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“What’s going on? What are we cashing in on?”
“Stef doesn’t mind if we head out earlier than we said, since you’re feeling pretty good.”
“Oh, that’s amazing. Are you sure?”
“Of course.” In fact, I was more than sure. I was actually desperate for them to leave, so I could just wallow in whatever these feelings were. Forcing my stiff lips into a smile, I said, “And the sooner the better, if you don’t mind. I haven’t had any alone time with Miss Squishy for weeks.”
Dante chuckled. “Alright then. We’re going.”
After fussing over Sophie, giving me lots of unnecessary instructions and Lucy dashing back to the bedroom to change her shoes, they were finally heading out the door. Sophie and I stood at the bay window in the living room, waving at them as they backed down the drive.
Wandering into Sophie’s bedroom, I switched on her baby monitor, flicking it on to the sound setting I thought we could both use. The sound of ocean waves filled the room and when I went back to the living room and switched on the receiver, the same waves filled the living room.
Sophie rubbed at her eyes.
“Aaw, I know, Squishy. You’re tired.” I ruffled her curls, swaying back and forth until her head fell forward on my shoulder and she became a dead weight in my arms. Under normal circumstances, I would have smiled. But these weren’t normal circumstances. I moved to sit on the sofa, cradling Sophie carefully, so as not to wake her.
It had started out as just a bit of fun. Hot sex, to spend some of the energy I nearly always felt after a good gig. Then he’d been kind of sweet in the limo. First, he’d given me the brutal fucking I’d asked for, but then he’d turned it around, holding me gently, soothing me until I was ready to go again.
And what was with that little hint of vulnerability when I was asking him about his wife? So cute.
No, don’t fucking do that. Don’t feel for him.
He showed me, in stark clarity, who he was. I’d be the biggest fucking dumbass if I didn’t believe him.Jesus, just stop it.
Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes as I tried to push those thoughts away, focusing instead on the peaceful rhythm of Sophie’s breathing. I closed my eyes, trying to find some solace in the familiar surroundings. But no matter how hard I tried to block out the past twenty-four hours, Grayson’s words kept echoing in my head.
Isn’t that what this is all about? You figured you’d just grab some extra credit to try to close the deal. I mean, I don’t blame you. No judgment here. It’s just business.
I clenched my fists, feeling a surge of anger mixed with humiliation. How could he have been so blind? So arrogant? And why did it hurt so much? Was it because I’d felt like there was something between us? I mean, it wasn’t even like I was expecting it to go anywhere, or even that I’d wanted it to. It was just that I’d never met anyone like him before and I’d liked the way he’d made me feel.
Hot tears of shame and humiliation finally spilled over.Get the fuck over yourself.I tried to push through the feelings, to bury them again, but it was no good. I felt like shit. As I finally gave up and let the tears fall, there was one silver lining in the whole sordid affair; I’d never have to see Grayson Fucking Rivers ever again.
CHAPTER 7
Grayson
Istood at the window of my top floor city office, my hands shoved deep into my pockets, staring blankly out at the city skyline. The neon lights of Raleigh twinkled below me like a sea of stars, but I couldn’t focus on the view. I was consumed by memories of Stefania Moretti. So much so that the low hum of conversation between my brothers barely penetrated my mind.
“Jesus fucking Christ, Gray, are you even listening?”
I glanced over at my brother, Rhett, in time to catch him rolling his eyes at our younger brother, Wolfe. They both took after our father, with their dark hair and broad shoulders. Right now, their expressions were just like his, too. Irritated and impatient.
“Yes, I’m listening,” I lied.
They started talking again, and I pretended to pay attention. In my mind’s eye, though, I was replaying the scene from a few days ago, over and over again. That look that had flickered across Stef’s face when I’d suggested that she had slept with me for the recording contract. It was the briefest flare of…something, in hereyes. But it haunted me now, gnawing at my conscience like a ravenous beast. Fuck.
Wolfe cleared his throat, trying to get my attention. “The number of cyber attacks is increasing.” The tension in his voice was clear. “We need to get ahead of this. Several employees have been caught up in phishing scams. Various departments have experienced malware attacks. We’re gonna need to take some action here before it gets worse.”
“Yeah. We should get ahead of it.” This was very important. I knew that. But no matter how hard I tried, my mind was dragged back to Stefania. I needed to make it right with her. That’s all there was to it. But how? Just call her up and say,‘Hey, I was a monumental asshole to you and I’d just like to apologize.’If she was half the woman I thought she was, she’d hang up in my face and block me for all eternity. Which I would well and truly deserve.
“Gray, we’re gonna need you to get your head in the game over here.” Wolfe had also had enough of my shit, it seemed.
Wanting to maintain the appearance that I was focused on the topic at hand, I moved to take a seat at the small conference table. “Right, why don’t we get the security guys in here and see if whoever this is has left any crumbs for us?”
“That’s doubtful.”
I bit back a sigh of exasperation at Rhett’s input. “Well, it seems like all they’ve done so far is look into things and report to you. We need a concrete plan of action.”