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Chapter 17
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Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 18
▪️Ace▪️ God, he was bored. So bored. Ace had agreed to the dinner with Susan, figuring it would be a good way to ease into the new job. She’d seemed like a fun, cool girl, and what better way to find out about The Company and its people than from someone working there, especially off-hours and after a few drinks? Maybe Susan would even have some insight into Emily.Inside the sushi restaurant on Mercer Street, they sat jammed together, knees touching. It was where you went to see and be seen, not for the quality of the food. Not Ace's type of place, but he went along with it because the thought of going home and sitting in his bedroom, eating sushi again, was enough to make him agree to almost anything. And at first all was light and fun. They had a few beers and shared some vegetable. He enjoyed the casual flirting and even took some pictures and posted them on Instagram, tagging the restaurant and The Company. The publicity couldn’t hurt, and he want
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 19
▪️Ace▪️ “Bonjour,” Ace answered. “Comment allez-vous?” “Yeah, yeah, same to you. How’s it going with Emily? You aren’t calling to ask me to come home and bail you out of jail because you killed her, are you?” Liam snickered, and he heard Olivia yelling in the background, “Not funny.” Ace scowled, wishing they were on video so he could give him the finger. “Aren’t you the comedian? No, idiot. I’m working with her and Simon on the Mojo account, and between Simone being a son of a bitch and resenting me, and Emily poking me at every turn, it’s been hard.” He raked a hand through his hair. “I don’t have a friendly face or someone on my side.” “Emily's not against you, Ace. He doesn’t want you to fail, simply because if you do, then so does The Company. And Simone can teach you everything you’ll need to know. He can be arrogant, but don’t let that get to you.” “Great. That’s inspiring. Not. How’s Olivia?” Talking about Emily depressed him, and Ace
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 20
▪️Ace ▪️ Emily shot him a quelling look, one Ace knew would make any other of Emily's associates quake in their loafers, but Ace had been on the receiving end of worse from Emily. “No,” Emily snapped at him. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She walked away without another word, and Ace shook his head. “Jerk,” he muttered to himself, packed up his stuff, and hurried after Emily, who walked with her usual strong, lengthy stride through the empty office. They rode the elevator together, and he followed Emily down the block. When they reached the corner, Emily stopped abruptly, making Ace almost run into her. They stood so close, Ace noticed little fiery specks of gold in Emily's velvety brown eyes. His breath caught, and Emily's gaze sharpened into something hard. Dark. Sinful. Ace licked his lips, and Emily followed the movement with her eyes. Watching the quick rise and fall of Emily's chest, Ace reached out, his fingertips skimming Emily's
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 21
▪️ Emily ▪️ “Kissing picture?” Ace asked, his gaze swinging between Emily and Ruth. “What are you talking about?” Ignoring Ace, Emily planted a fake-ass smile on her face. “Ruth, I really can’t stay. And I know you have the girls over tonight for book club.” “Not for a while.” “Did you eat your dinner?” She wouldn’t if she didn’t nag her. “I can fix you something quickly.” “Eat, exercise.” She glared at her. “I’m fine. God, you’re worse than a warden.” “Isn’t he, though?” Emily commiserated with her as he hooked her arm through his. “I could tell you stories, Ruth. Come. Let’s get some nibbles, and we’ll talk.” Leaving Emily standing in the entrance like a gaping idiot, the two of them crossed the hallway to the kitchen, and Emily watched as Ace rummaged through the refrigerator, took out cheese and turkey slices, and cut up some tomatoes, chatting all the way, acting like he belonged there. Even the dog
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 22
▪️Ace▪️ “What ideas did you have for the candy account?” Two days later, Emily stood in his office doorway, and Ace forced himself to ignore the jump of his heart. Circles ringed Emily’s eyes, and Ace knew without asking that Emily hadn’t slept well since Olivia had left. “Hello to you too.” He lazed back in his chair. “Yeah, sure.” Emily gestured impatiently toward her own office. “Bring your notes.” Without another word, Emily walked away.Ace shut his laptop with a snap and scrambled after Emily. Once he at at the conference table, he cocked his head. “What’s wrong? You look like shit.” “I’m fine,” Emily practically snarled at him. “What do you have to tell me?” What Ace wanted to tell her was to chill the fuck out, but he held off, knowing Emily would shove the words down his throat. Instead, he opened his laptop. “The candy company account is being marketed strictly to children, but are you aware they have a retro line, as well as a no-
