Julia's body was sore, and the smell of fresh coffee teased her senses. She rolled over and smiled at the empty spot beside her, her fingers ran over the creased sheets. Red must have gotten up an hour ago, Julia stretched and climbed from bed, reaching for her robe she shrugged it on. Her stomach growled, and she rubbed her hand across it, she could use some food, and she was sure Red had already eaten.

Walking into the ensuite she washed her face and pulled her hair up. Heading downstairs, Julia stopped at the bottom step and watched as Red typed away on his phone. His black hair was brushed back, and his strong jaw clenched as he read something. He was already dressed for work, which came as a surprise considering they normally drove to work together.

"Morning," Julia announced her presence.

Red looked up and a slow smile spread across his handsome features, "morning, Tesoro."

"Coffee?" She asked, moving into the kitchen and pouring herself a cup.

"Already had one," he replied, looking back down to his phone.

Julia glanced up and studied him for a moment. "Everything okay, Red?"

"What?" His tone was sharp, and his green eyes flickered back to her.

"You're tense this morning." She walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder.

He covered it with his own, and Julia could feel him soften beneath her palm. "Just a lot of shit to do today." Red turned in his chair and tugged her closer.

Her frown deepened, "I am your secretary... And I don't believe we have any meetings booked this early in the morning. What is going on, Red?" This was something they still needed to work on, communication seemed like a never-ending battle for the couple.

"I'm dealing with it, amore mio." Then he released her hand and stood. Pressing his lips to hers, Red tasted her coffee and hummed, "have a good day, sweetheart." He left the kitchen, and she listened to him grab his keys and leave the house.

Julia's brows pinched together, what the hell was that?

*

The office was a hive of activity when Julia walked in, and she could hear her phone ringing the moment she stepped off the elevator. She walked quickly to her desk, dropping her bag and jacket. She answered the call. "Hello, Red Alfonsi's office."

"Good morning, Julia. We have Williams and Collins here, the potential investor waiting for Red, could you please direct him to the conference room?" It was Swayer, the brother she wasn't quite sure how to handle.

"Yes, of course." She hung up the phone and headed towards his large office. However, upon entry, she was met with an empty room. It was out of his usual, the entire ordeal and she hated the fact that he was hiding something from her. She was also worried that it could have something to do with Simon, the tormenting ghost that never seemed to disappear completely. The court date was set for the end of the month, but even then, she was worried he would meet bail and be released.

Shaking her head, she left the office and walked through the glass walls to the conference room. "Mr. Alfonsi will be with you in a moment, let us start with the meeting." She directed her eyes to Swayer, encouraging him to begin without his brother.

Swayer sat up straighter and looked at the older gentleman. "So, you understand the risk and investment required-"

Julia left the room, Swayer's voice fading behind her as she hurried along to her phone. She called down to security, "Hey Henry, just wondering if Mr. Alfonsi swiped in today?"

"Your husband, ma'am?"

"No, your boss." She snapped. Honestly, she hated when people referred to Red as her husband, it was not only irritating but frustrating, because if she was honest with herself yes, she wanted to marry the man, but hell she wanted the romance. She wanted time to enjoy this stage of the relationship too, considering it was her first real one.

"No ma'am, no record of him on the system for this morning," Henry confirmed.

"Thank you." She hung up and returned to the meeting, her thoughts running away with her. She tried to focus, but her mind was elsewhere. Where the fuck was the man. Julia gave Swayer a slight shake of her head, notifying him that Red was MIA. The man's jaw set the very same way Red's did.

Swayer continued the meeting and by the time the hour was up, the gentleman had agreed to invest in a partnership with Alfonsi Holdings.

Julia stood and offered the gentlemen her hand, "thank you for your time, sir. I will notify Mr. Alfonsi of the news."

"It would be wonderful if we could all go for a round of drinks. Celebrate the partnership." He offered.

"Yes, I'm sure we will organize something." Julia smiled politely, her patience wearing thin.

"Well, I'll leave the number and the details with your receptionist." He smiled, "speak soon, Julia. Swayer."

Once the door shut, Swayer turned on her. "Where the hell is he, Jules? What is he playing at?"

"If I knew where the hell he was, Swayer. I'd be with him." She hissed back. "I have no clue, and he's not answering his phone. I don't think he's been in the office all day."

"What the fuck is going on?"

Julia threw her hands in the air, "that's exactly what I would like to know."

