"I hope you don't mind that I took the liberty to order for us. These are some of our area's most delicious dishes, and this restaurant is the best at making them."
"I'm looking forward to eating it," Noah said.
For a few minutes, our talk turned to travel and areas of Hong Kong that Marcus felt I should see before I left. He was open, friendly, and I started to see why Margaret and Carter had decided to work with him.
As soon as we were finishing up our dinner, Marcus pushed his plate aside and leaned his forearms on the table. "You know I had to wonder to myself. Out of all the Strong brothers, why she sent you, Noah. It makes me think that perhaps the rumors I've been hearing about issues with the supply chain are true. Perhaps there's been a hack into your system."
That immediately got my attention because we were under the impression that the business problems weren’t common knowledge. I looked over at Noah, who frowned.
"How do you know about that? What have you heard?"
"I don't know anything." He sat back, holding his hands out in surrender. "All I know is that there are a few of the distributors who indicated they had some problems. Having one problem with a supply chain issue, that’s one thing, but having a couple, that seems like there's something wrong with the system. But I know your system, and the only way I can think of that it would be disrupted is if somebody did it on purpose."
Several red flags started going off in my head. Marcus Chen wasn't wrong. Thinking deductively, what he said made sense. Still, I couldn't help but be suspicious. Then again if he was at the center of all this, why would he be asking us to dinner and tipping his hand by telling us he knew about the issue? That didn't make any sense.
"Well, you can tell everyone that the problem is being dealt with and fixed as we speak. We will find out who is behind this as well," Noah said sounding more powerful and authoritative than I'd ever heard him be before.
Marcus smiled. "I have no doubt that you will. And I can tell you that everyone that I have talked to knows you will too. Strong, Incorporated has a very good reputation, and no one is concerned. That's partly why I invited you to this dinner. I wanted you to know that we are on your side and anything that you might need, all you have to do is ask."
"Well, on behalf of my grandmother, I can tell you that we appreciate that." Noah said the words, but I had a sense that underneath them he was suspicious of Marcus too.
We finished dinner and made her way back to the lobby entrance of the restaurant. We were getting ready to exit the door when Marcus took my arm and pulled me to the side.
"It was a pleasure having dinner with you tonight, Ms. Walker. I'm wondering if perhaps you and I can see each other again." He smiled sheepishly. "I felt a connection with you when we would talk on the phone and now having some time with you tonight, I know that it’s something I'd like to explore."
I was so surprised by his request, that for a minute I couldn't say anything. But then when I finally found my voice to decline his offer, Noah's hand was on my other arm tugging me away.
"Can I have my grandmother's assistant back, please," he asked tersely.
Marcus laughed and shrugged. "You can't blame a guy for trying."
Noah shot him a look that said otherwise.
9
Noah
The urge to punch Marcus was strong which was fucking annoying. What did I care if Andi went out with him? Sure, I was attracted to her but that was it, so why was it roiling in my gut to see him put his hand on her? I’d had this intense feeling once before at my brother Ryan's wedding in Thailand when another man was paying a lot of attention to Andi, and she seemed to be responding. It didn't take a rocket scientist to recognize that a part of me was possessive of her, but I would have to get over it, because I didn't have room in my life for Andi. This was just a temporary situation and once I got home, I’d be able to get away from her.
I followed her back into the limo and did my best to keep my mouth shut about Marcus, but as it turned out, that was impossible.
"I hope I didn't ruin your plans," I said, knowing there was no way she'd miss the snark in my tone.
She turned to look at me. "What's wrong with you?"
I rolled my shoulders and looked out the window trying to be nonchalant. "There's nothing wrong. But you're not here to be wined and dined by a billionaire in Hong Kong."
When she didn't say anything, I turned to look at her.
She was staring at me like I'd grown a horn on my head. "I like you better when you're a slacker in San Diego."
"I always got the impression you didn't like me at all," I said.
Tension built between us as she glared at me.
"You are at least mildly amusing back home. You're certainly much nicer there."
I realized it was the defiant jut of her chin and her strong dark eyes that had always been the pull for me. I knew it because even now, when she looked like she couldn’t hate me more, I was moving toward her, lured in by the fierceness in her expression.
"You want me to be nice to you?" Even as the words came out, I understood how provocative they were. But I couldn't take them back now.
There was a flash of uncertainty in her eyes as I moved even closer to her. She was wondering what I was doing. Hell, I was wondering what I was doing as I brought my face up close to hers. Her exotic scent wrapped around me, intoxicated me.
Her gaze held mine for a minute and I realized she hadn't pulled away. She wasn't afraid. She wasn't repulsed. Maybe she was intrigued.
"I can be nice, Andi," I said softly, as my fingers reached up and pushed back a tendril of her hair behind her ear. God it was soft, just like I thought.
"I'm not sure I believe you."
I smiled because I liked the banter that belied the quiver in her voice.
I'd come this far, so I might as well go all the way, especially when she licked those sweet looking red lips. I had no choice. I slipped my hand behind her neck and pulled her to me, closing the few inches between us, fusing my lips to hers.
