Chapter 38: Chapter 38

Ryan found his father in the gazebo, having breakfast.

He paused at the top of the stairs leading down to the grounds and surveyed the scene, taking advantage of the fact that Bradford was too absorbed in reading The New York Times to notice his presence.

The gazebo had been built strategically to provide a stunning view while enjoying a meal, a colorful riot of deep reds, bright pinks, sunny yellows and fresh greens. A fountain in the shape of a cupid occupied pride of place in the garden.

He drew in a deep breath, the scent of roses thick and heady in the air.

How ironic that the man who’d set his life in turmoil be surrounded by such beauty. Ryan’s mouth twisted at the thought, anger and bitterness trying to claw their way out of his tightly leashed emotions. The confrontation with Lola earlier plus the knowledge of how deep his father’s attempt to manipulate his life still left a bitter taste in his mouth.

He glanced at his watch and set off down the stairs.

“Mind if I join you?” he pulled out a chair and sat without waiting for a reply.

Bradford peered over the top of the paper and arched a brow. “I thought you were supposed to be on a flight to Maui?”

“I’ve got two hours to kill, so I thought I’d do some catching up first.” Ryan shrugged, leaning forward to pour himself a cup of steaming coffee. His stomach reminded him he’d had nothing to eat since last night and he grabbed what looked like a bacon sandwich and took a bite.

“Ah, I see.” Bradford closed the paper and began folding it methodically. He set it down and reached for his own coffee cup, cradling it in both hands as his gaze raked over Ryan. “To what do I owe this visit?”

“Oh I’m sure you know why I’m here.” Ryan leaned back in his chair, returning the scrutiny. Bradford was already dressed for work, looking like the sleek, successful businessman. “Didn’t you want feedback on the little errand you sent me to do? Surely, you would like to know if you’ll be getting a Gosling for a daughter-in-law?”

Ryan saw a nanosecond of irritation cross Bradford’s face before he resumed his usual inscrutable expression.

“Well, well. So you actually know how to obey orders after all.” Bradford chuckled mirthlessly at his own joke, the sound mocking. “Ms. Bhaat must be exceptional in bed to make you so ready to jump hoops for her. Better be careful, Son, no woman is worth the trouble.”

Ryan gritted his teeth and fought the urge to reach across the table and wipe off that smirk from the bastard’s face at the disrespectful way he talked about Sam. It would be a punch well-deserved, that was certain and would teach Bradford a much needed lesson.

Taking a deep breath, he forced tense muscles to relax, keeping his expression carefully blank, reminding himself why he was here. He needed to protect Sam, to make sure Bradford didn’t pull any stunts while he was away and destroy her reputation.

Oh, he wouldn’t fire Sam outright, that much was certain, but there were underhanded ways the bastard could make her life miserable until she was forced to quit and he couldn’t allow that to happen.

He leaned forward, putting steel in his expression. “Don’t celebrate too early, old man. Yes, I went to see Nicky…thanks for the idea by the way, but I didn’t go because of some half-assed threat. I simply took advantage of the situation to clarify some things.”

“What things?”

“The fact that you’ve been using my assistant as your personal spy.” Ryan said, his voice dropping several degrees.

Bradford’s eyebrow arched. “If you’re talking about Lola -”

“Who else would I be talking about?” Ryan cut in.

“I did not ‘use’ her.” Bradford went on as though Ryan hadn’t cut in. “She came to me with information, unsolicited information, but useful. I would have been a fool not to take what was offered.”

Much as he hated to admit, Ryan had to concede the point to his dad. Lola had mentioned that both times she’d been to one to go to Bradford, not the other way around. The thought of her betrayal sent a wave of pain through him and he rose, needing to vent his frustrations. If he didn’t have to catch a flight, he would have gone to the gym to let out his anger on a punching bag.

Speaking of flights.

A peek at his watch had him grimacing. He needed to finish off this conversation and get a move on with the rest of his plan.

