“Sorry,” she murmured and quickly flipped the frame face down on the surface of the nightstand. “Forgot that was there.”
She turned back to find Braxton running his fingers through his hair and looking regretful as he blew out a long breath. He’d just lost the mood...completely. A flare of irritation struck her.
“It’s just a picture.”
He nodded but wouldn’t meet her gaze. When he finally glanced her way, he cringed. “You’re really close to him, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” Lenna said, not bothering to sugarcoat that fact. “He’s not just my father. He’s my friend, too.”
Braxton jerked his attention away from her and stared at the kitchen part of her apartment.
“Look,” she started. “I know he can be a bit overbearing sometimes—”
She broke off abruptly when he snorted derisively at her word choice.
When she glared, he winced in apology. “Sorry.”
She closed her eyes and pressed her thumbs to the center of the forehead. “Tom Davenport has his moods,” she allowed, “but I trust him more than anyone. He’d die for me.” Opening her eyes, she settled Braxton with a stern look. “He’s a good man.”
“I’m sure he is…to you,” he conceded softly.
Lenna’s mouth dropped. “Oh my God. You really don’t like him
at all
, do you?”
He flushed guiltily. “I just think if he’d only stop treating me like a snot-nosed little brat that doesn’t know what I’m doing, then I’d get along with not just him, but the entire department, a hell of a lot easier.”
“Well, have you given him any reason to think of you as a snot-nosed brat?” she retorted. “My father just doesn’t start despising someone for no reason.”
Braxton’s face darkened. “Hey, he started the whole pissing contest we’ve got going. He jumped in my ass the first moment I stepped behind my dad’s desk.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but Braxton waved a finger in her face. “No, I
never
wanted to make an enemy of him. Hell, I admired the man when he worked for my dad. But he’s so God damn condescending to me. He makes me so mad sometimes, I can’t help but smart back with a rude comment when he turns all cynical and demeaning. The guy just needs to back the fuck off and let me do my job.”
Lenna knew her father tended to go overboard where the younger generation was concerned—she was his daughter, after all—but she was so irritated that Braxton had interrupted her, she lashed back, “Maybe he doesn’t think you’re doing it
right
.”
“He’s not giving me a chance to do it at all!” Braxton yelled.
Lenna crossed her arms over her chest and suddenly realized she was naked. The move caused Braxton to pause as well and run his gaze over her. Frowning, she lifted her knees to shield the view from him, guarding her breasts with her arms.
He closed his eyes and whispered a stream of obscenities. Lenna used that moment to grab her deserted clothes and cover herself even more.
Braxton turned away and slid off the bed so he could sit on the floor. “I’m sorry,” he said solemnly, regretfully. “This isn’t the time or place to talk about him.”
“We almost had sex,” she announced numbly, or had they really had sex since he’d penetrated her. She could still feel him inside her, moving and—
“Oh, God. We actually—”
“No.” He spun around quickly and leapt back onto the mattress to grasp her arms. “Don’t you dare do that. Don’t feel bad about this. It...” He shook his head. “It doesn’t have anything to do with him. This is between you and me. Tom doesn’t—”
“Don’t say his name,” she cut in with a high voice.
His mouth dropped open as he stared at her. “Lenna,” he whispered, “please don’t regret what happened. It was...it was magic.”
She felt like crying. There he went again, being a complete Prince Charming...three seconds after he’d just bashed her father big time.
She squeezed her eyes tight and huddled under the pathetic excuse of a blanket her clothing made. “I think you should call your cab now.”
When he didn’t answer, she slowly opened her lashes. It completely shocked her to see the utter devastation on his face. But when her gaze set on him, he quickly masked the expression and nodded mutely.
She watched as he ran a shaky hand through his hair and then reached for his briefs. Seeing him dress propelled her to do the same. They kept to opposite sides of the bed, their backs to each other, as they put themselves to rights again. Every once in a while, he’d quietly toss her an article of her clothing and she’d hand over his. Not a word was spoken until he moved toward her phone and dialed a taxi service.
His words were low as he rattled off her address to the person on the other end of the line.
