Boss Empire

by Victoria Quinn

  “Thanks.” She smiled then sat across from me, eating slowly. “Do you cook when you’re at home?”

  “Sometimes. But most of the time, Betty makes dinner for me.”

  “Betty?” she asked.

  “My maid. She’s the other woman in my life.”

  Scarlet chuckled. “Looks like I have competition.”

  “Actually, you don’t. You’re a better cook.”

  “You’re just saying that…but I appreciate it.” She placed her hand over mine and gave me a gentle squeeze.

  I liked it when she touched me. It made me feel good inside. When Alessia or another woman touched me, I felt a spike of arousal and sex came into my mind. But when Scarlet touched me, it felt a lot different. It didn’t feel just sexual, but affectionate as well.

  When her touch was withdrawn, I immediately missed it. “You like Jeopardy?”

  “I love it. I’ve been watching it every day since…forever. Do you watch it?”

  “If it’s on,” I said. “But I don’t record it or anything.”

  “It’s a classic. I like it.”

  I thought it was cute that she enjoyed a trivia show. “How was work?”

  “A nightmare,” she said. “I won’t bore you with the details, but items were supposed to be delivered for a shoot but were actually never ordered, so I had to throw something together. In the end, everything was fine. But it was still a pain.”

  “At least you averted the crisis.”

  “I love being the editor because I love the magazine and I love fashion, but sometimes, it’s overwhelming. I miss being a model sometimes. It was a lot simpler. Someone else dealt with the difficult stuff, and I just got to put on pretty clothes and smile.”

  “You could still be a model.”

  She laughed. “You’re too sweet sometimes.”

  “I’m being serious.” I’d never been more serious in my life.

  “We went over this, Vincent. I’m too old. I’m forty-two. No one wants to see a forty-two-year-old model showing off clothes.”

  “I disagree.” I couldn’t wait to see her with her clothes off. “There will always be women in their thirties and forties. They tend to be financially stable, so they have the income to spend on clothes. If anything, they should be the main demographic advertisers aim for. If you had a line of clothes and a magazine geared toward those women, I promise you it would be successful. All this bullshit about being too old and needing plastic surgery to be beautiful is stupid. Look at you. I’ve been with models in their twenties, and they don’t hold a candle to you, Scarlet. You’re a bombshell.”

  The look she gave me was priceless. She didn’t smile, but her eyes showed a million different reactions. She was obviously touched because she stopped eating. “Vincent…” Speechless, she turned quiet.

  “Just my thoughts.” I brought my voice down, knowing I’d gotten overly passionate with what I said. “I know business better than anyone, and I’m telling you, women everywhere would go for that. You could start a movement.”

  She tilted her head toward her plate. “Maybe.”

  Our conversation died away, and I hoped I hadn’t made it too uncomfortable to continue. I could be overly aggressive without realizing it sometimes. In my world, that was the only way to get anything done—by being more aggressive than my competitor. “How’s your daughter?”

  Her smile formed again. “She’s good. She went on a date last weekend and seems to really like the guy. He sounds nice.”

  The girl looked just like Scarlet, a very beautiful young woman. If the guy wasn’t a complete idiot, he wouldn’t let her slip away. “That’s good.”

  “I’m not in a hurry to be a grandmother, but I am looking forward to grandkids.”

  “So am I.”

  “Are Diesel and Titan planning on having a family right away?”

  “Not sure,” I answered. “I think Titan is in a hurry, but I’m not sure what they decided.”

  “Hopefully, that will happen soon. I’m excited to have a baby around again, but a baby that isn’t mine. I get to play with it and spoil it before I hand it back and go back to my quiet apartment.” She chuckled then took another bite.

  “I’m not interested in having children either.” I’d never specifically told her that, so I was relieved we were on the same page.

  “I actually had my tubes tied a few years ago. I didn’t want to take birth control anymore, and I’m not interested in having more kids.”

