I was just digging into some important spreadsheets when there was a knock on my door. I glanced up and was not impressed to find Axel Mandrake leaning against the door frame with a grin on his face. I was really starting to regret the open-door policy that I had and wondered if I needed to have a talk with the new receptionist about letting Axel in the building, never mind my office.
I leaned back in my chair but did not return the smile. “What do you want, Axel?”
“I have come to talk about your proposed for the real estate development deal. Since you aren’t returning my calls, I figured that I had better come and visit you. I’m sure it must have been some kind of family emergency for you not to return my calls.”
“I haven’t been returning your calls because you keep overcharging me on the property. I’m not paying more than what it’s worth.”
“Maybe, I am open to negotiations.”
“Really? And what made you come to your senses?”
“To be honest, it’s the sweet little blonde that you have working for you. She has captivated me. Where did you find her?”
I instantly felt my blood pressure rise at the mention of Harper. I could feel the hackles being raised as my possessiveness for the “little blonde” took over. “That’s none of your business, Axel.”
Axel laughed which pissed me off even more. “I knew it.”
“Knew what?”
“I had my suspicions after the charity gala but now I am certain. You are fucking your assistant.”
I stood up, anger rushing through me. I had a stronger inclination to jump over my desk and beat the crap out of Axel. Instead I said in a steely voice, “Get out.”
“Relax, Finn,” Axel said as he walked up to the desk and sat in the chair across from me. I had a hard time sitting down again but I did so as I waited for my anger to cool. I wanted to strangle Axel but that wouldn’t do any good. As much as I disliked Axel, I really needed him to work with me on a business deal.
“Don’t get me wrong here, Finn. I get it, she’s beautiful. I’m glad that you found someone new, it’s about time. I thought that you were going to die an old maid. You have been moping around for far too long and you were becoming a bore.”
I had a very controlled rage burning up inside of me and it took all of my willpower not to pummel him. The angrier I got, the calmer Axel seemed to be. As I stared at Axel, I felt some of my anger draining away.
“I understand loss, Finn.”
I narrowed my eyes, wondering where Axel was going with his talk.
“To be honest, Finn, I miss you.”
I raised an eyebrow surprised to hear Axel talking that way. “What are you talking about?”
“We may not have always been the best of friends, but believe it or not, I have always enjoyed being around you. If for nothing else, it’s easy to get your goat. Grief can drown a man, and you need to keep your head above water. Work might suffice for a while, but sooner or later, you have got to decide whether to sink or swim. You have been sinking for far too long, my friend.”
I didn’t like where the conversation was going at all. The last thing that I wanted to talk to Axel about was Emelia or how I was handling my grief. The conversation seemed to be coming out of left field and I didn’t like talking about it in the first place. So, why did Axel feel the need to talk about it?
“I thought you wanted to talk about the real estate deal?”
Axel laughed, shaking his head. “I do but I choose not to work with you until you can work out your aggressions. I’m not sure what is going on between you and the girl but if I know you, you have some kind of deal struck up with her. When that deal runs its course, Finn, only then will I be in touch.”
I watched Axel get up out of the chair and walk out of my office without another word. I stood there shocked unsure of what to think or do. I hadn’t even had the chance to respond to Axel because I was so shocked. I was completely blown away by everything that Axel said. It was astounding how well he knew me but whether I liked it or not, Axel and I had a lot of similarities. I had to wonder if he had struck up a few “deals” of his own in the past. I wasn’t sure how he knew about mine but I didn’t like that fact at all. It was worrisome to say the least. But most importantly I didn’t like that Axel found it to be a detriment that I was involved with Harper. Did he seriously mean that he wouldn’t strike a deal as long as I was with Harper? I had to wonder if that was because Axel wanted her for himself. Either way, it put a kink in my plans. I did not want to wait six months to make a deal with Axel, I wanted to do the deal immediately, that was the whole point. My arrangement with Harper didn’t expire for a while, so what the hell was I going to do?
16
Harper
I was coming out of Bryce’s office after we had concluded the conference call. I almost ran right into Axel Mandrake. The guy was imposing no matter what environment he was in.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Mandrake.”
“Please, darling, call me Axel. No need to have formalities, we are old friends.”
I smiled awkwardly not sure of what to say next.
“How are you liking it here, beautiful girl?”
I couldn’t help the blush that crept up on my face. He was very charming and I couldn’t help but be flattered that such a successful man seemed to be so interested in me.
“Axel, stop flirting with our employees. Don’t you have anything better to do,” Bryce snapped.
“Not hardly.”
“Well, be on your way anyways,” Bryce stated as she entered Finn’s office. I went to follow suit but Axel cut me off before I could enter the office.
I looked at him surprised, unsure of what to do next. I didn’t want to be rude.
“I know what you have been up to, little lady.”
