The Fixed Trilogy: Fixed on You, Found in You, Forever With You (22 page)

I shut the door and turned to face Brian with a fake smile. “Oh, did you call?” Innocent wasn’t usually the best tactic with Brian, but I was too exhausted for anything else. “My phone’s been dead and I’ve been out of town.”

“Yeah, I got that from your boss at the club.”

God, he’d even called David. What the fuck?

Brian ran a hand through his hair then took a step toward me. “You were with him, weren’t you?”

“Him, who?” But I knew he must have been referring to Hudson. That was the who I’d been with after all, and David had known that. But why Brian cared was beyond me.

Brian slammed his fist down on the top of my dresser. “Dammit, Laynie, don’t play games. This is serious.” He took a step toward me, his eyes narrow slits. “Hudson Pierce. Were you with Hudson Pierce?”

“Yes.” I crossed my hands over my chest. “And Jonathon Pierce, for that matter. And Sophia Pierce and Mirabelle Pierce and Chandler Pierce. At their Hampton house. Brian, what is your problem?”

His brows rose almost as high as his voice. “What is my problem?
You
are my problem. Always. Alayna, I saw you in the society pages—you’re dating him?”

Well, no. But I kept that to myself.

“You can’t date Hudson fucking Pierce. Do you know who he is? Do you know
what
he is?”

For the briefest of moments, my chest felt like it might burst. I had no idea how, but Brian knew about Hudson’s games with women somehow and was worried about me. I hadn’t felt concern from him in years. I didn’t realize how much I’d craved it.

Brian continued. “He’s a goddamn giant, is what he is, Alayna. If you fuck with him—
when
you fuck with him—I won’t be able to get you out of it. The Pierces are so big, they’ll squash you like a bug.”

“Wait a minute, wait a minute.” I swallowed, processing what Brian had said. “You’re not concerned for me, you’re worried about…Hudson?”

“Why should I be concerned for you?” He pointed his index finger toward me. “You’re the one with the history of going mental over guys.”

“Get out.” I could only manage a whisper.

“Harassment, drive-bys, breaking and entering, stalking—” He held up a finger for each item he ticked off.

“Get out,” I said, stronger. There were no words for the depths of betrayal I felt, no reason to even defend myself against his accusations because he’d already marked me as guilty without even giving me a trial.

“Were you even
invited
to the Hamptons?”

“Get the fuck out!” I screamed. “Get out! Get out! Get. Out!”

He didn’t move. “My name’s on the lease, not yours.”

“Then I’ll get the lease changed. Or I’ll move.” I crossed to the door and opened it for him. “But now I’m telling you, so help me god, if you don’t leave I’ll call the cops and, even if it gets me nowhere, it will at least occupy your life with yet another embarrassing sister incident. So I’m telling you, get the fuck out, now.”

“I’m done, Alayna.” He raised his hands up in a surrender position. Still he didn’t move.

“Get out!”

This time he stepped toward the door. “I’m leaving, but I’m telling you, I’m done. Do not even think about coming crawling back to me.” He turned back to face me after crossing the threshold. “You’re on your own with this mess.”

I slammed the door in his face.

Brian was out of my life. Out of my life for good.

Maybe because I’d already cried all those tears earlier, or maybe because I’d simply had enough of family members who constantly kept their loved ones down when they needed compassion and support most, but the sigh I let out wasn’t in frustration—it was in relief.

Chapter Twenty-Two

David leaned against his desk and stared at the new brown leather sofa across the room. “Should we move it to the other wall?” It was the fourth time he’d asked since I’d arrived.

Truthfully, I couldn’t care less where the sofa was. The only reason I’d come into the club so early was to have something to occupy my mind. It had been thirty-three hours since I’d left the Hamptons, longer since I’d seen Hudson, and all I wanted to do was buy a plane ticket to Cincinnati and find him, whatever it took.

