“I am on their side,” I say, staring at him warily.
He waves a hand. “Right. Right, of course. But anyway, you need to think about your future.”
I raise an eyebrow. “My future?”
“After the merger,” Bill says. “You could stay on, you know. I think the company will do well under you.”
“What’s the catch?” I ask, leaning back in the chair as if interested. Truthfully, if not for Eva, I wouldn’t be able to get out of this company fast enough.
“Well, I heard you’re having a hard time with my little Eva issue.”
“Which one? The one where you tried to assault her or the one where you plan to merge the company and lay her off after years of loyal work?”
Bill’s eyes snap to mine, and despite the dull blue color, I see sharpness there. And greed. “Don’t be foolish about this. I’ve known Eva much longer than you have. She refuses to conform to the corporate environment, so she’s not a good fit.”
Thank heavens for that.
“But you could be, so think this over carefully,” Bill says while I just try to stay calm and not launch over the desk to strangle him.
I feel darkness building in me, killing magic, the kind that makes someone never see light again. I push it down, remembering Chad’s warning.
I lean back, trying to look relaxed. “So what, you want me to look the other way about all of this and you’ll keep me as CEO?”
Bill leans back in his chair, looking pleased and relaxed now that he seems to think I’m on his side. “More or less, yes. Though, I won’t mess with her again if that makes you angry. She’s just another woman, after all. Not worth so much aggravation.”
I want to stand up, grab him by that tie, and jerk him over the desk to headbutt him out of existence, but I use all of my self-control to stay down instead.
“I don’t agree, but you’re saying if I stay on as CEO and don’t make trouble, you’ll keep things smooth until the transition?”
He nods. “I think you’ll truly be an asset, Tanner.”
“Eva is the asset,” I say firmly. “She would have done anything for this company.”
He shrugs. “It’s just business. Look, let this whole unpleasant harassment issue go, and I’ll make sure she gets a recommendation and a good severance package.”
“What am I going to tell her?” I ask, glaring at him, unable to believe he actually thinks I would do this to her.
He looks annoyed now. “Tanner, when you’re CEO after the merger and you come out with me and the other boys, you’ll realize you could have done so much better. Eva is a nice woman, but—”
“But she rejected you,” I retort. “So I guess you thought she was worth it.”
His expression hardens. “In a moment of weakness.”
I glare at him, waiting for more signs of chaos, but it’s harder to feel from a human. At least without touching them. Brett said that the fae princes’ ability to see into hearts still works in this world. He did it to know how to punish a human domestic abuser.
But I don’t know if I want to touch this creep.
Besides, maybe this is what I need to take the pressure off everything before I blow up.
If Bill agrees to behave and leave Eva alone, then I can at least let him think I’m going along with his merger until I manage to work things out.
I can figure out what to do about my kingdom.
I can help Eva see why the fae world would be a much better place.
I just have to wait a little bit longer and, yes, pretend I don’t want to choke Bill until he dies.
“Fine,” I say. “When’s the merger?”
“In a month,” Bill says, relaxing slightly now that I’m asking questions that seem to imply I’ll go along with him. “We can work everything out before then. If you do want to keep dating Eva, you can help prepare her for what’s coming. But I recommend—”
“I don’t need your recommendations on who to date. I’m only agreeing to this because you said you won’t bother Eva.”
“I won’t,” he says quickly, putting a hand up. “I told you that was a mistake. One I don’t intend to repeat. I have plenty of women begging for access to what I have to offer. What do I care about some snotty little—”
“Careful.” I warn him, and this time he seems slightly unsettled by what he sees in my eyes.
He smiles nervously. “You’re an interesting person, Tanner. Definitely. Even if your loyalty is misplaced right now. In time, you’ll come to see the light.”
I doubt it, as the commander of darkness.
I come around the desk to open the door for him because I can’t wait to get away from this chaotic, selfish, immature mess and figure out how to tell Eva about all of this.
He smiles, no idea what I’m thinking, and sticks out a hand for me to shake it.
I’m just as unthinking as I reach out to do the customary handshake, but the moment I touch him, my eyes go wide in shock at the images that rush through me.
His chaos is so close to the surface that without even trying, I can see his thoughts, his intent, his memories.
And know that everything he just promised me is a lie.
Wrapped in lust and a sense of warped triumph, I can see what he’s already planning to do to Eva once he has isolated her from all allies.
He thinks that by getting me to leave her, by offering me what he thinks is better, she’ll end up desperate and alone.
He sees himself threatening her, telling her she’ll never have a job again, forcing her to her knees in front of him.
Stripping her and pulling her hair back as she screams.
I jerk back from his hand, homicidal rage surging through me, chaos threatening to overwhelm my heart.
I was taught to fight evil with every fiber of my being. Protecting those I love is imbued in me, down to my soul.
When I wasn’t certain he was toxic, I could let this issue slide.
But now that I know what I know, his fate is sealed.
I can feel something in my mind screaming, warning me back, saying this is stupid. But all I can hear is the roar of my heart telling me we must defend our soul bond.
Slowly, I reach past him to shut the door, locking it behind him.
Finally, he looks slightly nervous as he stares from the door to me.
I come closer, liking the way his pulse races at the base of his neck. The way his pupils dilate in fear.
He’s going to pay for even thinking of doing that to my soul bond.
“I’ll make this fast, though you don’t deserve it, you evil piece of shit.” I snarl at him, getting ready to do what I need to do as he struggles to open the door.
“Someone help! He’s crazy!” Bill yells, though he knows damn well my office is soundproof and far from anyone who could hear.
It’s too late for anyone to help him anyway.
No one else is going to stop this man. No one can take him down. Even when I leave this place, taking Eva with me and out of his reach, he’ll probably hurt someone. Anyone who dares to tell him no when his life has been full of yeses.
Sorry, Eva, I think as I let the room go perfectly dark around me. It’s not how it I wanted it to happen, but if I don’t take out this rotten bastard when no one else can, chaos will overwhelm my heart.