Time to Play(52)
Simone laughed, wiping at her eyes. Cole wanted to go to her. He wanted to tell her that it didn’t matter if she’d known about the broadcasting and fucked a million men. She’d still be the one he wanted to sleep with at night.
“I’m driving,” Daniel said, holding up his keys.
“I don’t think so. Let’s do this in style.” Callum put a call through to the limousine company.
Within twenty minutes all four of them were seated in the back watching the city go by.
Cole stroked her knee feeling himself grow calmer with each touch.
“You don’t work for dad anymore?” she asked.
“I haven’t worked for our father in years, Simone.”
“How come?”
Daniel sighed. “He blackmailed a lovely girl who was an up and coming singer at the time to kiss and tell.”
Cole felt her stiffen by his side, and glaring at Daniel, he tried to send him a warning. Callum looked like he was doing the exact same thing.
“Be careful what you say, Allusifa.”
“She has a right to know.”
“That’s the singer who you shared, right?” Simone asked.
Cole nodded his head.
“I see why you stopped working for him.”
“After that, I couldn’t work for a man who forced someone’s hand. He ruined her career, and for that I couldn’t forgive him. Even if that very man is my father.”
Cole continued to stroke her knee.
“You’re not like him, Daniel.”
“Don’t start this, Simone. We’re who we are because of what happened.”
He began to listen intently.
“You’d be a wonderful husband and a fantastic father.”
“If you really believe that then why are you not married? Where are all the children you wanted?”
Simone sighed beside him. “Our choices change.”
“I don’t think we should be having this conversation in front of your men. They look ready to tear me apart.”
Cole watched her sit back. She took his hand in hers, and they sat together looking out of the window.
Within minutes they were outside of the Allusifa building. “I’ve never been here. We declined every meeting.”
Daniel was taking a call as they got out of the limousine. “The police are on their way. They’re letting us go on ahead. I have them on speaker phone so that they will hear everything.”
People on the street stopped to look at them. Cole kept hold of her hand. “Are you all right?” he asked.
“The last time I came here was when my mother brought me. It was the day she requested a divorce.” He felt her shudder. The memory was clearly not a pleasant one.
“Don’t worry. I won’t let anything happen to you,” he said.
“We won’t let anything happen to you,” Callum added.
“Thanks.”
Together they walked into the main foyer of the building. Daniel took the lead to the elevator. Several women tried to stop them. Each one was ignored.
“John will be gone before we make it to the top floor,” Callum said.
“No, he’ll be there. Malcolm doesn’t like to be disturbed. If he’s in a meeting no one will interrupt,” Daniel said.
The elevator took them up to the main floor.
Show time.
****
Simone wanted to run and hide. All she could remember was the shouting as her mother and father cursed and yelled. The tears and the heartache were still palpable after nineteen years of history.
Cole’s and Callum’s presences stopped her from hiding away. The door to Malcolm’s office was closed. She heard his receptionist shouting in the distance. Daniel opened the doors, and all four of them walked into the office.
She saw John sat with one leg crossed over the other in front of her father’s desk. Staring at the man she’d slept with, the same man who’d tried to frame her for theft and fraud, the very same man who had broadcast her over the internet without her permission, the anger she’d kept down for weeks came back.
Pulling away from Cole she charged him. She shoved him off the chair he sat on.
“How fucking dare you invade my privacy.” She yelled every word.
John stood up, his arrogance ebbing away. “You can’t prove anything.”
“You want to fucking bet?” She went to her father’s desk, grabbed his pen and a piece of paper. “Sign your name,” she said.
John looked from her to the paper. “You’ve got to be joking. No.”
She turned to Callum and Cole. They came forward grabbing John. “The lady said to sign your name.”
“Lady? She’s no lady. A slut more like.”
Daniel charged through. He pushed both men out of the way to grab the lapels of John’s jacket. “Remember me, you little shit?” John showed actual terror.