Hard Copy: A Billionaire Second Chance Romance (Tech Titans Book 3)

by Marcella Swann

  “We have to have the party here,” I declared, looking around and imagining where we could place the round tables. They’d be covered with white tablecloths and the centerpieces could be candles. It would be perfect for a party at dusk.

  “There’s no stage for the music,” J.D. pointed out.

  “We can have one built, right? Maybe over there,” I gestured to an open area between two trees.

  “The club will let us do that?”

  “You underestimate how charming I can be. I’ll take care of it.”

  “But the party’s in less then two weeks. Is there enough time?”

  “I’m sure we can find a contractor that will make it happen. Money talks, babe.”

  “I can’t argue with that.”

  “Yeah, don’t even try. You should know by now that I’m always right.”

  “Sure,” he said, patting my shoulder condescendingly. I shrugged him off and stuck my tongue out at him. “Very mature.”

  “Mature is boring.”

  J.D. didn’t reply. I guess he couldn’t argue with that either. I looked around again. Gigi would love this place.

  “I just had a great idea!” I said, gesturing toward the pond. Lifting my arms and spreading them wide, I shouted, “Fireworks!”

  “Fireworks?”

  “Yep, over the pond at the end of the party. The water will reflect them. It’ll be epic.”

  “Hmm, okay. I’ll arrange that. I have a guy.”

  “A fireworks guy?”

  “Of course. You don’t have a guy for that?”

  I rolled my eyes at him. We started walking toward the car. We had met at my house after work and taken his car here-about an hour later.

  We had accidentally tumbled into the bedroom before leaving. It took us a while to find our way out. My body ached as a delicious reminder of our carnal activities. I was finding that my desire for him was insatiable.

  Alone with J.D. in the car, I found myself wanting a make a connection with him, something outside of the physical. Despite being friends for so long, there was so much I didn’t know about him.

  He kept an invisible wall up between us. It was like he was afraid to let me in too much. Sex was one thing, but his heart was off-limits. I wanted to know him better.

  Well, I told myself, you’ve got to give a little to get a little.

  “Have I ever told you about my parents?” I asked.

  “No, I don’t think you have.”

  “I come from old money,” I said. “My great grandpa started a business making football helmets back in the day. They were one of the first ones to do it when the NFL was founded. It eventually expanded into various sports equipment and he died a very rich man. Anyway, that money has taken care of my family for generations. Sounds great, right?”

  “Yeah,” J.D. said solemnly. He must have picked up on something in my voice. He could tell this wasn’t a happy story.

  “It wasn’t great. Yeah, I didn’t have to work. I didn’t even have to go to college. The manufacturing company is still around. Men in my family have been serving on the Board of Directors for decades, but the women aren’t expected to do anything like that. They have a whole different set of expectations.”

  “Such as?”

  “It’s all about how you present yourself with them. Girls in my family are raised to marry rich and continue the cycle. You have to fit into their society to do that. I took etiquette classes as soon as I could talk. There was a ton of pressure growing up. It was all drilled into me during my childhood. How to shake hands. How to eat. How to talk. How to hold myself.”

  “As a little kid?”

  “Oh yeah, it was most important to impart those lessons early. Kids must learn proper behavior, after all,” my voice sounded bitter and I hated it.

  The only person that knew all this about me was Gigi. I wanted to share it with J.D. though. I trusted him.

  “What was proper behavior?”

  “Ladies are meant to be seen, not heard. Poised and perfect at all times.”

  J.D. shot me a look and I couldn’t help but laugh. It helped break the tension in the car.

  “I know, I know. It seems the lessons didn’t take, right?”

  “Well, I didn’t want to say it,” he grinned.

  “It’s hard to break free from suppression like that, but every teen goes through a rebellious phase. Around fifteen I started acting out in any way I could think of. I wore crazy and revealing outfits to my parent’s parties, just to show that I wasn’t like the girls there with beige sweaters and soft voices.

  “I blared ‘offensive rock music’ from my room every day. I ran with a ‘bad crowd.’ They were just regular kids, not richie-riches. I drank and even dated an older man that worked for my father as a driver.”

  “Yikes.”

  “Yeah, I rebelled. I acted out in public. That one was the worst in their eyes. I besmirched the family name by behaving like a bratty teenager instead of the privileged princess they wanted. Those were a rough couple of years for all of us.”

  “Do you still talk to them?”

  “No,” I confessed. “It’s sad really, but we are just different. As I got older I grew out of the rebelling just for the sake of rebelling thing. But it had changed me. I found that I liked dressing in a way that made me stand out, for instance. No more fading into the background, no matter how much my parents may want me to.

  “I enjoyed speaking my mind. Removing the filter that had been forced upon me my entire life was a liberating experience. I couldn’t go back to stifling myself. I decided to make myself happy, no matter what. So, when I was ready to go to college, they paid for it, but the unspoken agreement was that I wouldn’t come back home.”

  “That’s terrible.”

