Charlie took a cautious step backward, remembering that Katherine seemed a bit unhinged the last time she had seen her. “What do you want?” she bit out. “Declan will not be pleased to find you harassing me.”

Katherine’s face twisted into a snarl. “Thanks to your overreaction, Declan’s gone off the rails. He’s refused to publish anything of mine. He won’t do business with me because of you, and he’ll blackball me, which will hurt my ability to get anything published ever. You’ve fucked everything up; you little bitch!”

“I fucked everything up for you?” Charlie yelled. “You did it to yourself, Katherine.”

“Shut the fuck up!” Katherine shouted, gripping Charlie’s wrist tightly.

“Get the hell away from me,” Charlie warned. “Back off!”

Katherine’s grasp was tight and cruel. Charlie wanted to get the hell away from Katherine and return to Declan. To the safety of his arms, where she knew he’d never allow anything or anyone to hurt her.

“No chance in hell, sweetheart. You and I have something to discuss,” she snapped. “I want you to convince Declan to publish my latest manuscript. I know you can do it. You have him wrapped around your little finger. I need this publishing contract to happen, Sugar Kink, and you’re going to get it for me.”

“You’re out of your ever loving mind! I’m not doing any such thing. Declan would kill me for even suggesting it. I am not going to go against his wishes, especially not for the likes of you. No get out of my face or I’ll start screaming bloody murder.”

“If I were you, I wouldn’t do that,” Katherine spoke in a low voice. She shoved her phone at Charlie, the display screen jumping before she could bring it into focus. She gasped at what she saw on the screen. How could this be happening?

“Oh my God,” Charlie whispered.

It was her. It was a picture of her covered in wax.

How did she get this? As far as she knew, Declan was the only one who had a copy. Declan snapped them the night he first introduced her to candle play. The fact that Katherine had seen them, that possibly others had seen them, sickened her. Nausea viciously knotted her stomach.

“Now here’s how this works,” Katherine said, her grip on Charlie’s wrist tightened as if she knew how much Charlie wanted to get away. “You’re going to give Declan the manuscript, pretending not to know it’s mine, and ask that he take a look at it. You convince him to publish it using whatever charms seem to have him under your spell. If you don’t, I will go public with these photos. How do you think your family will like to see these pictures? How do you think old man Pearse will like that his son is screwing the staff? You will all be famous, but not in a way that any of you will enjoy.”

An icy cold settled into Charlie’s body. She stared numbly at Katherine as devastation crashed over her. That bitch would do it too. She saw the desperation in her eyes.

“Think it over,” Katherine said, shoving a manila envelope at her. “I’ll expect you to meet me this weekend. If you fail to, I will plaster these pictures all over the Internet.”

Katherine released her arm and strolled away, disappearing into the coat clad crowd.

Charlie stood there outside the building, the snow collecting in her hair as it fell. She was in shock over the illicit photos Katherine had in her possession. If Charlie didn’t do what she asked, those photos became public Her parents would see them. Declan’s family would see them. Everyone at work would see them. It could very well mean the end of her promising career in the publishing world. And Declan’s reputation would suffer.

She gathered the takeout bags to her chest and entered the building. Her heart ached; it was beating so painfully she couldn’t think. Charlie rode the elevator, dread increasing with every passing moment. What would she do? What was she supposed to do?

Declan was off the phone by the time she had gotten to his office. As soon as she walked in his door, he was at her side, concerned.

“Charlotte, you’re shivering. How long were you outside?” Declan took the bags from her hands, discarding them without a second glance. “Are you all right? What’s going on?”

“I’m just cold,” she stammered. “I ran into an old friend and chatted, not realizing how cold it was out. It’s fine, really.”

“You’re freezing. Let me take you home and get you into some fresh clothing. You’re going to make yourself sick.”

Charlie shook her head, stepping back. “You’ve a meeting you need to go to,” she said. “There’s no need for you to go with me.” I can go home, take a hot shower, change, and be back in an hour and a half. Promise.”

Declan shook his head no. “I don’t want you coming back in. Go home and get warm. I’ll be there as soon as my meeting is done.”

Charlie nodded, the cold gripping her more firmly and she shivered uncontrollably. She did her best to keep it together or he’d know that something was wrong. He buttoned up her coat and then rubbed his hands up and down her arms. “I’ll walk you down. Make sure to call me if you need anything.”

“I’ll be fine.”

She hated lying to him.

***

The bone-deep cold coupled with the enormity of the decision she faced began to unravel her. Charlie needed time to think. She needed time to think and figure this out. She had tonight and all of tomorrow before Katherine released the photos. If she didn’t agree to her demands, she’d destroy them both. Charlie couldn’t wrap her mind around it. She walked into the house, sat on the couch, trembling. Staring at the door, she waited, barely breathing, wondering when Declan would arrive, and if she could hide things from him. Charlie wanted to curl up in a ball and cry herself to sleep, then wake up in some other place far away. She wanted Declan there. Charlie needed him to wrap his arms around her, tell him about the blackmail, and have him tell her it would be okay. Charlie wished he could make this all go away. He was powerful, right? His family had money and yes … maybe …

No. Throwing money at Katherine wouldn’t work. No amount of money could convince her to change her mind, especially if she realized Charlie had told someone about the blackmail scheme. There was no possible way she could risk that. She just couldn’t.

***

Declan knocked on the door once more, before removing the spare key to Charlotte’s house from beneath the crazy Christmas gnome on the front porch. He let himself in and frowned when he saw that it was completely dark.

She must be asleep already. Was she coming down with something? He thought back to when they had gone into the office together that morning. She was bright, smiling. She didn’t seem sick before she’d left to retrieve lunch. What happened? What wasn’t she telling him? When she left the office, she looked tired. Had he been too hard on her? Was he the reason she was coming down with something? Dread pooled in his stomach. Was their relationship proving to be too much for her?

He stepped into the living room and turned on the lamp finding Charlotte fast asleep on the couch. A manuscript and a red marker lay on the table next to her, and blankets covered her from head to toe. He leaned in closer to her, intending to feel her for signs of a fever but instead discovered that her eyes were swollen from crying.

Checking his watch, he winced. Declan arrived much later than he’d planned on. It was past the dinner hour, and he wondered if she’d even eaten her lunch takeout. He walked into the small kitchen to find his answer on the counter. The bag was untouched. The box inside unopened. He cursed quietly. She needed to eat. Charlotte’s kitchen cabinets had food, but it was of little use to him. Declan knew how to burn water, but that was the extent of his culinary expertise. He picked up the phone and called in an order for delivery. After being assured his order would be delivered as quickly as possible, Declan ended the call, walking quietly back into the living room. Charlotte’s blankets had slid down, uncovering the upper half of her body, so Declan covered her back up, tucking the edges of the blanket under her body. He kissed her forehead lightly, pressing his lips against her skin to check for any sign of fever. She was warm, but not terribly.