“Look, I don’t have time to argue with you,” he crossed back to the table and resumed his seat. “Now, I want you to listen to what I have to say.”

“I’m all ears.”

“I’d like to let you know that I’ve given your offer to get back together with Nicky a great deal of thought and I’m sorry to say, there’s no way in hell that’s ever gonna happen. What’s going to happen, instead, is that you will leave Sam alone – and when I say alone, I mean you will continue to treat her as a valuable employee and with the respect she deserves. You will not do anything to make her feel uncomfortable or undermine her efforts in anyway. None of your sneaky, underhanded tricks to get her fired or quit.”

Bradford let out a laugh. “You forget who holds all the cards in this game, son.”

“Oh no, dad, you’re the one who’s forgotten something really important.” Ryan had the satisfaction of seeing his father look confused. “Because, as it stands, I do hold all the cards in this game. And I know how to play dirty.”

A cold smile crossed his lips and he continued.

“See, I know how much Silvercorp means to you, how much you crave the idea of passing on all this to the next generation, just like your father passed it on to you, and his father before him and so on.”

All color drained from Bradford’s face and he stared at Ryan in disbelief. “You wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh yes, I would, father.” Ryan gave him a smug smile. “If anything happens to Sam in any way that puts her career at risk, then you will have to deal with the knowledge that when you’re finally in your cold, hard grave, I will sell off every stone, everything that has to do with Silvercorp until there’s nothing left.”

********

He was leaving today.

Sam gazed absently out the window, seeing nothing of the passing scenery. Her mind instead drifted to thoughts of Ryan as usual and she sighed, wondering how long it would take before she could go more than five minutes without thinking about him in some way.

Maybe this trip would be a good start. She thought, idly drumming her fingers on the armrest. At least, then, she wouldn’t have his physical presence to constantly remind her of what she was missing; hopefully, her nights would no longer be spent rolling around in bed trying to convince her aching body to stop recalling the feel of his hands and mouth on her body and get some much needed rest.

Out of sight was supposed to be out of mind, right? Well, the next few weeks would prove if that were true or not.

The driver pulled onto the curb in front of the Silvercorp building and Sam shook herself free of melancholy thoughts and stepped out. The early morning sunshine warmed her skin and she took a minute to look up, soaking in the warmth.

“Your bag, Ms. Bhaat.” Her driver, Liam appeared in front of her, holding out her laptop bag, a smile on his weathered face. “It’s a beautiful morning, isn’t it?”

“It’s Sam,” she reminded him for the umpteenth time, though she knew he would go right back to addressing her formally. The man took his job as chauffeur way too seriously. “Yes it is, Liam. Let’s hope it stays that away all day.”

“Forecasts say it should,” Liam replied. “You have a good day, Ms. Bhaat.”

“You too, Liam.”

Shifting her bag to the other arm, she made to walk into the building when a familiar voice halted her in her tracks, her heart speeding up as every nerve sat up in anticipation.

"Yo, Sam."

She turned around slowly, taking time to school her features into something less...excited.

A black SUV idled in the spot Liam had just vacated and Ryan opened the passenger door and stepped out, wearing a wide grin. He came towards her, his gaze sweeping over her in a way that awakened her senses. His scent washed over her, igniting a longing to throw herself into his arms and never let go. She ached to touch him, and from the way he was looking at her, she knew he wanted to hold her too.

Around them, employees walked into the building, barely paying attention, all absorbed in their own thoughts and pending tasks. Not that Sam noticed anyway, all her attention focused on the man standing in front of her. He looked delicious as always in a white button down shirt, top two buttons unfastened and hanging loose over black chinos. A pair of sunglasses was perched on his hair, mussing the silky locks and she longed to reach up and smooth it.

He came close and for the first time, she noticed the faint dark circles under his eyes, and the tired lines bracketing his mouth. He looked like he’d barely got any rest in the past few days, much like her own situation.

