Burning Up (7 page)

Opening my door for me, he smiled as I slid into the passenger side of the Mercedes. He ran around and jumped into the driver’s side. Holding the wheel firmly, he grinned at me. “So, where to next?”

I glanced at my watch and was amazed to see it was almost one in the afternoon. “How about lunch? I’m so hungry I could eat a mountain of pancakes right now.”

His grin widened. “Then I know just the place.”

We drove for about ten minutes before pulling up at a small diner. It was one of those that looked as though it had been there since the nineteen forties, and its interior almost confirmed my theory.

Plastered across the walls were pictures and portraits of Hollywood stars from years past. Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Ingrid Bergman, Clark Gable, Gene Kelly and Bob Hope, were just a few that I recognized. The tables were wooden with a high gloss finish and it looked kind of pricey for a small diner.

“This place looks fancy. You sure you want to eat here? I’m just as happy to grab something from the deli by Jared’s building.” I offered.

Daniel chuckled. “Which one? He has at least eight just in Manhattan.”

My mouth dropped open. “He owns eight Manhattan skyscrapers?”

He shook his head. “Skyscrapers? No. High rise apartment buildings? Yes.”

My stomach dropped and I fidgeted in my seat. “Does he have apartments in all of
those
,
too?”

Grabbing a menu, he glanced over the top of it at me. “Nope. Just the one you share
, and, you know, the other one.”

I nodded in understanding. Its existence was something I couldn’t change
, so being mad about it was pointless. But I was still unhappy about it, and until I got to the bottom of it, it was going to bug me.

“So, kids, what can I getcha?”

I looked up to a dark haired, middle-aged woman in an apron staring down at me through half-moon glasses. She had a pen in her hand, and, considering the décor, she seemed very under-dressed. Smiling, I scanned my menu. Daniel placed his on the table and began reeling off his long and detailed order.

“I’ll have the tower of pancakes with butter not syrup
, maple bacon, two eggs, sunny-side-up, and three sausage links. Oh, and a huge pot of coffee and cream.”

My eyes widened and I shook my head lightly at him from across the table. Catching my eye, he shrugged and patted his stomach. “I’m starving. All this patriotism gets my appetite going. What are you getting?”

Closing my menu, I grinned. “I’ll have the same.” Giving me a wink, the waitress wrote down my order and hurried across the diner to the bar.

Leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table, Daniel chuckled. “The same? You sure you can manage that
, little lady?”

Little lady?
Sitting up straight, I feigned insult. “I’ll have you know that I can eat as well as any man can. In fact, in my senior year of high school, Mel and I went to this awesome chili cook-off, and, as is customary at these things, they had a huge eating contest.”

He raised a brow at me. “Eating contest?”

I nodded. “Yup. Chili dogs. Whoever ate the most in five minutes … won. Well, Mel entered the two of us. We sat at this long table with these three really big guys who were clearly skilled eaters already, judging by the size of their stomachs. Obviously, they laughed at us. I mean, who wouldn’t? Two teenage girls entering an all you can eat? Crazy. But we gave it a shot. Mel only made it to ten dogs, but I was starving. We’d been out all day, and it was the first thing I ate. Besides, any woman will tell you that when mother nature drops in for her monthly visit, you can eat just about anything and lots of it.”

His mouth opened and he stuttered. “You
… you didn’t?”

I nodded enthusiastically. “You bet your sweet ass I did! Thirty
-nine chili dogs later, I left that place with a crown, a belly full of chili, and the next three days in the bathroom. But it was totally worth it.”

Throwing his head back, he laughed loudly
, applauding. “Epically awesome. Well, then I take it all back. You, Layla, are full of surprises.”

I bowed gently in my seat and giggled as the waitress returned with our plates. I stared at the enormous pile in front of me and smiled at Daniel. “Well, bon ap
atite!”

The food was heavenly. I had never eaten such an amazing assortment in my life. Everything was cooked
to perfection, and the coffee was the best I had ever tasted. The cream that Daniel generously poured in was thick and delicious. The whole day, so far, was a total dream. Well, if you don’t include finding out the man you love has a secret little sex penthouse.

Resting my back against the back of the chair, I patted my stomach. “
That
was amazing.”

Daniel wiped his mouth with his napkin and shook his head, smiling. “I cannot believe you ate all of that. I’m impressed.”

I held my hand over my mouth as a large belch escaped me. Blushing, I giggled, and Daniel grinned in amusement. “Better out than in.”

I was about to make a smart comment about men and their amusement when it comes to bodily functions, when my cell buzzed loudly on the table.

