silk shirt.
“What the fuck, Jake?” She was furious. I could see the anger swirling on her face.
Officer Bryant sounded like he was speaking through a tunnel. “Miss?”
“I want a restraining order on him. I can’t keep doing this. He shouldn’t have been able to get into my building without proper approval anyway.”
“And you trespassed?” Stacey asked between gritted teeth.
An EMS checked Jake and once he was cleared, the officers arrested him on the spot. “Don’t do this, Rox. Please,” Jake a
ctually had the nerve to beg me.
“I’m sorry.” I turned around, trying to compose myself. I couldn’t look at Jake, and the thought of him made me angry and sad. Obsessiveness was dangerous.
Parker came to me and rubbed his hand across my back; just his little way of saying he was there. I glanced down at his knuckles on the opposite hand. They’d been cut open from the force of his punches and were bleeding. Somehow, I felt like this was my fault.
Officer Bryant handed me a case number and gave me more information. I just wanted it all to end. Though Jake had been a little controlling when we’d dated, I never thought the bridge would be burned like this. Never in a million years.
Once the police and EMS drivers exited, Stacey came to me and gave me a hug. “Don’t you dare feel bad about this. He deserves everything he has coming to him, and I’m not bailing him out. I warned and threatened him to leave you alone. He could have hurt one of you, carrying a knife around like that.” She knew me all too well.
“It was a pocket knife,” I reminded her. I didn’t want her to dramatize it more. She did have a knack for doing that.
Parker placed his hands in his pockets as Stacey and I spoke. Before she left, she gave me a hug and whispered in my ear. “What a knight in shining armor.”
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I didn’t need that right now.
“You need anything, you call me.” She stepped inside the elevator. “Oh and have fun in NYC,” she said before the doors closed. I watched the number of each floor light up until she was at the bottom.
I sucked in a deep breath and turned to Parker. “I’m really sorry.” My voice was small, and I didn’t really know what else to say. I was upset and embarrassed that any of this had happened, but I was genuinely happy he was with me. What if Jake had overpowered me? It could have easily happened.
“No. Don’t you dare apologize for this. It isn’t your fault. Okay?” Parker was all seriousness. I punched the key into my door, then grabbed his hand and led him inside. I pulled my hidden bottle of whiskey out from the freezer and sat down at the bar. Parker sat next to me as I unscrewed the lid and took a sip straight from the bottle. I was hardcore like that, but so was he. Parker gripped the bottle from the top and took a sip right after me. He blew air out of his mouth and made a little face.
“I haven’t had whiskey straight from the bottle in years,” Parker said, brushing his arm against mine. Condensation was dripping from the bottle, and I picked it up and took another gulp, a bigger one. Parker followed my lead. Soon, I could feel the liquid gold swimming with my blood and I relaxed.
“I lost control out there. I’m sorry.”
I turned in the barstool so our knees touched, and I gently reached for his injured hand. His knuckles were swollen and bruised.
“Now it’s my turn to tell you not to apologize. You reacted how any sane person would have. Thank you.”
His thumb traced my bottom lip, and I wanted to sink into his touch. In fact, I almost did. For a moment, I pretended we were two different people in two different places in our lives. We could be the perfect matches for each other if our circumstances were different.
“I will protect you no matter what,” Parker said. His voice was low and his tone held meaning.
I moved to the couch, and Parker followed me with the whiskey in hand. He placed his arm around me, and I clicked the switch to the fireplace then took the bottle. Blue and red flames rose and fell and the longer I watched the fire, the more it looked like two people dancing. Maybe that was the whiskey.
There were little things I really liked about Parker, like how he didn’t pry with unnecessary questions and how at times he was okay with just being in silence. Not many people were confident enough in their situation to just be. It was comforting in a sense.
The more whiskey I drank, the more I came to terms with my feelings for him. I didn’t know what those feelings really meant or where things between us would go, if anywhere, but I was okay with living in the right now.
An hour passed, and Parker yawned. He swept strands of hair from my face and kissed my forehead. “I should get going. We’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”
“You should stay,” I whispered.
I didn’t want to have sex or anything. The thought of it, after the events of the evening, hadn’t even crossed my mind. I just wanted to have his company. Often I was okay with being alone, but there were moments like this when I wanted someone around.
“I can’t, Rox.”
“Just for a little longer then?”
Parker stood and grabbed my hand. He walked me to the end of the hallway where my bedroom door was open. Once inside he folded the comforter down. “Get in,” he said.
