Page 37 of Wreckin' Amethyst

“I promise you will become an Elite. I’ll see to it personally, but I’m going to need to take this tray. There’s a plan-”

“There’s always a plan!” Charley shouts, letting go to flap her arms around. I merely stare wide-eyed at her outburst. “Some scheme, a plot to get one over on people who don’t even know you exist or why you hate them. I doubt you even know why half the time.” Charley scowls at me with such venom, there’s no way it’s just appeared. She’s been concealing this for a while, allowing it to build and fester. Maybe I would have noticed if I wasn’t so caught up in revenge and Myles, and getting answers and Myles. Fuck, I’m in over my head. Not receiving the immediate answer she wanted, Charley scoffs.

“For once, you can’t just let me do something on my own!” Storming down the stairs, she doesn’t see the tears well in my eyes. See the pain her words have caused. All I’ve done is try to shield her. The weight of her words crash down on me, voices in my head screaming all I’ve achieved is suffocating her.

Pushing my emotions deep, deep down, I urge one foot to step in front of the other and near Myles’ bedroom door. As much as the swirling in my gut wants to run after Charley and fix the first fight we’ve ever had, there’s no time for it now. I’m on the verge of a major breakthrough.

Knocking twice, I stand patiently, steadying my breathing. A shuffle sounds on the other side of the door, and by the time it opens, my purple-painted lips are spread wide.

“Well good morning Sunshine,” I beam, pushing my way inside the room. Myles stands aside, his movements robotic and stiff. Placing the tray on a table, my nose wrinkles at the stench held within the room. The bedsheets are a crumpled mess, last night’s dinner tray on the floor. When I peer at the man himself, shrouded by the drawn curtains, he looks like he’s both overslept and not slept at all. Blond hair all matted, his amber eyes dull and sunken, only a pair of boxers on his sculpted body.

“Okay, that’s enough of that. It’s Friday – and I’m coming to the office with you. Go shower, dress. I’ll…fumigate in here.”

“I’m not in the mood Ami,” Myles sighs and drops onto the bed. I didn’t think it was possible for him to be so dejected, but it turns out there’s sides to everyone I’ve yet to see. Sitting beside him, I lay my hand on his knee.

“All of this because someone shot at us? It’s part of everyday life in Brooklyn and they’re not moping around. I lived with a Latina woman and her four kids for a short while. She’d get mugged and say ‘for fuck’s sake Milo, I’m telling your mom about this’, and then invite them over for dinner. Same shit, different day for some.” Twisting, Myles crushes me into a bone-cracking hug I wasn’t prepared for.

“I never should have taken you into a situation where I couldn’t protect you. I thought if I hid in here…at least I wouldn’t be the one delivering you into danger.” Shifting my head from beneath his huge bicep, I managed to find a small space to breathe, my mouth squished against his chest.

“I’m always going to be in some kind of danger,” my words slur. “I’m not going to stop until I have someone to blame.” Freeing me from his hold, I gulp in air to refill my lungs.

“I understand, but you saw that note. If you keep digging, they’re going to come after you. I can’t lose you now Amethyst.” Myles tugs a loose strand of my braid behind my ear, a fragment of the man I know coming back to the surface. Turning my head away, I withhold the loving sentiment I was about to give. Jesus, our periods must all be synced or something.

“Either way, Myles,” I take his hand in mine, just so he’ll stop stroking my neck. “If I don’t have someone to hold accountable for my mother’s death, then I’ll be forced to consider that the only responsible one is me. I got us into so much debt and trouble, and in the face of being caught…I left her to die alone. What kind of person does that make me?” Myles lowers onto his knees, peering up from between my legs.

“You were a scared child. Most adults would have done the same.” Myles reaches up to cup my cheek, his thumb grazing the small cut still healing there. An emotion, I don’t want to consider, pours from his beautiful eyes, reminding me why I’m up so early in the first place. Business, Amethyst, back to business.

“Hmm, well most adults don’t stew in their own soup for two days when they have multibillion-dollar empires to run. It’s a new day, so get the fuck ready. I feel like seeing your office.” His responding smile is my undoing and thankfully, he’s jumping into the shower and a suit before I do something stupid. Like push his face between my thighs and scream promises I won’t be able to keep.

Myles doesn’t touch his breakfast, but insists we stop by a Starbucks drive-thru on the way into the city. Carter, Sebby and Owen are all with us. Apparently, the wheels for Carter’s new ride need to be specially ordered and have left him without a vehicle for the next week. Oops. Although, I do take great pleasure in knowing no amount of money could hurry the manufacturer and the constant tick pulsing in his jaw is here to stay.

