The Heiress's Pregnancy Surprise (Heirs to an Empire 2)
His eyes were that flinty gray that she was quickly coming to understand meant he was displeased. Displeased was putting it mildly. A tick in his jaw told her he was furious.
“You left the apartment. After I explicitly told you not to.”
She tried a disarming smile and lifted the paper bag. “You were working out. I got bagels.”
The fire in his eyes made her lower her arm, because he looked like he wanted to rip the bag from her fingers and throw it across the room. He didn’t, though. He remained perfectly steady. She wasn’t afraid of his anger, she realized. It was his job to protect her. She lifted her chin. “I was gone ten minutes. Maybe fifteen. There was a small line. And look! Nothing happened.”
He let out a slow breath. It appeared as if he was counting to ten.
When he finally spoke, his voice was measured, but with a hard edge that told her he was, indeed, furious with her. “Since I can’t trust you to follow my instructions, now I’m going to be on your six every damned minute. And I’m not giving up my workouts while I’m here, so that means tomorrow morning you’re up at five and going to the gym with me.”
Her mouth dropped open. Five a.m. gym times were Bella’s thing, not hers. She preferred an extra hour or so of sleep, and then coffee. Lots of coffee.
“You seem to be forgetting that you work for me, not the ot
her way around.”
He smiled then, and she wondered if she was being forgiven. “No, love. I work for your mother. I’ll be happy to send her a report after the first twenty-four hours letting her know that we didn’t even make it one day without you going off on your own.”
“You’re going to tell on me to my mother.”
“I’m obligated to, as per my contract.”
He was immovable. She knew that as sure as she knew she was breathing. She realized he’d given her a test and she’d failed spectacularly because she’d thought a quick trip out wouldn’t hurt. And it hadn’t! But it did have consequences. Jacob Wolfe was now going to be with her all the time.
“The press will pick up on this for sure. You truly don’t have to be on me like...like a barnacle.”
He stepped back and his shoulders relaxed. “Respectfully, that sounds like a you problem. And since you’re running PR, it shouldn’t be that hard to spin.”
“You’re insufferable!”
He shrugged. “I’ve definitely been called worse.” He looked down at his watch. “And your time would be better spent getting ready and having one of those bagels if you actually eat breakfast. We’re leaving at eight ten sharp.”
She glared at him. He really could not be moved. Then again, he was former SAS. She supposed he’d stared down people a lot tougher than her.
She took the bag to the counter, put all the blintzes on a plate, took the compote, a napkin and a fork and knife, glared at him, and marched to her room.
He couldn’t have any of the good pastries. And fine. She’d get dressed and they’d do their thing and she’d ignore him. That was what he wanted anyway, wasn’t it?
She sat at the small table in her room and ate every single blintz, determined to enjoy every last bite. When she was done she instantly regretted it; it was too much food and definitely too much pastry and now she had to dress for the day and—worse—for the cameras. She pulled out the outfit for today and sighed. If she had any bloating at all she was going to be hugely uncomfortable. But she had gone over all her wardrobe choices with Amelie as well as the head stylist at Aurora. This was perfect for her interview today, in Aurora colors, and so she pulled on the black lace skirt and then added the white blouse with lace accents, a small peplum that accented her trim waist, and a scoop neckline that was just daring enough to show the smallest shadow of cleavage.
The skirt felt tight, dammit.
Then it was the shoes, classic black stilettos that would put her maybe two inches shorter than Jacob. Not that she cared.
She hoped he realized that yesterday’s jeans and sweater wasn’t going to cut it when they were in public.
Her makeup regime was down to a science. She sat at the makeup table with the beautiful lighting and began, taking comfort in the steps. Oddly enough, it soothed her. She never went in for dramatic makeup. Oh, for evening events she sometimes went for a bolder eye or lip, but most days she opted for something low-key and classic. She sorted through her lip colors and found the one they’d picked out for the shoot. She’d take a kit with her to freshen her look before the interview. No photos from the interview would be published without her signing off on them first, so she wasn’t overly worried.
The only thing she was remotely worried about this morning was Jacob. She’d angered him and now there were consequences. She felt like a chastised child, but had to push those feelings away. They weren’t...helpful. Instead she had to deal with what was right in front of her.
* * *
Jacob tried to tune out whatever Amelie and Charlotte were talking about and focused instead on the day’s itinerary. Their driver wound his way through the streets to Tribeca, where they’d take in a few of the shows and then Charlotte would leave for her interview. Every night there were parties, and tonight was no exception. He glanced over at Charlotte and pondered. He’d never heard any rumors of her being a party girl, but that didn’t mean much. Tonight he’d stick close to her side and hope he didn’t end up being the babysitter he’d first feared. Today’s bagel incident didn’t give him much hope in that regard. She definitely didn’t like to be told what to do.
When they arrived, Jacob got out and held the door, and then Amelie gave a small wave and disappeared.
“Where’s she going?”