Chapter 35: Chapter 35

Ryan schooled his expression to not show too much surprise at the sight of Sam sitting in his father's office. Giving her a nod of acknowledgement, he settled into the chair next to hers, flicking open the buttons of his suit jacket.

He met his father's gaze, wondering why the old man had decided to call the both of them into his office. Surely they'd already discussed the Caine project at length, so unless it had to do with something else…

He looked at Sam and catching her eye, he raised an eyebrow in silent inquiry. She gave a nearly imperceptible shrug to let him know she was also in the dark about the purpose of the meeting.

"Good, now you're both here, let's carry on." Bradford said, giving each of them a piercing look. "I'm aware you both have a lot to do today, so I'll get straight to the point."

Ryan found himself once more under scrutiny and felt his muscles tense in anticipation, steeling himself to receive bad news. After all, it was the old man's specialty as far as he was concerned.

What had he fucked up this time? The Caine project was back on track, things in the department were in order...so what?

Dread squeezed his heart as a thought occurred to him. He glanced at Sam, her attention now focused on Bradford as she waited for him to continue.

Had his father somehow found out about their relationship?

Bradford's next words confirmed his worst fears.

"I recently received a rather disturbing report," Bradford pursed his lips, expression impassive as he regarded them both. "That there might be some...sort of relationship between you two. How true is this?"

Ryan heard Sam's sharp intake of breath, just loud enough to be heard by him, but not Bradford. A quick glance showed her sitting ramrod straight, but her expression carefully blank, though he caught the way her knuckles whitened from grasping her hands together.

Shit. Fucking damn shit. He had to take things in hand before the shit hit the fan.

Forcing tense muscles to relax, he affected an air of studied nonchalance.

"Where did you hear that?" He scoffed, shaking his head as though the very notion was ridiculous. "Stooping to pay attention to break room rumours now for ammunition, are we, dad? You must be more desperate than I thought. "

The dig hit its mark. Bradford stiffened, shooting him a derisive glare.

"Watch your words, boy." He growled, slamming a palm on the table, sending the stack of papers flying. "I'll not have you speaking to me that way."

"Then, maybe you should stop pulling shit out your ass and quit dragging innocent people into your fucked up agenda."

His father's face turned red, and he leaned forward, eyes narrowed to menacing slits. "You're treading on thin ice, son."

"Do you think I give a -"

"Stop it!" Sam's outburst cut off his words mid flow.

Shocked, Ryan turned to see her watching him, mouth set in a tight line, eyes flashing daggers at him. Anger drained out of him in seconds, quickly replaced by guilt as the realization that he'd dragged her into the feud with his father.

Her eyes fluttered closed for a second and She drew in a deep breath, trying to calm herself before speaking.

"Sir," she turned to Bradford, her tone calm but unmistakably firm. "I don't know what you may have heard, but to answer your question; yes, we do have a relationship."

Ryan could feel his jaw drop in shock. He sat forward, every muscle tense as he waited for her next words. Was she actually going to admit they had more than just a working relationship?

"A professional relationship built on friendship. Working together these past few months, we quickly came to realize that in order to achieve our goals for the department, we had to put aside our differences and work together. And just as you mentioned earlier, the results have been positive."

She finished speaking and settled back against the seat with regal calmness.

Christ! Sam was spectacular. Ryan watched her, a mixture of pride and lust crashing through him. He wanted to gather her in his arms and spirit her away somewhere private where he could take his time worshipping the wonder that she was without interference.

At that moment, he was hit with another realization. One that stole the living breath from him and left him stunned.

He was in love with this amazing woman.

"I see," Bradford's voice interrupted the flow of his thoughts. He tore his gaze from Sam to his father, meeting ice blue eyes that still held anger. "Thank you for explaining it so reasonably, Sam."

Ryan didn't miss the hidden meaning behind the words, but at the moment his mind was too preoccupied by the revelation to bother taking offence.

"No problem." Sam replied, and he could see some of the tension leave her body. "Will there be anything else?"

"No," Bradford nodded a dismissal. "Like I said at the meeting, you'll manage the Projects department until Ryan gets back. We will discuss new assignments for the both of you when that happens."