*

Red sat in the booth, watching her. Her red hair was curled and bounced as she laughed. Her smile was wide and inviting, she looked so very innocent, couldn't hurt a fly that woman... but he knew otherwise. She sat opposite Simon in the indie-looking cafe, and just that was enough to have him running a background check on her. "What do you want to do?" Noah questioned his boss as they remained stationed in the BMW.

Alice Manning. Twenty-seven, three assault charges, two possession and distribution offenses, and one manslaughter charge. And yet somehow, she had enough funds to bail Simon out, "keep an eye on both of them, I want them tailed until the hearing." He couldn't risk Julia finding out about the sociopath's release, she was only just getting a night's sleep without nightmares.

"Done."

Noah organized for two of their men to keep watch as they drove off. "I want everything on them, Noah. And make sure Julia doesn't find out about this."

"Got it, boss."

"What about the other issue?" Red asked.

"Nothing, but we have a partial fingerprint, we've sent it off for testing, hopefully, it is enough and the fucker has a record."

"Good. Let me know if anything comes from it. The moment we have a name and address, I want to know." Red would be the one to visit them, they were threatening the safety of his woman, and he'd be damned if he allowed that. The secrets seemed to continue to build. It was beginning to take a toll on Red, he had yet to tell Julia about the delivery they'd received one morning two weeks prior.

He thanked his fucking lucky charms that he'd been the one to open the box and not her because inside it was pure torture. The delivery contained pictures, hundreds of photos. Each one was taken when Julia was alone or unprotected. The last photo in the pile was the most disturbing, a photo of her on their back porch, sunbathing and unaware. At the bottom was a letter. She is mine.

He hadn't slept well that night, he'd immediately thought Simon had some part in this, but the photos did not add up to the timeline. There's no way he'd have been able to take them while being held. Some of the photos were from a week ago, he'd only been released that morning... It had almost sent Red completely insane.

"I will," Noah assured.

The car pulled up outside the office building, and he thanked the driver. Climbing from the car, Red felt his phone vibrate, he took it from his pocket and smiled at the caller. "Julia."

"Don't you Julia me, Red. Where the hell are you? Do you have any idea how unprofessional this is? And here you are, fucking disappearing in the middle of the day without informing anyone. We had a meeting, and Swayer was left to take the reins. You didn't even have the decency to inform him that you would be a no-show. You could have at least picked up the damn phone and informed me! What is going on?" She snapped.

Red felt his blood heat, and his cock stir, "calm down, Tesoro. Everything is fine."

"That doesn't answer the question, Red. I thought you were the one who said I need to communicate more, and yet here you are being a fucking hypocrite!"

He clenched his fist, he'd been waiting for the perfect moment to bend her over his knee, and he'd be damned if this wasn't the moment. "Are you done, Julia?"

"Am I done? Am I done?"

"Yes, that is what I said."

"No, I am not fucking done, Red."

"Good, because you're coming with me."

"What? You're here?"

"Yes, now we're leaving, you can either come downstairs and meet me in the basement with your attitude and anger or I can come up there and carry you down. But you're coming with me."

"This is insane-"

"Julia. Now." He ended the call and walked towards the elevator. His blood was pumping, and his cock was aching for release, there was just something about her fiery side that made him uncontrollable. He knew she had questions, but she'd be a lot nicer once his cock was buried deep within her and an imprint of his hand was left on that generous behind.

The doors opened, and he saw her. Her dark eyes were alight with frustration and annoyance. When she stepped out of the elevator, he reached for her, wrapping a hand around her neck, he kissed her. Hard. Her lips were soft, and her body relaxed against his, the tension leaving her immediately.

"Red," she sighed "you don't get to use your mouth on me every time we fight," the bite was missing in her words, and they came off as more of a purr, he swallowed the sound.

Good, he thought because he didn't plan to use his mouth. Releasing her, he turned and led her towards the car. Red helped her into the vehicle, and then climbed in behind her. He could smell her, her arousal was sweet, and he was eager to taste her.

"Where are we going?" Julia asked, her voice husky.

"You'll see."

She turned her eyes to him, and her brow rose, "I can't leave the office for a midday booty call, Red, that is so unprofessional!"

His hand slipped to her thigh, and she stiffened under his touch. "Exactly, now that would be unprofessional. Hence why we are leaving." His fingers ran higher, brushing over the lace fabric of her panties, and Julia squirmed beside him.

"I'm still mad." She whispered.

"Good, you canuse that anger to ride my cock, Tesoro."