It wasn’t often that the man yelled, and it had a profound effect on the room. I reached discreetly behind me to lean against the wall for support, and Nick clenched his teeth together as all the rest of the remaining color drained from his face.
“Yes, sir.”
Mitchell nodded curtly, pleased with his com
pliance.
“We need stability. We need strength. And above all—we need calm. And you, my son, will become the embodiment of all those things.”
Nick’s chest rose and fell with quick, shallow breaths. But when he spoke, his voice was surprisingly calm. “And how do you expect me to do that?”
“It’s actually quite simple, and nothing you haven’t done before.” Mitchell didn’t smile so much, as he bared his teeth. “You’re going to get a girlfriend.”
Chapter 6
“Hey—will you come back here?! We need to talk about this!”
As Nick paced swiftly down the hall, I scampered after him—my bare feet skidding on the tile whenever I took a sharp turn. The departure of his father had left us momentarily speechless, but my darling client was never one to stay speechless for long. By the time the door clicked shut, he was already on to his next adventure—compartmentalizing his father deep into the dark recesses of his mind.
“Nick!”
It was like he didn’t even hear me. As he headed down the hall to take a shower, he started shedding what little clothing he had left—one piece at a time.
I ducked strategically as a crumpled sock sailed back my way.
“Nick—come on. This isn’t so bad.”
Sometimes, public relations was as much altering perceptions for your own client, as it was altering those same perceptions for the public eye.
“We can find a nice girl—one who you’ll actually enjoy spending time with.” The other sock came flying my way, and I was quick to correct myself. “Okay—fine. That probably means she won’t be that nice of a girl after all. But you know what I mean.”
I tossed the clothes in the general direction of the linen closet, still slipping and skidding across the tile after him all the while. How the hell did the man have such long legs?!
“You can go out with her a couple times, get your picture taken. Keep your father and his company happy. Who knows? It might even turn into the real—”
I lost my balance entirely and went careening forward, my messy curls sailing out behind me like a wilting flag. My eyes snapped shut as I threw out my arms, but a pair of warm hands caught me. When I opened my eyes, I was staring up into an equally warm smile.
Warm, but uncompromising.
“Sorry Abby,” he set me gently back on my feet, “I’m just not going to do it.”
And that was that. He proceeded into the shower without another word. The conversation was over. I held my tongue and bowed my head to my chest—plotting quickly.
It was putting me in a tough position—that much was sure. Whenever I ended up caught in between Nick and his father, it was always the same way.
Nick was the client. The prize. The person for whom I was supposed to be willing to move mountains to satisfy his every desire. Lift heaven and earth to protect him at all costs, either from his own mistakes, or from the malicious intentions of others.
When he said no. That meant no. There really was nothing left to say.
And yet...
His father was the one who technically employed me.
Mitchell Hunter was a shrewd man, and my offer of employment had been a prime example of his skills. While I was essentially on ‘permanent loan’ to his son, working exclusively for Nicholas—I was also technically a member of the company. My paychecks were signed by the Hunter Corporation, not by Nick.
That meant that when Mitchell said yes. It meant yes. There was really nothing left to say.
With two completely opposite ultimatums staring me in the face, I decided to say nothing at all. Instead, I headed downstairs and started up a pot of coffee.