  That worked out well for us. I didn’t have the energy to have a kid in diapers again. I finished all of my food until my plate was just as clean as it was before she placed the food on it.

  “Wow, you were hungry.”

  “No, it was just that good.”

  She cleared the table and dumped the dishes in the sink.

  I came to her side and started to wash them.

  “Vincent, no.” She shut the faucet off. “You’re my guest. Don’t worry about it.”

  “You cooked, so I should clean.”

  “Not in this house.” She grabbed my bicep and guided me back into the living room. “I’ll do them later.”

  I let her guide me to the couch. Jeopardy had ended, and now a different game show was on.

  She sat beside me and crossed her legs. “What do you want to watch?”

  I rested my arm over the back of the couch. “Whatever you want.”

  “Well, I honestly don’t want to watch anything.” She changed it to ESPN and turned on the game.

  My brain focused on her words and the obvious implications.

  She moved into me and glided her hand up my chest. She inched closer then kissed my neck, her soft lips feeling incredible against my warm skin. Her breaths fell across my ear, the gentle sound of her mouth arousing. Her lips moved to my jawline next, and she slowly approached my mouth.

  I turned into her kiss and dug my hand into her hair. I kissed her aggressively for the first time, letting my body do exactly what I wanted to do. My mouth sucked her bottom lip hard, and I breathed deep into her lungs. I pulled on her soft hair before I felt her bare shoulder. Like a caveman, I gripped the back of her head and turned her face away so I could kiss her neck.

  Her hands clawed at me, scratching my skin. She yanked on my body and pulled me down into the couch, situating me on top of her. Her thighs were spread, and she locked her ankles around my waist.

  It was the most intimate we’d ever been.

  It felt good. It felt right.

  Her lips were on mine again, and she kissed me with tongue, her passion increasing as she squeezed her thighs around my waist.

  After a few minutes, I was hard.

  Harder than I’d been in a long time.

  She slowly grinded against me, feeling my cock right against her clit in her leggings. “Vincent…” She reached for my shirt and slowly pulled it up. She got it over my head and tossed it on the coffee table. Her hands explored my rock-hard chest and my abdominals. She felt the grooves and valleys then explored my back. She paused our kiss to look at me. “Jesus…you’re ripped.”

  Now she knew why I didn’t eat carbs. I could barely eat anything to look like this. It was all protein and no sugar or carbs. The more I aged, the more difficult it was to maintain this physique. But watching Scarlet devour me with her eyes made it all worth it.

  She panted into my mouth, slowly grinding her body against me. Her nails dug harder and her moans deepened. I could hear her fall apart underneath me, feel her lips tremble against my mouth. “Vincent, you’re gonna make me come…”

  All the muscles in my back tightened. My hips dug deeper into her, pressing my cock through my jeans against her sensitive nub. I’d been with insatiable women before, women in their twenties who just wanted more and more. But I’d never wanted to please any of them the way I wanted to please her.

  My hand fisted her hair, and I ground my hard cock perfectly against her throbbing clit.

  “Yes…” Her head rolled back, and
her hair stretched across the cushion. She bucked against me automatically, her sexy moans filling the apartment. She clawed at my back with the ferocity of a wildcat. She hit her peak then slowly came down, floating like a feather on the wind. Slowly, reality came back to her, and she stopped grinding against me with the same intensity. “God, I can’t remember the last time a man made me feel that good…”

  I gave her a final kiss before I pulled away, my ego much bigger now than it was when I walked in the door. It was probably the reason I got so hard, watching this woman want me so badly. She loved my body and worshiped it with her hands.

  Her hands moved to my jeans, and she popped the button.

  As much as I enjoyed this, it suddenly felt like too much. I actually liked this woman, so I didn’t want to rush into anything. I already felt connected to her, and that connection scared me. As much as I wanted to make love to her, it seemed too soon. “Not yet.” I grabbed her wrist and steadied it, feeling like an ass for telling this beautiful woman no. “I’m just…not ready.”