“You’ll have to tell me how you got Myles out of his funk so quickly,” Owen murmurs by my ear, his arm dropping over my shoulders. “They usually last for weeks.” Unlike the others, he’s opted for jeans and a t-shirt, and on his lap is my treacherous puppy. I let Pig lick the back of my hand, indulging Owen while Myles is ordering coffee through the open window.

“I could tell you, but it would require a double ended dildo, ball gag and copious amounts of lube.”

“You say that like it’s not a given,” he winks. I can’t quite pinpoint Owen, but his cheekiness is hard to resist. Carter catches me laughing, his scowl deepening so I melt further into Owen’s side. Pig stretches across the pair of us, coating my black trousers in small white hairs.

“Double shot americano for Carter,” Myles hands over a travel cup. “And chocolate Frappuccino’s with extra cream for everyone else,” he grins, passing me the Venti plastic cup. Owen mutters under his breath it must have been one hell of a ribbed dildo as Myles settles into the seat on my other side. Lost to their own thoughts, the guys watch the world pass through blackened windows, but my curiosity is caught elsewhere.

On the adjacent bench, Carter sits next to Sebby, their legs pressed together. Where arms meet in the middle, they disappear from view beneath their thighs as they absent-mindedly sip their drinks and stare in opposite directions.Are they holding hands?

“Problem with your eyes?” Carter growls, not even looking my way. I hold my tongue, only to save embarrassing Sebby. Soon enough, the sunlight of morning is stolen by skyscrapers, the shadow of the city pressing down over the limo. I take a moment to remind myself about today’s order of business – search Myles’ offices for anything suspicious. Anything relating to Reynell, what he might have been burning or felt the need to cover up. Then there’s investigating Felicia and Carter’s connection. My mind begins to spin and before I know it, Myles is offering me his hand, leading me from the cab.

Rising hundreds of stories into the sky, the building is as sleek and modern as I knew it would be. Floor-to-ceiling windows span the glass exterior, which I’m sure provide amazing panoramic views for those on top. Reaching higher, stretching wider, there’s no doubting Myles’ skyscraper exudes more power and opulence than any of the others surrounding it. Like a sparkling gem amongst murky stones, and kept that way by the cleaner’s elevated high up, continually washing the smears and their own lives away.

Bolstered by the high heels, I accept Myles’ arm and reach out for Owen’s. Pig’s lead meets my hand instead.

“Not me, Pauper. I have business elsewhere,” Owen salutes. Before he skips away, I slip the leash up my wrist and snatch the sunglasses postered on Owen’s honey brown hair. Something tells me, I’m going to need them more than him. With my eyes shielded, I walk up to the reflective entrance and shun the image I see there. I look every bit like the billionaire arm-candy I resent; sunglasses, tight-fitting suit, puppy on one side and the stunning man who is swooning at me on the other. All in the name of vengeance, I tell myself, as the door is opened inward.

The glare in here is twice as bright as outside. Gold and white flooring, matching furniture around the largely spanned reception desk and overhead chandelier. In fact, a rush of déjà vu hits me.

“Do you have the same interior designer as the Steele Law firm?” I tilt my head, catching the extra rigidness to Carter’s stride as he takes the lead. A series of high-speed elevators whisk important executives and guests to their desired floors in mere seconds. We don’t stop by the reception, passing security and entering an elevator ourselves. Luxurious offices, boardrooms, and meeting spaces, all adorned with plush furnishings, state-of-the-art technology, and curated artwork whizz by until we’re stepping out on the top level. My head suddenly goes light, my arm clinging onto Myles as I adjust.

“This way,” Myles smiles. Any sign of this morning’s pity party has disappeared, and instead, a flash of eagerness is barely contained in his glimmering amber eyes. A part of me reckons Myles has wanted to bring me here for a while, wanting to show me what he does, but has held off. Leading me through the top level, I understand his excitement, and a miniscule part of me joins in.

There are only four offices up here, two on either side of the entrance lobby. The rest of the floor holds a secret sanctuary, bespoke to privileged tastes. In an open plan restaurant, a chef is visible behind a tall counter as he preps his kitchen for the only table in the center of the glassed-off room. Beyond double doors, a rooftop garden terrace boasts of artificial green grass and outdoor furniture set up in a way I imagine men sit around to smoke cigars at. Not to mention the shimmering pool set within raised decking.

“Do you actually get any work done up here?” I ask no one in particular. Sebby appears to take Pig’s lead from me, leading her outside while Carter disappears into an office next to the one Myles guides me towards.

---