Talk about being between a rock and hard place. Sin was looking at two equally despicable choices; either betray Ten or sell out Worth. She sat at her desk hours later mulling over her dilemma. Even though she still hadn’t figured out where to go from here, she’d be damned if she fell neatly into Claire’s plans. If there was one thing Sin was sure of, it was her ability to claw her way out of any trap.
Ring. Ring. Ring. The sound of the phone cut into her thoughts.
She picked it up. “Yes, Mr. Ransom?”
“Are you done with the expanded agenda for next week’s workshop?”
“Neil just sent it in,” Sin said. “I’m going through it right now.”
“Okay, finish up then print out a copy and come with it to my office.”
“Okay.” Sin rushed to complete the ordered task. Within twenty minutes, she knocked on Worth’s door with a hard copy of the agenda in hand.
“Come in,” Worth called out.
When she walked in, she found him seated on the couch going through several documents with a pen. There was just something about a working man that turned her on. Maybe it was the way his shirt sleeves were folded up to reveal his veined forearms. Maybe it was the way he’d loosened his tie and opened up the button at his collar to reveal his tanned throat. Maybe it was the way his hair was ruffled, as if he’d been running his fingers through it while thinking. Either way, an odd heat shot through her.
Nope, she immediately gave herself a mental slap. Stop.
Her quest to seduce Worth was over and done with. Last night, she’d decided that she was going to do everything in her power to extinguish whatever feelings she had for the man. No good could come out of those feeling.
He sat up at her entrance. “Do you have it?”
“Yes.” She circled the coffee table until she was next to him then held out the document.
Worth took the document and as he did so, his fingers brushed against her. Sin wasn’t sure if the contact was deliberate but the electric shock that swept through her was real enough. Startled, she took a step away as her wide gaze rose to clash with Worth’s.
Worth frowned as if he found her reaction odd. And she couldn’t blame him, after all, if it was any other day, she would’ve enjoyed his touch. But not today. Not when she’d decided that she wouldn’t get further entangled with him. Fortunately, Worth didn’t confront her over her reaction.
He lowered his gaze to the document. For a while he just read through it then asked, “Isn’t seven days too long for the training program?”
“I asked Neil about it,” Sin said, “and he says that the manual they’ve prepared would need around seven days to complete.”
“But he’s set some activities even for Sunday,” Worth protested. “Who’s going to come here on Sunday? Tell him to re-edit this and find a way to reduce the number of days the participants have to come in. Five would be ideal, but if he has to, he can have half of Saturday.”
“All right.” Sin jotted down the instructions in her notebook.
“I don’t see any practical activities,” Worth said while thumbing through the document.
“I think it’s on Day Four.”
“Ah.” He flipped the pages to the day she’d pointed out.
The document was long enough that it took him quite some time to go through. Meanwhile, Sin just stood there, pen in hand, taking notes about his recommendations. Soon her heels began to bite into her feet and she shifted uncomfortably.
Without looking up from what he was reading, Worth suggested, “Why don’t you just take a seat?”
“No… no…,” Sin protested. “I’m fine with standing.”
“Take a seat, Sin,” Worth said. “I won’t bite you.”
So she did, but she sat down as far from him as she could, which wasn’t very far since they were on the same couch. Their proximity was enough to start butterflies fluttering in her belly. She was seated with her back so straight and stiff, it was a wonder her spine didn’t break from the pressure.
Worth, on the other hand, seemed completely unaffected by their proximity. He kept asking her questions and giving her instructions. At one point, he scooted closer to discuss one of the items in the document. Immediately, her breath caught in her throat and her heart started pounding.
“Tell them to expand on this.” Worth leaned closer to Sin to show her what he was talking about until his shoulders were practically brushing against hers. “We’ve heard enough issues with repeat refund-offenders that our people need to know how to spot and deal with them.”
“O-” Sin swallowed to clear her suddenly tight throat. “Okay.”
Worth went on, “Do they have a section on damaged but legitimate refunds…”
How could he be so calm when she felt like every cell in her body was humming and vibrating towards him? It took everything in her to keep from trembling while she took notes and answered his questions. By the time he reached the final page of the document, she was ready to get out of there.
“Tell Neil that the program needs to be more interactive.” Worth flipped the document closed. “I don’t want a repeat of January. Instead of spoon-feeding the staff, get them to suggest ways to improve their interaction with customers.”
“Okay.” Sin jotted down his suggestions quickly before looking up. “What about…”
Her words drifted off when she realized how close they were, and how intently he was watching her.
“What about what?” he asked, his dark eyes on her.
“Um…” She licked her suddenly dried lips. “What about…”
Damn it! She couldn’t remember what she was about to ask him. Her confusion caught Worth’s attention. He watched her for a long while before his eyes darkened as if he’d just realized what was going on.
“Sin,” he murmured huskily right before his face came closer. He was going to kiss her.
