Sucker for the Boss

by Blue Sky Books

  When Samuel had cooled down, he told her that she could keep the baby if only she won’t announce it publicly. He was building repute for himself. Rebecca had agreed verbally but she had every intention to get Brian on board. And then she went to labor, where hours later she was told that her baby girl didn’t make it out alive.

  She was devastated by the news and it took her three months to recover the physical injuries. But the emotional gap that was created, it kept on expanding. Losing Brian first and then their daughter, it was too much for her. She had loved Brian from day one and she feared that her feelings for him will never go away until the day she’d die. But knowing how important things she had kept from him, even if it wasn’t by choice. He was never going to look at her again without having painful thoughts.

  “Why did you run away from the party last night, Rebecca?” She had received thirty missed calls from her mother’s number last night and her phone started buzzing in the morning again. Thinking to get over with it, she answered her call. As expected, she was furious.

  “Do you have any idea how angry your dad is and how important your presence was there? Now only god knows what people must have interpreted from your rude departure. Poor Travis, do you know how embarrassed he was? And why didn’t you pick your phone up when I called you endlessly?” Dad, people, Travis. Her mother cared for everyone, except her.

  “I wasn’t feeling well, mother.” She had felt ill from the level of fakeness around her. “Honey, you should have left with Travis if you weren’t well. You could have gone after a proper goodbye to everyone. No one would have kept you then,” her mother’s voice softened and Rebecca sighed. “We are under the microscope right now. One wrong action and you know how it will dirt your dad’s image. We can’t have that, honey. Not after all these years he has tried so hard to put all this together. It’s time to reap what we were sowing for ages.”

  “I understand, mother. I’ll be careful.” She had nothing else to say. “Call your dad, Rebecca. He’s upset.” Upset and her dad? She wanted to laugh out loud. Samuel Potter didn’t let anything upset him. He was ready with shovel and shield to fight against it long before. There was no point to argue any further. She hanged up the call and got ready for her day at work.

  Her thoughts kept drifting to Brian and she wondered what he was thinking about everything that had happened last night. She cursed herself for breaking down before him but his warm embrace had given her such security that she had let her guard down. It was more than just the fear of that stalker following her. Her tears had been that of mourning for her dead daughter that she had shared with her father.

  Guilt gripped her by throat again. She should have told Brian everything despite whatever restrictions Samuel had put on her. Brian had a right to know the truth. She could keep the real story of leaving him to herself, but about their child, it was wrong to keep him in dark.

  She spent the whole day brooding about it but up to no avail. Travis called too and he was just as unhappy as her own family. “Samuel wants you to marry me, Rebecca. You should better get used to the idea because one of these days, he is going to announce,” he said in a sharp voice. “My father does not make decisions for me, Travis. Keep that in mind please. I don’t want to strain things between us,” she replied in equal pitched voice and ended the call. Travis was getting on her nerves.

  *****

  What you don’t know is good for you, Brian.

  Rebecca’s words echoed in his head ever since she had walked away. What had she meant by this? He didn’t know why she left him. Was there more to it? And why the hell he was better off without knowing it? That woman knew how to make him crazy. She had done brilliant job so far. But the knots inside his head kept on building but there was no way to straighten them.

  “Brian!” Jack snapped his fingers before him, bringing him back to present. “Where do you want these?” he gestured at the cases of Chablis he had ordered. “Put them in the cellar.” He had come to Los Angeles to help his cousin, Mark in setting up a club. And this club had brought Rebecca back into his life. If only she could give him the answers he needed so that they could proceed to the next steps. He had one hell of a ladder to climb and he wanted her by his side.

  Grabbing his keys, he went to the door, ignoring Mike who was calling him. He had to see Rebecca and know what she wasn’t telling him.

  He parked his Ducati outside her driveway and waited. It was only five minutes when a blue convertible came into view and stopped right before him. His pulse raced as Rebecca stepped out of the car in a gray plaid blazer over black silk shirt and slacks. She looked stunning. He swallowed hard.