I waited for her to pull back and resist, but instead she sank into the kiss, turning her head slightly, and parting her lips. A whoosh of an inferno blasted through me and I groaned as her kiss ignited me. I pulled her into my lap, my hands wrapping around her, roaming her body as if they couldn't decide what they wanted to touch first.
Her dress didn't hide her curves, but it did prevent me from touching the softness of her skin and it was frustrating. I was about ready to tip her over and lay her in the seat when the car stopped. Like a bucket of cold water tossed on me, I froze. I set her back in the seat and moved away. What the fuck was I doing?
The door of the car opened, and I stepped out. I waited for Andi to join me, but I didn't make eye contact with her as we walked into the hotel. As we neared the elevator, I realized I was going to be in another small contained space with her and I knew I wouldn't be able to resist her. By the time we arrived in the suite I would have no chance of stopping myself if she showed the same interest as she had in the car.
"You go on up. I’m going to get a drink," I said to her.
I couldn't read her expression as she looked at me. But she didn’t say anything. Instead, she nodded and got into the elevator. Only when the doors closed, and I could see the lights indicating that the car was moving up was I able to let out a long breath.
I walked into the bar and ordered a double whiskey. Jesus I couldn’t believe I kissed her. It was hard to regret it because it was so fucking amazing. Better than I thought it would be. Her kiss was like her, a mixture of sweet, spicy, soft and sharp.
If I knew I could get away with just one night with her, I would do it in a minute, but I couldn't. Even if I was able to convince her to have a little fling on this trip that would end when we got home, there was still the fact that she worked for my grandmother and while I was a contractor on this trip, to a certain extent, she was working for me.
My brothers had been able to talk themselves into hav
ing some sort of fling with their women, but I couldn't do that with Andi. For one, as it turned out, my brothers were actually in love with the women they had affairs with. As much as I wanted Andi, she didn't seem to be the type for a short-term affair. I was a man who is still trying to figure out his life, and having a relationship entanglement with a woman just didn't factor into it. It was better to leave Andi alone and not complicate our lives, or my grandmother's life by mucking things up with an affair with her assistant.
I was just ordering another drink, when my phone began to ring in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw Carter’s name.
“Hey Carter." I checked my watch, noting it was nearly 11 PM. "You're up early," I said, knowing it had to be before seven back in San Diego.
"Yeah, well, Tanner likes to get up before the crack of dawn, so I've actually been up for a bit and thought I would call and check in."
I smiled thinking of Carter and his son, Tanner. A son, he didn't even know about until recently. Of all of us brothers, Carter was the only one I would've pegged being the marrying and settling down type. And now that he was, I could see that he was happier than he’d ever been. My other two brothers seemed pretty happy about their marriages, as well, and I didn't begrudge them that, but it definitely wasn't something I was pursuing.
"Well, the hack is a little bit more complicated than just one person getting in and mucking a few things up. We also had dinner with Marcus Chen. He seemed to know what was going on, which makes me a bit suspicious."
"Chen has always been a good partner with us. He's done impeccable work and along with helping us, I know that we've helped him as well. It's hard to imagine he would do something to jeopardize that," Carter said.
"That may be, but there's something about him that I don't like." I left out the part where Chen had touched Andi, and she looked a little bit interested at his proposal.
"I'll go ahead and take a look at some things on my side, but of course since you’re there in Hong Kong, you’ll likely do better in finding out what’s going on."
As I sat there, I realized that this project might take a little bit longer than I anticipated, which meant I'd be stuck with Andi a little bit longer and continue to be tempted by her. "I should have never let grandma railroad me into this assignment." I grumbled.
"Poor Noah. We are so sorry for having to give you responsibilities to live up to. No more running around like a horn dog. You've got to grow up like the rest of us.
I hung up the phone, not wanting a lecture on how I lived my life. In fact, there was no reason why I couldn't live my life while I was here in Hong Kong.
I paid for my drink and left the bar, hunting down the concierge.
“Are there any good clubs around here?" I asked.
He gave me a list of clubs within walking distance. As I headed out into the night, I pushed away any sense of guilt about what I was doing. This was my life, and I was going to gain some control over it again.
10
Andi
We hadn't discussed how long we’d need to be in Hong Kong, but now a week into our trip, I was beginning to worry that this assignment was going to take much longer than I'd be able to bear. It wasn't that the work was slow and tedious, and we were still having trouble finding a solid lead to who was sabotaging Strong Incorporated that had me struggling. The challenge for me was Noah.
I swear to God I could still taste him on my lips, even a week later. Even as my anger and frustration had me scrubbing my lips every time I was in the shower.
The kiss was amazing, although considering Noah's reputation, not surprising. What had been surprising was that not only had I allowed it, but as the tension had increased in the car, and he was telling me that he could be nice, I was desperate for him to kiss me. I'd gotten my wish, but as the saying suggests about being careful what you wish for, the aftermath was horrible.
