Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 78304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 392(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 392(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry,” I tell him, meaning it. Yeah, I’m upset about what he did to me, but now that he’s laying it all out on the table, I was in the wrong too. “I was pissed, and it was petty,” I admit. “But please, I need to know where you put the other posters.”
I point at the one on his desk, trying like hell to keep my traitorous tears from falling, but the thought of my dad seeing this and being reminded of what a failure his daughter was has them spilling over.
“If my dad sees them …” I choke out a sob. “He can’t see them. Those pictures are a reminder of every time I messed up, proving why I would never be good enough to run this company. They’re of me lashing out because I was craving his attention and he wouldn’t look my way. Only when he did, he told me I didn’t deserve to be a Kingston. That he was disappointed and ashamed of me.”
I walk around the desk, and he turns his chair so he’s facing me.
“Please, nobody else can see those pictures, especially not my dad,” I cry, tears sliding down my cheeks. I should probably be embarrassed about Julian seeing me this upset and weak, but I just don’t have it in me to care.
Julian shocks me by lifting me into his arms and carrying me over to the couch. He sets me on his lap and wipes my tears.
“Ana,” he murmurs, using the name only my mom has ever called me, “I know you think your dad was disappointed and ashamed, and he might’ve said those words out of anger, but I listened to him talk about you for years, and I swear, he was—and is—so damn proud of you.”
“Yet he didn’t want me to work for him,” I whisper, trying to get ahold of my emotions.
“Did he actually say that, or did you assume it?”
“I was supposed to work for him after graduation, but after my mom died, I was devastated and told him it was best if I left, that I needed to get away from here for a little while. I needed time to grieve. I thought he would ask me to stay, but instead, he agreed and let me go. And not once over the years has he asked me to come back.”
Julian nods in understanding. “I’m sorry about the poster, but it’s the only one. I hung it up right before you got in, knowing you’d go straight there and see it. I never intended for anyone but you to see it.”
“Thank you. And I’m sorry about the gay porn. I would never try to risk your reputation. It was a stupid, thoughtless prank.”
“Yeah, well, you got me good,” he says with a small smile. “Your dad was not thrilled that his future son-in-law had chosen to watch gay porn on the company laptop.”
“Oh God,” I groan. “I’ll tell my dad what I did.”
“It’s all good, Red,” he says. “But just for the record, the only thing I’ve been getting off to lately are thoughts of you.”
He shifts us slightly, and it’s then I realize I’m straddling his lap, and because I’m wearing a pencil skirt, it’s ridden up my thighs, making it so my thin panties are rubbing against Julian’s groin. We both glance down at the same time, and when he looks up at me, our gazes clashing, the molten desire in his eyes is evident.
“You’ve been thinking about me?” I breathe, the heat between us so hot that it’s damn near stifling.
“All the fucking time,” he admits. “And your little skinny-dipping stunt didn’t help.”
Instinctively, I run my hands up his torso, stopping where his tie rests. With my eyes locked with his, I undo the knot and then unbutton the first few buttons, exposing a spattering of chest hair.
I lean in and press an open-mouthed kiss to the top of his pec, and he releases a soft groan. So, I give him another kiss, this time to his clavicle. He moans again. I shift slightly so I can press a kiss to his neck when there’s a knock on his door, followed by someone walking in.
“Oh shit. Sorry!” Dad says, quickly closing the door behind him and effectively ending the moment.
I climb off Julian, and we both take a second to catch our breaths. Technically, nothing happened, yet between his confession and my mouth on his flesh, it feels like the complete opposite.
“I’d better go see what he needs,” Julian says, retying his tie as he stands. He walks over to his chair and puts his jacket back on and then glances at me. “I know we’re both going for the same position, but I don’t want what happened today to happen again. No more dirty play, Red. If I get this position, it will be because I earned it, not because I stepped on you to get there.”