by Alina Jacobs
"I don't eat anything raw," Brandy said. "It's not good for the baby."
"Oh, right." Liz didn't keep up with the trends on what women could or couldn't eat when pregnant. Brandy was the first person in her social circle to be pregnant, and she knew that Brandy was very pleased with that fact.
"Now, Liz," Brandy said, sipping her water. "This has to be a tasteful and beautiful gender reveal."
Liz nodded enthusiastically and pulled out her notebook. "We're having the gender reveal at my parents' house and the shower at the Holbrook estate. I've been gathering inspirational images."
Brandy slowly flipped through the photos on Liz's tablet while the waiter set down their food. "No." Brandy said, setting the tablet down in disgust. "You know, after you ruined my wedding, the least you could do is put some effort into these parties to mark the milestones of my pregnancy. It's almost as if you don't even care about me. Where is Allie? Why isn't she here?"
"She's busy," Liz said, trying not to grind her teeth.
"Ah, yes, with Carter. You know, if I had known there were more Holbrooks coming out of the woodwork, I would have waited on Fernando."
Liz choked on her soup. "I thought you two were in love."
"He's fine," Brandy said. "But he's no Holbrook. I think you might know a thing or two about that, wouldn't you? Look at you, moving on Wes at the earliest opportunity. I'd like to think you learned a little something from me."
"Wes and I are just dating," Liz said.
Brandy smirked at her. "A man like that doesn't just date." Brandy tossed her glossy hair back. "Wes is a real man, not a little boy. He could give Grant a run for his money. You have to be aggressive and seal the deal before someone else moves in on your turf and makes him their own prince charming, leaving you out in the cold. It would be a repeat of what happened with Carter. One more unfortunate event in the sad little life of Elizabeth Davenport."
24
Wes
"And there's nothing we can do?" After the meeting with Grant and Liz, Wes had decided to go with a different set of lawyers, the ones that Svensson Investment used, but he hadn't received any good news.
The lawyers shook their heads.
"No," one man said. "It's a cut-and-dried hostile acquisition. You didn't have a poison pill or anything built into the company bylaws because you wanted to IPO so quickly."
"Trust me," said one of the Svensson brothers. Greg, he thought. Wes could never keep them straight. They all had the blond hair, broad build, and height from some Scandinavian ancestor. "We despise the Holbrooks, present company excluded, of course." Wes nodded. "I have personally been going through trying to find some way to nullify this deal. There's nothing. It was incredibly sneaky and underhanded. Perfectly legal but definitely unethical."
Wes rubbed his face. Everything he worked for felt like it was draining out of his fingers. He desperately wanted to fix the company situation, and ideally, he wanted to be able to fix it without having to hurt Liz.
"Could I somehow sell off any assets, like my stock, and maybe redistribute it to the employees who are going to be laid off?"
"No," Greg Svensson said. "Holbrook would have to agree to it. And they would never agree to a massive stock sell-off. Svensson Investment is a voting member as well, and we would never agree to that either."
"Is there," he gulped, thinking of Robert and his bombs, "any other way?"
"Like throw them off a bridge," Brayden piped up.
Greg frowned. "I don't like where either of you are heading with that line of thought, so I'm going to declare this meeting adjourned. Make sure you keep Brayden in the loop on any conversations regarding consolidation or assets management. Stock prices are rising, and I'd like to keep it that way."
Dana was waiting for him at his apartment, feeding Kal snacks. "Bad day?" she asked when he slammed the door closed.
"The Svenssons don't even care. They only care about stock prices. They don't care about the employees or anything else."
"It is the unfortunate reality of the corporate world."
"I don't know if I have it in me to fight this."
"Then, find another job," his twin sister said. "You have the experience, and you could be a good CEO at another midsized technology company. I'm sure there are other robotics companies that are trying to scale up and that would love to have you on board."
"Walsh Systech is… was… my company." He slumped against the counter dejectedly.
"I know," Dana said. "Mom wants you to call her."
"Right, that." He had been completely trying to forget about how everything in his life was falling apart. "Tell her I'm not speaking to her ever."
"She made a mistake," Dana said.
"She ruined Dad's life! She ruined your life and my life!" Wes countered.
Dana scoffed. "Ruined your life? How much money do you have again?"
"It's not about the money. It's about the principle of the thing."
"Fine, whatever. If you just want to be disagreeable, then I don't have any way to help you. I have to go to a production meeting."
After Dana left Wes stewed in his anger at the unfairness of it all.
He pulled out a box with tiny robot parts, but he didn't have the desire to tinker with them. Handling the pieces made him think of the projects he and his dad would do together when he was a child, before his father was laid off from his job, back when things were still good in the Walsh household.
There was a knock on the door. It was Robert, and he had Rhonda along with him. Wes didn't want to deal with them, but he opened the door for them to come inside.
"Your' plan isn't working," Rhonda said as a greeting. "You are supposed to be working to take down the Holbrooks, not creating the perfect scenario so you can fuck Liz."
"I have a plan," Wes said. "And I would like to remind you that I'm the only person doing anything."
