Seduce Me (Austin Singles 1)

“I’m not worried that I couldn’t do it. I could, but at what price? You already see what’s happened by me taking the weekends for myself. Do you honestly think I could drop my kids off in the morning, come to work, and be off in time to pick them up and take them to soccer practice each day?”

His gaze drifted down to the floor. “Maybe not all the time, but some days you could.”

“I don’t thin

k I want some days.”

Turning back to the window, I cursed under my breath. “Damn my grandfather for doing this to me. Why did he have to be such a prick?”

A low rumbled laugh came from next to me. “That prick built this company with his cutthroat mentality.”

“And almost lost it, if you remember. If it hadn’t been for my father, CMI Consulting would have been broken up into a few other companies.”

I dropped my head back and sighed in frustration. “I’m not the person I wanted to be. I’m lying to the one person I should be able to tell everything to. I’m scheming to keep a position I’m not sure I even want anymore.”

His hand on my shoulder made me jump.

“I wish I could do something more, Charleston. I really do.”

Turning to the man who was like a second father to me, I let him pull me into his arms. I didn’t show weakness when it came to CMI, but in this moment, I was really missing both my father and mother. Each for different reasons.

The door to the room opened and Paul Ricker and Mr. Potts both walked in. Their eyes widened when they saw me in the arms of Mitchell. I took a step back and smoothed out my pencil skirt.

“What’s going on here?” Ricker asked, casting an accusing glance at me and then Mitchell.

“Nothing that concerns you,” I stated.

He cleared his throat. “I think it does if there is an affair going on between the two of you.”

Potts’s head snapped over to look at me so fast I thought for sure he broke his damn neck.

“What!” Mitchell boomed.

I was not in the mood for this asshole’s games today. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, Ricker. Stow the accusation, will you? I was upset and my father’s best friend, who also happens to be my friend, was comforting me. In case you forgot, I did lose both of my parents not too long ago. Contrary to what you think,” I said as I walked up to the rotten scumbag, “I’m not entirely made of stone. I have some heart left.”

Ricker sneered at me. “Good to hear that. By the way, how’re things going with the marriage?”

A smirk moved my lips up some. “You should know; you’re having me followed.”

Mr. Potts sucked in a breath of air. “What? You’re having her followed?”

I wasn’t surprised when Ricker didn’t deny it. “The board needs to make sure this isn’t an arranged situation.”

My head fell back and laughed. “The board or you? Maybe you get off reading the reports you get back. I can leave a window open so that your flunky detective can video me if that would help convince the board.”

Mitchell cleared his throat, and I knew I’d gone too far. My father was probably rolling over in his grave right about now.

“If you keep this up, my personal lawyer will have a field day with you, and you’ll be the one looking for another job, Ricker. I’d tread very lightly with this situation if I were you.”

Paul Ricker reached up and messed with his tie some. His face turned red, and it appeared he was having a hard time breathing.

Marge appeared in the door just in the nick of time.

Plastering on a smile, I said, “If you’ll excuse me, gentlemen, I have a meeting I’m running late for.”

I followed Marge out of the room and down the hall. It felt like someone was squeezing my chest, making it harder and harder for me to breathe.

Please God, please let Marge have had success.