Once again, Lenna had the uncontrollable urge to cry. This wasn’t ending how she’d wanted it to at all. Actually, it hadn’t begun like she’d wanted it to either. She hadn’t wanted it to start, period. But since it had, she’d at least wanted to complete the act before he walked out.
That phantom sensation of him wedged tight inside her continued to plague her. She squeezed her legs together to alleviate the ache.
She knew she should’ve stayed away. She never should’ve danced with him at the club or even gone over to talk to him. What in the world had she been thinking, sleeping with her father’s boss?
Braxton disconnected the call and silence reigned. He kept his back to her as he stared out her window. His black hair was rumpled and his clothes were wrinkled. He looked sexy and tousled, and she just wanted to tug him back onto the bed to finish their fun.
But the upside-down portrait of her father caught her attention.
“You’re not going to tell him what we did, are you?”
He glanced back with a scowl that quickly made her feel lower than trash.
Lenna dropped her head, ashamed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean...” Her words broke off as she slumped onto the bed and covered her mouth with her hand.
He cleared his throat. “I think I’ll wait for my cab downstairs.”
Lenna nodded mutely unable to speak. When tears filled her eyes, she bowed her head, not wanting him to see. But as he passed her, he paused and gently set his hand on her hair.
“You didn’t do anything wrong, Lenna. Please don’t cry.” His voice broke. “You didn’t betray him. You defended him. Please stop. You’re drunk. I took advantage. This wasn’t your fault.”
She looked up to find that his cheeks were red and his eyes moist. Shaking her head, she crumbled. “You didn’t take advantage. You’re drunk too. And I wanted you. I still want you.”
Face contorting with pain, he sank to his knees in front of her. “I’m sorry. I messed up. Don’t cry. I can’t stand to see you cry, and I can’t leave until you stop.”
When she choked on a renewed sob because his words were so sweet and it only conflicted her more, he hugged her waist and sank his face in her stomach. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
She touched his hair hesitantly, then buried her fingers in his inky locks. Leaning down, she pressed her cheek to the crown of his head, soaking in the sensation and committing it to memory so she could always recall how lovely he felt in her arms.
As if reading her mind and knowing this was their last embrace, Braxton let out a depressed sigh. “We haven’t even started and we’re already doomed.”
Lenna tightened her grip on him. She didn’t want to let go. Leaning against him, she asked, “One more kiss before you leave?”
He shook his head. “You really are out to kill me, aren’t you?” But instead of denying her, he lifted up onto his haunches and mashed his mouth against hers.
Their lips clung desperately, tongues curling and tangling. When he took both her hands, their fingers intertwined, and they held each other just like that until a car horn sounded on the street below.
Braxton was the first to pull away. “My cab.”
Lenna pressed her face against his neck. He cupped her hair for a moment and then let go.
“I had a wonderful evening. Everything we did together...it wasn’t a mistake, okay? I don’t regret it. And I don’t want you to regret it, because you just gave me an incredible memory I will carry with me for the rest of my life.”
“There you go again,” Lenna told him as she wiped at her misting eyes. “Being all noble and irresistible.”
Typical Prince Charming behavior
.
He grinned and shook his head. “If you only knew how tempted I am to forget that cab and crawl back into this bed, You’d run screaming for the hills.”
Well, yes, she probably would scream, but only in ecstasy.
He pushed to his feet and turned away. But when he reached for the door and opened it, he glanced back. Their eyes caught and held.
“It’s probably a good thing we stopped. I think I would’ve fallen a little too hard, a little too fast.” He winced, looking sick. “Actually, I think I already did.”
Before she could respond, he was out the door and gone.
Clutching her stomach, she stared at the closed portal. As his sweet words repeated themselves through her head, she realized she’d already fallen for him too. Too hard and way too fast.
Every Sunday, Lenna ate dinner with her parents. This week, she arrived fidgeting. She couldn’t manage to stay still. Wanting to be useful and needing to show her father she still loved him despite what she’d done with his nemesis the night before, she helped her mom set the table and finish preparing supper.
