The Intern Serials: Complete Box Set (15 page)

I slam the files on my desk. I scatter them until I spot the
West, #178376
on a thick manila folder. Everything they used in his case is locked up in evidence, but this was a general run down of everything they found and how they had come up empty-handed. I peek out of my office before tiptoeing to the transcripts room.

I tap my foot anxiously as I photocopy everything. There’re a good one hundred plus papers, but I’m not leaving until every piece has been scanned.

After lunch, I place the files back into his office all neatly organized. He has a lunch meeting downtown and told me to order something if I wanted.

I eat my Chinese takeout while reading over scripts of my dad’s case—trying to make sense out of anything that happened that day.

*   *   *

Bentley is gone the majority of the afternoon. He’s texted me several times apologizing for the delay and finally told me I could go home if I wanted. Considering there isn’t much for me to do without him, I take him up on the offer.

I start walking down the hall toward the elevator when one of the reporters stops me.

“Hi.”

“Um, hi.”

“So you’re Mr. Leighton’s weekend fling, huh?” He licks his lips, as his eyes look me up and down. I shudder with disgust.

“I’m his intern, Ceci. Who are you?” I scowl.

“Oh, my apologies.” He puts a hand to his chest, pretending to act sincere. “I’m Mr. Littleton. You can call me Toby.” He continues eyeing me. “I just wanted to meet you.”

“Great. Well, now that you have, I need to get going.”

He looks at his watch, confused. “It’s not five ‘o clock yet. I believe that’s when you’re allowed to leave.”

“Actually, Bentley is running late from a lunch meeting and said I could leave.”

“Bentley?” His eyebrows rise in suspicion.

I clear my throat quickly. “Mr. Leighton.” I swallow as he flashes a cocky grin. Shit. This guy is a complete creep.

“Do we have another Hannah on our hands?”

I raise my eyebrows in question. “Who?”

“Oh,
Bentley
hasn’t told you?” he asks, amused.

“Clearly, he hasn’t if I just asked who she was,” I snap back. “Excuse me, you’re in my way.” I try to walk around him, but he steps in front of me again.

“She almost took this entire company down. Piece by piece, she dug her greedy little fingers into Bentley and stole insider information. The moment she went public with it, it almost ruined us for good. Not to mention what it did to Bentley.”

My eyes glaze over at his words. I had no idea. Of course, how would I? Bentley never told me. I never asked about previous girlfriends. I only knew about his modeling career based off the search I did beforehand.

“Well…thanks for the info. I’m not sure why you felt the need to tell me, but now I’m really leaving.”

Anger—at myself—fuels my power to push him hard enough and out of my way. He gasps and reaches out for me, but I’m already two feet ahead of him and fleeing to the elevator.

Chapter Ten

Bentley

I CHECK MY watch constantly as I sit in my lunch meeting that runs three hours over. I normally schedule my conferences for during the week, but Mr. Welter flew in specifically for me.

I invite Ceci over that night. Although, I saw her that morning, I already miss her—miss touching and kissing her. I hadn’t ever missed a girl like that before. Never.

No matter how many times I see her, it’s never enough. I want more.
More of her.
Everything inside me screams to stop—stop letting her get close, stop letting her in.

But I don’t.

I let her sledgehammer my thick walls, step over the debris, and get right under my skin. Something I swore I wouldn’t do again after my life was almost destroyed before, but I don’t feel in control of it anymore. My heart has completely taken over, ignoring all the flashing red warning signs around me.

We’ve fallen into a comfortable routine—cooking dinner, foreplay, eating dinner, and end up either on the living room floor, the shower, or sideways on my bed.

*   *   *

I wake up the next morning with my arms and legs wrapped up in Ceci. Her back is pressed against my chest and all I can think about is how breathtakingly beautiful she is. Her messy locks are spread wildly on the pillow and her bare skin glows in the sunlight that’s shining through the windows. Her face looks soft and pure as it relaxes against my arm that’s wrapped under her. She looks absolutely…
stunning
.

She’s an addiction I never knew I wanted, a feeling of never having enough, never touching enough, never smiling enough. She made me
that
person. That love-sick puppy dog that craves her like my last meal. That person I swore I’d never be—that person I never
wanted
to
be
.

She startles awake, and I instinctively wrap her in closer to me, not wanting to let her go.

“Good morning.” I kiss her shoulder softly. “Did you sleep well?”