  “I know,” she whispered. “But let me make you feel just as good as you made me feel.”

  Her words were verbal sex right against my ear. I was still hard and eager. The idea of getting naked and sweaty with her in bed sounded like the best thing in the world right now. But I didn’t want to cross the line unless I was ready.

  “Trust me.” She looked at me with those pretty green eyes and made me forget reason. She slowly pushed me back to the couch until I was sitting upright again.

  Then she moved to her knees on the floor.

  Fuck.

  My jeans were undone, and my boxers were yanked down along with the top of my pants. Seeing Scarlet on her knees with eager eyes made all the muscles in my body tighten. I pictured that wet mouth around my dick and felt a shiver down my spine. I couldn’t remember the last time I was this turned on.

  Scarlet eyed my dick like it was fucking candy. She was obviously impressed by my size because she couldn’t wipe away the surprise on her face. She gazed at it like a picture in an art gallery before she scooted closer to me and grabbed me by the base. “Wow…” She directed my dick to the ceiling before she licked the crown.

  Fuck.

  I closed my eyes, and both of my hands formed fists.

  She kissed and licked the tip before she slowly lowered her throat down my length. She could only get halfway, but that was more than enough to make my balls tighten. She used both hands to massage my length, to jerk up and down as she swiped her tongue across my tip, gathering the lubricant I was already producing.

  Jesus Christ.

  Scarlet had never looked so sexy. She used her tongue with precision and sucked me off like she was really enjoying it.

  I wanted to last longer, but I couldn’t. I hadn’t gotten action in a long time, and I just couldn’t control myself the way I used to when I was younger. When I had sex on a daily basis, it was much easier. But now that I’d found a woman I actually cared about, her touch was a million times more deadly. I could stop myself from blowing my load with Alessia but not with Scarlet.

  No fucking way.

  “I’m gonna come, sweetheart.” My hand fisted her hair, keeping it out of her face as she continued to suck me off. If she wanted to pull away and let me come on myself, now was the time to move. But she kept going, sucking harder and jerking her hand quicker.

  “Fuck…” My voice came out deeper than usual, and I forgot to breathe. A tidal wave of pleasure swept over me, and I came inside her mouth, hitting her in the back of the throat and the top of her tongue. I thrust into her mouth slightly, giving her the last few drops I released. I knew I came a lot, but she took it like a pro.

  She sucked my crown before she licked her lips.

  For not being on a date in a year, she knew how to give head pretty damn well.

  “Fuck…that was incredible.” I felt like an ass for cursing in front of her, but it slipped out. It was just felt so good that I couldn’t think straight.

  “It was… I liked it.” She wiped her thumb along her mouth. “And I’ve never enjoyed doing that before.”

  This woman was driving me crazy. She made me feel like the only man she’d ever really given a damn about. Maybe I was. The possibility made me light in the head. “Well, you can do that all you like.”

  “I definitely plan on doing it again.” She moved between my thighs and kissed my softening cock.

  The touch made my chest tighten. My fingers moved into hair, and I couldn’t stop myself from grabbing her. The beast inside me was slowly emerging, the sexual man that I kept at bay. I wanted to possess her in a way I had never possessed the others. I purposely kept a wall between us so neither one of us would cross it.

  But that wall suddenly got lower.

  Chapter Eight

  Diesel

  The young man behind the desk looked up when I approached him. “Yes?”

  No one spoke to me like that, so this young guy obviously had no idea who I was. “Diesel Hunt for Scarlet Blackwood.”

  He cocked an eyebrow. “You aren’t on the schedule.”

  “Obviously. I would have mentioned it if I were.”

  His eyes narrowed with the same hostility I expressed on my face. “If you don’t have an appointment, then you can’t see her. She’s very busy. The editor in chief of Platform magazine is extremely busy.”

  “I bet she’s not too busy for me. Tell her I’m here.”

  He didn’t move.

  I narrowed my eyes. “Trust me, you don’t want to go there.” I walked to the couch and took a seat.

