He motioned for me to follow, and I trailed his brisk steps out of the room, holding my tongue until the elevator closed on us.
“It would have been nice to have a heads-up that you were cleaning house.”
“Probably, but seeing as it’s your first day, it didn’t seem necessary.” His eyes remained focused ahead.
The door opened, and he continued his long strides, ones I had trouble catching up with. Dropping my stuff in my office, I ran back out and caught up with him just as he stepped into his office.
“Are you following me for a reason?” he asked, taking his jacket off and laying it over a chair. My eyes jumped around the space, taking in the magnificent view of the city behind him, theliquor bar, the private bathroom, the small sitting area. Things I hadn’t noticed during my interview because seeing Gabe had left me shaken. It was an office fit for a king.
“Did you sabotage your father’s business?”
He stormed over and slammed the door so quickly that I jumped. “I did a lot to get where I am today, Victoria. Gave up everything and, yes, may have made a few unethical moves. Nothing I did was unnecessary. If you don’t like it, then leave.”
My pulse quickened as the dark side of Gabe came into full display. I hated that it made me even more attracted to him. He stood there, his eyes steeled, his muscles tense.
“Will I find anything in the financials that is illegal?”
“No. They’re clean. The company is clean, as is every company I own.”
I tilted my head. “Explain.”
Hazel eyes narrowed before they turned away from me. He walked across the room, pouring himself a glass of liquor before taking a sip. I couldn’t help but wonder when he’d turned to hard liquor and when he’d started drinking in the morning.
“Fiorella Holdings is the head company, but below it are multiple layers of LLCs, including Luna Holdings. Most are real estate holdings, but certain branches have businesses that complement the main real estate structure. A few limo services, some restaurants, rental properties, the list goes on. Within the main real estate holdings are the pieces of my father’s empire. Your job is to piece those back together so Icinda returns to its former glory.”
My forehead creased as I tried to understand. “Why, when you were set to become CEO, would you dismantle your own company and buy your father out?”
He took another drink. “That’s not something you need to know.”
“More secrets.” No response, just a gaze that held mine with an intensity that burned me. “You’ve changed, Gabe. What happened to you?”
Placing his glass on his desk, his long legs closed the distance between us. “This is me, Tori. The person I’ve always been. The one I was before I met you.” Hand scraping through his thick hair, he said, “But who I was with you…was honest. You’re the only person with whom I could be someone different, someone I had lost, someone I gave up the day I left you because he was impossible to be with anyone but you.”
I didn’t know what to say. The emotions his confession had stirred left me confused as sadness and regret swirled along with a longing to go back to that time.
He released a sigh and turned from me. “We have a team meeting at eleven to discuss the restructure and next steps. I expect you to bring your ideas and to speak your mind. I hired you because you’re good, Tori. What you did at Bradman shows that. Bring that intelligence to the meeting and don’t hold back with your suggestions or your thoughts. But if you accuse me of doing anything illegal or nefarious in front of anyone in this office, I’ll replace you.”
And those emotions solidified, returning to the hate that had festered for years.
“Understood.”
I left the office, the weight of his gaze still on me as I questioned why I had taken this job.
Chapter 22
Gabe
Ihad thought being a jackass would make this easier, but it hadn’t. The look of revulsion that had splattered across Tori’s features before she left my office had ensured it was hell. I hated that she’d witnessed that side of me, that she now thought worse of me than she already had. I was tempted to tell her the truth, to let it all spill out, but I doubted my confessions would do anything. There was no taking back the pain I’d brought to her. The fact that I’d left her. What made it worse was that she thought I’d left her for another woman. That piece was driving me mad because it wasn’t true, and I didn't know how to make her believe me. She’d sounded like she had confirmation, and that made no sense.
As the day ended, I knew I needed more answers. If she’d give them to me. I knocked on her open door, and her head lifted from where her focus had been on packing up her bag.
“I don’t have the figures finished yet,” she said as I approached her desk.
“That’s fine.” I hadn’t expected her to have any reports done since she was still learning the systems and the company.
I picked up the picture on her desk, relieved to see that it wasn’t of another man but of Reid playing with toy cars. His grinwas ear to ear. He reminded me of the times before everything had changed. When I was still innocent and oblivious to pain. I wanted to get to know him, to learn all about him, but I didn’t think I had that right yet. Not when I’d been absent in his life all these years.
“I need to catch the train,” she said.
