“What the hell were you thinking?” he asked her coldly. “I called you several times and you didn't pickup.”
“Are you my jailor now?”
“What the hell is the matter with you?”
“Nothing,” She tried to pull away from him but he would not let go. “I just needed to clear my head, so I went for a drive. Look, I'm tired and I want to go and lay down.”
“I'd like you to sleep in my bed,” he told her softly.
Before she'd overheard the conversation earlier, she would have been thrilled at that, but not now. “I'd like to be alone tonight if it’s all the same to you. I'm not feeling well.”
“Are you sick?”
“I'm just tired and a little lethargic.”
“I'll come in and check on you.”
She started to say no but stopped herself. “I'll probably be asleep.”
“I'll still come and check.” He let her go and watched as she climbed the stairs.
*****
Her pillows were soaked with the tears that she'd sworn that she wouldn't be shedding anymore, at least not for him, but they'd come nonetheless, and she couldn't stop them. She wasn't one to give into tears. She'd faced years of bullying because of her size and had learned to deal with it, sometimes with her fists and other times by ignoring the ones doing it. She'd spent nights in her room wondering how her dad could not care one way or the other how his daughter was faring and hadn't cried over it but had learned to live with it and go on with her life. She'd cried when she'd lost her mother, who had also been her best friend, and had faced life determined not to let anything get her down. Until now!
She wished fervently that Thomas Hoffman the second hadn't come into her life and taken it upon himself to ‘rescue’ her by offering her a job. Then she wouldn't have met his son and been foolish enough to fall in love with him. Who was she kidding? She wasn't in his league and she'd known that from the start, but she had this tendency to think that nothing was so far out of her league that she couldn't achieve it! Thomas Hoffman, the Third had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he made deals—million dollar deals—every single day of the year. He was handsome and desirable, a catch that women would do anything to rope in. He dined with kings and presidents and ran a company that had assets everywhere. She was an African American woman—a plus sized one—who simply worked for him. How on earth did she ever think that he would have any kind of feelings for her? Yes, they shared an intense passion, one that frightened her with its intensity because she hadn't expected it, but it didn't change the fact that she was who she was and, well, he was this handsome billionaire who could get any woman he wanted—and had probably had any woman he wanted.
She'd fooled herself into thinking that because the lovemaking had been so passionate, it simply meant that he felt something for her. She'd been available to him and that was simply that! She'd fallen into his arms and what was worse, she was the one who'd initiated it. She blinked back the tears, stiffening as she heard the doors slide open as he came into the room. She forced her breathing to even out to make him think that she was sleeping, thankful that she had her back turned to him so that he couldn't see the evidence of her tears. She'd changed her clothes and put her nightgown on but hadn't bothered to pull the blanket over her. Her hands curled into fists when she felt him pull the blanket over her and she let the tears flow as soon as he walked out of the room.
Chapter 9
“Wow! What an accomplishment! Moving up to the sixth floor with your very own office and an entire staff at your disposal. Who knew that getting my brother to sleep with you could you land you here?”
“Come right on in, Talia,” Donna said with a sweet smile, determined not to let the woman’s vituperative words get to her. She'd spent the couple of days avoiding her husband and coming up with excuses for not being with him and he'd finally gotten the message and left her alone. “And yes, sleeping with your brother has its advantages.”
Talia glared at her. “Director of Research and Social Media Liaison. Quite a wordy title—and what, pray tell, does it mean?”
“Anything that you want it to mean. In the meantime, I have work to do so if you don't have anything of importance to say to me, I would suggest you leave,” she said dismissively.
“You got my brother to give you what you want by opening your legs, but Mother and I see right through you.” She came and slapped her palms on the desk. “You are after a share in the company, but I'm telling you right now that isn't going to happen.”
Donna sat in her plush chair and stared at the girl in amusement. “Aren’t you tired of the childish resentment and manipulations? Your brother married me to get the title of CEO, so in essence he owes me, and maybe this is his way of paying me back. This—” she gestured with one hand. “This power struggle you have going on is getting old. I'm not afraid of you and frankly, the constant resentment is giving you lines on that perfect white skin of yours. Tell you what? How about I set you up with someone. I have a feeling that you haven’t gotten laid in several months. A good hard penis should do the trick. I'm going to do my duty as your sister-in-law and find a brother for you, one who can satisfy your baser needs. What do you say?”
Talia looked as if she was going to have a stroke as she stared at the woman seated behind the desk. “You dare to speak to me that way?” She came around the desk, her hand lifted as if to strike her and Donna got to her feet slowly. “Just try it honey,” she said softly. “I'm used to fighting dirty and I outweigh you by about sixty pounds easily. Put your hand on me just once and see who gets out of this without a bruise.”
Talia stared at her in mute fury for a moment before turning on her heels and leaving he room, slamming the doors behind her.
Donna pressed the buzzer. “Simone, no more in-laws unless I'm aware of it.”
*****
“I want her fired!” Talia was so angry that she couldn't stay still. She'd walked over to Thomas' office and without waiting for his assistant to announce her, she'd pushed the doors and walked right in.
“I'll call you right back.” Thomas ended the conversation and gave her his full attention, nodding to the woman who rushed to the door. “It’s okay. Please close the doors and give me a few minutes. Let me guess: Donna?”
“Yes!” Talia clenched her hands and stood before his desk, practically breathing fire. “You cannot believe the despicable things she said to me!”
“Like what?”
“It's too embarrassing and course for me to repeat.”
“Try,”
“She basically said that I need a man. That I need to have sex.” She threw her hands up. “She isn't worthy of the Hoffman name.”
“Why? Because she speaks her mind? What did you do to provoke her, Talia?”
“You're blaming me?” she screeched.
“You don’t like her and have been disapproving of her since day one.”
“So were you!” she cried. “What changed?”