Page 67 of Twisted Knight

Why does he have to be in my space here too?

I storm through the rest of my lifting regimen with no shortage of huffs and puffs that do nothing to make me less irritated, but I do them nonetheless.

My only saving grace is that when I’m finished and head to the locker room to grab my stuff, Holden Knight is nowhere in sight.

At least there’s that.

But my relief is short-lived when I head out to the parking lot and find him leaning against the back of some sporty SUV that’s parked next to mine. His legs are crossed at the ankles, and his head is down as he types something out on his phone. But he doesn’t miss a beat looking up when he hears my footsteps stop and the unhindered groan fall from my lips.

“Here’s what I don’t get, Sunshine,” he says as if I want to be a participant in this conversation.

“What’s that?” I cross my arms over my chest and hate him for being so damn good-looking.

“How you can stand up to me without a second thought, but you don’t say a fucking word to your brother when he disrespects or discounts you?”

“What are you talking about?” I ask but know I could name numerous things he could be referring to.

“Today. Yesterday. Last week. Do you really want me to recount the various ways your brother has treated you terribly or is currently trying to fuck you over?”

I roll my shoulders. It’s bad enough that Rhett feels entitled to act that way. It’s even worse that I’ve gotten so used to it and know that nothing is going to change, that I let it roll off my back most days. In my master plan, I’d get my ultimate fuck-you to my brother when I take the company from him after convincing the board to pass a no-confidence vote. But for now, it’s downright humiliating being called on the carpet by a man I need to think highly of me.

Because that’s my dilemma, isn’t it? I need Holden to like me enough that should this go through, he decides to keep me around. At the same time, I want him to understand that if I can stop him, I sure as hell will.

It makes every conversation with him feel like walking through a minefield—this one included.

“Your point?” I ask.

“You’d tell me to fuck off and die in a heartbeat. Me, the only person in the company who is holding his hand out to help you, the only man who seems to see you for your worth and intelligence, while you stand steadfast by the side of a man who clearly doesn’t give a shit about your place there.”

His words hit me like a battering ram. The truth to them. The man speaking them.

Holden pushes off the hood and stands to his full height. “This woman right here,” he says, pointing to me. “The one who lifts too much and refuses help. The one who barks back when she thinks I’ve wronged her in the slightest. The vitriol you seem to reserve only for me? That’s the woman I want to see in the boardroom battling things out on our behalf.” He moves around the side of his car and opens his door. “I know I’ve asked you to team up with me, but I take that back. I only want you to if that woman shows up. She’s the one I want. She’s the one I’m offering a seat at the table to.”

And without another word, Holden slides into the seat.

“What do you mean a seat at the table?”

He shuts the door.

“Holden. Wait.”

And backs out of the spot and then out of the lot.

I stare in the direction he went long after his taillights disappear into the distance.

What the hell did that mean?

TWENTY

Holden

“There’s potential there, Bob,” I say with my cell to my ear as I shuffle through stacks of financials on the corner of my desk. Financials that my accountants have flagged during their due diligence for me to look closer at.

No doubt there’s more Rhett Rothschild fuckery all over them.

“Potential? I think moving to the South has fucked with your head.”

“If you were here, you’d understand how true that is, but I still want you to pursue it.”