In Your Corner
Page 88
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“One hundred grand.”
My shoulders slump. “That’s it? What about an apology? Or stepping down from his position? It’s not about the money. It’s about the principle. Sexual harassment. Blackmail. He has to be stopped. And I know he’s been spreading rumors. That has to be addressed as well. My reputation is worth something to me.”
Reid reaches into his briefcase and pulls out the blue file. “According to this, you have quite the reputation, but not the kind that can be saved.”
My blood chills and the hair on the back of my neck stands on end. “Where did you get that?”
“I’m on the case. I have access to all the documents.” He perches on the desk and drums his fingers over the file.
“What’s this all about, Reid?” I push my chair away from the desk, away from him. “Is there a settlement offer, or are you here to blackmail me just like he did? Because if you are, the answer is still no. I don’t do blackmail. I also have nothing to lose. I have no job. No employer. No reputation. Soon I will have no house. And my friends wouldn’t give a damn.”
“But your parents would,” he says softly. “Farnsworth told me about them. And what about your fighter boyfriend? What would he think if he found out what kind of person you really are? I don’t know any man who would be too happy to know his girlfriend was intimately familiar with most of the eligible males in the Bay Area. Makes her hard to trust, don’t you think? The kind of girl who would be with him one minute and someone else the next? The kind of girl who can’t commit.” He shoves the file across the desk toward me, and I push myself to my feet and back up to the wall.
“I’m not ashamed of anything in that file, Reid. In fact, all the time I spent looking for love made me realize what love really is. Plus, Jake and I broke up. So if that’s why you’re here, then it’s time for you to leave. But if there really is an offer, then it’s time for us to work.”
Reid closes the distance between us and leans his forearm against the wall beside my head. “There’s an offer from me. One time. You and me. Down and dirty. Right here. On the chair. On the desk. On the f**king floor. I don’t care. But I want you out of my system and that’s what it’s going to take to do it.”
My hands clench into fists, my nails biting into my palms. “Are you crazy? You came here on false pretenses. You’re trying to blackmail me. You and Farnsworth have had someone following me, and I think your PI is responsible for the break-in at my office. In fact, I’m pretty damn sure he is. Not the kind of behavior one engages in if they want to get a woman into bed.”
His eyes darken to black, narrowing at the corners. “Yeah, I arranged to have you followed. But this case is all about reputation, so you should have seen that coming. And since you broke up with your boyfriend, what’s the big deal? He may not want you, but I do, and it’s driving me f**king crazy.”
My hands find my hips and I clench my fists to contain my fury. “You want to f**k me in my office? Is that what I’m hearing?”
Evil Reid sighs. “You don’t want to do it here, we can go someplace else. But at the very least give me a kiss. We’ve known each other for almost three years. It’s not like we’re strangers. Just a kiss and, as a show of good faith, I’ll give you the file.”
We don’t belong together.
We shouldn’t have.
I don’t want you to think my feelings have changed.
Jake’s words echo in my mind. Evil Reid is right about one thing. Jake doesn’t want me. Evil Reid does, and he wants to show me in a way I understand. And…oh God…to get rid of that file…
“Just a kiss and that’s the end of it. You give me the file. You leave and you never harass me again.”
His eyes shine triumphant, but his face softens. “There’s been a spark between us since the day we met, but you never gave it a chance.” He brushes my hair behind my ear with a gentleness I would never have expected from him. “We have that chance now.”
Evil Reid bends down and brushes his lips over mine, engulfing me in the scent of nicotine and cloying cologne. And then I’m kissing him. I’m kissing Evil Reid, trying to soothe the ache in my heart with the knowledge someone wants me, even if only for a heartbeat.
This is not me.
Soft, wet, milky kiss. I try to pull away and Evil Reid’s arm snakes around my waist, holding me tight as his thick, rubbery tongue tries to push its way through the barrier of my teeth. When he paws at my breast, I slap his hand away. Evil Reid is going down.
“Get off me.” I shove Evil Reid away with one of Razzor’s signature moves. He stumbles back, catching himself on the corner of the desk. Only then do I see Jake and Ray in the doorway.
For a long moment nobody moves. Then Jake turns and walks away.
My heart plunges to the floor. I shove past Evil Reid and grab the file off the desk. Then I fly past Ray and out the door.
“Jake.” I am running, running, down the steps and along the sidewalk, so fast the world is a blur except for the tall, blond fighter walking away from me. “Wait. Please.” Breathless, panting, I catch him just as he reaches his Jeep. I hold out the file.
“You want the real me?” My voice trembles. “The part I was holding back? The reason I always had one foot out the door? Why I could never give myself completely to you? Here it is. This is part of who I am. I pushed you away not just because I was afraid to get close, but also because I couldn’t accept who I was and I was afraid you wouldn’t either.”