"Understood." Sam rose to take her leave.

Ryan stayed put. He wanted to leave, to talk about what had just happened with Sam, but something about the old man's last words kept him seated. He saw the look of confusion on Sam's face as she realized he was still seated and for a moment she hesitated, clearly debating whether to inquire or simply walk away.

She chose the latter, her expression shuttered as she spun away and left the office in quick strides.

Ryan waited until he heard the click of the door sliding shut before he leaned forward, eyes intent on his father who'd busied himself on his computer.

"You already knew about us." The words were not a question but a mere statement of fact. "All that rumour talk was just bullshit, wasn't it?"

"Did you really think I wouldn't find out the minute you started fucking the hired help?" Bradford chuckled and shook his head, eyes flashing mockery. "How naive of you, son"

The derision in Bradford's words sent his temper soaring.

"The fuck did you just call her?" Ryan was half out his seat with the intent to make the old man eat his words before he checked himself. Inflicting bodily harm would do no good.

Yet.

Rather than be intimidated, Bradford merely raised an eyebrow. "Such a strong reaction. Could this be more than a mere urge to fuck a beautiful woman?"

He made a steeple with the tips of his fingers and rested his chin on it, his expression cold. "Why do you constantly prove to be such a disappointment? You throw away a perfectly good relationship on a whim and then decide to pick the most unsuitable woman to fall for? I thought you had more sense, but I'm constantly proved wrong."

Ryan had had enough of his father's delusions. With a sneer he rose, arms propped on the table as he leaned close.

"Hate to break it you dad, but that 'perfect' relationship kinda turned sour when she ended up fucking someone else."

"People make mistakes. What's important is finding a way to move past those mistakes for the sake of a successful future. Your decision to break off the engagement cost us a potential lucrative partnership with the US Navy. Chad Gosling had valuable links with key people in the military but because you decided to act so impulsively, we lost that."

Bradford's lack of surprise and his attempt to minimize Nicky's wrong doings made Ryan realize with a jolt that just like everything else, his father knew exactly what had led to the breakup all this while. Christ! He'd known his father was a selfish, manipulative prick, but this…?

Pain, anger and betrayal rose like bile in his throat as he stared at the man who had raised him.

"You knew she cheated on me? And yet somehow, you're still convinced that I'm the bad guy for ending the engagement all because of some lost business deal?"

He could hear the incredulity in his tone.

What sort of fucked up situation was this? And how the hell did he even find out? There were only two people he'd told about what had happened and he trusted them enough to keep that knowledge close to their chests.

Still, he wouldn't put it past Nicky to have approached Bradford with some twisted version of the truth in order to garner sympathy. Oddly enough, after the first three months following the breakup, she'd stopped trying to contact him and last he'd heard, she had taken herself off to London.

He'd been relieved to know she'd finally gotten the message that they were well and truly over.

Seemed like he'd assumed wrong. Not that it mattered anyway. Hell would freeze over before he even considered having anything to do with Nicola Gosling again.

"There's no such thing as a perfect relationship, and someday, when I step down and you take over the running of this business, you'll learn that some sacrifices are necessary for the well being of the family. There's still a chance to remedy the mess you made."

"If those sacrifices involve putting up with a whore for a wife, you can shove it up your ass."

He turned to leave, then paused as a thought occurred to him.

"You know what?" He looked his father in the eye. "It doesn't matter what you think. It never did. And as for my relationship with Sam, it's none of your damn business. We keep things strictly professional at work and it hasn't affected our ability to produce the results you desire."

"Besides, far as I know, there's nowhere in the company's code where it explicitly forbids relationships between coworkers, so we're not breaking any laws."

"And do you really think I need a reason to fire your precious Sam?" Bradford jeered. "Don't forget I hired her in the first place and I can damn well have her fired if I choose."

"Here's what I think." Ryan countered with a mocking laugh. "I think you're full of shit. You may have hired her, but don't forget, you'll need the approval of the board to fire her since she's an executive. What are you gonna tell them? That you don't think she's a suitable girlfriend for your son? You can't use her work performance because it's brilliance pretty much speaks for itself and only a fool would let such talent slip away."

