Freedom (Billionaire Secrets 2)

Seeing Simon every day made her ache. Filled her with a regret she had never known. But seeing him also made the ache go away. Because she got to spend time with him. And spending time with Simon was better than being away from him.

The desperate, painful longing that she carried with her all the time now was better than all the years she had spent away from him. It was crazy, and she couldn’t explain it. Miserably pining over Simon while he worked in the next office was better than never getting to see him. Her schoolgirl crush had morphed into an obsession. It was like Simon was a drug she never wanted to quit. A habit she couldn’t break. She knew that wanting her boss was trouble for her but, damn, it felt so good.

Everett crossed his arms, eyes laser-focused on Heather. “Did you or did you not have a sexual relationship with your boss?”

Heather squirmed in her seat, the question making her too anxious to sit still. This was beyond embarrassing. If they had reported what they’d done, like Simon had wanted, this cross-examination probably wouldn’t be happening. But she had been so terrified of anyone at Dover knowing what she had done that she had begged Simon not to report anything.

Regret began to mix with her anxiety. “I did,” she blurted out.

The board members gasped audibly. Some began to speak in hushed tones.

Her face flushed. The embarrassment was turning into total humiliation. More than a dozen people were quietly judging her, and she had never felt so small. So foolish.

She didn’t get into trouble like this. She had spent her entire life following the rules. But with Simon back in her life, she had grabbed trouble with both hands. Tossed caution to the wind.

Simon glanced at her and cleared his throat. “We did have a sexual relationship. But that’s over now.”

“Heather, did you have sexual relations at work?” Everett asked.

“Dammit, Everett!” Simon said icily. “What the hell are you trying to insinuate?”

“It’s not an insinuation,” Everett shot back. “I’m flat-out asking if you had sex here at Dover headquarters.”

“No!” Heather said sharply. The thought was... tempting. Dammit—focus, Heather. This is your job!

“I’m not going to sit here while you try to humiliate Heather like this,” Simon ground out. “We did not do anything here at Dover.”

“You don’t always work here at the office,” Everett said coolly. “Did you have sexual relations during work hours somewhere else?”

Silence.

Mortified, Heather stared at her hands. She hadn’t even realized that she was gripping the edge of the conference table. Her knuckles were turning white and she couldn’t pull her hands away.

Her stomach knotted. Tears pricked the back of her eyes, but she blinked them away. The board might try to humiliate her, but she wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction of seeing her cry. She was going to face this with all the dignity she could muster. Even if they ended up firing her, she refused to cry in front of them.

Everett’s dark eyes landed on hers and held her gaze. “I assume that’s a yes.”

She swallowed hard. “We had an encounter after the inter-company conference a several weeks ago. Work had ended but we were together in Simon’s hotel room.”

More gasps. Even louder than before. Some of the board members shook their heads in disbelief. Others avoided her gaze. She sat up straighter in her chair, trying to project a confidence she didn’t feel.

“Stop this, Everett,” Simon commanded. “You’ve put on your show. Leave Ms. Heather Hall alone.”

“Heather, was that the only time you had an encounter with your boss?” Everett pressed, ignoring him.

“I’m warning you.” Simon shot to his feet, his hands balled into fists. “This ends now. You and I can talk in private, but so help me, if you continue to question Heather—”

“You’ll what?” Everett cut in.

“I’ll destroy you,” Simon said without blinking. “Don’t think for a moment I won’t.”

Everett’s eyes widened in shock. “This is outrageous,” he sputtered. “You can’t talk to me like that.”