“I get it,” he said. “Doesn't mean I like it, baby.”
“You look so handsome,” she said. “A million times sexier than the pictures of you online, and those are pretty damn sexy.”
“Nice way to change the subject, but thank you,” he said.
“I wonder what my sister put in that bag,” she said, more to herself than to him.
“I asked her to pack it,” he said.
“You did?” she asked, and he nodded. “Why would you do that? Wait! When did you do that?”
“I called her earlier,” he answered, as if it were nothing.
“How did you do that?” she asked.
“I got her number and gave her mine when she was in the hospital having the baby, remember?” he answered.
“Oh yeah,” she replied. “I'd forgotten about that. I guess I thought you would have deleted it by now.”
“I left it in my phone without thinking about it,” he said. “When I realized it was still there, I called to see if she'd pack a bag for you.”
“So, what's in the bag?” Julie asked, knowing she was crazy for being jealous over something so tiny.
“Clothes and stuff,” he said. “Whatever you'll need for the weekend.”
“The weekend?” she asked. “Why the weekend?”
“Because you're going to be with me, at my place,” he said.
“Cody,” she said, with warning in her tone.
“No,” he replied, with even more warning in his. “I'm not doing this, Julie. I'm not having you avoid my life outside of you. It's not happening. You are coming to my place for the weekend, and I will drop you back off at your apartment on Sunday.”
“But,” she began, but he cut her right back off.
“No but,” he said. “I've missed you so damn bad this week. I'm going to have you with me. That's it.”
That's it, she thought. Who the fuck did he think he was? How was he going to tell her how things were going to go?
“Put that shit out of your mind right now,” he said. “I'm so happy to have you here with me. We are about to have an amazing evening together. When the evening is over, I'm going to take you home, to my home, and I'm going to have you beneath me, calling my name, until you can't keep your eyes open. Then I'm going to keep you in my bed, while I wait on you hand and foot, all weekend long.”
Julie couldn't stop her mind from wandering to his place, his bed, and being beneath him. She was looking forward to each thing he'd just said. Her mind was so deep in thoughts of being with him that she hadn't even noticed his car stopping.
“You ready to do this?” he asked, with a nervous tone in his words. “Ready to be next to me for all the world to see?”
“I am,” she said, and before he could reply, her door was being opened, and a hand was reaching in to help her out.
Cody quickly met her on the other side of the car. When he held his arm out to her, she linked hers through it and looked over with a smile on her face.
“It's show time,” he said, as he smiled back.
They walked up the sidewalk and through the big door in front of them. When they stepped inside, Julie was amazed. The place was absolutely beautiful. It looked like a place royals would frequent. Even the decorations were elegant, contributing wonderfully to the ambiance. It was perfect in every way.
Before Julie even had a chance to comment, someone had already walked up to them, requesting Cody's attention.
“Mr. Williams,” the man said. “Your company has outdone itself.”
“Thank you,” Cody replied.
Mr. Williams, Julie thought, and she couldn't help but smile. Cody was only a few years older than her, and a man much older than him was speaking to him with such regard. She thought back to a time she'd heard people speak to her father in that way, but it was different. He'd been a husband and father. Cody was a young man just a few years into his journey in the business world.
“I'd like to introduce you to my date Miss,” Cody began.
“Julie,” she blurted out, cutting him off. “It's nice to meet you.”
When the man walked away, Cody turned to face her.
“What was that about?” he asked.
“I'm not a Miss anything,” she said, with a shakiness to her voice. “I just want to be Julie.”
“Nobody will judge you, Julie,” he said. “Your father is a big name. Don't be ashamed of that.”
“Oh, I'm not ashamed,” she said, in a defensive tone. “I'm not here as his daughter. I'm here as your date, and I'd like to be me. Is something wrong with that?”
“Not at all,” he said, as he leaned in and claimed her mouth with his.
Just as her body relaxed against his, she heard the snapping of a camera and quickly moved to step back, but he held her tight.
“Would you like a drink?” he asked.
“Definitely,” she answered.
“You'll get used to this, and before long, they'll leave us alone,” he said, as he took her hand in his and walked toward the bar.
“That man spoke to you like you were an old man,” she said, and he burst into laughter.
“An old man?” he asked.
“Well, much older than you are,” she said. “I guess I'd forgotten who you really are.”
“I'm just me,” he said. “The man you know.”
“What would all these people say if they saw the way you sit on the floor and play with Jackie?” she asked. “Would they find all your silly noises as awesome as I do?”
“I'm not so sure about that,” he said, as he laughed again. “That's something we should probably keep between us.”
Julie laughed, and before she could respond to what he'd said, a very beautiful woman walked up and began speaking to Cody. She was younger than most of the women Julie had seen there yet, and she made sure to completely ignore Julie as she spoke. Instead, she reached out and grabbed both of Cody's arms in hers. Then she leaned in and whispered something in his ear. She pulled away with a smile on her face, and he looked over at Julie. When he introduced her that time, he only used her first name, and again the woman ignored her.
