Indulging in Irene (10 page)

“We’ll have a drink, and then leave. I still have work to do.” He waved over the waiter and ordered a brandy.

Damn. Why couldn’t he order a shot like a normal person? Brandy will take much longer to drink.

“If you can’t stay, Marcus, Cory and I will be more than happy to keep Irelyn company.” Rachel linked her arm with mine in a show of solidarity. She’d seen Zolt and me kissing. She knew me better than anyone, and knew I would be freaking the fuck out right now.

“Yes. Absolutely,” Cory agreed immediately.

“I have a few minutes, I expect,” Marcus said dryly.

It took all my restraint to not beat my head on the table. Marcus was so stiff and nothing like us. One of these days, I’d find out what exactly Chris saw in him. Then, I’d curse my brother for ever bringing him into my life.

I sat there commanding myself not to go over to Irelyn’s table and drag her away from the man I assumed was Marcus.

He was totally wrong for her. Too old, too stiff, too overbearing. Seeing him in person reinforced my sense of wrongness about him. I knew T-bone would dig up shit about Marcus that would turn my blood cold. The darkness—the only way I knew to describe the negativity that surrounded him—rushed me. I put my hand on my stomach to quell the roiling within.

If Irelyn couldn’t extricate herself from him, I would. After watching him with her, I knew I had no choice. There was no way I would allow her to stay with him. Even if she decided we shouldn’t be together—which I knew wouldn’t happen—Irelyn needed to be as far away from him as possible.

“Zolt?” Marcy said, dragging my gaze to her face.

I needed to get out of there before I did something stupid. Yanking my money clip from my pocket, I threw a fifty on the table and left, leaving Marcy calling after me. I didn’t stop until I was outside. When I turned around, I wasn’t surprised to see Marcy standing behind me.

“What?” I snapped. I hadn’t meant to, but she was getting on my last nerve. It was time to let her know I had no intention of fucking her tonight or ever again.

“Everything all—” She stopped and recognition lit her eyes. “Oh, I see. You’ve got it bad for your boss’s daughter. Career suicide, Zolt. That’s all I have to say.”

“Do you think I fucking care about that?”

“Zolt?” Her voice raised an octave, and she placed her hand on my arm.

I snatched it away, not wanting her to touch me. I was done. After being with Irelyn just minutes earlier, I wouldn’t continue with the charade I’d been playing with Marcy. It was time to go home.

“Bye, Marcy. I’m done. It was great seeing you again.”

“Zolt, wait.”

“Wait for what? For you? I don’t think so. Been there, done that.”

“You’ve turned into a real dick, you know that?” Marcy said as she stood glowering at me.

I shrugged. “Always have been Marcy, you just forgot because I’m so good in bed. But like I said, been there, done that.”

As I walked away, Marcy’s many anatomically impossible epithets sounded behind me. Honestly, I didn’t care—bigger issues weighed on my mind. I closed my eyes and sucked in a cleansing breath. I hovered on the edge, and my shadow-self closed in on me. The one method I used to chase it away, I’d denied myself. I couldn’t mindlessly fuck Marcy, or anyone else.

So, I did the next best thing possible, I went home, jerked off in the shower, and then got well and truly baked. I smoked until I didn’t give a fuck. I’ll admit it took far too many bowls to accomplish that task.

I had it bad for Irelyn Wilkes, and no amount of getting stoned or jerking off was going to fix that. There was only one solution to that problem. Unfortunately, the answer remained just outside my reach.

The next day, I was useless to get any work done. All I could think about was that she had been with him—maybe sleeping with him, maybe not. My feelings ran roughshod over me, and my shadow-self tugged at the periphery. When I felt like this, I did really stupid shit. Like driving my Viper way too fast, or giving into the need to go to a bar to find several women to fuck that I wouldn’t normally give a second glance to. Admittedly, my standards lowered further when I was in this mood.

I’d walked away from Marcy for a reason, and I needed to remember that. When it came down to it, I was a fucking hypocrite.

I spoke a big game with Irelyn, but when I was alone with her, I couldn’t stop myself. Her body called to mine on a base level. I told myself to stand firm. Don’t touch, kiss, or do anything else with her until she dumped Marcus. Yet, last night, I gave in, kissing her like I’d die without her. I’d been a complete dick to her, and Marcy, playing her just to make Irelyn jealous. Even though it worked, I felt like an asshole.

