Page 6 of Falling for the Forbidden
“This is London, hon. Every night is Friday night.”
I grin. “Okay, then. When and where?”
“The Olive Branch. Eight o’clock. To start with.”
“To start with?”
“Oh, honey, you’ve no idea.”
My first day is exhausting, and not just because I only had a few hours sleep the night before. My hopes for being eased in gently were dashed the second I was given accounts to go over, customers to contact, and invoices to process. Being a member of the ‘family’ means I get access to everything.
Dad’s mentioned the day I take over the company more than once since I moved in. To begin with, I corrected him, saying that Ben was the one who would one day own it, seeing as it’s actuallyhisfamily business, but I was soon put in my place. He seems to think that, by marrying Jenny, he’s entitled to everything. Which I guess is true. Once again, I question his intentions, but I push the thoughts aside every time they pop up because, although my dad might not be winning any parenting awards anytime soon, I like to believe he’s pretty genuine and just wants to be successful.
* * *
Walking into The Olive Branch,I pull at my dress, questioning my choice when I see that most people around me are still in their work clothes. I look around for Erica or any of the others I might recognise from work, but I before I find them, I hear my name being shouted.
Following the sound, I find Erica waving like a loon from her spot by the bar. As I walk over, I get a better view of what she’s wearing. Her silver dress sits high on her thighs and the back is completely missing. Suddenly, I don’t feel self-conscious at all about my slightly revealing red wrap dress.
“Wow, Lauren. Look at you. The guys are going to trip over themselves!”
“I’m sure that’ll go down well with my Dad,” I say with a laugh I don’t really feel.
The bar soon fills up, and it’s not long before the sounds of a large group of guys filter through to us.
“Oh, they’re here. Are you ready for this?”
My stomach drops. I hadn’t realised when Erica invited me earlier that we’d be the only females, but I guess it was obvious seeing as we work for a building company and all the other women in the office are above her thirty-five age limit to be invited. We’re pretty outnumbered.
The second they get to us, Erica is pulled into Will’s arms before he spins her around, getting a good look at her exposed skin. “Looking good tonight, gorgeous,” he growls, his pupils growing darker by the second. Until he looks up and spots me. “Wait a fucking minute. Is this little Lauren?” My cheeks heat and my skin prickles as he runs his eyes over every inch of me. My hands clench with the need to do something to put an end to his molestation. I’ve no idea what it is, but something about Will creeps me out.
“Dude,” a familiar voice barks before Will lifts his hand to rub his head where he was just slapped.
“What? Just fucking look at her.” Something erupts inside me when Ben appears from behind him. His eyes run the length of me and, unlike the unwelcome feeling of Will’s attention, my body erupts in goosebumps. “Anyway, it’s not like she’s your actual sister.”
Ben has Will’s shirt in his fist in seconds, their noses almost touching. He drops his voice so low, I have no chance of hearing what he says. But whatever it is, it works, because Will does apologise to me the minute he’s released.
Thankfully, he turns his attention back to Erica. Once we’ve all got a drink, I’m introduced to some of the guys I’ve yet to meet. I get hungry eyes from a few of them, but the moment Erica reveals who my father is, they soon lose interest. I can understand why.
Ben says nothing to me. Instead, he stays with some of the guys at the other side of our group. That doesn’t mean I don’t feel his eyes burning into me every few minutes. I fight the need to look up, too afraid of my body’s reaction if I catch him staring.
We have a couple of rounds of drinks before Erica rounds everyone up to head towards a club.
“It’s a Monday night,” I complain when she links arms with me and steers me towards the exit.
“And?”
I guess if I’m going to be starting uni in a few weeks, I’d better get used to this kind of nightlife. “Nothing. Where are we going?”
“Just wait, you’re going to love it!”
The club, Erica’s favourite, is called Fire, and it’s insane. I’ve no idea how many floors there are, but we came up at least three sets of stairs to get to the bar we’re currently stood at, waiting for drinks.
“Two rum and Cokes, six pints, and eight shots of…Apple Sourz, please,” Erica shouts at the bartender.
In minutes, I’m holding a drink in each hand as I watch all the others down their shots. I follow suit and wince when the sour liquid makes my mouth water.
“And that one, hon,” Erica says, nodding to my rum and Coke. “It’s time to dance.”
