Liam's office was down a small offshoot from the main hall, just off the conference room. There were no other doors, just his, and as she approached it, she saw that it was ajar. She raised her hand to knock, but then his raised voice floated out to her, causing her to stop.
“I don't give a shit,” he was snarling. “Say whatever you fucking want – keep saying it, doesn't matter. I don't fucking believe you. Get the fuck out of my office.”
Whoa, talk about an intense moment. Katya felt guilty for eavesdropping on what sounded like a very private meeting, and she started backing away. Someone else in the room said something, the voice so low she couldn't really hear it, but then Liam got even louder, stopping her in her tracks.
“Yours!? Are you fucking shitting me? You've never given a good goddamn about this business, just the money. I don't care what the deed says, this place is mine. Stop with the bullshit – you can't bully me into leaving her alone.”
That sentence right there brought Katya back to the door. She all but pressed her ear to the heavy wood, desperate to know what was going on and who was on the other side of the argument. She held her breath, not wanting to get caught, and listened carefully.
“I'm not bullying. And I'm not asking. I'm telling you – this little game is over.”
Katya stumbled away from the door, falling into a wall. She pressed a hand over her heart, to feel if she was still breathing. She wasn't taking in any oxygen. Nothing was working. Not her lungs, her brain, her heart. Everything had just spun to a complete standstill.
What. THE FUCK. Is Wulfric doing here!?
While she was stepping in and out of reality, the two men continued with their argument.
“Nothing's over – just because you're losing? Fuck that. It stopped being a game a long time ago, anyway. It's not about that, and you're the fucked up one for keeping this going. Back the fuck off and remember who saw her first.”
“Please, I was there before you even existed.”
“I'm her fucking neighbor, her goddamn landlord – she's been living next door to me for years.”
“And I was her neighbor ten years ago, so I win.”
Winning? A game? I'm a game to them? How do they even know each other, let alone have a game about me?
“Get fucked.”
“I'm done. It's over. It was all fucked to begin with. She was with me last night, and the night before – I don't care if you don't believe me, it's fact. Not a game, not a trick, nothing. I want her, she wants me. It's over between you two. Over.”
“She was with you ...” Liam's voice trailed off. Normally, Katya would've felt bad about him finding out that way. But right then, Katya still wasn't thinking normally.
No, Katya was pretty sure she was having an out of body experience.
“Yes. We talked about a lot of things, agreed on some things. She can explain it to you herself. But trust me when I say you two are over, and if you so much as look at her sideways, I will fucking end you.”
“If I so much as look at her? Sorry, pal, I hate to remind you, but I've fucked her. Lots of times. So I'll look at her any way I want.”
Katya was going to be sick. She was actually going to be sick. She could feel saliva pooling at the back of her jaw, could tell her stomach was rolling back and forth. Hearing people talk that way about her, it was surreal.
“Watch what you fucking say about her.”
“Screw you. You know what, you're right, Ricky. How's about I just give her a little call? Call her and tell her what a nice new boyfriend she has – a guy who told me to go out with her to see how good she was in bed, then sat around comparing stories with me. Let's see how she feels then.”
“You'd be outing yourself, too.”
“Ooohhh, little Ricky scared? Good, cause I'm not.”
Katya took several deep breaths and concentrated. Ricky? Why was Liam calling Wulf by that name? Wasn't that … wasn't his business partner named Ricky? Richard. She could picture the business card in her mind's eye. Richard Mason owned half of Liam's business. Richard Mason hated to be called “Ricky”, so that's what Liam always called him.
Katya's brain must've been a good lock pick in a former life, because some more of those tumblers squared up inside her head. A mason was a stone worker, or someone who worked with stone. Stone. Wulfric Stone. WulfRIC Stone.
They've known each other. This whole time, they've known each other. Known about each other. What did he say? 'A guy who asked me to go out with her …' – Wulf asked Liam to go out with me. Asked him how I was in bed. Wulf didn't ask me out till after my night with Liam. Wow, must have been a hell of a conversation. Shit, I would've asked me out, too. Naive idiot who puts out on the first date. Hell of a catch, boys. A hell of a catch.
She came out of her private reverie and realized everything had gone quiet in the office. The only noise was an odd jingling sound. It took her a moment to realize it was her phone. She looked down at her clutch, then pulled out her cell. Liam's office number was scrolling across the screen. He must have made good on his threat to call her. She put her free hand against the door and pushed, slowly opening it wide.
Liam was behind his desk, the phone to his ear, his jaw dropped. Wulf was to the left of the desk. He didn't looked shocked. He looked … hurt. Like he was in pain. She took a couple deep breaths and held up her phone, showing the screen.
“I would've answered, but … seemed kinda pointless ...” she let her voice trail off. Liam visibly struggled to swallow and set down his phone in its cradle.
“Katya, I don't -”
“I came here to talk to you. I didn't realize you were busy,” she interrupted. He moved around the desk, taking tentative steps towards her.
Wulf stayed completely still, his eyes never leaving her face.
“I'm so sorry, Katya. I didn't want you to find out like this.”
“No, sounded to me like you never wanted me to find out,” she even managed a laugh. “But just to clear something up, Wulf is right – he saw me first. We became neighbors when I was five. He wins.”
“Jesus, don't say it like that,” Liam growled. She looked up at him. At his warm eyes and his lips that were made to smile. Smile and lie, oh so well. Everything, a complete lie. A photo book of memories closed in her brain, the pages flipping. Them on the roof, or laughing together in his kitchen, or exploring each other in his bed. All a competition.
He brought you a kiddie pool for your roof – because Wulf had a real pool on his roof. He laughed when you almost walked in on his business meeting – because he'd known you were too stupid to realize the meeting was with Wulf. He'd talked about having a shitty investment with his partner – you were that investment. A shitty investment. Lovely.
“Don't say it like what? Like it's the truth? It is. I hope you told him everything. Did he tell you about that first time?” she asked, turning to look at Wulf. “It was pretty goddamn amazing. Sex right there in the booth.”
“I knew,” Wulf said, his voice barely above a whisper.