During the meal, Tom asked her about her job search as he always did. Lenna bit her lip and lied. She told him she’d sent in an application to a corporation seeking a public relations spokes-person. Tom smiled with pleasure and nodded his head approvingly, making Lenna want to sink through the floor. Damn, maybe she really should apply at a stupid corporation.
But Braxton’s advice echoed through her head.
Just don’t leap into some career that isn’t what you want merely because it’s taking you too long to decide.
Lenna let out a breath, confirmed she was doing the right thing in her job hunt.
She had no idea how it happened, but talk of her dad’s work started. Her brother, Aaron, like the pest he was, jokingly asked how the new boss was getting along. Her heart dropped into her stomach as Tom’s eyes frosted over.
“That kid,” he muttered, “got a plateful he couldn’t handle when he pounced into his daddy’s shoes.”
The rest of her visit with her family went downhill from there. Lenna left as soon as she helped put away the cleaned dishes. Anxiety ate her alive. She slipped out the back door and hurried to her car. When she settled into the driver’s seat, she started the engine but continued to stare at her childhood home.
This was all wrong. She and Braxton had stopped before going all the way. She’d held herself back and made him call a cab, yet that didn’t seem to matter. Her guilt lingered.
Lenna had never kept anything from her dad before. Sure, she didn’t tell him everything. Her personal life was just that. Personal. But she was keeping a secret she knew would wound him if he discovered it. He’d feel betrayed, like she’d gone after the one man he couldn’t stand merely to upset him.
She loved her father with her whole heart, but he wasn’t the forgiving sort. If he thought she’d wronged him, he’d hold a grudge for a long time.
Sick to her stomach, Lenna leaned forward and rested her head on the steering wheel.
“What am I going to do?” she whispered to herself.
* * * *
As Monday came, Braxton found himself in the meeting room at Farris Industries with a dozen other employees, one being the father of the girl he’d had his mouth all over and his dick inside two nights before.
His gaze accidentally latched onto Tom’s disapproving glower, and Braxton quickly turned away. Suddenly, the only thing he could see was Lenna’s face, her pert nipples, silky blond hair, creamy thighs...
A trickle of sweat rolled down his spine. He took a deep breath and faced his employees. God, how was he going to do this? He swore Tom Davenport was glaring laser beams at him, frying him from the inside out.
Needing more air, Braxton tugged his tie loose. As soon as he unbuttoned the top button, however, his secretary wolf whistled.
“Wow. Nice hickey, boss,” Tasha said, making other employees snort.
Eyes widening, Braxton slapped his hand over the spot where Lenna had teasingly left a very distinct mark. The collar of his shirt had been effectively hiding it all day until he’d forgotten and opened a button.
He flashed a quick, guilty glance Tom’s way and swallowed when he saw the unimpressed frown on the older man’s face.
Quickly re-buttoning the collar, Braxton cleared his throat and tried to ignore the fact he was blushing. “Let’s get onto our first topic of business. The Trevis account.” He turned to the woman sitting three seats down on his right. “Gloria, I assigned that to you. How’s it going?”
“What?” Gloria’s face flamed bright red. “Oh, I, uh, I passed it on to Tom.”
Braxton froze. “You did?” Dear God, he was going to have to look at Tom. “Why?”
Gloria quickly glanced from him to Tom and back to Braxton. “It, uh, I was swamped with work and he’d just finished that ad sheet we sent to
Consumer Reports
, so...” She shrugged.
Braxton stared at her a moment, wanting to strangle her for making him turn his attention to Lenna’s father.
Hands fisting under the table, he shifted his eyes across the room. “Tom?”
Davenport leaned back in his chair, rocking as he folded his hands behind his head. “It’s going good.”
Studying the man’s face a moment longer, Braxton said, “Would you care to elaborate?”
Tom’s jaw knotted, his face darkened, and a vein bulged in his temple. “They signed the contract.”
Braxton wasn’t up for going a round with him this morning, so he merely turned away and murmured, “Good.”
He switched the topic to budgeting and the allocation of funds, thankful he didn’t have to speak to the arrogant dick through the rest of the meeting.
After they were finished and people were heading out the door, Pat Foley paused to grin at him. “Guess you had a good weekend, huh, kid?”