Yours Truly (Billionaires and Brides #2) (9 page)

With one hand still holding hers, AJ reached up and held behind her neck. He pulled her closer and his thumb gently glided to her cheek as he leaned in and kissed her.

Their lips connected with graceful ease. Everything she had dreamed of for the past two weeks came to life. His lips fit on hers like they had never left. He bit lightly on her bottom lip and released an energy in her she couldn’t remember bottling.

The images of their last night together were still vivid behind her closed eyes. All she could imagine was ripping off every article of clothing—starting with his tie—and heaving herself into his arms. She wished he would just take her on the desk and relieve the burning desire in her.

He slowly let go of her hand and moved to her waist. Instinctively, she took her empty hand and rested her palm against his chest. He gave one more brush of his thumb on her cheek and then slowly moved down, joining his other hand at the bottom of her back.

And then he pulled her even closer. Their bodies were pressed together and felt like one. The moment was perfect, better than anything she had imagined.

A
J

A
J could barely believe
he was kissing her. He could barely believe she was really here. Her lips were soft and tender, while her body pressed into his. She was better than he remembered. She tasted warm and sweet. AJ felt himself savoring her taste as he held her bottom lip between his teeth.

In its entirety, the kiss was spectacular. The moment had begun slowly, but she increasingly responded to his every sensual maneuver, which only made him crave more. After settling for a moment on her waist, his hands had started to wander. They caressed the top of her butt, then slowly crept upward until he palmed her breasts.

The kiss had sparked a wildfire of sexual enthusiasm that he remembered from their night together. It began in his chest but quickly moved to the tips of his fingers and down through his legs. His movements intensified with every second; he pushed on her breasts only to seize her shirt and pull her close again.

She was not shy in following his lead. After going first for his tie, which now hung loosely around his collar, she used one hand to grip his belt while the other tugged at the soft fabric of his shirt. Her hand ran up and down his torso, varying between a stroke and a tight grasp. Her touch was making the ache in his groin grow unbearable. It was as if they were still back in his hotel room, back in that lost morning that should have been. For all the feeling she was stirring up inside of him, it was as if the two weeks of not having her number had never happened.

The beep of the intercom startled him. It was wired with the office phone that sat on the desk behind him, though it sounded louder than he remembered. Kat jumped at the noise and she pulled away.

He let go of her breast but kept one hand on her waist as he leaned back and pressed down on the green button on his desk phone. His shirt was wrinkled and untucked.

“What?” he growled into the speaker.

“Sir, the lawyers are on the line again,” his secretary informed him. “They
really
aren’t taking no for an answer. I can’t stall them for much longer.”

AJ’s head dropped as if it were too heavy for his neck and he let out a sigh. He used his middle finger to apply pressure on his temple and rub his right eyebrow. He needed to stop what he was doing right now.

His hand fell from her waist and he took a step back. It was like his secretary was intervening with an omniscient, parental-like premonition. He would be wise to listen if he wanted to avoid ruining his company further.

This is has to stop,
he thought to himself. She was an employee. His employee. A subordinate. This is the path that Paul went down, and as much as he wanted to kiss her again, he needed to think of what was best for his company.

“Sir? What should I tell them?” his secretary asked through the intercom. “They keep saying this is your responsibility...”

It shouldn’t be my responsibility,
he thought angrily. It should be Paul’s. It was Paul’s fault he was in this mess. It was Paul’s fault that he felt guilty about wanting to kiss the beautiful woman standing in front of him right now. He turned and pushed the green button.

“Hang up on them.” His evident frustration had provoked a commanding tone that he rarely took with staff. “I’ll call them back myself when I’m done.”

AJ closed his eyes and centered himself before turning back to face her. Her lips still looked fresh from their kiss. They were as enticing as they had been moments before his urges had taken over. He wanted to forget the lawyers, forget the board, forget everything and give into her one more time. The consequences of another embrace seemed far away. They were buried beneath her warm taste that still sat on his lips.