“What would you like to drink, Cody?” Julie asked, feeling completely uncomfortable with what was happening in front of her.
“Cody,” the woman said, with a laugh.
“If you'll excuse us, we were on our way to the bar,” Cody said, as he took Julie's hand in his and they walked away from the only woman Julie had honestly ever wanted to punch in the face. It didn't matter how dressed up they were. “Please ignore her. She's the wife of a very large donor and client. While she is a total pain in the ass, I have to put on a happy face and listen to her rattle on.”
“I get it,” Julie said, even though she wasn't the least bit happy about it.
Before long, there were beautiful women everywhere. Some were on the arms of men their age, and others were on the arms of men much older than them. Most of the men were older, but there were a few handsome, younger ones there as well.
After about an hour, people had quit walking up to Cody, and Julie was relieved. In that short amount of time, over a hundred people had made their way over to Cody, and he knew each and every one of them, or at least he made it seem like he did.
When dinner was served, they made their way to their table. He pulled her chair out like a true gentleman, something he did every time they went out. Once they were both seated, he turned to her.
“Other than giving one speech,” he began, “I'm all yours. Thank you for coming with me.”
“There's nowhere else I'd rather be,” she said.
“Don't lie. They're not all like this,” he said. “Some are a little less boring than others. This is the first one I've actually been excited about.”
“Oh yeah,” she said, as she took a bite of her food and moaned slightly at the amazing flavor. “This is delicious.”
“It better be,” he said. “These people write some big checks. The food and alcohol is how we get th
em in the mood.”
“If the food is how you do it,” she began, “then you've done it right. I can't believe how good this is.”
“I'm glad you like it,” he said, with a smile on his face. “You're the one that matters the most.”
Just as dinner had ended, Cody was introduced. Julie watched as her confident, brilliant man headed to the stage to give his speech. By the time he was done, so much emotion was filling her, and she was more proud than she could ever imagine being of calling him her man. He wasn't at all the horrible man her father had made him out to be. Instead, he was caring, selfless, and absolutely perfect in every way, and not a damn thing was going to change her mind.
When he walked down the stairs that would bring him back to her, she stood and clapped along with everyone else. He didn't stop to talk to anyone. Instead, he walked right to where she was. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tighter than ever before.
“You are an amazing man, Cody Williams,” she said, with a smile wider than she'd ever smiled before.
“You're pretty amazing yourself, just Julie,” he said, as he laughed. “Would you like to dance?”
“Of course,” she answered, as he took her hand in his and headed for the dance floor.
One dance turned into two and two into three, and before she knew it, they'd danced for ten songs straight. The evening had turned out better than she'd thought it would, especially after they'd first walked into the place.
“Would my lady like a drink or to continue dancing?” he asked, just as the eleventh song began.
“Your lady needs to use the little girls' room,” she said, with a smile, “or she's going to explode.”
Cody let out a laugh, as he took her hand in his.
“Let me show my lady where it is,” he said. “We can't have you exploding out here on the dance floor.”
He leaned in close so only she could hear.
“I do however plan to have you exploding in every room of my house,” he whispered, just before his teeth scraped against her ear, and she couldn't help the shiver that ran through her.
When Julie walked into the bathroom, she knew she had a smile on her face bigger than she'd ever had before. She also knew her cheeks were flush from just the thought of what the weekend would bring. So excited, for the first time, at the thought of going to Cody's house, a place she'd done everything she could to avoid before. She hurried through her business, washed her hands, and had just begun to pull open the door that would lead her back to her man, but she stopped frozen when she saw him talking to another man around his age. It wasn't seeing them but what they were saying that stopped her.
“I see you're here with Gavin's daughter,” the other guy said.
“I am,” Cody replied, with his back to Julie.
“How's that going?” the other guy asked with a laugh, as he looked right by Cody to Julie. “The last time I saw you, you'd met her at the college and were planning to work her for info on her daddy.”
“Listen,” Cody began.
“It must be working. I hope you got enough to put that fucker in his place. He's been comfortable in the top spot for way too long,” the other guy said, cutting Cody off. “She's definitely a hot piece of ass, bro. I hope you at least hit that before you dump her to the curb and take what's yours.”
“Stop!” Cody snapped.
“Yeah, Stop!” Julie snapped out, as she watched Cody's entire body tense. “I think we get the point.”
“Julie,” Cody growled out, as he turned to face her. “It's not.”
“Don't,” she said, as she walked out of the bathroom and put both of her hands up in front of her to stop him from continuing. “Don't bother.”
“No,” Cody said, as he took a step toward her.
“Do not take one more step, Mr. Williams,” she said, in a stern tone. “I was wrong, so damn wrong about you.”
“Julie,” he began, but she shook her head, as tears filled her eyes.
“He was right,” she said, more to herself than to him. “I can't believe it. He was actually right. All those things he said, I thought they were wrong. They couldn't be true. I'd told him that. I'd told him he was wrong. I'd told them all. Shit! I brought you home. I defended you in front of my entire family. I fucking told him he was wrong, but he wasn't. He was right. I hurt my own father because of you, and he'd been right all along.”