I sighed deeply as I read his words. Daniel smiled at me from across the table. “What?”

“Jared. Urgh, I am the worst person in the world.”

He shook his head at me as he took another sip of his steaming coffee. “I doubt that. What’s happened?”

I groaned and ran my hands over my face in exasperation. “He asked me not to go out into the city and what do I do? I go. Okay, granted, I’m not alone
, but what if he wanted to show me around? What if he had some big thing planned? I suck.”

He chuckled a little and leaned forward over the table. “You are not a bad person. You were bored, lonely
, and probably a little stir crazy in that apartment. He won’t be happy when you tell him but …“

I bit m
y lip anxiously and Daniel gave me worried look. “You are going to tell him. Aren’t you?” I didn’t answer and he rolled his eyes at me. “It’s better that you do. And, the sooner, the better.”

He was right, of course. Jared wasn’t known for his relaxed and laid
back attitude when it came to honesty. Besides, if I truly wanted trust between us, that meant being trustworthy myself. Taking a deep breath, I slid my cell into my purse and glanced at the door.

“I know where I want to go next.”

Daniel pulled out his wallet and threw a fifty onto the table, even after I protested that I would take care of the bill. He was a true gentleman through and through. Waving to the waitress on our way out, we left the diner and headed to the Mercedes, which was parked just a few feet away.

I rushed to open my own door
. This resulted in a head shake and bemused look from Daniel. I didn’t require waiting on hand and foot. I was perfectly capable of opening a damn car door. Hell, I was capable of
driving
the thing!

He slid into the driver’s seat and smiled at me, gripping the wheel tightly. “Come on then, where to?”

Grinning, I bit my lip and tried to put on my best British accent. It sounded like Julie Andrews mixed with Michael Caine, except not quite as fancy or well pronounced. It was probably more Dick Van Dyke and Mary Poppins. “Garrett Property and Building Development Headquarters, please, driver.”

He chuckled and gave me a salute. “Of course madam.”

I don’t know what I was expecting as we pulled up to Jared’s office building, but what I found, was certainly stunning. The place reminded me of an old library. It was two stories high, which considering his love for high rise buildings surprised me. Tall, Grecian style columns held the roof over a marble forecourt. Perfectly trimmed hedges lined the edges of the lawn, and a beautiful water fountain was placed in the center of the pathway leading up to the grand, golden doors. Golden trim was a running theme on Garrett buildings.

Daniel immediately leapt from the car and ran around to my side. I rolled my eyes as he opened the door and offered me his hand. He smiled and shot me a quick wink. I stood on the sidewalk and stared at the fountain. Daniel nudged my shoulder with his. “Ready?”

He extended his elbow, and I hooked my arm inside it and nodded up at him. We walked through the golden doors, and I gasped at the magnitude of the foyer. Cream marble floors were gleaming as sunlight streamed through golden-framed windows. The desk on the far right hand side of the room was also gold. A young, blonde-haired woman was sitting at her computer typing at a speed that can only be described as finger breaking. She wore a headset and was speaking in fluent French as we approached.

She didn’t even notice us until Daniel cleared his throat loudly. She glanced up from her computer and as soon as her eyes fell on the man whose arm I was currently clutching, her eyes lit up and she beamed at him.

“Daniel. How are you?”

He shrugged and smiled back at her. “Hey, Karen. I’m fine. You look great as usual.” She blushed ferociously. Oh, God. Tell me I didn’t look that love struck when I was falling in love. Though, I think this woman was way beyond falling. She was practically throwing herself at him. She leaned across her desk, exposing her ample cleavage to us both. I had to stifle a giggle as I nudged
Daniel in the ribs. His eyes darted to where mine were and the corner of his mouth curled up. Coughing lightly, he composed himself. “Karen, this is Layla Jennings.”

She gaw
ked at me and then at Daniel. “
The
Layla? The girl from Long Beach?”

He nodded and I stared at them both in confusion. What was the big deal?

“The very same. She’s here to see the boss. Is he here?”

She pulled out a clipboard and flicked through some papers. “Well, he came back from his brunch meeting at eleven thirty and according to this, he should be up there. His secretary should be able to give you the run down of his schedule when you get up there. Unless you were planning on visiting with me a while, Daniel?”

She gave him a hopeful look, and I pressed my lips together, trying not to smile too much. I had to look away as she began twirling her finger in her long, curled, blonde locks.
Dear God woman. Tone it down.
Daniel gave me an uncertain look. Patting his arm, I unhooked mine from his. “I can go by myself. Just tell me where I’m headed, and I can meet you back down here in a while. Stay; visit. I’ll be fine.”

