London Falling (Falling #2)(34)

“Let’s have some fun. I’m about to change your life,” I said whimsically.

I tugged him through the warehouse style store as I heard him whisper, “You already have.”



***

“I’ll f*cking pummel the bloody wanker!” Nathaniel strode into my office. He must have seen Emma sitting at the desk opposite my receptionist. “You, you!” He pointed a thick finger at me as he strode in like a knight in shining Armani. “You should have called me.” He pointed that same finger against his chest.

I stood and held out my hands to cool him. “Agreed. I’ll start now by saying I’m sorry. You had a lot on your plate in California with that actress/client you like so much.”

He smiled briefly then sat heavily in the chair across my desk. I followed suit and waited for him to continue. “That Evan is a piece of shite! Pure dog shite!”

“Yes, he is. But what are you going to do about it, being over here and him being back home?”

Smoke seemed to swirl around his head. “I don’t know!” He took a deep breath.

“I’ve offered Emma a job. Assistant to both of us.”

“And she went for it?” His voice rose in surprise.

“For now. She needs to work and wrap her head around something other than her husband.”

“Soon to be ex-husband!” Nate added.

“One can only hope. As much as we’d like, we don’t get to choose for her. She has to come to that conclusion on her own.”

“Like hell! I’ll draw up the papers today!” he growled. “That bugger thinks he can cheat on my sister. I’ll show him,“ Nathaniel grumbled.

It was almost comical, seeing I’d been accused of doing the same thing just yesterday when Emma brought me a cup of tea. Then he stopped and a smile broke across his clean shaven face. “What did Dad say?”

“I don’t quite know. I spoke with Mum when I called to tell them she was here and what happened.”

Nathaniel nodded and got up. He pressed the buzzer for Jane. “Jane love, can you send our sister in please? Thanks.”

Not knowing what his intentions were, I responded to an email while we waited, letting him stew in his anger. I’d had a few days already to get past the initial fury.

Our baby sister entered, her brown hair pulled into a bun at the nape of her neck. She wore a variation of the suit she’d had on Monday. I needed to have Jane take her shopping or at least set up an account for her at Niemen Marcus so she could get a wardrobe. If she was going to live here awhile, she’d need more than what she packed in one suitcase.

“Baby girl,” Nathaniel opened his arms. She rolled her eyes and sighed but settled into his embrace. “I’m going to draw up some papers for you. Let’s get this situation handled immediately.”

She pushed out of his arms. “What do you mean? What papers?” she asked, her voice high-pitched.

“Divorce papers, of course!”

Her eyes narrowed and her hands went to her hips. Her fingers gripped so hard they turned white. “Did I ask you for divorce papers? You’re not Evan, Nate. And if I wanted to get a divorce, I’d ask you for help.”

“So you’re going to stay married to the cheating prick, then?”

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. This just happened. Stop your macho shite and give me a little credit. I need some time. Colly?” She looked to me for help.

“Look, I agree with Emma, Nathaniel. She needs to do this on her own. She knows we can handle her divorce easily enough but she needs the time to make that decision.”

Nathaniel started to pace the room like a caged, ferocious wild animal. “No man hurts my baby sister and gets away with it!”

Emma deflated and stopped him in his third full circle around the room. “Nate, I know you are worried about me. Hey, I’m worried about me. But this happened to me.” She pointed to her chest. “Not to you,” she pointed to his. Please let me deal with it my way.”

Our baby sister was growing up beautifully. She didn’t need two hot-headed brothers fighting for her honor, even though we’d both love to wrap our hands around the dirty prick’s neck and squeeze until his last breath. Find me a brother who wouldn’t want to do the same in the circumstance.

“Okay, Em, but we’re revisiting this conversation in a month. And every month after that until you make up your mind.”

She smiled and hugged him. “You brute! I agree to your terms. Now can I get back to work?”

“Oh yeah, Collier tells me you’ve been offered a job. Are you okay with being assistant to your two over-bearing, though smart and incredibly handsome, brothers? We really do need the help. You’ll whip this office into shape in no time.”

“For now, I’ll accept the assistant title. But, and that’s a big butt--” She slapped Nathaniel hard in the arse. He yelped and I laughed. “--if I stay on and clean this place up, you’ll offer me a pretty penny to stay and a title of my choosing.”

She was definitely related to us. Our sister was a tough negotiator. Having her here would be a blessing.

“Are you okay staying with Collier?” he asked.

“Yes, for now. If I stay more than two or three months, Colly already offered to get me settled in an apartment close to work.”