Branded (21 page)

She hurried through the rain, trying to remind
herself no one could make her feel inferior unless she allowed it.  It wasn’t
easy, but by the time she reached Xander’s building, some of her previous
excitement had returned.

He loved her and believed in her, and that was all
that mattered.

She entered the building where he worked, took the
elevator to the fifteenth floor and asked for directions at the reception
desk.  The woman narrowed her eyes as though trying to place where she’d seen
Nicole, but she gave her the information she needed without hesitation.

As Nicole walked down the hall of the subdued
office, she almost turned back.  What if he was busy?  What if he didn’t want
people at work to know who he was dating?  What if…

She found his name on a placard outside his open
door.  With nervousness pulsing through her veins, she peeked inside to find
him studying a paper on his desk.  He looked up as though he’d sensed her.

A bright smile hit his face, making her wonder why
she’d second guessed herself.  “Nicole.”  He stood and walked toward her,
pulling her into his arms and giving her a quick kiss.  “What are you doing
here?”

“I came by to share my good news.”

His smile grew bigger as he searched her eyes.  “What
is it?”

Warmth and happiness coursed through her.  “Christian
hired me.”

“Congratulations.”  He claimed her lips with an
enthusiastic kiss.

She couldn’t have hid her delight if she’d wanted
to.  “You have a beautiful view.”  She walked to his window and gazed down at
the sprawling city and winding river.  She turned to him.  “I came to see if I
could take you to lunch as a thank you.”

He checked his watch.  “Sure.”

“And I wanted to show you the new dress I bought
to celebrate.”

He watched with fascination as she slowly
unbuttoned the front of her coat, his smile turning from happy to something
darker and more seductive.  He glanced over his shoulder, shut the door, and
locked it.

“Maybe you should take off your coat so I can see
the whole thing.”

Her man was a smart one, and she was happy it hadn’t
taken him long to figure out where her intentions lay.

Nicole opened her coat as though to remove it, and
Xander quickly jumped in to help, baring her shoulders.

An excited chill whipped through her.

He tossed her coat aside.  “It’s very nice.”  He
trailed a finger down the deep cleavage in the front, making her shiver and her
nipples stiffen.  He didn’t miss her body’s reaction to his touch, and he ran a
finger over the crested bud hiding beneath her silky fabric.

She closed her eyes on a moan, and he hauled her
to him, burying his fingers in her updo.

“Damn, Nicole.  You sure know how to make a man’s
day.”

“I’d hoped you’d like it,” she said a little
breathlessly.

“Like it?  I
love
it.”  He turned from her
and picked up the phone from his desk, punching a button.

“Macey?  I’m going to be tied up in a meeting for
a bit.  Please hold all my calls.”  He dropped the handset back onto the
cradle.  “Come here.”

He held out his hand, and she took it, allowing
him to pull her close.  “This may be the most beautiful dress I’ve seen.”  He
caught her eyes giving her a cryptic look.  “At least so far.”

Her heart nearly split open with love.  Was he hinting
at marriage?  “So far?”  He’d told her he loved her although he didn’t know
that she knew.  And now he was purposefully being obscure, but he couldn’t hide
his feelings from her.

He shrugged, cutting off any further conversation
with a heated kiss.  His hands cupped her bottom, pulling her tighter against
him, making sure she knew how much she excited him.

She leaned back, trying to catch her breath.  “Wow. 
You sure know how to make a girl feel wanted.”  She reached up, tugged at his
tie until it loosened.  He kept his darkened gaze on her as she undid the knot.

“You’re a naughty girl, coming here in the middle
of the day, distracting me from my work.”

She laughed as she reached for the top button of
his shirt and undid it.  “That’s not really a complaint, is it?”

“No,” he whispered, capturing her lips in another
kiss.

She worked his buttons while he assaulted her
mouth with sweet kisses.  When she had his shirt completely undone, she pulled
back, running her splayed fingers up his muscled chest, enjoying each curve.  “This
is
my
fantasy.”

He arched a brow, questioning her.

