Wicked Valentine (Sizzling Encounters) (8 page)

“Hey, are you OK?” He sat on the bed next to her and frowned.

Nodding because she couldn’t say the words, she prayed she wouldn’t make a fool of herself and start crying. Now that she wasn’t fighting it, she realized Max was the man she wanted. Her feelings for him had started way before the Wicked Valentine’s Day Ball. It had taken that night to open her to seeing him not just as a lover, but as the caring, warm man he was…the man that wanted to spend time with her.

She gulped. “I’m fine. Just tired still, I guess.” She ate in silence for a moment before his voice broke through her thoughts.

“Why didn’t you mention you’re being threatened?”

Her head jerked up. “How do you know that?”

His glare intensified. “You have a message on your answering machine.”

“Oh. Don’t worry about it.” She pushed the food around, finally gave up, and passed him the tray.

He put it on the dresser and returned to sit on the bed next to her. “What do you mean ‘don’t worry about it’? A threat is something to be taken seriously, Nina.”

She bit her lip. “I did. I’m not the kind of person to go looking for trouble, so this is new. I went to the police, but they think it’s just an ex-boyfriend who’s not ready to let go. They don’t think it’s going to go anywhere.” She shrugged. “It’s just been messages so far, so I don’t think it will get any worse.”

The concern in his gaze made her breath catch.

“You are important to me. We are not taking chances. I’ve called on a friend, and he’s going to do some research and get back to me. In the meantime, we’ll make sure you’re always with someone.”

She smiled. “Yeah? Who’s going to take the daunting task of hanging around me day and night?”

He sighed. “I guess it will fall onto me. I’m known to be a masochist.”

She glared at him, and his laughter boomed inside the room.

She gasped. “So that’s how you want to play it, huh? Fine.” She slapped the empty spot on the bed right next to her. “Get your ass over here and snuggle with me.”

Before she had a chance to blink, he hopped over to the other side of the bed and curled his arms around her. She sighed and closed her eyes. Her heart melted for him all over again.

“Don’t worry, I got you sweetheart.” Those were the last words she heard before she fell asleep.

Chapter Nine

“Are you serious?” Alex asked over the phone line.

Nina laughed. “Yes. It was so cute. He was so embarrassed I had to reassure him that I’ve watched Star Trek too.”

Alex snorted. “Yeah. You watched it because you had a crush on Captain Kirk.”

“It doesn’t matter why I watched it.” She giggled. “The point is that it made him relax, and now we can watch it together.

“But he doesn’t look like a geek,” Alex complained. “That’s not cool for the poor guys that don’t look as hot as he does.”

She grinned. “Oh you should see some of the pictures his family showed me of him as a teen. He was all tall and scrawny.”

“Aw. Did you tell him about how ugly you were as a teen?”

“Hey!”

Alex laughed, and laughed. “I’m sorry. We both know you have never been ugly a day in your life. Even when you used to wear glasses before your laser surgery, you had that whole smart-sexy thing going,” Alex groaned. “It was annoying.”

“You do amazing things for my ego, you know?”

Alex snorted. “Yeah, OK. I’ll chat with you later. We’re going to buy furniture for the nursery.”

Nina grinned in delight. “Don’t forget we get to do our own shopping this weekend.”

“Like I’d ever forget shopping with you. Ok. Love you.”

“Love you too. Bye.” She stared at the phone for a moment before hanging up. She was really lucky she had Alex, or she’d be really lonely.

Later on, Nina stared at the appointment book in front of her, not really seeing the notes. Her mind wandered to the past few weeks. A smile tugged at her lips, and happiness took hold of her heart. She should’ve listened to her inner voice and given Max a chance long ago.

“Sabrina!”

At the sound of Eve’s harsh tone, Nina raised her head from the book, frowning. Eve looked ready to spit fire. Her face was flushed, and there was an angry purse to her lips. If she didn’t know better, Nina would swear Eve wanted to hit her.

“Is everything all right, Eve?”

“No, everything is not all right!” She stomped toward Nina’s desk and stopped in front of her, glaring.

“Well, what’s the problem?” She stood, no longer feeling comfortable with Eve looking down at her.