Rhonda smirked. "I, too, have plans in motion." She rummaged in her bag and pulled out a small black plastic case.
"What is this?" Wes asked.
"A video camera," Rhonda replied. "I'm not convinced Liz has any damning information on the Holbrooks. So, if you're going to fuck her—since all you can do is think with your cock—the least you can do is secure blackmail material."
"I can't—"
"Are you with us or with the Holbrooks? I don't want you as an enemy, Wes," Rhonda said. "But I will ruin you if I have to."
Wes accepted the small case. "Maybe we shouldn't try to ruin the Holbrooks. If we ruin them, we ruin Walsh Systech," Wes said with apprehension.
"I told you," Rhonda said to Robert. "He's on their side."
"I am not on their side! I'm thinking about our employees."
"The employees are a lost cause—collateral damage," Rhonda said. "Once we secure control of the company, you're free to hire them back."
"Why can't we just target the family and leave the company alone?" Wes asked.
"The company is the family, but I have a fail-safe, should our other less-drastic plans not work." Rhonda smiled at Wes and sidled up to him and stroked his cheek. "Don't worry your pretty head about it. And do not fall in love with Liz," Rhonda said, digging her nails into his jaw. "She will manipulate you." Rhonda pulled a magazine out of her bag and slapped it against his chest. "I have the article paper-clipped. Read it. I'll wait."
Wes skimmed the article; it was about Liz and the takeover. It detailed how she had pulled off the upset of a century. Wes felt sick.
"She's just as much at fault here," Rhonda said. "Remember that when you're buried deep inside her and you think to yourself, 'Oh, I bet she would be a good wife.' She won't. She's a backstabbing bitch just like the rest of them."
Wes nodded, but his brain was hung up on the "buried deep inside her" part.
Robert's phone rang, and he stepped into the hallway to take the call. Rhonda watched him go then turned to Wes. Tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear, she said, "You know, Wes, if you want, I'm always available
to help take the edge off. You look like a man who needs his cock sucked." She ran her fingers lightly down his arm.
Rhonda was like the blue-spotted octopus. Pretty but poisonous. Wes had to tread carefully. "No thanks, Rhonda. I'm fine."
"Are you?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him. It was a nice kiss but nothing like Liz's.
Wes unwrapped her arms from his neck. "Let's stick to the plan. We don't want to make things unnecessarily complicated," he said. He saw something cold in her eyes, then she smiled sweetly and left.
25
Liz
A few days later, Liz was alone in the conference room, setting up for the meeting they would be having with Svensson Investment.
She heard someone say her name.
"Brayden." She couldn't believe he was there. "You're early," she said.
"I wanted to catch you alone." Of course he did. He had the possessive, lustful look on his face that Liz recognized all too well.
Brayden was such a weirdo. He always struck the wrong note with Liz, though for some reason, people liked him, which was why she supposed he was working at a private-equity firm. During her MBA program, Brayden had finagled his way into a group project with her once, but she tried to never be alone with him. Just in case.
And now here he was. Brayden looked around. No one was near the conference room. This particular floor was only used for meetings, and it wasn't booked up that morning. They were alone. Liz could feel her heart start to race.
Brayden walked around the large table and pressed himself against her. "You know," he said, "I always thought we had something special. I knew we were soulmates and meant to be together. Are you still single? I'd like to take you out somewhere nice. Private equity pays a lot, and I can show you a good time. We can go to a play, then I can show you my apartment."
Brayden's hands slid up her skirt. Liz struggled to push him off. She really needed to start working out.
Thankfully, the elevator dinged down the hallway, and Brayden let her go. Liz hurried to finish setting up as Wes and Grant walked into the room.
As she gave the presentation and answered questions about possible avenues for consolidation of assets, Liz could barely concentrate. She couldn't believe Brayden had been so aggressive. She wondered what she should do. Grant would completely overreact if she told him. That much was clear. What about Wes? Could he have Brayden moved off the board? She didn't know. She also didn't know if Wes would react just as Grant had. The Holbrooks were known for their hair-trigger tempers. There was already enough negative publicity—she didn't want to be the cause of any more.
"It was nice to see you again, Liz," Brayden said after the meeting was over. He kissed her cheek and squeezed her backside. Neither Grant nor Wes noticed, and Liz didn't want to draw attention to it. She knew how much of a temper the Holbrook men had. Grant walked Brayden to the elevator, and Wes stayed behind.
"I'm not sure about some of the asset distribution—" Wes started but stopped when Liz threw herself against him. She reached up and pulled his head down. He kissed her, and she felt herself relax in the safely of his arms. "What was that for?" he murmured against the side of her mouth.
"I missed you is all." She kissed him again and felt him smile.
"Too bad I have to go to another meeting," he said after a moment, still running his hands lightly over her. She wanted him all over her to wash away Brayden's touch, but she reluctantly let him leave.
Liz spent the rest of the day daydreaming about Wes. She should have been working, and if she wasn't working, she needed to at least be planning Brandy's gender-reveal party.
Wes texted her a picture of him with a rat carrying an entire wrapped McDonald's cheeseburger.
