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His hand paused. “When I finally listened to my voicemail and found out what happened, I rushed to the hospital, breaking all kinds of traffic laws, but he had died ten minutes before I got there. My mother…she wouldn’t even let me see him before they took him away. I didn’t fight it, because I felt like I deserved every ounce of shit I got from her. I’ve spent the last few years trying to become a man he would have been proud of. Trying to model myself after him.”
She rolled over and raised up on an elbow. The lights were out, but the moonlight and the lights of the city illuminated the room enough for her to see him, and he looked…guilty. Ashamed. Torn. And she wanted to fix him.
“You don’t have to change who you are, Benjamin. I bet if your father were here—wait, scratch that. He is here. And he’s watching. I’m positive he’s pretty freaking proud of what you’ve accomplished.”
He smoothed her hair back. “I’m not so sure. The man you see at the office, the one I was before you came into my life? That’s the me I was trying to be. The me I was trying to become. But with you…I can’t do it. I can’t be pragmatic, focused, and completely dedicated to my work. You make me too happy.”
He sounded awfully unhappy about being happy. “Is that a bad thing, or good?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet.” He lay down and held his arms out for her. “Will you stay the night with me, darling? I don’t want to lose you.”
She curled up in his arms. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
As his arms closed around her, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, breathing his scent in. There was no telling what tomorrow would bring, but with Benjamin’s arms around her, the apartment didn’t feel so foreign anymore.
It felt like…home.
Chapter Fifteen
The next afternoon, Benjamin sat behind his desk, rubbed his forehead, and cursed his sleepless night. Even though he’d held Maggie in his arms, which should have soothed him, he’d been unable to relax enough to actually drift off. And man, he was paying for it now. He’d spent the day in a council meeting, pouring over financials and reports.
At first, he’d been so sure he would find so
mething—anything—that would explain his mother’s behavior, as well as her insistence that he marry for money. Like they were impoverished and needed funds. Or maybe the company was going under.
But that wasn’t the case.
Since he joined the company, the profits were up nearly two hundred percent. He didn’t understand why she was so unhappy with him, or what drove her to try to kick him out of his seat. The board seemed as confused about the turn of events as he was.
The company was safe. The board was happy.
All evidence pointed to his mother being a rich, heartless snob. But he couldn’t believe that was the only reason. There had to be something else.
Tossing the papers down with a frustrated sigh, he leaned back in his chair and covered his face. His company was perfectly fine—which should make him happy. It did, but it pissed him off at the same time. On top of his mother’s stressful deadline hanging over his head like a fucking anvil, Maggie had been acting strange.
Ever since her parents had called, she’d been quiet. Reserved. Upset, even. He’d heard her mention money on the phone, and coming up with a way to find some, but he hadn’t pried because she clearly wasn’t in the mood to talk about it. That was killing him, too.
Especially after he opened up to her like that.
The door to his office swung in, and he didn’t bother to take his hands off his face. The only person who would walk in without knocking was Maggie. “What’s up?”
“That’s no way to greet your mother.”
Oh, just fucking great. He lowered his hands and sat up straight, standing unsteadily. “Mother. What a pleasant surprise.”
“I bet it is.” She shut the door behind her and walked up to his desk. Before he could so much as come around to dutifully kiss her forehead, she tossed down a thick folder. “This is what you’re looking for. You won’t find it in those reports, or hear about it in a board meeting with a bunch of clueless investors.”
He glanced down at the pile. “Won’t find what?”
“The evidence that this company needs a merger with Reginald to keep running. I’ve kept it hidden from you because I didn’t want you find out how your father ran us into the ground, but I should have told you years ago.” She smoothed her hair. “It’s why I kept pushing you to marry Elizabeth. If you do, Reginald will save us.”
“How did you…?” He rested his hand on his hard thigh, his heart thumping so fast and hard it physically hurt as he opened the folder and glanced at the papers. “Wait. What?”
“When you called a board meeting, I was informed. They also told me you went over financials extensively, so it was clear what you were seeking.” With a manicured finger, she tapped the paper he’d flipped over. “These are the real reports. The ones no one but the two of us can ever see.”
He stared down at his desk blindly, his heart thumping a loud staccato in his head. “But how would no one else find out about it? All the shareholders, and board members… That doesn’t make any sense. They would have to know.”
“No, they don’t. Because I’ve kept it from them.” She collapsed in the chair in front of this desk. For the first time in his life, she looked defeated. Probably because what she’d done was illegal, and they both knew it. “I’ve hidden the truth from everyone. I only just told Andrew this past weekend.”
