On His Terms (21 page)

She
turned and saw the elevator doors open, but her happy mood turned sour when
Beatrice stepped off in her ivory pumps and matching skirt suit. The word
“cunt” slammed into her head as the other woman came forward.

“I’m
here to see
Rian
,” she said with this snooty little
voice.

“You
don’t have an appointment, and I’d know since I schedule all of them.”

Beatrice
flipped her hair and went to move past Sorcha, but before she made it a step
she turned again and narrowed her eyes at her. “I did a little digging on you,
because I was curious on why
Rian
would confront me
on talking with you and slapping you. Normally he couldn’t care less, but still
I was curious. I thought maybe you had something on him and that was why he
gave a shit, but turns out you really are no one.”

“What
the hell do you really want?” Sorcha had walked away once, but she wasn’t about
to do it again.

“From you?
I don’t want anything, but
Rian
needs to know all about you.”

“
Rian
knows everything about me. I work for him, remember?”
Sorcha said with a bite to her voice. She knew
Rian
had done a background check on her, as would any employer. She wasn’t hiding
anything, and if this woman thought she was going to bust her out on something
she was sadly mistaken. “I have nothing to hide.”

Beatrice
fixed her little ivory gloves and pursed her lips. “No, maybe not, but even if
Rian
doesn’t know about your breeding, I plan to show him
what white trash really looks like.” Beatrice narrowed her eyes at Sorcha.

“You
fucking cunt.”

The
outraged gasp that left Beatrice had Sorcha smiling.

“How
dare you,” Beatrice said, and reared her arm back, intent on hitting Sorcha
again.

Hell. No.

Sorcha
grabbed Beatrice’s hand before it
make
contact, and
brought her own plan right across the bitch’s face. The slap of her hand
hitting flesh filled Sorcha with satisfaction, but then she head the ding of
the elevator and knew
Rian
was about to witness this
little cat-fight for himself. Sorcha pushed Beatrice back, and the other woman
instantly put on a horrified expression.
Rian
stepped
off the elevator, a giant bouquet of flowers in on hand, his briefcase in the
other, and his long black suit jacket hanging around his legs.

He
stopped when he saw them. “What the hell is going on here?” He looked between
her and Beatrice. “Sorcha, are you okay?” He started to look angry, set his
briefcase down on the floor, and took a step forward.

Beatrice
started crying harder. “
Rian
, this little piece of
trash hit me.”

Was
this woman for real? It was okay for her to hit Sorcha, but when the tables
were turned she was acting like Sorcha had just
beat
her ass. In all honestly the slap hadn’t even been hard enough that her hand
stung afterwards. Sorcha had gone easy on the bitch.

“Sorcha,
is that true?”

She
stood up straighter, gritted her teeth, and nodded. “It sure as hell is. And
I’m not about to apologize. In fact, I’ll do it again if she wants to insult me
more.” She stared at Beatrice, and the other woman was barely reining in her
anger, and keeping up the little charade. Beatrice ran over to
Rian
and pretty much threw
herself
in his arms, but he didn’t wrap his arms around her, and instead kept his gaze
on Sorcha.

“
Rian
, didn’t I tell you she was trash? I mean, she hit me.”

Rian
scowled and pushed Beatrice
away, and Sorcha watched in surprise as the man she had always cared about deep
down, but just finally let the emotions out, was clearly about to put the snob
in her place. He turned toward Beatrice and stared at her with this blank
expression on his face.

“You
should fire her on principle alone.”

Sorcha
didn’t bother correcting the cunt that she had been insulting her. Besides, she
needed that damn slap like she needed to breathe.

“Leave,
Beatrice.”

Beatrice
took a step back, looking outraged. “You’re going to let the
help
treat me like this?” Her voice was
rising to this obnoxious tone.

He
took a step closer to her and said in a low voice, “You’re going to leave, and
never come here, call, or try to see me again, or I am going to go to your
father and tell him I am perilously close to breaking off ties with the family
because his daughter is assaulting my woman.”

“Your woman?”
Beatrice asked in that
high-pitched voice that probably attracted dogs. “Since when does a fuck-buddy
constitute as ‘your woman’?”

“Since she isn’t bat-shit crazy
like you.
Now
get out, or I swear to God everyone will know exactly how crazy you are.”

Beatrice
was nearly shaking with her anger, but with a hard look at Sorcha, and an even
harder look at
Rian
, she straightened and headed
toward the elevator. “If you want what’s at the bottom of the pond, then by all
means swim with the garbage.” And then she stepped into the elevator, and,
Sorcha hoped, out of their lives.

For
several minutes they just stood there, neither speaking, but their focus
trained on the other.

“I’m
sorry about that,” he said with a bit of regret in his voice.

“It’s
not your fault.” She was so exhausted all of a sudden, and leaned against the
desk.

“That
should be the last time we see her, especially since the prospect of me outing
her to everyone that thinks she’s normal would ruin her reputation,”
Rian
said and walked up to her. “That is something she
won’t risk.” He handed her the flowers.
“For you.”
He
gave her this cocky little half smile, one that she had seen several times, but
right now it made her warm all over.

“Thank
you.” She took the flowers, and loved that they weren’t anything fancy, just
daisies and baby’s breath, and a few lilies. “They’re beautiful,” she said and
looked up at him.

He
reached out and touched the bracelet she wore. “I’m glad these got to you
safely.”

