Chapter 7
Jennie
Before heading to the farmer's market, I stop by my apartment and change into something more comfortable. I'm still shaking with fury. How dare she suddenly become so damn nosy about my life! I've worked hard to keep certain things to myself. And now, I feel like she's prying into something that needs to remain shut. If she pulls open the parts of my past I keep contained, I'll lose my mind.
I don't want to remember the years I spent with Kai.
I don't want to recall how he went from possessive boyfriend, to monster, to my worst nightmare. I don't want to think about the things he made me do. Things that still embarrass and horrify me. Things that would tear apart everything I've worked so hard to achieve if they ever got out.
Hot, furious tears are spilling from my eyes. I hastily swipe them away as I leave to do my weekly shopping. Lisa, my stupid boss, has grabbed my now normal life and given it a hard shake. I don't like that she's rattled some memories inside me that I prefer to keep hidden.
In an effort to block her annoyingly gorgeous face from my mind, I think about my new job. I'm eager to learn something different. On the way to the market, I pass by the post office where my PO box is located. I check it but don't find any correspondence. That both hurts me and relieves me. The last few cards I sent, I foolishly included my PO box address. I pull the sealed envelope that holds ten crisp one hundred dollar bills inside a funny card out of my purse and slip it into the outgoing box.
Just once I'd like to receive a letter back. To be acknowledged. But that would invite problems. Problems I don't need, no matter how much my heart aches.
The walk to the market is cold. I doubt we'll have snow, but it looks like a chilly rain is imminent. I'll need to hurry with my shopping today.
Normally, I spend several hours at the market as I take my time and enjoy the day. But today, I'm too wound up. My tension is like the cold wintery rain that will most likely hit before I make it back to my place. Whipping all around me and stressing me out. I grunt all the way back to my building with my haul.
It's times like these when I wish I had actual friends. People I could chat with and talk about my day. A girlfriend to groan to about my annoying boss, my terrible drunk night with my future boss, the fear my psycho ex will hunt me down, and all of the other awful things in my life.
Unfortunately, I don't.
The moment I feel the first drop of cold rain on my forehead, a shudder of defeat ripples through me. In this big bad world, I'm all alone. By nature, I'm not normally a crier. But today, I let it go. I sob as I run three long blocks through the soaking rain with my arms full of groceries. My teeth are chattering by the time I reach my building. Out front sits a shiny white Range Rover that seems to sparkle in the pouring rain. I suddenly wish I owned a car. I suddenly wish I lived somewhere with a garage, reliable heating, and tenants who aren't drug dealers.
I stomp through the puddles and seek refuge in the dilapidated building. Lisa was right. I live in the ghetto. This place is all I can afford by the time I send away most of my wages. It's sad. My entire life is just pathetic.
Eventually, I make it up to the third floor but I'm exhausted and soaked to the bone. So when I see a familiar face, I'm too tired to fight. In some stupid way, I feel a sense of relief.
"What are you doing here?" I mumble as I rummage through my purse for my keys.
Lisa frowns at me. She's holding a folder tucked under one arm and a dripping umbrella in her other. The woman still looks every bit as sexy as she did at breakfast. Too bad she's such an asshole. "Can we talk a minute?"
Letting out a sigh, I unlock my door and gesture for her to come in. My place instantly smells like her. Clean and spicy. A hint of cinnamon.
Once inside, I make a beeline for the kitchen to drop my bags. She follows me into the small space making it seem even smaller with her imposing presence.
"Let me unload those while you take a hot shower and change. You're turning purple, Jennie." At her silly pun, she smiles. The woman is ridiculously good looking and it makes me angry. I hate that I react so easily to her. My stupid heart patters away in my chest just from the way she looks at me. As if she'd like to lick away every droplet of the rain. I suppress a whine because that sounds a lot better than I want it to.
"Thanks. I'll be back in ten minutes. Don't steal anything," I threaten.
She chuckles as she starts unloading the bag. "I wouldn't dare."
Eighteen minutes later, I'm dressed in a warm hoodie and a pair of yoga pants. My slippers cover my frozen toes and I've pulled my wet hair into a messy bun to keep it off my neck. When I enter the living room, Lisa is sitting in the middle of the only piece of furniture I own as she sips on some coffee. She looks like she belongs here. Like this is her place. The thought irritates me.
