Not waiting for his confirmation, she strode toward the rear of the house. Anger bristled under her skin, poking her like thousands of tiny needles. When she entered her brother’s domain, she could barely look at him.“How dare you bring that asshole into my house?” Bruce ground out through clenched teeth as soon as he closed the study door behind them.“Your house?” She crossed her arms. “You were right when you told Scott that I chose to leave. Chose. Because this is our home, Bruce. I can bring whoever I want here, and you have no say. I don’t need to ask your permission.”“I would’ve never thought you were a traitor,” he snarled. “Mom and Dad wouldn’t recognize you right now.”She absorbed the power of that blow and fought not to stagger from it. But the pain ebbed and flowed inside her.Stand tall. He can’t hurt you. Inhaling a deep breath, she pushed past it.“You’re such a hypocrite,” she said, surprised at her even tone. “So righteous and high-and-mighty. And to think I defe
"You're not responsible for his actions and if you don't want to become another version of Bruce, you should find a way to forgive yourself and him too. Do it… not for me, but for yourself…. And maybe Vivian too. Whatever relationship you have with her, you don't want to have any kind of hate in your heart. It eats you up from inside and before you realize it, you have no emotions and no boundaries left. I'm not sure that's the kind of man Vivian or any woman would want to be with"—------------Coordinating their diaries.It wasn’t the most romantic way to begin a relationship, though Vivian supposed that it was the practical way, particularly because of the fact that he was still her boss. Sometimes she didn't quite believe that she was actually doing this. Dating the boss. "I’m going to be pretty tied up next week, so I won't be coming to the office" he had said as he’d bent his head to kiss her goodbye at her apartment. "But I’ll call you." And immediately she was catapulted int
Scott wondered if she would take him slow and easy, or hard and wild. God, he’d almost drove himself insane wondering that.Vivian nodded, but he shook his head. “You sure, baby? You good?”“Yes,” she breathed, giving his neck a squeeze. She removed her hand, replacing it with her mouth, trailing a path up his throat, over his chin until she hovered over his lips. She crushed her mouth to his. The kiss wasn’t patient, and wasn't tentative. Her tongue thrust forward, parried with his, tangling and dueling. She took him exactly the way he liked, the way he needed her to. As she sucked on his tongue, drawing on him as if he were everything she needed to survive, everything winked out of his mind. Nothing mattered but the in-toxicating, addictive taste of her. Running her fingers, through his hair, sheytugged on them, and the prickle across his scalp tripped down his spine, crackled at the base. He clutched her hips, digging his fingertips into the soft flesh.“Beautiful,” she whispered
It had been weeks since people got to know about Vivian and Scott, and Vivian was starting to get used to the looks and whispers from people about it. Thankfully, just like all gossip, it was getting old and people weren't talking about it as much. So she was having an affair with her boss, she wasn't the first person and she certainly wouldn't be the last. Scott on the other hand didn't seem to care at all about it. But why should he? He was rich, powerful, and he was the boss. No one could say anything to his face if they wanted to keep their job, and honestly, as Vivian continued to spend time with him, she realized that he wasn't the kind of person who cared what people thought about him so it didn't even matter. At times she wished she could be that way. It would make things easier for her. Especially now, as she joined Betty, Linda, George and Michael at the cafeteria. "Hello," she greeted them. "Hello" they all greeted back. "Hi Vivian," Betty said cheerfully as Vivian too
"I wouldn't say 'happy'," Scott replied, "But I'm a bit relieved that no one is giving you reasons to leave me. It would suck if you did" He flashed a smile at her, and when she still said nothing, he moved closer to her. "You seemed upset when I saw you get out of the elevator. What's wrong?" Vivian shook her head, "Nothing" she lied, but he could not be fooled. He crossed the room and went behind her desk so he could pull her off her chair. He sat on it and she let him pull her down so she was sitting on his lap. "Someone will come in, Scott" she said, although she made no effort to stand. "And then I'll have to deal with even more gossip" "Ah" he said, "So that's what your foul mood is about. Gossip…" "You make it sound so casual and it's not. You have no idea how I feel when I hear these things people say about me." "Why do you care?" he asked. "What?" "Why do you care?" he asked again, "Do you regret it? Do you not enjoy the moments we spend together?" Vivian nodded. "Of
“Will you—” She broke off. God, she was pushing her luck. From his explanation, she sensed he didn’t share this part of himself with many people. It didn’t line up with the image of ruthless business tycoon. But in this moment, she wanted to see his clever, talented fingers fly over those strings. To witness him coax beautiful music from that instrument. To watch him lower that damnable shield and let her in. “Will you play for me?” He stared at her, and her heart thudded against her rib cage. Finally, finally, he dipped his chin and reached for the acoustic guitar on the far end. He almost reverently lifted it off the stand and carried it to the loe seat. She trailed behind him, not saying anything. Afraid if she uttered a word, he might change his mind. Once he perched on one end of the small love seat, she sank to the other.Propping the instrument on his thighs, he plucked a few strings, turned the knobs at the top. Once he seemed satisfied, he cupped the neck, fingers at the re
Scott woke up. Remembering that he had Vivian in his arms when he slept off, he grinned and reached out for her. He frowned when he realized that her side of the bed was empty and sat up. Then he heard it…The sound of the television downstairs. Putting on his boxers, he headed downstairs. Halfway down the stairs, he could hear her laughing. Not too loudly but a bit carefree. She sounded so happy, and he grinned. What the hell was going on with her, he wondered. When he got to the living room and sat saw the almost empty box of brownies, he knew what was going on with her and he had to fight the urge to burst into laughter. "Vivian…" he said softly as he approached her. Careful not to scare her. She lifted her eyes to his and smiled at him. She looked so happy to see him and Scott couldn't help but smile right back at her. "What are you doing?" he asked her. "Watching TV" she whispered back, "I'm sorry that I woke you up, but that scene was just too damn funny." "What scene?" Sco
"No, I don’t. I have no earthly desire to find out when you went out with Johnny, or Dickie, or Harry—or whoever else might be clogging up the romantic files in your memory. Why should I?" Why, indeed? His voice sounded cold, clipped—she hadn’t heard it sound like that in all the time she had been going out with him.But something made her probe away—with the poorly applied knowledge of someone who continued to pick a spot: that it always left a scar."It’s called wanting to get to know someone better, Scott" His eyes gleamed out an unspoken warning. "Or intrusion, perhaps?" he questioned easily, getting up from his chair and going to stand behind her, his fingers beginning to rhythmically massage her shoulders."I know everything I want to know about you, Miss Sanchez" She closed her eyes as she felt her body respond to his touch. Instantly turned on by him and furious with herself for being so. She tipped her head back, so that she caught the upside-down version of his face, and