Thrall (A Vampire Romance) (21 page)

The point of all of it is this: Thorpe is going into a death spiral. Their suppliers are raising prices, their distributors are raising prices, the union is threatening a strike, and there’s a new regulatory issue the company hasn’t yet dealt with. Something about the way the boxes are labeled, a new rule about calories and nutrition facts or something. None of the details matter. The point is, the money coming in is already not enough to cover costs; the costs are bloated. Evelyn stops just shy of helping them, smirks at her own expertise. When she does she looks wicked and wanton.

I keep forgetting I’m supposed to hate her.

Yet I don’t understand her. The Evelyn I remember was wide-eyed and shy, terrified of the world around her, sheltered. The Eve I remember needed me. This… this
ice queen
doesn’t. The presentation reminds me of a cat playing with its prey, without even planning to eat it. This is all a game to her.

She looks a lot like her father.

My hands squeeze into fists.

“Amsel has considerable resources to bring to bear to correct these deficiencies,” she says, beginning her close. “I am not planning to swoop in and replace everyone. Yes, some bloat will need to be shed. Many of your business practices will change, but what I am proposing today is a partnership, not a takeover.”

The takeover would come if they defy her, I realize. It’s in her tone, the subtle way she moves. Everyone in this room is a guppy, in a tank with a shark. I can see it on three of the six board member’s faces. They’re already convinced. She probably took care of this well before this meeting started. If I were a more hateful man my first thought would be she slept with one or all of them, but Eve would never do that. Or maybe I just want to believe that. She was so shy, so fragile. I wonder where that girl went and where this creature came from, with her skin as hard as ice and her sharp claws.

In the same neutral voice she begins laying out the terms, and what Amsel has to offer. It’s very generous, if you’re an idiot. She’s asking them to put themselves in her hand, and the only person who cares less about any of these men than each other is Evelyn. If they’re smart they’ve studied and if they studied they know she’s going to give the company six months to turn around or gut it and pour the money from selling off the equipment into another takeover like this.

One company in five that Amsel has acquired since Eve took over the company has been broken down and sold off to competitors. I wonder if she ever thinks about the consequences of her actions. My father would be disgusted at what his name has come to represent in the circles he traveled. A shell of a company run by a frigid bitch on one side, his ex-con son on the other, a walking embarrassment to the family. God knows I did enough embarrassing shit in my youth, but who doesn’t?

“Thank you, Ms. Ross. We’ll take it under consideration,” Thorpe says.

There’s a note in his voice she doesn’t like, by her scowl.

“You may remain if you like, to hear the counter offer.”

I’m not going to lie. That
 
was definitely my idea.

I saunter up to the podium and open up my attache. I don’t have a projector, nor do I have a presentation. Instead I pass out folders. Thorpe has already seen the proposal, this is for the rest of the board. They open and I see their reaction when they lay eyes on what I’m proposing.

“Eve has done a good job of explaining why you’re screwed, so I’ll spare you a retread of the gory details.” I shoot her a glance. “Thanks, by the way. You saved me from talking myself raw.”

“Young man,” one of the older board members says, “I don’t appreciate your tone.”

“I’m not here to sell you my tone. I’m here to save you from her.”

They all look at Eve. She shrinks just a little into her chair, her eyes wide. When Eve gets mad, her eyes go wide and she tucks her bottom lip under her teeth. She does that now, and her hands go white as she grips the arms of her chair. Whiter, anyway. She’s furious.

Good.

“The details are in the papers I’ve provided. Bottom line is this. I want thirty percent of the common stock, for which I am prepared to pay generously.”

“With what?” Evelyn snaps. “What do they pay you in prison, a dollar a day to stamp license plates?”

“Miss Ross,” Thorpe says, a hint of warning in his voice.

All the color, such as it is, drains from Evelyn’s face. It’s been a long time since anyone but her father has taken that kind of tone with her. I can read it plain as day in her face.

“I’ve provided all the necessary information for your due diligence. My plan is a more hands off approach than Eve’s. I’m not here to eat your company alive, I’m here to keep it afloat. The union and your creditors will get what they want. In addition to market price for the stock, the group I represent will extend an interest-free line of credit to cover Thorpe’s liabilities for the next two years.”

