Back in Black (29 page)

Because, in his mind, there was no question about it, Drew didn’t balk. “You are.”

Her mouth firmed. “I see. And do I have anything to say about it?”

“You want me to go on bended knee to ask all pretty-like?”

That image, usually associated with a marriage proposal, stymied her. “No, no, of course not,” she stammered. “But I don’t want you making plans that concern me without talking to me about it first.”

“Fair enough.” He helped himself to a cup of coffee. “A lot of shit has gone down because some lunatic has a grudge against me. It’s bad enough that your car got trashed, but you’re dead level in the crosshairs now, thanks to the media blast.” He sipped his coffee, leaned on the counter, and then gave her a level look. “I care about you.”

A slight flinch of her eyes left him guessing if it was inspired by surprise, or dismay.

“No way in hell am I going to let some slimy little psychopath hurt you. And the easiest way to make sure you stay safe is to keep you with me.” He took another sip, watching her, gauging her reaction. “Right?”

A flush colored her cheeks. She started to answer, and then suddenly she turned her back on him.

Drew lifted a brow. “Gillian?”

When she faced him again, she appeared more composed, at least outwardly. But he wasn’t buying it. He knew her too well to be fooled. He had her on the ropes and he planned to keep her there until he got exactly what he wanted.

Which was . . . everything.

“I suppose it’ll be fine since it’ll surely be . . . temporary.”

Like hell. Drew just waited, curious as to how she’d handle his lack of affirmation on a short-term arrangement. She didn’t know that he had no intention of ever losing her, and once he made up his mind on something, that was that. If she wasn’t already won over, he’d ramp up his efforts.

And in the end, she would be his.

 

 

GILLIAN felt like a fish on a hook, squirming, gasping, and helpless. Drew, damn him, made no effort at all to clarify things for her, and she just didn’t know if his intent was solely to protect her or if, like her, he wanted more.

Subtlety was not her forte. She was a woman used to stating her mind and going after what she wanted.

And, God help her, she wanted the infamous Drew Black.

But she wasn’t bold enough to come right out and say so. Too many women before her had made that mistake and been dismissed because of it. If—
when
—their relationship ended, it’d be because she walked away. Not because he sent her packing.

But in the meantime . . .

Gillian cleared her throat and sought a tactful way to query him on his objective. “So you’re proposing—”

He flashed a grin at her word choice.

Face burning hot, Gillian gulped back the rest of what she’d intended to say. Good God, this was
not
a proposal. “Ah, bad choice of words.”

He shrugged, still amused, which left her more befuddled than ever.

A little irritated to be in this awkward position, Gillian started again. “What I meant to ask is, how long do you think it’ll be necessary for us to . . . to . . .” To
what
? She had no idea what to call their relationship.

“Shack up?” Drew offered.

Jerk. She took a turn shrugging. The base description worked as well as any, and until she could form complete, articulate sentences, she might as well play mum.

“However long it takes, honey.” Drew’s gaze never wavered from her as he pushed away from the counter. “I’m patient—when I need to be.”

That enigmatic statement did nothing to shed light on his purpose.

“I see.” But she didn’t.

Stopping right in front of her, Drew asked, “Why? Does the idea of living with me bother you? Are you so old-fashioned that you want a ring on your finger first?”

“No!” The shrill denial took her by surprise. Gathering herself, she said, “No,” in a much firmer, less horrified tone.

Some vague emotion passed over Drew’s face. “The idea of a ring really spooks you, huh?”

Oh, worse and worse. Gillian had never been so flustered over something so simple, but Drew was teasing her with an illusion of what her heart badly wanted.

Time to be logical and reasonable.

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not in the least spooked.” She forced a small laugh. “All I’m saying is that I understand the logic in being extra careful. The world now knows we’re sleeping together. The cat’s out of the bag on that one.”

Drew narrowed his eyes the slightest bit.

“So why take unnecessary risks? Even though my building is secure, I don’t relish the thought of being alone.”

“Anything could happen,” he agreed.

