Stolen: A Bad Boy Romance (29 page)

Joanna

“What the hell happened to you two?” I asked, trying to hide my horror as the two of them stumbled into the penthouse. Janson had a busted lip and bloody nose, and Greyson was going to have a shiner in the morning.

“Why aren’t you sleeping?” Greyson asked. His voice was dark and angry as he glared at me. They weren’t exactly stealthy as they banged on the door, trying to steady themselves while they searched for their keys. I’d opened the door before they even inserted a key into the lock.

“Because you woke me up?” I tried not to let my disdain show. I assessed them with new eyes. What I assumed was shit-face drunk was just slightly buzzed. I could tell by their hand-eye coordination that they were a little inebriated, but there was no slurred speech, no outrageous behavior.

They were just clumsy half beaten assholes.

“Did you take the beating, or are the other guys  worse?” I asked, pulling them both in and shutting the door behind them.

“Put on some clothing.” Greyson’s face was red with anger and I looked down. I was wearing a nightgown, but the soft silk left very little to the imagination. And outline of my breasts, my hips, even the texture of my nipples showed through it. Still, the way he said it tempted me not to do as he asked. It begged me to do the opposite. I wanted to strip off and tell him to go fuck himself.

But I walked over to the bedroom and grabbed my robe.

“To answer your question, it was two on five and I feel really bad for their parents. They’ve got some drunk and disorderly charges to deal with on top of the hospital bills.” Greyson seemed pleased with himself even when Janson looked surly next to him.

“You beat up kids?” I asked.

“College men who were under the impression that they were in their physical prime. Don’t worry, we disabused them.” Greyson grabbed me and pulled me down into his lap. It was then that I smelled the wave of bourbon on him. He reeked of it, and yet it set off his own scent and his cologne and just the smell of it on his breath was slightly intoxicating.

I pushed away from him but he only held me tighter. “You are a fucking brute.”

“I know it,” he smiled and then swooped down to kiss me, his lips bruising mine as he took my lips. I couldn’t fight it, not for long. I didn’t want to. I melted right there in his lap.

“Hey, asshole,” Janson said as he sunk down into the leather chair. “You seriously going to do this right here in front of me?”

“What, you wanna watch?” Greyson said a smirk painted on his face.

Janson screwed up his lips and glared. “No, I wanted you to fucking get off the couch so I can get a head-start on this fucking hangover.”

“You didn’t need to drink the whole bottle of gin Vick offered you for ridding him of those idiots,” Greyson answered. He stood and pulled me up with him. I didn’t really understand what they were bantering about, but I didn’t care. He had his arms around me and that was all I wanted. No matter what argument my rational mind came up with that was the truth. I wanted to be there, wrapped up in his arms. No matter what he did.

“Fee for services rendered. Pest extermination.” Janson explained. “We were helping the barkeep with those kids. They were assholes.”

I just nodded.

“Pays to have a job you love,” Greyson answered Janson as he ushered me into the bedroom.

Right. They beat the shit out of people for the fun of it. I forgot. My mood soured, but it was too late. I was in his arms.

The arms of a monster.

Chapter Eleven

Greyson

“I need you to procure the expenditure list of September. I need to sign off on it,” I told my secretary, Lily.

“Do you want October’s as well?” she asked as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. It was her nervous tick, one that I’d picked up only hours after working with her. She fiddled with her hair when nervous. I understood. I made everyone around me nervous. She just wasn’t good at hiding it.. She was eager to please and hard working.

“If you can get it from my father’s accounting staff. They usually aren’t available this early in the month, but you might be able to at least get a projection.”

She nodded. Lily was new, but she was a quick learner. Her brother worked on the line, and he’d spoken to me privately, asking for the favor of a hire. I promised him an interview, nothing more.

But she was qualified, and I knew if she worked half as hard as he did she would be a good edition. I was right, she worked harder than her brother.

And I liked to torment Janson with her because I saw the way he looked at her. He thought she was cute.

“Anything else, sir?”

“Yes, I need to go get David Murphy on the line. His number should be in the company contacts.”

“Does he work in a particular division?” she asked. She meant of Fitzgerald Incorporated or Mizer Group, the two business groups my father was the CEO over. He also had a dozen shell corporations all linked back to them, the master of business and embezzlement. It was an empire built on dirty dealings. My dad was a master of underhanded, one that no one could ever catch in the act, not that they hadn’t tried. I knew that was why we were so careful in our field. We made sure that nothing ever got connected to us. That we were flawless. Because if anything came out, if there was one scrap of evidence, law enforcement would have a field day. I learned to be wary of anyone and everyone from a young age. It was part of my duty as a Fitzgerald.

I was the heir apparent, but David was the next in line.

“Both, actually. He is the VP of human relations over at Fitzgerald. You should be able to get him there.”

I was the VP of finance and marketing, officially, but I also ran Fitzgerald Chrome as the CEO. Clear delineation made between the two of us.

“Yes, sir.” Lily nodded then turned and walked out of my office to her own. She would do exactly as I bade without question. That’s what I paid her for.