“Mm hmm,” she moans, squirming against me. “I don’t even remember falling asleep…”

I smile lightly. “You passed out pretty quickly after—”

“Oh, my god…my body. My legs,” she interrupts. “They feel like jelly.”

I rub a hand up and down her arm, feeling the goose bumps rise as I touch her. “Sorry about that.” I grin.

She turns around, not even self-conscious about the sheet falling off her exposed chest. “You are so not.” She smirks.

“Well, you’re the gymnast. Perhaps you just need
more
practice.”

She slaps my chest and wrinkles her nose—the most
adorable
fucking thing she does. “I don’t think my body could handle more
practice
. I think it needs rest. And perhaps a massage.” Her eyes light up, signaling exactly what she wants.

I lean down and kiss the tip of her nose. “I would love to, but I’m out of lotion.”

She bursts out laughing and it takes me a moment to think about what’s so funny.

“Oh, my god…no…not…stop laughing,” I laugh with her. “That sounded really bad.”

“Sorry,” she apologizes, continuing to laugh. “I hang out with really immature guys. It’s not my fault I find that funny.”

“Wait…you hang out with guys?” I narrow my eyebrows at her, only teasing, but wanting to know the truth.

“Yes…is that a problem?” she counters.

I cup her breast aggressively making her wince. “Not at all.” I grin. “As long as they’re gay.”

I shift on top of her and kiss the corner of her mouth. She smiles weakly, keeping her eyes closed.

I lick a trail up her body, stopping at each breast to pull in her nipple. She moans as the pressure increases.

“You like that?”

“Yes, more,” she pleads. She arches her back, exposing more of herself for me. I mouth her breast, sucking harder as my other hand moves down her stomach and don’t stop until I reach her juicy slit. I curl a finger inside, synchronizing the rhythm with the movements of my mouth.

“Oh, god! Yes! Don’t stop.”

I increase the pressure, adding a second finger inside of her. My mouth moves up her chest, licking a trail up to her lips. She moans in my mouth as her hips buck at the intensity. My fingers ride her hard and quick, curling up deep inside her.

“Harder! Yes! Yes, oh, god!” she screams as I continue finger fucking her.

“What do you need, baby?” I encourage her. “Tell me.”

“You, please! God, I want more!”

I grind my fingers in her as hard as I can, deep and slow as she arches her hips harder into me.

“Bentley! Don’t stop.”

“Jesus…” I growl against her ear, edging her on. “I love it when you scream my name, sweetheart.” I push a third finger in. “The sound of your voice when you come could cure cancer.”

I kiss her softly as she rides out her climax. She’s completely beat, so I tuck us back in and fall back to sleep.

*   *   *

I hear ruffling in the distance, but my eyes are too heavy to open them. I tighten my hold on Ceci, double-checking she’s still next to me. Her body is warm and molds just perfectly against mine.

“Oh, my god!” A high-pitched squeal jerks my body into overdrive. My eyes widen at the sight of my parents in my bedroom doorway.

I grab the sheet and quickly cover us up. Ceci frantically presses back against me, shielding her naked body from my parents’ eyes.

“What are you doing here?” I scold. Ceci covers her heated face with one hand, keeping her head down. Her cheeks heat as her eyes close in humiliation.

“You never showed up for brunch,” my mother scowls. “We were worried about you when you didn’t answer your phone.”

“After the tenth time calling you,” my father adds in.

“Can you please give me a minute to get dressed? I’ll meet you in my office.”

My mother clenches her pearls as she flashes me a disapproving look. My father grabs the door handle and pushes them both back into the hallway. I wait until the door clicks before finally exhaling.

“I am so sorry.”

She uncovers her face finally. “Well, there’s a first time for everything. Getting caught by your parents.” She swings her legs off the bed and begins looking for her clothes.

“Are you angry?” I sit up and watch as she frantically searches for her clothes that I know are lying on my living room floor.

“No, I’m just embarrassed.”

“I know. And I’m so sorry. I should’ve remembered to call them and let them know I wasn’t coming. I’ll go speak to them and ask them to leave. Okay?” I grab a pair of shorts and shirt from the closet. “Your clothes are in the living room, by the way.” I kiss her gently on the forehead before heading out to scold my parents.

I brush a hand through my hair as I prepare for a lecture for missing Sunday brunch.

