Hooked By Love (14 page)

Josh

After the night I spent with Amber and Zack, I discovered something I’d never thought possible. Never before had I been so happily proven wrong. For the first time since Claire’s departure from our lives and the subsequent hurt and shock, Zack and I spoke to each other like family members—an uncle and nephew on good terms. We spoke about Claire and visited her grave together for the first time in months. Zack was surprised to find out that I visited her on a weekly basis.

Once he realized I really had been trying to get through to him, that I was hurting as much as he was, the change in him was instant. Gone was the bratty act and hostility. And all this happened thanks to a beautiful Celtic angel with eyes like rolling pastures and hair like fire. She stayed with us over the weekend but remained intentionally quiet most of the time, as if granting Zack and me the time to bond. No wonder people were so adamant to keep her in the community to guide those who were lost and wanting.

On Sunday night, Zack came into my bedroom and sat on the end of my bed. I thought he wanted to talk some more about Claire, and he did, but it wasn’t what I’d been expecting.

Zack’s jaw was tense. ‘I wrote you a letter, but it’s best if I tell you in person.’

‘What is it?’ I asked, putting aside the business plan I’d been working on.

‘It’s about some things I found in Uncle Craig’s office.’

I frowned. Zack hadn’t been back to Craig’s house since the funeral. ‘In his office? When were you in his office?’ I didn’t think I wanted to know the answer.

‘The other day, when I made copies of all of his dodgy dealings with the local authorities.’

‘Jesus, Zack. Please tell me you weren’t the one who gave Amber the ammunition to destroy our company.’

His silence was his reply.

‘Oh no. Why? Why would you do something like that?’

‘Because what Uncle Craig was doing was wrong. Didn’t you always tell me we have to speak the truth?’

In one sentence, he had me and he knew it. ‘Well, yes, but …’

He raised his eyebrows. What I said next would either make me look like a man of my word or a hypocrite. I couldn’t risk Zack thinking the latter.

‘You should have spoken to me …’

His eyes narrowed. How could I have expected him to come to me with this when we’d barely said a decent word to each other in over a year?

I held up my hands. ‘Okay, I respect what you did. You made a mature decision and it was the right one. I’m proud of you.’

It was too late to do anything about the fallout. Besides, whatever Craig had coming to him, he well and truly deserved. Somehow, after the dust settled, I’d rebuild my father’s reputation with a company he’d be proud of.

***

When I arrived at work the next morning, it seemed the miserable atmosphere my house had once harboured had shifted to our offices, because when I walked through the doors of the reception area, an overwhelming sense of dread draped over me.

‘Morning, Mary.’

Mary averted her gaze and shuffled a stack of papers on her desk. I knew her well enough to recognise the slightest deviation from her normal body language.

‘Morning.’

I could tell something was off. ‘Mary.’

‘Yes?’ she asked, failing to keep her voice even.

‘Why can’t you look me in the eye?’ I asked. Putting her on the spot was the fastest way to get the information I wanted. No more sensitivity that left things unresolved. From now on, I’d pick a scab until it spilt the underlying problem. ‘Where’s my brother? He was supposed to meet me for breakfast but never showed up.’

‘He’s in the conference room.’

‘Who’s he meeting with? A new client?’

Mary’s face paled. ‘He’s meeting with the shareholders and investors.’

‘But I should be present during those meetings,’ I said. ‘What are they discussing without me?’

She hesitated, looking about the office at her mute colleagues, ‘They’re discussing … you.’

I couldn’t believe what I’d just heard. Me?

Leaning on her desk, I asked, in a softer tone, ‘So tell me what they’re discussing about me that was so urgent that a meeting had to be called before 9:00 a.m., business time.’

‘Craig is trying to oust you from the company. That’s why they’re all here. I’m so sorry I didn’t let you know, but he threatened to fire me.’

‘That’s just his style,’ I told her and stormed down the stairs to the lower floor where the boardroom doors were closed, obscuring the voices inside. I thundered through the doors and came face to face with an oval table of judges and my malevolent brother at the head, by the window.

‘All those in favour?’ he said as I barged in.

‘Oh, I’m sorry. Am I imposing?’ I asked. They clearly hadn’t expected me to be here this early. ‘I see, you made a breakfast date with me to keep me waiting like a fool, Craig, just to make sure I’d get here too late to see you stab me in the back.’

Craig leered at me. ‘Oh God, you’re so melodramatic.’

‘Just stop, Craig. Just stop. You’re really underestimating my intelligence and that of our shareholders if you think they’ll side with your illegal practices any longer.’ I was bluffing, of course, hoping that by mentioning them objectively I could convince them their opinions were valued.