I’d never been one for rivalries, and I’d avoided David at any cost. I didn’t want to do what my father begged of me. I didn’t want to execute him.

It was the final step in my development, according to my father. But it was insane. He was my brother and my father’s son. He loved him. Loved us both.

If he was even capable of love.

I wouldn’t do it unless I had to, but my father was starting to send messages. Little notes telling me that I wasn’t going to get out of it this easily. I had to find him. I had to warn him.

Or I had to kill him.

Joanna

I stared at the letter on my computer screen, searching it for some reason not to send it. For some reason not to print it. But I couldn’t. The more I thought about the dinner last night, the more I realized that Greyson’s father was right. I was going to have to live the life my Aunt lived. The life my mother couldn’t live. At least not while I was married to Greyson. Still, I wasn’t ready to call it quits. At least not yet. So I called it a “leave of absence” surely they would allow that, right?

To Whom it May Concern,

Due to life circumstances I will be taking a leave of absence from UMBC effective immediately. I appreciate the opportunity to join such a dedicated cohort, but studies will have to continue independently for the time being.

I’ve appreciated the chance to study and earn my degrees. I will take what I’ve learned with me as I enter a new path in life’s journey, and I hope to return to UMBC.

Respectfully,

Joanna O’Brien

Dammit. I couldn’t believe this was happening. I was getting married, and I had to leave my entire life behind. All because of some stupid tryst. All because my uncle was more concerned with finding a way to bring the Fitzgerald’s down from inside. It was all so fucked up, and somehow I was caught in the middle.

Not somehow. I knew how. I couldn’t say no to Greyson. Fuck, he was a weakness I couldn’t afford. One I couldn’t say no to.

I buried my head in my hands and tried to think of a way out of this mess. It was impossible.

A knock on the door interrupted me. I silently thanked them and stood to answer the door.

“Who is it?” I asked, politely.

“You won’t believe this, but we’ve met.”

“Oh, we have?” I asked. He did look awfully familiar. I opened the door but left the chain on. “How?”

“Last July we were at a mixer together. I’d just finished my MBA at UMBC, and you were there, looking absolutely stunning, in an emerald dress.”

I remembered the party. I remembered that dress, but- oh-  I suddenly remembered him. He was a nice guy, said hello to me. Asked me a couple of questions, about my life. I got hailed by a graduate student in my department, or rather, my prospective department.

I remembered that smile.

“You remember?” he asked.

“Uh, yes,” I said.

“I still wish I’d gotten your number.” That cocky smile that was the one I remembered.

“Is that why you are here?” I asked, confused. How would he have known to find me?

“What? No. I’m David, Greyson’s brother.” I looked through the peephole to see a strong, sturdy face staring back at me, and when I saw those eyes, the same eyes as Greyson, I knew he wasn’t lying. Besides, security wouldn’t have let him up if he wasn’t authorized.

“I wasn’t aware Greyson had a brother,” I said as I opened the door.

That smile, it was the same as Greyson’s too.

“Well, half-brother,” he said slowly as he entered the penthouse. “I haven’t been up here in ages. Really love what Grey’s done with the place.” He took a seat on the leather chair and looked up at me. “I wanted to come and wish you luck. I heard about your upcoming nuptials and thought that you might want to talk. Get to know the man you are marrying from a… different perspective.”

I narrowed my eyes and looked at him anew. This wasn’t a friendly visit. No, this man wanted something. I could see it all over his face now that I was looking for it.

“What do you mean?” I asked, skeptical. I was second-guessing letting him in. Security did, after all, let my uncle up. I needed to speak to Greyson about that, actually.

“What I mean to tell you is that you are making a huge mistake. Greyson is not the kind of man you should even be bothering with. He’s… well, he might marry you but he won’t stay with you. He’s, regrettably, like our father in that department. Ever the Playboy.” He waved his hand away.

“And that’s why you came here, to warn me? I wish I could say I was surprised about him, I wish I could say I didn’t know that. But I do. And the wedding must go on.”

“Yes, our father told me. No choice. You must marry into the family. Your honor, or some such nonsense?” he asked. It was a flimsy premise, that was my argument, but both families were Catholic. It might seem archaic, but it made total sense when you looked at it through that lens. Even James Fitzgerald could not deny it.

I nodded.

“So now you have to marry the playboy jock and suffer the consequences. Is that really what you want?”

I paused. I didn’t know this man. We were just two people who met once, but I felt like, I don’t know. I felt like he knew me. It was those eyes. Those soul-searching eyes.

So I found myself spilling my secrets even when I didn’t want to.

“I’ll have to quit graduate school,” I admitted.

“Do you want that?”

I hesitated. I didn’t know. Not really. I mean, I’d gone in hoping it would be something entirely different, but now that I had to abandon it I second guessed the reasons why. They weren’t my reasons; they were my uncle’s reasons. The mob’s reasons.

“I really don’t know.”

“Well, you shouldn’t have to.”

“But if I don’t marry him-” I started.