Shock coursed through me and I stood paralyzed in front of Axel. What was he talking about? What the hell did he know? I glanced over Axel’s shoulder and could see Finn watching us. He was scowling from inside his office which was never a good sign. Thankfully, Finn was too far away to hear our conversation but he didn’t look very happy that we were having one.
“I’m sorry, what do you mean?” I whispered, not wanting to draw any more attention to me.
“I know that you have signed on to Team Finn, but you might want to consider Team Axel instead. The pay, my dear, is far better and you won’t find the fringe benefits any better anywhere else either.”
“Mr. Mandrake, I’m not sure what you mean.”
“Please call me Axel,” he said as he leaned in as if we were co-conspirators. “You are a beautiful woman and your talents are being wasted on a guy who won’t get over his dead wife.”
Stunned, all I could do was stare at him. Did he actually just say that to me?
“When you tire of playing second fiddle to a ghost, make sure that you give me a call because I know how to treat a woman right.”
He ended his statement with a devastating smile that would make any woman wilt before him and then he slipped a card into my hand. He turned from me and whisked himself down the hallway. I couldn’t help but stare after him feeling as if I had been hit by a hurricane. Hurricane Axel to be exact. I looked into the office to see Finn’s face a deep read. I chose to ignore it and I walked into the office. I could see that Finn was squeezing his hands into fists and my eyes widen. It was pretty obvious that Axel rubbed Finn the wrong way but he shouldn’t think that I was interested in him. It wasn’t my fault that Axel was interested in me.
I returned to my desk and sat down, determined to forget the whole thing and get back to work. I kept glancing at Finn throughout the day, keeping my eye on him. I was really surprised by his reaction to Axel, it seemed so extreme. Was it possible that he was jealous of Axel? I found that hard to believe. He was a handsome and successful guy; I couldn’t believe that he could be jealous of anyone. He was the one that told me that he didn’t do relationships so why would he care if another guy was talking to me? It really didn
’t make any sense. He had nothing in the world to be jealous about especially since we weren’t dating. I was probably just over thinking things as usual. Finn was probably just upset that Axel was still holding the property that he wanted hostage. That would certainly bother anyone and adding the fact that Axel was talking to me, just irritated him all the more. It was nothing to worry about. It wasn’t real jealousy. Axel just rubbed Finn the wrong way in general. It wasn’t a big deal.
The problem was, Finn wasn’t calming down at all. As the morning dragged on, the more uncomfortable the room became for me. The tension in the room was high and I didn’t know what I could do about it. He hadn’t talked to me all morning so I worried that if I tried to, it would set him off. I needed to escape the tension in the room, if only for my lunch hour. I texted Carmen and asked her to meet me for lunch. I got up from my desk and left the office without saying anything to Finn.
****
“I honestly don’t know what the hell to do. Today was brutal and it wasn’t even my fault.”
I filled Carmen in on my morning and my interaction with Axel. I explained how upset Finn seemed by the whole thing.
We were sitting at a bistro down the street from my office. We were sipping champagne and it instantly made me feel better about how my day was going so far. Carmen picked up her glass and took a drink as she browsed the menu. The waiter came over and took our order and when he disappeared Carmen focused on me.
“I’m wondering if you have bitten off a little more than you can chew here.”
“What does that mean?”
“Let’s be honest here, Harper. You were a virgin not that long ago and now you have taken on something that would be overwhelming for even the most experienced girls. Now you seem to be in the middle of two warring billionaires. It’s a lot to take in - I’m sure, it’s very overwhelming.”
“I just don’t understand it. I think that it’s just because Axel won’t sell the property to him. That can be a frustrating part of business to begin with and then Finn sees me talking to him and it just further irritates him.”
“Maybe, or maybe he’s jealous. Guys are like that.”
“Yes, but he was the one that said he only wanted no strings attached.”
“That doesn’t matter. Even if all he wanted to do was sleep with you, that doesn’t mean that he wants his arch-enemy fawning all over you either. Guys are territorial whether they are sleeping with you or not.”
“I guess. I just don’t know what to do about it.”
“Do nothing. It’s not your fault that you’re a babe and that multiple guys are interested in you. If Finn gets worked up, then you tell him that if he wanted it, he should have put a ring on it.”
I almost spit out my champagne as I burst out laughing. I could always count on Carmen to cheer me up when I was feeling low.
“Thanks, I appreciate that.”
“Well, it’s true. Whether Finn likes it or not, he has no claim to you outside of this little arrangement so if you want to talk to someone else, you can.”
“I guess you’re right. It’s not like he had that in the contract.”
“Oh my god, could you imagine? Who knew rich people could be so weird,” Carmen said as she shook her head in disbelief.
I took a sip of my champagne and wondered what kind of mood Finn would be in when I returned back to the office. I was hoping his foul mood would be over with by the time I returned.
“So how are you really feeling about this whole thing?”
“Well, I really enjoy spending time with Finn and the sex is off the charts. I finally know what you have been howling about all this time.”
