Determined: To Win (Determined Trilogy Book 3) (6 page)

“Of course. Ted Delahunt, may I present Ms. Samantha Sharp.” I stuck out my hand to meet his. “Samantha, Ted has been my lawyer for, God, how long has it been?” he said, looking back at the man, who was now staring at me.

“Oh, gosh, it must be about nine or ten years,” he said, doing the math in his head. “Yep, it will be ten years next spring.”

“Wow, can you believe that?” David admonished.

I chimed in, since Ted was still gripping my hand. “It’s very nice to meet you, Mr. Delahunt.”

“Oh, the pleasure is all mine, Miss Sharp. I’m sure I’ll be seeing much more of you soon.” Ted turned to David and winked. “Very nice, DK.”

DK?
David had a nickname? I thought mine was the only one. I turned to David as Ted walked away, a smirk already overtaking my face. I lowered my voice conspiratorially. “DK, eh?”

“My initials.”

“I know.”

“So why are you laughing at me?”

“I’m not. I think it’s cute. I’ve never heard anyone call you anything other than David. Or Mr. Keith.”

“Ted’s loyalty has earned him special privileges.” David explained quietly, as he returned to his meal.

“Ah, so is that what is important to David Keith? Loyalty?”

“One of many things.”

“Hmm. And what does it get you?” I whispered.

“Oh, loyalty will get you everything, Ms. Sharp.”

The rest of the night passed like a dream. Awards were given, speeches were made, and Jenna and I danced while David kept an eye on me from the table. Hell, even Jake managed to crack a smile when he wasn’t staring me down. However, the single most remarkable event of the evening was not something that happened, but rather something that didn’t happen. Not a single society woman felt the need to confront me and warn me about David. Maybe the word was finally getting around. David and I were here to stay.

7

We got back to the apartment late. I should have been tired, after a long day of physical work and the event, but seeing David navigate the gala all night had been such a turn-on, my body wasn’t about to go to sleep.

“So, how’d I do, Chief?” I asked, posing on my side of the bed. “You wanted to show me off, did I perform to your expectations?”

He was on the other side of the bed, removing his cufflinks. His eyes darted up to meet mine.

“You couldn’t tell, Samantha?” The corners of his mouth tugged up, and I could tell he was trying to contain a smile. “You were the talk of the whole event.” He made his way around the bed toward me, stopping inches away. “Everyone was asking me where I’d found you.” He leaned in, and claimed my mouth, taking full advantage of the fact that my lipstick had disappeared over the course of the evening.

“What did you tell them?” I breathed as he leaned back.

“I told them hands off.”

I pulled off him and slapped him on the chest. “You did not.”

He smiled lasciviously at me and pulled me back in. I felt his erection pushing at me through his pants. “Well, okay. Just the men.”

“You are so bad, Mr. Keith,” I said, diving back into him.

David’s tone changed. “What’s that?”

“What?” I asked, looking up. I followed his gaze to my bedside table. He was looking at the ornament. I had left it there before getting ready that afternoon. “Oh, uh, it’s a glass cactus ornament.”

“I can see that, Ms. Sharp. I suppose my question should have been,
why
do you have a glass cactus ornament?”

Hmm. How much to share. David knew about Greg. Or, at least knew of him. And last time I had mentioned him, he had reacted in typical, territorial David fashion. Not that that was a bad thing. It was borderline manipulative, but I knew I was guaranteed a good fuck if I told the truth.

“Greg gave it to me.”

David’s eyes grew wide and his jaw tensed. “I see Ms. Sharp. And when was this?”

“Uh, today. I got done with things early at Gina’s so I ran by Leslie’s, and he was there.” A low growl surfaced from within him. I continued. “I was there to tell her I was moving out,” I added, hoping he’d see the greater point of the story.

“Hmph.” David scowled as he considered my story. “I’d prefer other men not buy you presents, Samantha.”

“It’s not like diamonds or something. It’s an ornament. I didn’t even ask for it. He probably got it cheap at a duty-free after-Christmas sale.

“How much he paid is beside the point. The point is that I don’t like that he thinks he can buy presents for you. Where’s the line? What if he brought you cactus pajamas next? Would you expect me to be okay with that?”