“And we’re both mature adults who grasp the reasoning behind . . . cohabiting.” She would not use that awful description
shacking up
. “And we both understand that it’s on a temporary basis.”

“I love logic in a woman.”

That tripped her up, but not for long. “Yes, well . . .” Wishing that he wouldn’t use the L word, Gillian forged on. “I’m a very capable person, as I’m sure you know. But after the bomb threat, what happened to my car, and the tragic drama of last night, I see no point to foolhardy bravery.” Glad to have successfully navigated through those treacherous waters, she released a pent-up breath. “Until we figure out who’s behind this nasty business, I’ll stay with you.”

Drew nodded as if bored by that diatribe. Ever so softly, he brushed the backs of his knuckles over one breast, and his voice lowered to that sexy rumble. “So it’s all about security. The fantastic sex doesn’t factor in to your decision?”

Gillian locked her suddenly shaky knees. If he thought she’d deny how much she enjoyed sex with him, he was wrong. “The great sex is an added bonus.” She nudged his hand down to her waist. “But understand, Drew, I wouldn’t live with any man just for sexual gratification.”

Nodding, he drew her closer and said against her mouth, “Just so you know, if you do need a ring, I can get you one, no problem.”

Did he really think she was that shallow about appearances? “I can afford to buy my own rings, thank you.”

He looked very disgruntled with her, but then her cell rang, interrupting things.

Gillian groaned. She just knew who it was, and she dreaded what would follow.

His expression dark, Drew said, “Ignore it.”

But she couldn’t. “I’ll only be a moment.” She sidled out of his embrace and went to the counter to dig her cell out of her purse.

Just as she suspected, it was her boss at the firm where she worked. The second she said hello, the reasoning behind a dismissal began. Gillian had little enough to say in reply beyond, “I understand.”

When the call ended, she closed her phone with a click and . . . just stood there.

Never in her life had she been “let go.” Her entire life, she’d been an exemplary employee who steadily advanced.

Her status had just changed in a very big way.

But she didn’t feel nearly as desolate as she’d imagined—because Drew had given her options.

And speaking of Drew . . . he seethed with concern and tempered anger.

The anger, Gillian knew, was on her behalf. “Well,” she said to him with a sincere smile, “I’m certainly glad that’s behind me.”

“What did they say?”

“In a nutshell, I’m now unemployed.”

“Wrong.” Drew watched her with caution, as if he expected her to start crying at any minute. “You’re working for me now, remember?”

Such an incredible man. “I could hardly forget.”

His scrutiny intensified. “How much were they paying you? I’ll match it.”

Gillian laughed. Amazing that she
could
laugh after everything, but Drew did that for her. “We can negotiate that later. Right now, I want to call Fran and set up a meeting.”

“Couldn’t we keep her waiting a little longer?”

“No.” As she punched in the number, she explained her stance. “Striking while the iron is hot is always a good strategy. The longer we wait to do a press release, the more insane the gossip will be. And we owe it to Fran to get her input before making any decisions. And Drew?”

“Yes, dear?”

She gave him a look for his sarcasm. Fran’s assistant answered, forestalling her conversation with Drew.

“Yes, this is Gillian Noode. I’d like to speak to Ms. Ferrari, please.”

“Certainly, Ms. Noode.” Excitement sounded in the assistant’s tone. “Ms. Ferrari asked that you be put right through. One second, please.”

So Fran had hoped she’d call? Perfect.

While waiting, Gillian covered the mouthpiece and said to Drew, “When we meet with Fran, you
will
be nice. Is that understood?”

“I hear you.” He went back for more coffee, and just as Fran answered, he added, “But as my current number-one employee, you should know that I won’t make a promise I might not be able to keep. How nice I am will depend on how nice Fran is.”

Drew and Fran were both such dominating personalities that they would always butt heads. Gillian figured that she’d have her work cut out for her. But ultimately, regardless of what he said, she knew that Drew wanted to be with the SBC, so whatever it took, she’d make that happen.

As she’d told Drew when she first met him, she was the best at what she did. She could finesse anyone to her way of thinking.

