BRIELLE

You’re nothing but a social climbing, self-centered gold digger.

Gold digger.

Gold digger!

The words just kept resonating in my head, over and over and over again, and through it all, my mind still struggled to come up with reasons as to why Dylan would call me such horrid names in the first place.

Suffice to say, I always came up blank.

It’s been two weeks… two long weeks since the incident, and I’m still back at where I was when this whole thing started;

Still confused and angry as hell.

If Dylan had a problem with me… with something I’d said -something I’d done, it only felt right to quiz me about it so I could at least speak for myself, or even clarify things, no?

But to take the easy route and just jump into conclusions, throwing horrid names at me in the process was a whole new level of low.

I was never going to forgive him.

Never.

“Miss Renaud, Mr. Rodriguez will see you now.” The immaculately dressed butler called out softly, snapping me out of my thoughts. I stood up, and buttoned my lemon-colored blazer, ignoring the urge to smooth my already tight, severe bun. “Alright, kind sir, please lead the way.”

The pitch to draw out majority of the investors that Sloane and I had worked on had been nothing short of perfect; we had about eight of them on our side so far, out of a whooping thirty, but baby steps,

Right?

As far as I knew, Dylan had six in his court, which altogether meant fourteen out of the thirty had already been taken, leaving just sixteen. It hadn’t gotten there yet, but I had plans to revisit Dylan’s share of investors with pleasant offers they couldn’t refuse, but as it was now,

My concentration was on the sixteen untouched.

Oh, what happened to not sabotaging Dylan’s plan of action, you ask?

Well, let’s just say it collapsed the moment he kicked me out of his office.

Operation undermine Dylan was back with a vengeance;

But first things first.

“He’s waiting for you Miss, you can go right in.”

I smiled and thanked the lovely butler and with a quick knock entered the room.

To be honest, I had assumed Mr. Rodriguez would be a sixty-something short, old man with bald hair and a protruding stomach maybe, so I really wasn’t prepared for the delicious sight that met my eyes.

Standing at almost 6’3” was the most beautiful man I had ever laid eyes on. His body was impressive, Greek god-like actually, but it was his eyes that sealed the deal; a piercing grey that seemed to absorb everything with interest. He gave me a small smile and leaned in to shake my hand. “Miss Renaud, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

“Likewise, Mr. Rodriguez.” I answered, my voice a little breathy, whether from the use of the stairs or from the touch of his hand, I had no idea… but it was obviously the first, 

Right?

“I must say, you are one lovely woman.” He quipped, causing a blush to rapidly form on my face at the compliment. 

“Well, I must say… you’re very beautiful too.” I threw back at him without thinking, and then realised my mistake.

Really Lucia?! Beautiful? That’s all you could come up with?

The young man laughed, a deep pleasant timbre that lessened the awkwardness of the whole situation. “Wow, I must admit, I’ve been called a lot of things, but never have I been called beautiful. It means a lot to know that my beauty is appreciated.” He winked at the end of his statement, and a bubble of laughter shot up at his good humouredness.

“Oh, where are my manners? Please… have a seat, have a seat.”  

I settled down gratefully at his command and took a furtive look at my surroundings. 

His office was magnificent, and so was his home… why he had scheduled the meeting at his home beats my imagination, but it was soothing to be this close to nature and opulence. The house was for lack of a better description, a mansion, sitting in the middle of City Park. Being used to nothing but the concrete jungle, it really was a welcomed respite. “Thanks for having me, Mr. Rodriguez, you have a very lovely home.” 

“Oh call me, Ryan. I feel like an old man with you addressing me so formally.” He stated with a grin. 

I chuckled. “Alright, Ryan… I guess it’s only fair that you call me Brielle –or Lucia then. Any of the two is fine.”

“Lucia it is.”

I smiled. “Great. Let’s get started.”

“So, RetroCorp is basically a retail company that procures and delivers various goods over the internet. We have our very own website which serves as an online venue for our interested sellers, producers and consumers… and we regulate our service by ensuring that goods and services are of a high quality, prices are relatively low, there is prompt delivery and that consumers have a wide assortment to choose from.”

I watched the man lean back confidently as I continued with my speech, inwardly pleased with the fact that he seemed actually interested in what I had to say than in my looks. I couldn’t quite say the same for a number of the investors I had been to, so it was very much a relieving experience.

“So… in more layman terms, RetroCorp is another Amazon in the making, no?”

I smiled. “In a way, yes… but that is where the similarities end. You see, we have a fresh wave of ideas that I strongly believe will completely improve the e-commerce field-”

“Hold that thought please.” He cut in and reached for the telephone that sat on his desk, shooting me an apologetic look. “Pardon my manners Lucia, I believe I haven’t offered you something to drink.”

“Oh, uh… that’s quite alright—”

“No no, I insist.” He raised a finger silently asking for a moment. “Hey Max, can you please bring in some coffee for myself and the lovely lady? Yeah, thanks.” He hung up, “Coffee will be here soon.”

I nodded politely. 

To be honest, coffee was the last thing on my mind, but if that was what it took to get him to hear me out, 

Then, I guess a cup wouldn’t hurt.

The elderly-looking pristinely dressed butler barged into the room a few minutes later, pushing what looked like a serving cart of some sort, stuffed with a tea pot and other tea and coffee making essentials.

“Here is the coffee you ordered Ryan.” He bowed respectfully, turning to me after handing Ryan his cup.

“Do you want coffee or tea ma’am?”

