Page 40 of Jack's Devotion

"Then you know this is her company."

"Is she back to take over?" he asks, glancing between the two of us with a furrow between his brows.

"She will be if you don't go running your mouth to anyone about the fact that she's here," Jack growls. "No one needs to know."

The guard glances at him, his lips pursed. "Know what?" he mutters after a minute. "I ain't seen nothing."

The three of us inhale a collective sigh of relief.

The guard backs away, his gaze coming to me again. "I hope you're a better boss than he is, ma'am," he says. "We could use that around here."

"Plan to be," I whisper.

He nods before turning on his heel and disappearing around the corner.

"Think he's going to rat us out?" Jack asks Dillon.

"He won't," I murmur, confident of that fact. I could see it in his eyes. He hates working for my father. I'm guessing most people here feel the same way. That's going to change.

We make a beeline for the elevators, taking them up to the executive offices. Like the rest of the building, he's turned it into a homage to modern functionality. There is no personality, no charm. I hate everything about it.

"This way," I murmur, leading Jack and Dillon toward the corner office that used to be my mom's. My stomach churns when we step inside and I see what he's done with it. Not a single trace of her remains. There is no soul, no heart. It's just…crap. Every article that mentions him is framed on the walls. Anything about my mom and her parents has been erased, the same way he tried to erase me. It's like a shrine to himself.

"Prick," Jack mutters, placing a hand on the small of my back.

I lean into him, letting him steady me.

"Where should we be?" Dillon asks, striding toward the desk to plant a recording device beneath it.

"Bathroom." I point it out. It's tucked into the corner of the office. They'll be able to hear everything from in there without being seen. And anything they don't hear, the recording device will pick up. Judge Hamilton signed the warrant for it. I guess he is a big softie.

I stride toward the wall of news articles about my father and set to work turning the frames upside down.

"What are you doing?" Jack asks, amusement in his voice.

"If I'm going to haunt him, might as well do it properly," I mutter.

I hear something scraping across the floor, and turn to see him flipping furniture upside down.

I smile at him, my heart fluttering. God, I love him.

"Jesus Christ," Dillon mutters, shaking his head at the two of us. "Just don't destroy anything. I don't want him trying to file charges for vandalism."

"It's my company."

Dillon shakes his head again, disappearing inside the bathroom.

Jack and I work quickly, flipping furniture upside down, turning photos around, and generally screwing up his office. It doesn't really make me feel any better. But at least it doesn't look likehisoffice anymore. It just looks…ridiculous.

We've barely finished when we hear voices trickling in from outside. Jack immediately strides toward me, pulling me into his arms. "I love you," he whispers, brushing his lips across mine. "We'll be right here."

"I know," I murmur, pressing my face to his throat and breathing him in. "Thank you."

"Thank me by nailing his ass to the wall, baby." He squeezes me tight and then lets me go, stomping toward the bathroom. With one final look over his shoulder at me, the door clicks closed between us.

I take up residence behind the hall door, that way my father will be trapped in here with me once he sees the condition of his office. Better he sees me after he's seen it, I think. That'll really spook him.

He's nearly half an hour late to work. But I hear him before he even gets close to his office. He's ranting at someone about a shipment, threatening to pull a contract. Of course he bullies everyone. Beneath that fake charm, it's all he really knows how to do.

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