“It has come to my attention that you and Maxwell are seeing each other.” She said the words as if it were something dirty.

Nina’s blood heated, and her anger rose slowly. She knew things would come out at some point, but Eve’s reaction was uncalled for. She and Max had kept their professional relationship separate from their personal life. A personal life she loved and didn’t want Eve or anyone else messing up.

“We are.” It felt good to finally come out in the open and tell the world. She loved Max and wanted to spend her life with him.

“You stupid little girl,” Eve hissed. “Don’t you know you’re a nobody for someone like Max?”

Nina glanced past her glass wall to the cubicles outside her office where people stopped to look at them. Eve’s loud words were carrying outside. She stepped around her desk and stopped in front of a fuming Eve.

“Eve, I really don’t see how my relationship with Max is any of your business.”

Eve smiled. A cold, evil twist of her lips. “I’ve been catering to Maxwell for the past five years, little girl. If anyone is getting him, it’s going to be me.”

Was she for real? Nina’s gaze raked down Eve’s short-cropped raven bob, down her tight, red skirt suit, and ending at the tiger-print pumps. Eve was older than Nina, but she had the style of a woman on the hunt. What Nina never realized was that she was on the hunt for Max.

“Eve, Max has never shown any interest toward you.” Max had always been the ultimate professional with every one of his employees. And that included Eve.

“It was only a matter of time before he saw me as something more,” she spat. “But you had to ruin it.”

“Have some self-respect, Eve! He doesn’t want you!”

“You don’t know that! We grew closer with each late meeting and trip we took together.”

Nina shook her head. “Are you blind? Max does not want you.” She softened her voice, dropping some of the anger over Eve’s interest in Max. “He doesn’t want you because he wants me.”

Eve’s features cleared to a stone-cold, empty look. “You are not going to mess up my chances with Max.” She cocked her head and stared Nina straight in the eyes. “In a few minutes, everyone in this office and each of Max’s clients is going to get an email containing photos and videos of you and Max.”

The oxygen in Nina’s lungs froze. “You wouldn’t do that. You’d end up hurting Max. I thought you cared about him.”

“I do. And I’ll be the one here when he sees that the email came from you. I’ll help him clean up the mess you created in your attempt to bring down his business.”

Nina gasped. “You crazy bitch!”

Eve shrugged, smiling. “I might be crazy, but you’re not going to chance me sending that email and him losing his employees and clients, will you?”

If she argued with an obsessed woman, she might do more harm than good. “You’re right. I won’t. I’ll go.”

“Excellent. See that you get your stuff and are out of here in the next ten minutes. Security is on the way to escort you out.” She turned on her heel and walked out.

A crowd stared into Nina’s office, looking at Nina with gloomy faces.

A moment later her assistant walked in, put a box on her desk, and left, tears streaming down her face.

She picked up the phone to call Max and warn him about Eve when two security officers came through her door.

“Ma’am. Please put the phone down. You are no longer allowed use of company property,” one of them said. Fine, she’d call him from her cell phone.

“We’ll wait by the elevators to escort you out of the building when you are finished.”

Clearly Eve, in her irrational world, didn’t think Nina and Max would talk again. Nina would suggest to Max that Eve be mentally evaluated. Something about the dead look she’d given her had chilled Nina to the bone. The word psychopath ran through her mind.

She’d just put the stuff on her desk in the box when Max marched in.

“What the hell is this I hear that you’re leaving?” Panic covered his face.

“Max, calm—” She glanced past him at the open doorway. No longer was anyone attempting to look like they were working, but they all stared with open fascination into her office.

“No! You can’t leave.” His voice turned demanding, and Nina’s brows lifted in surprise.

She eyed the doorway again, sure Eve would return and make a big scene. Max’s business would take a big hit if she sent that email. “Max, really you just have to listen—”

He shook his head “I won’t let you go.” He stepped around her desk. “I won’t lose you.”

“But I’m not—”

He grabbed her arms. “I love you!”

“What?” Her eyes widened.

“I love you, Nina.”

She swallowed. “You do?”

“I do. I love you.” He nodded; a desperate edge sounded in his words. “The time we’ve spent together has been the best of my life.” His soft words seeped into her pores and settled in her heart. “And I’m not letting you go.”