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 23
▪️Ace ▪️ “Not a problem. We’re all one big family here at The Company. What helps one, helps everybody.” Ace could accept that he’d made a snap judgment where Simone was concerned, and willing to set aside his initial misgivings, opened his laptop and pulled up his file. “Here’s what I’ve done.” Three hours later, he dragged his feet into his office. Damn, that was brutal. Simone quizzed him on everything and insisted on Ace introducing him to the influencers and going through the campaign specifics with each one. It was the right way to handle things, but man, he was tired. He slumped in his chair, rolled his shoulders, and yawning, picked up his phone. Olivia and Liam smiled at him from a text, the famous Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Élysées looming in the background. He grinned and sent them a slew of hearts. Emily was also on the text, but she hadn’t responded, and Ace wondered if she was still angry about t
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 24
▪️ Emily ▪️ Emily knew having Ace come to work at The Company would be a mistake. As if it wasn’t enough that their drunken hookup replayed nightly in her head, Emily found herself thinking about the man when she should be concentrating on business. That near encounter in her office was the final straw. She couldn’t risk having something like that happen again because she knew it wouldn’t be long before she crumbled. And damn Ace for making it easy. “Idiot,” she muttered, knowing full well the blame rested solely on her shoulders. She was in charge and she’d set the rules, only to break them the first chance he got. As angry as she was with Ace, Emily was angrier with herself. She knew what she had to do, and it was a damn shame since Ace was proving himself to be not only a hard worker, but dynamic, sharp, and ahead of the game, more so than some members of the team. Emily had passed by Simone's office when she knew the two were meeting, and se
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 25
▪️ Emily ▪️ Once she returned the dog to Ruth's place and reassured herself the elderly lady was settled in for the night, Emily left them. She changed clothes, ate her sad dinner of a turkey sandwich, and without giving herself time to think, pocketed her keys and cell phone and left the building. The streets were a little less crowded than when she came home from work as it was dinnertime, and the sidewalk cafés were full. Meandering along Prince Street, she debated stopping in at a few to see some familiar faces, even if they were only the bartenders. She might refuse to admit her loneliness to anyone else, but she couldn’t fool herself. Maybe she could connect with someone this time. But instead, her steps took her to Sixth Avenue, and before she knew it, she stood on the corner of Charlton. “You’re an idiot,” she muttered to herself, and as if to prove her point, she walked down Charlton Street, wondering which apartment Ace was looking at. The blo
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Miss Goody Two Shoes 188– The End
“Hey now,” Cole protested. “He offered me money and the apartment.” “Like you were going to take it. How long was he with you? Did he know you at all?” “We were kind of in the middle of an argument at the time.” “Right. But it’s been over a week.” It had. And Cole had told herself she wasn’t hoping for anything. Except she must have been. Because now she felt silly.Ellery kicked the tree moodily. “Stop feeling sorry for him. I expect he’s feeling sorry enough for himself. Or Lancaster’s found him a new whipping girl.” “Don’t.” “Sorry.” “Did you really come all the way to Kinlochbervie to say ‘I told you so’?” “No.” She pulled her hood up and disappeared into its shadows. “I came to ask if you want to live with me.”Cole nearly fell off the swing. “Live with you?”“Yeah. Thought I should move out. Do some shit with my life or something.” “What sort of shit did you have in mind?”She kicked the tree again. And then, apparently finding
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 187
Everything hurt. The hours seemed like wild horses. Dawn broke around Cole. She spent most of the day on the sofa, crying herself out of tears, watching the sky turn tauntingly through shades of silver and gold. She tried to be brave, to be strong, to be less pathetically embarrassing. But her inner Scarlett O’Hara was AWOL—tomorrow being another day seemed like scant consolation. And while she sometimes tormented herself with idle fantasies of Aiden coming back, of sweeping her into his arms, full of sorrow and declarations of eternal devotion, she knew it wasn’t going to happen. She wasn’t sure she could ever bear pain like this again. Later… later… later… Her phone bleeped. And, like a fool, she scrabbled for it, wrecked with hope and fear and hope. It was Harper: “I MOVED MY FOOT!!!!!” **** She slept and didn’t sleep, and the hours sped and sluggished by. And finally, she rang home. Hazel picked up. “What’s wrong?” she said before Cole even had a chance to speak.
