Boss Empire

by Victoria Quinn

  Her hands stopped at my shoulders, her fingers still deep into my muscles. She sighed and pulled her touch away.

  I opened my eyes and massaged my temple. “I know why you’re still awake.”

  “Really?” She lay back in bed. “Why?”

  “Because you need sex before bed.” I set my alarm clock then lay beside her. “You’ve been lying there hot and bothered all night.” I rested my hand on my chest and stared at the ceiling.

  “Or maybe I just wanted to make sure you got home safely.” She scooted to my side of the bed and cuddled into me. Her face rested against my shoulder. “You worry about me all the time, but I worry about you just as much.”

  “I don’t need you to worry about me.”

  “Yes, you do.” She kissed my shoulder and closed her eyes. “I can’t wait to be Mrs. Hunt…”

  I closed my eyes when she said the name, feeling my muscles tense. “Me too.”

  “Only a few more days to go.”

  “And I can’t wait to start a family with you.”

  I tensed again, feeling my heart race with excitement. There was nothing I wanted more than to make love to her all night and make a baby with her. I was honored that I was the only man that got to do that. But the thoughts made my dick harden in my shorts, and I knew it would distract me so I wouldn’t be able to sleep.

  Maybe I should have slept at my own place, after all.

  Chapter Nine

  Thorn

  I texted Titan. You want to get dinner tonight?

  Just you and me?

  Preferably. I wanted to talk to her about Diesel. We were leaving for Thailand in two days.

  Sure. In an hour?

  Yeah.

  When I left the office, I met her at a sports bar that had awesome beer and great appetizers. Titan didn’t eat much, so it never made sense to go to a restaurant. She just took a few pieces of the fries and focused on her salad. Now that she was getting married in a few days, she ate even less than usual.

  “How are things?” I asked.

  “Good.” Her eyes moved to the TV in the corner, but she didn’t follow sports very closely so she obviously didn’t care what was on. “I’m regretting this no-sex pact I made with Diesel…and it’s only been a few days.”

  “Well, it was a stupid idea. What the hell were you thinking?”

  “That it would be uncomfortable but not unbearable…” She picked at another fry. “When he gets out of the shower, he purposely parades around the place with a towel around his waist. I feel like he’s torturing me on purpose.”

  “I guarantee you that he is.” If Autumn took sex off the table, I’d just seduce her too.

  “How are things with your girlfriend?” She accompanied her tease with a smile.

  “Great,” I countered. “We’re having lots of amazing sex.”

  Her eyes immediately narrowed at my jab.

  “Unlike you.”

  “Don’t remind me…”

  “She’s my date for the wedding.”

  “I told you monogamy isn’t so difficult when you find the right person.”

  “It’s been a week,” I reminded her. “Let’s not jump ahead.”

  “It’s been more than a month,” she countered.

  “I just asked her to be serious with me last week. So, no, you’re wrong.”

  “But you didn’t sleep with anyone in that time period. Therefore, you were monogamous. Don’t try to get out of this, Thorn. You’re sprung over this woman, and let’s not sugarcoat it.”

  I took a long drink of my beer because I didn’t know how to deflect her statement.

  Titan wore a smug grin.

  I set my glass down and wiped my mouth with the back of my forearm. “Whatever…at least I’m getting laid tonight.”

  She grabbed a fry and threw it right at my face.

  When it bounced on the table, I grabbed it and popped it into my mouth.

  “You’re a billionaire, Thorn. You don’t need to eat food off the table.”

  “You think the kitchen is any cleaner back there?” I asked incredulously. “Unlikely.”

  “Diesel told me he had a good time at his bachelor party.”

  “He did? He was a bitch the whole time. Anytime a woman hit on him, he stormed off and made a scene about it.”

  She chuckled. “He’s used to the media turning the story around on him, so that’s probably why he’s acting like that. He has to make a performance, that way no one can spin it against him.”