“I love you too, Max.” She eyed the door again.

“Let them hear,” he said. Raising his voice, he turned away from her and took steps to the open door. “I love Sabrina, and if anyone has a problem with it they are free to leave this company. I don’t know why I allowed Eve to create that stupid policy to begin with, but as of now, it’s done. Employees may date each other. As long as it doesn’t interfere with your jobs, it will not affect your position here.”

The floor broke into applause. Nina gaped at the scene. It was unreal. The applause stopped suddenly, and Eve appeared at the entrance.

She glared at Nina. “What are you still doing here?”

“Eve,” Max said, catching her attention. “You’re fired.”

“What!”

Color rose over Eve’s pale face.

“But Max,” she sputtered, “I’m your most loyal employee!”

“I don’t know what gave you the impression you could take photos of me and Sabrina. Photos of things we did on our own time to try to blackmail me. And threaten her.” He glared at Eve. “I had the threatening calls investigated. Guess who they led back to? You, Eve,” he growled, fisting his hands at his side.

It was Eve. All this time she’d been blaming her poor ex-boyfriend, and Eve was the one threatening her.

“How dare you?” She launched herself at Max and slapped him so hard the sound reverberated in the room.

Nina rushed around her desk and pulled the other woman off him. When Eve tried to slap her too, Nina threw a perfect right hook that would’ve made her cousin proud.

Eve screamed as the crunching sounds of her nose breaking filled the air.

Security rushed inside and grabbed Eve by the arms. Blood dripped down her face, covered her jaw, and dirtied her suit.

Max pulled Nina to stand by his side. “Call the police. I’ve been in contact with someone down at the precinct just a few minutes ago, a Detective Miller. He said people would be here shortly to arrest her for blackmail and making threats against my fiancée.”

Once the two security guards walked out, Nina turned to Max. “Anything you want to tell me, Maxwell?”

He trailed a finger down the side of her face. “I can’t live without you. I know we haven’t been dating long, but I want to be with you. I’m ready to make a commitment now. I want to know if you are too. Will you marry me?”

She threw herself into his arms. “Yes. I’m ready also. I will marry you.”

He kissed her, a sweet meeting of the lips.

“What are you grinning about?” She sighed and leaned her head into the crook of his shoulder.

“Remind me not to piss you off.” He joked and lifted her hand to inspect her fingers. “That is some right hook you have there.”

“And don’t you forget it.” She giggled.

Epilogue

“So, you thought you were the only one that could play matchmaker, huh?” Alex taunted and ate a French fry.

Nina grinned at the desperate way Alex devoured the fries. “Good fries?”

Alex held a fry by her lips. “Oh my god, you have no idea. These things are like drugs. I can’t get enough of them.”

She wanted to ask Alex what she was going to do about the dress that no longer fit for Nina’s wedding, but she figured that wasn’t important.

“I’m glad I was able to talk Lucky into coming to plan my wedding. She’s doing the preliminary stuff over the Internet, but she’ll be heading this way in a couple months. I still can’t believe you gave Max personal information about me.” She eyed Alex with interest. “What exactly did you tell him?”

“Nothing bad.” Alex sipped her tea. “I just gave him all the information about your favorite perfume, food, desserts, color, etc.”

She sighed. That wasn’t too bad.

“Oh, yeah. And I told him you are the biggest freak and love kinky shit.” Alex grinned.

Nina’s eyes went wide. “
Que mala eres
. You really are bad.”

“Hey, it got you the man you wanted and some hot sex.” Alex shrugged. “I’d say that’s a win-win.”

Nina smiled and turned to glance at Max and Andrew by the bar. She loved visiting Come Again. The bar was one of her favorite spots. Both men turned to glance at them. Andrew chuckled. Nina looked at Alex, who was waving a French fry and throwing air kisses at Andrew.

Nina’s gaze connected with Max, and the need for words was unnecessary. The way he looked at her, with a mixture of love and lust, said it all. She licked her lips and watched him tilt his head and motion to the glass cubicles. They hadn’t tried those yet.

She grinned and stood. “I’ll be right back.”

Alex’s soft chuckle sounded behind her as she walked into the cubicle Max had gone into. “Sure you will. Have fun.”