I close the office door behind me as I lean back against it. Both of my parents are standing and staring at me—practically glaring daggers in my direction.

“It’s not what you think—”

“It’s exactly what we think,” my mom huffs, cutting me off. “Is she another Hannah?”

“NO! She isn’t like that
at all.
She’s not just a one-night stand,” I defend. “You met her already,” I remind my mother.

My father grins wide and my mother takes notice, jabbing him in the gut with her elbow.

“Yes, but after what happened last time, your dates don’t usually last longer than one night.”

“Thanks for making me sound like a pig.” I cross my arms in disbelief. Most parents would approve of their son being in a
relationship
.

“We’re still dealing with Hannah,” she reminds me. “What did we tell you?”

“Patricia,” my father warns, but she ignores him.

“Did you at least do a background check on her? Make sure she’s not another one?”

“Oh, my god…” I groan, brushing a firm hand through my hair. “Not every girl is going to be like Hannah. She’s not like that.”

“And how do you know, Bentley? You need to be careful. You aren’t just a typical guy—”

“Yes, I know.” I roll my eyes at the same lecture she’s been giving me for two years. “She’s an intern,” I spit out needing to get her off my case.

My father’s eyes go wide. “
Your
intern?” he asks slowly, and I know I really fucked up now.

“Yes, but it’s not like that,” I say quickly.

“Do you have any idea what you’re doing, Bentley?” he scowls. “Apparently you aren’t ready, son, putting the company at risk. Not to mention breaking a hundred company rules.”

“It’s
not
like that,” I say again more firmly. “She isn’t Hannah. I’ve checked her out already. She attends the University of Nebraska. She’s a senior and is graduating this semester.”

My mother walks toward me and places a hand on my cheek, her eyes finally going soft. “Just be careful, son.” My father follows suit and doesn’t even look me in the eye as I step out of the way for them to leave.

I exhale as I hear my front door closing. Flustered, I pace the floor until I regulate my breathing. This couldn’t have been worst timing.

“Ceci?” I call out as I walk down the hallway back to my room. “They’re gone now. It’s safe to come out.” But she doesn’t respond. “Ceci?”

I push my bedroom door open and look around, but she isn’t in here. “Ceci?” I call out again with fear laced in my voice.

I run to the door and whip it open to see that her car is gone.

She left.

Chapter Eleven

Cecilia

I CRY MYSELF to sleep every night until it overcomes me, and I have no other option, but to pass out. The hurt, the betrayal, the lies. I’ve caused it all.

I overheard Bentley’s mother yelling at him.
Hannah.

Why did she do it? Did Bentley love her? Who was she exactly? Answers I didn’t deserve to know. Answers that would soon force my lies to crumble down around me.

I can’t hurt him. Not after what he’s already gone through. I don’t know anything about this Hannah chick, but I know enough from Toby and his mother’s screams to know she’s bad news and that she royally fucked Bentley over.

I ignore every call and email from Bentley. I know I have to deal with my consequences soon. I know he won’t just let it go.
Let me go.
But I’ll have to convince him, though.

*   *   *

It’s taking me days to read and dissect everything in my dad’s files. Although it’s a summary of it all, I find myself Googling the terms to even know what they mean. I don’t want to rush through, it’s my only piece of hope—I’m reading it thoroughly
,
word by word.

Simon knocks on my door Friday afternoon with a suspicious grin and a grocery bag. I narrow my eyes at him as he lets himself in.

“Come in,” I mock. “What are you doing here?”

He spins around and eyes me carefully. “I’ve known you for years, Celia. Long enough to know when something is wrong. You’ve been off all week.”

I tilt my body forward, chancing a glance inside his bag. “And you’ve brought me cookie dough and ice cream?” I tease.

“I’m not a chick,” he retorts. I raise my eyebrows at him and he sighs in defeat. “But you’re a chick, so of course, I brought you junk food.”

“I knew there was a reason I keep you around.”

“Well, I’m kidnapping you. Pack a bag and meet me at the car.”

“Wait, what?”

“You haven’t told me to fuck off all week, so that’s when I know there’s something wrong.” I laugh at his bluntness.

“Fine,” I groan. “Meet you in five.”

Simon lets me dig into the cookie dough on the ride to his house. I’ve been sleeping over at Simon’s for years. His parents are super laid back, and I secretly think they are hoping something happens between us, but it’s never going to happen. Simon is like a brother to me.

