CHAPTER THIRTEEN
BRETT WOKE WITH a groan and rolled over, not at first recognizing where he was. It took a moment to acclimate to the strange surroundings, and he remembered that he was in Rebecca’s bed. They’d gone there, arms wrapped around each other, kissing all the way from her front door until they reached her bed, where they collapsed and he took her again before they fell asleep, their limbs entangled.
He felt Rebecca’s warmth next to him, and he reached out and smoothed his palm over her lush curves. She moaned in her sleep and turned to face him. The thin sheet that covered her shifted, revealing her perfect breasts. He’d gone to bed with her. It had been a long time since he’d actually slept with a woman, sharing the same bed. After sex, he normally vacated the premises as quickly as possible, not wanting to stick around for the messy conversations and expectations that often came along with spending the night.
He watched Rebecca sleep in the moonlight. The delicate rise and fall of her chest entranced him, and he wanted to wake her, just so he could take her again, plunge into her naked, waiting body. But he didn’t. Instead, he smiled and pulled her closer, and he let himself feel a comfort he hadn’t felt before. In five years, so much had changed, but it felt like nothing had at all. Rebecca stirred in her sleep and she snuggled closer, placing her head on his chest. He placed a tender kiss on the top of her head and lay back down.
He could have loved her. Probably. If their past wasn’t so complicated, and if they weren’t currently embroiled in a corporate feud. But he furrowed his brow. It couldn’t be love. He’d never loved any woman. And he couldn’t have been in love with Rebecca. It wasn’t possible.
The light they’d left on in the hallway shone in through the door they’d left open, and it was in his eyes. Brett pushed himself out of bed to go turn it off. He walked naked into the hallway and saw the switch a little farther down. With his hand on the plastic lever, he noticed that he was standing outside her office. From his spot in the hallway, he saw the discarded coffee mug and papers strewed over the top of the desk, and there was even a bra thrown in the corner. He laughed, imagining her coming home from work and going straight to her home office to do more work, taking off her bra to get comfortable.
He took a quick look at the door to her bedroom, where Rebecca still slept. He took a step into the darkened office. He turned on her desk lamp and scanned through a stack on top, and he choked on his breath when he saw the letterhead—RMD Holdings. “Fuck me,” Brett whispered, and it hit him. “RMD. Rebecca Madeline Daniels.” The holdings company is named with her goddamn initials. He looked over the documents and saw records of the transactions of her stock acquisitions. He shook his head. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t made the connection before.
“See anything interesting?”
He whipped around and saw her standing in the door. “Yeah, I did.” He gestured to her with the paper. “You’re RMD?”
“And if I am?”
“You’re buying shares of Daniels International, as well?”
“Yes. It’s a power move. To save my company.”
“That’s interesting.”
“What are you doing in my office?” she asked, walking toward him.
He shrugged. “I had to make a phone call and I couldn’t find my cell phone,” he lied easily. “I looked down and saw your letterhead. So you’re buying out your own company.”
“Of course. It’s not ideal, but I won’t let you take my company from me.”
“Why couldn’t we find any information on what RMD is?”
“You had me investigated?”
“Yes,” he said, unflinching. “We had to know what we were up against in our takeover bid.”
“My father gave me shares when I left town, but he didn’t want anyone to know they were mine. I guess he thought I wouldn’t be able to protect my own stake in the company when he was gone. He didn’t want me vulnerable. So he created the holding company for me. Nobody knows it’s me. I think it was his way of keeping controlling interest away from others. He never imagined that I could take care of it myself. He should have known better.”
Brett frowned. He understood her father’s intentions, but while Rebecca might be a lot of things, vulnerable certainly wasn’t one of them. But something else she’d said nagged at him.
He had an idea, a way that they could both survive, and that he could save face. “This is great. Why don’t you sign your shares over to Alex and me? You can work for us. We’ll give you a great executive position at Collins/Fischer.”
Her eyes widened, and she gave a short, loud guffaw. “You’re out of your goddamn mind. I didn’t work this hard to sign over my rightful property to you.”
“Hear me out. DI has been struggling for years. An acquisition by my company can keep the company from folding completely. The shareholders are happy. You can come work for me. Everyone will get what they want.”
“Not me,” she said. “That isn’t what I want. I’m going to rise and restore Daniels International to the great company it was. No matter what it takes. I don’t need your help. I have my own plans, and I will never sell out my father’s company.” She took a deep breath. “You should leave.”
“Rebecca—”
“Get out!”
Brett blew out a frustrated breath. “Fine. I’ll go,” he said, stalking past her. “Goddammit,” he muttered. “But mark my words. We’re not done here. I’ll see you Friday at the shareholders’ meeting, and don’t think for a second that any of the holdouts are going to stick with you over me.”
* * *
Brett slammed his fist on the steering wheel as he pulled his car out onto the road. He didn’t know if he was madder at her or himself. He knew he couldn’t be angry at her for trying to protect her family business. That last remark was his lashing out, probably unfairly, and he settled his anger on himself. How had he let the fact that Rebecca was behind RMD get by him? Goddammit, he knew exactly how. He’d been distracted. If only he hadn’t been so caught up in his own life, in her and her body. He should have been smarter, more aware. She’d vowed to stop them. Did that include using him, keeping him close to stop him?
Using the car’s Bluetooth system, he called Alex. After several rings, his friend answered, out of breath. “Dude, do you have any idea what time it is?” he said by way of greeting. “I’m not exactly alone here.”
“It’s Rebecca,” Brett said.
“What’s Rebecca?”
“RMD. It’s her fucking initials.” Brett quickly explained what had gone down in Rebecca’s office.
Alex was quiet for a bit. “Are you kidding?”
“I wish I was. Her dad set up the holding company in secret years ago. She bought up all those shares in the last week using her own money.”
“Well, shit,” Alex breathed out.
“Alex...” Brett heard an annoyed, disembodied female voice in the background. Alex’s late-night company.
“Dude, let’s get together tomorrow morning,” Brett said. “We’ve got to get our shit together before the stockholders’ meeting on Friday. Get back to your night.”