“You mean ‘if I don’t marry.’ Your reputation has been tarnished, at least in the eyes of our family by your unwed status. It’s stupid, and primitive, I know, but they are using it, for whatever reason, to join the families.” David was fully aware of the situation.

I nodded. I knew the reason. Or, at least my uncle’s reason. He wanted a spy. Information. Someone to help take the family down.

“I really should’ve gotten your number,” David said, that smile returning. “Now I’m going to propose something that you’ll probably want to deny outright, but just listen.”

I swallowed. “What?” I asked. I’d already gone this far down the rabbit-hole. Why not plunge even further?

“I want you to marry me.”

“What?!”

“Just, just listen. You’re about to get into a marriage that you don’t want anyway. But me, I won’t make you leave graduate school. You might have to take a leave of absence for the rest of the year, but at least this way you won’t have to walk away. Just retake this semester’s classes. We’ll get you medical leave or whatever else you want. I don’t expect it to be an easy marriage, but it’ll save your reputation, and you’ll have the freedom to live your life. I’m not looking to use you, Joanna. I want to give you options. I want to build you up. And I want you to help me build my empire.”

“I don’t even know you.”

“Do you know Greyson?” he asked.

I stopped. Considered. This was all so fucking crazy. I was going to get married no matter what, but what he was suggesting, it was impossible.

“Your uncle has connections, my father could never give me the legitimacy I want. Not while Greyson is his heir. Together your family and mine could create something better. Something new. I know it isn’t ideal, I know you don’t know me. But you have options. You don’t just have to be a homemaker that has to cater to Greyson’s every whim. You don’t have to deal with all of his transgressions and his fuck-ups. I could protect you from all of that.”

“Why would you even want to? I mean, how do I know you wouldn’t treat me any differently?”

“Well, for starters, like I said, you could stay in school. And because I’m educated. I’ve been to graduate school. I know what the demands are. But ultimately, you’d have to take a chance on me. You’d have to trust me.”

Trust him? He was coming up into his brother’s penthouse and proposing marriage to his fiancée. A woman he didn’t even know! But he was offering me a chance at my own life.

Fuck, why did this have to be so hard?

“One moment, I’m getting a rather ironic call.” He stood and walked towards the large windowed wall, answering his phone. “Ah, brother, I was just talking about you.”

I couldn’t hear who was on the other end of the line, but I was pretty sure it was Greyson. I squirmed in the chair and bit my lip

“What? Oh, I’m here, at your place. Making an offer to your new fiancée.” That voice, the way he said it. I knew what I was dealing with. Another monster.

It was what they all were in this damn place. Monsters, liars, and cheaters. And I thought I could walk away from it.

The temptation of continuing my own life wore off, and I knew what I was seeing. A cleverly veiled trap. A man desperate for power. It should’ve been obvious.

“He wants to talk to you,” David said as he handed me the phone.

“Hello?”

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” the voice from the other end of the line boomed back at me.

“What?” I asked.

“Why the hell is he in my apartment? Do you even know what you’ve done?”

“He said he’d been here before. He got clearance from security.” I tried to sound as innocent as possible. I didn’t want him to know what I’d even been contemplating.

“He’s dangerous. Get him out of there. Now.”

“Alright.” I agreed.

“I’ll be right there, Jo. Just, just get him out of there.” Greyson was practically growling as he said it, and I bit my lip. It was going to be hard to do. He had a point he wanted to sell me on, and I knew that he wouldn’t leave unless he got what he wanted. Or at least a hint of it.

“Okay, I’ll try.”

“Good girl.”

I handed back the phone to David and gripped the chair. I had to figure out how to ask him to leave without insulting him. He was dangerous. Greyson said it, and I took his word for it.

“Goodbye, brother dearest.”

“David,” I said slowly.

“He wants me to leave, doesn’t he?” He asked. I blow out a breath.

“Yes,” I said, honestly.

“What is your answer?” he prodded. There it was.

“I, I don’t know. It’s a lot to take in. First I was pushed into this marriage, and now you come along and offer as well? It’s only been a couple of weeks since I got involved with Greyson, less than a week since the engagement, and I haven’t had any time to think. To decide what I’m going to do.” I paused and thought about it. “I really need more time to decide.”

He nodded. I’d opted for honesty, or at least as much honesty as possible in the face of the situation.

“I’ll take it. Better than an outright no. I really wouldn’t have liked that.” I saw a flash in his eyes. That predator drive, just like Greyson, except this was darker. This was worse. I really didn’t want to know what would’ve happened if I denied David. I could only imagine he was capable of the same kind of violence as Greyson or worse.

David stood and headed towards the door.  “I better get out of here before Greyson gets back. He isn’t likely to be too happy with me. Think about what I proposed?”

I nodded and opened the door to let him out. I was almost afraid he wasn’t going to go, but he stepped outside of the door, and I held in an audible sigh of relief.

“Thank you, for hearing me out Ms. O’Brien. It was lovely getting to see you again.”

“Thank you,” I said as I started to close the door.

“I will hear from you?” He asked, expectant. I just nodded and shut it, making sure to lock the chain and deadbolt behind me.

Jesus, Joseph, and Mary, what had I done?