I had shoved the file in my purse before we left, because, at this point, I’m out of options. Simon’s extremely smart, so if there’s anything to be deciphered from my dad’s case, Simon will figure it out.

“Okay, girlfriend. I’ve sugared you up, gave you caffeine and ice cream, and even let you walk around in those hideous yoga pants. Time to spill.”

My spoon stops mid-way to my mouth just as I was about to devour another spoonful. “Hideous?”

“Well, they aren’t exactly
attractive
.”

I shrug, shoving a spoonful of ice cream into my mouth. “Good thing I’ve turned lesbian. Girls dig yoga pants.”

He rolls his eyes and laughs at my dramatic speech. “You couldn’t be a lesbian if you tried. You enjoy dick too much.”

I spit the ice cream out, shocked at his words. “Simon!”

“You and Cora think you talk quietly at lunch when you discuss your little girl shit. I can hear every word,” he confesses.

“Oh, my god, that’s so embarrassing.” My face heats at the thought of Simon hearing all the juicy details from last year when I dated Jason. “No, I’m erasing this whole conversation out of my head. Never happened.”

“Whatever you say, sweet bottom.”

I gasp loudly as my eyes dramatically bulge out of my head at the words he just said.
Sweet bottom.

“I so hate you right now. I cannot believe you heard all that last year.”

“Every word, baby,” he taunts.

Sweet bottom
was Jason’s nickname for me. At the time, I thought it was cute, but now I cringe just hearing it aloud.

For the next hour, I tell Simon everything about my internship at Leighton Enterprises. I leave Bentley out of it, but I explain how I applied, interviewed, and used Casey’s transcripts to get inside. He was both impressed and worried about me, knowing the serious repercussions if I were to get caught.

“You are insane. Seriously.”

I also describe the dreams and flashbacks about my dad. I tell him everything I remember about that day, and how my mother never seemed bothered that it ended up a cold case.

“Wow…that’s intense, Celia.”

I tilt my head toward him, silently begging him to understand my reasoning. “Simon, I need your help.”

“You know I can’t say no.”

I smirk. “I know.”

I spread out some of the papers that I want him to take a closer look at—the evidence, the background history of his job, and his financials.

“What exactly are you hoping to do, Celia?”

I shrug, feeling hopeless. “I just need to know, Simon. I know my mother is hiding secrets from me. She won’t tell me anything. She hid that piece of paper about Samuel Anderson on it. I need to know that my dad was a good person and that whoever did this gets the justice they deserve. I know I’m in over my head, okay. I’m not
that
crazy. But I can’t just walk away. I have to at least try.

*   *   *

Hours go by and eventually, I fall asleep on Simon’s bed. When I wake up, he’s curled up on the other end with papers in his lap. I notice the energy drink in one hand as he holds a piece of paper in the other.

I glance over to his clock on the dresser. It’s after 4AM.

“You’re still up?”

“Yeah,” he says excitedly. I adjust myself on his bed, sitting upright. From the looks of it, he’s completely wired.

“Read anything good?”

“Celia…this is
all
good stuff. Like, I think I’m finally figuring it out.”

“Figuring what out?”

“Your dad’s finances—they’re all over the place. One month he deposits thousands of dollars, the next he’s in the negative. For someone with a steady job and salary, it doesn’t add up.”

“So what’s that mean?”

“Well, it explains why your mom and dad were fighting about money, why your mom was hysterical about the money he spent.”

“So you think it has something to do with his death? Like maybe he owed someone a lot of money and he couldn’t pay them back?” My heart begins racing as I try to put the pieces together.

“I don’t know. Maybe. It’s too soon to know for sure. There’s a lot more in this file I have to go through yet.”

“But what if does have to do with money. I mean, we live in a nice neighborhood, and always had nice things. We lived on one salary and yet never went without.”

“Perhaps there’s a reason for that.” He looks at me sympathetically, silently telling me what I’ve feared this whole time—my dad
wasn’t
a good guy.

Bentley

The last thing I was prepared for was Ceci leaving me—again. I wasn’t sure if she was upset about my parents coming in or if it was something else.

Having my parents bring up Hannah’s name again stirred my emotions up. It’s not something I enjoy thinking about.

The very girl who screwed me—over and over again. I believed every word she said to me, every word laced with lies and deceit.