Carmen laughed. “I love sex, what can I say?”
“I am conflicted, though. I love spending time with him but sometimes his moods are hard to deal with. What was that whole thing that Axel mentioned about his wife being dead? That’s a heavy load.”
“Yeah, I’m not sure what to say about it. I wouldn’t even recommend talking to him about it. You don’t know each other very well and people can be very sensitive about death. You could easily set him off with something like that and really it’s none of your business, it’s not like you’re his girlfriend.”
“Yes, I’m definitely not that.” I frowned. It kind of bothered me that I wasn’t but I really didn’t want to put much energy into that thought because it was pointless to wish for something that wasn’t going to happen.
“I’m definitely learning a lot which I’m grateful for, I wouldn’t be able to do anything like it anywhere else and that’s invaluable. I sat in on a conference call today and it was amazing.”
“That’s awesome, Harper.”
“Yeah, it is. I just wonder what happens at the end of my provisional employment, and my contract. Is Finn going to just push me out the door with a check and a handshake?”
“Would that bother you? Isn’t that what you are there for?”
“Sure. I don’t know.”
“What’s going through your head?”
“It might not feel so good getting pushed out the door at the end of six months. I’m beginning to think a contractual relationship like this isn’t so great for me emotionally.”
“Well, I told you that in the beginning. It’s hard for women to not get emotionally attached to someone that they are sleeping with long-term. It’s a tricky situation. If I was you, I would look at it like a business deal and nothing more.”
“Yeah, I’m trying.”
“Just look on the bright side. If Finn tosses you out, you have another billionaire on the line waiting for you.”
I rolled my eyes and Carmen came to give me her a hug. “Hang in there, girl, you are almost a millionaire.”
17
Finn
I had been stomping around the office like a prickly bear for two days now and I was having trouble getting out of my bad mood. I knew that I was being a complete asshole to my employees but I didn’t care nor could I help myself. I could not get the image out of my head of Axel making a move on Harper yesterday, it was driving me crazy. I had ignored Harper yesterday and didn’t bother to call her for a rendezvous even though I wanted to badly. I was trying to punish her for talking to Axel even though that was stupid. It wasn’t her fault that Axel had the hots for her. She was a stunning woman and I was even shocked that someone didn’t take her off the market by now.
Thinking of Harper and Axel together made my blood boil. I couldn’t even fathom such a thought. Bryce was also onto me, so that wasn’t good news. She had asked me point blank yesterday if there was something she needed to know about. I brushed her off but I knew that she wouldn’t go down without a fight. She was very perceptive and noticed how my moods changed with Harper around.
Bryce decided to take matters into her own hands and showed up at my office asking to borrow Harper for a special project. I knew exactly what she was doing. She was trying to separate Harper from me so I could get my shit together. I watched as the two disappeared from my office and I had to hand it to her, Bryce knew what was good for me better than I did sometimes. She was no-nonsense and that was something that I loved about her.
It took an hour for Bryce to return to my office and Harper wasn’t with her. I looked behind her but I didn’t see Harper anywhere. I raised my eyebrows when she sat down across from me at my desk.
“Can I help you with something?” I asked.
“Absolutely. I thought you should know that you are acting like a jealous teenager and I think that you need to get over yourself.”
Ouch.
I sat back in my chair and scowled at her. I wasn’t about to dignify that with a response.
“I have no idea what’s going on here exactly but I’m not stupid. I do know that something is going on. It’s pretty obvious that you have a thing for Harper and I think it’s getting in the way of your work. I’m not going to ask you about your private life because it’s none of my business. I think that Harper is great, she’s a hard w
orker so I’m going to give her the benefit of the doubt for now.”
I remained silent. I wasn’t about to discuss Harper with Bryce because I knew that only hellfire would await a conversation like that one.
“It’s also clear to me that you see Axel as competition for you. I’m not sure if Axel’s interest in Harper is genuine or if he’s just trying to fuck with your head, but it’s clearly working. It doesn’t matter about any of that because if you keep walking around the office barking orders like an angry bear you are not only going to lose the respect of your employees but you will also chase Harper right into the arms of Axel. So, if you want that girl to stick around, I would start to show your appreciation, not just to her but to everyone who works hard for you.”
Wow, I thought. She really gave me a tongue lashing on that one. It’s a rare day indeed that I got dressed down especially by an employee but Bryce always told me like it was. She never worried about hurting my feelings and that was why she was my top employee. I would do anything for her because she had pulled me through more scraps than I could remember and she had seen me through the darkness after I lost Emelia. I appreciated everything that she did for me but I also wasn’t going to show her any of my weaknesses. So, I frowned and crossed my arms against my chest.
“I don’t recall asking for your advice, Bryce, but in any event, you have nothing to worry about. Harper is not going anywhere because we have a mutual understanding so there is no need for me to ‘show my appreciation.’”
Sugar Daddy (Forever Daddies Book 4) Page 12