"He didn't want you to come talk to me?" I ask, taking comfort in the small victory that she's defying him.
She shakes her head. "But I had to see you," she says softly looking down. I stay silent as her eyes come up to meet mine. "I had to find out why you stormed into Drake's office. Is it about my company?"
I wanna fucking laugh. Natalie's line of sex toys are revolutionary, but I'm not going to go tangle with Drake Carlton over an investment decision.
But I will fucking get in his face about something more important. About Natalie.
"Sloane," Natalie says to me one more time. "Why did you go get in an argument with Drake this morning?"
I look up at her.
How am I supposed to tell this woman that the only reason I went down to Drake's office on Wall Street was because I fucking hated the fact that she was fucking that man. That every fiber of my body wants her in my arms.
"Because you shouldn't be with Drake Carlton," I say to her instead. She draws in a sharp breath but I quickly add. "You should be with me."
Boom.
Now there's silence. She has nothing to say and I can tell by her eyes that she's not surprised.
She knew from the moment she met me that there was something between the two of us. When Linda and her joined our family, I knew the way we talked to each other, and the w
ay we looked at one another, that we were hungering for each other's bodies.
"Sloane..." Natalie says, a bit unbalanced. You can tell she wasn't expecting me to come out and say anything like this. "We've known each other for so long."
"We have," I agree with her, taking a sip of my scotch and pushing my plate aside.
The time for eating steak is over.
I might be eating something else instead tonight. We'll see. The ball's in her court now. And you can tell just by sitting here that she's struggling with this concept.
Sure, she might've looked at me with lust and desire at the Yale Club when I crashed into her date. But looking and fantasizing are totally different from actually having.
And now she has the opportunity to actually have it. It's a bit disconcerting.
"All these years, Sloane," she tells me. "All these years and now you're finally telling me this. Is this because of me and Drake?"
Fuck that asshole cocksucker. This is about me and her. No one else.
"This is about you, babe," I tell her and reach over to take her hand. It's like an electric shock goes through her body when I make contact. She doesn't pull away, but she looks at me with wide fucking eyes. "You just being open to Drake made it all clear to me."
"Made what clear?" she asks.
"That I fucking want you, Natalie," I tell her, directly, straight up. "And I think you want me too. I think we both know that you're dying to have me just as much as I'm fucking dying to bang you."
"So romantic, Jesus," Natalie says, rolling her eyes and I smile. She's joking. Which is a good sign. "How do I know this isn't some alpha male bullshit just wanting what Drake has had?" she asks me.
"Oh it's totally wanting what Drake has had, don't doubt that for a second," I tell Natalie and her eyes go big and my admission. "Only, I've fucking wanted you since the first day I saw you and Linda and Drake introduced you. Every day since then I've wanted to rip those clothes off and devour you. Fucking make you cum and make you scream. With pleasure. That I know I can bring."
Natalie takes a deep breath. Her cheeks are flushed.
"But you were my stepsister," I say to her. "So I didn't do shit. I let it all go. And I imagined it instead when I was alone."
"You fantasized about me?" she asks, her eyes twinkling. "About having sex with me?"
I nod.
The time for hiding the truth is over. It's time to put it on the table.