Billionaire Bad Boys of Romance Boxed Set (10 Book Bundle) (72 page)

Holy shit! He barely knew me, yet he knew me inside and out. As I sat there wordless and numb, he leaned across the table and ran his fingertips through my long, flowing tresses.

“And by the way, thank you for wearing your hair loose.”

I forced a small smile.

“You wouldn’t have worn it that way if you didn’t want to please me.”

Every fiber of my being twitched. He was right!

A crazy-wicked grin spread across his face. “Come here, you.” Rising from his chair, he leaned across the table, fisted a handful of my loose platinum locks, and pulled me toward him. His lips were coming my way. As they brushed against mine, I closed my eyes.

“Well, hello, Gloria.”

An all-too-familiar aloof voice startled me. My eyes snapped
open, and I jerked  away from Jaime. Fuck! It was Victor, dressed in a gray pinstriped three-piece suit, with his daughter, Vivien, draped on his arm. Sandwiched in a tight fuchsia mini dress, that revealed everything, and matching stilettos, she could have easily been mistaken as his high-priced hooker.

Jaime’s face darkened. Silent daggers went back and forth between the two men. Was Victor still simmering because Jaime had outbid him on the Rihanna undergarments?

Vivien’s pillowy lips parted. “Hi, Jaime.” Her voice was a deep sexy rasp. “Fancy meeting you here.”

Fancy meeting you here?
Give me a fucking break. She knew exactly where we were having dinner. I studied her. She was petite and brunette. Jaime’s “type.” Reflecting on her behavior at the Gloria’s Secret Fashion Show and after-party, I wondered—had she and Jaime had sex? Was she one of Jaime’s submissives? There was something more than met the eye going on here. I sucked in a breath.

Jaime responded. His voice was as cold as dry ice. “Nice to see you.”

Victor’s turn. “So, Zander, I understand from my daughter, you’re courting the Gloria’s Secret account.” A smug smile slithered across Vivien’s face.

Before Jaime could respond, I hastily chimed in, “Actually, Victor, it’s the other way around. I’m courting him. I’m impressed by his creativity.”

Victor was stunned into silence.

Jaime shot me a surprised look and then broke into a sexy, grateful smile.

“Why, thank you, Ms. Long. I hope tomorrow we can seal the deal.” He came around the table and pulled back my chair, signaling me to stand up too. As I got to my feet, Victor’s steely eyes ran down my body. I could feel him mentally undressing me. “Gloria, you exhibit poor judgment when it comes to men.”

I scowled. “That’s not for you to judge.”

Jaime’s eyes narrowed and his lips pressed thin. He clenched his hands so tightly his knuckles turned white. One fist rose. My heart raced. Was he going to punch Victor?

To my relief, he relaxed his hand. “Come, Gloria. We should talk business,” he gritted. 

Vivien sneered while her father remained steely faced. As Jaime ushered me to the entrance of the restaurant, I could feel Victor’s eyes on me the whole time.

“Wasn’t I supposed to pay for dinner?” I asked while he called his driver Orson on his cell.

“No need. As of yesterday, I own the restaurant.”

*
* * *

The drive back to the hotel was fraught with uncomfortable, tense silence. Brooding, Jaime kept his distance. Maybe, he heeded my words. That is was best to keep our relationship purely professional. Still buzzed from the wine, mixed emotions and questions swirled around in my head. So much had gone down tonight. I was dealing with a potential Christian Grey in my life who definitely had some fucked up issues of his own. And I had my own share of fuckedupness that I was not sharing with him. Finally, as we neared the hotel, I broke the thick silence, deciding to get some answers to questions that could effect our potential business relationship.

“What the hell is going between you and Victor? You know, he’s the Chairman of Gloria’s Secret and wields a lot of power.”

“He’s nothing to me,” Jaime hissed.

I didn’t believe him, but the tone of his voice set up a don’t-go-there wall.

“What about Vivien?”

“What about her?” he snapped back.

“Have you ever fucked her? She seems your type.”

He took a long second to answer. “No.”

Again, I didn’t believe him, but let it be. “You know, if you do win the Gloria’s Secret account, she may be your point person. She’s my assistant, and she’s being groomed, under a father’s orders, to take over marketing.”

“I’ll deal with it,” he said curtly.

The elevator ride up to our floor was no less tense. He accompanied me down the long corridor to our rooms. When I reached mine, I broke away from him and ransacked my bag for my card key. Damn it. I couldn’t find it. I must have left it in my other purse.

“Looking for this?” Jaime was in my face, holding up a card key. His mood had lightened.

“That’s my card key?”
He had easy entry to my suite?

He grinned sheepishly. “I had it made the night you were passed out drunk.”
             

