time to meet with her, but I looked through her records. She was hired just shy of a year ago and promoted to head of the department six months later. In the last three months, she’s been seen with Mad after-hours and out of the building. One person even said Mad spent time at her place. Quite a bit of time.”
He’d been fucking his head of cybersecurity? Nice.
“How old is she?”
Connor pointed to a folder on the desk. “Twenty-seven.”
“So she’s more qualified to be a centerfold than a VP of security.” Gabe gripped his temper by a bare thread.
“That’s ridiculously young, I’ll grant you. But look through her records. I found the photo from her employee ID. She’s wearing glasses and her hair is in some sort of bun—not Mad’s usual. I think you should go easy on her until you find out what’s up. She’s brilliant, in fact. Her IQ hovers somewhere around genius level, and she’s implemented some really innovative ideas. I suspect she’s actually capable of her job.”
Gabe snatched up the file and tossed it in the trash. No data or schoolmarmy photo was going to change his mind. “I don’t care. The new management team will be changing direction, and I’m sure I can find someone better qualified for Ms. Parker’s job. I’ll give her a decent severance and hope the door doesn’t smack her ass on the way out. But I won’t have her here. Eventually, I’ll give this whole company to Sara. The last thing she needs to deal with is Mad’s ex-lovers.”
“If that’s how you feel, you’ll have to can a lot of women. Are you going to fire Tavia Gordon, the PR guru, too? She and Mad had a fling a few years back. You’ll get a shitload of bad press for letting go of the head of a charity that educates poor girls and women in underdeveloped countries because you’ve decided she’s a whore.”
Gabe winced. “Stop using that fucking word. I never said it.”
“You imply it with every action you’re taking.” Connor rolled his shoulders, and some of the tension sloughed away. “Be reasonable. You know it’s not fair to judge Everly Parker before you’ve met her. I understand you’re pissed as hell, and Mad isn’t here to take it out on. But don’t punish her.”
“Why do you give a shit about this woman?”
Connor stood. “I don’t. I’m doing this for you.”
“So I can avoid the bad press and a lawsuit? Newsflash: I’ve handled both before. I’m still standing.”
“What will you do when your conscience starts eating at you, Gabe? If you fire her unfairly, given the current job climate, she may be hard-pressed to find this kind of job—or even another decent one—in this town. Two years down the road, you won’t be blaming her anymore for Mad leaving Sara. You’ll realize that Mad made his choices. Then you’ll look up Ms. Parker. If she’s doing poorly, you’ll blame yourself. And you’ll shoulder guilt I don’t want you to feel.”
“Because you’ll feel it, too?”
Connor turned back, his face carefully blank. “I don’t feel anymore, Gabe. And I can’t tell you what a relief that is. Being back here in the States with you guys . . . it’s the only emotion I’ve felt in years. Frankly, it makes me uncomfortable, but I owe you, Dax, Roman, and Zack. You four are the only real connections I still have.”
“If you were in my shoes, what would you do about her?”
“Nothing. I wouldn’t care enough to do anything, but then I don’t have a sister.”
“What if someone hurt one of us?”
Connor’s eyes went dark. “You don’t want to know. But if you want my advice about Everly Parker, get some perspective before you make a move, then proceed with caution. Maybe you’re right about the PI. It could give us leverage if she does decide Mad owes her something. I’ll get a team working on digging up any and all dirt we can on her. But you stay calm.”
That wasn’t happening. Connor might be right, but Gabe didn’t think he could let it go. So he didn’t say anything.
“I’m going to grab Dax and find some coffee.” Connor nodded toward the door. “Then we’ll continue our interviews. Roman is still at the hotel.”
The White House chief of staff had insisted on staying somewhere more anonymous than one of their places to cut down on the possibility of reporters camping out in front of their buildings.
“Thanks. I’ll see you in a bit.”
“I’m also going to continue looking for our favorite asshole blogger. He’s been leaking wild speculation about Mad’s crash and calling it ‘details.’ I could easily ignore him when he commented on the size of Zack’s dick. But if he doesn’t shut up about Mad’s death, I’ll be forced to take him down.” Connor sighed. “Think about what I said.”
“Sure.”
Gabe did. For roughly twenty minutes after Connor left, he pondered his friend’s advice . . . then tossed it all out. He wasn’t exposing Sara to the woman who had taken her place. His sister was simply too fragile now. When the time came, he would have a long talk with Tavia Gordon and any other woman who had come before Sara. He would make it clear that they weren’t to talk about their relationship with Mad around his sister, but Everly Parker had to go. She would likely be bitter that she’d been summarily relieved of her job. Not his problem. He wouldn’t give her the chance to undermine Sara again.
He punched the button on the speaker that linked him to the smartly dressed assistant outside, Hilary. She was in her midfifties and had been Mad’s father’s right hand for years. The woman knew where the corporate skeletons were buried and would likely be a key asset during this transition. Best of all, Mad hadn’t been sleeping with her. “Hilary, did you set up the meetings I asked you to?”