But another part of me—a very small, but surprisingly solid bud of calm at the center of my being—believed that Hudson would be back. That he’d be back for me. He felt something for me. I knew he did. And maybe that emotion, even if he couldn’t acknowledge it, would be enough to bring him to me. Eventually.

Hopefully.

If I didn’t cling on to that small sliver of hope, I’d fall apart. It was the only thing keeping me from giving into the crazy. That and trying to concentrate on my job.

“It’s fine, David. Leave it.”

“Are you sure? This is your vision, Laynie. Make it work.”

“It works perfectly as is.”

I suspected David’s anxiousness had more to do with me and my mood than couch placement. He crossed to the sofa and sat down. “It’s pretty comfy, too. Check it out.”

Sighing, I tossed my inventory report on the desk and joined him. “Hmm,” I said, settling into the corner. “Not bad.”

But really I was thinking about how the new couch reminded me of the one at the apartment above Hudson’s office. It had been my initial attraction to it when I’d seen it in the catalog. I loved the way it felt masculine with its rich dark color, yet also warm and soft with its curved back and arms.

Now I wondered if every glance at the piece of furniture would bring to mind thoughts of the man who hadn’t called or texted me since his vanishing act.

My thoughts traveled to the email I’d received that morning from his bank—the one that owned my student loans—stating my debt had been adjusted off in full. And the credit card that I’d kept secret from him had also shown up with a zero balance. Having them both paid for made the whole deal feel done.

And I wanted so much not to be done with Hudson Pierce.

“So what’s going on in your pretty little head, Laynie?”

I’d gotten lost in my mind again. Boy, was I bad company.

“Stuff,” I said, feeling bad about the brush off, but not bad enough to expound upon my answer.

He nodded and rested his ankle on his other leg. “Pierce okay with that Plexis deal?”

I twisted my head toward him. “What do you mean?”

David’s brows rose. “I figured you knew. It was in the paper this morning.” He stood and moved toward his desk.

I hadn’t looked at the news that morning. Knowing I’d be tempted to stalk Hudson online, I hadn’t even gotten on my computer except to check my email after Brian had left the day before. It had been hard to fight the compulsion, but after kicking my brother out, I’d felt a renewed sense of self-strength. So I turned off my computer and spent the night watching some of the movies from the AFI list that I hadn’t seen yet while I ate a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream. And I cried some more. Overall, a very productive evening.

David rifled through some papers in the recycling bin. “Here it is.”

He returned to the couch and handed me a folded section of the newspaper. I scanned my eyes over the article he’d pointed to. The headline read
Plexis sold to DWO
. Skimming, I quickly got the gist of the story. DWO, a rival corporation of Pierce Industries, had convinced the other shareholders to sell, even though management, and lone hold-out shareholder Hudson Pierce, fought to prevent the acquisition.

My stomach sank. Hudson had really cared about Plexis and the people that worked there. He had to be devastated over the loss. No wonder he’d run off to Cincinnati the day before—he must have been making one last ditch effort to save his company.

Which also meant he’d been telling me the truth. He hadn’t run from me. Why was I so self-centered to believe everything had to do with me?

I closed my eyes and felt the couch sink next to me as David sat back down.

“You like him more than you let on.”

“I do. I love him.” I peeked over at him, remembering how David had reacted the last time we’d talked about Hudson and me. “I didn’t mean to fall in love. I just did.”

David smiled but kept his eyes downcast. “That’s how it usually occurs.”

I threw the newspaper on the ground, put my elbows on my knees and covered my hands with my face. Awkward—that’s what this was. Totally awkward.

David leaned back on the couch. “And he feels…?”

I peeked over my shoulder toward him. Did he really want to talk about this? Well, he was there, and he did ask. “I’m not sure.”

“That’s a real bummer.” David leaned forward. He was so close to me I could smell the faint aroma of his body wash and feel the warmth of his breath. “For what it’s worth, I’ll tell you how I feel: Stupid.”

“Stupid?” I folded my arms across my chest, feeling strangely vulnerable so near to a guy I’d once been gaga over.