I hated that had he pushed things, I would've gone as far as he’d want to take it that night, even if it ended up in bed. But he hadn't pushed it. In fact, it appeared that he regretted it. He had abandoned me at the elevator to go get a drink, and he hadn't arrived back that night until the wee hours of the morning. Because I'd been a glutton for punishment, I'd stayed up and done some work as I waited for him to come back. He'd come staggering in, smelling of smoke and perfume. I went to bed that night, deciding that perhaps it was a good thing because sleeping with Noah was a bad idea for all sorts of reasons. Maybe now that he had been able to go out and live his normal life, we would be able to go back to how we were when we were in San Diego.
But the next day and from then on, he’d been distant. In fact, I think he tried to avoid me. I was pretty sure I could walk out in a towel, now. Heck, I could probably walk out naked, and he wouldn't notice.
His absence was something I was getting used to. Noah worked late at the office or perhaps he was out on the town. He always told me he was off running down leads, but I was pretty sure that was code for going to a club and hooking up.
Being the dutiful assistant, I continued to do my research. I’d determined that the staff at the office wasn't behind what was going on here in Hong Kong. So now I turned all my attention to all the various vendors the company worked with, as well as its competitors.
I took a small break stretching when my phone rang.
“Ms. Walker, it's Marcus Chen,"
I checked my watch, noting that it seemed a little late for him to be calling since it was after business hours. "Mr. Chen, how are you. What can I help you with?"
"I'm in the area of your hotel, and I wanted to know if you would be interested in meeting for drinks."
I hesitated for a moment biting my lip as I tried to decide if this was a good idea or not. "I have a lot of work still to do."
"I understand. But surely you could use a little break. I'm downstairs in the bar if you'd like to join me."
I looked around the empty suite and figured if Noah could go out to carouse on the town, I could have a drink with Marcus. "I'll be down in a few minutes."
"Excellent."
For a moment I wondered if maybe I should change my clothes. Since I was working in the suite, I wore black jeans and a red blouse. But this was just drinks in the bar so I decided it was nice enough.
I headed down and found him waiting for me. In many ways, he was like the Strong brothers. There was a sense of power and authority, along with money, around him.
He greeted me warmly, kissing me on the cheek. "I was concerned that Noah wouldn't let you come have a drink with me," he said.
"Noah isn’t the boss of me."
As he sat across the table from me, he laughed. "That’s good to know. You strike me as a woman who doesn't let anybody be the boss of her."
I smiled, glad that he recognized that in me. I needed to remember that. Sometimes it seemed like I let Noah get to me more than he should.
"Tell me in all this work you've been doing that you've been able to get out and see Hong Kong," he said as we waited for drinks to be delivered.
I shook my head. "I'm here on assignment. This isn't a vacation for me."
Marcus waived my comment away. "This is a technical issue and clearly Noah is the one who needs to be doing that. What are the odds that you will be able to come to Hong Kong again? Now that you're here, you should enjoy it."
I leaned back as the waitress set our drinks on the table.
"I would be very interested in giving you a tour of the city. And all its delights.”
As I sipped my drink, I looked over at him thinking he was very suave. There wasn't direct innuendo in his comment, but clearly, he was showing an interest in me. At least someone was, I thought.
"I really appreciate the offer, Marcus. And I'll admit I’m tempted because what I've seen so far has been fascinating. But I’m here to work and I’m very committed to Strong Incorporated."
"I wonder if Noah realizes the quality of woman he is working with?"
Again, I hid behind my drink as I t
hought Noah didn't notice anything about me. But I was pretty sure Margaret did.
"I don't work for Noah. I work for Margaret, and I feel confident that she appreciates my work."
He nodded. "No doubt. That's why you are such a dutiful and committed employee."
"I enjoy my work and who I work with." At least, most of the time.
"Surely Margaret wouldn't mind if you took a little bit of time to see the sites though. A committed employee like yourself deserves to have the opportunity to enjoy all that Hong Kong has to offer."
I shook my head. "I appreciate the offer, Marcus, I really do. But at this point I need to be focused on my work."
His phone chimed and he looked at the screen. "Excuse me for a minute I need to get this." He put some bills on the table and then he handed his card to me. "I'm going to go now but if you change your mind please give me a call. I would very much enjoy showing you the city." With that he walked away answering his phone.
I finished my drink and rose to return to my room, but then I thought, why? I'd completed all the tasks on my list already today. All there was to do up in the room was watch TV, or maybe take a soak in the tub.
Instead, I headed over to the bar and sat. Maybe I wasn't going to go out with Marcus, but that didn't mean I had to stay holed up in my room. If Noah was going out on the town to the clubs and womanizing, I could sit here and drink. I waved over to the bartender and ordered another drink.
Marcus was right about one thing. I was in a beautiful city halfway across the world. I should be enjoying it. Instead, I was feeling annoyed and rejected. Why would Noah kiss me like that and then run away? The only thing I could come up with was that he didn’t like the kiss. That thought hurt. Granted, I wasn’t like the women he normally was with, but I wasn’t inexperienced. The men I’d been with before never complained about my performance.
Hate to Love You Strong Brothers #4) Page 6