  “Wow, you look beautiful.” He couldn’t keep himself from complimenting. She flushed and thanked him. Despite the blush his compliment had brought to her cheeks, he noticed that her eyes gave out sadness and there was a hint of circles around them.

  “We need to talk, Rebecca.” He expected a dramatic argument from her. Instead she nodded. “We do.” She sighed and told him to wait while she changes out of her work clothes. The fact didn’t go past him that she hadn’t invited him in. She came out in a brown cardigan over a white shirt and blue jeans. She looked fresh and still breath-taking.

  “Can we go somewhere low profile? I don’t want to get in media’s eye.” Brian raised his brow at her words. “My Dad, he is running in the election.” “I never knew he was in politics.” “There are a lot of things you don’t know about him, Brian. A few things I’ll be enlightening you today.” He had no idea what she had just said but there was a thing in his gut that asked him to brace himself for a good kick. Figuratively. They walked to a nearby coffee shop which was mildly crowded.

  “I’ll have a black coffee, please. Thank you.” Brian was surprised at her order. She never drank black coffee before. She always had a sweet tooth. He didn’t comment. He was more concerned about what she was going to say next. None of them started the conversation. Brian’s eyes were fixed on her and hers was on the napkin on the table. Their drinks were served and Rebecca played with the rim of the cup.

  “We can stay here all night, Rebecca, if you want to. But I don’t like my imaginations running wild,” he finally spoke. “My dad had me escorted out of your life.” Her immediate answer wasn’t what he expected. “You were willing to leave?” She raised her eyes to meet his. “What do you think, Brian?” she asked, not tearing the gaze away. He remembered how happy she was with him.

  “You could have said no. This is not eighteen century that anyone can force you to do something out of your will.” She smirked at his comment. “You are right. I should have said no. I did.” She didn’t elaborate any further but her face was remorseful. He covered her hand with his and squeezed. “You could have told me, Love. I would have fought for you.” He would have slayed dragons for her if he had to. But apparently she didn’t trust him that much.

  “I wasn’t allowed to contact you or tell you about anything. About why I left, why I didn’t call, about the bab…” She stopped and looked at him with a horrified expression. Before he could ask, her phone started to ring and she picked it up quickly. A frown appeared on her forehead. “Yes, I am fine … no, I am out with a friend … I don’t need you, Travis. I can take care of myself.” She snapped the phone shut. Travis? Who the hell was he? Jealousy kicked in.

  “All good?” “Yeah, I should leave now.” She got up. “What? We just started talking, Rebecca.” He stood up too throwing a couple of bills on the table and followed her out. “I told you what you asked, Brian. I don’t have anything else to say to you.” Her breath had changed. She was almost hyperventilating and her face was flushed.

  “Stop right here, Rebecca. We are done talking when I say we are done. You can’t give me open ended answers and leave me again, guessing everything. What is it you are not telling me? What else happened? I know you, you wouldn’t have gone with your father without at least giving me a proper goodbye.” He caught her by the elbow as they stepped outside the
coffee house.

  “He threatened to ruin you if I didn’t leave you,” she snapped at him. “There. That answered your concern? I am so sorry, Brian. I was so worried about your life that I forgot to kiss you goodbye. Now maybe you can stop wailing and swallow that up.” Brian was stunned by her confession. Did she leave him to save him?

  She turned to leave again but he didn’t let her go. Instead, he held her by the waist and pressed her against his body. “Maybe you shouldn’t have gone all sacrificing and trusted me a little more? My life was ruined when you left me. I would have survived any blow and still stand straight. But yours? It brought me to knees.”

  “Brian, don’t …” before she could finish her protest, Brian lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her like a starving man. God! She tasted far better than he remembered. She struggled in his arms for a few seconds but then melted like butter against fire. “This was for the one you forgot to give me,” he said to her in a husky voice and brushed his thumb on her lower wet lip. “And this one will be for makeup.” He took her mouth again and kissed her with wild passion. She moaned and gripped his hair. That’s my girl. He made sure she knew what effect she was having on him.