My shoulders slump. “That’s it? What about an apology? Or stepping down from his position? It’s not about the money. It’s about the principle. Sexual harassment. Blackmail. He has to be stopped. And I know he’s been spreading rumors. That has to be addressed as well. My reputation is worth something to me.”
Reid reaches into his briefcase and pulls out the blue file. “According to this, you have quite the reputation, but not the kind that can be saved.”
My blood chills and the hair on the back of my neck stands on end. “Where did you get that?”
“I’m on the case. I have access to all the documents.” He perches on the desk and drums his fingers over the file.
“What’s this all about, Reid?” I push my chair away from the desk, away from him. “Is there a settlement offer, or are you here to blackmail me just like he did? Because if you are, the answer is still no. I don’t do blackmail. I also have nothing to lose. I have no job. No employer. No reputation. Soon I will have no house. And my friends wouldn’t give a damn.”
“But your parents would,” he says softly. “Farnsworth told me about them. And what about your fighter boyfriend? What would he think if he found out what kind of person you really are? I don’t know any man who would be too happy to know his girlfriend was intimately familiar with most of the eligible males in the Bay Area. Makes her hard to trust, don’t you think? The kind of girl who would be with him one minute and someone else the next? The kind of girl who can’t commit.” He shoves the file across the desk toward me, and I push myself to my feet and back up to the wall.
“I’m not ashamed of anything in that file, Reid. In fact, all the time I spent looking for love made me realize what love really is. Plus, Jake and I broke up. So if that’s why you’re here, then it’s time for you to leave. But if there really is an offer, then it’s time for us to work.”
Reid closes the distance between us and leans his forearm against the wall beside my head. “There’s an offer from me. One time. You and me. Down and dirty. Right here. On the chair. On the desk. On the f**king floor. I don’t care. But I want you out of my system and that’s what it’s going to take to do it.”
My hands clench into fists, my nails biting into my palms. “Are you crazy? You came here on false pretenses. You’re trying to blackmail me. You and Farnsworth have had someone following me, and I think your PI is responsible for the break-in at my office. In fact, I’m pretty damn sure he is. Not the kind of behavior one engages in if they want to get a woman into bed.”
His eyes darken to black, narrowing at the corners. “Yeah, I arranged to have you followed. But this case is all about reputation, so you should have seen that coming. And since you broke up with your boyfriend, what’s the big deal? He may not want you, but I do, and it’s driving me f**king crazy.”
My hands find my hips and I clench my fists to contain my fury. “You want to f**k me in my office? Is that what I’m hearing?”
Evil Reid sighs. “You don’t want to do it here, we can go someplace else. But at the very least give me a kiss. We’ve known each other for almost three years. It’s not like we’re strangers. Just a kiss and, as a show of good faith, I’ll give you the file.”
We don’t belong together.
We shouldn’t have.
I don’t want you to think my feelings have changed.
Jake’s words echo in my mind. Evil Reid is right about one thing. Jake doesn’t want me. Evil Reid does, and he wants to show me in a way I understand. And…oh God…to get rid of that file…
“Just a kiss and that’s the end of it. You give me the file. You leave and you never harass me again.”
His eyes shine triumphant, but his face softens. “There’s been a spark between us since the day we met, but you never gave it a chance.” He brushes my hair behind my ear with a gentleness I would never have expected from him. “We have that chance now.”
Evil Reid bends down and brushes his lips over mine, engulfing me in the scent of nicotine and cloying cologne. And then I’m kissing him. I’m kissing Evil Reid, trying to soothe the ache in my heart with the knowledge someone wants me, even if only for a heartbeat.
This is not me.
Soft, wet, milky kiss. I try to pull away and Evil Reid’s arm snakes around my waist, holding me tight as his thick, rubbery tongue tries to push its way through the barrier of my teeth. When he paws at my breast, I slap his hand away. Evil Reid is going down.
“Get off me.” I shove Evil Reid away with one of Razzor’s signature moves. He stumbles back, catching himself on the corner of the desk. Only then do I see Jake and Ray in the doorway.
For a long moment nobody moves. Then Jake turns and walks away.
My heart plunges to the floor. I shove past Evil Reid and grab the file off the desk. Then I fly past Ray and out the door.
“Jake.” I am running, running, down the steps and along the sidewalk, so fast the world is a blur except for the tall, blond fighter walking away from me. “Wait. Please.” Breathless, panting, I catch him just as he reaches his Jeep. I hold out the file.
“You want the real me?” My voice trembles. “The part I was holding back? The reason I always had one foot out the door? Why I could never give myself completely to you? Here it is. This is part of who I am. I pushed you away not just because I was afraid to get close, but also because I couldn’t accept who I was and I was afraid you wouldn’t either.”