She was still only an arm’s length away and stood playing nervously with her hands. He had expected her to be looking away but her beautiful eyes were studying him intently. She was taking in him and the situation completely.

“We can’t do this, can we?” she asked softly. “Not with what’s going on.”

“Screw them,” he said, and he meant it. It was an instinctual reply, but his stomach began to knot when he heard the words out loud. There’s no doubt that an office relationship would bring his integrity into question, and furthermore, the integrity of the company.

“You say that, but I saw your face just now. The mess with the company isn’t going away. And you being with an employee...” She trailed off and then punctuated her sentence with a shrug. “It’s the exact opposite of what you need.”

“But it’s not what I want.” What he really wanted was to rip her clothes off and resume what he had started until she was moaning in his arms again.

“It’s not what I want either.” She bit her bottom lip and looked up at him.

He didn’t speak. Silence felt like the only appropriate reply. He turned and looked out the big office windows, wishing that he could fly free like a bird right out of them.

“So, what do we do?” she asked. “How fast do you think those lawyers can get a settlement and everything out of the papers? Maybe we can just wait until then.”

“Not soon enough.” The lawyers on both sides were getting paid by the hour, so naturally neither party was inclined to move quickly. Realistically, he knew it would be months before they finished.

Even if the lawsuits were settled tomorrow, the press wouldn’t forget it so soon. His publicist had stressed that this was going to last for at least a year. Maybe more.

Her big eyes drew her in. Desire still flickered in green depths and her lips were moist with their kiss. He couldn’t wait a year. Someone else would see how beautiful and wonderful she was and would steal her away. He couldn’t ask her to wait a year for him.

“I want to see you again,” he said and waited in anticipation for his stomach to turn, but it remained calm.

“I’d like that.” Her face loosened with the hint of a smile. “But I don’t want to jeopardize your job.”

He got a devilish smirk on his face. “We’ll just have to keep it quiet.”

“I completely understand,” she replied softly and then bit her lip. It was almost as if he felt the biting tingle more than she did. It made his pulse race. He loved when she did that. “I mean, are you sure? It’s a big risk for you. I’m not really all that special.”

God, she really is amazing,
he thought. An uncontrollable smile grew on his face, and he made no effort to tame it. She was unlike any girl he could remember. Most women were far too captivated with his success, only seeking an opportunity to get into his pockets and take advantage of his wealth. But not her. She was undaunted by any sort of selfish anxiety. Her concern was for him.

“Liar,” he said. She was special. He’d known that from the moment he saw her. He could tell that he caught her by surprise, but she quickly smiled. Her face was warm and zealous again, and he was glad.

“How do you want to do this?” she asked.

He chuckled at her question.
You mean like lying down? Standing up? Doggie style? Missionary? I think we should do it every way possible.

He harnessed his wandering mind. “We go slow. We start out discreet.”

“I can do discreet,” she replied. “But I’m not exactly on your schedule. It took months to arrange this meeting. Won’t it be suspicious to suddenly have me around all the time?”

He turned and picked up her proposal. “This project is a great reason to have you come see me on a regular basis. Perhaps we need to schedule some business dinners?”

“I like business dinners.”

“Good,” he said. He knew his smile matched hers. Excitement fluttered in his stomach, dancing with joy that he didn’t expect.

He reached for her hand, brought it to his lips and kissed it. She was so smooth and soft. He wanted to feel more.

“I’ll have my secretary call you,” he told her, not letting go of her hand. “To set up a meeting.”

“I hope it’s soon.” Her smile filled the room with light.

“Count on it.” With one hand he pulled her closer, and with the other he held the edge of her chin as he kissed her once more, this time appreciating the delicacy of her lips over her hand.

Slowly and regretfully he let her go as the intercom began to buzz again.

With their faces still only inches away and her eyes still closed she licked her lips. The motion was intoxicating, instantly driving him insane with memories of what that mouth could do.

