Torn (Lords of the City #1) (5 page)

Dressed in a sharp suit tailored to hug the firm lines of his tall, ripped body, Mr. Stafford faced away from me, but the richness of his sandy blond hair and the bulk of his tanned neck was familiar. When he turned around, confronting me with his bright green eyes, green like the jungle, I managed to keep my composure.

“Corey?” I asked uncertainly.

No, not Corey. The man was identical to Corey in appearance, but not in the way he carried himself. Corey was reckless. There was nothing reckless about Mr. Stafford. If Corey was a wildfire, Mr. Stafford was the frost that tamed the flame. He was ice. Completely calm. Completely calculating. Completely in charge.

“A
re you a hallucination?” I murmured.

Though I knew the man before me was not Corey, my body responded to him as if he were. Anticipation pulsed through me. I wanted to run to him, to throw my arms around him and replay the kisses we’d shared. I wished he was Corey, so much that it hurt, destroying my nerves and fears.

He stepped away from the window and moved closer to me, his gaze steady and focused, freezing me with his intensity. “There are no hallucinations here,” he said, his voice deep and commanding, a song I’d heard before. “Welcome to my company, Imogen.”

My mind jumped around, trying to put the pieces together. “How is this possible? Are you a clone? Or a robot?” I looked around. “Are you a hologram?” I wasn’t trying to be funny. I was serious.

Seemingly unamused, he stopped in his tracks, the green in his eyes darkening. “Corey didn’t tell you.” He wasn’t asking. He was stating it like a bad rumor.

“Tell me what?”

“I’m his twin brother, Noah.”

It was hard to accept. Wild, rugged Corey, the hot recluse who tramped through the brush to protect elephants, who carried a gun, whose kisses freed my soul, was brother to Mr. Stafford, the billionaire who came from a wealthy family, which meant Corey did too. I couldn’t imagine Corey having anything in common with Noah Stafford or his company. It was fancy and bright, but it was rigid, everything Corey rebelled against.

Drinking me in with a power that made me blush, Noah was the opposite. Gorgeously polished, he wore his designer suit like a movie star about to walk the red carpet, a man who I imagined smoked fine cigars and drank bourbon out of a diamond-encrusted glass, who never played a hand he wasn’t sure he’d win, who thrived off structure.

“You’re a beautiful woman, Imogen,” he said, addressing me by name once again. The command he exhibited made my heart pound. His eyes locked onto mine, pulling me in with their clout, making me immobile, as if I were chained to the ground, at his mercy. “My brother and I don’t have a lot in common, but I can see why he was so taken with you,” he said, circling me like a lion inspecting his prey.

“Your brother knows very little about me. And I clearly know even less about him,” I stammered, my mouth dry, withering beneath Noah’s gaze. To have such an attractive man with so much power staring at me like I was a present he wanted to take home was disconcerting, making the room spin around me. I clutched my canvas bag, trying to remain steady.

“Tell me something interesting about yourself?”

I gulped. “Something interesting about me?”

He raised an eyebrow. “It is an interview, isn’t it?”

“Yes, of course,” I said, exhaling. “Okay. Something about me. Throughout the years, I’ve collected a lot of photos. I don’t take them. Photography isn’t my thing, but I love the memories that photos capture, especially when the photographer has captured someone off guard, acting completely natural. Growing up, I insisted my grandma take loads of photos.” I snapped my mouth shut to stop the ramble.

He grinned broadly, making his eyes crinkle, as if something I had said brought him great joy. It was a complete contradiction to his earlier imperiousness. “I meant in regards to your qualifications, but I like your answer much better.”

Inwardly, I groaned. No wonder I hadn’t landed a job since graduating. I was a babbling mess, but I didn’t mean to be. Pressure didn’t make me fold, but the air of authority that wafted off Noah was intoxicating, turning my mind to butter.

“Corey never should have given you my name,” I said, faltering under Noah’s scrutiny. “He doesn’t know anything about my qualifications. I should go.”

“You’ll leave when I’m ready for you to leave,” Noah replied, asserting his command as he adjusted the sleeves of his suit, his tan a stark contrast against the white of his dress shirt. “Otherwise, we will have wasted each other’s time, and neither of us wants that, do we?”