I was fresh out of graduate school when I started working exclusively at Leighton Enterprises. Saying goodbye to my modeling career, my father slowly taught me things throughout my college years. It wasn’t until I had my master’s degree that he finally gave me access to all the files and confidential information. Information news reporters and magazines would do anything to get their hands on during a big story.

Enter Hannah Whitman. Twenty-two year old college graduate from Penn State. Education major with dreams of teaching first graders. Sweet, sexy, and full of complete shit.

Enter the real Hannah Whitman AKA Hannah Winters. Twenty-five year old post-graduate student in journalism.

I’ve been known to think with my cock before my head. Shit, it happens. Especially, when beautiful, young girls throw themselves at you. Especially, when you’re a high-profile model with nothing to lose.

She made a fool of me. I let her in—too close. She stole all of my files and sold them to another company. They were later recognized for solving the case. Not only did they report on it for months after—my mistake constantly shoved in my face—but it almost ruined Leighton Enterprises. New security measures were taken and the battle of taking Hannah to court began—still in the process of making her pay for all that, but more than likely, she’ll make a plea bargain.

It’s been hard to let anyone in after that. I went back to one-nighters and emotionless sex—that was until I met Ceci.

I curse the second I realize she’s left. I text her how sorry I am and beg her to come back and talk with me. I know she’s humiliated, but my parents are the last thing we need to worry about right now. As long as no one in my office finds out, we’re in the clear until her internship is over, and then I don’t fucking care who knows.

I’ve called her thirty-six times in the past six days. No answer. I’ve emailed nine times. No response.

Nothing.

By Friday, I can barely take it. I don’t know if she’ll show up for her internship on Saturday. I don’t know if she’ll ever talk to me again, and I hardly understand why.

I’m filled with so much rage, I don’t know if I’ll be able to stand seeing her without slamming her against my desk and fucking her until she comes to her senses. I wouldn’t even stop if my own mother walked in.

I’m agitated the entire day. I snap at everyone who tries to speak to me. Even my own secretary flipped me off when I told her where to shove that piece of shit stapler.

I need to see her. I can’t wait another fucking night. It’s killing me. I don’t know what she’s doing, what she must be thinking or who the hell she could be with. 

I dig into her intern application and find her home address. If she’s going to insist on hiding from me, I’m just going to have to find her.

*   *   *

After showering and getting dressed, I head out. I anticipate she’ll be pissed, but I don’t care. I’m not letting her walk away without giving me answers first.

I pull up to her house and notice it’s in a nice neighborhood, mainly filled with families and children. I begin sweating nervously, unsure if I should get out or not. This isn’t where I expected a college-aged student to live with a household of roommates. Perhaps they were renting from a family or she was living with hers?

I wipe my hands on my jeans and get out. I walk to the front and knock firmly on the door. My nerves eat at me until a young woman opens the door, her eyes bulge out of her face as she scans my body.

“Good evening, I’m sorry to bother you—”

“Yes.” She licks her lips seductively. “Whatever you’re selling, I’ll take it.” Her lips form a flirtatious grin.

I grin and stifle a laugh before responding. “Um, sorry I’m not selling anything. I’m actually just looking for someone. Ceci? Ceci West. Does she live here?”

Her smile instantly drops and she frowns. “Ceci?” Her eyebrows rise in question. “Sorry, she’s not here.”

I exhale, disappointed. I shift uncomfortably before asking, “Do you know where she is? Or when she’ll be back?”

She cocks a hip. “Who are you? And what do you want with my little sister?”

“Little sister?” My eyebrows narrow. “Like a sorority?”

She laughs. “No…like I’m
her
big sister.” She puts her hand out in front of me. “I’m Casey West. It’s nice to meet you—”

My body tenses. No, freezes. Hell, I don’t know what the fuck it does, but I’m stunned shocked. My body’s autopilot takes over as I grab her hand in mine and shake hers.

“
Casey
, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Bentley.”

“Pleasure’s all mine.” She continues her seductive tone. “I can let her know you stopped by. She’s hanging with Simon tonight. She’ll probably get in late, but I can—”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll just, um, catch up with her later.” I nod pleasantly and make my way back to my car.

I can’t control the emotions flooding in as I take in what I just learned.

Casey.

Shit.

It’s not even her fucking name!

And who the hell is Simon?

My mother’s words reluctantly re-enter my mind…
Make sure she isn’t another Hannah.

Fuck.

*   *   *