“Meeting you here.  Slipping the tie from your
neck.”  She pulled on one end of the lavender dotted tie, and it hissed as it
slid from his collar.  She lifted one of his strong hands and wrapped the silk
around him twice.  “Tying your hands together and having my way with you.”

He visibly swallowed, and she smiled.  She liked
affecting him this way.

“Your fantasy is my fantasy.”  He slipped the silk
tie from his wrist, wrapping it around both of hers.  “Although I might tie you
up instead.”

A slicing spear of heat shot through her.  She
lifted her hands over his head, trapping him in her embrace.  “You can do
anything you’d like to me,” she said against his lips.

He kissed her hard, his tongue a sweet invasion of
her mouth.

They both startled when his phone rang.  He
glanced at the screen and swore, before pushing the speakerphone button.  “Macey. 
I thought I explained I was in an important meeting.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Secrist.”  The receptionist’s voice
came across with a high, nervous pitch.  “There’s a Mr. MacFarlane here to see
you.  I told him you couldn’t be disturbed, but he said it’s an emergency.”

Xander’s gaze jumped to hers.  All traces of
desire vanished and had been replaced with something close to panic.  “I’ll be
out in five minutes,” he told his secretary.  He hung up the phone.

Nicole didn’t need a bus to run her over to tell
her something was wrong.  “Are you okay?”

He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight. 
“I’m so, so sorry.  I’m going to have to cancel on you.”  He pulled away, not
quite meeting her gaze as he buttoned his shirt.  He looked at her then.  “It’s
very important that I meet with this man, but it’s
killing
me to send
you away.”

Disappointment flooded her, and she wiggled the
tie loose from her hands, giving it to him.  “It’s okay.”  She’d taken a chance
showing up unannounced anyway.

He took her shoulders.  “Just know, you made my
week, hell, my year.”  He smiled.  “There’s nothing I like more than seeing
you.”  He gave her dress a quick glance and raised a seductive brow.  “Especially
like this.”

Some of the warmth came back into her body, and
she tried to accept the anticlimax of her afternoon.  “I can always save it for
later.”

“Sounds good to me.”  He helped her into her coat,
and she straightened his tie.  He gave her another kiss that made her toes
tingle.  “Keep that in mind.  Can I see you tonight?”

“Definitely.”

He walked her to the elevator, and her gaze
snagged on a dark-haired man standing near the reception desk.  He was tall,
fit, his dark eyes unreadable.  He looked from her to Xander and back again.

She couldn’t help but wonder if this was the Mr.
MacFarlane who’d ruined her afternoon and was waiting to meet with Xander. 
Either way, he didn’t seem like a pleasant person at all.

Xander didn’t kiss her at the elevator, but he did
promise to call.

She stepped inside and pushed the button for the
lobby, her spirits plummeting along with the elevator car.

*        *        *

The look on Hunter’s face put Xander on edge.  The
fact that he’d shown up at Xander’s work spoke volumes.  They didn’t say anything
until they were in his office with the door closed.  The atmosphere in the room
had done a one-eighty from what it had been moments before.

“I spoke with Sam.”  His friend took a seat.

Xander walked to his side of the desk and did the
same.  “Did he give you a copy of the surveillance video?”

“He did.”  Hunter didn’t seem any the happier for
it.

“And you saw the shadow person?”

Hunter shook his head, his expression sober.  “There
was nothing on there, man.”

“What?”  How could that be?  “Wait, Sam saw it,
too.”

“That’s what he said.  I’m starting to wonder if
he has some issues to deal with in his own department.”

“Like a traitor?”

Hunter shrugged.  “Something’s going on.  How is
an image there one minute and not the next?  Sam checked the various copies the
department has and the original.  There was no shadow person.”

“I still have my copy.”

“That’s good.  Sam may need it.  However, it may
not make any difference in this case.”  He paused as though it pained him to
say more.  Then he removed a sheet of paper from inside his jacket, unfolded it
and set it in front of Xander.

Xander couldn’t look at it.  The expression in
Hunter’s eyes told him everything, but if he didn’t look, he wouldn’t know for
sure.