“Of course, sir.”
“I need to move Everly Parker’s meeting, please.”
“All right.” He could hear her shuffling through papers. “What time should I pencil her in?”
“Now.” It was five minutes past nine. If she wasn’t in, that would be one more strike against her.
“I’ll see if I can reach her.” The line went dead.
Gabe began to pace, not really paying attention to the stunning city skyline. He wanted this nasty business out of the way. After Everly Parker was gone, he could focus on assuming the reins of Crawford Industries and making sure everything was running with smooth efficiency until Sara took over. When his sister wasn’t sick and grieving, she would be able to assume the reins of the company. She had an MBA and had been an executive at Bond since she’d graduated. All she needed was a bit of time to recover from the shock. And if he got rid of the woman who’d taken her place in Mad’s life, she would find the transition easier. Sara could use a challenge, and this company would be her child’s inheritance.
But the shift must be quick. Bond Aeronautics wouldn’t run on autopilot for long.
Then, when everything had finally settled down, maybe he could dial Eve’s number. His fingers twitched every time he thought about it. He wanted to call her now, to explain everything and ask for her patience. He wanted to apologize for the reporters. He’d paid for privacy, but he should have known better and ensured that she left the hotel without being hounded.
The thought that she was out there—scared, alone, and confused—made his gut twist.
A muffled female voice broke into his thoughts. “Hi, Hilary. Am I late? I didn’t know I had a meeting this morning.”
“Don’t be shy. He asked for you, dear.” Hilary opened the door and pushed it wide. “Mr. Bond, this is Everly Parker. Everly, this is the new CEO, Gabriel Bond.”
He looked up, past Hilary, and caught sight of a riot of strawberry-blond hair and familiar curves. She gasped. His jaw dropped. Well, he didn’t have to apologize to Eve now, and he wouldn’t need her number after all. No. Because she stood in the doorway, staring at him with those wide eyes he hadn’t forgotten. Her expression looked so innocent. But then she had that act down, he supposed. It was nothing but a lie. Anger started to thrum through his system.
Eve, the woman he’d thought he’d randomly picked up th
e night of Mad’s funeral, was also Everly Parker. What were the odds that their meeting had been a mere coincidence? Definitely not in her favor. More likely, as Mad’s mistress, she’d known the man had no family and intended to leave everything to his best friend. She’d obviously taken the death of her sugar daddy so hard that she’d gone looking for another. Gabe gritted his teeth. From there, it had been a simple matter to spread her legs and get under his skin. Hell, he’d practically invited her to.
It had worked, and he resented the fuck out of her for it.
“Gabriel?” She asked the question as if she was completely stunned.
Did she really expect him to believe that she’d had no idea who Mad’s friends were?
Gabe crossed his arms over his chest and cursed himself. He’d been taken in by a pretty hustler who thought she could protect her cushy job by sleeping with the new boss. Perhaps she’d intended to get the same deal with him that she’d conned Mad into. At least he wouldn’t feel that guilt Connor had warned would hit him later. No. He was going to enjoy every moment of this.
“Miss Parker, please come in. Sit. I think we have a few things to talk about. Don’t you?”
• • •
How was it possible that her weekend fling was her new boss? Everly closed her eyes and shuffled inside.
She was fairly certain this was how Little Red Riding Hood felt when she’d been invited into her grandmother’s cottage that fateful day in the woods. My, what big teeth her personal big bad wolf had. Gabriel Bond wasn’t looking at her the way he had during the days they’d spent together. In fact, his cold, predatory stare now made her want to walk back out the door.
Luckily, she had too much pride to do that.
She forced herself to enter the office as if her heart wasn’t pounding in her chest and settle in the leather chair opposite the big, masculine desk. Why was he looking at her with such contempt, like she was a piece of trash? Everly hoped she was hallucinating that . . . but she didn’t think so.
Was he really that angry to discover his fling had come back to haunt him?
“Yes, we have a few matters we probably should have discussed before now.”
Everly prayed she looked calmer than she felt. She’d been hoping that she would see Gabriel again, but not as Maddox’s replacement and her new boss. This was definitely awkward. But he didn’t seem uncomfortable so much as angry.
Dread tightened her stomach.
“Thank you, Hilary. That will be all.” He nodded to the administrative assistant, who shut the door behind her. She would likely be on the phone to Jennifer in seconds. Despite being older than most of the assistants, she had been Maddox’s go-to girl for the gossip grapevine.
“Eve?” A single brow rose above his blue eyes, holding a wealth of accusation.
She didn’t pretend to misunderstand. Now that she was here, she’d deal with the situation and be as professional as possible. “It’s something my father and close friends call me. It was probably dumb to give you that name since most everyone else calls me Everly. But I noticed that your friends call you Gabe instead of Gabriel, yet that’s the name you gave me.”
“I use my names interchangeably and would have happily told you that my friends call me Gabe. Hell, you could have guessed that yourself. But how was I to get Everly out of Eve?”
