Page 21 of Fighting Mr. Knight

He ignores me and keeps talking.

My eyes widen as I grasp the gist of his conversation.Jesus. This person is actually getting fired.

This isn’t the chakra-balancing calming haven I had envisioned. Leaning my head back, I wonder how long I could survive submerged.

Who’s in the right here? Okay, so he was in the Jacuzzi first, but isn’t this supposed to be a stress-free zone? Instead, the guy is taking up most of the space with his big bulky limbs while casually shitting all over some poor bugger’s life. Exactly like he did to Dad.

“My lawyers have issued contract termination. Remove your people from the site with immediate effect.”

Who are these poor people being terminated at 5 p.m. on a Friday? What a start to the weekend. To top it all off, they must hear the bubbles and realise Jack’s having a fantastic time.

My eyes flicker down to find him already staring at me with such an intensity I feel like I’m the one being fired.

And the alarming thing is I kind of like it.

I look away, examining a chipped tile on the ceiling.

He snaps his phone shut, and his face immediately melts into a crooked grin. “Sorry.”

Give me bloody strength. I’ve got whiplash.

“It must be such a pain sacking people. Doesn’t it bother you?”

He shrugs, unaffected by the wrath that must be spitting from my eyes. “Not if they deserve it. Can’t get the staff these days. I gave a small company a chance, only to find out they were stealing materials. I don’t work with guys who think they can pull a fast one because Lexington’s too big to care or notice.”

Fine.Maybe this company is in the wrong, but it’s not like I can empathise with Jack. I steal stationery from Bradshaw Brown, but those two cretins steal all my time. For all I know, the poor guys stole a few pens.

Regardless of what they did, I feel sorry for the company. If Jack gets pissed off enough, their mistake will be reputation-destroying. It’s likely they’ll go out of business.

“You’re always working.” But that’s becausehe’s got no qualms about doing business shaving or in a hot tub. “Don’t you ever stop?”

He flashes a grin, displaying a beautiful set of white teeth. The kind you want latching on your nipple. “I’ve no time to stop. Three big projects on the go right now. The Waterloo hotel, the apartment complex in Liverpool and the East London project.”

“Can’t you delegate?” I’m genuinely curious. “Surely owning the company means you get to relax and watch others do the work for you?”

He shrugs, running a hand through his thick, wet hair. “I like it. There’ll always be a part of me that’s still the sixteen-year-old brickie.”

I nod. “You’re very hands-on.”

Too hands-on. His fingers circle his nipple ring, mindlessly, as if it’s a habit he doesn’t even know he’s doing. Like hair-chewing.

How would he like it if I played with my nipples in here?

“Have to be. Particularly with the East London project. You know my nan lives in the patch we’re building on?”

I didn’t. “You’ll be rehousing her?”

His grin widens. “Like every woman in my life, she busts my balls when I don’t do exactly as I’m told.”

“Maybe you deserve it,” I mutter.

He lets out a deep throaty chuckle. “I probably do.”

His arms splay over the sides of the hot tub, revealing thick underarm hair, and a flash of unwanted lust rages through me. I must have a caveman kink.

I force my eyes up. “It makes sense why it’s a personal project for you.”

“Very personal. The area means more to me than bricks and cash. Especially since I need to honour my dad’s place of death.”

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