My phone buzzed at me, signaling an email. I opened it, happy to see a message from T-bone. As I scanned the email, my stomach clenched. Marcus Xavier had his fingers in all kinds of pies. And, just as I suspected, not all of them were on the up and up.

I pinched the bridge of my nose, not liking what I was reading. When I scrolled down and saw a picture of Irelyn, Chris, and Marcus, I nearly threw my phone against the wall. The bastard had the smarmiest look on his face as he stood between brother and sister, his greedy hand on her waist.

I growled and closed my eyes, wanting to purge the image from my mind. I told myself this was crazy. Irelyn wasn’t mine, and I shouldn’t care. But fuck if I didn’t want her to be mine. Knowing that she wanted the same thing made me want to scream.

I scrolled through the contacts and landed on Irelyn’s entry. Calling her after giving her an ultimatum made me look weak. The odds this would end up in my favor were slim at best. At least, that’s how I had to look at it. Hope would make it hurt worse when she didn’t choose me.

I didn’t know Irelyn well enough to make an accurate guess as to what she’d do. All I could do was go on instinct, and therein lay the problem. Though my gut usually served me well, I’d allowed myself to get in a situation I couldn’t control, with a woman I didn’t even know. How fucking stupid was I?

Pretty fucking stupid.

Except for…

My phone buzzed with an incoming call, pulling me from my disastrous train of thought.

“Hey, T.”

“Hey, Z Man. Listen, I’m pulling up all kinds of shit on this dude. Bad shit. I’m not liking what I’m finding.”

“Like what?” I shifted in my chair and sat up straighter.

“Nothing I want to elaborate on until I’ve had more time to flush out some of my leads. If it goes where I think it will, I’ll take the dude out myself.”

“Fuck, T, what the hell are you talking about? You can’t say shit like that and not elaborate.”

“Look, Zolt, if you care at all about Irelyn, you’ll do whatever you can to convince her to get away from this guy. I looked into the situation between Black Swan Incorporated and Xot International. From what I can tell, there was some shady shit that went down. Unfortunately, it looks like Jacob Wilkes may have been involved. I have one of my corporate guru’s looking into it. This has cost me favors, big favors.”

“That’s fine,” I said, fiddling with a paperclip and a rubber band. “I’m starting to wonder if Wilkes gave me this case for a reason?”

I heard T-bone let out a long sigh. “Like he’s in over his head? Needs someone to help him out? I wouldn’t be surprised. There’s a lot of puzzle pieces that need placing, but I don’t like the picture that’s emerging. Marcus has a nasty vibe trailing him.”

“I completely agree. Anything on her brother’s death?”

“Not yet, but I’ve only just started on that. I’ll let you know.”

“Thanks, T.”

“Thank me when you get my bill. I hope she’s worth it.”

I smiled. “I think she is.”

Fuck that! Irelyn was completely worth it.

My office phone rang, and I started. “Yes, Liza?”

“Mr. Wilkes is holding for you.”

“Okay,” I answered, looking around the office guiltily.

Stupid ass! He doesn’t know anything.

“Put him through.”

“Zolten, how are you?” Jacob Wilkes said over a fuzzy cell line.

“Fine, sir. What can I do for you?”

“I’d love for you to join us for dinner at my house tonight. Barbi and I are leaving for an extended time, and this is the only time we have free before we leave. Can you make it?”

“Yes, sir. I’d love to.”
Are you fucking kidding me?

“Fine, fine. We’ll see you this evening. Marsha will email you the directions.”

“Great,” I said and hung up.

Well, that was an interesting development,
I mused. I had to assume Irelyn would be there, and I couldn’t wait. I needed to see her, make sure she was okay. Since she hadn’t contacted me, I knew she must not have broken up with him last night. If this didn’t happen soon, I’d go crazy.

Crazy Zolt wasn’t fun Zolt.

For the rest of the day, I buried myself in research, and surprisingly enough, the hours flew. I had just enough time to get home, change, and smoke a bowl or two. I grabbed a bottle of Altamura Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, and then I left for Irelyn’s.

I drove up the winding road that led to the Wilkes’s home. When it came into sight, I wasn’t surprised by its grandeur. It was exactly the house I’d expected Jacob Wilkes to live in. The house was a four column, Greek revival home and was surrounded by rolling pastures—pretentious but not uninviting.