  “I guess that’s true.” A photographer once got a picture of Diesel kissing some woman in a club. He denied the allegation from the very beginning. I didn’t believe him at the time, but now I did.

  “What did you do when women hit on you?”

  “No one did.”

  She cocked an eyebrow in disbelief.

  “I got out of the way before they had a chance,” I explained. “If I saw them making eyes at me, I ignored them. And if they came over to talk to me, I went to the bathroom. The guys think I have bladder issues now.”

  She smiled. “That’s sweet.”

  “I think it’s cowardly, but alright.”

  “I can’t believe you were ever worried about being faithful. You’re doing a great job.”

  “Again, it’s been a week.”

  “A month,” she corrected. “A month is a long time to sleep with the same person. I was in love with Diesel within two weeks.”

  “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here and toss the L word around.”

  “Whatever you say…” She drank her Old Fashioned and glanced at the TV again.

  “Need any help for the big day?”

  “Nope. Everything is taken care of.”

  “Kinda strange to think you aren’t going to be Titan anymore. Our relationship will be different now. It used to be just you and me…now it’s you and Diesel.” I didn’t consider myself to be an emotional guy, but losing Titan was difficult for me. She was my family. I cared about her like she was my own flesh and blood.

  “That’s not true,” she said. “It’ll be you, me, and Diesel—all three of us.”

  “You know what I mean, Titan.” I looked down at my beer.

  “Things will change, yes. But they already have. In the end, I know you and I will always be close. When you and Autumn get married—”

  “Whoa, what the fuck?” I snapped. “I’m not getting married. I never even put that on the table.”

  “Whatever,” she said. “When you get married someday…you’ll have someone, and I’ll have Diesel. So we won’t be as close anymore, but I know we’ll still be family. I know we’ll still have our own relationship…just like we do now.”

  “Yeah…you’re probably right. How are you handling getting married?”

  “I don’t understand your question.” She pulled the toothpick out of the glass and bit off the cherry.

  “You’re getting married. Your life is completely changing. It’s not where you thought you would be a year ago. It’s a drastic shift. Between you and me, how do you feel? It’s normal to get cold feet. People don’t feel doubtful about the person they want to marry. But they feel doubtful about how different their lives will be.”

  She stirred her glass as she considered the question. “I haven’t thought about it in that way. Honestly, all I can think about is the man I get to keep for the rest of my life. There will be bumps in the road because we both like having things a particular way. But I know we’ll work through them.”

  “Did you do the prenup?”

  “No.” She took another drink.

  “No?” I was surprised Titan would even consider eliminating it.

  “Diesel and I made our own legal document. We’re committed to making the marriage work at any cost. I thought it was so romantic that I couldn’t say no.”

  “What kind of legal document?”

  “It’s not really legal. It can’t hold up in court. It’s just our promises that we made to each other. If we e
ver feel the urge to be unfaithful, we’ll talk about it and see what we can do to prevent it. If I can’t be prevented, we’ll seek counseling. If that doesn’t work, we can discuss an open relationship. Whatever needs to happen, we’ll make it happen. But divorce is a word we won’t include in our vocabulary.”

  “That is pretty romantic.”

  “I know Diesel would never hurt me, and he loves me so much. I can’t see that ever changing. And I would never hurt him. I don’t think it will be an issue for us.”

  “Me neither.”

  “And he wants us to combine our strengths as well as our businesses. We have the capability to take over the world. Now he wants to execute it.”

  “Pretty awesome.” They would be the biggest power couple in the world. “And you’re going to start trying for a family right away?”

  She nodded. “I’m getting old, Thorn…”

  “You are not.”

  “I’m thirty. I’m running out of time.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “I want to have at least two kids, and I don’t want to be pregnant the whole time. I want to have a break in between. So I have to do this now. Diesel wants a family too, so it’s fine.”

  “He seems pretty eager to get started, actually.”

