Lochlan

Millie spoke little once we got in the car. Her eyes peered through the darkly tinted windows, but I had a sneaking suspicion she wasn't actually seeing any of the sights passing by. She ran a finger absently over her bottom lip until its natural blush color deepened to an almost red from the constant worrying. I was thankful I'd gone with a driver today rather than drive myself because I would've wrecked the car watching her.

Worrying she regretted agreeing to this ridiculous plan, I asked her twice if she had changed her mind. The first time, she didn't look its me as she shook her head no, her honey blonde hair swinging around her face. The second time, she jerked away from the window and drew in a deep breath while she glared at me.

"Ask me again, and I will."

Tempted to ask just to irritate her, I bit my tongue and pretended to scroll through my phone, only sneaking glances at her when she resumed looking out the window, and for the first time, I truly looked at her and not just through the appreciative gaze of someone who found her irresistibly attractive.

What I saw left me unsettled. It was easy to spot traces of the Reed's in the slope of her nose, and the tone of her skin. Her hair was darker than Mrs. R's, but I suspected if the woman skipped out on a few trips to the salon, her natural hair would be closer to this color. It would be so easy to believe she was Marianna. To lower my guard and let go of the guilt I'd carried for twenty-two years. What was more shocking was how badly I wanted Mille to be Marianna, so I could stop treating her like the enemy and explore the obvious chemistry between us.

Millie opened her purse and retrieved a compact mirror and lipstick. Flicking open the mirror, she expertly swiped the lipstick across her mouth, turning the pink to red. Several shades darker than her... dress... it complimented the outfit rather than clashing, and it made her warm complexion glow. Like most men, I didn't know the various names of all the colors. Green was green. Blue was blue. But this color wasn't just red—it was fuck me six ways to Sunday red, and the caveman in me almost reached across the backseat and wiped it off her mouth.

Better yet, why not kiss it off? Smear it across her chin and onto my lips. A mark of claiming so any other man who dared to look at her would know who she belonged to.

"This is a mistake," I said as the car stopped outside Matt Pritchard's building.

"Oh, grow a pair. Let's go," she replied, pinching her cheeks and sliding out of the vehicle before I could instruct the driver to return to Reed Industries.

"Damn it."

She was at the door before I got to her, and there were too many people coming and going for me to drag her back. Long legs propelled her forward confidently, and more than a few people looked twice as she approached the front desk.

"No, we don't need to stop there," I told her, sliding my arm around her lower back and guiding her toward security where people were fobbing in and out. I flashed my badge at the guard and dropped it on the scanner, moving through as easily as everyone else.

"He won't sign your contract, but he'll give you access to his building." Her tone was flat.

"I gave myself access to his building. This badge is basically a master key to all of our security systems."

Instead of looking impressed, she rolled her eyes. "No wonder he doesn't want to renew with you."

"This is a special circumstance. I would never betray the trust of our clients by abusing our access."

"Mmhmm."

"We need some sort of game plan before we go in there. Matt's an arrogant dick, but he can spot bullshit a mile away."

"You just follow my lead," she said, as the door dinged on Matt's floor.

We didn't have time for me to argue. Tessa, Matt's admin assistant, looked up from her computer and blanched, immediately picking up the phone and smiling nervously at us as we approached. I returned the smile with one of my own—the one Alex affectionately referred to as the panty dropper. It was overkill where Tessa was concerned. The first time I visited Matt, she pulled me into a closet and described in vivid detail the things she wanted to do to me. To be honest, her look of panic might have more to do with embarrassment over my firm rejection and less to do with the rocky business relationship.

Millie's pensive expression vanished, and a sultry confidence replaced it. It was like watching a curtain fall on a play, and when it rose, an entirely new set had been put together. If she hadn't been at my side the entire time, I might think this was just a woman who strongly resembled her. She linked her arm with mine, letting her body go languid against mine while we waited for Tessa to end her call.

Finally, she hung up the phone. "Mr. Pritchard is in meetings all afternoon, Mr. Sloane. I wish you had called."

"We called. I believe you hung up on Luis at least three times."

Blotches of pink popped up on her neck and chest. Cutting curious eyes at Millie, she fiddled with a pen. Her voice trembled as she replied. "I was only trying to save us both some time. I can only tell a person the same information so many different ways."

Millie hummed sympathetically but didn't speak. Putting my hand over the one she had curled around my arm, I guided her toward Matt's office doors. Tessa jumped up, protesting loudly as she came around her desk, but I had the doors open and shut behind us before she could finish a sentence.

Matt Pritchard's office was as pompous as the man himself. Floor to ceiling windows offered a breathtaking view of the New York City skyline. Even I couldn't find fault in the view, but everything else was chrome and black and cold. Even the furniture looked uncomfortable with their harsh lines and lack of padding. It was a space designed to intimidate, and it probably worked on most people.

Matt faced the windows. "Fuck you, Sloane. Get out of my office."

