Page 6 of Grave Kisses
“Ah, shit. Don’t do that to me,” I say as I close my eyes and take a deep breath. When I open my eyes, others are sniffling. “He passed without pain. He looked like he was at peace… Alan was in my life for thirteen years… When I find my way through some things, I will explain more. For now, just know that I have no intention of changing anything. Everything I do will be things we had already discussed and will be in his honor… We do have some deadlines coming up, though, so let’s focus the best we can and push forward…”
“Team leads, if everyone could email me payroll, I will get that submitted,” Julie says. Everyone disperses, and I turn to Marcus.
“Office. Now,” I say through gritted teeth before turning to the elevator. Julie gets in with me, but I make a point to shut the doors before he can get in. I flip him off at the last second, and Julie laughs. “Fucking asshole,” I grumble.
“He’s definitely a pain,” she says.
When the doors open, he is stepping out of the stairwell. I scowl at him as I walk to Alan’s office. Julie goes to her desk, and I go in and set my stuff down, only to turn and lash out at Marcus. “Don’t you ever question me around them again. Who in the fuck do you think you are coming in here acting like a goddamn child? You are a grown man, Marcus. Fucking act like it. If you have an issue, open your fucking mouth and talk to me.”
Marcus steps closer to me, going toe-to-toe with this giant man should scare me, but it doesn’t. I am a mere five feet three, and he is at least a foot taller. His body is wrapped in thick muscles, and you can feel the strength radiating off him with his every move. He stares down at me, and he looks angry. I stand my ground and keep my head held high.
“Okay,Kendra, I think you conned him and took everything from Archer. He should be the one running this company. You will run this place into the ground because you have no fucking idea what it takes,” Marcus growls. “What were you to him, hmm? Girlfriend?”
“Naturally, you go there,” I laugh dryly.
“Then who the fuck are you?” Marcus says, louder.
“Get the fuck out of my face,” I snap and shove him back a step. “If you think for a fuckingsecondI’m going to tell you anything when you are having a tantrum like a goddamn child, you are a fucking idiot. I will tell you if and when I fucking feel like it. If you think you can intimidate me, you’ve got another thing coming.”
“You think I should be afraid of you, whore?” He says with an eerily calm tone when he steps closer, and I instinctively back up but run into the desk. “I will get rid of you, so you may as well sell me your shares now.”
“Go fuck yourself,” I laugh.
“Why would I fuck myself when I could just fuck you, hmm? That’s how you get what you want, right? Why not be a good little whore and bend over Alan’s desk now? I’m sure he’s put you there plenty of—” I surprise him and myself when I suddenly rear back and slap him across the face.
“Out,” I yell. “Get out.”
“Come on,” Bellamy says to Marcus in a rough tone. “Kendra, we will reschedule our meeting, but I’ll be here tomorrow morning to help.”
“Okay,” I say curtly. “Don’t bring the man-child unless he can act like a big boy.”
“Oh, fuck you,” Marcus barks.
“Well, bend over and I will, asshole,” I retort. “Get the fuck out of my office.”
“Your office?!” he yells. “That man was like my fucking uncle. Don’t you dare come in here and—”
“Get out!” I scream at him, prompting Julie to push the door open, slamming it into the wall. “I’m fine.”
“What happened?” she asks me.
“I’m fine,” I repeat. “Everyone out. Now.”
Bellamy pushes a very angry Marcus out of the office, and Julie stops for a second to give me a half-hearted smile. When she shuts the door, I break down and start crying.
I miss Alan so badly. His hugs were like being surrounded by pure comfort, and I need that. I wish I could get that one last time. What I wouldn’t give to get to say goodbye.
Chapter Four
Marcus
“What the fuck iswrong with you?” I snap at Bellamy, tossing my phone on my desk. Teller Security is on the floor below Vanderbilt, and CyberSafe is below that. I fucking hate that I have to share a building with her, but maybe it’s for the best. I can keep a closer eye on her. I think what pisses me off more is that she is so fucking gorgeous, and the fact that she stood her ground and had no qualms about going toe-to-toe with me is sexy on a whole different level.
“Me? What the fuck is wrong with you? Why are you being such a dick to her? You don’t even know her,” Bellamy says.
“Why is she being so goddamn secretive about who she is and how she knows him? All she has to do is open her fucking mouth, and if it is nothing nefarious, then so be it,” I retort.
“Look, I know Alan meant a lot to you. I do. But you know just as well as I do that he hid a large part of his life. I’m willing to bet your father knows, which means that if she is here, your dad approves of her.”
