I gnashed my teeth in frustration at his deliberate obtuseness. “Jake, I’m not some helpless woman who needs rescuing. I won’t take charity.”
“This is not charity, damn it. And I know you’re not helpless. Although I swear to God, things sure as hell would be easier if you were.” I could hear a trace of anger in his voice before he drew a deep breath. When he spoke, he sounded calm again. “Your neighborhood is not safe. Your building is falling apart. A single woman and a teenager are vulnerable. If you won’t do it for yourself, do it for Marcus. Aren’t you worried about him walking home from school?”
“That isn’t fair!” I gasped at the sly attack.
“I don’t care. You’re not thinking rationally. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
“We’re not moving!”
A string of vicious curses blasted out of my speakers.
I took the phone away from my ear and stared at it in astonishment. Jake cursed on occasion, but it was always limited to one-word expletives. He must be extremely aggravated to lose his cool.
When I heard his words slow down, I cautiously put the phone back at my ear. “Feel better?”
“No! I’d feel better if you agreed to move.”
“No!”
“Fuck! You’re so damn pig-headed,” he grumbled.
“Ha! That’s rich coming from you!”
There was a pause and then a bark of laughter. I blinked. I had not expected that reaction.
“Damn, my mom’s going to love you!”
I could not keep up with this man’s mental acrobatics. “What are you talking about?”
“Poor baby. You won’t even see it coming.” There was a note of pity in his voice.
My hands rose to massage the throbbing ache in my head. “God! I’m getting a headache talking to you. Nothing you say makes any sense.”
“I’m sorry, baby. The headache will go away if you stop fighting me.”
For some reason, that sent me into peals of laughter. Jake was so unrelenting in everything he did. “You can’t stand to lose, can you?” I gasped between giggles.
“No, I can’t. Remember that.”
It was a warning and I sobered, thinking about what he wanted from me. Maybe I should just give in. An affair with a sexy, handsome billionaire doesn’t sound so bad.
Until he breaks your heart, a voice pointed out.
I sighed. “Jake–”
“Fine, we’ll talk about it tomorrow.”
“We will not–”
“I’ll see you bright and early, baby. Sweet dreams.” Click.
I glowered at the phone. I wished he had remained the aloof, cold boss from a month ago.
Liar.
My spine lost its starch. Jake Weston was making me so crazy, I was arguing with myself.
Chapter 10
When I arrived early for work, there was a strange man sitting at my desk, working on my computer.
“Excuse me, may I help you?” I asked sternly, frowning at him.
Light blue eyes in a narrow face looked up in surprise. “Oh, sorry. You must be Cora. I’m Jason Hughes.” He stood up and offered his hand. His handshake was firm and confident.
“That doesn’t explain why you’re at my computer.”
His light brown hair fell into his eyes, reminding me of Marcus. “Oh. I’m just checking on the firewalls on your computer.”
I lowered my voice. “Ah… does this have something to do with the leak?”
He looked taken aback that I would know about the security breach, but he didn’t answer my question. He sat back down and started saving files on a flash drive.
“Am I a suspect?” I asked, aghast.
“I’m just checking your firewalls,” he insisted adamantly.
“Right,” I said sarcastically. “That explains why you’re saving all my files and probably checking my browser history. Just so you know, porn at work isn’t my thing. You might find too many videos of kittens playing with balls of yarn. No wait… there might be some food porn.”
He snorted with laughter before he caught himself.
“Cora, why don’t you come into my office while Jason does his thing?”
I looked over to see my boss leaning against the doorjamb with his arms crossed over his chest. His suit was dark gray with subtle black stripes and fit him to perfection, emphasizing the strong lines of his body. His blue shirt made his eyes look electric. I stared at his mouth, noticing that lower lip was slightly fuller than his upper. Recalling the feel of his lips moving on mine, I swallowed with difficulty.
The smirk forming on his mouth let me know that I had been gawking at him like a schoolgirl. I growled at myself and jerked my gaze away. “Let me grab your calendar.”
“There’s no need. I had to make some changes to the schedule before you came in.” He stepped aside to let me pass and closed the door.
To my surprise, Jake dived right into work and dictated a memo for the next meeting of the board of directors. I told myself I wasn’t disappointed he was all business. This was what I wanted, I assured myself.
A knock on the door interrupted us.
“Come in.”
Jason stuck his head in the door, “All done. Cora was the last of the computers on this floor.”
“Thanks, Jason. Let me know if you find any issues.”
“Will do.” Jason looked over at me with a small smile. “Nice to meet you, Cora.”
I smiled warmly. “You, too.”
Jason closed the door. I turned back to Jake and was taken aback by his dark expression. “Jake, are you okay?”
“Do you have to flirt with every male in your vicinity?” His eyes were narrowed in anger.
Stunned, I could only make a gurgling sound at the back of my throat. I jumped to my feet and put my hands on my waist. “You have got to be kidding me! What the hell is wrong with you, Jake Weston? I can’t even be friendly with someone without you accusing me of being a bimbo? First it was with your brother. Then it was with Dale Richards. Now it’s with your own head of cyber security! I’m glad you think so highly of me! Next you’ll accuse me of sleeping with the security guard.” I forcefully threw the memo pad and pen onto his desk. His baseless accusation pushed me over the edge. “That’s it. I quit!”
If I hadn’t been so incensed, I would have laughed at the sequence of emotions that marched over his face: surprise, shame, remorse, and dismay at my last statement. But fury was riding me hard. I pivoted on my heels and stomped to the door. Just as I turned the doorknob, two large hands slammed into the wood, preventing me from opening the door.
“I’m sorry, Cora,” his raspy voice whispered into my ear.
“Let me go, Jake. I’m no longer your employee. I can’t work for someone who thinks I’m a manipulative nympho.”
He grasped my arms and spun me around to face him. His face was etched with contrition. “I’m sorry, baby. I was….”
When he hesitated, I supplied, “Unfair? Obtuse? Idiotic?”
He grimaced. “I was going to say jealous, but I’ll accept all three if you won’t quit.”
His answer set me back on my heels and I searched his face for the truth. “What? Why would you be jealous?” I couldn’t imagine why this man would be jealous of anyone. If anything, he left a trail of envious men and salivating women wherever he went.
Red spots flagged on his slashing cheeks. “Because you seem so at ease in their company! You smile and laugh with Troy, but you argue with me. You go out to lunch with him, but you only have lunch with me when we work.”
“I argue with you because you’re an ass. And I went out to lunch with Troy once,” I pointed out.
“And you came back looking like you were best friends,” he countered.
“And I went because he dragged me out of here!”