Wish you were here.
She texted him back a rat emoji.
"Is that the brand-sparkling-new Holbrook?"
Liz jumped. "Hi, Allie."
"I heard you two were going out," Allie said pointedly.
Liz looked around. She felt like Grant could jump out at her any moment. "Let's go out. I'll tell you over lunch."
"You're really obsessed with him," Allie said after Liz finished detailing her intense but admittedly short relationship with Wes. "Are you sure it's a good idea to spend time with him?"
"He could be my prince charming," Liz said. "He could be my happily ever after."
"Relationships take work," Allie said.
"I know that," Liz huffed, suddenly angry at her friend.
Allie held up a hand. "I'm not trying to be cynical. I just want you to be safe."
"I know what I'm doing," Liz said.
The rest of the lunch was tense. Liz tried to talk about Brandy's gender-reveal party, but Allie only snapped at her and told her to just not do it.
"I have to go see Ginny at her downtown dog-grooming location," Allie said after lunch.
"I'll come with you," Liz said. She didn't want to leave their lunch on a negative note. Maybe a brisk walk in the fall air would calm things between them.
"What are you buying?" Liz asked after they'd walked several blocks.
"I need to pick up some medicated cream that Ginny says will help with Margot's skin problem."
Carter had found the little dog in a trash heap, and the poor animal had constantly revolving health issues.
"Hi, girls!" Ginny said when they walked into the brightly lit shop. Liz liked to look at all the fancy accessories people could buy for their pets. She wished she had a dog but knew she didn't have the time to properly care for one.
"Who's this handsome boy?" Allie asked as Ginny brought a familiar-looking Akita around from behind the counter.
"That's Kal," said a man as the shop door tinkled. Liz turned around. Wes was smiling at her, and Kal went wild when he saw his owner. Wes laughed and petted the dog.
"I thought you had a meeting?" Liz asked. Instead of answering her, he leaned down and kissed Liz on the mouth. As she leaned into him, out of the corner of her eye, Liz saw Allie and Ginny huddled together. She knew they were whispering about her.
"So, this is the famous Wes," Ginny said when he broke the kiss. She did not look too pleased. "Eric is not going to be happy about this."
"This isn't Victorian England," Liz screeched. "My brother doesn't have a say in what I do with my life."
Allie pursed her lips in disapproval, and Ginny inspected her nails.
"I just don't know what you see in a sexist asshole," Ginny said.
"You are such a bitch!" Liz yelled as Wes dragged her outside.
26
Wes
Liz was like a puffed-up angry cat as Wes hauled her down the street to a nearby park.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't want to cause any trouble for you."
"It's them," Liz said. "They have boyfriends and husbands, and they think that makes them qualified to pass judgement on my life."
"I'm sure they're just trying to look out for you."
"They just want me to stay single so they can lord their perfect lives over me."
Wes petted the top of her head while Kal rolled in the dry leaves, ruining the expensive grooming job he had just had.
"Stop," Liz said, batting away his hands. Wes pulled her close to him. "You're going to ruin my makeup," she whined as he held her tightly against his chest.
"Don't worry about them," he told her. "You have me. That's what's important."
"Do I have you?" she asked.
"Of course," he lied. "Allie and Ginny are just jealous. I know I'm better than Carter, and I don't know your brother, but I'm sure I could give him a run for his money."
"I just wish they saw what I see in you."
Wes didn't want her to see the lie in his eyes, so he kissed her then sat down on a ledge and pulled her up onto his lap, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. He let his tongue trace the inside of her mouth, slowly. His hands wandered along her back. He felt her relax and melt against him. "I'll take you out tonight," he, kissing her betw
een the words. "We'll go somewhere nice."
"You always take me out," she said, her fingers caressing his hand and fiddling with his expensive watch.
"I can't take you out on a date?" Wes started to worry that she was becoming suspicious. Was he laying it on too thick? Be assertive and an alpha, he reminded himself, quoting from an article in one of the men's magazines he had read for research. Women like strong men. "I will be taking you on a date tonight," he said more forcefully. "Wear something nice and formfitting. I liked that black dress and those heels you wore the last time. They made your butt look perky."
"Perky?" she asked and kissed him on the jaw, her teeth scraping the side of his face. He wanted to take her back to his apartment immediately. Maybe he should have taken Rhonda up on the offer.
No, that would be a bad idea.
He stood up and swung Liz up with him. Setting her on her feet, he grinned at her then leaned over to speak low and dirty in her ear.
"And if you really put in the effort, maybe I'll give you a nice workout. I'm sure you have some expensive panties I can rip off. Though sometimes I like to have them on. There's something… erotic about a woman who can't even bother to take them off before she needs a cock inside her."
He was gratified to see Liz blush bright red and her eyes go wide.
He grinned at her and said, "I miss seeing you at the gym." He gave her his best assessing, slightly sexy look then called her a car to take her back to the office. "I'll pick you up at eight. I want to show you off," he said right before he closed the car door.
He took Kal with him to the next two meetings he had that afternoon. The dog circled the doormen Wes left him with each time. He felt as restless as the dog was.