“We found an offshore account in Nicole’s name. 
It has sixteen million dollars in it.  We don’t know if ten mill of it is the
same money that was stolen from First Freedom or what.  They’re still tracking
that.  But she’s definitely not the innocent person she’s pretending to be.”

He stared at his friend, unable to speak, unable to
breathe.  He nodded instead.

“Sorry, man.  I hope she didn’t sucker you in too
much.”

A granite-like hardness consumed his emotions, and
he shook his head.  He swallowed the lump in his throat so he could speak.  “Yeah.” 
He’d been a hell of a sucker, all right.  He picked up the paper, but didn’t
look at it.  “Can I keep this?”

“Sure.  It’s a copy.”  Hunter stood, watching him
with assessing eyes.  “Tough break, man.  We all get taken sometimes.”

Like his father had.  Like so many other victims
had as well.  But that’s why their group existed.  Some might say he’d taken
one for the team.  Better him than someone else.  He’d known what he was up
against, and if nothing else, it would help him be better prepared for his next
assignment.

“They’re hoping to make an arrest later today or
tomorrow.  Just waiting for a confirmation on the transfer of funds.”  Hunter
stood, and Xander followed suit.  “I’ll be in touch.”

Xander stared out his window.  He’d been a fucking
idiot.  He’d allowed his dick to control his mind, and she’d played it to her
advantage.

But he knew now, knew the real Nicole.  It
mattered nothing to her whether she stole millions or his heart.

That wasn’t okay with him.  He should be happy the
police would bust her, but it wasn’t enough.  He needed to look in her eyes one
more time without his blinders on so he could see her for the woman she really
was.  It was the only way he’d get over her.

And he wasn’t going in without a plan.

*        *        *

It was nearly five when Xander parked in front of
Nicole’s building, armed with a bottle of expensive champagne and a dozen red
roses.  A light rain sprinkled them as he and Apollo exited his car and
approached the door.  As luck would have it, a man walked out of her building
as they drew near, letting him and his dog inside.

He climbed the stairs two at a time until he
reached the third floor.  He rapped his knuckles on her door and waited.  Thank
God he didn’t have to worry about his heart.  It was buried so far beneath hurt
and disappointment it might never see the light of day again.  He would
approach this evening as though conducting a cool transaction.  After all, that’s
all he’d ever been to her.

He heard movement on the other side, and then she
opened the door with a smile.  Her eyes widened at the sight of the roses and
wine.

“Oh my God, Xander.”  She took the flowers,
burying her nose in the blossoms.  “They’re absolutely gorgeous.”  When she
looked at him again, a hint of wetness shimmered in her eyes.

“We’re celebrating, aren’t we?”

Elation colored her expression.  “Yes!”  She
wrapped her arms around his neck, capturing his lips with her kiss.  She pulled
back, her eyes bright, a huge smile on her face.  She obviously didn’t know
what was headed her way.  “Let’s open the champagne.”

Xander played along for as long as he could.  She
fed him beef stew that she already had cooking along with fresh baked bread. 
If he had any kind of an appetite, it would have been delicious.

He let her fuss over him, all the while watching
her, trying to find even one crack in her demeanor.  Maybe she truly did like
him.  Maybe she had no idea about the relationship between their fathers.

After dinner, she brought what was left of the champagne
to the living room, inviting him to sit with her on the couch.  The dogs curled
up in front of her flaming gas fireplace, content to be with each other.

She snuggled into his arms and leaned against his
chest.  The intoxicating scent of her perfume wafted up to him, and he cursed
his weakness when he tilted his head, inhaling deeply.  He couldn’t deny there
would be an invisible gaping wound in his heart when all was said and done.  He
caressed her arm, memorizing the feel of her soft skin, and then braced himself
for the after effects of ripping off his psychological bandage.

“Nicole, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”

Nicole’s heart did a weird squishing thing, as
though it was preparing for the declaration of love she was sure was about to
come.  Then another thought jumped in.  Xander had said “ask”.  Was he going to
ask her to marry him?

She tried to breathe through her excitement.  “What
is it?”

“Do you love me?”

There was the question.  It wasn’t a proposal, but
still good.  She shifted in his arms so she could see his face when she told
him.