Page 20 of Nothing to You (Nothing to… #7)

“I LIKE IT,” she said, unsure it was really the best their collective could do.

Not that it mattered. Their meeting was scheduled in a matter of minutes. Time for tweaking had run out.

“You think he’ll like it?”

“I don’t know who we’re presenting to anymore than you do,” she said.

Her colleagues didn’t believe her. Why should they? Rourke would tell her. If she asked… nicely. She could find some way to persuade him to reveal who their afternoon meeting was with.

The door opened and she leaped to her feet. Rourke? Not a happy Rourke. Without a word, he marched over, his glare solid as concrete, and grabbed her hand to turn and storm out, dragging her along with him.

“What is it?” she asked but could only trot after him. “What is going on?”

He threw his office door out of the way and swung her around, propelling her into the room. When she stopped at the desk and turned, the walls behind him were black again.

“We have a problem,” he snarled, stalking her way.

“Horny, baby?” The only time he changed those walls was to give them privacy. “I’d love to accommodate you, but I have a meeting.”

Crowding her up against the desk, he didn’t stop until she was down on her elbows, then he planted his hands on either side of her.

“We…” he said again, slower this time, his scowl still fierce, “have a problem.”

“What is it?” Maybe it was something serious. She’d never seen him like this. “Is it SIT or Huddle Hope?”

“It’s us.”

Now she was frowning. “Us? What’s wrong with us?

Are you pregnant?” He didn’t appreciate her grin.

“What is it, Hotshot?” Sliding a hand under his lapel, she stroked it around to the back of his neck, holding onto him for balance.

“I’m not pregnant, if that’s what you’re worried about. Kids? Me? Please. Not a chance.”

Suddenly standing straight, he left her to drop onto an elbow again while he took something from his pocket. A wallet. And from inside, a black card. He held it up and tossed the wallet aside.

“You know what this is?”

“Uh… a penis extension?” she asked, rising to lay a hand on his chest. “You don’t need fancy things to show off. You’re above average, an amazing lover.” Her teasing pout didn’t amuse him. “Why don’t you spell it out for me, Boy Scout?”

“It’s a credit card.” He stabbed it into her cleavage. “Without a limit.”

“Hmm, okay, thank you.” She put it on the desk behind her. “But the sex was actually free, so—”

“Have I totally misjudged this?” he asked. “Misjudged you?” Now she was just confused. “I thought you got it. I thought we got it. That we were on the same page.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Clearly.”

“You want to tell me what brought this on?” she asked, wrapping her fingers around his tie. “What wound you up?”

“You.”

She smiled and swayed a little closer. “That’s nothing new.”

“I like the games. I love the games and you turn me on…” Searching him, she couldn’t figure him out. “But this goes deeper than that.” He scooped a hand under her hair to cradle the side of her head. “Tell me you know that. That I didn’t just make it all up in my head.”

Now she was flat worried. “You’re scaring me, Rourke.”

His eyes narrowed as he looked deeper into her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Tell you what? Xavie, I don’t know what—”

“Your mom.”

Oh. Right. Damnit. Roxanna Kyst apparently couldn’t keep her mouth shut.

Not that it was particularly confidential information.

It was the weakness, the vulnerability. She was not fragile and did not need protection or to be saved.

Rourke was an invincible force, and she would not let him believe her strength couldn’t match his.

An uncomfortable chill took some of her confidence. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Not a big deal that your mom needs constant care? She’s in a state-run facility.”

Her head snapped up. “How do you know that?”

“Because I checked,” he said. “Whatever is mine is yours.” His head shook slowly. “I shouldn’t have to tell you that. I should never have to say those words out loud to you. Not to you, Radley, come on.”

“She’s looked after.”

“Not as well as she could be. We’ll get her the best.”

“This isn’t your problem.”

“Then I misjudged this,” he said and cleared his throat, putting a meter of space between them, his hand rising to the back of his head. “Shit.”

“You didn’t misjudge anything,” she said, going closer to grab his tie. “Nothing’s changed.”

Except when she tried to pull him down for a kiss, he resisted and extricated his tie from her grip.

“Damn, it’s so inappropriate,” he muttered, though she wasn’t sure the words were for her.

“No one does inappropriate better than us.” But when she stepped closer, he backed away. “Hotshot—”

“No,” he said, shaking his head again. “We will provide you and your team with everything you require.”

“Rourke—”

“Don’t you have a meeting?” he asked, giving her a wide berth as he went around to the other side of the desk.

She exhaled a laugh, pivoting on the spot. “What is it you want exactly? You want to save me? You want me to depend on you?”

“Yes, I did,” he said. “To depend on me the way I depended on you. What we were was nothing to do with money and everything to do with… I’m sorry I took it too far. Like I said, I thought we were on the same page. I misinterpreted everything.”

“I don’t like this. I don’t like you talking about us in the past tense. Why does anything have to change?”