She opened her eyes and stepped back. He missed the feel of her in his arms as she ran her hands down her dress to alleviate the wrinkles before reaching for her bag.

She looked up, putting the bag on her shoulder. “I think this was a very successful meeting, Mr. Jacobson.” Her smile had grown playful and mischievous. He liked it.

“I agree, Ms. Riley. We shall have to do another.”

She was moving towards the door when she stopped, looked back, and winked. Immediately he remembered the wedding, the same hint he had discretely sent her in the very beginning. What a turn of events.

He was smiling foolishly as he mumbled the word, “Goodbye.”

K
at

I
t took
three days before a dinner was scheduled. Kat had felt like a kid waiting for Christmas after leaving his office, as if Christmas was some near but immeasurable time away.

She had been at work, toiling through yet another spreadsheet, when her phone rang. She’d nearly let it go to voicemail just because she was so close to finishing her work, but answered it just in time.

“Mr. Jacobson would like to request another meeting in order to further discuss your proposal.” The secretary sounded completely uninterested, and if anything, annoyed to be calling Kat to set this up.

Kat wanted to sound as professional as possible, but found herself grinning from ear to ear, regardless of the secretary’s tone. “When is Mr. Jacobson proposing to meet?”

“Are you available to meet with him Friday at The West Wing Steakhouse at 7pm?” the secretary asked. Kat could almost see her roll her eyes through the phone.

“Yes, that sounds perfect.” It was a good thing that the secretary couldn’t see through the phone on this end. Kat was doing a silent victory dance around her cubicle. It looked like a cross between a touchdown dance and the Macarena, but Kat didn’t care. They had a date!

The secretary repeated the specifics of the meeting again before abruptly hanging up. It was all business as far as she was concerned, which suited Kate just fine. She wanted the secretary to think it was all just business. They needed everyone to think that.

She was out of breath from her happy dance as she plopped down into her chair and spun in lazy circles. A date. A pretend business meeting, but a real date with Mr. Sexy-wink. Life was golden and bright. She could barely wait.

* * *

K
at packed
and collected her files and laptop before getting ready for dinner that evening. It would be just like her to show up to a ‘business dinner’ with AJ without even a pencil in her hand. If they were going to be able to see each other, she had to do a good job at keeping up the pretense. The only way to combat the anticipation was to be overly systematic.

She had allowed herself a considerable amount of time to shower and decide on her attire, but the process moved far quicker than she thought. It wasn’t extremely hard to pick out an outfit. She simply chose her favorite professional getup: black dress slacks with matching jacket and a light blue silk button-up blouse.

What took longer was her choice of shoe. After all, he was the CEO of Shoesy, and he had probably already seen a hundred times the shoes that a normal guy would see in his entire life. He had probably even seen more shoes and purses than she had. She wondered what his preference was, and wondered even more if he had a preference beyond selling whatever was best for the company.

It came down to black, Mary-Jane style pumps that were classic and work appropriate, or a pair of red stilettos that made her legs and ass look fantastic, even in pants.

She finally settled on the pair of classy black pumps. They matched the pant length and they were pretty and feminine, yet practical and comfortable. If she was to keep up the guise of this being a business meeting, she had to keep things on the down low. No matter how good the red stilettos would have looked, they weren’t something that was business appropriate.

Kat went out to the apartment parking lot, excited and ready for her date. Except she was blocked in. A huge moving truck was parked directly behind her, completely blocking her in.

“Hello?” Kat called, walking around the truck. “Is anyone there?”

No one answered. The truck was empty and she couldn’t see anyone around.

Kat sighed. At least she had budgeted extra time. She glanced around again, making sure that there really wasn’t anyone there. She didn’t have time to wait around for whoever was driving the offending truck, so she pulled out her phone and opened up a ride share app.