Sin was tempted to let him. Oh, how tempted she was. But she knew she couldn’t. She set her palm on his chest and pushed him away. “No.”
However, just as she was about to stand, he grabbed her wrist, keeping her hand locked to his chest. “What’s going on?”
“What do you mean what’s going on?” Sin countered breathlessly as she tried to free her hand from his. But his grip was too strong. “Let go.”
Instead of following her command, he asked, “Are you mad at me?”
“Why would I be mad at you?” she asked even as she gave up the fight. Sensing her surrender, Worth lowered her hand from his chest to the couch but he didn’t let go.
“You seem mad at me,” he insisted. “Is it because I took you to Claire’s thing?”
“Why would I be mad at you for that? It was just work.” She worried her bottom lip as she tried to think of a viable excuse for why she was refusing his advances. “I’m not mad at you. I just… just… I just don’t want any more stuff between us.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Stuff?”
“You know what I mean.” She waved her free hand nervously. It felt like something was pressing down on her chest as she tried to clarify, “I just… I just don’t want us getting intimate anymore.”
“Why?” He watched her keenly.
“Because it was a mistake.” Her tongue darted out to swipe against her lower lip and her gaze lowered to their still intertwined hands. “You’re my boss and I’m your assistant. Nothing more.”
He squeezed her hand. “You know damn well that you’re more.”
“Am I?” She met his eyes. “What more am I? Girlfriend?”
She knew damn well that he didn’t think of her as his girlfriend, not with the shoddy way he always treated her after their ‘encounters’. Still, a part of her wanted him to lie to her, tell her that she meant more to him than she assumed.
But lying wasn’t Worth’s style. Though he frowned, he didn’t say a word. And that was answer enough.
It sent an unexpected pang of hurt through Sin. Forcing words through the painful lump that had suddenly lodged itself in her throat, she said, “And that’s why we need to go back to having a professional relationship. I know that you’re not interested in having a real relationship with me, but I’m not willing to be your sex-slave in-waiting.”
“Sex-slave in-waiting?” Worth’s frown deepened. “That’s a little harsh.”
“Is it? It seems like the perfect description for what’s been happening between us.” This time when she pulled her hand away, he let her go. She stood then. Forcing a smile, she added, “Don’t worry. I’m not saying this is your fault. It’s mine. I’m the one who put myself in this situation and now I’m getting myself out. I hope you understand.”
Before Worth could interrogate her any further, she headed for the door.
IT WAS ONLY once Sin got back to her desk that she took an easy breath.
Good girl. She dragged in another long breath. You did good.
But even those peppy words weren’t enough to fill the cavity where her heart was supposed to do. Even though cutting off Worth was the right thing to do, her feelings for him were still there, throbbing and generally being a nuisance. But what could she do? It would never work for them.
She forced her thoughts away from Worth, but inevitably, they headed straight to her dilemma with Claire. How would she get rid of the woman without causing harm to either Ten or Worth? But even as she racked her brain for a way of the mess she’d landed in, Sin wondered how Claire had found out about Ten. Also, why did it seem like she was reading Sin’s mind when they’d had their confrontation? Either the woman was psychic or…
Sin’s eyes suddenly widened and her jaw dropped as the answer hit her like a ton of bricks. Oh. Hell. No.
Her first move was to text Ten. Are you still at the house?
Ten’s answer took quite a while to come. Nervousness nipping at her, Sin stood and grabbed her purse. At the back of her mind, she knew that Worth would be livid if she walked out without even letting him know, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. All that mattered was Ten.
Sin had just gotten into the elevator when Ten’s answer beeped in.
Why do you ask? That was her passive aggressive way of saying she was still in town. If it were normal circumstances, Sin would’ve been happy to find out that her friend hadn’t ditched her. But these were special circumstances.
Her whole body tense with nervousness, Sin texted, Meet me at the café next to our building.
TEN: Why?
SIN: It’s urgent. Just meet me…. And don’t talk or use your phone in the apartment.
TEN: Why?
But before Sin could even finish writing her message Ten figured it out for herself.
TEN: No way. That bitch!
Even though it was just a text message, Sin could’ve sworn that she felt her friend’s outrage in her reply. She texted back, I’ll be waiting. Be careful.
But Sin didn’t have to wait because when she got to the café, her friend was already waiting for her at one of the tables. Ten’s expression was a mask of furious disbelief.
As soon as Sin got to the table, Ten announced, “I found some of them. They were in the smoke detectors.”
“Damn, we would never have found those.” Sin settled in the seat opposite her friend.
“I should’ve found them,” Ten said as she pushed a virgin margarita towards Sin. “That was my job.”
“It’s not your fault.” Sin reached to pat her friend’s hand. “I’m the one who trusted that heifer.”
“Well, I didn’t trust her, and I still wasn’t careful.” Ten kissed her teeth and shook her head. “Damn! She got us.”