“No,” I agreed. “Your time is valuable.”

“As is yours, Imogen.” He sat on the arm of a couch, never losing his focus on me, as if I were the epicenter of the room. “How about you try asking questions about me? You must be curious, seeing that Corey failed to mention he had a brother.”

If he were trying to put me at ease, it worked. The atmosphere was no longer that of an interview; it was a casual conversation. Acquaintances united by a common thread, that thread being Corey. Me, an unemployed but hardworking scientist. And him, the striking billionaire who could crush me with the power enfolded within his eyes.

“Okay,” I said, taking a seat on the couch across from him. Folding my hands together, I set them on my lap. “Do you like photos?”

He laughed. “I’m impartial.”

I nodded, as if it made sense. “Who’s older, you or Corey?”

“Me, by two minutes.”

I believed it. His presence spoke of an older brother type, domineering and likely fiercely protective. It inspired my next question. “Do you miss Corey?”

“Try again,” he said, leaning forward, fixed on me. “This isn’t about my brother. It’s about you and me and whether or not we can work together.”

He was so close, I could smell the mint of his breath. It made my skin tingle, and my mouth moisten. Quickly, I wracked my mind for a question that would prove to Noah Stafford that I would be a good fit for him in his company. To my frustration, all I could think about was Corey and how much the brothers looked alike, as if it were Corey who sat across from me, having returned for me like he promised. If Noah didn’t have the demeanor of a sexy dictator, or a lack of tattoos along his neck, I wouldn’t be able to tell the brothers apart. With the lines blurred between them, my mind couldn’t function properly.

“Hot dogs,” I sputtered. “How do you feel about hot dogs?”

“I once dressed like one when I was a kid,” he revealed freely. “During graduation from my boarding school. I wanted to stand out, to make my mark, and that’s how I did it.”

“You did?” I asked, relaxing. If a man like Noah was willing to admit something so humiliating, then I had nothing to worry about, except that on second glance, he didn’t seem at all embarrassed. He looked proud.

“It made the newspapers the next day. My father was furious. He threatened to cut off my trust fund unless I issued a public apology, but I never did.”

“It must have been hard going to a boarding school, away from your family,” I mused.

Noah kept his composure, but a hint of sadness shadowed his face. “It was what it was. I made the best of it.”

“I went to a normal public high school. I was such a nerd,” I said, laughing, losing myself to the conversation. “I’m big into anime — Japanese cartoons. They’re my favorite. I’ve also read like every comic book there is. My grandma collected them. She thought they would be worth money someday, but unfortunately, she had an awful habit of picking out the most generic ones possible, those that everyone has on their shelves.”

“I never cared for comic books,” he said, but not in a superior way. “People aren’t born to be heroes. We have to choose to be.”

“Is that what you’re doing here? Are you choosing to be a hero?”

“Some would call me a villain, because of my… fortitude,” he said, refracting my compliment. “But I have no time for scoundrels. Knowledge isn’t meant to be hoarded. It’s meant to be shared so that we all can benefit. I was privileged to be born into wealth, but there are certain human conditions that have no regard for how much money a person has or their status in society, like illness. Stafford Scientific was founded on the idea that if we pool our knowledge together, humanity can find a way to save those who need it.”

“That’s honorable,” I said, finding my center and speaking with my own tone of authority. “And I’m not just saying that so you’ll hire me. Whether or not I work here, I think what you do here is very admirable, and I’m thankful you were willing to meet me.”

“Meet me, sir,” he said, his voice low and insistent with a depth that drew me towards him. “Everyone in this company must call me ‘sir.’”

“I’m not your employee yet,” I argued breathlessly.

He sat up taller, maintaining his command of the room. “Tell me, Imogen, if you didn’t think you were qualified to work here, why did you come?”

“Because I’m out of options,” I answered truthfully.

Noah smiled, but it didn’t feel like a smile. It felt like a challenge. “When there is need, there is innovation. Perhaps I can use your need to my advantage.”

“I don’t do innovation. I’m an environmentalist,” I contended, resisting his pull, reminding myself that he wasn’t Corey. My body responded to Noah the way a bee did to honey, but from the way he looked at me, which was neither wholesome or brotherly, my instincts told me I was a game he was playing for the sake of his brother, some sort of twisted sibling rivalry. The problem was, I liked it.

