Tangled Web (5 page)

I rolled my eyes as he said this.

“Chase, show your sister to her desk so she can get stuck
in,” he said, waving his hand towards the door.

“Actually, Dad, I was thinking Chloe could start
tomorrow.”
 

He frowned when Chase said this.
 

“I know it’s Friday tomorrow,” Chase continued, “but I
figured she could use tomorrow to get familiar with the accounts and then start
fresh on Monday.”
 

A look passed between them that I didn’t entirely recognise.

“Good idea, Chase.” My father nodded.
 
“Well, Chloe.
 
Chase and I have a meeting in a few minutes.
 
How about dinner tomorrow evening at
Valentine’s?
 
7pm.
 
Just the three of us?”
 

I smiled patiently at him.
 
The thought I could have plans of my own didn’t even cross his mind. “Sure,
Dad.” I smiled patiently.
 
“I’ll see you
then.”
 
He nodded as I said this.
 

“See you later, Chase.”
 
As I was leaving the elevator I began digging around in my bag and
noticed my phone was missing.
 
Damn
it.
 
Where is that phone?
 
I began retracing my steps in my head and
trying to recall when I last had my phone.
 
I think I had it before I went out with Chase and his friends.
 
Suddenly Nathan popped into my head.
 
Crap!
 
No, please don’t tell me I left it there.

I tipped my handbag out on the floor in a blind panic.
 
It wasn’t here!
 
Shit, I needed that phone.
 
I’d left that number with several estate
agents.
 
I just wanted to curl up on the
floor of the crowded lobby and cry.
 

“Excuse me, miss?” a male voice asked.
 

I looked up and there was an older gentleman leaning over
the desk.
 
I must have looked really
pathetic lying on the floor with all my things around me.

I quickly shoved my makeup, brush and keys back in my bag
and leaned on the security desk and crawled to my feet.
 
“Yes?” I smiled, trying to be polite and
secure with what was left of my dignity.
 
If I was completely honest all dignity had left at this point.
 
He smiled back at me with confusion extending
the phone to me.
 
I quickly took it off
him.
 
“Hello?” I spoke into the receiver.

“Hello, Miss Johnson.”
 
That voice.
 
It was the same voice
that had brought me so much pleasure Saturday night.
 
Shit.
 
I didn’t want to be doing this.

“N-N-Nathan,” I stammered.
 
He let out the sexiest chuckle as I said his name.

“Am I making you nervous?” he teased.
 
How did he know I’d be here?
 
I never mentioned I was working here.
 
“I’ll take your silence as a yes.”
 
Damn him for being so cocky.
 
“The reason I’m calling, Chloe.
 
Have you lost something?”
 
What an ass.
 
How dare he take my phone?

“Give it back,” I demanded.
 
He chuckled down the line at my pathetic whining tone.

“Come and get it, angel,” he whispered.
 

I was stuck in a state of shock as the dial tone came
through the line.
 
He hung up on me.
 
I slammed the phone down and marched out of
the lobby.
 
Walker Construction was on
the other side of the road so it didn’t take me long to get there after
navigating myself through the traffic.
 
I
stomped into the Walker Enterprises lobby and made my way to the security desk.

“Hello.
 
Can you tell
me what floor Nathan Walker is on?” I asked.

“Name?” the security guard asked.
 

Just let me get out of here.

“Chloe Johnson.”

“One moment,” the security guard replied.
 
He looked a few years older than me.
 

I would normally find him quite good looking but I was too
wound up.
 
How dare he take my
phone?
 
My logical side was trying to
determine if he did take it from my purse.
 
I don’t remember taking it out of my purse so he must have taken
it.
 
As he dialled I began getting a
little nervous.
 
I just needed to get my
phone and in five minutes I’d be out of here.
 
No problem.

“Hello, sir, I have a Chloe Johnson here to see you.”
 
He nodded.
 
“Thank you, sir.”
 
He put the
phone down and looked at me.
 
“Floor 28,”
he said, nodding his head towards the elevator.
 

I turned on my heel and made my way towards the
elevator.
 
On the way up I made a deal
with myself.
 
Get the phone and get
out.
 
Nothing else.
 
This was going to be embarrassing as it
was.
 
No reason to stick around longer
than necessary.

I walked straight up to the large reception desk and noticed
a young woman.
 
I would estimate her to
be a couple years older than me.
 
She had
long brown hair and a welcoming smile on her face.
 

“Hello,” she greeted, smiling at me.
 
“Can I help you?”

“Yes, I hope so.” I smiled.
 
“I’m here to collect something from Nathan Walker?”
 
Why did I end it like a question?
 
My nerves were starting to take over.

“One moment, please.” She smiled.
 

As she quickly dialled the phone I took in her
appearance.
 
She looked like the perfect
assistant.
 
She had a navy blue suit on
and her hair and nails were perfectly done.
 
Whereas my hair probably looked like a ginger haystack.
 
As I went to smooth my hair down she looked
up, replacing the phone.
 

“Please go through,” she indicated with her hand.
 
“First door on the left.”
 
She seemed friendly enough.

As I walked towards the office doors she indicated I noticed
there were three of them.
 