  I nodded. My life hadn’t always been a joy ride, but it made me who I am. I purposely looked for the brighter side of things because of it and I wouldn’t trade that for anything. I knew how to love myself now.Silence settled upon us like a heavy blanket and I hoped in vain that he would break it. I felt vulnerable after sharing the carefully guarded details of my life.

  “Does anyone else know this?” he finally asked.

  “Just Gigi.”

  J.D. continued to stare out the windshield, his eyes focused on the road. He wasn’t going to open up to me, that was clear. With a resigned sigh, I sat back in my seat and stared out the window, watching the cars we were passing with no real interest.

  “Thanks for telling me,” he said softly, reaching over to grab my hand. I smiled as he intertwined our fingers. It wasn’t exactly the reaction I was looking for, but I’d take it.

  When I returned to the office, I was surprised to find Keith there. He was walking around the office when I entered, examining the decor.

  “Any messages?” I asked Elliott, stopping at his desk.

  “No, but you have a visitor,” he was frowning slightly.

  “I see that. You can go to lunch.”

  As Elliott grabbed his fedora and headed out the door, I made my way over to Keith. He was standing in front of our company logo, which we’d had made into a huge decal and placed on the wall directly across from the entrance.

  The logo had been designed by Gigi and myself, working with a graphic artist. It was just the words So Good, but the S and G were large and white giving the logo a contained circular appearance,, while the -o and -ood were smaller and black. It was simple and classic. Underneath the logo were the words: Do good to feel good, so good.

  “Hi, there,” I said, stopping beside Keith and crossing my arms.

  “Ah, Judy. There you are,” he said, turning to regard me. I saw his eyes sweep quickly down my body, then back up.

  “I didn’t know you were stopping by today,” I said, trying not to sound annoyed. I wasn’t even sure why his presence here was getting under my skin.

  “I was in the neighborhood and you were on my mind,” he said, slipping his hands into his pockets and leaning against the wall, ca
sually.

  “Is that so?”

  “Yeah. In fact, you’ve been on my mind since I met you.”

  I couldn’t say that I was entirely surprised by this. The man freely let his eyes linger, but he was nice, with a certain appealing charm. The flirting felt a little too practiced, but I did respect the boldness of going for it like this.

  “That’s very flattering,” I responded. I couldn’t exactly return the sentiment. My mind had been on someone else for a long time now.

  “I can tell you’re something special. So, I have to ask, are you seeing anyone?”

  Wow. What a loaded question. My immediate impulse was to say yes, but that was a lie. There was the cryptic it’s complicated option, but was it even that? The relationship itself was pretty straightforward. My feelings were the real complication, and what was the point in letting that hold me back?

  I must have hesitated too long, because Keith shook his head with a chuckle. “I should’ve known a woman like you wouldn’t be available. Just my luck.”

  I wasn’t sure what to say. Technically, I was available, whether I liked it or not.

  “Sorry,” I told him, and I really was. Things would be so much simpler if I could make myself forget J.D. and take Keith up on this. At least he didn’t seem too disappointed.

  “Tell ya what,” Keith said, holding out his business card to me, “I wrote me cell number on the back. Just save it in your phone. Then, if circumstances change, you can hit me up.”

  I took the card, stupidly feeling like I was betraying J.D. Pushing that feeling aside, I pulled out my phone, adding Keith to the contact list as he watched. I couldn’t see myself ever using it.

  Chapter Twelve: Risky Business

  I was in a great mood, and who could blame me? Life was good these days. I had a nearly endless supply of money, an amazing woman to share my bed, and a new business idea. Hopefully my intuition would pay off once again.

  I had the ambition to expand SXz’s services into producing music instead of just streaming it. Working with major labels had proved to be problematic time and time again, and I wanted to cut out the middle man. If we had contracts directly with the artists, it could be mutually beneficial to both parties.

  Labels took a substantial cut of our payout, resulting in artists getting a pittance for their work when it was streamed. There was too much bad blood between SXz and musicians because of this, and it caused problems down the line. Musical artists were the life of our business; without them, we couldn’t even exist.

  It was risky, trying to break into acquiring talent, instead of just utilizing what was already out there. We would receive push-back from record companies, for sure. But I had to follow my gut on this one.

  The key to it all was Aaron. He had proven himself to be invaluable to SXz with his management of the company. We had given him a basic strategy for the business when we had first started, and he had made it happen. It was easy for Hayden and me to have ideas, but Aaron turned them into reality. His operations skills were unprecedented.

  So, he was the natural choice to implement this program. It was important that we produced excellent music and he specialized in talent management. I had written a proposal for Aaron to review days ago. Hayden and Damian had already signed off on the idea, but Aaron’s cooperation was the key to success here. If he agreed, I was sure the risk would pay off in a big way.

  Entering his office, I tried to read Aaron’s face, to get a sense of his thoughts, but he was like a closed book. He was standing by the window, his cell phone up to his ear. He held up a finger when he saw me, indicating he’d be a minute. I took a seat and waited.