I could imagine Irelyn growing up here.

I could imagine a lot of things about Irelyn that I really shouldn’t.

After parking the Viper, I walked to the door, rang the bell, and waited. When Irelyn opened the door, my face split into a grin. I couldn’t help myself. She was so fucking beautiful with her golden-blonde hair, wavy and loose; wearing a long red, flowing sundress with thin straps that sat delicately on her lovely shoulders. The only thing that ruined her appearance was the damn necklace she’d worn last night on her neck. It didn’t look right on her; it looked like a damn dog collar.

“Irelyn,” I said as smoothly as I could muster. I didn’t want her to hear the effect seeing her had on me.

“Zolt,” she returned, her eyes roamed appreciatively over my body. She glanced over her shoulder, and then moved closer, frowning at me.

“Did you sleep with Marcy last night?”

“Did you break up with Marcus last night?” I retorted.

She shook her head and sighed, her gaze lowering to the ground. “I’m going to tomorrow, I promise.”

I lifted her chin and kissed her forehead. “Tomorrow it is. And, no, I didn’t sleep with Marcy.”

Irelyn’s resulting grin made my stomach do flips. When she took my arm to lead me into the sitting room where her father and mother lounged, that same unmistakable connection we shared sent electricity up my arm.

We both looked at each other and smiled, our connection turning us into grinning idiots.

Jacob and Emmeline Wilkes were deep in conversation when we entered the sitting room. I swear when they saw us together, they both smiled their approval. Or maybe it was my wishful thinking.

“Zolten,” Jacob said, “We’re so glad you could come on such short notice. Let me introduce you to my wife, Emmeline.”

“Zolten, so pleased to meet you. My husband sings your praises. Welcome to our home.”

“Thank you. Please, call me Zolt, Mrs. Wilkes,” I said, engaging my manners.

“Of course, and you must call me Emme. Is that for us?” She asked and smiled at me. My heart stuttered a little. Irelyn favored her mother through and through. They were both beautiful.

I handed over the bottle of wine I’d forgot I was holding, feeling like a fool.

“Oh, yes. I discovered this vineyard last year on a trip to Napa. I hope you like it.”

“Mom loves a good Cabernet Sauvignon. I’ll take it to Anna and have her open it so it can breathe.”

Emme handed the bottle off to Irelyn, and she left the room. I tried hard not to watch the sway of her hips as she walked. And tried doubly hard not to think about my hands on those hips as I went down on her.

Fuck. I was already starting to get hard. God, I was such a dog.

Thankfully, a Scotch on the rocks found its way into my hand, giving me something else to concentrate on. I took a seat on the fine French provincial couch.

“So, Zolt, I must say I was extremely pleased with your findings on the Aspen Holdings/Black Swan file. I know our client will be pleased. It’s important that we discovered it now rather than later.”

“I agree. Glad I could be of assistance.”

“Daddy, do we need to talk about work?” Irelyn said as she came back into the room. “I’m sure Zolt could use a break.”

Irelyn took a seat next to me, and I breathed her in. I loved the way she smelled, sweet like meadow flowers on a bright summer day.

Jesus, I sounded like a damn Hallmark greeting card.

“Of course, Irelyn, you’re right. Zolt, how are you settling in?” Jacob asked.

“Fine, thank you. I loved living here before…” I trailed off, and Irelyn put a reassuring hand on my arm and squeezed. We looked at each other, and our gazes caught. She knew at that moment where my thoughts had strayed, knew that they led to a bad place for me. Though it was a small gesture on her part, the meaning behind it was enormous.

Like that, I calmed.

“So sorry I’m late. Got stuck on a call to Africa.”

Irelyn snatched her hand away, and her body stiffened.

I looked at her, and then looked at Marcus heading toward Irelyn. Instantly, my jaw muscle ticked with tension.

“Marcus,” Emme said, “glad you could make it, dear.”

Irelyn said nothing, but I heard her gulp.

It took everything I had in me not to pull her to me and wrap my arms around her, keeping her away from him.

“Of course, Emme, I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Especially since the both of you will be leaving. Don’t worry about our girl, I’ll take good care of her.” Marcus gave me a slant-eyed look as he pulled Irelyn up from her seat, and into his arms.