How the hell had this happened?
“No, I’m not quitting. I mean, not yet. I need to find the courage to find another design job or go out on my own. Wow, I just realized how mercenary I sounded. I’m not trying to use you. Like I said, I like all three of you. I just need a career I love.” She was the one who stopped, her feet seeming to plant on the floor beneath her. Her gorgeous face twisted in regret. “I shouldn’t have said anything. This whole wedding has me throwing myself a pity party. Please don’t fire me.”
He felt like he’d been tossed into the middle of a hurricane. One minute she was quitting, and the next he was going to fire her? He felt his control slip. Crap, he had to get himself together. He couldn’t rely on hotheaded Kellan. And Tate wouldn’t know the words “emotional control” if they whacked him in the face. Somewhere in the back of his head, Eric knew they were all in trouble if he lost it, but he couldn’t seem to help himself.
“Why the hell would I fire you?”
She shook her head and spoke slowly, as though she realized he was struggling to keep up with her. “Because I just told you I’m going to quit eventually. You might think it’s a better move to replace me now.”
“I have zero interest in replacing you. But I’m shocked we’re not making you happy. I thought we were.” They took care of her in every way she’d let them. They made sure she got home safely at night. Under the guise of Tate’s curiosity about combustion engines, they’d gotten a mechanic to fix everything on her old clunker because they couldn’t figure out a way to con her into accepting a new car from them.
“It’s not you,” she assured softly. “This just isn’t what I wanted to do with my life. For a lot of reasons, I just…I don’t think I can ever be truly fulfilled in this situation.”
Anger began to rattle through his system. They treated her like a freaking queen. She ruled the office. When Belle wanted to replace the coffee maker with a cappuccino machine because she liked an afternoon latte, they’d bought a machine that Starbucks would envy. She hadn’t liked the carpet. Yep, two days later it was gone and they were out thousands of dollars on something she’d called Brazilian cherry. They’d even let her pick the floors.
“You think you’ll find better bosses elsewhere? You want to take the chance that you’ll be hired by another asshole who will chase you around his desk?” He suddenly itched for a fight.
Belle shook her head. “Honey, I wasn’t talking about the work situation. I wasn’t. You three are wonderful bosses. I couldn’t ask for better.” She reached out, cupping her fingers around his cheek. “You’ve got that eye twitch thing going. Take a deep breath and calm down.”
When he got really angry, an annoying tic spasmed over his left eye. The fact she could see it only pissed him off more.
Belle soothed the pads of her fingers over it, her voice slowing and calming. “See, everyone thinks Kell is the angry one, but you hold so much inside. You’re going to explode one day, Eric. I wish you would just let it out.”
Just like that, his anger turned on a dime, morphing into something tender. She understood him. He needed that from her. Hell, he needed her. She calmed him. She fucking got him.
He reached up and caught her hand in his. “I don’t want you to leave, Belle. I’ll do pretty much anything to make you happy so you’ll stay with us.”
With her this close, he could feel the silky smoothness of her caramel skin, the warmth of her body, and he couldn’t hold back.
“It’s not just about the job, Eric. Yes, I want to be creative and use my degree, but I also want what you guys have,” she admitted, her voice vulnerable. “A little family.”
He took her by the shoulders and brought her as close as he dared. “You’re a very important part of our family, Belle. We won’t function without you.”
God, he had spent the last year plotting how to make her the center of their lives, but now he could see how easily she’d already found her way there. If Belle left, they would be gutted.
She shook her head. “I can’t be just the secretary, Eric. It hurts too much.”
As soon as the words were out, she clasped her hand over her mouth with a gasp.
“What does that mean?” he demanded.
Belle stumbled back, just out of his reach. “Nothing. I’ve had too much to drink and I should shut up. It’s time I go to bed and put this idiocy behind me. We have a meeting in the morning. I’ll see you then.”
She turned and headed toward the edge of the dance floor. Tate watched with a frown and pushed his way through the crowd.
“What the hell did you do?” Tate demanded, his voice rising. “You’re supposed to be the smooth talker, but she was crying.”
Kellan, thankfully, hadn’t lumbered across the floor like an overgrown bear. Instead, he’d followed Belle.
Eric watched as she race-walked in her stilettos toward the ballroom doors, her hips moving in that assertive sway he knew so well. Fuck, even when she fled from him, she made him hard.
“Let’s go.” He urged Tate to follow Kellan.
They needed to move this confrontation somewhere private because his dance with Belle had proven it was past time to show her where she belonged. She thought she wasn’t a member of this little family? By god, when he was done, Eric vowed she’d understand that she was the center of it. By morning, he’d make damn sure she had no more questions about quitting her job or starting some new family apart from them. If she wanted to go into design, she could damn well do it in their building. They would set up an office for her where she could be close to them all the time. But there was no fucking way he would let her go.
“Explain what just happened.” Tate gestured to the hallway down which she’d just disappeared, Kellan following like a wolf stalking a particularly juicy bit of prey.
But they were a pack and they needed to take her down together.