“Glad I caught you outside,” His smile broadened. “Good morning, Princess.”

"I thought you had an early flight?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, I do." His eyes travelled over her again, the hungry look setting off mild fireworks in her stomach. "I'm actually on my way to the airport now. But I was hoping we could talk on the way there."

She arched an eyebrow. “On the way there? Are you suggesting I go with you to the airport?”

“Yes,” he shot her a hope filled look and stepped closer. “We need to talk about us, Sam, and I don’t want to wait three whole weeks before we do have a much needed conversation. Will you come with me? George can drive you back to the office once I’m onboard the plane.”

She stared up at him, biting down on her lower lip. She had a heavy schedule this morning, due in part to having to handle tasks he normally would have taken care in addition to her own. A glance at her watch showed the time at eight fifteen and there was that meeting with the research team by eight thirty.

“Okay.” She gave him a decisive nod, making a mental note to call Jane on the way and reschedule her morning appointments.

His smile made it all worthwhile. “Great.”

He led the way back to the SUV, opening the back door for her. Sam climbed into the cool interior and he shut the door, going round to the other side. For the first time, she realised that there was a man sitting behind the wheel who nodded to her in silent acknowledgement.

Ryan slid in beside her, his scent filling her nostrils and she inhaled subtly, loving the familiar smell.

As the car pulled into traffic, he leaned over, slid a hand under her chin, lifted her face to his and kissed her. Surprise quickly turned to passion for Sam as she felt the urgent pressure of his lips against hers. She opened to the thrust of his tongue, welcoming him into her mouth like a long lost treasure, her body sizzling like a hot tide, sweeping away the little voice in her head warning that she was taking a risk. Right now, all she could think about was how wonderful it felt to kiss him again, how thrilling it felt to be in his arms once more.

Needing to be closer to him, she gripped his collar and tugged, moaning when her breasts crushed against his chest, his arms encircling her like steel bands, drawing her even closer till she was practically on his lap. Still, her body ached for more, desire hijacking every nerve at every movement of his mouth, every thrust and glide of his tongue.

Ryan pulled away first, chest heaving with every harshly drawn breath. He groaned and rested his forehead against hers, his skin hot against hers.

“Christ! I’ve missed this, Sam.” His words were a deep, sexy rumble. “I’ve missed you.”

Fighting to get her own breathing under control she leaned against him, her bones turned to mush and unable to hold her upright.

“I’ve missed you too.” She took a steadying breath and sat up, feeling heat rush up her cheeks as she recalled they had an audience, wondering what was going through the poor man’s mind right now.

Ryan was obviously thinking the same thing. He chuckled and ran a hand through his hair, meeting the driver’s eyes in the rearview mirror.

“Sorry about that, George.” he gave Sam a sheepish grin. “I just missed my woman a lot, you know?”

“It’s fine, Ryan.” the man replied, grinning. “I know the feeling.”

If it was possible, Sam was sure she was a bright tomato red.

“Your woman?” she hissed under her breath, giving him what she hoped was an indignant glare at the neanderthal statement.

A serious expression came over his features and he took her hand. “That’s what I want to talk to you about, Sam."

"Okay." She swallowed, suddenly feeling nervous without quite knowing the reason why.

"Do you think we could have a relationship...a real relationship if the threat of your job wasn't there?" He searched her face, as though seeking out the answer.

She considered the question, lowering her gaze to the pleated folds of her skirt. Did she think they could actually date in other circumstances? She pictured the both of them, walking hand in hand after an evening out, doing things couples did and her heart yearned for that.

She looked up, meeting his intense gaze, letting the truth bleed into her expression. "Yes, I think so. But right now, it's just wishful thinking, isn't it?"

He smiled, lifting her hand to brush his lips across her knuckles. "Sometimes wishes can become reality, don't you think?"

"That rarely happens, though."

"But if it did happen. Will you want more than what we had before?" He locked eyes with her. "More than just sex?"

"Yes."