‘I won’t let you stand in the way of our company’s success and progress any longer. Siding with that woman from the centre while she and her lackeys are breaking down the esteemed name of this company and its affiliates is, quite frankly, reprehensible,’ Craig shouted, his tantrum growing as he spewed that same old rhyme of achieving success at any cost.

‘Our shareholders aren’t fools. They joined with us because they knew our father. They knew he was honourable as a father, friend and businessman. They didn’t join us for pure profit. It was about Hilton O’Neil and his honest, personal approach to business, was it not?’ I asked the people around the table.

Many of them nodded in agreement. They needed a reminder of what Berkley, O’Neil and Associates was about, not what Craig wanted them to believe. Most of them had known my father and thought very highly of him. They knew that he hadn’t been a rigid money whore.

‘Our business partners deserve what they bought into: growth and profit based on trust and moral decisions, not the destruction of lives for the sake of making more money,’ I told him as he rose from his chair, face shivering and red.

‘How dare you,’ he shouted. ‘We’ve made a two hundred and fifty per cent profit in the last two years alone thanks to my deals. What the hell have you done?’

‘How about I tell you what I haven’t done. I haven’t cheated, bullied and bribed every official I’ve come into contact with and I haven’t dragged this company’s name through mud. You have.’ I turned my attention to the men and women who sat, listening. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, my father built this company from nothing, using only moderate persuasion and sound business ethics. You know this. Now, because of the Young Minds Centre’s unnecessary, imminent destruction, we are rapidly losing our reputation as a property company bent on the betterment of neighbourhoods. Have we forgotten what Hilton O’Neil was about, what my father set out to achieve with this company?’

I could see their wheels turning, although they said nothing.

‘If we demolish the Young Minds building, we are sure to become public enemy number one,’ I explained. ‘Our name will be synonymous with bribes and corruption. It’s professional suicide in my opinion.’

Craig was beside himself, clenching his fists in silence.

I continued. ‘I have plans drawn up for a new, exciting complex of flats to be erected around and on top of the centre. It would preserve our integrity and bring in quite a profit. It would be a win-win situation for us all and we would salvage what was left of our tarnished name. So vote if you must, but unlike Craig, I’m working towards garnishing more respect for us. Respect builds bonds. Money is expendable. Our reputation is not.’

With that, I gave them a nod and turned on my heels. I went into my office, closed the door and sank into my chair, weary of the constant problems I had to deal with to keep my father’s company adrift. Did I really want to be involved in a company with Craig at the helm? I needed to do some soul-searching; otherwise, my happiness was in as much danger as the centre.

Amber

I was curled up on my sofa in front of the TV, watching a bad old horror film with a proper stash of marshmallows and soup—not together, of course. Outside, rain showered down over London and I was elated that I’d taken two days off this week to catch a break from all the organisation and stress. I’d just dozed off when my phone rang, but I wasn’t complaining.

‘Hello,’ I muttered.

‘Why aren’t you at work, young lady?’ Josh said. ‘I’ve been trying to reach you all day. You’re not ill, are you?’

‘No, nothing like that. Anyway, what do I owe the pleasure of this call?’

He exhaled loudly in a sigh similar to that of his unsettled demeanour from a few nights ago. I didn’t like it one bit.

‘Oh no, Josh. Was Zack mean to you again?’ I asked, hoping I was wrong.

‘No, no, he’s out with his new friend, Paul.’

‘Oh, that’s nice,’ I replied.

‘Yes, it is. Which means I’m at a bit of a loose end.’

‘That I don’t believe for a minute.’

‘It’s true. Do you want to come over? I have some news I’d rather tell you in person.’

My heart sank. Those words usually meant the news was too hard to handle and had to be conveyed where a shoulder could be offered.

‘Do I have to come over? Can’t you tell me on the phone?’ I begged for one reason and one reason only: I couldn’t imagine driving all the way to his house in a state of apprehension about the fate of the centre.

‘Please do,’ he pleaded amicably. ‘I promise, I’ll make it worth your while.’

‘Give me an hour.’

‘An hour? Are you coming via Edinburgh?’ he jested.

‘Yes, but I’m stopping for bratwurst on the Rhine first,’

‘All right, all right,’ he conceded. ‘You’re worth the wait.’

***

Through the thunder and lightning, I braved the roads just before 10:00 p.m., cussing at the bad drivers and praying that my petrol tank would hold out. I could never admit to Josh I was broke, let alone call him if I should break down or run out of petrol. This time of month was the worst for me—a week before payday.

Relieved that I’d made it to his house on my last fuel, I found him waiting on the doorstep. After I parked my Mini a few yards from the house, he ran through the drenching rain with an umbrella to meet me.

He crushed me against him. ‘Hello, Miss Cross. Care to escort me to the house under the brolly?’

‘Why, I would be honoured, Mr. O’Neil.’ I relished his warm body against mine and his all too familiar scent that always bewitched me.