“This is absurdly generous,” another of them says. “What’s in it for you?”

“It’ll pay off when I triple the price of your stock, and I will.”

“How?”

“I’d rather not say in front of the competition, but look at the terms. If the stock price does not in fact triple by the one year anniversary of the day you sign the papers, all the stock I purchase reverts back to you. I’m going to bet with my money that we can turn this around.”

“Who’s we?” the old man says. “Ross has a point. Did you dig out of your prison cell with a spoon and find a treasure chest?”

I smile at him where Eve would wither him with a look.

“No, but my father’s name used to mean something in the financial world and I want it to mean something again. I called a lot of friends, all of whom have been burned by what used to be my father’s company. Again, all the information you need to make an informed decision is in the packet I passed out. Look, I know I’m asking you to do homework on a Friday…”

Four of them chuckle softly.

Gotcha.

“…but it’s me or her. Do I need to tell you what happens if you hand over the reins to her? My plan involves bringing in consultants. Her plan involves removing your entire management staff and replacing them with her cronies. She’ll increase
 
your efficiency, alright. She’ll fire the union workers, close down the plant and hire scabs somewhere else. She’ll cancel contracts with your suppliers and start using substandard product from suppliers she controls. She’ll stick knives in your backs from a dozen directions and squeeze out as much profit from the company as she can until the reputation of the brand is ruined, and when it’s not making money anymore she’ll exercise her rights to tear it all apart and sell everything off to pay off the company’s creditors, which if you research the matter, you will find all belong to her. She’s already got you in her jaws. When you sign her papers she’ll shake you and snap your neck. My plan is a way out. If we fail, you’ll be no worse off than if you sign on with her and go under the Amsel umbrella. If you say no she’ll start the wheels on a hostile takeover. She probably already has.”

Evelyn is staring daggers into me.

“This is a lot to consider,” Thorpe says.

Evelyn looks at him, then at me. She rises abruptly from her seat and leaves her assistant to frantically gather their materials. I look around the room.

“Questions?”

“We’ll reach a decision soon, I think,” says Thorpe.

“I’ll be waiting.”

I give them a winning smile, grab my attache and stride out.

Evelyn is in the hallway.

“You son of a bitch,” she hisses. “How dare you-“

Before I can think, before I can plan, my hand lashes out and I seize the collar of her blouse. Her feet barely touch the floor as I drag her out of the hall into another conference room. She rakes her nails over the back of my first and I let go. She looks at me, looks at the door, and goes for it.
 
She doesn’t make it halfway before I drag her back by the arm and yank the door shut and twist the lock. She rounds on me with a savage backhand that actually flashes my lights. I taste blood in my mouth from a split lip.

“Fucking let go of me,” she snaps. “I’ll scream.”

“You promise?”

“Let
go!”

“
Eve, listen to me.”

“I don’t want to hear your lies. Get your hands off me, Victor. I loved your mother. That’s the only reason I’m not going to have you back in prison
today
. Only if you let go of my arm.”

I give her a little shake. Her eyes burn into me, and as my throat clenches with fury I feel my cock stiffen. God, she’s beautiful.

“Let. Go,” she repeats.

“No.”

“Get off of-“

Before she finishes the sentence I have her up against the wall, my lips crushed against hers. It’s been so goddamn long, almost five years since I’ve touched a woman. Hell, for five years I didn’t even
smell
a woman. If you told me maybe ten years ago I’d go five years without a good lay I’d tell you I’d be fucking everything that moves when I was done.

All I want is her.

There’s not even a moment of resistance. She kisses me back hard, hungrily, so hot. It’s like swallowing a warm spoonful of honey. Whoever called her the ice queen was dead wrong. Her skin burns under my hands. I slip my arms under her jacket, feel her heat under her silk blouse. The feeling reminds me of slipping under a blanket with her, feeling her warmth against me as
 
we lay intertwined.