I’m not sure
what the one on the right said but the middle one said Michael Walker and then
the door on the left had a plaque saying Nathan Walker.
 
Before knocking, I took the moment to
straighten myself out.
 
As I went to push
my hair out of my face his voice echoed through the door.

“Come on in, Chloe.”
 
His tone was so cocky.
 
Still.
 
Like he knew the effect he
had on me and was proud of it.
 

I opened the door and slipped in.
 
As I shut the door I took a deep breath and turned
to face him. It was the wrong thing to do really.
 
He looked sexier than he did Saturday
night.
 
Nathan sat in his chair behind
his extremely large desk dressed in a navy blue suit with a matching tie.
 
I could see the glare from the laptop
reflecting in the mirror behind him and as he leaned forward to close it he
looked up into my eyes.
 
He looked me up
and down slowly.
 
No doubt remembering
Saturday night.

“Hello.” He smiled.
 

So he wanted to act normal.
 
Fine.
 
I could do that.
 
I’d prefer that

“Hello,” I replied, blushing.
 
Wish I could turn that off.
 
“I understand you have something for me?” I crossed
my arms.

“Oh yeah, I definitely have something for you.” He got up
and walked around his desk.
 

I couldn’t help but stare at the way he swaggered.
 
So confident and sure of himself.
 
He walked straight up to me so close that he
was now invading what I would call my personal bubble.
 
Damn, didn’t he believe in personal space?

As I went to step back his hands shot out and grabbed my
hips.
 
He was too close.
 
This wasn’t going to my plan at all.
 
I should have been out the door by now.
 

“Where are you going?” he whispered.

“Nathan, you’re invading my space,” I said, trying to push
him back a little.
 
Instead of pushing
against his chest I was rubbing his chest instead.
 
I had no control when it came to him and
judging by the smirk on his face he knew it as well.

“You didn’t mind me invading your space the other night,” he
whispered, leaning down slowly and sliding has nose along mine.
 

I stepped back forcefully and his hands slid from my
hips.
 
I turned around so I was facing
the door.
 
If I didn’t have to look at
him this would go a lot smoother.

“Nathan, just give me my phone!” I demanded facing the
door.
 
Silence.
 
I could still feel his eyes on me.
 
I closed my eyes just wanting this nightmare
to end.
 
I felt Nathan step up behind me
and gently moved my hair so it was bunched up over my one shoulder.
 
Slowly his lips began trailing up the column
of my neck, gently kissing as he went.

“What will you give me in return?” He nibbled my
earlobe.
 

I gasped as he did this.
 
I should have stopped it.
 
I
shouldn’t have allowed his lips to touch me but they felt so good.
 
After four days of constant interviews I was
tense and his lips were doing a good job of relaxing me.
 
My head fell back against his chest as I let
out an embarrassing half-sigh, half-moan.

 
“Why did you leave?”
he whispered, rubbing his thumbs over my hips.
 
My eyes widened when he said this.
 
Nathan quickly spun me around so I was facing him and took my face in
his hands.
 
“You left me making breakfast
for us while you snuck out.
 
Did you get
everything you needed and decide it was time to go?”

“What?
 
No!” I
shouted.
 
He frowned when I said this,
like he couldn’t understand my reasons for leaving.
 
“I left before I could do anything else to
mess things up.”

“What do you mean?”
 
He looked genuinely confused.

“Come on.”
 
I noticed
he was still frowning.
 
“Can you imagine
the look on our families’ faces if we did... whatever it is we did.”
 
I couldn’t stop blushing.
 
“I left you before you could throw me out.”
There! “Before you regretted what we did.”
 
I couldn’t look at him.

“No woman has ever snuck out on me before. I didn’t like
it,” he said, looking down.
 

He had a strange look in his eyes.
 
As if my walking out on him had hurt him
emotionally.
 
But that couldn’t be
right.
 

“Usually when I have a woman, I move on.”
 

When he said this I was struck with deep jealousy.
 
I had no right to feel like that.
 
It shouldn’t matter to me what he does with
other women.
 

“But with you…
 
I want
to fuck you again.”
 

My eyes widened as he said this.
 
I wasn’t expecting him to be so blunt.
 

“Hard and repeatedly.”

“No,” I whispered, shaking my head.
 
“We can’t…do that.”
 
His eyes narrowed as I said that.
 
“Not again,” I enforced.
 
He placed his hand on my cheek and rubbed his
thumb across my cheekbone.
 

“I want you,” he whispered.
 
He leaned in and placed his lips on mine.

 
As I went to pull
back he placed his hand on the back of my head and pushed his lips more
forcefully against mine.
 
I moaned and
opened my lips for him.
 
Just as his
tongue touched mine I pulled back.

“Nathan.
 
I
can’t.
 
It’s not right.
 
We can’t do this.”
 
I hated saying this because I really wanted
to do what he was suggesting but the truth was we came from two different
worlds.
 
There was no way of merging
them.
 
“I’m not that sort of girl. I
won’t be used,” I said, looking away.
 
He
just kept looking at me.

“I understand you’re working for your father now,” he said,
changing the subject by the looks of it.
 

I was grateful for that but a small part of me wanted him to
change my mind.
 
Or at least pretend I
was more than a fuck buddy.
 
I nodded as
he said this.