Her icy tone and professional demeanor do nothing to deter me. If anything, it’s making me more excited. The girl I knew was shy, but witty. She’s grown into a confident woman who doesn’t back down from a challenge. As I look at Natalie, I wonder what she’s thinking behind those guarded blue eyes of hers. She’s not pushed my hand away or reprimanded me for touching her hair.
She’s just staring at me.
Finally, her eyes flicker towards the wall clock behind me, and when she looks back at me, she gives me a sweet smile. Reaching forward, her hand gently wraps around my tie. Anticipation fills me, along with wariness.
Before I can blink, however, she yanks me forward. “Ethan.”
Hearing her call out my name has the blood rushing to my nether regions.
“It is still shy of 8 o’clock,” she continues calmly. “That meansoffice hours have not begun. Which means I’m not going to get into trouble for saying this. The next time you touch me without my permission, I will stab you in the leg with the closest thing I have on hand.”
Our faces are inches apart, and I can feel her minty breath on my face as she adds, “I don’t enjoy being manipulated twice. My hair belongs to me. The only man I allow to touch my hair is the man I bring to my bed. And you are not, and will never be, in the running for that position.”
A cold feeling washes over me, and my hand moves on instinct, wrapping around her nape, forcing her to keep looking at me. “And do you have someone currently in that position?”
“So what if I do?” Those blue eyes are filled with anger and defiance. And under it is raw attraction, the same heat that made me want to lose myself in her five years ago.
“For their sake, Natalie—” I remove my hand from her nape, grabbing her chin instead “—I hope you get rid of them.”
She trembles but refuses to back down. “Is that a threat?”
“I don’t like sharing what’s mine.”
Her eyes darken, and I wonder how she’ll react if I lower my mouth and kiss her. She might be angry with me, but her body clearly knows who it belongs to. I get my answer in the next heartbeat.
“Get out of my office,” she breathes.
I can see from the look in her eyes that I’ve pushed her too far. Her hand releases my tie, and I straighten up, adjusting it. “Very well. I’ll take a raincheck on that breakfast.”
Hearing her hiss makes me want to smile. I’ve ruffled her feathers. If nothing else, I’ll be on her mind for the rest of the day.
As I return to my office, I think back to her words. I didn’t know that she and Lucas had fallen out, but the timing of it makes me wonder. I remember Lucas being close to Natalie. The few times I saw the two of them together, he was sweet toher, and considering their nine-year age difference, it made sense. She was his baby sister.
But for him to cut ties with her... Is it because of what happened between Natalie and me?
The idea is absurd. If he had found out what I had done, no matter the situation between us, he would have come pounding on my door. I couldn’t imagine cutting ties with Megan for sleeping with someone I disliked.
So what happened?
Clarice is sitting at her desk when I walk in.
She greets me. “Mr. Dean sent a message. He’s on his way to your office.”
I nod. “Tell Miss Thorne to come see me. Wait for me to call her in.”
Robert Dean is the head of the Finance Department. I already have the documents in front of me on my desk when he walks in. In his late forties with greying hair, the man looks like he’s had a tough night. Dark circles shadow his eyes, and his usually crisp shirt is wrinkled at the collar.
“Mr. Wilder?”
“Have a seat, Robert. Do you have the reports ready?”
The man remains standing, sweating despite the aggressive air conditioning that battles against the heat outside. He hands me a thick file with trembling fingers. “I spent the night going over them. Iris did send me the finance report from her department. It was sent to my assistant. He claims that not an hour later, he received another email from her assistant that the wrong report had been sent. The report you forwarded me, which had the discrepancies, was the second report.”
“I see.” I open the file and the emails are printed out and time-stamped. Studying the two emails, I scowl. “The employees go for lunch at one, right?”
Robert nods.
I hand him the second email. “Check the time.”
