of negotiations, Andes officially broke ties with Brian Lewis and the insufferable blowhard Dominic Peters. Marisol’s team had found us a third supplier more than willing to follow our terms in order to land the contract.
Miles was still in my guest room, but he wasn’t bothering me as much as he typically did. That was due in part to him lying low. He was keeping his mouth shut and his dirty socks in his room. But I couldn’t discount the fact that I was actively attempting not to be annoyed with him. I had never given him a chance to be anything other than my fuckup little brother.
This weekend, I might even carve out some time to spend with him.
I was shutting my computer down, my mind already out of the office, when Renata knocked on the door.
“Yes?”
She pushed it open. “There’s a reporter from the Times on line one for you.”
I frowned at her. Renata knew I didn’t give interviews unless they were scheduled and vetted well in advance. “Why? Send them to PR. I don’t have time to talk to reporters.”
“Weston…” the way she wrung her hands had me sitting up, alarm bells ringing, “I really think you should speak to her.”
I reached for the phone but stopped myself. Impetuousness wasn’t my style. Acting without planning would only lead me to disaster.
“What is this about?”
Renata approached my desk, worry deepening the ever-present creases in her face.
“She said her name is Ellis Frey. I looked her up when I put her on hold. She’s an environmental reporter who was nominated for a Pulitzer two years ago for investigative journalism.” Renata heaved a breath. “She told me the Times will be running a story about our suppliers disposing of waste improperly and illegally. She’d like a quote from you, but it’s running no matter what.”
My spine froze into an icicle. “Impossible.”
“I think you should speak to her.”
“I will. I’ll tell her what a load of bullshit this is.” My hand went to the phone. “Thank you, Renata. You can go home.”
She spun on her sensible heels and walked out, closing the door behind her.
I picked up the phone.
It was two in the morning when I crawled into my bed and wrapped myself around Elise. Her hand went to my face.
“What’s wrong?” she rasped.
So fucking much. But the thought of telling her nearly sent me into a panic.
“I don’t want to talk tonight, baby.”
“Okay.”
My mouth found hers in the dark. Need for her swept over the anger and confusion that had been consuming me the past several hours. Holding her, touching her, was the only thing keeping me stable.
Pushing her nightgown up and off, I buried my face in her throat and let the weight of her breasts on my chest soothe my rapidly beating heart.
“I need you.”
Her fingers slid through my hair, and her legs fell open. “I’m here, West.”
She was soft and so warm. I’d woken her up, and without hesitation or question, she’d come to me. Right now, I was a sinking ship, and she was the band that kept playing through impending disaster—comfort and distraction before the inevitable, painful end.
Her eyes were shining when I brought my head up. “Panties off. Let me feel you.”
Nodding, she reached down and slipped them off. Climbing to my knees, I dragged my briefs down, revealing my hard, aching cock. She propped herself on her elbow to wrap her fingers around me. Her palm was hot, grip tight, as she pumped me.
“West,” she cooed. “Come here.”
Elise was my destination. She was the reason I’d left my office instead of spending the night at my desk attempting to solve the unsolvable. If I could just have this reprieve, I would be able to face what was coming, the potential destruction of everything I’d built.
I fitted myself between her thighs and fell over her. My cock wedged between her slick folds, sliding back and forth, grazing her clit with each pass.
My arm tunneled under her neck, fingers delving into her hair as I slowly sank inside her. Our eyes were locked, breaths passing between us, skin to skin, pounding heart to pounding heart.
We rode each other in the quiet. There were no words that would sound right, and I couldn’t form any with the knot of need lodged firmly in my throat.
She touched my face. I stroked the downy skin of her shoulders and jaw. Our lips met in a firm press, parted, then met again. Her eyes held a thousand questions, but something in mine must have made her kiss me instead of asking.
Her knees pressed into my sides. I went deeper, plunging farther. We were as close as two people could be, and still, I was greedy for her.
She came with a sigh and a moan, her body holding mine deep. I rubbed my lips over her bowed throat, absorbing the vibrations from her pleasure.
If I could have stayed like this forever, just the two of us in the dark where nothing outside could creep in, I would have. Above all else, I would have chosen this.
As hard as I tried to keep going, to fight off the ending, my body answered Elise’s call. I held her face as I poured into her, whispering that I loved her against her lips. She held me close, keeping me between her thighs as we rolled to our sides.
We’d traded positions. I was the one who always held her, but it was as easy as breathing to let her cradle me in her warmth.
“I love you, West,” she murmured.
“Love you too, baby. Go to sleep.”
She nodded, her cheek on mine. “You too.”
It didn’t take long for her breaths to even out and her arms to slacken. I stayed awake for a lot longer, keeping her close, wondering how I was going to survive what was coming my way.
