Teasing The Boss (20 page)
“Of course you’d show up here,” sneered Mark.
~~~~~
Simon took in the situation as quickly as possible. Grace stood toward the back of the entryway, just a few steps away from her office, her face pale as a ghost. A woman who looked vaguely familiar was about a foot from the door, but she didn’t seem too fazed by the events around her.
DuFord looked as though he’d seen better days. His usual charming veneer had slipped away, and in its place was someone on the edge of losing it. As long as he didn’t lose it anywhere near Grace, Simon could deal with that crazy. This was too close for comfort.
“Mark, what are you doing here?” he asked calmly.
“Why does everyone keep asking me that? I want my money back, West, and I want it now.”
Simon once again glanced between the strange woman and Grace. “Why don’t we let them go and then we can start talking business together?”
Mark reached behind his back, and the shock of fear that marred Grace’s features told Simon about the gun before Mark ever pointed it at him. “I’m not fucking around here. Now I want you to get me my money back. What do you need to do? Call a guy? Get on a computer? I don’t care, but you better do it now.”
Despite the crazed look in his eyes, the gun was steady in Mark’s hand. Between him, Grace, and the other woman, they outnumbered Mark three to one, but any chance of overpowering him was out the window.
Simon held up his hands. “I’ll do whatever you want, okay? Just put the gun down.”
Mark turned the gun on Grace, and Simon felt his blood run cold. No. Whatever he did, he had to make sure he got Grace out. “I said I’d help you!” he shouted.
A wicked smile tugged at Mark’s lips. “Grace, grab your computer. If you’re not back here in five seconds, I’m shooting sugar daddy in the leg.”
“I’m getting the laptop!” she blurted out as she backed away, keeping an eye on the gun at all times.
As calm as he tried to stay, his heartbeat kicked up a notch for the few seconds Grace was out of sight. This could be his only chance. If he tackled Mark right this second, Grace might be out of the line of fire.
But the door was wide open. As long as there was even a one percent chance of her getting shot, it was too much. His best chance was to give DuFord exactly what he was asking for and deal with him once Grace wasn’t in the crossfire.
Grace emerged with her laptop, and Simon’s eyes were fixated on the gun that followed her every move.
She stopped as she got closer to Mark. “Where do you want it?” Her words were nice enough, but Simon saw the venom in her eyes.
Stay calm
, he tried to mentally tell her.
Keep your cool and we’ll get out of this
.
“Put it over there.” Mark motioned with the gun to the desk next to the other woman.
Simon quickly glanced at the brunette. Who the hell was she? Why didn’t she seem scared?
Grace obediently set the laptop down and Simon turned back to the immediate threat. “It’s going to take me a minute to log in.”
“Just get it done, West.” Mark moved to stand behind Simon.
It went against everything in him to not look at the enemy, but Simon focused on the task at hand. He pulled up the bank website and pushed the laptop to the side, away from the girls. “I can transfer the money, but I need you to log in for me to transfer it over.”
“Bullshit. You have my password already,” DuFord muttered.
Simon took a breath and turned to look DuFord squarely in the eye. “The fastest way to transfer money these days is online. Did you need Internet passwords when you stole money?”
DuFord’s lip curled up, but he didn’t answer. Instead, he elbowed Simon to the side.
Simon made eye contact with Grace. Her eyes widened, but he didn’t have time to argue. The brunette gave him a subtle nod of understanding, and he turned back to Mark. He held the gun in his left hand, the side closest to Simon and the women, so he had to type one-handed. And if Simon was right, at least one letter would need the shift key.
As soon as DuFord’s focus shifted fully to typing, the hand holding the gun relaxed and Simon lunged forward. He made the gun hand his first priority and slammed it into the corner of the desk. The gun clattered to the floor as DuFord slammed his fist into Simon’s face. Even as he stumbled back a step, Simon made sure the gun was out of DuFord’s reach before he lunged again, this time swinging for DuFord’s throat.
His punch landed right on target, and DuFord coughed for air. Out of the corner of his eye, Simon saw the brunette. Shit. They were supposed to slip out the door just inches away from them.
But he stopped being angry when he saw the gun in her hand. “Both of you slowly back away,” she said calmly.
Simon met DuFord’s gaze, but the other man seemed just as confused as he was. But at least DuFord seemed to have a healthy fear of the gun pointed at him.
Simon eased away. “Who are you?”
A movement caught his eye, and he saw Grace in the doorway. “Call the police,” he called to her.
“No need,” said the brunette. “Jennifer Harley, NYPD. I was sent here to watch Ms. Bell.”
Grace’s jaw dropped. “You’re a cop? Why didn’t I…oh.”
Everything clicked for Simon about the same time. “You were here to find out about me,” he said.
