CHAPTERTWENTY-THREE
Bran
I’d been doing my best to give Anne the space it seemed she needed once we knew she was pregnant. But boy it was fucking hard.
I spent more time at the office just so it was more difficult for me to hunt her down in the house to spend time with her. When I failed at that, I did my damnedest to keep our interactions friendly yet professional, just as she wanted.
But Jesus Christ, deep down I wanted to hold her. I wanted to lay my head on her belly where our child was growing.
Today, I couldn’t take it anymore. I’d made it through lunch, but I needed to see her. I drove home thinking I could suggest we go for a walk and later have our dinner together. Maybe I could convince her to watch a movie with me.
I could hear her already, “Not some childbirth documentary.” My lips twitched up. I loved how she found humor in my intense nature. She could pick any movie she wanted.
When I arrived home, I was disappointed to learn she had gone out. Mr. Joseph assured me that she had security following her, so I didn’t worry about her being gone. While it concerned me that she’d left without letting me know, I was happy that she’d gone to have lunch with Harper.
I’d do my best not to grill Anne about her visit. Hopefully she’d share something about how Harper was doing.
I was in my office when I heard her car pull into the drive. I shut down my work and made my way to the front door. As I approached, I could hear her talking. I came around the corner and saw Dax grinning at her.
She had her hand on his chest and a flirtatious smile. “I’ve always wanted a big strapping, kickass boyfriend."
Dax laughed. "At your service."
Red rage fired in my brain. “What the fuck?”
"Bran?" Anne looked at me like I'd gone mad.
Dax stepped back from Anne. "Mr. Erickson, I was just escorting Ms. Francis inside after her outing with her friends."
I strode toward him. "Now that you've done that, you can go." I opened the door, pushing him out of it and shutting it behind him. I spun around ready to give Anne a piece of my mind, but she was already heading up the stairs. "Where the hell do you think you're going?"
She continued up the stairs without looking at me. "I'm tired. I'm going to rest."
"The hell you are." I took the stairs two at a time, reaching her as she arrived at the landing. "You’re going to tell me what that was all about."
She gave me a quick glare and then dismissing me, headed towards her room. "You're not the boss of me, Bran."
She entered her room and started to shut the door, but my hand shot out to stop it.
"If I remember correctly the last time that we fucked, you told me it was a mistake because you are my employee. Technically, that means I am your boss and I want to know what the hell was going on down there with Dax."
"It's just like he said Bran. He was escorting me inside after making sure I got home okay. You know, I'm the one that should be mad at you for having me followed."
I jammed my hands on my hips and glared at her. "You knew I would do that. You agreed to it when you signed the contract."
She waved my comment away like a gnat. “It was just as he said.”
"That's not what it sounded like. Not when you're touching him and saying how much you’d like to have a man like him. Are you dating your security detail?"
Anger boiled deep in my gut like molten lava.
"What if I am? There is nothing in the contract that said I couldn't date."
With those words, I finally understood what blind rage meant. My insides went brutally cold and liquid hot at the same time.
"How long have you been doing this? You got pissed at me when I questioned the possibility that I was not this child's father, but now I find that you're out fucking your bodyguard?"
Rage filled her expression. Her hands clenched at her side, and I was sure she wanted to slap me. I move closer to her, daring her to do it. How crazy was I that I wanted to feel her touch even if it was in anger?