Beautifully Twisted

by Jennifer Domenico

  Her breathing quickens. She wants to run, but there is nowhere to go. Once again, Scott Patrick has her backed against a corner.

  “Scott…”

  “Let me talk first.” He moves in close; so close his body presses up against her. She closes her eyes, absorbing his scent and his closeness. He always smelled like money and sex. It was the best smell on the planet to her.

  Scott reaches out and strokes her cheek. “Open your eyes, baby. Come on.” She does and locks her green eyes with his black ones. “You’re gorgeous, you know that, Alexa?”

  “Scott, let me go.”

  “I can’t, baby girl. Can’t you see that? Why do you think I came with Brett out here to meet you? It gave me a reason to see you again.”

  “You came because you couldn’t stand for Brett to be alone with me.”

  Scott narrows his eyes slightly. “Maybe.” He brushes his lips against her cheek, causing Alexa to inhale sharply in response. “Let me take you out tonight.”

  She knows she should say no, but she also knows she can’t. The last time she declined his invite didn’t go so well. She has no ability to turn away from Scott Patrick and they both know it. Didn’t mean she wouldn’t try.

  “No, thank you,” she says with a professional tone.

  “Why not?”

  “I’m busy.”

  “Too busy for an old friend?”

  “We are not friends,” she says, her voice full of tension.

  “What are we then, baby girl?”

  She sighs, and stares into his eyes. As dark as they are, they still seem to dance and play in the little bit of sunlight that streams in her window.

  “Please?” he asks sweetly, which Alexa knows is total bullshit.

  Scott always wore her down and she had to admit that even after how he acted the last time he was in London, she still very much wanted to be around him. She sighs again and nods her head, unable to utter the words.

  “Yeah? You’ll see me tonight?”

  “You win.”

  “Not yet, but maybe later.” His hand slides up her thigh, stopping just under the hem of her skirt. “I dream about you, baby girl. I remember how soft your skin is, how luscious your tits are. I can’t wait to climb in between those legs of yours again.”

  Alexa’s body flushes with heat. “I didn’t say you could do that. I said I would see you; that’s all. You can explain to me why you were such a bastard the last time I saw you.”

  He grins and his fingers inch up higher, softly stroking the material of her lacy panties. “Alexa…” His lips drag against her neck. “I need you, you know that. Don’t say no to me.”

  Her eyes shoot towards the door, afraid someone will walk in. “Please, Scott, not now.” Not again. “We can talk about this later.”

  “We’ll talk about it now,” he says, his voice suddenly demanding. “I’ll stop when you tell me you’re still mine.” His finger hooks in her panties and dips inside her wetness, forcing a gasp from her lips. “This is mine.” Her eyes meet his and in them she sees the familiar hardness of the dominating, controlling man she knows all too well.

  “It’s not yours,” she says, defiantly. “Lots of other men have had it now. Lots.” Alexa knows this is going to piss him off. Part of her wants to.

  “So, you’re a slut now? You just take what is mine and give it away?” His voice is hard and a little bit scary. As much as she wants to be free of him, she loves it when he gets like this over her. This time though, she feels like she has the upper hand.

  “I do. I give it to whomever I want. Maybe I’ll give it to Brett.” Her eyes gleam, challenging him to control her.

  Scott grabs her chin, squeezing tightly. “You will not fuck him. Do you understand me? You will fuck no one but me.”

  She laughs and pulls her chin away. “I can fuck whomever I like, Scott. We’re over. Just like you wanted. Remember?”

  Scott plunges his finger deeper inside of her. She wants to throw her head back, drop to her knees, and take him into her mouth, but she tries hard to act like it doesn’t affect her.

  He pulls his finger out of her and sucks it into his mouth. “Mmm, you’ve always been my favorite flavor.” His voice is momentarily sweet before his eyes harden again. “You can act as bad ass as you want, Alexa. You and I both know I taught you how to act, I taught you how to fuck, I created you. You and me, we’ll never be over. You know it. I know it.”

  “Too bad you couldn’t teach me how to feel. But then, you wouldn’t know anything about feelings, would you, Scotty?”