She
nodded, licked her suddenly dry lips, and knew that what she needed to say
would need to be done now. “Listen, I did a lot of thinking yesterday after I
left your place, well, all week actually.”

He
didn’t say anything, but his focus was directed right on her.

“I
hated you for a long time.” She watched as his throat worked. “But deep down I
hoped that what I was feeling was for a man other than the one you portrayed.”
She glanced down at the flowers. “I wanted you, and felt things for you that
pissed me off because of the way you acted.” When she looked at him again it
was to see this vulnerable expression on his face. “But after that week with
you, and aside from the reason why I was with you, I saw the man that you hold
deep in here.” She placed her hand right over his heart.

“Sorcha,
I—”

“
Wait,
let me say this because after I’m finished you might
kick me out, too.” She smiled, but it was a little forced. “I have feelings for
you. I’m not saying I’m in love, but these are not just passing feelings
either. I’ve felt this way for you for months now, and something I buried deep
inside of me—”

He
stopped her with a hard, passionate kiss, but she placed her hands on his chest
and gently pushed him away.

“No,
just let me kiss you,” he said in this desperate voice, and she gave into him.
The kiss was long, hard and full of this longing need that she hadn’t even
known was there. It was like something had been missing, and until things
happened this way she had been in the dark.

“But
what about what I just said?” she asked against his mouth.

“I
want you. You want me, and I’m not about to let anyone stop me from having you,
Sorcha.” He pulled back, cupped her face in that way that she had grown to love
so much, and smiled up at up. “This is not just sex for me.”

“You
and I don’t fit together, and I’m sure people will bring that to everyone’s
attention.”

He
shrugged. “I don’t give a shit about what anyone thinks. I don’t care if it’s
taken six months, and one week of having you to
myself
,
to have me realize that I am tired of everything else. I just want you, and am
ready to try this out.” There was demand in his voice, and as always his
control. “I will crush anyone that stands in my way, you know I will.”

She
nodded and chuckled, and as surreal as all of this seemed, she wanted t try it
out. If things didn’t work, then they didn’t, but she’d never know until she
tried it out.

“Besides,
maybe I’ll take a long vacation to a deserted island, and bring you with me to
keep me company.” He grinned.

“Getting
away from everything? I think I like the sound of that.”

He
grabbed her under the ass, lifted her up, and kissed her hard again. Hell,
she’d let him take her right here and now, because all she was going to care
about from this moment on was how she felt, and not what anyone said, or what
was on the surface.

Chapter
Seventeen

The following weekend

He
watched her from her kitchen room table, loved that she was in her element
right now, even though that meant she washed the dishes from the meal and
refused to let him help. He grinned picked up his cup of coffee, and drank it
slowly while he watched her over the rim. Truth be told, he could stare at her
all day every day and never get enough. When she had invited him over for
dinner, he had been surprised, but so ready to move forward with this
relationship, or whatever it was they were doing. He wanted a relationship,
wanted her to be a part of his life, and he was willing to wait as long as she
needed to make that happen.

He
already knew the sun had set, but the night sky couldn’t be seen through the
lone window she had. It really did face a brick wall, but she surprisingly
didn’t care, and because of that he couldn’t help but grin. He stood and walked
over to the pictures that lined the bookshelf she had. He saw the pictures of
her and a woman that looked exactly like her.

Her
mother that had passed.

He
glanced at her and saw her washing the dishes, and heard her humming along to
the song that lightly played from the iPod he had brought over for her. He had
filled it with all of his favorites, and some that he thought she might enjoy.
He was actually impressed she had stopped at “End of Days” by Thirty Seconds to
Mars. It wasn’t a slow, easygoing song, but one filled with a lot of heart,
soul, and emotion. Out of Bach, Beethoven, and some of the more modern songs he
had loaded on there he smiled that she chose the one that was devastatingly
beautiful in its own dark way.

He
walked up to her, stopped just inches from her, and placed his hands on her
hips, stilling her. “We never got to finish that dance,”
Rian
said softly against her ear, and loved when he heard her swallow. A classic
song started playing, and he turned her around, pulled her close, and didn’t
bother trying to hide his erection. He dipped his head low, ran the tip of his
nose along the arch of her throat, and heard her breath falter. She smelled
good, like the apple pie she had baked for dessert.

“
Rian
, my hands are wet,” she said on a whisper, and he knew
that the swaying they were doing, and the fact his cock was right on her belly,
moving back and forth, was turning her on.

“I
don’t care, baby.” He wanted her, always seemed to in fact, but the truth was
he just wanted to hold her. He did just that, continuing to move back and
forth, letting the music surround him, her scent envelop him, and the fact that
this woman made him feel things that he never thought his cold heart would
experience.

“I
could fall asleep like this,” she said softly, and he reached his hand on the
back of her head, and pulled her toward his chest. She relaxed against him, and
he rested his chin on the corn of her head, and just held the woman that he was
falling for so fucking hard.

“I
was actually embarrassed and nervous to have you over at my place.”

He
smiled. “I know.” She had seemed really damn nervous when she had asked him
over for dinner, but had even warned him that her place was a tin can compared
to his place. “But you shouldn’t have been. I actually like your place.
It’s very warm
, comfortable, and not cluttered with
unnecessary things.”

She
pulled back and looked at his face. “I don’t know if I should take that as a
compliment or insult.” She rested her head back on his chest.

“A compliment, baby.”
He grinned.

She
wrapped her hands around his waist and sighed one of those contented ones that
made a man feel like he was doing all the right things.