He looked even more anxious. “You’re sure?”

I nodded enthusiastically. “Absolutely. I don’t think much could happen to me here. Do you?”

He shook his head. “I guess. Okay, I’ll be right here when you’re ready to leave.”

Karen looked as though her panties had bust as Daniel smiled down at her. Grinning, and never taking her eyes off of him, she pointed at the golden elevator at the end of the foyer. “Second floor, straight ahead to the end and on your left. His secretary will be there to buzz you in.”

“Thanks.” I walked away, shaking my head in amusement as I approached the elevator. A small golden plaque was placed between the two
, and I smiled as I read it. “A mother’s love cannot be bought with all the gold in the world. This building was opened on January 6
th
2011 in loving memory of Andrea Garrett.” Andrea. It was nice to finally be able to put a name to the beautiful face I had seen in the pictures scattered around Jared’s home in Long Beach. Smiling to myself, I entered the elevator and pressed for the second floor.

The hallway was busy with people and there were office doors all the way down on both sides. Each had a name and department on them
, and as I walked along, reading each one, I almost bumped into a tall man carrying an enormous stack of papers. Damn it Layla. You are so clumsy. Remember when you started college and you bumped right into … stopping dead in my tracks, I held my hands over my face and shook my head.
Stop it. Now. It’s pointless.

Taking a deep breath, I forced the gut wrenching thoughts of Ollie from my mind and strode down the hall to the end. As I rounded the corner I was shocked to find a very young, black
-haired, blue-eyed, girl sitting at a desk. There was no way on Earth that this was Janine. Janine was supposed to be a fifty-six year old grandmother with crow’s feet and wrinkles even Max Factor can’t cover up. This girl looked like a china doll, pale skin with pink cheeks and long black eyelashes. She glanced up from her desk and smiled at me. “Hello. Can I help you?”

I pulled myself from my reverie and forced myself to smile back at her. “Uh, hi. I’m here to see Mr. Garrett.”

She tilted her head to the side. “Do you have an appointment?” There was a slight condescending tone about the way she asked me, and it irked me.

“No, but I’m positive he will see me.”

She shook her head and gave me smile. “Listen, I’m sure your college project or charity fundraiser is very important, and I would love to say that I can fit you in, but he’s simply too busy. I can get you an information pack about the company, and Mr. Garrett is always happy to send checks to a worthy cause. Maybe you could write to him?”

I smiled, sarcastically. “I’m sure that would be great if I were here for any of those things
, but I’m not.”

She rolled her eyes and arched a brow at me. She was clearly spending too much time with my boyfriend. “Then what are you here for?”

I leaned in to the desk and smiled. “Lunch time booty call. So, if you could tell Mr. Garrett that Layla is here, I’d be very grateful. I’ve been horny all day and I’m about to go supernova.”

Her jaw dropped and I watched with amusement as she knocked on the door behind her and hurried inside. I had to hold my hand over my mouth as I laughed. She’d looked as though I’d just told her the dirtiest thing she’d ever heard. If it was, she had led a hell of a sheltered life! A loud slamming followed by the roar of Jared’s voice echoed through the thick wooden door.

“She’s what! Where is she!”

I watched, paralyzed
, as the office door swung open and the china doll secretary quickly exited, followed by the most handsome, stern-looking man I had ever seen. Jared Garrett was a walking, talking, breathing, God in a suit.

He glared at me and curved his finger in a ‘come here’ gesture. His face was serious
, and I certainly wasn’t laughing anymore, but I
was
smiling with self-satisfaction. I grinned at his secretary as I walked past and entered Jared’s office.

The office was enormous. Why this one man needed so much space was beyond me. Though, it made sense. Jared never did anything by halves and it stood to reason that his work place would be just as magnificent, gran
d, and elegant as his home. He did spend most of his time in the damn place after all. The walls were made up of rich mahogany and there were pictures of famous New York landmarks and buildings scattered all over the walls in large collages. The carpet was thick and deep, and I felt my feet bounce slightly as I walked across the room to his matching Mahogany desk. His name was written in golden letters across a black plaque that sat front and center. There were two picture frames on his desk and I smiled as I turned them to face me. One contained a photo of his parents and him at his high school graduation, and the other was of me. It was a picture Amy had taken on my birthday and uploaded to my social networking page. He must have downloaded it and placed it on his desk.
Sneaky
.

