Page 75 of Without Regret

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

Emma

It was with dread that I went into the office the next morning. I knew, without a doubt, Tom would be there first thing to give me a hard time about Trevor. I also knew I needed to have a conversation with Simon, so he could hear it firsthand instead of from Tom.

At first yesterday when Tom found about us, I’d freaked out internally. But then I realized, as with all things Tom, letting him know it would only give him power. And getting annoyed could potentially set Trevor and me back a step in this precarious relationship we’d started. The last couple weeks had been so good. So, I’d forced myself to remain calm and not give Tom any power.

I wasn’t wrong about Tom coming early to the office. When I opened the front door, he walked out of the conference room, a smirk on his stupid face.

“Good morning, Emma.”

My history with Tom started when I began working for the Stone Group in New York. Once upon a time, I thought we could manage to get along and be cordially polite, but the years had made me wiser. Although I’d love to tell him to fuck off, I knew it would annoy him much more to ignore him.

“What, lover boy and you didn’t carpool in this morning?”

Luckily, I was turned away from him, putting my purse in my drawer, so he couldn’t see my expression. At that moment, it was murderous.

Simon’s voice surprised us both.

“Is that what you’re calling me these days, Tom?”

I turned around quickly to see my boss with his eyes fixed on Tom.

“No. No, of course not.” Then Tom fixed his derision on me. “I was commenting on Emma’s newest conquest, who happens to be the newest member of the team.”

Simon shifted his focus to me, and I could feel my face heating. Fuck. This wasn’t the way I’d wanted him to find out.

“Unless, of course, you’re okay with her putting both the team and Phillip’s money at risk with her bedhopping.”

I witnessed the tick in Simon’s jaw and knew it was his tell for being pissed. Great. Just great. But my boss surprised me.

“Who Emma chooses to spend time with is none of my business, nor is it yours. Matter of fact, if it’s responsible for her being in such a great mood lately, I’d highly recommend she keep doing it.”

“It’s unprofessional. And a complete conflict of interest that Phillip would—”

“I’d tread carefully, Tom, considering I met the love of my life on the job. Understand?” He’d met Peyton on the last acquisition and they’d kept it on the down-low for months, so I wasn’t shocked by him saying this. However, I knew my situation with Trevor was different since we actually worked together.

I had the distinct pleasure of watching Tom squirm. “Certainly. However, I do think—”

“You don’t get paid to think about the personnel on this team. I do. Now this is the end of the subject and the end of bringing it up to either Emma or Trevor. Have I made myself clear?”

Tom swallowed hard. “Yes. It is.”

Simon offered a smile which didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Good. Now then, Emma, I have a number of things to go over with you, so please come in once you get settled.”

“Yes, certainly.”

I let out a breath as soon as Tom left, with a glare thrown in my direction. I was used to them and didn’t react. What I wasn’t used to was having my personal life a topic of discussion for my boss. I walked in, hoping he might skip over it. I wasn’t so lucky.

“Close the door and take a seat.”

I did as he requested while hiding my nerves. I’d only seen Simon cross with me one other time. In that instance, however, he’d been taking out his frustration on me when things with Peyton weren’t going as planned. But this time, I wasn’t sure what to do. What if he asked me to break things off?

“How did Tom find out?”

That wasn’t the question I was expecting. “Last night in the carpark, Trevor greeted me when I got home. I didn’t realize Tom was staying there at the complex. I intended to tell you about our relationship this morning, but clearly not this way.”

He steepled his fingers on his desk, appearing every bit the “Ice man” he used to be nicknamed.

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