Page 19 of Fallen Roses

I pull up the same files Ana is working on and study them hard, her words ringing in my ears as I sift through the donations.

She makes a valid point because when I cross reference the donations with the profits the companies filed, the only thing that never changes is the amount.

I am so engrossed in my task it’s midmorning before I realize I still haven’t called my brother and ordinarily I would feel bad about that, but not this time. It could have been one time too many, or maybe it’s because I’m painfully aware that it was just the beginning.

Dylan couldn’t give a fuck about me. If he had made a different choice, I wouldn’t be caught up in this situation and I hate to admit that the person in charge now made the right decision.

I was about to step off a cliff and the only outcomewas death, and my brother would have been holding my hand as we fell. I’m distracted from my investigations by the ringing of my phone, and my heart sinks when I see his name.

“Dylan.” I snap, in no mood for his bullshit, and he whines,“Come on, man. If anyone’s got the right to be pissed around here, it’s me.”

“How do you work that one out?”

My voice is angry, and he snaps,“Listen, man, you’ve got to speak up for me. Tell them it’s not so bad and you can handle it. I mean, the military, for Christ’s sake. What the hell am I supposed to do with that?”

“Learn some self respect and how to treat others I’m guessing.”

I’m angry and it obviously shows because he snaps,“I mean it, man. Big deal that they removed the imminent problem. I was handling it. Your money would have got me off the hook.”

“For fuck’s sake, Dylan!” My temper explodes. “You were handling shit. Those men are dead because of you, and I was probably next. Don’t you give a thought to anyone but your own miserable ass?”

“Calm down bro, jeez you should take a chill pill.”

“That you would supply, no doubt.” I hiss, adding, “I mean it, Dylan, no more second chances. This is your punishment. Take it like a man and you may just grow a pair of balls and become one.”

“So you’re just gonna sit there and send me to get my head blown off? Some brother you turned out to be.”

His whining voice is killing me inside because right now, I couldn’t give a fuck if he lives or dies. Blood counts for a lot, but not everything. You earn respect. Blood doesn’t give you an accelerated pass to it and Dylan has a mountain to climb to earn mine.

“We’re done, Dylan. Just so you’re aware, you’re on your own. Be thankful you’ve been given a second chance, or is it a third or fourth one? I’ve lost count? Be a man and make yourself proud because it will take a lot for me to give a shit what happens to you after the stunt you pulled. Now fuck off and call me again when you’ve grown the fuck up.”

I cut the call and take a deep breath because God knows how hard that was for me. My words are misaligned with my emotions because I do care, more than he will ever know because he is all I have left.

Tough love is something new to me and if anything, I respect the guy who is dishing it out. He has the right idea but I’m under no illusions. His help is in return for something I may not like when my digging bears fruit.

What the hell is hiding between the cells of a spreadsheet currently residing on The Rose Foundation company accounts and what will it mean for me?

Lunch comesand goes and I have worked solidly all day and I’m surprised when Angela, my assistant, pokes her head around the door.

“This is your ten-minute warning for the staff meeting, sir.”

“Excuse me.” I pinch the bridge of my nose, trying to get my head back in the game.

She raises her eyes and I nod. “Of course, ten minutes.”

She makes to leave and I say with a sigh, “I don’t suppose–”

“Coffee? Coming right up, sir.”

As the door clicks behind her, I take a deep breath because my mind is so fucked I completely forgot about my weekly meeting. With a sigh, I shut the spreadsheets down I was working on and turn my attention to the meeting instead.

Ten minuteslater and fueled by a shot of double caffeine, I head to the boardroom as is usual at this time every week.

It’s only when I head inside that it reminds me who will also be there and I notice her immediately, studiously studying her notes with her head bent while everyone around her chats and makes jokes.

Just the angle of her neck reminds me of how good it is to sink my teeth into that soft skin, loving the moans it creates. I glance at her luxurious hair, remembering how it felt as it dusted my chest. How it slid through myfingers like silk when I grasped it in my hand as I forced her mouth onto my throbbing cock.

Yes, Annabelle Starling is a problem in every fucking way and I make a ball with my fist as I try to empty my mind of how good it would be to bend her over the fucking boardroom table and take her from behind.

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