The door slammed behind me and it startled me. Turning around sharply, I stared at him. Resting his back against the door, he tapped lightly on his lips with his index finger. He looked dark and deathly serious. His eyes were burning into me from across the room
, and I could see the anger that he was clearly suppressing. He glared at me and I waited for him to yell, shout, or say something. Anything. But he remained silent. Rolling my eyes, I sighed with exasperation.

“I realize you’re mad
, but …“

He shook his head and cast his eyes upward as though contemplating the notion.

“Mad? I’m not entirely sure mad is an accurate description of how I feel right now, Layla. No, I’m not mad.”

Could have fooled me.

“I’m furious! I’m god-damned frantic!”

He strode fast toward me
, and I instinctively backed myself up against the edge of the desk.

“I gave you one instruction. One thing I asked of you. New York City is not a fucking playground! It’s dangerous! You are a young, attractive wom
an, walking around a city where murder, robberies, car jacking, and God only knows what else is just common ground! Tell me, at what point did you think that it was a good idea to be strolling around, with your purse on show no less, in a city that you DON’T KNOW!”

His face was red with rage and that vein in his neck was protruding again. His face was inches from mine. He gripped the desk
on either side of me and towered over me. “And yet, I’m not surprised. As usual, Layla Jennings just can’t do as she is fucking told!”

I pressed my hands against his chest and pushed him away from me a little. “Hey! First of all, I told you I wanted to see the city. I can’t wait around, hoping you’ll find time to actually be with me rather than in this office. I could be waiting forever. And second of all, I wasn’t alone today! I was with Daniel!”

He gave me a confused look, and I had hoped that my confession might calm him. I was wrong.

“Daniel? You spent the entire day, in the company of my driver? Sounds very fucking cozy.”

Was he serious? It was Daniel for crying out loud. “What is your problem, Jared? You told me not to go alone so I didn’t and then you scream at me for the company I kept? He’s your friend! Hell, he’s the only friend you’ve got and he happens to be mine, too! How can you be jealous right now!”

He glared at me and his voice became a low, dark
, and deep growl. “Because I haven’t so quickly forgotten your last ‘friend.’ The one you claimed I had no reason to be jealous about. The one you told me I could trust. The one you left me broken-hearted to be with, and most importantly, the one you’re still in love with!”

My mouth dropped open
, and I struggled to form an answer. It was the truth. I knew it and so did he. Through the anger I could also see the pain. I sometimes forgot just how hard it must be for Jared, knowing that in all of our happiness, there was also a part of my heart that still didn’t belong to him. His jaw tightened, and taking a step back, he straightened up, adjusting his tie in the process.

I watched, speechless
, as he walked away and rounded his desk. He stood behind it and stared at me.

“Come here, Layla.”

I dare not argue. I wasn’t in the position to object. I’d broken his rule and I was still in love with another man. What right did I have to protest or be angry? Slowly, I walked over and stood in front of him. His chest rose and fell heavily and his breathing was hard. I could feel the tension between us crackling in the air like electricity. His eyes never left mine as he swept the papers from his desk and on to the floor.

“Place your elbows on the desk and lay your palms flat on the surface.”

I glared at him then glanced at the door. He caught my line of sight and shook his head. Pressing the intercom on his desk, he spoke authoritatively to his secretary, whose name I had yet to learn. “Stephanie, hold all calls and go on your break. I don’t expect to see you again for an hour.”

She thanked him and hung up abruptly. I bit my lip anxiously. “Layla, I gave you an instruction. Or are you still unable to do as you’re told?”

Damn
. Gulping, I turned and held on to the edge of the desk. His body pressed against mine behind me. I could feel his firm thighs against my behind. Leaning over me, he held my forearms tightly and lifted them forward so that my hands slid across the desk and my elbows pressed firmly on the high gloss desktop. I gasped at the forcefulness of the movement. His lips grazed my ear, and I could feel his warm breath on my neck.

“You drive me insane in every way possible. You infuriate me with your constant dismissal of my rules. You argue, fight
, and spit sarcasm at me constantly. You torture me with your tight, hot, little body and forbid me to enjoy you. You hold another man in your heart, and I have to accept it and thank God every day that you’re here with me, while worrying that it’s not where you want to be. But most of all, you make me hot, angry, and possessive. You belong to me, Layla.

His left hand slid gently up my thigh, ruffling my dress to my hip in the process, and snaked around my waist before slowly moving south to the top of my panties. I held my breath in anticipation. I could feel his chest pressing against my back as I stood, bent over the desk, wanting and waiting for him to make his next move. He didn’t disappoint. Thrusting his palm downward
, he tore my lace panties away from me, discarding them on the floor as he had done with his papers.