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CHAPTER 10
Sam
Last night was interesting, to say the least. I actually stopped Chris from having sex with me. Who would have thought I would be the one to turn down some great couch sex? There’s no way I would do that for anyone else. But I know that Chris has strong beliefs, and sometimes he needs help maintaining his control.
He knows that it’s his responsibility. He apologized profusely. But I’m glad I was there to help him keep his cool. I’m glad I could be the one to tell him when it’s time to stop. And he listened to me. He didn’t give up and kept going. He stuck to his guns.
And then he did what no other man I’ve dated has done. He was honest with me and confessed about his past. We talked about why he is the way he is. Chris was vulnerable and open. I’ve never experienced that in a man before. And it made me fall for him even harder.
But today is a new day. We’re in the office, so I’ve got to keep it together. John is coming in for his meeting any minute. We have bigger problems than what happened at Chris’ place last night. I’m worried that he’s going to ask the wrong question and send John off into a spiral. He could be the man threatening my father. Or working with the men who are trying to take down the company.
Maybe he’s their inside guy, giving the Carter information about us. I don’t know what he’s doing, but something in my gut is telling me it’s not good.
Not only is there the pressure of John finding out what information we’re after. But he’s also the only lead we have. If we don’t get anything out of him, we’re back to square one. And we end up with even more questions without answers. We need this to go well. I know Chris isn’t as worried about it as I am. But I need to know. I have to keep us safe. I want us to be back to normal again, without concerning myself with the company.
He finally walks through the door, and the only reason I know it’s him is the expensive suit. Our senior executives make much more than our clients and the other employees. He holds himself high, confidently. But other than that, he looks normal.
His chin is cleanly shaved, and his dark hair is neatly trimmed. I can see him anywhere else, and I wouldn’t be worried at all. He doesn’t look like the criminal mastermind I’ve created in my head. I don’t know what I was thinking he would look like, but it wasn’t like this.
“John Bauer to see Chris Jenkins.” Even his voice is normal.
“Of course. You can take a seat right there and he’ll be out with you shortly.”
I push a number on my phone that leads me directly into Chris’ office. He picks up immediately, so I know he’s been anticipating this. “John Bauer is here to see you.”
“Okay, I’ll be out in a minute.” He sounds nervous, but I can’t say that in front of John. I can’t remind Chris of what to say or ask. It’s all up to him and I can tell he’s worried about it. I can’t even reassure him without John asking questions.
He’s staring straight at me, so I nod to him and repeat, “He’ll be out in just a minute.” John nods in response and I think that’s going to be the end of it.
But as I hang up the phone, he begins talking to me. “So, Sam. How’s your day going?”
At first, I jump at my name in his mouth. But he’s worked with my father for so long, it shouldn’t have been a surprise that he knows about me. “It’s going well, thank you for asking.”
“Your father is a great guy. I love working with him. He’s always been so focused on work, you know?”
“Oh, yes. I do.” I recall the late nights when he’d be on his laptop rather than watching our movie. The late dinners he’d take to his office to finish up his work for the day and then I would end up staying up until past my bedtime.
John smiles up at me. I almost forget that we’ve brought him here to get information out of him. “Well, thank you for your sacrifice. We’ve created a booming business because of the work he’s put in.”
I nod back at him. I don’t know what else to say. Sure, my father has made a sacrifice of our family for the business. And sometimes I’m glad he did, sometimes I’m not. But I don’t have anything to say to this businessman who has probably done the same to his family. If he has one.
“I see you’re working for Chris now.” I nod and smile, pretending like this is a normal conversation. “I think you should be up in the offices helping us with marketing. You have a degree in that, right?”
“Yes, I do. I’d love to, but I don’t want any favors from my father. I know how that can look to some people. I’d rather work my way up the ladder. Prove that I’m supposed to be here.”
“We do have internships for that kind of thing. Have you thought about applying to those? I think you’d be great at it.”
I’m able to genuinely smile, despite not knowing how to respond without telling him I’m in love with my boss. And I took the job so I could be closer to him. “Yeah, I’ll have to think about that. I like where I am for now though. It’s been nice getting to know the company better.”
“Yeah, I get it. That’s what my son did, too.”
“You have a son here? I didn’t realize you had someone in the business as well.”
“Well, we don’t have the same last name. He took his mother’s maiden name after she left. I understand it. We all make sacrifices.”
Now I see where he’s coming from. He’s just like my father. Over worked himself until he lost his family. We’re much more alike than I realize, and I begin to feel bad for thinking so little of him. For thinking that he could be involved with something so sinister. John is just a normal guy like my father. Maybe he has some secrets, but he couldn’t be some evil mastermind.
“Have I met him before? What does he work in?”