Julie felt the sadness that was filling her quickly turn to anger.
“You asshole,” she snapped out, her voice rising with each new word. “How could you? How could you do what you've done just to get ahead? What kind of person are you? How could I have been so dumb? I believed you. I thought you cared about me. I slept with you. What the fuck is wrong with you? I knew better, I really did. I knew not to take my guard down, but I did it anyway. Months, Cody. You've been stringing me along for months just to get shit on my dad. I feel so stupid. How could I? How could you? Look at everything you've done here. I was proud of you. I thought you were a good man. I thought you were different. I fucking loved you.”
“Julie,” Cody whispered. “Please.”
When he stepped forward again, she yelled.
“Stop!”
“It's not what you think,” he said, with sadness, that made no sense, in his words.
“It's not,” she growled out. “Really? So you weren't talking to me to get something on my dad? When you showed up at that bar, had you done it because of my father?”
“Julie,” he said.
“Answer me, Cody,” she yelled out. “Was it because of my father?”
“Yes,” he answered, “but.”
“No,” she snapped, as she stepped toward him. “There is no but, Cody. That was all I needed. I'm done.”
“Wait!” he snapped out. “Please.”
“No!” she snapped back. “You had me fooled, but that will never happen again. I'm through with you, Cody Williams. My father and my uncle have worked their asses off for years to get where they are. I will not have some little piece of shit, that thinks he's better than everyone else, push them out of the way by using shady measures. Earn it like a man. Do you hear me? If you want that top spot, you need to earn it. Since I'm not like you, and I earn what I get, I will let you in on a little secret. It's not you that's going to take them out. It's me.”
Julie stopped for a second to let all of her words sink in before she continued.
“I will be the one to take that top spot. Remember my name, because you're going to be hearing it a lot, Mr. Williams. I'm going to pass you up, and then I'm going to knock them both out of there. Me, not you. Better get used to the idea, because not one shitty thing you do is going to stop me.”
Julie turned and took a few steps away from Cody, who was standing there with his mouth wide open in shock. Before she turned the corner, she stopped and turned back to him with a huge smile on her face. She was hurting worse inside than she'd ever hurt in her life, but she wasn't about to let him know that.
“Oh, you know that job you thought my dad outbid you on, the one you were brooding like a baby about on our drive to his house?” she asked, and he nodded slightly. “It wasn't him that outbid you, Cody. It was me. Do you hear me? That was me. I outbid every single one of you, and I got the job. I hope whatever you got on my dad was worth what you put me through. Goodbye, Cody.”
Without another word, Julie turned and walked away. Every single bit of her hurt, and it only got worse with each new step she took away from him. He'd torn her heart apart, and she had no idea how she was ever going to put it back together again.
Chapter 21
Cody
When Cody stood on the stage and looked out at everyone that had come to the charity event, his eyes zeroed in on Julie, the most beautiful woman in the room, and that was where they stayed. There was just something about her, he couldn't pull them away. Seeing her look up at him as if what he was saying was the most important thing in the world, Cody knew she was the one, the o
ne that he'd want by his side forever. When he stepped off that stage, he went right to her. Nothing was going to stand in his way.
They danced and talked, and for the first time ever, he actually wanted to stay. He wanted to be right there, with her, until there wasn't a person left in the place. Then he wanted to take her home and show her just how much she meant to him. She was his, and she was perfect.
Then it happened, and his world was torn in two. Someone he hadn't seen in months approached him. Then the guy opened his mouth, and before Cody could say anything, Julie was there. She was hurt, and she was angry. She had every right to be. What she'd overheard was fucked up, but it wasn't true, not all of it.
Before he could stop her, she was gone. He wanted to go after her, but he couldn't leave, not until he thanked everyone for coming and giving to such a great cause. Cody was passionate about the charities his company was involved in, and he couldn't let his emotions and mistakes stand in the way of the things he was able to do with the help of the people around him.
As he walked around the room, speaking to each person, he thought about her. She'd said she loved him. Had she meant it? Had she even realized she'd said it? The more he thought about those words, the faster he worked to get out of there. He was shocked that she'd said it, but what shocked him even more was the fact that it didn't scare him, not one bit.
It wasn't until he'd said his last thank you and goodbye that he thought about what she'd said on her way out. It wasn't her father that outbid him, and it wasn't her uncle either. It was her. She'd outbid him on a huge job. How the fuck had she pulled that off? What else was she keeping from him? Was she any better than he was?
He got in his car and took off as fast as he could. When he pulled up outside of her apartment, there were so many emotions running through him. He got out, grabbed the bag her sister had packed for her, and stormed up the sidewalk. When he pounded on the door and it swung open, there was a very pissed off Jessie on the other side. He looked by her to see Julie, asleep on the couch, still in the dress she'd been wearing at the event. Her face was red and stained with tears, and even in her sleep, he could see the hurt.
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