  A loud sound of shutter broke their moment and Brian saw a man with a camera, had a huge lens pointed towards them and was now taking more shots. “Oh god!” Rebecca covered her mouth and then started to run in the direction of her house. Brian was ready to throttle the cameraman who was still taking his pictures. But then thought better and followed Rebecca.

  He tried to calm her down but she was hysterical, telling him that the pictures would go public and they both would pay for the consequences. “I’ll take care of you, Love. He can do no harm to us.” Rebecca just shook her head and when spotted the cameramen and reporters outside her house, she said to him, “You should leave.” Instead he took her hand and walked to her house. The paparazzi when spotted them, leapt towards them and pushed mikes into Rebecca’s direction.

  “What do you have to say about the attack, Miss. Potter?” “Do you know who is behind this?” “Do you have any suspects that you think could be behind all this?” Rebecca was just as stupefied by the questions as he was. She looked up at him in terror and he wrapped an arm around her protectively and made way to her driveway.

  “Is he your boyfriend, Miss. Potter?” “What’s his name?” “Are you and Travis Hamilton no more together, Miss. Potter?” “What does your father has to say about it?” Brian glared at the reporters as the direction of their questions changed. Travis was the one she had talked to on the phone earlier. He and Rebecca were together?

  Rebecca let out a shriek as they got out of the reporters’ crowd. Brian jumped into fight mode and braced himself for an attack, but what he saw before him was Rebecca’s blue convertible was covered in red paint and every single tire slashed like shreds. Her driveway was covered in glass pieces. All windows of her house were broken to pieces.

  “Brian!” she clung to him like a child. On the doormat of her front door, a brutally killed dog was thrown and the door had a typography done in red paint. I am watching you. Rage filled inside him. Someone wanted to scare Rebecca. His Rebecca. He wasn’t going to let it happen. He was here and he was not leaving her. He led her to his bike, which was untouched in this whole take-the-house-down attack.

  “You are coming with me.” Rebecca didn’t question.

  *****

  She was shaking like someone was repeatedly pouring ice-cold water on her. Brian wrapped an afghan around her shoulders and squeezed them. He pressed a kiss on her temple. “How does hot chocolate sound?” She wanted to cry. Cry until all guilt, all fears flush out of her body.

  Brian had brought her to his cousin’s apartment where he was staying and since then he had only done things to make her feel better. His face told her that he was furious and was dying to shower questions on her, but she was glad that he hadn’t brought up any topic regarding their earlier conversation, nor the latter house attack. She was in no condition to talk about any. She was shaken. She also avoided all the calls on her phone.

  “I just want to sleep.” Brian laid her on the bed and tucked her inside the warm blanket. He pressed a long kiss on her forehead. “Sleep, Love, and you’ll wake up, we’ll talk. And don’t worry about anything. I have got it covered, alright?” It was his voice that calmed the cyclone in her mind long enough to fall asleep. The last thing she heard was Brian talking to someone. I want to know who did this. He was here and he’d take care of her. She let sleep take over her.

  The darkness was closing over me and on the other end a small girl reached out her hand towards me and cried, “Mommy!” She was my daughter, mine and Brian’s daughter. She was alive. She was calling me. I tried to reach her. But darkness was too much. It was blurring my vision. I couldn’t see her. I couldn’t see my daughter. She was lost in the darkness. “No! Don’t go please. Don’t take her away from me.” I tried running but my feet won’t move. And then, I lost her all over again. I couldn’t save her this time too. I was such a loser. Such a coward, afraid of chasing her. “No! No! No!” I was shrieking but if anyone could hear me was my own self.