  She chuckled. “I know he is. He reminds me every day.”

  “Well, I’m here to talk if you need someone to listen. And I’ll always be here to listen.”

  Her eyes softened, and she reached across the table to rest her hand on mine. She gave me a gentle squeeze before she pulled away. “My life is changing so much…but some things will always remain the same.”

  “Yeah. You’re right.”

  The subject changed to work, and we talked about the things I’d be taking care of while she was gone for two weeks. It was a long honeymoon, but since Titan had worked aggressively for the last ten years, she deserved a long break. No better place to do that other than paradise.

  Her phone started to ring, and Diesel’s name appeared on the screen. “I’ve got to take this. He’s probably pissed I didn’t tell him I was meeting you…” She slipped out of the booth and stepped outside to take his call.

  I enjoyed the rest of my beer then scrolled through my phone. I’d taken a few pictures of Autumn last night. She was asleep, but she looked so beautiful when she was cuddled into my side. We didn’t even need a king-size bed because she pretty much slept on top of me. She was all over me—all the time.

  I grinned as I scrolled through the pictures.

  “Hey, I know you from somewhere.”

  I looked up from my phone, noticing the blonde bombshell looking down at me with a smile plastered on her face. Her hair was wavy like she was had just come from the beach. Her sweater fell over one shoulder, and she wore skinny jeans with brown booties. If this were any other time, I’d make a move. “You probably see me in the news a lot.”

  “Yeah, you’re Thorn Cutler, right?”

  “Yep.” I didn’t ask who she was. That sounded like an invitation for the conversation to continue.

  “Was that Tatum Titan you were with a second ago?”

  “Yeah. She had a phone call, so she stepped outside.”

  She tucked her hair behind her ear. “I think it’s really cool that you guys are still friends. Not too many people could do that.”

  It would take years before people started to forget I was ever engaged to Titan. “Our friendship is pretty solid.”

  “Since you’re sitting here alone, you want to get a beer? My treat.”

  A beautiful woman was offering to buy me a beer. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t turn down an awesome offer like that. I’d wondered how I would behave in a situation like this. Would I be a sleazebag and immediately jump back to my old ways once the opportunity presented itself? I could get ass whenever I wanted, so I didn’t need Autumn for that. But I wanted something else from Autumn—something that meant a lot more. “Thanks for the offer but…I have a girlfriend.” I couldn’t stop the smile from forming on my lips. I said the words out loud, and surprisingly, it felt good.

  “Oh…I didn’t realize.” She smiled then turned away. “Nice meeting you.”

  “Nice meeting you too.” When I looked up, Titan was standing at the next table, her arms crossed and a big grin on her face.

  I rolled my eyes. “Shut up while you’re ahead.”

  She moved back into the seat across from me, still showing the victory in her eyes. “Fine, I’ll shut up. But that’s only because you know exactly what I’m going to say.”

  I sat in the back seat as my driver took me to my penthouse. I called Autumn and placed the phone against my ear.

  She answered almost immediately. “Hey, babe.”

  I grinned like a fool when I heard her say that. “Hey, baby. What are you doing?”

  “Just got home, and now I have dinner on the stove.”

  “Dinner, huh?”

  “Are you fishing for an invitation?”

  “No. If I wanted to come over, I would just do it.”

  Her smile was audible over the phone. “You’re coming over, huh?”

  “How can I listen to that sexy voice and not?”

  “It’s easy. Just go to your penthouse.”

  That wasn’t easy at all. I pictured her dark hair trailing down the center of her back as she stood in the kitchen. She was wearing one of my shirts, the length reaching her knees. “That’s impossible when I picture how sexy you must look right now.”

  “Actually, I don’t look very sexy. I just left the gym, and I’m in my workout clothes.”

  “With those tight leggings and sporty top?” I blurted.

  “Yes.”

  “Fuck…”

  She laughed into the phone. “Get real, Thorn.”

