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"You've been dismissed, Jesse. Thank you."
With her fists in tight balls, she stormed out of the room. I sat in the chair across from Fi
He interlocked his fingers and stared at me from the other side of the desk.
I stared back.
"So," he said.
"So," I replied.
We sat there for an awkward amount of time like high school kids who had a crush on one another.
"Oh my God, Fi
"Excuse me?"
"Just come out and say it was a giant mistake. All of it."
Fi
"I admit that I'm your occasional asshole, but what we did was not a mistake."
Then he looked at me as if he were waiting for me to agree. I contemplated saying something smart alecky, but I couldn't, not when he was looking at me with such a burning intensity.
"I don't think it was a mistake either," I said. Then I snaked my arms around his waist. "Are you embarrassed of me?" I asked into his chest.
He pushed me away from him and looked down into my eyes. "Embarrassed of you? Are you fucking kidding me?"
"Why did you lie? Why did you tell Jesse I refused Luke, and you fired me for that reason?"
Luke; his name left a giant gaping hole in my heart. The thought of him that night, so sweet and vulnerable, never left me. It haunted me.
Fi
"I would never be ashamed of you or what we did. Ever. I couldn't tell Jesse. I don't want anyone knowing, especially the Girls. It's easier this way. Women talk, and the rumors will spread like wildfire. I can't have that."
"She's in love with you, you know."
"I know."
"Why don't you fire her, then? It's only fair."
"First, Jesse is a manager… not one of my Girls. Second, I would never, let me reiterate this, never act upon her feelings. She's a beautiful woman but not my type at all, and I need her around to run the daily tasks. She is an asset to the company. It's just a little infatuation, puppy love, and it's harmless, really."
"That harmless infatuation is why she rode my ass for the last two months."
Fi
"Move in with me," he whispered.
"I just moved out. Don't you think that wou—"
"You honestly don't think my official residence is at the Estates with all the Girls." He laughed. "I have a private house in the Ridges."
I didn't know what to say.
What else didn't I know about Fi
Fi
"Yes, yes."
I didn't know why I said yes, but I thought back to the first time I took a chance with him and joined The Elite. Lady Luck loved my ass, and I knew that if I gambled with her again, she would do me right.
"You have no idea what you just agreed to," he said.
"That's a known fact whenever you're involved." Fi
Jesse waited for me outside of Fi
"I've already told you once, don't you ever touch me like that again."
"Take this as your warning. You may not be an Elite any longer, but you need to stay away from Fi
I yanked my arm from her grasp then took a step closer to her, leaning in toward her face.
"I don't take kindly to threats, Jesse. I'm not sure if you understand what I'm saying, but you aren't my boss anymore. I don't have to listen to the shit that you say. Now, I've got plans, so if you'll excuse me."
"It's not a threat. It's a promise."
"I pity you." I stepped inside the glass elevator, but she didn't follow. My adrenaline spiked, my pulse raced, and I was so pissed off at the audacity of her actions that half of me wanted to return to Fi
I took my time walking through the atrium then exited through the double doors. Charlie waited outside the limo. Decisions.
"Je
"But how did you know?"
"Mr. Felton had no doubt that your answer would be yes."
I looked up the building and thought I saw him standing at the windows smiling down at me, but the reflections of the clouds made it too dark. That sneaky little bastard knew me way too well.
FINNLEY
Two
I knew she would say yes and move in with me if I asked. Not many had succeeded in refusing me over the last few years, and I appreciated that she hadn't either. I basked in the glory of knowing that I could make women beg and plead to have me, but the truth was Je
Her living with me was a huge step, but just like everything else with Je
When I saw her today, I thought my heart might stop. The way those eyes matched her brown dress and boots… damn, it made me want to rip off her clothes and make sweet love to her on my desk, or the floor, or up against the window. I didn't care. But Jesse—determined to be my number-one cock block—wouldn't have it. Once Je
I sat at my desk and arranged my afternoon meetings so that I could leave early. Je
I took Je