I slipped off my shoes and climbed into bed. Then he slipped his off and climbed in next to me. Once my head hit the pillow, I realized how tired I really was and how my rule was being stomped on. Parker wasn’t supposed to be in my bed. I turned and tucked my hands under my pillow, and we faced each other.
“I love your eyes. I swear they change colors with your mood.”
I smiled. “When they turn red, you better run.”
Parker laughed. He exhaled and tucked my hair behind my ears. Parker was here, in my bed. I guess that meant rule number three was finished.
Before long, my eyelids became too heavy. I closed my eyes and drifted off to dreamland.
I didn’t even hear him leave.
I woke up at five a.m. with a pounding headache. Thoughts of Jake and Parker swirled around in my head. I checked the front door and noticed Parker had locked it. Thank god someone else knew how to use keyless entry.
I took two aspirins and began checking my bag. I could admit that I was neurotic about checking everything again before I traveled, and it was for reasons just as this. I went through my files for the meeting with Jason McCaul Jr. and noticed I had stupidly left my notes and the contract at the office.
I let out a frustrated breath, because I had to go in and pick them up before the cab arrived in four hours. Though the sun hadn’t awoken yet, I got dressed. I threw a pair of dress pants, a button-up blouse, and one-inch heels on the bed, then jumped in the shower. As I wash my body, I couldn’t stop thinking about Parker sweetly lying in my bed. When I closed my eyes, I saw his of blue.
I blow-dried my hair and applied light makeup. Before I walked downstairs, I started the car from my window. Damn I loved my Volvo and keyless start. After a few more minutes, I hurried to the elevator. As soon as I opened the door, the briskness of the morning hit me. I hurried to the car and let the memories of last night play through my head. Parker’s hands on my breasts, his lips on my neck—holy hell. Just thinking about him was enough to keep me warm. In three hours, our trip together would begin. I didn’t know whether I should be nervous or excited, but I was combination of the two. I knew I shouldn’t care and that I should stop this before it got out of hand, but it didn’t seem like ending it would be that easy anymore.
The sun barely peeked over the horizon and was gleaming from the windows of the towering buildings downtown. The sky had wisps of purple and pinks. Though I hated early mornings, I loved watching the sunrise. I pulled into the parking spot in front of VanBuren Investments that was reserved just for me. I scanned my badge at the front door and hurried inside. Because it was so early in the morning, I knew not many people would be there. It would be a quick in and out, or so I thought. As soon as the elevator doors opened on my office floor, my father greeted me with his coffee in hand.
“Whoa, back off, Dad. You’re hovering.” He was inches from me with a huge smile on his face and a piece of paper in his hand.
“Do you know what this is, Pumpkin? Any idea?”
I passed him and headed toward my office, and he followed in my wake.
“Sure don’t.”
When we walked inside, he shut the door behind him, giddy like a little schoolgirl. I gave him a small smile as I sorted through the pile of papers on my desk. I had n
ever been a morning person, even when I was kid. He knew this, though he still loved chatting with me before nine a.m.
“This right here, this is the official paperwork for me to come out of retirement and take back the office when you move to New York.”
My heart pounded. It was something that I wanted to forget since I’d met Parker. I knew we had discussed it months ago, but here we were, with the subject at hand, or rather slapping me in the face.
“Ahh, yes.” I grabbed the paper with the key points that I had to hit when I spoke to McCaul Jr.
Dad stood with a smile on his face. “You look different, Pumpkin. There’s a glow about you. You’ve met someone.”
“Not really. I can’t get into a relationship right now, not since I’m moving to New York in a few months.” I said it out loud to remind myself, to remind my heart.
“Wishful thinking I suppose, but you’ve always been a smart cookie. Even when you were a little girl, I knew you’d grow up to be something great.” Dad opened his arms and I fell into them, giving him a large hug while I felt like I was betraying his wishes. The internal struggle waged a war inside of me. Would he be disappointed if he found out about Parker and me? I couldn’t have that.
“Be safe flying. Call me when you land, and definitely let me know what McCaul says about the contract. It’s important that he signs. Do whatever you have to do to get him to, because we can’t move forward with the verbiage the way it is.”
“I understand.”
“Parker will be there; that man can make anyone do anything. I think it’s his charisma.”
I swallowed and hoped that the heat that rushed through my body hadn’t hit my cheeks. My father searched my face and placed his hand on my shoulder.
“I know that you two don’t like each other. I’m hoping you get a better feel for one another during this trip. Be professional, Pumpkin. Listen to Parker—he knows his stuff—and stand your ground with McCaul. I know you will.”
He leaned over and kissed me on the cheek, and I smiled. I folded the paper I needed in half and walked out of my office.
“See you next Monday. Oh, and Rox?”