"Make yourself at home, why don't you?" I grumble.
She winks at me and points to a steaming mug on the coffee table. Swallowing down my irritation, I sit down next to her with the intense gaze and take her peace offering. The coffee tastes good. I'd expected it to be the way she likes it. One cream. Two sugars. A bit of cinnamon. But it's the way I like it. Black with a hint of sugar.
"How did you know—"
She cuts me off. "I need your help."
My brows shoot up. "This is work related?"
Her fingers run through her dark hair and a lock falls down over her eyebrow. I know she's older than me. Kai was much older too. I shudder at that thought.
"I wanted you to take a look at this property. Tell me what you think," she says, her voice gruff as she scratches at her jawline. I'm mesmerized by the way her long finger absently scrapes along her jaw.
She hands me the file, and I blink away my daze. "This is the Yang property. I thought you already acquired it yesterday."
She nods but her brows pinch together. "I did. It's a resort a little up north. Do you think it was a good purchase?"
I feel like this is a trick question. Or maybe she's just toying with me. Either way, I don't like how she suddenly feels the need to include me in on business. Maybe it's about Mr. Yang. What if he's here to gripe at me for pushing the old man into selling?
"Sales price was fair for the market value," I say slowly as I scan the documents. "It's quite beautiful actually." I stare at the picture of the ocean view.
"Very beautiful," she agrees.
When I glance at her, her penetrating gaze is on me and not the picture. It sends a quiver of excitement rushing through me. I quickly scold myself internally and drag my eyes back to the file. "Everything looks fine to me. Looks to be a good investment."
She lets out a sigh that has me glancing at her again. "I agree. How did you learn all of this? You're working as my assistant and yet you know all of these things. I was searching for a document and the IT department granted me access into your computer. You have so many emails…"
Horror washes over me. And shame. As much as she pisses me off, I never intended for her to see my drafts in my inbox. Some of those emails I typed up were when I was angry. Not just at her but at the entire world. She always bore the brunt of my fury. Thankfully, I was smart enough to never send them. I never dreamed she'd ever read them.
"I'm sorry—" I start, my voice but a whisper. I wonder if she's come to tell me I can just quit without working my last two weeks. That stresses me out, considering I just mailed out my most recent paycheck—well most of it—back home. I'm sure Sean would let me start early, but I already feel humiliated by how I acted around him last night.
"Don't be. I know I'm difficult to understand and apparently difficult to work for." She turns her sharp gaze on mine. I see the way her eyes dart over my face, inspecting every feature closely as if I'm on display under a microscope. It unnerves me, yet I find my body heat rising from her close inspection. "Tell me how you know these things, Jennie."
I stiffen my back and let out a small sigh. "I'm perceptive. One of those watch-and-learn personalities. Also, I research a lot of things. If I'm interested, I try to learn more about it. I even took some night classes. Most of them were business related. Some touched on the economy and investments. I can't really say I learned it all from one place. It was more or less a culmination of many things." Her eyes are on my mouth as I speak. I like how focused on me she is but at the same time, I'm disgusted.
Kai kept a close eye on me and I hated it.
I sip my coffee, directing my attention to the window. The rain pours outside. I should send Lisa out in it and hope she gets drenched for being such a prick earlier. As if in tune with my thoughts, she speaks.
"I'm sorry about breakfast. I didn't mean to pry…"
"But?" There's always a but.
She scrubs her face and regards me with a vulnerability I've yet to see from the powerful Lisa Manoban. "But I'm just so curious about you right now."
Her honest answer has me regarding her with gentler eyes. I know I can be a cold, hard bitch sometimes. Maybe part of the reason I don't have any friends is because I refuse to let anyone in. My walls are always erect and impenetrable.
"I just don't like talking about my past or my reason for doing things," I admit as I set my mug down.
She mimics my actions and gives me a crooked grin that sends a swarm of butterflies fluttering around in my stomach. "Can we start over? Can we be friends?"
With her sitting in my living room, looking like she belongs, and turning on the charm, I feel some of my inner ice thawing. "I'll only be around for two more weeks, Lisa. Maybe being friends isn't such a good idea. I'll be gone before you know it, no longer in your hair."