One hand moves up her stomach and I squeeze her breast through blouse and bra, and she moans softly in to my mouth. Her hands stop pulling at my blazer and instead start hiking up her skirt, up over her hips. Jesus, there’s already a wet spot on her underwear. She starts pushing them down, I pull them down, rip them to her knees and slide my hand between her legs. Her arousal is slick on my fingers, but I just hold her, cup my hand against her sex. A soft sound escapes her lips and she bucks and rolls her hips, grinding on my hand. I push her into the wall and slip my arm around her as her arms wrap around my neck.

My cock is raging, iron hard. I want to fuck her so bad. I could fuck her right here on the floor, I don’t care. I want to explode inside her, feel her quiver around me as I make her cum. My finger slides inside her and it comes back to me, like muscle memory. I know
exactly
where and how to touch her to get the reaction I want, sliding my finger against just the right spot while I move my palm against her clit. She hugs me tighter and pushes her chin in to my shoulder, trembling. Her leg lifts up. All I have to do is get these pants down and get inside her. I have
never
been this hard.

I want to fuck her but I want to taste her more. I drop to my knees and she knots her fingers in my hair, pushes me forward as her hips cant towards me, and I suck on her clit as I slip a second finger into her body and start pumping, finger fucking her while I eat her pussy. She never makes a sound, no louder than a squeak or a sharp inhalation, but she’s so fucking wet I think I might need to roll up my sleeve, a silly thought in the absurd joy of her taste. She tastes and smells just like I remember and I pull my hand away to clamp down on her hips with both hands and bury my face in her hot, sopping wet cunt. I want to get my tongue inside her. She’s shaking now, barely in control of herself, and claps one hand over her mouth. Her other is twisting my hair so hard it hurts.

Just like old times. She used to pull my hair, scratch my back until I bed and beg me
more, more
. A few times she even bit me.

“Please,” she pleads in a breathy voice, before pressing her hand to her mouth.

Her eyes are wide open.

I ease off. No, not yet. She’s not allowed to cum until I want her to. My fingers enter her again as I stand up, yank her hand away and she kisses me as I pin her to the wall and very, very slowly slide my fingers forward and back, curling them just a little to make her knees shake. I swallow her moans as my tongue invades her mouth. I make her taste her pussy while I pleasure her. Her legs are shaking like leaves now, her stomach trembles, and her nails dig into my arms.

Cum. Cum for me you fucking bitch.

Her pussy squeezes my fingers. I just hold them there, feeling the heat and pulses and wetness. She never makes a peep, but her body goes rigid, softens a little, goes rigid again in spasms as her eyes unfocus, look past me. I hold her against me.

It’s not fucking fair. Just let me love you, God damn it. Why can’t I? Why did this have to happen?

“Vic,” she purrs, trying to side her arms around me. “Victor…”

“
I didn’t do it,” I bark at her, my voice strained. Christ, I’m a grown man on the verge of tears. “Eve, please believe me…”

She gives me a hard shove and I step away from her as she struggles to keep her feet, skirt hike dup over her ass, her sodden underwear quivering between her bowed knees.

“You son of a bitch, why did you bring it up?”

“Eve-“

“Beg my forgiveness,” she snaps, standing to her full height, such as it is. “Beg me to forgive you, Victor.”

My hand falls to my side.

“You’re the one that should be begging my forgiveness,” I snarl. “I never
touched
that girl. I never did any of it. All I ever wanted…”

“Liar,” she says, coldly. “You’re a filthy fucking liar, and I hate you. Don’t ever touch me again.”

She stumbles away, and suddenly I feel embarrassed to see her like this as she yanks her underwear up and pulls her skirt down.

“I hate you,” she says, as I open the door.

Blackbird is available now!

A selection from
Paradise Falls
, a serial by Abigail Graham

Scar Tissue

Chapter Eleven

There were heavy footsteps in the kitchen. Jennifer switched on the light, then swung the bedroom door shut and gently twisted the lock, wincing at the sound. The landline phone on her nightstand offered a quiet hiss. Frantic, she turned on the light and looked for her cell phone. Panic throbbed in her temples, ice cold. There was no way out. She needed to call for help and she needed her gun.