“I don’t think cactus pajamas would be comfortable. Too scratchy.”

His eyes darkened with sexual heat. “You think you are pretty funny, don’t you Ms. Sharp?”

I nodded slowly, not breaking his gaze.

And with that, he threw me down on the bed, choosing to keep me in my red dress while he fucked me once, and then again. And I screamed his name each time, letting him know who I belonged to.

After the delicious, hedonistic sex, we laid next to each other for a while, lost in a delicious post-coital cloud. That is, until David’s something on the table started buzzing. I glanced over. It was that stupid burner phone again. I watched David pick it up and type fervently into it, concentrating hard.

“What’s going on, Chief?” I asked, hoping his pet name would snap him out of the texting frenzy.

“Hang on.” He paused and seemed to wait for a response on the phone. He must have gotten what he wanted, because less than a moment later he put the phone back down and pulled me into the crook of his arm. “Sorry, baby. Work stuff.”

“Work or Brian?” The texting didn’t really bother me. I understood that being available 24-7 came with the territory when you were the CEO of a worldwide corporation. But he seemed preoccupied even now that he’d put the phone down, and I worried it was because of something other than venture capital.

He took a deep breath and exhaled. “I’ll explain later. It’s nothing to be alarmed about. Not yet at least. You relax and go to sleep.”

I should have pressed on, asking him about the phone and about the calls, but I was so tired, I easily heeded his words. Without even bothering to change, I fell asleep right there on the bed, still in my red dress.

8

Saturday morning David woke me up early to kiss me good-bye, saying he had to run over to the office to get some work done. I was so exhausted from the night before, I easily fell back asleep and didn’t wake up until my phone started vibrating.

I plucked it off of the bedside table and opened one eye to look at it. It was my best friend Carrie.

Hey, do you want to grab a late brunch? I’m in the city this morning and will be available around 12:30.

I checked the clock. Eleven. Damn, I hadn’t woken up that late in a long time. I rubbed my eyes and made some mental calculations. I hadn’t gone running in a few days, and had promised Elliot that we’d go sometime this morning. Even though he kept his distance, I knew he enjoyed our runs together. I figured I could at least get a short one in and still meet Carrie by 12:30. I texted her back.

Sure, sounds great. Where did you want to meet?

She wrote back quickly.

Great! I’m just downtown doing some shopping. I’ll go wherever. Do you have any suggestions?

Hmm. She was right near David’s place. I mean,
our
place. I paused and tried to think of a good brunch spot nearby. But then I got a better idea.

Why don’t you come over to the penthouse? You haven’t been yet, and David’s out for the day. We can have Hilde fix us some food.

I knew she’d jump at the opportunity to see where I’d been spending all my days—she had too much natural curiosity. Sure enough, she eagerly accepted. I texted her the address and then made a quick call to Elliot asking him to join me for a run.

Excited about the day, I practically jumped out of bed and traded my now crumpled dress for running tights and a sports bra. I threw my hair into a high ponytail and grabbed my iPod and jacket as I headed out of the bedroom. The rest of the apartment was bright and awake as I strode into the kitchen. Elliot and Hilde were already at the counter, each drinking a cup of coffee. Elliot was already set to go, dressed in a dark gray running suit.

“Hilde,” I said, pouring myself a quick cup of coffee, “My friend Carrie was thinking about coming over and joining me for lunch. Is that okay?”

She answered me in her thick German accent. “Of course, Sam. Would you two like anything in particular?”

My mind of course flashed to our favorite brunch dish. “You can’t, by chance, make eggs benedict, can you Hilde?” I wasn’t sure how complicated the dish was; hence why I had always left it up to professionals.

She grinned. “Happens to be one of my specialties. What time should I expect you?”

“Oh, awesome!” I chugged the rest of my coffee. “She’ll probably be here at about 12:30.” I walked around the island and gave her a hug before Elliot and I exited to the foyer to catch the elevator. “You just made my day, Hilde.”

Once out on the street, I turned to Elliot. “Any route preference?” I asked.

Elliot scanned the street, which was crowded with hotel guests and people with shopping bags. “Maybe stick to SOMA? Downtown will be busy with weekend shoppers.”