  “I am. I’ll be there in five minutes. You can take off your pants now or wait until I get there.”

  “I know you like to do the honors.”

  My girlfriend was awesome. “I’ll be there soon.”

  “Thorn?” Her voice suddenly turned serious, a direct contrast to our playfulness.

  “Yes?”

  “Titan told me about last night.”

  I was drawing a blank. “What happened last night?” I saw Titan for forty-five minutes over drinks. Nothing interesting happened.

  “You told that sexy blonde you had a girlfriend…and you had a stupid grin on your face.”

  Oh, that. “Titan is a lying psychopath. Don’t listen to her.”

  “That’s too bad. I was going to give you the best sex of your life.”

  My cock immediately thickened in my slacks. I pictured Autumn bent over the kitchen counter, her leggings bunched at her knees. I pulled on her hair as I pounded into her from behind, crushing that pussy—the pussy I owned. “Okay…maybe she wasn’t lying.”

  “That’s what I thought.”

  Her hair stuck to her neck in the shower, and now that all her makeup had been washed away, her small freckles were more noticeable. She faced me under the water and ran her hands down my chest, feeling my hard body with the same enthusiasm she showed earlier when I fucked her in the kitchen.

  The dinner she made never got eaten.

  “So, what did you think?” She tilted her head back and rinsed her hair.

  My eyes immediately went to her perky-as-fuck tits. “You rode me pretty damn good.”

  “Best you ever had?”

  “No.”

  Her eyes moved back up to mine.

  “You’re always the best I’ve ever had.” It sounded like a line, but I didn’t mean for it to come out that way.

  She smiled up at me, her plump lips looking irresistible. “Whether you mean that or not, I don’t care. I just loved hearing you say it.”

  We got out of the shower and dried off before we returned to the kitchen. The vegan bowl she made was cold and the veggies were soft, but we served the plates and ate it anyway. I sat across from her at the table, sitting in my boxers because I didn’t wa
nt to put my suit back on.

  She was in a long t-shirt, her damp hair pulled over one shoulder.

  “This is good.”

  “It tastes like shit, and we both know it,” she said with a chuckle. “But it’s edible.”

  I chuckled at her bluntness. “I’m sure it’s great when it’s fresh.”

  She took a few more bites before she drank from her water.

  I stared at her as she stared down at her food. I loved watching her. It was like looking at the photos I had of her in my phone. “You want to have dinner then stay at my place tomorrow? We’re carpooling in Titan’s jet. Or, I mean, we’re plane-pooling.”

  “I can’t. I’m having dinner with my parents. But I’ll meet you guys at her apartment.”

  “Why are you having dinner with your parents?”

  She cocked an eyebrow. “What kind of question is that? Because they’re my parents.”

  “That’s not what I meant. I was wondering if it was a special occasion or something…like your mom’s birthday.”

  She pushed her food around with her fork. “Well, it’s actually my birthday.”

  Oh, shit. Did she tell me that, and I just forgot? I felt like the biggest asshole on the planet. I was certain she didn’t mention it because I would have remembered. We’d only been seeing each other for a month, so it’s like I was a complete asshole.

  “My mom usually cooks dinner, and we have a small get-together. It’s quiet, but I like it.”

  “That’s nice,” I said in a low voice. “I feel really stupid right now. I didn’t know…”

  “It’s okay, Thorn. I never mentioned it, so how were you supposed to know?”

  I still felt like a jerk.

  “So I’ll meet you guys in the morning.”

  “You can’t come over after dinner with your parents?” I asked hopefully.

  “I should go home and pack. But we’ll be staying in the same room in Thailand, so we’ll be together then.”

  She didn’t invite me to her parents’ place for dinner, and it made me wonder if they knew about me at all. Did she want me to come but thought it was too soon? Or did she not want me to come? How did I figure that out without asking? Maybe I shouldn’t ask at all. “Baby?”