Page 16 of Dirty Deceptions

Alexander dropped into his office chair. “A screwup of volcanic proportions.”

“Damn, sorry, son,” his dad grumbled. “But keep your chin up. There are other women. I’m sure the right one will come along.”

He glared at the closed door. “Laurenisthe right woman,” he confessed. “I don’t want anyone else. Only Lauren.” He would not let her walk out of his life. Screw that.

A chuckle came across the line. “Got it bad for her, huh?”

He gripped the phone tighter. “You could stop finding this so funny anytime now.”

He cleared his throat. “Sorry. But, son?”

Alexander sighed. Attacking his father wouldn’t fix the mess he’d made. “Yes?”

“Remember what I said,” he answered, his voice softer now. “Grovel. Pride is a damn poor bedpartner. I should know.”

Oh, he intended to do more than grovel. He’d kidnap Lauren. Anything to keep her from moving on to some other dickhead. That was not an acceptable outcome. He mentally began making plans. Ones that involve Lauren, a limo, and a pair of handcuffs.

Yeah, that sounded about right.

****

A knock on her door dragged her out of her misery. She could just let it go. Eventually whoever it was would leave. Another knock, harder this time, had her cursing. Lauren got to her feet and stomped across the room, then looked through the peephole. Chloe. Damn, she wouldn’t budge. In fact, she’d probably break the door down.

Lauren yanked the door open. “Hey, I’m not much for company right now,” she mumbled.

Chloe pushed her way into the apartment. “I’ve texted you a thousand times. What the hell, Lauren?”

She shuffled back to the couch and plopped down. Her whine-fest might be delayed, but it was still happening. She just needed to get rid of her BFF. “Sorry.”

Chloe stopped and looked her over, then sighed. “Okay, you look like shit. What happened?”

She glared. “You have the sensitivity of a gnat.”

She rolled her eyes, then sat next to her. “That hottie you took home didn’t work out, is that it?”

“Ha!” Lauren picked up a throw pillow and punched it. “Turns out he’s my boss.”

Chloe watched her for several seconds before pulling her legs under her and saying, “I need more information.”

“Remember the new job I was so excited about?” Her friend nodded. “Well, it turns out that he owns the company.”

“As in Alexander Costa of Costa Enterprises?”

“Yes,” she answered, feeling like crap all over again.

“Damn, he’s worth billions.”

“Yep.”

“So, why are you miserable? He give you the heave-ho? Treat you like yesterday’s trash or what?”

“He knew, Chloe. He knew who I was the minute he started hitting on me.”

“Knew he was getting down and dirty with the new girl in the office,” she surmised.

“Yes, and not once did he tell me who he was. That he was my boss’s boss. Or, my boss’s boss’s boss.” She waved a hand in the air, getting more confused by the second. “Whatever. He lied.”

“I mean, in his defense, it wasn’t supposed to be anything more than a one-night stand. You don’t usually share your life history with a one-night stand, hun.”

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