Confounded: Part I - 3. Chapter 3

This was not going according to my brilliant plan. Well, brilliant in my mind, anyway. And now my stubbornness to get those names was seriously ruining my chances, that much was clear; I wasn't Taylan's favorite right now. Dammit!

The ‘problem with me, though is that, once I've taken a path? I rarely back down.
He stared at me, startled after the veiled threat I issued to him, and I felt like a tyrant.

"Taylan...I want those names."
I spoke softly but still added the hint of a threat in there; I could see he felt intimidated.
"Monday. On my desk. If I don't get them, start looking for a new job."

He had no other option but to comply. Divulge or become unemployed. He had to give in. Break! Break, damn it...

"Are they worth losing your job over?"

"Bastard," he hissed, clearly upset. "Blackmail? What kind of an asshole are you?"

I grimaced, seeing my chances with him dwindle to next to nothing. So far, his view of me was nowhere near where I’d like it to be. I had to fight the urge to just pull him against me, to show him that I was the exact opposite of what he thought of me. But instead of doing that, I returned his angry stare coldly.

"Monday, Mr. Slattery." I rose to stand. "Shut down your system; we're done here."

He avoided my glance and shut down his system. Then he grabbed his backpack, placed beside him on the floor, taking out a pair of blue sunglasses and put them on. But when he tried to walk past me, I blocked his exit, my brain working at top speed.

"I came in here originally with a question, actually," I began, opting for a semi-truth. "My computer system at home has completely gone weird on me and needs to be looked at. There's a lot of stuff on there that is important to me and I need to use it during the weekend. I need it saved. Something with the email and it's not seeing the CD-ROM drive. The system was originally configured here."

I just couldn't think of anything else this quickly. It was true enough though; the system was in a funk.

Even through the blue shades, I could see that he was sending me a look of disbelief; I wanted to rip those sunglasses from his head, just so I could look into those unnaturally green eyes of his. Cocking my head, I raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"You're kidding me, right? First you threaten to fire me and now you want my help?"

"I never threaten to fire someone and then not do it," I replied. "I will if you don't give me what I want. But until it's Monday, you still work for me. So..."

I knew I was asking a lot. There was a very real chance here that he'd say no. And then the damage would be done. He'd never rethink his opinion of me.

"Jesus, how insensitive and arrogant can someone be," he mumbled, loud enough for me to hear.

Actually, I'm a very sensitive man. And not nearly as arrogant as people believed. If only they'd take a longer look, and tried to get to know me.

"I'd appreciate it very much if you could come by and look at it."

"When?" he asked, not very friendly, but it gave me a spark of hope.

He was crumbling; I could tell from his wavering tone. Having seen and heard it so many times during negotiations with business partners, I knew I could close this deal in the next few minutes, if I played my cards right.

"Tonight?" I tried.
Say yes. I'll take it from there.

"Sorry, but I'm hungry and I kinda have other..."

"I was planning on getting some take-out," I cut in quickly.

"...plans."
What? No...no, he wasn't.

"What kind of plans?" I asked.

"Laundry and...actually, that's none of your goddamn business."
Not a date, then. Phew.

"Laundry? That can wait. My computer can't. I really need those documents and I need them this weekend."
He sighed and I knew I'd won.

"Alright, fine, if it'll shut you up. Where do I go?"

"How did you come here? Car, bus...?"

"Bike."
Healthy. Very nice. And even better! Now my brain was working overtime.

"You can hitch a ride with me. I'll bring you back here once we're done."

"Can't you just put my bike in the back? Your four-wheel is big enough..."

Not a chance; he wasn't getting the chance to leave when it suited him; he'd leave when I was ready to let him. And if I had anything to say about it, he wasn't going anywhere, soon.

"Full!" I answered, already going for the exit; he had to almost run to keep up.

"...to bring it along. Never mind."

**********

I could sense that Taylan was angry with me for making him do this. Tough. He was here now, with me, and he was coming to my home. We'd eat a meal together, and be alone for quite a long time. There had to be some kind of opening in that time, in which I could show him I wasn't nearly the jerk he thought I was. And that I'm actually a great catch and available, for that matter. All of that meant, of course, that I had to turn on the charm. I just hoped it still worked; it would be pretty rusty by now.

He quietly looked out the window as I drove into my neighborhood, and then perked up when he apparently recognized the neighborhood.

"You live on Valley Vista Blvd?" he asked, when I slowed down.

"No," I answered, "but close."

I made a left turn and drove into the street I lived, driving all the way up to the dead end; then I got the remote and opened the gates.

I liked living here, preferring the quiet and out of the way location of the house. No cars drove by, ever; it was the last house in the street, completely hidden from view by a high wall and, once inside, a small forest of trees. It also was a great place to grow up for Kit, which I why I'd originally purchased it. I could care less about the status of the neighborhood, or the fame of some of my neighbors. Oh, alright; a little vanity had come into play when I bought it.