Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 42185 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 211(@200wpm)___ 169(@250wpm)___ 141(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 42185 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 211(@200wpm)___ 169(@250wpm)___ 141(@300wpm)
I can’t help but smile. “He’s not going to win, is he?”
“No, he’s not,” Mason says. “At the end of the day, you’re right about one thing. This is my fucking company.”
I laugh softly, unable to help myself. This has been a crazy rollercoaster day and I don’t really know how to handle anything else. My emotions are so fragile, I might shatter at any moment.
“Come here,” he says, smiling at me. I slowly get to my feet and walk over to him.
He pulls me into his lap. I haven’t sat in a man’s lap in a long time but for some reason, this feels right. I wrap my arms around his neck and he pulls me closer.
“Listen to me, Hazel,” he says softly in my ear. “I’m not going anywhere. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” I whisper back. “I understand, Daddy.”
“Good.” He smiles and kisses me softly, slow and sweet. “Now, go stand behind my desk.”
“Yes, Daddy.” I get up and walk over to the spot. He smiles and follows, sitting in his chair.
“Enjoy the show,” he says, and calls Rogers, a big grin on his face.
20
Mason
Nobody fucks with me.
I’ve been a recluse for a long time. I’ve been away from society, and I think people have forgotten what kind of man I am. Declan certainly forgot.
I’m not the kind of man people fuck with. When they come for me, I come for them twice as hard. I destroy anything in my path if it comes to that.
But most of all, you don’t fuck with my woman.
Declan firing Hazel was a low blow. He knew that wouldn’t stick. He did it just to piss me off and to hurt her, and it fucking worked. I hate that he was able to get at me like that, but it doesn’t matter.
I’m going to finish this now. No more bullshit, no more investigating. Declan is dead to me. He signed his own death certificate the moment he fired Hazel.
I lean back in my chair and wait. I can feel her hovering behind me, and my smile gets wider. She’s exactly what I’ve wanted, what I’ve needed. Everything about her makes my day brighter.
Everything is perfect when we’re together. It’s a feeling I haven’t had in a long, long time.
I’m ready to have it again. I’m ready to move on.
I’m ready to take a step in the right direction and finally embrace living all over again.
Rogers comes in, followed by Declan. The two men look at me, both of them grave. I nod at Rogers and he nods back, leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.
Declan stands in front of my desk. His eyes flit up to Hazel and there’s a moment of annoyance in his expression. I savor that, although it’s not enough, not nearly enough.
“The game’s over, Declan,” I say finally.
He cocks his head. “Game?” He laughs softly. “This is no game.”
“Of course it’s a game. You think you can spin your little webs in the shadows, that I won’t notice sooner or later. You got brazen, Declan.”
“You got soft,” he says, almost a growl. “You used to be a fucking king here, but look at you now. You’re bowing to this fucking girl.”
I clench my fists. I want to get up and pummel him but I control my emotions. He’s trying to provoke me.
It almost works. It would feel so sweet to destroy him with my bare hands.
“What I don’t understand is why you decided to turn against me? I gave you everything.”
He barks a laugh. “You gave me opportunity, that’s true. But then you locked yourself up in this fucking office and forced me to do all your real dirty work. While you got to make big, global deals over the fucking phone, I was spending my days making sure the office was running smoothly, that our trades were going through. I was the goddamn company while you pretended and got all the fucking credit.”
I laugh softly. “It’s about ego then.”
“It’s about justice.” He snarls, barely containing himself. “You left me, and even though I continued to grow your company, you never gave me the credit I deserved.”
“So you decided to stab me in the back and steal from me.”
“I decided to take what I deserve. But that doesn’t matter.”
“No?” I arch an eyebrow. “I think it matters a lot.”
“No, Mason, because you’re through here. The board’s voting right now to strip you of your power and place it all in my hands.” He smiles at me like he’s won some kind of victory. “Of course, I’ll let you keep your apartment up here. I wouldn’t want you to have to face the real world.”
I stare at him for a moment before laughing softly. I glance up at Hazel and I can see the worry in her eyes, and I can’t blame her. What Declan just said sounds very bad for me.