Without letting him touch me once.
Oh yes, he was going to have memories of me plastered to the front of his brain all day.
And that gave me the added bonus of feeling very powerful, which I needed every bit of. Theo held open the door, letting me step inside first, placing a reassuring hand on the small of my back and giving me a quick, sexy wink before Margaret looked up from her computer.
I was glad Theo had done both of those things because the moment she saw the two of us, she knew. It was as clear as day on her face. It fell and then her lips turned south into one of those frowns that chills you to the bone.
“What can I do for the two of you?” she arched an eyebrow and leaned back in her seat, ready for our performances.
Margaret’s office was light and clutter free. She had a massive built-in desk behind her. Her desktop computer with its massive double monitors was housed back there while she kept a much more delicate white writing desk in the middle of the room. She could easily move from desk to desk with a spin of her plush desk chair.
I waited until Theo had the door shut before I started. “I have some bad news to share with you and it involves Theo.”
She crossed her arms and turned her ice queen stare on my boyfriend. I’m not sure if Theo was brilliant or suicidal, but he placed his hand back on the small of my back and waited for me to finish explaining.
I swear his hand was sending me some sort of electric courage. It was warm and steady on my back, just like Theo. As strange as our relationship had been, he had never shied away from me. Not sexually, emotionally, or physically.
“I have been quietly seeing Theo for several weeks now.” I held up my hand to stop her before she said anything. I needed to get my words out before she started yelling. I hated yelling. “I know you specifically asked if I was seeing him, but I didn’t feel your questions were appropriate. Our relationship only concerned the two of us.”
His fingers pressed into my back—a silent kiss from him to me.
“What’s changed?” she looked back and forth between us and I couldn’t read her expression to save my life. Angry? Sad? Indifferent? It could have been any or all of them.
I took a calming breath. “I have become a target of Theo’s ongoing security issues.”
“Goddammit, Theo,” she pushed back and hopped to her feet, glaring at him. “I told you.” Then she cocked her head at me. “And now you’ve gone and pulled someone else into this hell?”
And then something happened that I didn’t expect. I didn’t get nervous or feel small. Instead I gotangry.Maybe it was because she was mad at Theo, and Theo was mine. I’m not really sure, all I know is this weird feeling I wasn’t familiar with bubbled up inside me and I kind of wanted to punch Margaret in the face. “He didn’t pull me into this hell. I’m pretty sure I walked there all on my own.”
I tried really hard not to recoil when she turned her laser beam death stare on me. “You need to stop talking right now if you want to have a job when you walk out of this office.”
Oh shit… she didnotgo there. I opened my mouth to tell Margaret exactly where she could shove her threats, but Theo beat me to it.
“Do not threaten Allison ever again.”
The room fell silent and for the first time I saw Margaret look unsure. “I’m sorry,” she finally said. “You’re right, I overstepped.” Then she sat down, looking totally lost.
Theo started rubbing slow, comforting circles on my back while he explained the situation with Toni. Margaret looked sadder with each passing moment and shook her head when he was done, looking at me. “I’m sorry you’ve been pulled into all of this. I keep wishing it would all just end finally. Instead it seems to spread.”
Theo’s hand fell away and when I glanced at him I saw a man struggling between hope and bitter regret. It had to be eating him alive. “The spreading ends now. And the end is coming.”
Margaret’s pupils sharpened to points. “Why now? Because you fell inlove?” she laughed. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me with this. All these years and the best you could do was throw money at it. Nicki’s never been the same, but the right piece of ass walks by and you want to be a better man?”
I don’t know what came over me, but I lunged across the desk and took Margaret by the throat. “You want to rethink that statement?” I yelled as she screamed and Theo pulled me back by my hips.
“Fuck, let her go!” He wrapped both arms around me and held me against him.
Margaret, on the other hand, sat there with her jaw hanging open.
Bet she didn’t see that one coming.
“Put me down,” I said through my teeth.
His breath was warm and surprisingly comforting on my ear as he whispered, “Are you going to try and kill your boss again?”
“No,” I gritted out. “Not unless she says something stupid.”
Her eyes widened. “Excuse me?”