CHAPTER 3

“Excuse me, Sir.” Ethan’s personal assistant’s voice came over the intercom. “I know you don’t wish to be disturbed, but the reception just called up saying there’s someone who’s insisting on a meeting with you. She’s causing a scene, Sir. Should we call security?”

Ethan looked up from the plans spread out on the work desk and scowled at the phone.

“I pay you to handle such matters, Laura” He snapped at the invisible personal assistant, his voice the quality of a frosty winter’s air. “If there is a woman there, then go the hell down and sort it out.”

Her contrite voice came over the phone.

“I’m sorry sir.” The line went dead and Ethan looked round the room at the small group gathered round the desk.

His eyes met Peter’s, and the former secretary, now senior vice president, nodded and slipped from the room.

Ethan returned his attention to the plans and addressed the group of engineers.

“Right. We have to speed up work on the center if we want to meet the six month deadline. Mendez, how is the framework coming?”

He listened while his chief engineer brought him up to speed on the work, though a part of his mind pondered on the identity of the woman creating a scene downstairs. He had a sneaking suspicion of who she might be.

After all, he had been expecting something of the sort for a week now. His lips curled in a self satisfied smile, as he imagined the uproar his scheme had caused.

He briefly considered the thought that she had come begging but dismissed it. Erin Gosling would rather cut off her right arm, maybe a leg too, before she did anything so demeaning.

No. Ethan decided with another smile, she was here to yell at him, denounce him as son of a bitch and threaten him with legal action. That would be the Erin Gosling he knew.

The door opened and Peter came back in, moving to stand beside his boss.

“She insists on seeing you,” he murmured for Ethan’s ears only. “Says she won’t leave until she has spoken with you.”

Ethan smiled. How so like her, he thought.

Aloud, he said. “Where is she now?”

“I brought her up. She’s waiting in Laura’s office.”

“Offer her some iced tea and tell her I’ll see her when I can.”

Peter nodded and slipped out again and Ethan turned his attention back to the meeting.

Ethan dismissed his staff an hour later, then asked Laura to send Erin in. He took his seat, an impressive leather swivel designed in tandem with the massive desk to intimidate and leaned back, waiting.

A minute later the door opened, admitting Laura and the woman who had wreaked havoc on his relationship.

He watched, with an inscrutable expression as she matched towards his desk, his eyes sweeping over the tailored blue suit with its short skirt, that showed off long shapely legs and curves that had probably turned many heads; and up to the face that had been the object of vengeful thoughts many a time.

Right now, those brown eyes were glaring at him, mouth set in a furious line.

“You!” she snarled, her eyes flashing brown fury. “I knew you were behind this. How dare you -”

“That will be all, Laura.” Ethan cut in, dismissing his assistant who watched the scene in wide eyed fascination. She flushed and hurried out, shutting the door behind her, while Erin looked even more furious at being so rudely interrupted.

“To what do I owe this pleasure?” Ethan asked, his voice hard and cold. He deliberately let his gaze run over her from head to toe, his look insulting and he had the satisfaction of seeing her bristle at the rudeness of the action. “It has been a while, Ms. Gosling.”

Erin slammed the palms of her hand down on the table, shaking with the force of her fury.

“You bastard!” she hissed at him, leaning close to look him in the eye. “You filthy good for nothing asshole! What the hell do you think you’re playing at?”

“I will advise you to watch how you hurl those insults, Erin,” his voice was still devoid of any emotion whatsoever and that obviously irritated her more, if the snarl she let loose was any indication. “This is my office, my property and I do not take kindly to verbal insults.”

“Who are you to tell me what to do?” she raged, balling her fists. “If you think for one fucking minute that I or my family are going to sit back and watch you take away our hard earned source of income, then you have another think coming, Ethan Lachlan. I don’t care who the hell you are, but you will lay off my family or -”

“Or what?” He cut in, his tone silky and calm, though to Erin, he looked like a predator about to devour his prey.

“I will fight you with everything I’ve got.” she shouted at him. “Your silly scheme will never work. For god’s sake, this is the most childish display of retribution I have ever seen. Are you mad? Is that it? Is that why you’re trying to hurt my family?”

He chuckled and leaned forward. “Sit down, Erin.”

The command took her by surprise, shocking her enough that she complied without thinking about it. He leaned back and formed a steeple with the tips of his fingers while his eyes bored into hers.

“Good,” he said when she was seated. “Now listen carefully, because I will not repeat myself. Five years ago, you called me an opportunist and manipulated things to go your way. Now I will strip you of every inch of dignity you possess, everything you hold dear until you come begging for mercy. Buying those shares was the first step, Erin, I have barely begun my quest to completely humiliate and make you regret ever uttering those words.”

Ethan paused and watched her reaction. She had gone completely white and looked as though a gust of wind would knock her over.

Good. He thought, reaching into the top drawer of his desk and pulling out an iphone. He slid it across the table and she stared at it in confusion. 

“Keep that with you. I will be in contact soon. Good day, Ms. Gosling.”

She just kept staring at him till color flooded back to her face. She rose with a snarl, picking the phone and hurling it at his head. Ethan ducked just in time and the device hit the wall behind him, breaking into two.

“If you think you can blackmail me or succeed in your ridiculous plan, then you are less the man I think you are,” she glared at him in disdain, while shaking with fury. “If you do anything to harm my family, then I will personally murder you. Stay away from me.”

She turned and stalked out of his office, slamming the door with enough force to crack a window.