“Yeah.” He lowered his voice. “How did I let you slip through my fingers?”

“David…” I didn’t want that, not now. My heart, my mind, my body had tuned to Hudson. He was the only guy I could think of anymore. It scared me a bit. Singular thoughts of someone—that could be the beginnings of an obsession.

But also, and I wasn’t sure because I didn’t know from experience, but couldn’t those kind of thoughts be attributed to being in love? Lauren had said as much. As long as I remained in control of my behavior, as long as my affection was welcomed, then wasn’t it perfectly okay to think of Hudson, to
choose
him over anyone else? I thought maybe so. I
hoped
so.

I opened my mouth to speak, to tell David that there was no chance for us, but he seemed to understand without me having to say anything.

He sighed and nodded. Then he shrugged. “I just thought you should know.”

“Thank you,” I said, because I didn’t know what else to say. And because I was grateful that he’d taken my rejection so well.

He stood up and held his hand out to me. “Back to work.”

I took his hand and let him help me to my feet.

David held onto my hand after I stood. “But if you ever find yourself on the market again…”

Even without Hudson, David and I couldn’t be together. He’d been a safe option, someone who wouldn’t drive me to obsessive behaviors. But safety had come at the price of no sincere emotional investment. Maybe I risked more with Hudson, but there was also something real to be gained.

But I smiled and said, “I’ll keep you in mind. For sure.”

“Can we hug it out?”

I nodded and David pulled me into his arms. His embrace felt...good. Stronger than I’d remembered, but it didn’t make my heart beat faster. And it comforted me, but didn’t warm me to the bone the way Hudson’s arms did. Still, it was nice, and I let myself relax into its goodness.

David broke away first. Abruptly. Bringing his closed fist to his mouth, he coughed, his eyes darting from me to a spot behind me.

I furrowed my brow, confused by his strange actions then twisted to see what was behind me.

“Hey, Pierce,” David said as I came eye-to-eye with Hudson.

The blood drained from my face. The hug had been innocent, but I knew what it must have looked like. And it didn’t feel exactly innocent, not when David wanted more, and not when we’d sort of been together in the past. Especially since I’d never told Hudson about it.

Hudson’s expression was stoic, his eyes piercing into mine. He gave nothing away and that terrified me. Not only because I couldn’t read his reaction to what he’d witnessed, but because it meant he’d withdrawn further. With the way he’d left me, the circumstances of the last time we saw each other, he may have had the same blank expression if he hadn’t just walked in on me hugging my boss.

“I’ll, uh, let you guys have some privacy.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw David leave the office, shutting the door behind him. My focus never left the man in front of me.

Alone with Hudson, the tension became thicker. He looked as painfully beautiful as ever in a dark gray suit and a solid blue tie that made his eyes seem more blue than gray. He didn’t speak, didn’t move. Just stared into me. Stared through me.

I swallowed hard, afraid I might cry. For more than a day I had longed to see him, had ached for him. Now that he was here, everything was all wrong.

“Hudson,” I began, not knowing what to say next. Then I remembered the article. “I read about Plexis.” I reached my hand out and took a step toward him. “I’m so sor—“

He cut me off. “What’s going on with you and him?” His tone was even, controlled, but his right eye twitched.

“Nothing,” I said on a heavy exhale. “David was, um,…” Yeah, where was I going with that? David was trying to get with me and I turned him down so we were hugging it out? “It was a friendly hug, that’s all.”

Hudson’s jaw tensed. “The expression on his face was much more than friendly.” He took a measured step toward me. “Have you fucked him?”

“No!”

His eyes narrowed, studying me. “But almost.”

“No.” Except that wasn’t quite true. We had come pretty close to screwing in the past. Right there in that office, in fact. It didn’t seem like a good time to bring that up, though. And all of that had been before Hudson.

“Why don’t I believe you?”

