Owned (Office Intrigue Book 8) by Nicole Edwards (year 2 reading books TXT) 📗

made a detour and was unavailable. He could’ve very well found a submissive who struck his fancy and he was getting into character right now.

I highly doubted it, but it was a possibility.

After dialing Ransom’s number, I kept my eyes on Braelyn, listening patiently while it rang. When it went to voicemail, I hung up, shaking my head.

Her watery gaze leveled with mine, hung there for the longest time as though she was deciding whether she could trust me or not.

When she didn’t say anything, I figured now was a good time to get someone out there looking for Ransom. Rather than wait until tomorrow to get them safely to Sapphire Island, I would get things underway tonight.

Standing tall, I smoothed the front of my jacket, tugged on the cuffs, and dialed.

“Who are you calling?” Braelyn asked when I turned my back on her.

I didn’t respond to her, focusing on the woman who answered the phone. “Tiegan, I need you to find Ransom. Call Zion. Get him involved. Immediately. I want Ransom brought to the airstrip. There’s been a change in travel plans.”

“Of course. And I’ll have the jet prepped for you.”

I turned around, met Braelyn’s gaze as I added, “You can let Ransom know I have his sister with me.”

“Understood.”

“And Tiegan, tell Zion it’s a matter of life or death.”

There was a brief pause, as though she wanted to ask for details. Tiegan knew me better than most, which I suspect was why she answered with a simple, “I will.”

The call disconnected, and right before my eyes, Braelyn seemed to pull herself together. The tears dried up and in their place was a defiant gleam. Her shoulders squared, her chin tilting upward in a hint of temerity.

She would’ve launched into a tirade if it weren’t for Trent stepping forward, all but getting in my face.

“What the hell’s going on, Talon? Where’s Ransom?”

My knee-jerk reaction was to tell him to leave it alone, but I knew Trent wouldn’t let it go. He was like a dog with a bone. And considering Ransom had worked for him for a few years now, I figured he deserved some answers. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any.

“You’ll have to get Ransom to tell you that,” I said, keeping my voice low. “Right now, you just need to know that his life, as well as his sister’s, is in danger. I’m taking them to Sapphire Island.”

His eyes narrowed, his voice not much more than a harsh whisper when he said, “Why didn’t he tell me he had a sister?”

“Need-to-know, Trent. Which means this doesn’t leave this room. You can’t tell anyone. Their lives depend on it.”

“What about—?”

“Not even Zeke,” I interrupted, knowing where he was going. “No one. Not unless Ransom says you can.” I peered back at Braelyn briefly then met his hard, glittering gaze once more. “No one knows about her, and Ransom has a reason for that. It needs to remain that way.”

There was a pregnant pause and then he nodded. “Fine. But I expect an update from you. Whatever Ransom needs…”

Trent Ramsey was a man who cared about those who were close to him. And I could see the worry in his eyes. Plus, I suspected he didn’t trust me completely. Not many did, because I’d always been one who took care of things my own way, with little consideration to the consequences of others. That and I ensured I remained an enigma, even to those who thought they knew me well.

He stepped back, glanced at Braelyn again, his gaze lingering as though he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Then, without a word, he turned and walked out of the room.

I took a deep breath, turned to face Braelyn, only to be hit with the full brunt of her anger.

“Tiegan? Tiegan Shaw?” Although a bit high-pitched, her voice was laced with steel. “She works for you?”

“She does.”

“And you’re aware of what’s going on with my brother?”

“I am.”

“So the job offer … that was your doing?”

Clearly she’d put all the pieces together, and she didn’t appear happy with the result. Ransom had warned me that would be the case, but I could admit, I was rather intrigued with how easily she’d come to that conclusion. Beauty and brains. A brilliant combination.

“Was it even real?” Braelyn bit out before I could respond. “The job offer? The interview?”

“Oh, it’s very real, Miss Bishop. And come tomorrow morning, you’ll get to see it all for yourself.”

“The hell I will.” She started toward the door.

“Miss Bishop. Stop,” I commanded, putting every ounce of dominance I possessed into my tone.

She immediately halted her retreat, and her obedience caused a familiar punch in my gut. Lust. Only this was mixed with something else, something more potent.

“This is nonnegotiable,” I informed her. “Your safety is my priority because it’s Ransom’s. Your brother trusts me to watch over you. It’s time for me to do that.”

When Braelyn finally turned, I saw the wariness in her eyes, but there was something else there. Trust, maybe?

It was then, that very moment in time, when I felt a sudden, life-altering shift within me.

Little did I know, but it would be only hours before the opportunity to explore it further presented itself again.

And when it finally did, I was waiting but not even close to being ready.

SIX

RANSOM

Absolute bullshit.

That’s what this was.

Me, going sixty miles an hour on a dark, narrow, winding road out in the fucking boondocks. All in an attempt to lose these jokers so I could weave my way back to my sister. I wasn’t even sure how I’d gotten to this point in one night. It damn sure hadn’t been my plan.

“Son of a bitch,” I bit out, taking a corner faster than my four-year-old Maxima could handle, the entire chassis groaning from the effort of remaining on the road.

Considering my luck was shit, I figured every turn I made and didn’t find black ice ready to launch me into a ditch was a good thing.

It didn’t seem to