Novels by Teriel panny

After they parted company, Mandy managed to hold it together until she got into the elevator in her office building. Then she started to cry. She loved her family. She cried harder than she had in a long time. She didn’t even know that the elevator doors had opened until she felt someone’s strong arms around her, comforting her, rubbing her back and holding her close. She buried her head in the stranger’s chest, just thankful someone was willing to hold her. It felt good, even though she knew she would be embarrassed soon enough.“Tell me what’s wrong,” Carl murmured.Her head shot up in surprise. She stepped back quickly. “Sorry, I didn’t realize—”Carl pressed the emergency stop button. “Tell me what’s wrong so I can make it better. Is it Stephen?”She wiped her eyes. “Nothing’s wrong,” she said. “Everything is perfectly right.”“Then why are you crying?” He handed her a handkerchief from his suit pocket.She accepted it and blew her nose. “My father’s proud of me,” she said, and th

“I know, I know.” He sighed. “I’ve missed you, Mandy. I know I’m not that family oriented and haven’t been the best father, but I really do love you, and I want to try to make things right.” He forced a smile. “Besides, sometimes I think you’re the only sane relation I have.” He grimaced slightly.Mandy smiled. “Thanks, Dad, that really means a lot to me.”“You are a good kid. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.” He smiled. “Now, tell me how you’ve been? How’s work? So proud of you with your new job.”“It’s been good. Mr. Salvo’s given me a pay raise. Apparently, I’m doing a great job.” She laughed, loving that she could brag to him and he wouldn’t take it as she was being conceited. She was proud.He raised an eyebrow. “Really?”“Yes, it’s amazing! I took charge of a meeting when he had to call out of work and I was able to get twice the amount of money from the investors than what he asked for. Ever since then I’ve been in charge of some more things and he’s given me a pay raise.”

She looked up at him and saw desire light in his eyes right before he crushed it. She tried to get a hold of her own desire as well. “Yeah,” she said, pushing back away from him. “Just slipped.” She forced her legs to start treading water on their own, even though her left calf threatened to cramp again. “Think I’m just getting cold. I’m going to head in.” She moved to the stairs and climbed out, feeling Carl’s eyes follow her every movement. She grabbed her towel and wrapped it tightly around her. “Thanks for letting me talk.”Carl swallowed and nodded. The desire in his eyes and the way his tongue darted across his upper lip tore through her like fire.She turned and hurried away. While she couldn’t deny the sexual tension, she wished he wouldn’t look at her like that. It made her feel beyond sexy. Something she had never felt empowered with and it made her unable to think about anything except the way it felt when he touched her, slipped inside of her and made her beg him to do it

Mandy sighed. There were pros and cons about being around your boss, and having the hots for him all the time was definitely one of the cons. It was also next to impossible to lie to him. “Just the usual stuff,” she said. “Family stuff.”He nodded, his face unreadable. He swam away from her and did a few laps. She watched and then held her breath when he stopped and swam back by her. “Have you talked to them lately?”She shook her head. “Not since my fight with Claudia. I’ve been fielding calls from them and they just leave voicemails telling me how horrible I am.” She scoffed. “Yet, somehow, I still miss them.”“I understand,” he said. “You know I get that.”She shrugged. “My family’s really not that bad. I mean, I know it’s awkward my ex is marrying my sister, but that’s not the most uncommon thing in the world. It’s just,” she sighed and continued, “complicated.”He nodded. “I think I know what you mean. I realized things at home were not as bad as they appeared. Stubbornness kind

Mandy sighed. “It’s not Carl, okay? Things are actually fine between us. It’s my sister’s wedding that I’m worried about.” She did feel guilty about the wedding and had spoken to her mother. She promised her mother that she would be there and wouldn’t cause a scene. “I don’t want to go. But at the same time, she’s my sister, you know?”Gina nodded sympathetically. “Normally, I’d say you should go because it’s good to have a relationship with family. But in your case, I don’t know. Your family has done nothing to support you—hell, they have even tried to sabotage you—so why should you support them? You have a tough decision. I do think you have to go if you want to continue having a relationship with them, though. Show them you are better than what they think you are.”Mandy could imagine her life without her family. They would no longer make her feel bad about her body. Claudia couldn’t insult her anymore, and she would no longer have to see Stephen. She wouldn’t have to constantly wi

Mandy arrived back at her apartment below Carl’s house late into the night. Exhausted, she crawled into bed with her clothes on and made sure to set her alarm so she would wake up on time. She needed to get off the emotional rollercoaster she had been on.Too tired to even think anymore, she fell asleep and decided to deal with life in the morning. Carl, her family, the shambles of her personal life, could all wait. Nothing was going to change in the night so worrying wouldn’t fix anything. Sleep would.The morning didn’t bring any added comfort but she did feel better. She dressed and headed into the office early. Ready to tackle work and lose herself in it.If Carl needed her, it would only be work related from now on.She scoffed. How many times had she told herself that already?Gina came in and told her the investor was in Carl’s office.She nodded and grabbed her file on the table. “Thanks, Gina.” She headed into Carl’s office and looked up in surprise. “Nicholas?”“Hey, Mandy,”