  He finally backs away. “Just like a chick to want to talk about feelings.”

  “I don’t want to talk about feelings. I don’t have any, thanks to you.”

  “Whatever. You’re obviously in love with me.”

  “Oh, please!” She allows herself to laugh. “That couldn’t be farther from the truth. I do not love you. I don’t love anyone. I never have.”

  Scott grabs her wrist. “You’re wearing the watch I gave you. Because you love me.”

  “I’m wearing the watch you gave me because it’s a nice watch. I do not love you.”

  “I’m the closest you’ve ever gotten. You’ve got something for me, baby girl. Just admit it. I admit I’m not over you. I think about you every day.”

  “Is that so? Then why haven’t I heard from you in months? Why did you just cut me off like you did, if I’m so goddamn important to you?” She crosses her arms.

  “You needed to fly solo, baby girl. I did it for you.”

  “Oh, well thank you, kind sir. I didn’t know you were so…benevolent.”

  “Keep talking to me like that and I’ll take you over my knee right here in your office.”

  “I don’t think so, mister. You don’t control me anymore. You gave up that right.”

  “I gave up nothing. You’re still mine. I’ll prove it to you tonight.”

  Alexa sucks in her breath. She knows he’s right and this power play she’s attempting is completely useless. She never thought she’d be in this situation with him again. Was she ready to give up all her power to him once more?

  “We’ll see.” It’s the only response she can muster.

  “Yes, we will. Get ready. I’m going to fuck you senseless.”

  His words cause a shiver to course through her. “We’ll see about that too.”

  “You can’t tell me you don’t want me. You’re dripping wet. Your body can’t lie.”

  “Scott—”

  A knock at the door interrupts their conversation. Martina comes in with a tray of tea, a British habit Alexa is still adapting to.

  “Tea?” She smiles, and sets the tray down on Alexa’s desk.

  “Thank you, Martina,” Alexa says, offering a strained smile.

  Martina stares at Scott, a girlish grin on her face. She’s a beautiful girl with big brown eyes and long dark hair. She’s exotic, intelligent, and delightful but looking at her right now, one would think she’s never seen a man before. Alexa shakes her head. Scott’s presence is enough to throw any girl off balance.

  Alexa clears her throat. “Thank you, Martina,” she says, again.

  Martina startles, regaining her composure. “Right, then. Cheers.” She quickly leaves the room.

  Scott rubs his finger across his bottom lip. “She’s nice and fuckable.”

  “You want to fuck her too?” Alexa hates when he tries to make her jealous.

  “She would do, if I can’t get you.”

  “I thought you were so sure I would say yes.”

  Scott grins. “I am sure. I won’t give up until you do. And if you make me work too hard, I’ll punish you for it.”

  Oh hell, he said it.

  To Alexa, the threat of punishment from Scott Patrick is the most tantalizing treat in the world. She never knew what he would do. Sometimes it was a spanking, sometimes he tied her up and tortured her for hours with orgasm after orgasm, until she couldn’t even hold herself up. The worst though, is wh
en he wouldn’t let her have one. He would bring her right to the edge and then back off, until she cried and begged for release. The more she defied him, the worse the punishment would be. Her body practically shook with the anticipation of it. Unsure of her next move, she lowers her eyes to the floor and wishes Brett would come back and end this divine torture.

  “Alexa, look at me.” She shifts her eyes up to meet him. “Do you know how badly I want to bend you over that desk and fuck you until you scream my name? I want your nails in my back, your tongue down my throat, your hair tangled in my hands. I’m going to have you, so just say yes. I won’t let you go.”

  “I don’t know if I can do this again, Scott. It’s better for me if we don’t.”

  “It’s better for me if we do. Let’s make a deal. A compromise.”

  A compromise? Scott Patrick is willing to compromise?

  “We’ll meet tonight and talk, clear the air. Then we can decide what to do from there. Deal?”

  Some compromise. They both know how this will end, but she decides to play along. If anything, just to end this conversation. She nods her head.

