Master of his heart (Brielle and Max)

It wasn’t Max who came through the door, but Annie.

Annie looked surprised to see her. “Ms. Brielle?”

Brielle nodded, watching as Annie walked straight to the desk, scooped up a hair clip, and slipped it into her purse. “Aren’t you heading out, Ms. Brielle?”

“The socializing isn’t over yet?”

Both asked at the same time.

Annie chuckled, “Not yet, probably another fifteen minutes or so. I got a call from my godfather, so I left early. Ms. Brielle, I passed your message on to Max. I’ve got to run now. I was worried you’d be waiting too long. Maybe give him a call to check in?”

Annie knew their phones were out of reach and messages couldn’t be delivered, so she dared to say so. She wanted to make Brielle feel more frustrated and more uncomfortable.

“Sure, thanks for the heads up.”

Brielle sat on the couch, helplessly watching the hair clip disappear into Annie’s bag as she departed, leaving the office quiet once

more.

Brielle glanced at the wall clock. It was already nine in the evening. If Max was going to come back to work late, this would be the time. She started out lounging on the couch but gradually sat up straight

with hands on her knees and a nervous sweat forming on her palms. Even as her back began to ache from the tension, Max still hadn’t arrived.

Outside Dorsey International, not far from the building, Annie hopped into Murray’s car, a grin spreading across her face as the door closed. “Murray, I’ve managed to stir up trouble between Brielle and Max again. Gosh, I feel like I’m just too good at this.”

As she spoke, she pulled a piece of candy from a box beside her and popped it into her mouth. Murray’s gaze on her was tender as if she were just a mischievous little girl. No matter how outrageous Annie’s antics, Murray always thought she was an eternally youthful sprite.

Savoring the candy, Annie leaned in close, turned Murray’s face towards her, and passed the sweet from her lips to his, her eyes sparkling. “Is it good? Sweet enough?”

Murray felt his heart melting, his breath quivering, and his voice growing hoarse with desire. He was lost in her gaze and, after a moment, murmured, “Miss, it’s very sweet.”

Maybe he was referring to the candy, or something else entirely.

Annie leaned back, legs propped up, her eyes full of mirth. “I’m in such a

fantastic mood today.”

Her good mood usually meant Murray could suggest something audacious, like another round of the role–play they had indulged in the night before. But he was so meek, so cautious, that he only dared to steal a glance at her through the rearview mirror.

Resting her chin on her hand, cheeks bulging with candy, Annie caught his look and smiled. “What’s up? Is there something you want to tell me, Murray?”

The man swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing. Instead of driving off, he got out, opened the back door, and slid in beside Annie. She said nothing, watched him sit down, and then felt his arms wrap around her waist. “Miss, may I?”

Even in her buoyant mood, Annie had no desire for sex, so she frowned slightly. “Haven’t I told you, when I want it, I’ll let you good, go drive.” NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

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Murray, with a crestfallen look, reluctantly released her. He returned to the driver’s seat and pressed the accelerator. The car glided forward smoothly.

Annie hummed a tune in the backseat, her voice pure and youthful. With her delicate features and eyes squinting as she savored her candy, she might as well have been a teenager. She seemed like a girl who had grown up sheltered, but Murray knew all too well that Annie was no damsel from a sheltered tower yet she was the princess in his heart.

They got back to their place, but Annie, seemingly weary, dozed off in her seat. Murray gently lifted her, cradling her carefully in his arms. Instinctively, Annie wrapped her arms around his neck, murmuring, “Ricardo.”

She smiled in her sleep, and Murray’s grip tightened, his eyes filled with a bitter–sweetness. He had been by her side all along, and years had passed since she’d last seen Ricardo, so why did she still harbor feelings for him?

As Annie nestled against his chest, he worried she might catch a chill. He carried her into the room.

Meanwhile, up in the top–floor office at Dorsey International, Brielle had fallen asleep waiting. The chill of the night made her stir, her brow furrowing as she pulled a throw pillow into her embrace.

“Achoo.”

10:11

She felt a cold draft and realized the office air conditioning had broken down. The nights in Beaconsfield were bitter cold, and without a blanket she felt an loy numbness in her hands and feet.

It was two in the morning now; Max certainly wouldn’t be coming.

As Brielle stood, her numb legs gave way, and she stumbled, a sharp pain shooting through her ankle. She crouched down to examine it, feeling the tears on her face and wiping it away.