He flipped me around and pressed me against the door, pinning me against it with his hips. I could feel the heat of his arousal against my belly through my thin chiffon dress. My breath hitched in my throat as he grabbed my arms and raised them over my head. Like shackles, his fingers locked around my wrists, holding my fisted hands tight against the slab of wood. Once again, I was his prisoner. His to control. Moving in close to me, his hooded eyes bore into mine.

“Let’s finish what we started, Gloria, before that prick interfered.”

My eyes stayed wide open as he crushed his warm lips onto mine. Every part of my body tingled, from my head to my toes. As the kissed deepened with the entry of his tongue, my core ached. Wanting so much more than his tongue inside me. Desperate moans escaped my lips.

He slid the card key into my door and kept me pinned against it as he pushed it open, his mouth never leaving mine. Finally, he withdrew from my mouth. My breathing was shallow, his loud and heated.

“Gloria…”

Oh, the breathy way he said my name!

“…I meant what I said. I want to own all of you. Every breath, every heartbeat, every surface of your body, and every bit of what’s inside you.”

His words sucked the air out of my lungs. I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t speak. Couldn’t swallow. He was having that effect on me all over again.

“Do you want to come in?” I finally managed, aware of the possible double entendre of my words as an afterthought. My core was silently crying out for him.

Still pinning my arms above my head to the door with one strong hand, he raked the fingers of the other through my tumbled hair. He smirked. “No. I want you to lust for me during my pitch tomorrow.”

His eyes burned a hole into mine, setting me afire with desire. He curled a clump of my hair around his long fingers.

“Oh, angel, you have no idea how much my cock wants to be inside that soaking wet pussy of yours, but from here on in, we’re going to take it one step at time. First your account…then your cunt.”

He smacked a kiss onto my lips. “Good night, Ms. Long. I want to prepare for my first pitch. The second one will be a piece of cake.”

With that and a diabolical wink, he left me plastered on the door, my knees so weak I thought I would sag down it. Fuck him! He was now controlling me with torture.

I masturbated my way to sleep, wishing that I had one of those new Gloria’s Secret sex toys to expedite my climax. As I came, Jaime Zander’s beautiful face filled my head. Drifting off, I looked forward to his pitch and wondered if he would ever win my heart—something no man had ever done except my beloved Kevin. One thing was for sure…he was already under my skin.

Chapter 10

My wake-up call sounded at the crack of dawn. Two minutes later, there was a  knock at the door—my wake-up coffee, something I couldn’t live without. Groggily, I threw off the delicious duvet and staggered to the door. After the waiter set the coffee  and cream down on a small table, I signed the check and handed him a generous cash tip.

Sipping the steamy rich brew, I checked my schedule on my iPhone calendar. It was a crazy busy day. All day long, I had meetings with one advertising agency after another to hear their pitches. The ZAP! pitch was the last one at five p.m. At the end of the day, my team and I would decide on which agency was going to get the Gloria’s Secret account. And then I would be on the corporate jet heading back to Los Angeles.

While the caffeine set my brain in action, I couldn’t stop thinking of Jaime Zander. I was as excited as I was anxious about seeing him again. Part of me wished that the ZAP! meeting was the first one—just to get it over with. I had no idea how I was going to get through the other meetings without being distracted by the anticipation of seeing him. I wasn’t use to a powerful man rendering me powerless.  

I showered and got ready. There was only one solution to the Jaime problem. I needed to look and feel extra powerful today. In control. Fierce. I added a thick layer of mascara to my long eyelashes and hint of blue eye shadow to bring out the intimidating color of my one blue vs. brown eye. I whipped my long hair into a tight French braid.  Lastly, instead of the Gloria’s Secret lip-gloss I usually wore, I applied a brilliant shade of red lipstick to my full lips. “Red lips can rule
zee
world,” preached my mentor, Madame Paulette.

The outfit I chose was all about power and control—a winter white fitted Chanel suit—perfect for an Ice Queen—and a pair of killer Louboutin black patent stilettos that made me over six feet tall. Beneath my suit, I boosted my confidence with an ivory lace push-up bra from our Sexy Angels collection that matched my bikinis and garter. The sheer black silk stockings I selected made a dramatic contrast with the suit and went well with my jet bead necklace and earrings. Grabbing my purse and briefcase, I headed out the door. I was powered up, ready to take on the various pitches and Jaime Zander.

The elevator once again took its time coming. So much for the saying, “clothes make the person.” My short-lived self-confidence morphed into anxiety. I feared the elevator might be broken, never get here….and that at any moment, Jaime might show up. My eyes darted back and forth between the elevator and his room down the hallway. I sighed with relief when the elevator arrived first. I scuttled into it, and blew out another breath of air when the elevator doors closed sans Mr. Zander.

