I Belong to You (Inside Out #5)(50)

“Get me the details to review and then I’ll decide. Right now, go find Ava and Jimenez. I’ll be expecting your call.” I push to my feet, stashing the phone back in my pocket. By the time I’m behind the desk I’ve pulled out my regular cell phone, and I leave a message for my attorney to ensure he knows what’s happened with Corey since he’s been in the air. Next, I punch the auto-dial.

“Luke Walker,” he answers on the second ring.

“Mark Compton. What do you have for me?”

“The kid’s in a coma and the police have shut me out, but I’m staying here. His parents are flying in from San Francisco tonight. I want to talk to them and make sure they influence their son to be truthful.”

“You heard about the threat sent to Crystal?”

“I did, and we’re on it.”

“I want to meet with you and your brothers.”

“When?”

“Tomorrow, after those lab results are in.” We work out the details and end the call.

However I look at it, I’m caught in a web of danger. And now someone has targeted Crystal as a way to get to me.





Fifteen

Mark . . .

I’m weeding through the financials for Riptide, impressed by how well it’s performed under Crystal’s care, when a knock sounds on my door. It opens and Crystal pops her head inside.

“Hey,” she says.

I toss my pen on my desk and lean back. “Hey,” I find myself saying. She has softened me in ways no one else could, and despite everything that happened earlier, there’s no tension or awkwardness between us. No walls. No games. We really are the most honest thing I’ve ever had in my life.

She smiles and steps inside, lifting two bags in her hands and nudging the door shut with her hip. “It’s four o’clock and Beverly tells me neither of us has eaten.”

I glance at the time on my cell phone, shocked to find I’ve been sitting for hours. “I had no idea how late it had gotten. I was caught up in the numbers. Riptide looks good on paper. You’ve done well, Ms. Smith. Far better than I expected under the circumstances.”

“A compliment,” she says, setting the bags of food on my desk. “And here I thought you managed by intimidation.”

“More like an iron fist.”

“And a rulebook the size of an encyclopedia,” she teases.

“I don’t deny the rulebook. But I look out for my employees, and I reward them when they do well.”

“So I’m learning,” she replies, her eyes softening with her voice.

Our eyes meet and I can almost feel the simmering heat, which has existed since the day we met, expanding. “There’s a bonus in your future,” I say.

And while my mind has drifted into erotic territory, now isn’t the time for that. I won’t downplay what she’s done professionally, and even personally, for my family. And money isn’t her motivation, which makes her generous dedication to Riptide all the more compelling.

“So,” she says, her softly painted red lips curving, “what does the rulebook say about sharing a meal with an employee, Mr. Compton?”

“You started tearing pages out of my rulebook the night I met you.” I round the desk to stand beside her.

“Good point,” she murmurs. “So let’s dig in and eat before it gets cold. I hear cavemen lose their alpha if they go without food for too long.”

I arch a brow, taking one of the bags from her. “Cavemen?”

“What else do you call someone who threatens to throw me over his shoulder, in front of an audience?”

“Would you prefer over my knee?” I ask.

Her eyes flicker with surprise. “Maybe I shouldn’t feed you after all,” she quips, grabbing a bag and marching toward the seating area by the bookshelves.

Laughing, I watch her cute little ass wiggle for every second I can before she claims one of the two red chairs.

Already in pursuit, my cock thickens with the chase she has made more than about sex. There’s something about this woman that calls to some part of me that’s been long suppressed. And I can’t even remember why I’d once thought that awakening was a bad thing—not with her floral scent teasing my nostrils.

“You’re quite good at evasive maneuvers,” I comment, claiming the seat next to hers.

She sets her bag on the small glass table, and I do the same with mine.

“I’m sure I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she replies, swiping a lock of long blond hair behind her ear, exposing her high cheekbones and perfect ivory skin.

She is beauty, wit, and graceful femininity. I don’t know how I ever thought she wasn’t my type.

“Why run, when I mentioned turning you over my knee? The shower spanking didn’t seem to be a problem. Quite the opposite.”

She swallows hard but doesn’t back down, her eyes meeting mine as she angles toward me. “This is not a conversation people have over chicken sandwiches.”

“Am I wrong about the shower?”

“No. No, you aren’t wrong.”

“You liked it.”

“I liked that you opened up to me, no matter what you thought the consequences might be. It’s the kind of honesty and vulnerability that I think is rare for you. And that’s why I was able to go where we went. But this is new territory for me.”