13. April

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

april

Melanie does as she's told and two freaking security guards come to take me to Liam's office. No, the joke of being escorted is not lost on me. But being followed by these two huge men must mean that I'm considered that much of a threat, so it kind of boosts my self-esteem and I walk tall and proud, chin held high.

I knock on his door and wait for him to ask me in. One of the goons opens it and Liam says he'll call if he needs them. Is he expecting me to make a scene? I'm fuming, but won't give him the satisfaction of seeing how distressed he's gotten me.

"Hello, Liam." My voice is soft and a sweet smile plays on my lips, but I'd die of poisoning in a millisecond if I bit my tongue by accident.

He looks so different in this business version of his. So closed off, he's almost unrecognizable. Not a bit of the Liam I got to see last night is sitting in front of me.

"Hello, April." He doesn't stop what he was doing before I entered. Liam keeps his eyes locked on his computer as he types away. He can't even be bothered to look up from his throne. "If you're here, I can assume you're not happy with the sum you've been offered to sign the NDA. What's your number? I don't have the time or energy for this."

I plop down onto a chair he isn't polite enough to invite me to sit in. "Why not? Did I suck both cum and energy from your body last night?" His eyes finally snap to mine.

Great. Now I have his attention. He looks impressed, but angry too.

"And now you're ready to suck Max's, right?"

Oh boy, this is going to be fun. Game on, you fucking prick.

"No need to pay me, Liam. I've already received the appropriate compensation for my services, so don't worry about that." I wave the contract Mad Melanie gave me in the air. "There's just a little something I need you to redact before I sign this. There's a mistake in there."

He shuts his laptop down with one hand and a bang. His nostrils double in size when that doesn't get a reaction out of me. But seeing him losing his shit just helps me keep this calm facade on. I came here fueled by my anger and now I'm filling my tank with his. "There's no mistake. You just need to keep your mouth shut when it comes to my name and don't come here again. Go service Max somewhere else." His teeth grind as he says that last bit. He thinks I'm an escort, and he's jealous of Max. Oh, Callie is going to have a field day when she hears about this.

I stand up and slap down the contract on his desk as hard as I can. "Here. It says ‘our future sex encounters'. Right here, can you see? And believe me." The next words come paused and enunciated. "There will be none."

He leans back in his massive leather chair and crosses his thick arms, making the thread work hard to keep the fabric of his suit together. Damn, the man is built. Focus, April!

"Oh, really?" he challenges my resolve, eyebrows raised high in defiance.

"Really." I try to mirror the smugness in his face.

"Is Max paying you to be exclusive?"

I chuckle before I answer, "Oh, me and Max are certainly not exclusive." I swear I can feel the venom dripping down my chin. Best part is, I haven't told a single lie since I came into his office.

Liam rises from his chair, hands in his pockets, most likely to keep himself from strangling me. He moves at a deliberate pace, making his way over to my side of the desk. He looks angry and hungry. It's safe to assume he has a hard time taking no for an answer.

"Then please, enlighten me. You seemed to be having a great time last night. You even said so on your little note." Oh, why couldn't he be illiterate? Education is overrated. "My pockets are deeper than his. You must be aware by now that he works for me ."

Seriously? I could gag on his arrogance.

He stops moving only when he's standing right in front of me, mere inches away, and my breathing speeds up, betraying me.

Liam towers over me and I salute myself for choosing my highest platform heels today. They make me taller and also less likely to shake like a leaf. I still need to lean on his desk for additional support—his proximity overwhelms me.

I struggle a bit to find my words, but after too many and too fast heartbeats, I do. "Well, the meeting I had with your head of HR was very off-putting. So no, I have no interest whatsoever in meeting you a?—"

I must not have sounded very convincing because Liam brings his punishing lips down to mine, and against my better judgment and whole speech, I'm kissing him back just as hungrily. Angrily, I mean angrily.

But what the hell is he angry for?

He thinks I'm a sex worker. And while I do appreciate the praise of my sex skills, I'm livid at myself. Of course, this had to happen the one time I connected with a guy on a first date. How stupid can a smart woman be over a dick?

I truly didn't feel like he was treating me like I would expect a man to treat an escort. Damn, I'm so confused. And horny, because wow this man can kiss and I damn it, my hands have a mind of their own and are all over his body.

He pulls my hair back with a bit too much force and his eyes bore into mine with a bitter and resentful stare.

"What the fuck are you doing to me?" You'd think he is a poor victim by the way he says that and how tortured he looks.

Boo-fucking-hoo.

I'd like my power back. So I drop my hands to my pants, unzip them, and boss him around. "I want your mouth. Don't just kiss me. Eat me out, make me come. Now."

Liam tosses his laptop on his chair and the contract on the floor before he lays me on his—lucky me—almost empty desk. Not keen on a workspace cluttered with personal stuff, this one.