Millie blinked and raised a hand to cover her mouth. "Lochlan, you didn't tell me the head of Pritchard Medical Center was so crass."

The high-backed office chair spun around, and the man who used to be my closest friend next to Alex Reed stared at me with blatant contempt. Then, his blue eyes swung to Millie. He smoothed back his tousled blonde hair and leaned back in his seat, folding his hands over his abdomen while giving her an appreciative once over.

Disgust roiled in my gut. While I wasn't a monk, I'd never been the man whore Matt was, and it baffled me that women fell for his sleazy brand of charm. I glanced down at her, certain she saw through his facade, but she was watching him with equal interest while rolling her bottom lip under her top teeth.

"My apologies, Ms..."

"Forest. Grace Forest."

She delivered the lie so artfully; I made a note to run a background check on the name. Documents had been emailed this morning proving Millie Gordon existed, and her story matched the one Mille gave Mrs. R yesterday; however, I wouldn't be shocked to discover it was an identity she stole.

"Why does that name sound so familiar?" Matt asked, getting up from his chair and coming around to the front of his desk. Hands on his thighs, he leaned against the ledge with his legs lightly spread.

Mille let go of my arm and put distance between us. Hot anger boiled my blood while the temptation to drag her back to me almost overwhelmed me. But at the last second, I reminded myself we came here with the purpose of appealing to Matt's baser instincts, and she told me to follow her lead.

"I would hope it would sound familiar," Millie said, sounding wounded. "The Forest family has made several generous contributions to the Pritchard Medical Center over the years."

Cracks formed in Matt's veneer. Clearing his throat, he responded, "My apologies, Ms. Forest. Of course."

She waved away his apology and walked to the windows, her hips swaying with every step. Fingers trailing over the glass, she looked over her shoulder. "It's fine. We're quite a large family, so I can't expect everyone to recognize my name. Besides, my sister Heidi likes the spotlight better than I do."

"It's a good thing for her, then."

"Why's that?"

"Because you'd outshine her for sure."

The two eye fucked one another like they were alone in the room, and I was one second away from losing my cool. She walked over to a bookshelf, its shelves filled with artfully arranged texts Matt had most certainly never read.

"You're smooth, Mr. Pritchard."

He winked at her, but his expression soured when I moved into his line of sight, blocking her from his view. "Not that I'm not thrilled by your visit, but I'm curious why you're here. And with Lochlan Sloane."

"Oh, we've been seeing one another casually, and I stopped by his office for a...visit."

The loaded pause made my blood heat for a new reason. All the dirty thoughts I'd had earlier in my office came rushing back. Sweet, innocent Millie. If we'd been visiting that way, those hips of hers would sway even more, and we sure as hell wouldn't have interrupted the day with a visit to another man's office.

"And he dragged you along today for what reason?" Matt scoffed and shook his head. "Hiding behind another woman, Sloane?"

Millie's character slipped a fraction when she heard the last part, but she recovered smoothly. Before I could speak and possibly ruin whatever plan she had, she said, "I asked him to bring me here."

We both looked at her. I was thankful he couldn't see that I was as curious about what she was going to say as he was.

She put down the book she'd been inspecting and crossed the room. Moving in front of Matt, her body nearly between his spread legs, she adjusted his tie. Fuck this. This was going too far. Two steps closer, and she would be flush against the raging boner the man sported.

"As a Forest, I expect only the best, and Reed Industries is the best in cyber security. I might have overheard him talking about Pritchard Medical Center parting ways, and well... I wanted to ask you to reconsider."

"Ms. Forest—"

"Grace."

"Grace," he said, "It's just good business to shop around."

"You're right." Millie stepped away just as I was about to snatch her back. She pulled her shoulders back. "I'll make sure my family understands that as well. So far I'm the only one aware of this, but I know they won't be willing to risk their private medical matters with a group that chooses second rate security. I mean, what if your system was hacked and everyone found out Heidi's rumored nose job was true? Her career could be over."

Matt spluttered, no doubt dizzy from the abrupt shift in gears from seduction to scorn. "I assure you we won't go somewhere second rate—"

"If it's not Reed Industries, it's second rate," she replied. "Come along, Lochlan. I think I like the aesthetics of your office a lot better than here."

With that parting shot, she strutted out of the room, leaving me to stare at my old friend turned nemesis. He blinked and frowned. "What the hell just happened?"

I shrugged because I still hadn't processed it. When I suggested this plan, it had been ill formed but more along the lines of me ranting while dangling her at a safe distance. What I'd just witnessed was both terrifying and brilliant, and for fuck's sake, I didn't know if it turned me on or made me furious. The answer was probably both.

"I'll send over the new contract for you to review, and you'll let me know by EOB next Friday?"

He rubbed the back of his neck and nodded. We didn't bother shaking hands. Tessa gaped at me when I walked out, running inside to check on Matt. Millie was nowhere to be found, but I'd heard the elevator doors chime shortly after her exit. I had thirty floors to get my shit together, and then I was going to get answers.