Nine
The numbers on the screen blurred together. No matter how hard Lia tried to focus on them, her tears kept threatening to spill over. Somehow, she’d managed to get her shit together long enough to get through the work day. But now that she was alone in her office, the anguish of Adam’s betrayal seized control of her thoughts over and over again.
You should have just used sex as a bargaining chip .
She shook that renegade thought from her mind and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. As much as she wanted to keep her restaurant, she refused to lose her integrity. She’d slept with Adam last night because she was attracted to him. Too bad he was planning to screw her over in more than one way.
And yet, he’d seemed so sincere when it came to trying to get his brother out of whatever trouble he’d gotten into.
Lia stopped typing and rested her face in her hands. No matter how much she wanted to paint him as a villain, she couldn’t. Too many little details like that gave her a glimpse of the complicated mess that was Adam Kelly. Ruthless businessman, yet caring brother and son.
And let’s not forget damn good lover. Trey had never made her come that hard in all the years they were together.
A whimper of defeat rose into her throat. She should’ve never accepted his invitation for dinner as long as the future of her career hung in the balance.
“Hello, Lia?” a man called from the dining room.
Speak of the devil . She eyed the baseball bat under her desk. Could she get away with pretending she didn’t hear him?
A loud crash filled the darkened kitchen, preventing her from using that excuse. She reached along the wall outside her office and turned on the lights. “Just for your future reference, the light switch is right by the door. You know, in case you want to come and harass Schlittler in the middle of the night like you do me.”
Then she slammed her office door closed. If he wanted to pester her, she’d given him more than enough warning.
Of course, Adam always got what he wanted, and tonight was no exception. He didn’t even bother to knock before opening the door. “Lia, we need to talk.”
She continued to punch in the numbers from the receipts in her hand, albeit a bit harder than required. “Schlittler already came by this morning to dictate his plans for the décor, so you can spare yourself that conversation.”
“So I heard, and I apologize for that.”
“Apologize?” She turned to face him, her earlier tears replaced by barely contained fury. “I think it might be a little late for that.”
He crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe, blocking her escape. “An apology is never too late, especially when there’s a big misunderstanding.”
“Yes, there was a big misunderstanding.” She shoved him out of her way and started picking up the stack of metal bowls he’d scattered on the floor when he came in. “I misunderstood you when you said you’d be trying to convince Schlittler to open his restaurant elsewhere.”
He took the bowls from her hand and held her in front of him, his warm hands on her upper arms. He didn’t need to use force—his touch alone weakened her defenses and turned her legs into goo. His lips pressed into a thin line “So all you care about is your restaurant? Is that it?”
The accusation in his voice stung. “You can call me whatever you want, Adam, but I’m not a whore. I meant what I said last night. I just didn’t expect you to pull this so quickly after getting what you wanted from me.” She shrugged free from him and continued cleaning the kitchen.
“If you think I just made you some glib promises to get you in my bed, then explain to me why I felt the need to spend the last four hours trying to convince Schlittler to look at other properties next week.”
She froze, unsure if she should trust her ears. “Guilt?” she squeaked.
“Damn it, Lia, you have me so wound up, I feel like I’m stuck on one of those
The numbers on the screen blurred together. No matter how hard Lia tried to focus on them, her tears kept threatening to spill over. Somehow, she’d managed to get her shit together long enough to get through the work day. But now that she was alone in her office, the anguish of Adam’s betrayal seized control of her thoughts over and over again.
You should have just used sex as a bargaining chip .
She shook that renegade thought from her mind and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. As much as she wanted to keep her restaurant, she refused to lose her integrity. She’d slept with Adam last night because she was attracted to him. Too bad he was planning to screw her over in more than one way.
And yet, he’d seemed so sincere when it came to trying to get his brother out of whatever trouble he’d gotten into.
Lia stopped typing and rested her face in her hands. No matter how much she wanted to paint him as a villain, she couldn’t. Too many little details like that gave her a glimpse of the complicated mess that was Adam Kelly. Ruthless businessman, yet caring brother and son.
And let’s not forget damn good lover. Trey had never made her come that hard in all the years they were together.
A whimper of defeat rose into her throat. She should’ve never accepted his invitation for dinner as long as the future of her career hung in the balance.
“Hello, Lia?” a man called from the dining room.
Speak of the devil . She eyed the baseball bat under her desk. Could she get away with pretending she didn’t hear him?
A loud crash filled the darkened kitchen, preventing her from using that excuse. She reached along the wall outside her office and turned on the lights. “Just for your future reference, the light switch is right by the door. You know, in case you want to come and harass Schlittler in the middle of the night like you do me.”
Then she slammed her office door closed. If he wanted to pester her, she’d given him more than enough warning.
Of course, Adam always got what he wanted, and tonight was no exception. He didn’t even bother to knock before opening the door. “Lia, we need to talk.”
She continued to punch in the numbers from the receipts in her hand, albeit a bit harder than required. “Schlittler already came by this morning to dictate his plans for the décor, so you can spare yourself that conversation.”
“So I heard, and I apologize for that.”
“Apologize?” She turned to face him, her earlier tears replaced by barely contained fury. “I think it might be a little late for that.”
He crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe, blocking her escape. “An apology is never too late, especially when there’s a big misunderstanding.”
“Yes, there was a big misunderstanding.” She shoved him out of her way and started picking up the stack of metal bowls he’d scattered on the floor when he came in. “I misunderstood you when you said you’d be trying to convince Schlittler to open his restaurant elsewhere.”
He took the bowls from her hand and held her in front of him, his warm hands on her upper arms. He didn’t need to use force—his touch alone weakened her defenses and turned her legs into goo. His lips pressed into a thin line “So all you care about is your restaurant? Is that it?”
The accusation in his voice stung. “You can call me whatever you want, Adam, but I’m not a whore. I meant what I said last night. I just didn’t expect you to pull this so quickly after getting what you wanted from me.” She shrugged free from him and continued cleaning the kitchen.
“If you think I just made you some glib promises to get you in my bed, then explain to me why I felt the need to spend the last four hours trying to convince Schlittler to look at other properties next week.”
She froze, unsure if she should trust her ears. “Guilt?” she squeaked.
“Damn it, Lia, you have me so wound up, I feel like I’m stuck on one of those
Similar Books