Sin was about to agree but an alarming thought struck her. “Please tell me you didn’t get rid of them yet.”
“Not yet,” her friend reassured. “But why shouldn’t I have?”
“I’ll need them later.”
“Later?” Ten leaned forward, curiosity dancing in her eyes. “For what?”
Sin was about to reveal her plan then she remembered that it would put Ten into more danger than she was already in. She changed the subject. “When are you leaving?”
“Ha ha…” Ten laughed. “You didn’t think that would work, did you?”
“I thought you didn’t like the decisions I was making.” Sin reminded her, “I thought you wanted us to run.”
“That was an hour ago. I’ve changed my mind.” Though Ten’s tone was flippant, the rage glittering in her eyes was scary. “Now I just want to get back at the bitch! No one bugs me.”
“No, I don’t want you involved in this,” Sin insisted. “You’ve already done enough. Just go home.”
“Yeah, that’s not going to happen!” Ten retorted sarcastically before waggling her eyebrows. “So what’s the new plan?”
“Ten!” Sin protested, exasperation in her tone. “Just go home. If you stay here any longer, you’ll get hurt. She’s already after you… you can’t give her more to use against you.”
“What does that mean?” Ten frowned. “She’s already after me?”
“Nothing… nothing…” Sin quickly backtracked, wishing that she could take back that slip of her tongue. “I’m just saying that I can handle this situation on my own.”
“What. Does. That. Mean?” Ten enunciated each word clearly, leaving no doubt that she wouldn’t let that slip go.
Before Sin knew it, she was reluctantly narrating the morning’s conversation with Claire. Ten was understandably furious, but instead of running scared like Sin hoped, she seemed set on revenge.
“Oh, she’s going down!” Ten banged the table so hard, their glasses shook and the sound attracted curious glances from other patrons in the café.
Lowering her voice and leaning forward, Sin warned her, “Ten, don’t get involved in this. You could go to jail.”
“And I’ll consider it a badge of honor as long as I take that thug with me,” Ten countered, an unholy light glittering in her eyes.
“Only for a moment,” Sin said, frustrated that her friend didn’t realize the gravity of their situation. “But once you’ve been in there for about a month, you’ll realize that honor isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”
“I don’t care.” Ten shrugged. But before Sin could call her out on her flippant attitude, she said, “Come on, Sin, don’t you know what’s happening here? The woman’s just trying to scare you. She’ll never out us… not while she’s got more to lose than we do.”
Ten leaned forward. “Think about it! What do we have to lose? We’re already criminals so if we go to prison, it’s just business as usual. What about her? She’s this pillar of society, soccer mom, gallery owner, wife of a big-shot, daughter of a big-shot… if we out her, she loses all that. Her reputation, her family, her suburban life.” Ten guffawed. “Psh! She won’t out us.”
“We can’t be sure of that,” Sin insisted. “And with lawyers and connections like hers, she might be able to spin the story so she looks good.”
“So we need to make sure she can’t spin the story,” Ten suggested.
That was what Sin planned to do. She’d find irrefutable proof that she and Claire were partners then use it to threaten her to leave both Worth and Ten alone. However, Sin wasn’t about to tell Ten that because the lady would insist on getting involved.
Unfortunately, Ten was pretty smart. She suddenly smiled. “That was your plan, wasn’t it?”
“What? What?” Sin blustered. “I don’t have a plan.”
“You’re an awful liar,” her friend teased. “How did you ever make it as a con-artist?”
Sin sighed. “Come on, Ten. You can’t get involved in this.”
“Sorry, babe. I’m already invested.” Sitting back in her seat, the other woman sipped on her drink then asked, “So what’s the plan?”
Sin didn’t want to involve her friend, but it was obvious from Ten’s obstinate demeanor that she wasn’t going anywhere. Sin had no choice but to surrender.
“I’m thinking of using the same plan we were going to use on Worth,” Sin revealed. “Let’s investigate her first; find out if this is really the first time she’s getting her hands dirty.”
Ten snorted. “I bet it’s not.”
“That’s what I’m betting on.” Sin said. “And those bugs she planted on us can help us buy time while we look for something to use against her.”
“Poor thing! She’ll think we’re following her orders while in reality we’re looking for a way to screw her over.” The glee in Ten’s voice left no doubt that she felt zero sympathy for Claire.
“Exactly!” Sin smiled. “We should start with her gallery. If she has any skeletons, I have a feeling that’s where she’ll be keeping them.”
“Good idea.” Ten nodded.
Even as the two women discussed their plan further, worry still held Sin hostage. What if they were both biting off more than they could chew? Just the thought of seeing Ten in handcuffs was enough to make her insides curl. But what could she do? The lady was too loyal for her own good. Still, Sin couldn’t deny that it was good to know that she wasn’t alone.