We raced through the rain into the vacant house and he made me some hot chocolate before we sat down at the dining table.

‘You do know I’m a nervous wreck, right?’ I asked him.

‘No need to be. I only have news to share, nothing bad. As a matter of fact …’ He sipped on his steaming beverage. ‘First, the bad news.’

‘Oh God, there is bad news,’ I moaned.

‘Not for
you
, just news in general,’ he consoled. ‘Craig resigned from the company.’

‘That’s good news, isn’t it?’ I asked. ‘Truthfully, I say bloody good riddance.’

‘Well, yes but my dad would have hated to see Craig’s time at the company come to an end like this.’ A flash of annoyance crossed his features. ‘Do you know what he did? He actually tried to get our board members to vote me out! Can you believe that?’

‘The only thing I can’t believe is that you’re at all surprised. I put nothing past that man. Nothing. So what’s going to happen next?’

‘It’s now my duty to rebuild the company’s name. And the good news for you …’

‘What? What?’ I pressed.

Josh deliberately prolonged the reveal to hear me beg.

‘Josh O’Neil!’

‘Okay, all right. The centre will stay exactly where it is.’

‘No! Seriously? Are you serious?’ I asked, in genuine disbelief that the whole ugly matter had been cleared up.

The war was over. I couldn’t believe we could stay. I lunged forward and threw my arms around him. I could hold on to him forever.

I drew back. ‘So, how did you get them to change their minds, then?’

‘I presented a new solution. We’re still going to build flats there, but around and on top of the centre. Not only will it keep the centre going, but those apartments could also house many of the people you guys are helping. It’s perfect, isn’t it?’ he said, very proud of what he’d accomplished.

‘Genius,’ I cooed. ‘Sheer genius!’

My phone pinged in my pocket but I ignored it.

‘Don’t you want to check your message?’

‘Message?’ I asked, having already set the tone I’d heard out of my mind.

‘I won’t think you’re rude, you know.’

Oh my God. Can you be more perceptive of me?

I checked the e-mail. It was from the company I’d applied to for a job, reminding me of my interview the following week. I’d been so caught up in the fight to save the centre that I’d forgotten all about it. But now that the centre was safe, it would be great to finally tell someone the truth.

‘I have an interview for a job next week.’

‘An interview? What about the centre?’

‘As sad as I’ll be to leave it, I really need a better-paying job,’ I said as I put my phone back in my bag.

‘Do you know anything about property? I could always use a PR mastermind to rebrand the company,’ he mentioned in between sips of his hot chocolate. ‘Just putting it out there.’

I imagined working with Josh every day. He certainly wouldn’t let me struggle financially, although I was very aware of the red lights going off, warning me about working with a romantic interest. I wasn’t about to relinquish my attraction to Josh for a job. I’d rather have a job elsewhere
and
Josh O’Neil.

‘I’ll keep that offer in mind,’ I said slowly lowering my eyes with the intent of looking naughty.

As always, Josh read right into it.

‘I have others,’ he replied.

‘Others?’

‘Offers.’

‘Like?’

‘Like … how would you like to stay the night in my bed this time? I promise there’s no danger of teenagers coming home unexpectedly until at least 3:00 a.m., if you catch my drift,’ he said eloquently.

His implications were obvious and my body rushed with ecstasy at his words. With the centre safe, I could rest assured that he had no hidden agenda for getting me into bed. Not that I hadn’t wanted this since I laid eyes on him.

‘You said offers.’ I tilted my head. ‘What else?’

He stood and pulled me into his arms. ‘The chance to share my shower with me.’

The nearness of his body flustered me and my heart leapt in response to his suggestion. Josh and me naked? In a shower?

‘In that case’—I wrapped my arms around him and rose to my tiptoes—‘how could I refuse?’

A groan of pleasure worked up the back of his throat, and I gulped at the heated desire in his eyes.

‘You can’t,’ he said.

My heart hammered in a frenzied rhythm as he settled his mouth on mine and kissed me long and hard, his tongue probing and searching every inch of my mouth. I drew back when his excitement pressed against my thigh.

‘I think we’d better get you upstairs before you explode.’

In the scent of vanilla that permeated the bathroom from the votive candles he’d lit, we took a hot shower. I’d never felt so wanted or desired. Josh didn’t have to say a word; his chiselled body spoke volumes. His breathing was heavy against my neck as his fingers found their way to the inside of my thighs. My skin pulled taut as his lips covered my breast. I let out a little moan when his tongue circled my nipple. I didn’t even remember when exactly, or how, we exited the shower and fell into his warm bed. Our bodies were still wet under the romantic light while lightning flashed through the curtains, illuminating Josh’s striking eyes. They filled me like he did and much later, as my body vibrated with the strength of an earthquake, I knew I never wanted to be without his shadow on me again.