  “Jesus! Rebecca, wake up! You are dreaming, Love. Open your eyes,” Brian’s voice hit her ears. She opened her eyes to see his beautiful face. No, he can’t be here. This is a dream too. She was crying now. She had lost her daughter and she had lost Brian too. She was doomed and there was nothing good written in her fate. Strong hands shook her shoulders. “You are scaring me, Rebecca. Open your eyes, babe. It’s just a nightmare.”

  He was really here. She threw her hands around his neck to feel him. Oh yes, he was real. “Brian,” her voice came out as a sob and Brian engulfed her to his chest. “Hush, I’m here.” He was running his hands up and down her back. She wanted to tell him about their daughter but her throat failed to work.

  “Tell me, Rebecca, what do you need? What can I do to make you comfortable?” his voice was earnest and his eyes were filled with longing for her. How much she loved this man who was rough and scaring and a bad boy for rest of the world but so tender, warm and passionate lover to her. She placed her hand on his jaw and said in a low, pleading voice, “make love to me, Brian, please.” She’d tell him the whole truth tomorrow but for tonight, she wanted to be his for one last time.

  Brian groaned at her request and she could see his eyes going dilate and dark with intensity. “Rebecca, God, I don’t know. You are all scared and vulnerable here, scaring the shit out of me, and you ask me to…” she covered his mouth with her hand. “Please, Brian.” That was all that took him to give up his control and let the raw primitive need to take over.

  He took her mouth in a slow, long and desperate kiss, as if trying to memorize each and every piece of it. She moaned and tried to increase the pace but Brian caught her. “I don’t want to hurry. Not tonight. Tonight I want to cherish you, Love. I’m not taking anything for granted. So I am going to savor you and make love to every inch of this delectable body of yours.”

  True to his words, Brian did just that. He shredded their clothes and rained wet kisses on her body over and over. She moaned and writhed under her, asking for more. But he took his sweet time in rediscovering every inch of it. “I miss you so much, babe.” He took her rock hard nipple between his teeth and rolled his tongue over it mercilessly. “Brian! God, yes. I miss you too, babe. I miss you so much that it kills me every damn day.” Her confession came out in the heat and next moment Brian was up and looking into her eyes. “Say it again,” he demanded. She clutched him by a hair. “I miss you so much that it kills me, Brian.” He kissed her deep and possessively.

  He positioned his painfully erect length on her core and then looked into her eyes. “I haven’t been with anyone since you,” he confessed and then entered her slowly. His confession made this more intimate than it was before. “I have only been with you,” she whispered and brought his mouth down to her.

  *

  Brian gazed at the so
und asleep beauty, Rebecca and smiled. He was the first and the last woman he’d ever love with the intensity he had. Last night with her was beyond words to describe it. Her nightmare had frozen his blood. She had been so heart-broken that he didn’t know what to do. He had heard her mumbling something about not taking someone away. He wondered what it was all about and if she would tell him about it.

  He decided to get some coffee and bagels from Starbucks nearby before Rebecca was up. He left her sleeping in the room and reached for the door. The newspaper was lying on the doorstep. He picked up and the first thing he saw was a picture collage; of Rebecca and him. The first and big one was of him kissing her outside the coffee shop. That was a photo he could save to frame. Rest of them were of them walking to the house, Rebecca’s close up when she registered the wrecked house and then one was of them leaving the house on his Ducati. The headline said; Love and envy in the air: Expected Governor’s daughter gets involved with a bike racer, the house gets attacked.

  “Fuck!” he cursed and dialed Mike’s number as he closed the door behind him and took stairs down. Mike picked up the third ring. “This better be important, Rock,” he said sleepily. “I want to know what you have found about the attack,” he snapped.

  “I have found one of the three guys from the attack. But he knows nothing about the man behind all this. They received money, time and address. No names. No images.” “Keep that motherfucker there, I’ll come as soon as I can.” He hanged up the call and stepped out of the apartment building when a sharp suited man stepped out of a shiny Bentley. Another young, nearly his age, man followed. He too was wearing a gray suit along with a scowl.