Luckily, there was a driver available two minutes away, and the drive to the restaurant was quick and uneventful. The driver dropped her off at the valet station of the fancy restaurant and then drove off.

The early summer air was warm and humid as she hurried into the fancy restaurant. The West Wing Steakhouse was the premier place to eat on the whole West Coast. She’d never eaten here, and to be honest, never thought she would. The place was so far out of her price range that she was fairly sure just looking at the menu cost her weekly salary.

Her nerves were wracked as she walked into the dimly-lit restaurant. Heavy leather booths with dark wood filled the interior, giving the place an opulent and very masculine feel. Kat could see why AJ would chose to hold business meetings here. Anyone who walked in would be impressed just by the restaurant.

She was right on time, but AJ was already seated. The hostess guided her to a private room near the back of the restaurant. Kat followed gingerly, but felt a sense of relief when she saw AJ already waiting at their table. For a moment, she was afraid that someone else would be waiting for her, or that he wouldn’t be alone and their business meeting would be an actual meeting, rather than the date she was hoping for.

The room was big enough for fourteen people comfortably. A huge heavy wooden table dominated the room, surrounded by carved wooden chairs. AJ already had his computer up on the table and a smattering of papers scattered across it, as if he had been here working for hours before she had arrived.

He stood up as she entered the room and then quickly moved to pull a chair out for her. “Please, join me,” he said with a smile.

Kat tried not to stare as she moved to the table. She already knew that AJ knew how to dress. The precise trim of his suit and the leather of his shoes were some of the first things she had noticed at the wedding. It told her that this guy knew that he looked good and she was moved by his confidence.

Today, he made what he wore at the wedding look dull. The dark suit was tailored to perfection, showing off his incredibly broad and muscular shoulders. The man was built like a Greek god and the suit highlighted every bit of his masculine physique.

His hair was neatly combed and his cologne smelled pristine and crisp, as if he had just stepped out from the shower. His light blue eyes glistened against his dark suit coat and seemed to radiate more than the faint light above them.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” he said softly, taking her briefcase as the hostess shut the heavy wooden door behind them. Soft music floated through invisible speakers, but there was no other sign of life in the room. Kat could see how this would be a great place to hold a high-powered executive meeting, or in this case, an elicit romance.

“Here’s some more work I’ve done on the project,” Kat told him, pulling out her paperwork.

Now that she was here, she wasn’t quite sure what to do next. How long was she supposed to keep up the pretext of a business meeting? Were they going to kiss again? Could they lock that heavy wooden door and have the room all to themselves, or would the wait staff grow anxious and break it down?

She knew her questions were over the top, but that didn’t stop the nervous thoughts from flying through her head and making her want to giggle nervously.

AJ took all of her files and spread them around the table. He didn’t seem to have any of the nervousness that was currently plaguing Kat. He began by asking her how his secretary had sounded on the phone, adding that she can occasionally sound dismissive to anyone without the name,
‘Chief Something’
or
‘Senior Vice President’
in their job title. Kat assured him that his secretary had been far more pleasant than she actually was, and their conversation took on both a humorous and enjoyable spirit.

Kat felt comfortable and much more at ease by the time the waitress came to check on them and take their order.

“You can get anything you’d like,” AJ told her. “The company is picking up the tab, so if you want to split a bottle of Dom Perignon Champagne, that’s perfectly acceptable.”

“Oh, I’m good, thank you. Champagne might cloud my business judgment.” She shot AJ a sort of ironic grin.

“Are you sure?” he asked, then added, “I get to deduct it from my taxes.”

His smirk was too much for her to handle. She giggled softly and then conceded, “Maybe a little fruit drink. Something kind of festive, but non-alcoholic.”

“We have an amazing pomegranate lemonade,” the waitress offered and Kat nodded her approval.

“Make it two. And go ahead and add some little umbrellas, just for fun.” AJ said to the waitress.

“Of course,” the waitress replied. “And can I bring out any appetizers with those drinks?”