“Good call.” I started walking toward the water to warm up, Elliot keeping a decent distance behind me. After a block, I flipped on my iPod and started to run, the beat of the music giving me energy I didn’t know I had. I kept a close eye on the time, not wanting to stay out too long, since I had to meet Carrie, but I was still able to run all the way down to the baseball stadium and across the bridge into Mission Bay. Mission Bay used to be an industrial area, but had recently been acquired by UCSF and was being developed at a feverish pace. Even on the weekend, cranes and construction crews were at work, turning the former industrial area into a habitable zone.

As I ran block after block, my thoughts turned to David and the night before. I felt a tinge of pride as I remembered him pulling me close for the cameras and how he kept me at his side all night. Then I glanced around at the new buildings as I ran and wondered if he had anything to do with them. UC Berkeley was his alma mater, as was mine, so it said a lot that he poured his resources and time into UCSF. Losing his adoptive mother was clearly a significant event in his young life. I knew it was something that had steeled him to the rest of the world. As I turned back and headed home, I felt lucky to be one of the few that he had let in. He allowed himself to be vulnerable with me, and that meant…well, everything. Intimacy wasn’t something you could buy off the rack at Bloomingdales.

On my way back to the building, I cut over to 4
th
Street to vary my route. It took me along a short avenue with little shops and a couple of restaurants. I was starting to really love San Francisco. I never got tired of all the little pockets of neighborhoods, each different. I stopped at a signal, waiting for the light to change, and glanced down the street.

A familiar outline caught my eye.

It was David.

Or, more specifically, it was David and Thomas. They were at the curb, almost a block away, and Thomas was holding the door open for David. David was smiling and talking animatedly about something. And he was dressed casually, in fleece and jeans. I was about to run down the block to say hi when something gave me pause. Thomas had kept the door open, and a tall woman with honey blond hair followed David into the car. I couldn’t make out much more about her from the distance. My stomach dropped. What was he doing out here? He had said he was going to be at the office.

A muffled voice came through my music. “Sam? Sam, are you okay?”

It was Elliot. I glanced back at him and then back down the street. The SUV had taken off into traffic, and I couldn’t see it anymore. I pulled out my earbuds.

“Sam, would you prefer to walk the rest of the way?”

I glanced over at the crosswalk, trying to re-orient myself. Pedestrians were hurrying to make it across the street before the signal changed.

“Sorry. No I’m fine. I just—I thought I saw someone I knew. We can keep going.”

Elliot eyed me skeptically as I popped the earbuds back in and waited for the signal to change. I know I ran the rest of the way home, but I don’t remember any of it. I was too busy replaying the brief moment in my mind, fervently trying to make sense of it.

Back at the apartment, I took a quick shower and threw on some jeans and an ivory sweater just as Hilde knocked at the door.

“Ms. Adams is on her way up, Miss.”

“Great. I will be right there. Thanks, Hilde” I ran to the bathroom and applied some pink lip-gloss before wandering out to meet my friend.

Carrie was standing in the foyer, craning her neck to take in the apartment.

“Hey!” I said brightly, welcoming her with a big hug.

“Hey yourself.” She squeezed me tightly and whispered, “This apartment is
insane
.”

I pulled back and smiled. “Do you want the tour?” I whispered conspiratorially.

“Heck yeah. I am so curious.” I couldn’t blame her. I’d feel the same way if our roles were reversed.

Carrie ooo-ed and ahh-ed as I took her around the penthouse. I had to admit, it was pretty impressive. High ceilings soared above us and combined with a muted color scheme, giving the apartment a modern, masculine aesthetic. And then there were the views. We were standing at the huge window in the living room, looking out over the city when she mentioned my place in Oakland.

“It must be pretty hard to go back to your studio after staying here, huh?”

Shit.
Carrie didn’t know I had been basically living with David since we’d been together, save for a few nights when he was travelling for work, and she certainly didn’t know we were moving in together. This was my chance to tell her. I rubbed my palms together and closed my eyes briefly. I don’t know why I was so nervous. I was completely in favor of this move.

She must have noticed the expression on my face change, because she called me on it right away. “Sam, what is it?” She raised her eyebrow at me expectantly.