  “Cool. I’ll pick you up at seven,” he says, a smug smile on his face.

  “That won’t be necessary. I have a driver. I’ll come to you.”

  “If that’s how you want it, baby girl.”

  “That’s how I want it.”

  “I wasn’t the one that left, Scotty. You should tell me you’re back.”

  ~ Alexa Drake

  Brett returns to the office, his eyes shifting back and forth from Alexa to Scott. She quickly composes herself, falling into work mode, demonstrating her competence to Brett. They go over the accounts and progress the office has made.

  “You’re doing a fine job here, Alexa. I’m very impressed with how many accounts you’ve secured in twelve months,” Brett commends her, as he sips his tea. “You should come out to the Spain office. I have some people out there I’d like you to meet. As we continue to expand, we’ll have more and more opportunities for you.”

  “I’d love to come to Spain,” Alexa responds.

  “Well,” Scott interrupts. “I don’t know when you’ll have time to break away from this office. There is no one to run it in your absence.”

  “She can leave for a few days. A competent office runs in the absence of the manager and from what I can tell, Alexa here, has a very competent staff.”

  The two men stare at each other, and Alexa suddenly realizes that Scott is jealous! Is he actually threatened by Brett?

  “Sure, yeah, of course,” Scott says.

  “Good. I’ll get it set up.” Brett looks down at his watch. “Shall we lunch now?”

  “Yes.” Alexa says. “I have it set up for us in the conference room down the hall.”

  They walk down the hall in silence, Scott’s demeanor brooding and dark.

  For Christ’s sake, the man doesn’t talk to me for ages, then waltzes in and acts jealous? He has some nerve. He always does.

  Scott holds out a chair. “Sit here, Alexa.” His tone is more demanding than he probably intended. Brett’s eyes shoot up in surprise.

  “I’m sure she can choose her own chair, Scott.”

  “Of course she can,” Scott replies, chastised.

  Alexa can tell Scott’s mood is going from bad to worse and she can’t help but find it amusing. Martina and another girl set out the meal of sandwiches, salads, and tea. The competent assistant researched online that Brett has a thing for sandwiches, so that is what was ordered.

  Brett selects a sandwich and opens it, surveying the fresh ingredients. “This looks very good. Did you know about my sandwich fetish?” he asks, chuckling softly.

  Alexa shakes her head. “Just a happy coincidence, but I’m glad you’re pleased.”

  Scott narrows his eyes. He knows damn well when Alexa is lying. She hates that he can see right through her, but smiles sweetly, ignoring her surly dining companion.

  “Do you have plans this evening, Miss Drake? I’d love to have dinner with you and learn more about your career aspirations,” Brett asks, surprising everyone.

  Alexa doesn’t know what to say. Does she admit she already has plans with Mr. One and Only? She looks up at Scott, and he is seething with jealousy.

  “Alexa has plans with me,” Scott says plainly.

  “Ah, my apologies. I’m sure you two have more catching up to do. Tomorrow then?” he asks, completely undeterred by Scott’s bad attitude.

  Alexa looks at Scott with a shit-eating grin on her face. She’s playing with fire and loving every minute. Finally, she has something to do.

  “I’d love to have dinner with you, Brett. I’m sure there is a lot you could teach me.”

  Scott drops his fork, and they all jump as it clangs loudly against the metal conference table.

  “You alright, Scott?” Brett asks.

  “Of course.” He glares at Alexa and she knows she’s in trouble.

  “Right. Okay then, dinner. I’ll have the car come round at seven. Does that work?”

  “It certainly does.” She smiles, knowing she just dug the knife in Scott’s side a little deeper. Her eyes shift to her meal to avoid looking directly at Scott.

  They finish lunch, chatting about London weather and various company happenings. Alexa does her best to charm Brett, knowing it’s pissing Scott off beyond belief. It’s good for him to squirm a bit. It shouldn’t be a slam dunk.

  They rise and Alexa begins to show them out. When Brett leaves the room, Scott grabs Alexa’s arm, whispering angrily in her ear. “I know what you’re doing. You can’t fuck him, Alexa. Do you understand me? I’ll never forgive you.”