“One tray of the oysters, please.” AJ spoke quickly and then looked back at her. His smile had become so grand and playful that Kat was surprised that the waitress didn’t seem to notice. Or maybe, it was just that Kat was really paying attention. The waitress repeated their order and then hurried off to the kitchen, closing the heavy door behind her.

“Oysters, huh? You’re really subtle,” Kat teased, playing with her napkin.

“What? You don’t like oysters?” AJ asked, his brow furrowing slightly.

“Actually, I’ve never had them,” Kat admitted. “But I do know about their aphrodisiac connotation.”

“So you think I’m going to try and take advantage of you?” AJ asked, his voice getting a husky quality that made the butterflies in Kat’s stomach start up again. “Maybe even right here on this table?”

“I don’t know,” Kat said slowly, a flirtatious smile filling her face. “Maybe I’m more afraid that they’ll make me take
you
on the table. I’ve never had oysters before. I have no idea what they’ll do to me.”

AJ laughed just as the door opened and their server returned with their drinks and appetizers. Kat had never enjoyed such fast service before, but she assumed it probably had something to do with the fact that AJ was a billionaire and brought this restaurant lots of business. If he held meetings here, they would probably stand on their heads to make him happy.

Kat eyed the oysters carefully. In their shells, they didn’t look too bad. Up close, however, their smell was putrid. Kat instantly felt her nose cringe at the scent and felt her throat scratch with revolt. She took a sip of her drink and tried not to fixate on the plate in front of her. Instead, she looked up at AJ. He wasn’t fazed at all by the smell, but he quickly interpreted her glance.

After the waitress left the room, AJ said, “So, I struck out with these, huh?”

Kat forced a laughed. “No, no, I’ve just never smelled them before. And they smell absolutely terrible. I don’t think I can eat them.”

AJ let out a laugh. “That’s okay, I’m going to do you a favor and not take a bite.” He placed his cloth napkin over the plate. “Besides, I heard chips and dip was just as effective…” He winked back at her.

She felt a unique warmth building in her chest. It was more comforting than it was sensual. She was truly grateful at the way he could move effortlessly between assurance and banter. He made the moment seem cozy and intriguing at the same time.

When the waitress came back, AJ exchanged the oysters for a simple plate of bread and butter and then ordered a steak for himself. Kat was caught off guard by her reappearance. She hadn’t even thought about selecting a main course.

She also realized that she wasn’t even hungry. The moment with AJ was enough by itself. Eating seemed like an extra and unnecessary pleasure. She ordered a salad after barely attempting to survey the menu.

AJ made no comment on her order, and she was glad. Another deserving testament to his sense of charisma. Instead, he resumed their prior conversation as if it were never disrupted.

Instead of talking about the project, AJ launched into a series of questions about her employment at his company. He had asked her who hired her and what she thought of her supervisor. It felt uniquely strange to be gossiping with the company’s CEO, but their topics quickly shifted and by the time the waitress had come back with their food, any sort of work-related dialog was long over. They hadn’t touched on her proposal once.

His steak was cooked to perfection. Her salad also looked delicious, with a light dressing and numerous fresh and brightly colored fruits. She took several bites, appreciating its delicious taste despite her lack of appetite.

A quick joke by AJ made her laugh, then she stopped short. An urge to use the bathroom overcame her. This wasn’t the first time that it had happened this week, but it was the most intense. She didn’t want to interrupt this dinner, but she knew she had to go immediately.

Damn, I need to stop drinking so much water… or so many fruit drinks.
She thought to herself.
I need to stop drinking so quickly at least.

“Will you excuse me for a moment?” she asked AJ. She hoped she didn’t sound annoyed.

“Go right ahead. Do you mind if I take a phone call while you’re gone?” He held up his phone and Kat could see the little green message light flashing furiously.

“Of course. I should only be a minute,” she told him, standing up and placing her napkin carefully on her chair.