Jennifer tightened her lips. “The district attorney wanted a better case since he knew your legal counsel would be top of the line. This wasn’t quite what I was expecting.” She glared at DuFord.
“You’re a cop?” he asked with a not so subtle note of disbelief. “This is entrapment. You lured me here and that woman made me do this!”
Jennifer raised a brow and for the first time that week, a wave of true relief washed over Simon. DuFord had finally dug himself a hole there was no getting out of.
But DuFord wasn’t done trying to talk his way out. “It’s him you should be arresting! He’s a common criminal. He emptied my bank accounts without breaking a sweat. Who knows how many others he’s ripped off! This man is dangerous and needs to be stopped.”
The cop glanced to the computer and back at Mark. “They don’t look empty to me. Unless you think ten million is empty. In which case, I don’t feel bad for you.”
DuFord’s eyes went wide and he shook his head side to side. “No…That’s not true! They stole my money!”
Grace took a step forward. “I told you over and over. Simon and I didn’t take anything from you.”
Simon did his best to hide his grin. Karina had come through for them. She put her neck and job on the line to make DuFord think he’d been the one ripped off for once.
Unable to stop himself any longer, Simon ran to Grace, picked her up with the force of his hug, and buried his face in her hair. “I was so worried about you,” he breathed.
“Me?” she squealed, leaning back. “He was just about to leave when you barged in here! I had everything under control.”
Jennifer cleared her throat. “Actually, I had everything under control. Seeing as how I had the gun and called the police.”
“The police will back me up!” yelled DuFord.
“Yeah?” asked Simon. “I’ll take that bet. All those people you’ve had in your pocket for so long won’t be willing to be dragged into your mess. The second you get paraded into that police station in handcuffs, all the influence you had in this city is going to disappear.” After what DuFord had done in front of an officer, there was no digging out of this hole. For once, he would pay for his crimes and Simon could finally move on.
“I need wine,” muttered Grace. “And a bath. And chocolate. And two days of solid sleep.” She looked up at him. “What do you think?”
He grinned down at her. “As long as you have all those things with me.”
Karina set down her empty coffee mug. “I really should be going.”
Grace stood and shook her head. “You can’t go! You just got here. What’s the point of being unemployed if you can’t hang out with friends as long as you want?”
“Don’t call it that!” Karina grinned. “It’s a sabbatical. Collecting my thoughts and figuring out what I want to do.”
Grace tightened her lips, fighting the rush of guilt that raced through her.
“Don’t look like that!” yelled Karina. “I quit, remember? It was a bad job and Daton was a dick. When I’m ready to get back to it, you and Simon will be the first ones I call.”
Grace narrowed her eyes. “Promise?”
“Promise.” Karina picked up her purse.
“If you need to stay here while you get back on your feet, that’s fine,” insisted Grace.
But Karina was already at the door. “Tell you what. I did you a favor. A big, massive, I could’ve been fired if anyone found out favor. So I’m going to go and enjoy my trip. But when I come back, I’ll make you repay the favor.”
“Call me if you need anything. I’m great at getting upgrades,” added Grace weakly as Karina waved goodbye and walked down the hallway. Before Grace could close the door, the elevators opened and Princess emerged, Simon close behind.
Her heart kicked up a notch as he came closer, and she tried not to grin. They’d officially been living together for two weeks. Really, she should be getting sick of him by now.
But no. Every time he was anywhere close to her, her body decided to act like a sixteen-year-old girl seeing the star quarterback for the first time ever.
He looked up and smiled at her, and Grace mentally calculated how quickly she could get him into the bedroom.
“Hey,” she said as he and Princess crossed into the apartment.
He expertly unhooked the leash and tossed the dog a treat before she trotted off to her water dish. “Hey yourself,” he said. “How’s Karina doing?”
Grace leaned against the counter. “Suspiciously well. She says we owe her a favor.”
Simon raised a brow. “Favor? That’s never good.”
He inched closer and her gaze raked over his body. The man really did wear a T-shirt well. “Could be worse,” she said as he got close enough for her to feel his heat. After the jog with Princess, he’d probably need a shower. She bit her lip at the thought of joining him.
“Is that right?” he asked softly. “Now that I think if it, I just walked your dog for you. That earns me a favor, right?”
The corner of her mouth hooked up and she tried to look skeptical. “That depends. What kind of favor?”
In a quick motion, Simon picked up Grace and set her on the edge of the counter, sliding between her legs. “I was thinking something involving you being naked. And maybe on your knees,” he said, wicked glint in eyes.
Grace let out a laugh. “That’s a lot to swallow. I might need some more convincing.” She bent forward, pressing her mouth against his.
His hands cupped her face as he deepened the kiss, tongue sneaking in to tease hers. “Then I guess I’ll just have to convince you.”
~~THE END~~
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Have you checked out the other books in the Billionaires in the City series?
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