  “What if I don’t need or want your forgiveness? Have you thought of that?”

  “Fucking stop it. I’m serious.”

  “You’ll deal with it, Scotty. I dealt with all your women.”

  “Those women weren’t my business partner or my best friend. He’s your boss, remember that.”

  “If memory serves me correctly, banging the boss worked out nicely for me.”

  He squeezes her arm tighter, almost to the point of pain. “I won’t have it.”

  “You. Don’t. Own. Me. Get it through your head, Scotty. You lost me.”

  “I can get you back and you know it.”

  “Let me go. Now.” She smiles sweetly, aware that Martina and Brett are within eye contact of this interaction.

  Scott releases her arm and returns her smile. She’s knows that dinner tonight is going to be an all-out war. Scott grabs his coat and kisses her on the cheek.

  “Tonight, then. Prepare yourself.”

  “Tonight.”

  Brett approaches with a huge grin on his face. “Thank you for hosting us today, Alexa. I have some business round town tomorrow, so I’ll call to confirm dinner.”

  “I’ll be waiting,” she says.

  Both men walk towards the elevators. Scott looks back at Alexa and for the first time, she thinks she might detect a hint of emotion on his face. It’s impossible he could have any feelings for her. He is the master of detached emotion. Still, there was something there. She saw it.

  Martina pops up from her desk as soon as the men are gone. “So, how did it go with SP? I could feel the sexual tension between you all the way out here.”

  Alexa purses her lips. “There is no sexual tension, Martina,” she says, rolling her eyes.

  Martina slides her glasses off her nose. “Oh, okay right. Just so you know it’s the only time I’ve ever seen your cheeks flushed. You were not yourself, Alexa. Then throw new hotty boss into the mix too. Whew.”

  Alexa knows she’s busted and Martina’s right. The tension was thicker than the London fog.

  “Is Brett attractive? I didn’t notice.”

  “Oh yeah, but you know I have a weakness for those Scottish accents. It’s so Braveheart.” Martina giggles.

  “Yes, his accent is nice. I’m going to dinner with him tomorrow night.”

&nb
sp; “Ooh, really? I’m so jealous. No shock though, you’re gorgeous.”

  “Thanks. It’s just a business dinner though.”

  “Sure. Just the two of you then?”

  Alexa flushes again. “Yes.”

  “And what of our dear chap, Scotty?”

  “Dinner with him tonight.”

  “Whoa, you got ‘em coming out of the woodwork, don’t you? Out of the two of them, I would have hard time deciding who’s yummier. Scott is so edgy and commanding but Brett is handsome and charming. They’re both so different.”

  You could say that again.

  “Again, dinner with Brett is business. Dinner with Scotty is… closure.”

  “Closure? The way he was looking at you didn’t look like he planned to end things. After the last time he was here, it seems there is still a bit of unfinished business between you.”

  “I don’t care what he plans to do. I know what I want, and I want to be friends, colleagues, and nothing else.”

  “You sure about that? You had a look too, just saying.”

  Alexa feels her guard climbing back up. As much as she could use a girlfriend to talk this through with, she isn’t ready to explore her feelings for Scott. Not yet.

  “Listen,” Alexa switches gears, “I need you to get the files ready for the Capital Associates. They’ll be here tomorrow to talk about their social media launch. Hold all my calls for the next two hours. I have a lot of work to catch up on.”

  Martina knows the signal that they are done girl talking and resumes her professional duties. “Of course. I’ll bring your coffee?”

  “Yes, please.” Sometimes Alexa thought Martina might know her better than she knows herself. “Martina?”

  “Yes, boss?”

  “Thank you.” Alexa hopes Martina knows that she means for everything.

  “No problem, boss.”

  Scott walks to the elevators with Brett and as they ride down, his thoughts focus only on Alexa. He can’t get over the look of hurt and anger in her eyes, yet he can tell there was still something in her that let him get close to her. He just wished he knew how to tell her what he was feeling and not just bully her into spending time with him.