"Again, your naivety is on full display." Bradford said, "But, please go ahead and feel like you've made your point. However, let me make one thing clear..."

Bradford rose slowly, straightening the lapels of his Brooks Brothers suit and came to stand beside Ryan. "I'm giving you one last chance to get your priorities straight. This Saturday, the Goslings are having a small welcome party for Nicola. You will put in an appearance and make an effort to reconcile with her."

Ryan let out a disbelieving laugh. "You've gone and lost your damn marbles, old man. Why the fuck would I do that?"

"Do you know what the chances are of a woman with a tarnished reputation getting another job in Manhattan?" Bradford's smile was predatory. "You should do some research and get back to me. I'm interested in knowing the stats."

Ryan clenched his jaw so hard, his molars hurt. His hands curled into fists as he fought the urge to introduce his fists to his father's smug face.

"Leave Sam out of this." Ryan threw the last warning and walked out of the office, quick strides taking him past Bradford's assistant who took one look at him and shrank back in her chair. He ignored her, focused on getting out of there without destroying something valuable.

****

He found Sam in her office. She stood at the window, arms crossed in an unconscious gesture of protection, gazing absently out, so lost in thought she didn’t hear him enter the room. He shut the door quietly and for several seconds, just stood taking her all in, somehow, the sight soothing the edges of his anger as a warm feeling rose in his chest. Then he recalled his father’s threats and guilt took over.

She was in danger of losing her job and reputation because of him. He’d known the kind of man his father was, known how much he liked to find people’s weaknesses and exploit them, but he’d let himself be blinded by his feelings, had blithely ignored all his instincts and now, she stood to lose everything because of his carelessness.

He knew just how much her job and career meant to her; she’d made that clear several times over the past few months and it killed him to think he’d put the woman he loved in jeopardy.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he walked towards her, footsteps muted by the carpet. Yet, she must have caught sight of his reflection in the glass because she spun around, her expression tight with worry and surprise.

“Ryan,” she closed the remaining distance, and came to a stop, searching his expression for clues. “What’s going on? What did he say?”

“Hey,” he came to a stop in front of her, noting how strained and anxious she appeared and his guilt deepened. He brushed a hand across her cheek, in a tender caress. “I’m sorry about what happened earlier. Are you okay?”

“How...how did he find out about us?” her voice held a ton of worry. “I never thought…” she broke off and took a deep breath, running a hand absentmindedly through her hair. “God, this is a mess. Do you think he believed my explanation?”

He sighed and raked a hand through his own locks, resisting the urge to pull some strands out in frustration. He opened his mouth to say more, to tell her everything, but changed his mind.

“Yeah, I think so.” he said instead, his guilt ratcheting up a notch as her shoulders sagged in relief. “He probably just asked as a way to rile me up. Guess he succeeded, huh?”

Giving her a sheepish smile, he shrugged, injecting embarrassment into his next words. “I’m sorry you got caught in the middle of my family shit again. Like you already know, my dad likes to see how far he can push my temper and I keep falling for it.”

“Still, for him to come up with that, I don’t know Ryan, I think he must have heard some talk. I thought we were being so careful, but who the hell was I fooling?” She choked out a self mocking laugh and sank down on the sofa, burying her head in her arms. “I should have known it was wishful thinking to believe no one would notice us sneaking around. God! I feel so foolish.”

“Hey,” he settled in beside her, sliding an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him. “It’s not as bad as you’re making it out to be. I told you, princess, he believed you.”

She peeked up at him from between her arms. “So, why did you stay behind? Wasn’t it to talk about the issue?”

“Yeah,” he admitted, slowly. “But in the manner of all things Silverton, we quickly moved on to arguing about something else entirely. And believe me, if he even had a shred of doubt left, he would have made more of a fuss than simply asking us if we were having an affair.”

She raised her head, searching his face as though trying to confirm if he was telling the truth. He held her gaze, keeping his expression steady, though every second that passed with her not saying a word squeezed a vice around his lungs.

“Okay,” she said finally, breaking their eye lock and he heaved a quiet sigh.