“Because I thought we were friends. I thought that friendship was real. The kind of friendship… Again, I apologize—”

“It was real. It is. Nothing has changed.”

“It’s changed for me.”

“Because my mother is sick? Because we’re poor and you can’t be friends with someone whose means don’t match yours?”

“It’s never been about money.”

His calmness infuriated her. “I guess things have changed. I didn’t know you were so elitist. I was fine for you when I was flat on my back.

” He picked up the card to slip it back into his wallet.

“Look at me.” He didn’t. “Argue with me. Spout some superior crap so I can tell you how wrong you are.” He opened his laptop, and she bounded a step closer.

“Goddamnit, Xavien Rourke, fight with me!”

“Go to work,” he said, glancing at her just long enough to bob his brows toward the door. “Go on.”

He pressed the button on his watch. The walls behind her would be transparent again. Furious heat burned behind her eyes. How dare he call her in there to judge her and then refuse to argue back? Why would he do that? Why was he messing everything up?

“Can we have sushi for dinner?” she asked.

Maybe he’d be over whatever this was in a few hours.

“Mieux has the number of the place,” he said. “I’ll ask her to share it with you. If you call, they’ll deliver to the complex.”

The employee apartment complex. A place she’d hardly been.

“You’ll want the car back too.”

No reaction. “Leave the keys in it. A guy will pick it up.”

No one would steal from the Mosaic campus. No one would get away with it. Was he taking the car back because he didn’t trust her with it or because she wouldn’t need to be anywhere near his house ever again?

Her stomach roiled.

Still, anger provoked her adrenaline. “You’re going to regret this later.”

“I regret our relationship already,” he said and sat down.

Noise rose behind her. People were coming into the office. He had his own schedule to keep. As he rose again, he smiled, but it wasn’t for her. In his mind, he’d dismissed her already.

Turning, in something of a daze, she got a couple of steps and raised her head. Roxie. Coming out of the elevator with three other people. Three other women.

When Roxie saw her, she smiled and crooked a finger. Go there? Why? What was going on? They didn’t aim for Rourke’s office and instead waited just outside the Huddle Hope conference room. Roxie gestured her over again.

What was going on?

Leaving his office, she strode over to Roxie and her friends. “What’s happening?”

“We’re in,” Roxie said, looping their arms together. “Introduce me to your team.”

Her team? Was it still her team if Rourke no longer trusted her?

But Roxie was already taking them inside.

“Oh my God,” Myles said, his mouth falling open.

“Don’t cream in your pants, please,” she said as the women fanned out behind Roxie. “As you probably already know, this is Roxanna Kyst.”

“Mr. Lomond’s fiancée,” Helena whispered.

“I prefer to think of him as Ms. Kyst’s fiancé, but…” Roxie stepped aside. “These are my friends. Astrid Ballard. Lilya Kearns. And the beautiful Jane Simmons.”

“You didn’t take his name?” Guillermo asked. “You’re married to Knox Collier, right?”

“Oh my God,” Jane said, her shoulders dropping as she looked at Roxie, who laughed. “Rox!”

“I’m sorry, honey.” Roxie gave her a quick hug, then addressed the room again. “We have a suite of offices available in the building. Some of us will continue to work up here. We’ll need an executive liaison. And—”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Kyst,” Johann cut her off. “But aren’t you here to hear our pitch?”

“I’ve been briefed,” Roxie said, taking her hand. “I’m up to speed.”

Last night? That was a pitch meeting? And Rourke hadn’t told her? Of course not, just like him. Not that he was who she’d believed him to be.

“And you’re…”

“In?” Roxie asked. “Yes, we all are.”

“You’re Zairn Lomond’s contact?” Franco asked, wearing a frown. “I don’t get it.”

“No one does,” Roxie said. “But be assured, I do make contact with him… regularly.” The flirtation of innuendo in that last word put smiles on the women’s faces. The men still looked confused. “Are you worried we weak women are too poor and unconnected to help your cause?”

“No!” Johann was quick to say. “No, I didn’t mean—”

“The men we have sex with allow us access to their bank accounts. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have sex with them.

And they like sex. All of them. Especially sex with us…

though not collectively. Unless you believe everything you read.

” She sighed. “We also have access to their Rolodexes.” Roxie frowned and turned to Lilya.

“That wasn’t right. No one uses that word anymore. ”

“No,” Lilya said, smiling at her friend. “But Zairn wouldn’t deny you anything, and it wouldn’t be the first time you’ve swiped his phone.”

“It would not. Easiest to do when I’m playing with his cock.

” These were her kind of ladies. “So worry not, new friends. We can get a party started. Whatever Huddle Hope needs, one of us will find whoever we need. We have contacts in New York too. LA. Chicago. Seattle. All over really.” Roxie’s confidence never wavered.

“People who can get things done fast. As fast as we need them done.” The room just hung there, awed by the woman’s authority.

“Okay, great effort, team. Let’s get started. ”