Rush (Breathless #1)(41)

“I just want to earn that salary, Gabe. It’s important to me. You were all about how my talents and education were wasted at La Patisserie. I don’t want to rely solely on my sexual favors to get me through this job.”

“Understood. Now what the hell are you talking about with the gossip? Did anyone say anything to you? I’ll have their asses.”

“Not to me. Just within my hearing. And it wasn’t intentional. I’m sure they would have died if they knew I was within hearing distance. I don’t know who said what. I could barely process all the names and faces when I was introduced and I couldn’t see who was talking because I was in the bathroom hiding in the stall.”

Gabe looked at her incredulously. “Hiding in the bathroom?”

“They came in when I was using the bathroom,” she said in exasperation. “The minute they started talking, I wanted to make sure they didn’t know I was around. Talk about awkward.”

“And what did they say?”

“Nothing that wasn’t expected.”

“Mia,” he growled. “Tell me what was said.”

“They wondered if you were f**king me. They also had quite a bit to say about Jace and Ash, and after the phone call just now, I’m wondering how accurate their speculation was.”

“I am f**king you,” he said matter-of-factly. “That’s not going to change. And they don’t know for sure. We already discussed this. They’ll think what they want to think and we can’t change that. I’m damn sure not going to go out of my way to dissuade them of that notion because if they have their minds made up, nothing you or I do will change that. I don’t give a f**k what they think. But they will be respectful of you and if I hear anything or if anything is said directly to you, I’ll terminate the person responsible immediately.”

There wasn’t much left to say about that.

She purposely left off the part about the person breaking into his office, although she felt a twinge of guilt. Shouldn’t he know that his personal life was being rummaged through? For that matter, shouldn’t he know that this contract issue was now public—or at least office—knowledge?

The whole thing made her uncomfortable. Her loyalty was to Gabe. She didn’t know those other women. She owed them nothing. If Gabe found out she knew and hadn’t told him, he would be furious.

She sighed, hating the position she was in.

“What’s wrong?” Gabe demanded.

She glanced up guiltily and then let out yet another sigh. “There’s something you should know, Gabe.”

“I’m listening.”

“That wasn’t all that was said in the bathroom today.”

His frown intensified.

“There was a group of women, so no, I don’t know who they are. I wouldn’t have a clue. But they were discussing your…contract. There was speculation and then one of the women spoke up and confirmed that she’d seen the contract so she knew it was real.”

“How the hell would she know something like that?”

It was clear Gabe didn’t believe her, and he was going to be seriously pissed when she told him how the woman knew. She just hoped it didn’t ruin the entire evening, because dealing with a pissed-off, brooding Gabe wasn’t on her list of top ten favorite ways to spend the night.

“She says she broke into your office—picked the lock—because she was curious, and she went through your desk.”

“What the f**k?”

The sound was explosive in the car, and she flinched at the whipcord lash of his voice.

“Let me get this straight. She says she picked the lock to my office and went through my desk because she was curious whether gossip about my personal life was true?”

The fury in his voice made her wary. He was seething, his entire body bristling with anger.

“That’s what she said,” Mia said in a low voice.

“I’m going to address this tomorrow. If I have to fire every single employee, I’ll do it. I refuse to have people I can’t trust working for me.”

Mia closed her eyes. This was the last thing she wanted to happen. All she wanted was for Gabe to be aware so he could be more careful. Maybe even consider not housing personal, damning information in his office.

And then Gabe’s hand closed around hers, squeezing reassuringly. “You don’t have to worry, Mia. You said they had no knowledge of your presence in the bathroom. She won’t know you told me. She’ll think one of her officemates betrayed her.”

“It still doesn’t bring me any comfort knowing I’m responsible for someone losing their job,” she said quietly.

“You’re too softhearted, Mia. If she betrayed me in such a fashion, she doesn’t deserve to work under me. I don’t tolerate disloyalty of any kind.”

Mia supposed that was true, but she wished it wasn’t her who’d had to tell Gabe.

The car pulled to a stop outside Gabe’s apartment building, and they got out. Gabe retrieved her boxes from the store and they headed up to his apartment.

As soon as they were inside his door, he tossed down the boxes and herded Mia into the living room and onto the plush, thick lambskin rug.

“On your knees,” he said brusquely.

Disconcerted, she did as he ordered, sliding to her knees on the soft rug.