He yanks my baggy pants down past my knees and licks my pussy through my lacy panties. One lick has me moaning and my back arching for more. He rips them from my body like a caveman and goes down on me like he hadn't had his fill mere hours ago.

Liam moans into me and my moans top his; our sounds filling the whole damn office.

This time around is messy and angry and hurried, and so freaking good, too. He pushes three fingers in me, almost forcing me off his desk. He licks and sucks my clit as if he's getting his oxygen from there. His desperation is driving me crazy and I already wanna come.

He's the pro here, that's for sure.

I can't think straight. I don't know what I'm doing, but I know it shouldn't be this. But damn it if I have it in me to stop him.

Yes, yes, yes, I'm gonna come. That's got to be a record for me. "Come for me, April." Fuck me, did I say that out loud or can he read minds? Whatever just happened, his tongue skills are undisputed and his fingers touch me just where I need.

His strained, rough voice gives me that final push. "That's it, my little slut, grip me tighter. Cream my fingers."

Oh, fuck. I'm coming. I'm shaking so hard you could use the Richter Scale to measure the magnitude of this orgasm. He removes his fingers and before I can dread the emptiness, he slaps and then rubs my clit until I'm screaming and piggybacking on another O .

Eventually, I make a move to sit back up and he helps me stand. That's when I see a sliver of the Liam I got to know yesterday. But heaven help me, I'll stick to my plan. He goes to unzip his pants, but I grab his hand to suck his fingers clean and distract him for a bit. "Sit down for me, big boy."

His eyes are glazed with lust, and a wicked smile spreads across his face as he goes to his chair. He turns to put away his laptop inside a drawer and I hurry to pull my pants back up. I scurry to the door, checking behind my back to see him unzip himself, pulling his cock out. By the time he's seated, dick standing up and proud, he finds me almost out of his office.

"What the fuck are you doing?" The windows reverberate at his bravado, but I don't even flinch.

"Like I said, Liam, the contract is wrong. There'll be no more sex for you. " The last thing I see are his eyes turning murderous. The last thing he sees is my snarky smile right before I shut the door on my way out.

I'm still panting, trying to find my way back when luck strikes and I run into Max and Dominique. "Hey Dr. Hadden, there you are." He holds me by my shoulders to help me stand straight. "Everything okay?"

He checks me out from head to toe and on instinct, my hand flies to my zipper and button. Phew. I'm pretty sure I look like a hot mess, but at least those are fastened.

"Yeah, fine. They were looking for a different April." Again, not lying . "Got to know Melanie and Liam, though." Then it hits me. "Liam will be at the meeting today too, right?"

Max laughs before he answers. "The big Gunn? For sure, everyone with money in this club will be there today, making sure their asset here is still valuable." He tries to make light of it, but there's a glimpse of sadness at being considered a commodity.

"Well, just wait until they find out I made you even better." I wink and give him a big smile, trying to lighten the mood and his spirits.

Max resumes our tour and Dom's every tooth on display makes it clear he's more than happy with all he's seen so far. When we arrive at my office, I almost swoon.

We're on the same level as the changing rooms and it perks my mood that I'll be around all those hot as hell athletes. How on Earth can I still be horny? I try to keep my dirty thoughts at bay and concentrate on what Max's saying.

Stepping into my office feels like entering a gallery, with its high ceiling and beautiful decor showcasing a perfect blend of style and sophistication. An imposing, antique-looking office desk with welcoming flowers on top of it captures my attention. My doctor's white coat, already with Dr. Hadden embroidered on it, hangs from a large leather chair.

Across the room, there are two leather couches, enormous windows on one side and a door opposite to them that leads to an attached exam room with every bit of equipment I'll need to check on Max's recovery.

Machines that my hospital back home—one of the most prestigious hospitals in the US—is still on the waiting list to receive are already here.

Dom nudges my chin with his finger, forcing me to close my gaping mouth.

"I know, right?" Damn it, woman. Have some composure. "And my office is right over there." He points in the opposite direction of my door.

Ah, great. His office is right across from mine, with the rehab room between us. We smile at each other with the same wonder as a kid stepping foot in Disneyland for the first time. Someone appears to tell us it's time to head to the conference room, which means we have to leave our shiny new toys behind.

The IT team is waiting for us in the large, glass fronted boardroom. They're seated around one of the edges of an oval wooden table, fiddling with the tech that they then show us how to use. The keynote is already displayed on a screen at the back of the room. Printed documents with an outline of today's presentation lie neatly arranged on the twenty-seat-long table for each attending guest.

Imagining the look of sheer shock on Liam's face when he sees me in my white coat leading the meeting is working wonders for my nerves. I smooth down my clothes, puff my chest out, and replay in my mind the movie I've already watched a thousand times. From Max's surgery to the path toward his full recovery. Callie calls it projecting. I call it facts .

Max can do it. I can do this. We can't make any promises, but it is so damn promising. I'm confident he'll have a brilliant career if we stick to our plan and I'll convince every last suit at this table of such.