||Vicious||

Chapter 21

TWO DAYS AFTER I READ the will, I heard Jaime let himself into my wrecked hotel suite with the key card I'd given him so he could come and go as he pleased.

"Jesus. How long has it been since you let housekeeping in?"

Dean's blood was still on the carpet.

I lay on the unmade bed, smoking and staring at the ceiling. Jaime threw a paper bag on the nightstand beside me before taking out bottled water, wrapped sandwiches, Tylenol, and other crap he thought I needed. I'd gotten wasted with him and Trent after I left Dean's, because who the fuck wouldn't after they'd just been disinherited.

I puffed a cloud of smoke, and he grabbed the joint from between my fingers, put it out, and yanked me by the collar of my stinky white shirt.

His nose crushed mine. "You're still a millionaire. You're still young, rich, and healthy. And all you can think about is your stepmom getting your dad's dough? Big fucking deal."

He had no idea of the truth, and I didn't want to let him in on the reason why I'd collapsed like a fucking pussy at Dean's house. I just narrowed my eyes at him. "No one asked you to save me, Prince Dickbag."

"So what are you gonna do, man?"

I sat up straight on the edge of the mattress and tugged at my hair. "New York," I said, wishing the joint were still lit. "I'm gonna go back to New York."

"I suspected you'd say that." Jaime took a seat next to me. He smelled good. Of soap and life.

I used to smell like that too before life fucked me over.

"You can't go back to New York, Vic. It's Dean's branch. He's already pissed off with you for the Emilia shit you pulled. You can't work there with him right now, and anyway, who the hell is going to run the office here?"

"I don't give a fuck. I'm going to New York to claim it as mine."

"You mean to claim Millie as yours."

"No," I lied. "I mean I want to work in New York. I'm sick and tired of LA." I jutted out my chin, daring him to argue. I was a stubborn bastard and he knew it.

Jaime threw his head back and laughed, and I felt anger bubbling inside me. What was so funny about this situation? His laughter died down, but only after a full minute.

"Listen to yourself, Vicious. You're obsessed with this girl. You're in love with this girl, always have been, ever since you realized she's not afraid or impressed by your bullshit. You bump into her in New York and the first thing you do is hire her. You're in deep denial. You want her, fucking everything about her. You don't need to steal Dean's office. Just tell her."

I shook my head again. It didn't make sense. Or at least, I didn't want it to.

"I'm going to New York."

"Dean's gonna be pissed," Jaime said for the millionth time.

"Too bad. Plane reservation's already made." That was as far as I had gotten so far.

I needed a plan. I needed it fast.

I started with a call to HR in New York to tell them that Emilia LeBlanc was on paid leave. She wasn't going to show up at work without some in-person persuasion—I gathered as much from her not taking any of my calls, texts, or emails. In the meantime, I asked the HR manager to inform me if Dean tried anything fishy with her job, and I made sure I had access to all of Emilia's employee records, just in case.

Which also gave me access to her company email. It was just like high school—me thumbing through her mail to see what plans she had next.

I saw she'd already contacted a recruitment agency to have another PA on standby in case Dean or I needed someone next week. Honestly, even that annoyed me. She was clearly pissed at me, and she couldn't even do that all the way without making sure everyone around her was nice and comfortable. Me included.