Oh.

“Uh coffee is fine, please.” 

“Two cubes and cream.” I added at his silent probing, and gratefully accepted the hot beverage. The butler, Max cleared up and left the office after that surprisingly short respite. I took a small sip and placed the saucer on Ryan’s desk, ready to continue with business. “Now that all’s done, can we continue where we left off?”

He grinned. “By all means, please proceed.”

********

DYLAN

“Well, I love everything you’ve told me about RetroCorp so far… but I just have one proposition before I agree to be your investor.” The woman said causing me to bring my attention back to her.

Well that was quick.

Frankly speaking, I don’t know which part of my haphazard speech had her making up her mind, but I was okay with that. The last two weeks had been hell for me, dealing with my father’s infidelity and Brielle’s… I didn’t even know what to call it.

We weren’t together, so it technically didn’t count as a betrayal or cheating, so why was I feeling so much hurt?

Maybe it was disappointment then, because she didn’t really strike me as the type to sleep with older married men, or even older men to begin with.

Wait what was I saying?

It wasn’t like older men were bad or anything, or that I wanted her to date within a certain age range or anything, but even if the older man was hot, what at all could he offer that I…

“God, just shut up already.” I commanded inwardly in a bid silence my thoughts but from the stunned look on the woman’s face, I might have gone a tad bit too far.

“Shit, I said that out loud?”

She nodded, apparently still in shock.

“Fuck, I’m really sorry,” I apologised, with a sheepish smile. “I think I’m a little stressed out, but for the record… it wasn’t even about you, Ma’am.”

God, dummy! Why would you even add that?

 “That’s okay, we all have those voices in our head that just don’t seem to shut up sometimes.” She quipped philosophically as if in a daze, like she was in a way, talking about herself. The moment passed in a flash and a playful smile graced her features once again. “I thought I told you to call me Madeline.” She purred seductively.

I smirked. “Alright, Madeline. So, you mentioned a proposition before I rudely interrupted you with my antics. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to hear it.” I took in the picturesque painting of a countryside behind her for a quick moment before shifting my gaze back to her. “If it’s in my power to help you out, then consider it done.” I declared smugly, leaning back in my chair, my eyes blatantly checking her out. 

The woman was beautiful, with super straight blonde hair, stunning blue eyes, and sexy red lipstick.

She still can’t hold a candle to Brielle.

I inwardly groaned even as the thought sneaked into my mind.

What the hell?

I just couldn’t seem to get the woman out of my head, she always found a way to make her way into my thoughts, even though I hadn’t seen her since our last encounter at my office.

Since our last kiss.

A pang of regret flooded through me. 

I really shouldn’t have done that… I actually didn’t mean to, it just kind of happened.

And hell, the way she had pressed against me and kissed me back just as fervently…

Fuck.

I even missed our banters, how I always managed to rile her up… how her light brown eyes always rolled to the back of her head when I said something suggestive or annoying…

I really missed her.

But all I had to do when such thoughts flooded my mind was to think of her with my dad at the hotel, and to think of my lovely, accepting, unassuming mother, and then poof,

It all just vanished.

People ask if it’s possible to love and hate someone at the same time… well I have an answer for them.

It’s a yes.

You absolutely can.

I actually wasn’t sure if I was actually in love with Brielle, (maybe I was and I didn’t want to admit it to myself yet.) but that was crazy right?

I mean it’s been barely three weeks since I first met the girl for crying out loud, and yet, it felt like I had known her for longer than that.

Maybe, what I needed was a distraction.

Something to take my mind off her, something to bring back my misplaced priorities, so I could carry out my plans for my father’s company without a hitch.

My attention shifted to the woman in whose office I was currently sitting. I watched her twirl a piece of her hair while she droned on about how her father and ex-husband helped her build her impressive business empire and whatnot. I tuned her out again.

Maybe it wasn’t something I needed… but someone.

Honestly speaking, a quick hard fuck didn’t sound like such a bad idea.

But, was it a good idea to mix business with pleasure?

Well, only one way to find out. 

“Uhm would you-”

“My—”

“Ladies first.” I grinned.

Madeline stood up from her massive swivel chair and sashayed towards me slowly, I couldn’t help it, my eyes just drifted down to her long creamy legs. I watched her lean on her desk, right in between my legs. I leaned back and observed her intently, keen to hear what she had to say.

“So my proposition is quite easy actually… go on a date with me.”

It took some time for the information to sink in. “Wait, that’s it?” I asked perplexed, not completely sure if she was being serious or not.

Why would she have to ask for a date like this when she could literally have any guy she wanted?

“Yes, that’s it Dylan. Very easy right?” She purred, still twirling her hair.

A lot of thoughts crossed my mind in that instant; from whether doing that was professional, to what she was probably going to get out of this, among other things.

“Well fuck it, I accept. What’s the next step?”

She bent down and whispered in my ear, “Well… how about we get this contract signed so we can seal this deal with a kiss?”

I stared at her blood-red stained lips in a daze.

Maybe doing this will help me get Brielle out of my system for good.

“Oh yeah? Well, I have a better idea,” 

Grabbing her by the waist, I pulled her onto my lap, smirking when she let out what sounded like a blend of a squeal and a gasp. “How about we forget about the contract for now and focus on more on the kissing part?” I asked, already peppering kisses down her jaw.

She seemed lost in the moment for a while before she finally found her voice. “Mm, sounds like a splendid idea.” She then crashed her lips on mine.