Page 6 of Broken Love

“I know. Dinner tomorrow night.” He says that as if it’s not weird that he was eavesdropping on me when I know I pushed the door shut behind me.

Retreating from the man, I put a table between us before asking him, “Was there something I could help you with?”

His head tilts to the side like a curious dog as his eyes slide up and down my body, creeping me out further. “No,” he finally replies. “Just wanted to make sure nothing was the matter.”

“I’m fine, thank you.” I hold my breath until he backs out, closing the door with a quiet snick. Rushing forward, I flip the deadbolt and look out the peephole, watching as he stares at the door. Can he see me? A shudder works down my spine at the thought.

It feels like hours before he finally goes back to his own place. Freaked out, I grab one of the dining chairs from the table and shove it under the doorknob.

Backing away slowly, I wish—not for the first time—that I at least had a roommate. Which gets me thinking about my half-sisters again. Are they as lonely as I am? Do they have the kind of relationship with our father that I do? Would they welcome me into their lives like I want to welcome them into mine?

I need all my questions answered, but I know that won’t happen until I meet them. I fear disrupting their lives and bringing unwanted drama into their worlds, and I don’t want to do that, but I think I might have to. I want to know them. I want that connection I’ve been missing since my mother’s passing.

I just don’t want them to hate me.

“Stop it, Windy, just stop it.” Going in circles will get me nowhere. Instead, I push everything out of my mind, make sure my place is locked up tight, and head for a warm shower. I still feel chilled from the rain that soaked me before my interview with the Graham twins.

Fanning my face as I turn the water on, I still can’t believe the magnetic pull I felt towards them. I’m no virgin; I’ve dated a few times, had two serious boyfriends, but it’s been so long—if ever—that I’ve felt so drawn to a man, let alone two.

Undressing, I jump under the warm spray, thankful that this crappy building has good water pressure, at least. Over the years, we’ve lived in some places with little to none, making for the worst showers. But this one is nice, and I can have long showers to wash away a dreary day or overwhelming emotions. Today, it’s a little bit of both, it would seem.

CHAPTER 3

Tucker

Scowling at the screen in front of me, I don’t know whether I want to throw it out the window or walk away. As volatile as I’m feeling right now, it might meet the pavement below.

I’ve been out of sorts since meeting Windsor James yesterday. Tanner might know what he wants with her, but if we hire her, then it won’t fucking matter. We have a strict no-fraternizing policy. If we break it, then everyone else can also. It’ll be office orgies for the foreseeable future.

“We can’t hire her,” I hiss at my brother for what I’m sure is the tenth time today.

“We are,” he keeps arguing with me.

“No.”

“You can keep going all you want, brother, but it’s happening.”

Glaring at my twin, I say the one thing we’ve both been avoiding all morning. “Then you can’t fuck her.”

“You mean we, and, yes, we can. We made the rules, we can fucking break them.”

“I’m not interested,” I emphasize again.

Tan doesn’t respond after that. He knows me well enough to tell I’m lying. The reason, however, is one only I know.

Rather, one I should know.

I don’t have one.

Not a fucking clue as to why I’m so resistant to her. Aside from becoming our employee, she is everything we typically look for in a woman—intelligent, curvy, determined. A sexy-as-hell submissive waiting to be awoken is hidden behind the curiosity in her eyes. She is the perfect partner for us.

After looking her up and doing a deeper background check, I was able to learn even more about her. And about the sisters she spoke of. I will keep that information to myself until I get a read on whether she’d be interested in it or not. I suspect I’ll incur her anger either way.

The sisters, Lux and Cecily James, are both only children of different mothers. Neither knows about the other or about Windsor. Lux is a maternity nurse who floats between hospitals throughout the city. She lives on her own, but she’s close to her mother. Cecily has been a 911 call operator since she graduated from high school and lives with her mother, who, by all accounts, still has some sort of relationship with their father.

It would appear that Windsor and Lux are the ones who missed out in the dad department. Not that Cecily’s relationship with the man is anything to write home about, but he’s more present in her life than her half-sisters. And it angers me. Enrages me, actually.

If my own father had been as absent as this man, it’s likely our lives would have turned out much differently, especially our little sister Arden’s. That woman is not one to be messed with when she gets invested in something. It’s because of the love from our parents that she has always had the confidence to be herself, do what she wanted, and not care about what anyone else had to say about it.

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