“Because you have some serious trust issues.” I felt a twinge of guilt knowing that his distrust might very well be because he sensed I was holding something back. Still, I didn’t appreciate being drilled. And Hudson did have trust issues. “What is your fucking deal, anyway?”

He stepped toward me again. “I told you before,” he growled. “I don’t share.”

A surge of euphoria pulsed through me. He still thought of me as his. I remembered when he’d said those words to me the first time, how it had turned me on to no end. The rawness of it, the primitive way he claimed me as his own.

Now, though, despite that it indicated I still had something to fight for with Hudson, the statement struck a nerve. “But I have to share you with Celia?”

“Goddammit, Alayna. How many times do I have to say it? There is nothing going on with me and Celia.”

I felt uneasy about insinuating otherwise. I’d accused past lovers of cheating on me—many times—but it had always been paranoia on my part, doubtful that anyone could ever really love me. My accusations had ended relationships, and my stomach lurched at that possibility with Hudson.

Yet, he had secrets where Celia was concerned. That wasn’t my mind playing tricks on me, he’d confirmed that much. He’d asked me to believe that those secrets weren’t relevant to us, but if he wanted my trust, he had to give me his. “And there’s nothing going on with me and David.”

“Really?” His tone was icy. “That’s not how it looked when I walked in here.”

My vision blurred with tears. “Just like that’s not how it looked when you left with Celia while I was still naked in your bed?”

Anger flashed in Hudson’s eyes. He grabbed my upper arms and yanked me toward him until my face was only inches from his. “Leaving you that morning was the hardest fucking thing I’ve done in a long time,” he hissed. “Don’t treat it lightly.”

Then his mouth crushed mine, before I could digest what he’d said, before I could let the sweetness of his words sink in. He nipped and tore at the tender skin of my lips with his teeth, his kiss abrasive and impatient.

My body begged to give into his demanding passion, his mouth and tongue coaxing me to bend to him, but my brain still held onto our disagreement and our whereabouts. Jesus, we were in the goddamn office of the nightclub!

I broke away from his lips. “Hudson, stop.”

But he didn’t stop. He continued kissing down my neck and his hand found my breast, which he squeezed and fondled roughly over the fabric of my dress. His cock pressed into me at my thigh, and I felt it stiffen.

“Stop!” I said again, pushing at his chest with both my hands.

“No,” he rumbled in my ear. “I have to fuck you. Now.”

“Why? Are you marking your territory?” I’d only been half serious with the comment, but he pulled back and the look in his eyes said that was exactly what he was doing.

I wriggled out of his grip, the nausea returning in painful waves. “You don’t own me, Hudson! Stop messing with me like I’m one of your other women.
Not with me
, remember?”

“Don’t you think I know that? Every minute of every day I remind myself that I can’t conquer you. That I can’t do that to you.” His jaw twitched. “But it doesn’t mean that I don’t want to.”

He might as well have struck me. Even though I’d told myself that it was possible that I was merely another on his list of women he’d played, I’d truly believed that I was different. The tears that had threatened earlier spilled freely. “So I am just like the others.”

“No. You’re not.” His voice tightened. “I told you before. I don’t want to hurt you more than I need to win you.”

Sobbing now, I choked out, “You’ve already done both.”

“Fuck!” His features were overcome with horror, as if I’d told him I’d killed his mother. Or maybe not his mother, but someone he was fond of.

He took a step backward, away from me. It was devastating, to be hurting so deeply, to see my pain echoed on his face through the torrents of my tears. I couldn’t stand to feel like that, like I was losing him. I needed his comfort and to comfort him the only way I was sure that he would let me—I lunged for him, seizing his lips with mine.

It took only seconds for him to give in to me, and then he was the way I liked him most, dominating and in command. And I took the reverse role and gave myself over to him.

“Alayna,” he growled. His hand found my breast again, and he kneaded the ache away as he devoured my mouth. He wrapped his other arm around me, drawing me to him so tightly I felt consumed from all sides. Even inside, the flames of lust licked intensely, my arousal immediately kindled by the welcome assault on my body.