  He pressed the phone to his ear then made the call. When he glared at me and hung up, I knew she’d told him to send me in. “She’ll see you now.” He didn’t get up to walk me.

  Fine by me. I walked past him and entered the double doors that led to her office. The sun was bright that afternoon, and her large office was almost as big as mine. She had a nice sitting area, an enormous desk, and a glorious view of the city.

  She rose from her desk, looking at me with a hesitant smile. “Mr. Hunt, it’s nice to meet you in person.” She walked around the desk in purple stilettos with a teal dress. Tall, thin, and pretty, she looked like the perfect woman for my dad. She had obvious grace judging by the way she carried herself. I could tell she used to be a model because she was beautiful. It was hard to believe she was in her forties.

  I shook her hand. “It’s nice to meet you too. Thanks for meeting me on short notice.”

  “It’s no problem.” She gripped my hand firmly before she released it. “I was hoping I would meet you someday. I guess someday is today. Come, take a seat.” She indicated the couches on the rug. It was cozy, like someone’s living room.

  I sat across from her, unbuttoning the front of my jacket.

  She stared at my face hard, as if she was looking for something. “I’m sorry…you look so much like your father.”

  “I get that a lot.”

  “Your father looks unbelievable for his age. You two look like—”

  “Brothers.” I smiled. “It’s true. Tatum told me she’d be happy if I age as well as he did.”

  “I’m sure you will. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

  “Hopefully.” I sat back and rested my ankle on the opposite knee.

  “So, what can I do for you, Mr. Hunt?”

  “Please call me Diesel.”

  “Alright, Diesel.” She crossed her legs and brought her hands together. “I’m assuming this has something to do with your father. That’s the only connection I can think of.”

  “It does. I told him to invite you to our wedding, but he said no.”

  “Oh…”

  “I know it’s not because of you, but because of my mom. He probably feels like—”

  “I totally understand,” she said gently. “Really, I get it. Your father has made it very clear where he stands in life. He’s widower, and he’ll always mourn your mother. That’s fine with me.
Always has been.” She smiled at me. “When he talks about her, I feel like I almost know her. He told me about the moment when he first saw her. It’s refreshing to hear a man wear his heart on his sleeve, to be unashamed to admit he was in love. Not all men are like that. Most don’t even understand what love is or care to find out.”

  My father was lucky he had a woman who was so understanding. When it came to Tatum, I was selfish. I wanted to be the only man in her heart—and in between her legs. I was very possessive of her. I couldn’t share her with anyone. “Thank you for being so patient with him. I hope you keep being patient with him. My dad needs to move on with his life. I think he won’t allow himself to be happy because he feels too guilty.”

  “I’ve caught on to that,” she said with a chuckle.

  “He’s never actually been serious with a woman before. It’ll take him some time to get used to it.”

  “I’ve got all the time in the world, Diesel. Your father is an incredible man. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Maybe I didn’t have anything to worry about, after all. “Thanks. Tatum and I were wondering if the four of us could have dinner tonight.”

  “I’d love to. But perhaps we should wait until your father is ready to initiate that. I don’t think he is.”

  “I know he’s not,” I said with a laugh. “So I’m giving him a push out the door.”

  “You’re sweet, but I think we should let him do this on his terms. Our relationship has moved at a snail’s pace. He’s very conflicted about it.”

  “Because he likes you so much.”

  Her eyes softened. “I know he does. It’s sweet.”

  “So, let’s do this.”

  “How about we wait until after the wedding?” she asked. “I know your dad is getting emotional right now. The first of his sons is getting married, and his wife isn’t there to see it. Give him some time.”

  I wanted my father to be happy so much that I was rushing the process. My mother had been gone for over ten years, so it seemed long enough. But my dad had shut off everything until that moment. To him, this was like being with the first woman after he lost his wife. Those models in between didn’t really count. They didn’t mean anything to him. But this woman certainly did. “Okay. That sounds fair.”