Page 28 of Game Change

“Mr. Kincaid was just leaving,” I say before I shove more fries in my mouth.

“I wasn’t,” he says. “I’d like to speak with Brynne alone, but if you want to handle me first, Ernestine, go ahead,” he challenges.

Ernestine crosses her arms and doesn’t make a move. When I catch her eye, I tilt my head toward my door.

“I’ll be back in five minutes to check on you.” She sticks her head in the air and leaves without saying another word to Colin. “You’ve had enough drama for one day.”

“A personal assistant and a bodyguard,” he says once she closes the door behind her.

“Don’t bully my assistant. What do you want?” I’m not going to do any fake pleasantries. I’ve always been real, and that’s not about to change here. I sit behind my desk and drown the rest of my fries in ketchup.

“Today’s not how I expected things to turn out.” I don’t answer. I don’t even look up. “I thought I’d be taking you to dinner and back home. I’d still like that.”

If I were chewing at the moment, I would have choked because there is no way this guy can be serious. He lies to me, steals my job, and still wants to get in my pants. The audacity is big in this one.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I look at my wrist. “If you don’t mind, I have a call.”

“You used that excuse earlier, and you’re not wearing a watch.” He doesn’t say another word. He stands there and waits, so I decide to talk.

“You know what dawned on me not too long ago?” He doesn’t answer. He only waits. “I get this call from you a couple of hours after leaving the resort, and I’m like a naïve teenager, gushing over how quickly you were able to find me. I thought you cared and thought I was special, but you knew who I was the whole time. You and your cast of hired actors must have had a good laugh behind my back.”

He rubs his big hands over his face. He looks tired all of a sudden. “You can’t possibly believe that.”

I look into his face and blink without answering.

“I went on vacation and met a woman whose company I enjoy, and I want to continue enjoying it. That’s it. That’s the entire story, but I understand that you’re upset. What I don’t get—”

“Upset about you swooping in and stealing something that doesn’t belong to you? Upset doesn’t begin to describe how I feel, Mr. Kincaid.”

“I didn’t steal anything,” he says. He stands straight. The calm demeanor from moments ago is gone now. “It was handed to me. It waspromisedto me. I had no idea that my uncle promised it to you, too.”

“Everything that spews out of your lying mouth is one hundred percent bullshit,” I hiss. “Pure garbage, but you know what? You tried to tell me, didn’t you? I mean, it was all part of your narcissistic little game, but you still told me.”

“What are you talking about?” he asks.

“You admitted to me that you were going to slither into your uncle’s company and steal the—"

“I did not steal this job from you!” he practically yells, interrupting me.

“Don’t you dare yell at me,” I state. “Was it fun for you?”

“Waswhatfun for me?” He sounds exasperated by my question.

“Your little game. You gave me so many clues, and I was too dumb to see it. Did that make you feel powerful?”

“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about,” he snaps.

“Don’t snap at me.”

“I don’t know how else to get you to realize I did not steal anything from you.”

“Really?” I ask, lowering my voice. “You didn’t?” I look into his deceitful blue eyes and bat my eyelashes. He licks his lips and nods. “Then tell your uncle you can’t accept the position and that he should give it to me.”

He looks into my eyes and swallows. I can see a thousand emotions flick across his face. He rubs the back of his neck and makes a pained sound from the back of his throat. “I can’t do that,” he finally says.

That’s exactly what I expected him to say. He got what he wanted and fucked me over in the process.

“Then there’s nothing left to say, Mr. Kincaid. Please see your way out.”

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