Her eyes darken and I notice a tick in her jaw. "There usually isn't a timeline on friendship. Maybe I still want to be your friend, even after you leave."
I chew on my bottom lip for a minute contemplating her motives. There really is no hidden reason why she would want to be friends. I mean, maybe her definition of friendship leans toward the fuck buddies territory, but I can thwart her advances. She knows I'm leaving and hasn't necessarily tried to prevent me from doing so.
"Please." Her word isn't a plea but more of an olive branch.
"I'm afraid I would be a terrible friend," I admit with an embarrassed smile. "I don't have any because I never really wanted any."
She regards me, her eyes doing that strange thing she does now—ever since she seemed to snap out of Mad Man mode yesterday—where they skim over every part of my face as if she's trying to memorize each freckle on my flesh. "I'm the worst friend you'll ever know. Just ask Bull." She winces at the name, which only makes me want to know why.
"Who's Bull?"
"Bambam."
I crack a smile at the sheepish way Lisa is behaving. Normally, I see the powerful, arrogant, one-track minded madman who runs the company I work for. I've never seen other sides of her. Bashful and vulnerable. Playful and grinning.
"What exactly do friends do?" I question, changing the subject. "We're not sleeping together."
A beautiful smile curves her lips and her entire beautiful face lights up like never before. Just one look at her like this has me chiding myself. Don't lie to the sex god, honey. We both know you're eventually going to let that woman into your bed.
Her eyes narrow as they drop to my throat. The heat is painted on my skin—I can feel it. I clear my throat and tap the paper to distract her. "Have you been to the resort?"
"Once before. The moment I settled into my suite with a glass of brandy and sat in the armchair that overlooked the chilly Atlantic, I knew I wanted it for myself." Her hand covers mine as she draws it away from the picture. She's looking down at the stunning boutique resort, but I'm focused on the way her hand lingers on mine. I swear my heart is thudding so loudly she can most certainly hear it.
"Do you just take everything you want?" My words are meant to tease but they come out in an accusatory tone.
She leans into me as her hand squeezes mine. Warm lips brush against the shell of my ear, and hot breath tickles me when she speaks. "Always. When I want something, I do whatever it takes to get it."
We're not talking acquisitions anymore.
Or maybe we are.
"And what happens when you finally get it?" I can't help but poke her a little more.
She lets out a heavy exhalation that sends shivers of need coursing through me. If she asked me to get naked for her right now, I probably would.
"I don't let it go," she says finally. She pulls away and takes the folder from me. I'm frozen in place, assuming she's about to scoop my melted body up and take me into my room where she'll spend hours ravishing me. I'm disappointed when she stands and clears her throat. My eyes drift to the large erection bulging in her slacks.
"Are we done here?" I murmur before reluctantly pulling my gaze from her dick to meet her hardened glare.
She runs those long fingers again through her now messy hair. I could think of a good use for those fingers…
"For now. I'll pick you up at seven for dinner." She doesn't wait for a response before she stalks toward the door. "Take a nap until then. You look exhausted."
I rise on shaky legs and follow after her. "Dinner? I thought we were just friends."
"Friends don't eat dinner together?" she implores with an impish grin.
I roll my eyes at her but I'm smiling too. "Last meal we had together went badly. You were an ass."
Her smile falls and a fierce stare finds me. Her hand raises to cup my cheek. "I'm sorry. I was out of line. It won't happen again. You just…" She drops her hand and looks off behind me toward the windows. "You just looked too damn pretty to be prancing around without a bra on for all those perverts to see." Her eyes snap to mine and fire flares in them. I'm definitely melting again under her glare.
"Oh."
"Wear something casual. Jeans or something," she says.
"And a bra?" I taunt, my lips turning up to give her a wicked grin.
Her laugh is charming and it shaves years off her age. "Clothing is always optional when you're around me. I may have to beat some motherfuckers down for looking but I'm not opposed to the idea, little quitter."
She's already turning on her heel and pulling the door open.
"Bye, Lisa." Hours ago I hated the very ground she walked on, and now, I don't want her to leave.
"Bye, Jennie."