Kevin, dressed in skinny black leather jeans and a tight knit pullover, was waiting for me in the lobby. He gave me a hug. “Morning Glory, you look sensational!”

“Thanks. Where’s Vivien?”

Kevin rolled his eyes. “Late as usual.”

Damn her! She had no respect for anyone’s time except her own. Ten minutes later, she showed up acting like the queen had arrived. Carrying an unnecessary fur coat over her arm, she was dressed in a tight, low-cut purple mini dress and thigh-high black leather boots with mile-high heels. Her outfit was totally inappropriate for our round of meetings. It screamed: Fuck me! Because she was so late, I couldn’t ask her to change into something more businesslike. The truth, knowing the vixen’s taste in clothes, she likely had nothing more conservative to change into.

She shot me an obsequious smile. “So, how was your dinner with Jaime Zander?”

None of your fucking business
. “Very productive.” I kept my voice very businesslike. “I’m looking forward to his pitch.”

“So am I,” chirped Vivien with a smirk. “I’m sure he’ll enjoy seeing me again.”

Inside, I sizzled. There was definitely something going on between the two of them.

*
* * *

Each meeting was more disappointing than the one before. While the agency heads and their teams pitched us with enthusiasm, everything was SOS. Same Old Shit! A gorgeous big-boobed beauty posing in scanty lingerie. It didn’t matter if she was sprawled on a bed or squatting wide-legged on chair. I was looking for something more. Something beyond the obvious that Gloria’s Secret equaled sexiness. I was looking for a story. A story of seduction.

  My stomach bunched up with nerves as Nigel drove us downtown to our last meeting with ZAP!  While I’d managed to keep Jaime Zander on the back burner for most of the day, I now faced the reality of seeing him again. I reapplied a coat of red lipstick. I needed to stay in control, not let him get to me.

We got there a little before five. Jaime’s gorgeous assistant Ray promptly greeted us in the  reception area and offered us waters. I immediately caught sight of the sparks flying back and forth between Ray and Kevin. Ha! I knew Ray was his type! I shot a knowing glance over to Kev. He mouthed the word “hot.” Vivien rolled her eyes. A beaming Ray led us back to the conference room. Already seated at the large conference room table was a geeky twenty-something girl next to whom Ray took a seat. I took in my surroundings. Like the rest of the office, the windowless conference room was warm and creative. There was large flat screen TV on one of the walls and posters of successful ZAP! ad campaigns on the others. Facing me was a large canvas-covered easel. I wondered—was this the pitch?

“Jaime will be here shortly,” announced Ray. My heartbeat sped up at the mention of his name.

On cue, Jaime came flying into the room. I inwardly gasped. He was dressed in a tapered, perfectly tailored black suit, crisp white dress shirt, and a stunning black and blue patterned tie that accentuated his broad shoulders and brought out the blue in his eyes. I’d never seen him in suit before. Holy shit! Today, of all days, he was sexy Mr. Powerful. He took a seat at the head of the table next to me.

His eyes instantly connected with mine, and I could already feel the electricity in the air. I nervously played with my strands of beads.

“Hi, Jaime,” purred Vivien. “Great suit.”

“Thank you,” he replied stiffly.

My blood curdled. What was with them? I was growing more and more convinced that they had some kind of thing going on.

Jaime turned his attention to me and asked me to introduce everyone. He, in turn, introduced Ray, his assistant and protégé, and the funky young woman, Chloe, who was his head copywriter.

“So, Ms. Long, should we get straight into the pitch?”

“That would be good.” My tone was very businesslike despite the fact that I was buzzing all over. Damn him! The smartass knew his suit would affect me.

He flashed a smug smile that was intended only for me. “Excellent.” He rose to his feet and strode over to the easel. My eyes followed him.

“Ladies and gentlemen…” He swept off the canvas. “Gloria’s Secret. Let yourself be carried away.”

I gasped out loud. Facing me on a board, in fifty shades of gray, was the black- and-white image of a gorgeous blindfolded woman with long platinum hair, who was being carried down a sweeping staircase by a breathtaking, bare-chested Adonis. Lying limp in his brawny arms, she wore leather and lace—a skimpy bra, bikini bottom, and garter that held up sheer black stockings on her long dangling legs. Her ankles were bound together by satin shackles as were her wrists. I totally got it. She was submitting to her sex god. Letting him take her. To his bed. Or perhaps to his dungeon! Oh my God! This was exactly the story I was looking for. This was the new Gloria’s Secret advertising campaign—all in one line. “
Gloria’s Secret. Let
yourself be carried away.”
I could immediately imagine in my head the print ad and television commercial. And the zillion hits on You Tube and our website. I loved the idea of shooting the campaign in black-and-white sepia tones. Fifty shades of gray! So fucking fresh! So fucking forward! So fucking sexy! It gave me the fucking chills.

