I gestured toward the door dismissively. “Get me the reports I need for the board meeting and they better be perfect.” The warning in my tone lacked the power it should have had, knowing she didn’t care about getting fired. Maybe I needed to remind her of the consequences of her actions, not only for herself but also for the people she loved, which included not only my brother but also the child growing inside her.
Our child.The thought made my stomach twitch in a way that seemed akin to anticipation. It wasn’t possible, though; there was no child in my future, especially conceived this way with a woman I barely knew, who was completely unfit for the role she would have to play in my lifestyle, and who vexed me every time she spoke.
“I like her,” Ben commented, following her with his eyes to her desk. “She has spunk.”
“She’s an annoying woman,” I muttered, hating how his eyes were still following her as she reached for the filing cabinet behind her. “Ben!” I snapped my fingers at him. “Focus.”
He turned toward me. “What?”
“Do I need to remind you of the non-fraternization rule?”
He smiled. “No, you don’t, but I’m pretty sure it only applies if the person directly reports to you and/or if she works in the same office.” He jerked his thumb toward Ava’s desk. “Therefore, not applicable.”
“She’s off-limits,” I replied with finality, ready to change the subject.
“Ah.” He nodded as his smile widened. “DoIneed to remind you about non-fraternization?”
I hissed between my teeth, making him chuckle, but I was not going to take the bait. I opened the thick leather file in front of me and cleared my throat.
"Since you’re here early, let's go over the specifics of the Premium project one more time, okay?”
He winked but leaned forward to do the work.
The board meeting went smoothly, Ava’s reports were flawless and that frustrated me. She was perfect in everything she did.
Except finding decent bed partners, it seems, my voice of conscience taunted me as I remained behind at the end of the meeting to answer the annoying questions of Lord Strutter, who only wanted to discuss ‘noble blood to noble blood'.'
It took over thirty minutes to get rid of him, and my sour mood took a turn for the worst when I saw Ben leaning against Ava’s desk with his suit jacket off, flexing his muscles for her benefit. The part that angered me even more was the way she looked at him so openly, laughing at whatever corny joke he’d just made.
I was sure that Ben was everything she wanted. Tall, well-built, funny and so friendly looking with his light brown hair and blue eyes.
I walked to them and stopped much closer than I should have. “Less talking, more working. I’ve already told you, Ms. Byrnes—I’m not paying you to socialize.”
“I believe you said ‘gallivant’, sir.”
The last of my patience vanished into thin air and I opened my mouth to destroy her when Ben laughed.
“Gallivanting,dude? Are you reallythataristocratic?”
“You better hurry, Ben. You wouldn’t want to be late to catch your plane.”
He frowned. “I’m not due to leave until tomorrow,” he replied before winking down to Ava.
Fuck that shit.
“You’re mistaken. You're leaving this afternoon. In my office, now.” I didn’t remember the last time I’d ordered Ben around, but as the CEO, today was the day.
Ben took a step back in surprise but nodded mutedly.
I waited for him to get inside before resting my hands on Ava’s desk, leaning into her space, showing her the full extent of my anger.
“Is that your plan?” I hissed through gritted teeth, speaking low enough for Marie to remain clueless. “Are you trying to get hitched to a rich guy obsessed enough with your cunt to accept your bastard child?”
Her eyes flashed with hurt but I was way too gone in my self-righteous anger to care even a little.
“Ben will fuck you and discard you, just like I did. We’ve got standards, Ava. He’s just too nice to show them to you,” I added as the fire in the pit of my stomach burned to the point of physical pain. “Try to mess with my universe or my people one more time, and I swear on all that’s holy that I will not only destroy you and Ethan, but your parents and everything you hold dear. Do you understand?”
Her eyes were wide with shock and fear, her skin so pale it looked almost green. “Yes, sir. T-this will never happen again.”