Total pages in book: 211
Estimated words: 201554 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1008(@200wpm)___ 806(@250wpm)___ 672(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 201554 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1008(@200wpm)___ 806(@250wpm)___ 672(@300wpm)
“You’ll get him whatever he wants.”
At the sound of Gigi’s voice, I turn to find her standing in the doorway, and at five-foot-one with flaming red hair and piercing blue eyes, she might be seventy-seven, but she’s a force to be reckoned with. “You underestimate me, boy,” she snaps, her voice louder than one would expect her capable of at her advanced age, but her hand trembles, and I swear Isaac does as well. “I told you I need to know what’s going on,” she adds, curling her fingers into her palms. “You told me to rock away in my rocking chair, which by the way, I don’t own a rocking chair.”
“Grandmother—”
“Gigi,” she amends. “I’m Gigi around these parts, the woman who started this place, like Harper’s father started her family’s business. Now let’s get real for once. Either there’s something going on you don’t want to tell me about or there’s something you don’t know. Your brother will figure it out.”
“No,” Isaac says in instant rejection. “No, he will not. There’s nothing going on here but normal business. You will not disrupt our operation. You’re getting old and paranoid.”
She snorts. “Not old enough to suit you. Eric gets his brains from me.” She looks at Eric. “Didn’t know that, did you? I’m smarter than the average gal, despite the fact I let Grayson Bennett steal you away from us.” She doesn’t give him time to reply. She homes in on Isaac again and orders, “Get him what he asks for, son. Don’t make this more difficult than it has to be.”
“You don’t have the power to make this call,” Isaac argues. “I know you did this while Dad is in Europe for a reason, to sideswipe me and root Eric in my business before he could stop you, but he’s one phone call away and our combined stock overrules yours.”
“Actually,” Eric says dryly. “My stock with Gigi’s combined overrules any vote.”
“You don’t own stock,” he snaps.
“I do now,” Eric counters. “I bought out the bank this morning with a premium they couldn’t resist.”
Isaac goes completely, utterly still and I watch as hell swims in the depths of his stare. “You did what?” he bites out, while I reel at this unexpected turn of events that might just change this company forever, and I’m not sure it’s for the better, not when I see the real anger between these brothers.
“Family needs to be protected by family,” Eric says, his gaze shifting to Gigi. “Don’t you think, Gigi?”
She swallows hard, a telltale sign that she had no idea he’d done such a thing. “Yes,” she says. “And I haven’t always remembered that, son. I do now.”
“So, Harper tells me,” he says dryly, eyeing Isaac, “I’ll work in the conference room for now. Get me access to all databases and all facilities.”
“That will take time,” Isaac says.
“I’ll get it done myself,” Eric says. “I’m impatient like that.” His attention shifts to me, his blue eyes sharp, but unreadable. “You’ll work on the audit with me. Everything else will come second. It was one of my terms when I agreed to do the audit.” Perhaps it’s my imagination, but I swear that his voice lowers, the heat in his eyes smoldering with possession as he adds, “You’re all mine.”
Chapter fifteen
Harper
I’m burning alive under Eric’s scorching attention, melting right here in the center of Isaac’s office with the message in his burning blue-eyed stare: he came here for me. He also promised to finish this family off if he returned. Maybe that means he intends to fuck me in every possible way this time. I don’t know. I just know that as seconds tick by, our present company of Isaac and Gigi fades away and there is just the two of us and a challenge that I don’t understand, but I’m certain I will soon.
“I’ll leave you three to get this done,” Gigi says, snapping me back to the room just in time to find her exiting the office.
“Go do your job, Harper,” Isaac snaps at me. “Eric and I need to have a conversation alone.”
Eric’s lips twitch, his eyes never leaving mine, nor mine his. “I’ll find you when we’re done,” he says, and there is this heady possessive undertone to those words that is anything but professional. This is a promise that we still have unfinished business, that we are far from done, and I have never felt so owned in my life. Considering this place, this family has made me feel pretty darn owned, that’s saying a lot. It’s different with Eric, though. He’s different from Isaac and the rest of them in ways that connect with me on every level. I crave this man’s confidence. I need this man’s touch. I understand this man’s hunger for revenge in ways that he can’t know, and yet, I fear that very need in him is why he’s here, is why he’s now dangerous.