Breathless, I asked Vivien what she thought.

She scowled. “I like it, but I think the woman should be a brunette. Our research shows that men prefer women with dark hair.”

True, but our research also showed that most women fantasized being a blonde. I turned to my second-in-command. My dear, lifelong friend who made everything happen.

“Kev, what do you think?”

“I think it’s fan-fucking-tastic!

That’s exactly what I thought.
Fan-fucking-tastic!
I could count on Kevin for his brutal honestly and to tell like it is. I so loved him!

Jaime’s lush lips curled into a smug smile. He was fucking genius and he knew it.

“Do you have any questions?” he asked.

Only one jumped to mind. “Mr. Zander, whom do you see doing the voice-over— a man or woman?

His lustful eyes lingered on me. “Definitely a male voice. It’s a story of seduction.”

My breath hitched before smiling my approval. “Mr. Zander, please have your business affairs people call mine. I’d like to put this campaign on the fast track.”

“Excellent,” said Jaime, his velvety voice still very businesslike. He thanked his team and dismissed them. The last bit of eye contact between Ray and Kevin did not go unnoticed.

He gazed at me. “Before you leave, Ms. Long, I’d like to have a word with you alone.”

I signaled with a jerk of my chin for my team to leave.

Vivien pitched a snit fit. “Excuse me, but don’t you think I should stay? I mean, this would be such a good learning experience for me. I could even be the point person on this campaign.”

“Vivien, please just go.” My voice was authoritative. “I’ll catch you up back at the hotel.”

“Fine.” She stabbed the word at me. With an arrogant fling of her hair, she  reluctantly stood up and followed Kevin out of the conference room. Her hips swayed with sexy defiance. At the doorway, she turned her head and shot Jaime an arresting smile. “I’m looking forward to working with you,” she purred and then disappeared.

Her words got under my skin. I didn’t trust her. Not one bit. 

Jaime pushed a button on a wall panel and the conference room door slammed shut. Nervous edgy anticipation swept over me. My eyes stayed fixed on his tall lean frame as he loped around the table in my direction. Stopping behind me, he played with my braid, feathering the ends of it against the nape of my neck. The ticklish sensation sent goose bumps crawling all over me.

“So, Gloria, I’ve won your account.”

“Yes. Congratulations.”

He let go of my braid and began to knead my shoulders. His touch sent a tingle to my core.

“Now, I want to win your cunt.”

My shoulders heaved and my body tensed. “I think you should stop.”

“Come on, Gloria. After yesterday, you  know you want me as much as I want you.”

Damn it! It was true. A carnal wave of desire rolled through me.

He kneaded deeper. “Relax, angel. You need to let go. Trust me. Trust my every decision and move. Especially if we’re going to be working together.”

I chewed my lip and nodded.

“Good.”

He released my shoulders. Before I could blink, something whipped around my eyes.

“What are you doing?” I shrieked.

“What does it look like? I’m blindfolding you.” I felt him tie a strip of fabric tightly behind my head. A band of darkness shrouded my eyes.

I nervously touched my fingertips to the blindfold. The textured fabric was silky —for sure his tie. 

“Why are you doing this?”

“I’m teaching you to trust me. Can I trust you not to take it off?”

Speechless, I nodded.

He lightly kissed the back of my neck. “You just got your first  ‘A.’ Are you feeling more relaxed?”

“Yes,” I said breathily. Trust
me
, relaxed was the last word I’d use to describe how I felt. Every nerve ending in my body was buzzing with anticipation.

“Stand up. I’m going to undress you.”

“What if someone comes in?” I stammered.

“Don’t worry, the door’s locked. Now please stand up.”

I rose to my feet, my legs unsteady. The first thing to go was my suit jacket. So much for power dressing. He was rendering me powerless.

“Ah! Chanel! Size 6. With those tits of yours, I had you pegged for an 8. Very impressive.”

I didn’t flinch or say a word as he tore off my blouse and yanked down my skirt. In a few short heated breaths, I was stripped down to my ivory lace lingerie and my jet black beads. And the lace-trimmed silk stockings and Louboutin heels. A chill swept over me.

“Ah, Gloria. So apropos, you would wear white lace to celebrate our union. Like a bride.” He nuzzled the sensitive area between my shoulder blade and neck and played with my bra strap, his fingers grazing my scar. My pounding heart struggled to stay calm.

“You know, the type of lingerie a woman wears provides an outer expression of her inner sexuality.”

Madame Paulette had once told me more or less the same thing.

He continued. “And I’d say, Ms. Long,  judging by the underwear you have on, you’re bottling up a lot of sexual energy. I’m going to unleash that.”