Get ahold of yourself. You have your career to think about. This isn’t about Corey or Noah. This is about your career.

“I don’t do innovation, but I am intelligent,” I continued. “I’m also resourceful, and I’m dedicated. I drove two hours to get here in an old hatchback that may not get me back home. That’s how much loyalty I already have to this company and to you. I’ll take any job you’re willing to offer me, and I’ll do it well.”

“I suspect you will,” Noah perceived. “You were right when you said my brother didn’t know your qualifications, but I do. I make it a habit to know the background of all my employees. You were the top of your class. Your academic supervisor called the dissertation you wrote for your master’s degree one of the best he’s read. Tell me, what did you write about in your dissertation?”

I suspected he already knew, but I told him anyway. “I explored the relationship between humans and their environment. We tend to abuse our positions in the ecosystems we occupy. We take advantage of those below us on the food chain. We remain masters of the kingdom, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have respect for those we control, those we influence.”

Noah listened intently. I could see his mind processing what I said, like a teacher heeding his student. “Yes, I quite agree,” he stated when I finished. “When someone asserts their authority, it’s not for their own benefit. It’s to enlighten those they command.”

It wasn’t exactly what I meant, but I was certain Noah wasn’t talking about ecosystems. He referred to a relationship much more personal. It was inappropriate, but I wasn’t in the real world anymore. Everything about Stafford Scientific was surreal, including the man who ruled it.

“Well, that’s the beauty of being human,” I replied. “We control our own destiny.”

“But what if someone could control your destiny for you?” he asked. “Wouldn’t that be the ultimate freedom? To live without the burden of choice?”

Undone by his vigor, I bit my lip, unable to respond.

Corey,
I reminded myself.
He said he would find me. It’s Corey who I want. Not his deliciously evil twin. Or hero twin. Whatever.

It helped. “No,” I said. “It would not be the ultimate freedom. Choice is freedom.”

This seemed to please him. He smiled, challenging me once more. “You have a lot to learn about humanity, Imogen. Perhaps I can teach you. Is that why you’re here? So I can teach you?”

“I’m here because Corey wants me to be. When he’s finished with his work in Thailand, he’ll return for me.”

His smile faded. “Did he tell you that?”

“Yes. He told me he would find me. I guess being here makes it easier for him. That, and he knew I needed a job.”

“I see.” He looked disappointed. “Too bad for me, but well done to my brother. You truly are loyal, even if it is misguided. We don’t have a department that would benefit from your degree, but perhaps we should. Until then, I’m confident I can find a place for you here.”

“Really?” Flooded with relief, I broke into a huge, unsophisticated grin that would have embarrassed me if Noah had never told his hot dog story. “That means a lot. Thank you. I’ll take whatever you have to offer.”

“My personal assistant will soon be promoted to another department, and I have yet to find a replacement for her. Your timing is opportune.”

I tried not to flinch. Being Noah’s personal assistant didn’t sound opportune at all, not when I was easily tempted by him. Since leaving Thailand, Corey had been the center of my daydreams, and now the same face was staring at me, offering to teach me in ways I couldn’t begin to imagine.

“He saved me,” I revealed, trying to set boundaries so that Noah would understand why I would remain loyal to Corey, no matter how much they physically resembled each other. “I put myself in a bad situation, and he came to my rescue. He does that. Like you, he rescues people.”

“He shouldn’t,” Noah said coldly, any goodwill between us slashed by his iciness. “His arrogance puts him at risk.”

“Arrogance has nothing to do with it. He’s looking after those who can’t defend themselves. Not just me. Others too, including an entire herd of elephants.”

“I’m aware of my brother’s efforts. I receive the statements from his trust fund. I used mine to build this company. His is being wasted on these fleeting notions of his. Most things my brother does are fleeting,” he said poignantly, a warning to me. “That’s where his arrogance lies. If he were as devoted to his causes as he claims to be, he wouldn’t be guarding a single herd of elephants while his money runs dry. He would build something of substance, like set up a foundation. He would sacrifice his need to rebel and commit himself to their cause, raise awareness of their plight here, at home, where there’s money and influence.”