surface of the desk and …
He laughed into the empty room and gave thanks for the mostly private floor.
He hadn’t touched a woman in five years. Five years of celibacy that he hadn’t minded in the least. Now it seemed to be crushing him, five years all added together and suddenly very, very apparent.
It was more than that, though. It was this thing in him that he didn’t know. This strain of unpredictability that he couldn’t control or anticipate.
He didn’t understand the man he’d been. He didn’t know, or like, the man he was.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to work. She wasn’t supposed to appeal to the new, darker side of him. She was supposed to remind him of that light, easy time. Was supposed to bring those feelings back.
Beyond that, he did need her to help straighten out the company’s finances, and he could not afford to be distracted. He had to see this through, and he could not afford a distraction. He couldn’t afford to divert his focus any more than it already was. He had no control over the effects of his injury. No control over the forgetfulness or the migraines. But he would damn well control his body’s reaction to her.
He gritted his teeth and walked back into the office. Hannah jumped and turned.
“Knock for heaven’s sake,” she growled, turning back to the screen.
“It’s my office.”
“Well … you left.”
“And now I am back.”
“Yes, you are,” she said, her shoulders rolled forward, her expression intense, focused on the screen. She let out a shortbreath. “It’s not that bad.” She turned the chair so that she was facing him, a guarded expression on her face.
“You don’t think?”
“No. The fees you incurred for late taxes … I can’t help you with that. That was the work of a very sucky employee and I’m glad he’s been fired. The rest is manageable. I could recommend some investment and savings strategies and, actually, you’re missing a few tax breaks you could take advantage of while making sure your employees get better benefits.”
“You make it sound … easy.”
“It is,” she said. “When it’s your area of expertise. Can you explain to me exactly what isn’t working for you? I need to know so I can help you get a system in place.”
He hated that word.
Help.
He had thought nothing of it before his accident. But then, he hadn’t needed it. He was supposed to be the one who provided help, the one people went to. He was the man of the Vega family. He wasn’t supposed to need so much.
“Numbers and dates get reversed when I read them. And I have a very hard time remembering them. And my attention span has … shortened. It’s hard to sit down and read something for a long time. Harder to retain it.”
“Do they think it will ever change?”
He shrugged, like it didn’t matter. “Probably not, but it’s impossible to know, really.”
“You’re okay with it?”
A chuckle escaped his lips, not because he felt there was anything funny, but because it seemed the only response he was capable of for a moment. “Would you be okay if you woke up with a brain that wasn’t yours? That’s how I feel. All the time.”
She looked down, her complexion pale. “I’ve been trying to be someone else for the past nine or ten years. I might not mind.”
“Trust me,
querida,
you would. But, either way, I cannotchange what is. So I only concern myself with what can be changed.”
She planted both hands on his desk and pushed herself into a standing position. She seemed to have forgotten the kiss, her expression as icy and composed as ever. He still shook inside.
“What I would like to do, is work on implementing a system that will be easier for you to track. Then I want to make sure you find some good, trustworthy financial managers. Not until everything is corrected, you understand.”
“You always did think quickly on your feet. Or in an office chair.”
Her lips curved into a smile. A real smile, not a smirk or a forced
He laughed into the empty room and gave thanks for the mostly private floor.
He hadn’t touched a woman in five years. Five years of celibacy that he hadn’t minded in the least. Now it seemed to be crushing him, five years all added together and suddenly very, very apparent.
It was more than that, though. It was this thing in him that he didn’t know. This strain of unpredictability that he couldn’t control or anticipate.
He didn’t understand the man he’d been. He didn’t know, or like, the man he was.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to work. She wasn’t supposed to appeal to the new, darker side of him. She was supposed to remind him of that light, easy time. Was supposed to bring those feelings back.
Beyond that, he did need her to help straighten out the company’s finances, and he could not afford to be distracted. He had to see this through, and he could not afford a distraction. He couldn’t afford to divert his focus any more than it already was. He had no control over the effects of his injury. No control over the forgetfulness or the migraines. But he would damn well control his body’s reaction to her.
He gritted his teeth and walked back into the office. Hannah jumped and turned.
“Knock for heaven’s sake,” she growled, turning back to the screen.
“It’s my office.”
“Well … you left.”
“And now I am back.”
“Yes, you are,” she said, her shoulders rolled forward, her expression intense, focused on the screen. She let out a shortbreath. “It’s not that bad.” She turned the chair so that she was facing him, a guarded expression on her face.
“You don’t think?”
“No. The fees you incurred for late taxes … I can’t help you with that. That was the work of a very sucky employee and I’m glad he’s been fired. The rest is manageable. I could recommend some investment and savings strategies and, actually, you’re missing a few tax breaks you could take advantage of while making sure your employees get better benefits.”
“You make it sound … easy.”
“It is,” she said. “When it’s your area of expertise. Can you explain to me exactly what isn’t working for you? I need to know so I can help you get a system in place.”
He hated that word.
Help.
He had thought nothing of it before his accident. But then, he hadn’t needed it. He was supposed to be the one who provided help, the one people went to. He was the man of the Vega family. He wasn’t supposed to need so much.
“Numbers and dates get reversed when I read them. And I have a very hard time remembering them. And my attention span has … shortened. It’s hard to sit down and read something for a long time. Harder to retain it.”
“Do they think it will ever change?”
He shrugged, like it didn’t matter. “Probably not, but it’s impossible to know, really.”
“You’re okay with it?”
A chuckle escaped his lips, not because he felt there was anything funny, but because it seemed the only response he was capable of for a moment. “Would you be okay if you woke up with a brain that wasn’t yours? That’s how I feel. All the time.”
She looked down, her complexion pale. “I’ve been trying to be someone else for the past nine or ten years. I might not mind.”
“Trust me,
querida,
you would. But, either way, I cannotchange what is. So I only concern myself with what can be changed.”
She planted both hands on his desk and pushed herself into a standing position. She seemed to have forgotten the kiss, her expression as icy and composed as ever. He still shook inside.
“What I would like to do, is work on implementing a system that will be easier for you to track. Then I want to make sure you find some good, trustworthy financial managers. Not until everything is corrected, you understand.”
“You always did think quickly on your feet. Or in an office chair.”
Her lips curved into a smile. A real smile, not a smirk or a forced
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