Now she’d have a chance to prove it.

M
ILLIE’ agitation was easy to see when Audrey finally met up with her outside her apartment. Spending so much additional time with Brett had her cutting things close, and she didn’t have a lot of time to spare before she had to leave for work.

“What took you so long?”

It surprised Audrey to see Millie so disheveled. Her hair looked like it hadn’t been brushed yet today, and dark circles discolored the fragile skin beneath her eyes.

“Millie? Are you all right?”

“I’m fabulous,” she claimed. “I finally have him, and this time he can’t avoid the consequences.”

“Drew Black?”

“Who else?” Millie scooped her arm through Audrey’s and they headed into the building. “He’ll be publicly humiliated now that the SBC is firing him.”

“You’re sure that they are?”

“Definitely. It should be happening right about now, in fact.” She laughed with anticipation. “Long overdue, if you ask me.”

Audrey frowned at the gleaming enthusiasm in Millie’s tired eyes. She wasn’t acting like her usual, quiet self. Instead of vindicated, she seemed almost gleeful with the situation.

“Let’s go into my place to talk, okay?”

Millie didn’t answer; she just went along with Audrey as they climbed the short stairway to the second-story landing in her unadorned apartment building.

“He’s screwing his publicist, Audrey. And the hoity-toity woman didn’t even deny it! Now tell me, how is a publicist going to enact change in his public persona when she’s become part of the problem?”

Before replying, Audrey unlocked her door and went in. Once she and Millie were both behind the closed door, she dropped her purse and gestured for Millie to join her on the sofa.

“Tell me everything, but we have to make it fast. I’m running late as it is.”

Millie’s eyes darkened. “So you had plenty of time to spend with Brett, but now that we’re on the cusp of breaking a huge story, you’re suddenly in a rush?”

Knowing her delay had hurt Millie, Audrey tried not to take offense at her comments. “I told you. I forgot my purse in the living room and I didn’t hear the phone ringing.”

In mild rebuke, Millie said, “But this morning we
did
connect, and still you kept me waiting.”

Guilt washed over Audrey. “I know, and I’m sorry. It’s just that—”

Suddenly Millie launched off the couch to stand. “Time is wasting. If I don’t break the story, someone else will. They don’t have the same details that I have, but it’d still dilute the impact.”

Uneasy, Audrey asked, “What details do you have?”

“I know that Gillian Noode jumped into bed with Drew Black almost overnight. I know that she’s been staying over at his house, probably screwing him in every room there.” She shook her head. “She’s obviously a slut. Even last night, when that poor photographer was killed, she stayed with him when any decent woman would have had the common courtesy to show some grief.”

Audrey hated this particular attitude from Millie. She’d never seen it before, so she wasn’t quite sure how to handle things. “Why do we even have to mention the publicist? I’m not sure I see the importance she plays in all of this.”

Tucking in her chin, her expression disbelieving, Millie stared. “You don’t see the importance?” She sat down with Audrey again. She even reached for her hands. “This isn’t like you, Audrey. What’s wrong? Is there some reason you don’t want me to do the story? Because if that’s it, you know I care too much about you to do anything to hurt you.”

Now that was more like the Millie she knew and loved. “I guess I’m . . . starting to look at things a little differently, that’s all.”

Her smile teasing, Millie asked, “Brett Bullman, right? I know you spent the night with him.” She leaned in. “How’d that go? I want details!”

Audrey grinned. “He’s . . . well, he’s pretty wonderful.” Her happiness bloomed. “I’m really falling for him.”

“I knew it!” Millie pulled her in for a hug. “I’m so happy for you.”

“Thank you. But . . .” She held Millie away. “Now that I know Brett, I realize that I’ve been wrong about some things.”

“Namely that all fighters are not the same, right?” Millie shrugged. “I get that. Brett is an exception—a really nice guy who just happens to fight. But what does that have to do with Drew Black and his whore?”

Audrey winced. “Could we stop calling her that? We don’t know what she’s thinking or feeling. She could be in love with Mr. Black.”