He had a point, and she wasn’t being totally honest. “Sorry. The truth is I wanted to be someone else that night. Meeting you felt more like a fantasy than the terrible reality I found myself in. After that first night, it seemed easier to stick with Eve.”
“Interesting,” he said in a droll tone that belied his words. “I suppose the cause of your ‘terrible reality’ was the funeral?”
Maybe he understood a little. “Yes. It had been a hard week, losing a boss, a mentor . . . a friend. At the time, I had no idea that you were his friend, too. You didn’t mention him all weekend.”
One broad shoulder shrugged negligently. “That’s true. But I didn’t lie to you about my first name.”
She tried not to grimace. Gabe had to be under an enormous amount of strain, losing his best friend and having to assume control of Maddox’s company. Maybe under different circumstances he’d be more even-tempered. Then again, she didn’t know him well, so maybe not.
Everly smoothed down her skirt, needing something to do with her hands as she collected her thoughts. “I didn’t lie. Some people do call me Eve. My real name is somewhat unique, and that night I wanted to be anonymous. I was a little unsettled.”
“Ah, so obviously you didn’t give me your real number, then. Because if you were unsettled, I would understand you giving me a fake number to go with the fake name.” His fingers tapped the screen of his phone.
Her cell started to trill. She felt heat creep up her cheeks.
He switched his cell off. “You couldn’t have been too scared. You wanted me to call.”
“I was anxious when we first left the bar Friday night. By Monday morning, I thought I knew a little about you. I didn’t, though. Not really. In fact, I didn’t know a damn thing about you.” Tension forced her to sit tall in her seat, her shoulders back.
“You had no idea who I was?” He sounded unconvinced. His face looked even more skeptical.
“None. You were an attractive man in a bar who procured me a glass of wine and flirted. I was interested. We had sex.” Everly had explained her rationale and didn’t feel like defending herself anymore. “Did you really have any plans to call me again?”
He considered her a moment before sitting back in his chair. “No. I was being polite. Ninety-nine percent of weekend flings won’t call. You should know that by now.”
Even though she felt the lash of his anger, Everly refused to cry. She would stay calm and not show him how much his words had hurt. “Then it doesn’t matter if you knew my real name or not, does it, Gabe?”
“I’ve been going over Friday night in my head and I’ve come to a couple of conclusions.” His monotone voice held none of the sensual affection of their weekend together. “Perhaps you wanted anonymous sex with a stranger and that’s why you withheld the truth. Or maybe you thought I would recognize your name and not sleep with an employee.”
That was unfair. “Employee? So you’re our new CEO. That hasn’t been publicly announced yet, so how could I have known last Friday that you would soon be my boss? I didn’t even have a clue until I stepped in this room two minutes ago.”
“I’m not going to play this game with you, Eve. I mean, Everly. You’ll have to forgive me. I associate you with your hookup name.”
“Are you serious?” Pure indignation kept her from leaving the room. How dare he start this with her. “You don’t know me yet you’re accusing me of some premeditated seduction.”
He looked at her blandly, but his lack of denial might as well have been a silent agreement.
Everly’s fury frothed. “I read up on you yesterday, Mr. Bond. Trust me, I have nowhere near your experience. But then, men like you can get away with any kind of sexcapade. Women like me . . . I’ve had one single fling in my whole life, and I get called a whore.”
“Everyone wants to put that word in my mouth today. I didn’t call you a whore, but I find it interesting that you go right there. A whore is a woman who accepts money for her services. I didn’t pay you. Were you expecting something from me today, like the deal you had worked out with your last lover?” He shook his head. “If so, it wasn’t much of a negotiation since you already gave yourself away.”
Everly had no idea what he was talking about and she didn’t give a damn. That weekend, she’d wanted him and believed that he cared a little. And right now, she’d rather bite off her own tongue than admit that. “Why did you want to see me this morning? Clearly, you had no idea who I was until I came here.”
“But you knew exactly who I was. By your own admission, you looked me up.”
He was twisting her words. She decided it would be a bad idea to admit she’d been cur
ious about him. He would use that information against her somehow, she had no doubt. “After we spent the weekend together. After I was mobbed by reporters on my way out of the hotel and everyone in this office saw the news.”
“I felt a bit bad about that. Now I wonder if you didn’t call them yourself.”
“Why the hell would I call the press to print my own humiliation? Do you think that, as an employee of Crawford Industries, I want to be known for sleeping with the ‘bad boy of Wall Street’ and the new boss? I thought those days we spent together were special, but I guess I fell for your usual scam.” She leaned back, trying not to be angry at herself for being gullible. “I’m probably one of thousands.”
He stood suddenly, pushing off the chair, radiating a powerful vibe that seemed to take up all the space in the room. “I certainly wouldn’t call it thousands. The tabloids exaggerate. I’m certain I haven’t fucked my way out of the low hundreds yet but I can’t be sure. One loses count after a while. So let’s get to the heart of the matter. What exactly were you expecting to come from this plot of yours?”
He paced the office like an animal stalking its prey. Everly felt surrounded, watched.