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 186
Cole swayed exhaustedly where she knelt. “Well, I'm not. And I don't How many times is you going to ignore me telling you that I love you? Because I do. I really do. And you can think all these awful things about yourself if you must. But nothing—nothing, do you hear me—will make me believe them.” “You can’t love me. You don’t know me.” “You mean, because I didn’t know about this? That’s only because you lied to me about it.” He paced restlessly, up and down that pristine room. This lost creature in Aiden Crux's skin. “I didn’t lie.” “I asked you outright. In Kinlochbervie.” “No. You asked if someone had hurt me. And they haven’t.” “Oh fucking hell.” She rubbed her hands against her burning eyes. “I could have hurt you. Don’t you realize how completely fucked it feels looking back at all the times I’ve pushed you on sex stuff with no clue about what happened to you?” “Well,” he drawled, “I did warn you that I’m a cruel
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 185
Cole glanced up. “I'm not. I mean, it wasn’t fun. But I trusts you. With the worst of me, as well as the best, and all the squishy ambiguous bits in between.” “Thank you,” he said, unexpectedly grave. “I hope to always honor that trust.” “As I will for you.” He didn’t respond. “So, y’know”—Cole nudged him gently—“your turn.” It took a long time, but he did eventually speak. The words coming slowly and painfully, like razor blades from his lips. “If I tell you, you’ll know what Eleanor said about me is right. That I’m sick and twisted and I ruin everything that’s good.” “She only said that because she was angry.” He shook his head. “No, she said it because it’s true. You see, she learned who she was when she was fourteen years old.” “What happened when—wait. When your father died?” “After that. When she seduced his business partner. His best friend.” Cole genuinely had no idea what to say. To
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 184
Cole pulled off a truly Ellery-worthy eye roll. “One cigarette a month is hardly going to kill him,” she said. “Is that what he told you? And you believed him?” Natasha asked. Now that she thought about it… he did tend to reach for his cigarettes once they’d sexed. And he’d smoked after dinner. And during Star Wars. And just now in the gCole. Oh fuck. Fuuuuuck.Natasha shook her head at her. “You poor, sweet girl. You don’t know him at all, do you?” “I… I’m in love with him,” she said, her voice barely audible. “I can see why you’d believe that. Aiden can be quite dazzling when he chooses. But you don’t understand anything about who he is. Or the damage you’re doing to him.” She tried to reply, to protest, to defend herself. Defend him. Defend them. But she had nothing. Aiden had de-clawed her with his secrets. Left her powerless and alone. “You deserve better,” Natasha went on softly. “He’s using you like his cigarettes. You
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 183
“I love it when you hurt me. I love everything you do. And everything you are,” Cole said. And that was when Aiden turned and drew her into his mouth. It was the teeniest bit awkward—he even nicked her slightly with the edge of his teeth, suggesting maybe he didn’t do this all that often. He certainly hadn’t with her before. Not that she’d minded. He made her come just fine. But…wow. He could have been actively terrible and she wouldn’t have cared: Aiden Crux was sucking her pussy. No teasing. Only his tongue sliding tight round her, his mouth soft and hot and perfect.Ohfuckohfuckohfuck. She was…Aiden was… Cole turned her head into her shoulder in an effort to muffle her noises. Which were at least as loud as when he’d been torturing her nipples, and probably even less dignified. Pain was one thing. She could take pain. But she was pleasure’s bitch. Hone
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 182
His fingers closed around her through her dress and squeezed until she bucked and moaned. Some of the anguish faded from her face, the tight lines of her brow and mouth yielding to desire, and something tender she might have called hope. “Don’t move,” he whispered, as he stepped away. “Okay.” Her heart thumped as eagerly as a puppy’s tail. She loved the anticipation that came with his commands. And she loved pleasing him. Of course, her nose started itching almost immediately. But she was determined and ignored it and held still as he had told her to. Aiden circled the pillar, leaving her standing there like Andromeda. Well, Andromeda if she had a massive erection. Then he drew her hands behind her and she felt the cool brush of silk against her skin.It encircled her wrists. Pulled taut. Oh my God. His bowtie. He was bondaging her with his own bowtie. She made a noise of surprise and exciteme
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 181
He didn’t quite flinch but he got that look: the closed down, I am a million miles away from you look I knew all too well. “I’ll leave you to enjoy it.” And, with that, he…went away. Again. Cole bit down on a gasp of frustration. She wanted to kick him in the shins. He couldn’t just fix what was probably years of hurt and misunderstanding with a single, and very small, gesture. Also, the fucker had barely spent five minutes with her. But she pushed all that aside and turned her very best and sparkliest smile on Ellery. “So what happens next? Do we all die of the plague?” Ellery sneered at the room. “Mm, here’s hoping.” “Wow, that’s the last time I RSVP to an invitation from you.” “I don’t mean it.” She sighed and with the air of a small child being forced to eat Brussels sprouts added, “Thank you for coming.” “I didn’t know you played the violin.” Ellery shrugged. “I’m brilliant. When I’m not rusty.” “
Miss Goody Two Shoes Chapter 180
“What do you look for?” Cole asked. “The thing nobody else sees,” He replied, propping his hip casually against a piece of furniture she didn’t have a name for—something ornate and impressive, probably a credenza or vitrine or whatever. “Society photography comes down to one very simple principle. Anyone can take pictures of Kate Middleton and Lady Gaga. The trick is getting a picture of Kate Middleton with Lady Gaga.” “And have you?” “Not yet. But she’s a long way from dead, and hopefully so are they.” Cole laughed. In a strange way, the woman reminded her a little bit of Aiden. The same conviction, the same merciless drive, although focused and expressed very differently. She guessed it was becoming pretty apparent she had a type.But mainly Cole was grateful. Now, when she looked across the room, she met smiles. Flashes of recognition in other people’s eyes. She knew faces and names. She could have joined some of the conversations. Instead of drifting around pathetically. Stil