  “I want a copy of our previous agreement sent to me. We can consider a new contract, but we aren’t going to lose our shirts on this. It just doesn’t make sense,” Aaron said into the phone, turning to look out the window.

  I looked around the office. Aaron was a sports buff and that was reflected in the way he had decorated the space. There was a signed picture of Joe Montana hanging on the wall behind the desk and an old football carefully positioned on the bookshelf. I knew it was a game ball from his college days. There was a little basketball hoop mounted on the wall above his trash can. He even had a calendar on his desk shaped like a baseball.

  The man himself was tall and broad, so big that he made the office around us feel smaller. Anyone that didn’t know better might consider Aaron a dumb jock, but they’d be wrong. He was a leader.

  “What’s up?” Aaron asked as he ended his phone call and took a seat behind the desk.

  “Did you get a chance to look at the growth opportunity I forwarded to you?”

  “Yeah, you have funny timing. I was just talking to Mark about our contract with Lynn Davis.”

  “The country singer?”

  “That’s the one. She’s not happy with the money she’s been making with us and is considering withholding her new album.”

  “That’d be a shame. We pay out the standard rate?”

  “Yep, 70% percent of revenue for her work is being paid out. The problem is the label. They take so much that she’s getting ripped off.”

  “And the blame for that falls on us instead of the record company.”

  “As usual. This is happening too much. People aren’t going to keep using SXz if their favorite artists jump ship.”

  “So, you want to pursue this idea? I was thinking we could start with new artists that have a following but haven’t signed with a label yet. We’ll see how that goes.”

  “My thoughts exactly.”

  “It’ll put a lot on your plate.”

  “I think it’ll pay off though. It’s innovative and will change the music industry,” Aaron said, after a moment of contemplation. “Let me crunch some numbers and I’ll get back to you with a plan of action.”

  “Great. Let me know if you need anything.”

  Leaving Aaron’s office, I was lost in thought until I thought I heard someone say my name. Pausing, I looked around, seeing no one. I was outside of Hayden’s office and the door was slightly ajar.

  Curiosity getting the best of me, I slowly pushed the door open, revealing Hayden and Gigi sitting together. They were side by side on the couch in the corner of the room, talking in low voices. They didn’t seem to notice me at first.

  “Are you sure?” Hayden asked.

  “Definitely, it was obvious.”

  “Great! Our work is done. That was easy.”

  “I’m not so sure. Why haven’t they said anything?”

  “Who knows? Why did we have to get involved in the first place? They should’ve-” Hayden broke off mid-sentence as his head snapped in my direction.

  “Hey!” he said, jumping to his feet.

  “What are you two doing?” I asked. It was weird to see Gigi and Hayden together so much lately. Talk about an unlikely pair.

  “Nothing,” Gigi said, also standing. Hayden shifted uneasily, and I narrowed my eyes.

  “You two aren’t…uh, I mean, you’re not…” I didn’t know how to articulate the question without being an asshole. I didn’t think either of them were the type to stray, but they were being so jumpy, I couldn’t help my suspicions.

  “Oh my god, no!” Gigi exclaimed, catching on to my insinuation.

  “Are you crazy?” Hayden asked, looking affronted. I had clearly offended them both.

  “Okay, okay. What the hell is going on then?”

  “What’s going on with you? How’s Judy?” Gigi asked, crossing her arms and raising one eyebrow. She looked at me expectantly.

  “Isn’t Judy your best friend? You probably know how she is better than I do.”

  “Whatever,” Gigi snapped and walked out of the office, closing the door forcefully behind her.

  “I think you pissed her off,” Hayden said.

  “Ya think?” I said drily.

  “So...how is Judy doing? Have you seen her lately?” Hayden asked nonchalantly.

  “She’s fine. I saw her two
days ago. We’re planning a party together, remember?”

  My phone beeped at that moment, indicating a text message. It was Judy.

  You up for a little afternoon delight at your place?

  I felt my body react immediately. I was definitely up for it.

  “I’m taking the afternoon off,” I told Hayden while walking out the door, typing a quick response to Judy.

  “Where are you going?” Hayden called after me, but I didn’t answer. I was too eager to get home.

  Chapter Thirteen: Feelings

  No words were spoken as J.D. met me at the door. I stepped over the threshold and kicked off my shoes, jumping into his arms and wrapping my legs around his waist. He kicked the door shut behind me and his mouth devoured mine in a passionate kiss. I could feel his erection through our clothes. He was ready for me and I let out a purr in pleasure.

  Lost in the feeling of our bodies entangled, I hardly noticed where we were going until he sat down hard on his couch, taking me with him. I rose up, straddling him as I ripped my shirt off, exposing my lacy pink bra. J.D. licked his lips and his eyes darkened as they focused on my chest.

  “Fuuuck,” he moaned as I ground into him. Pulling his shirt over his head, I threw it over my shoulder and took his lips in another kiss.

  My body was on fire, I wanted him so badly. I raked my fingernails over his chest and felt his body shudder beneath me. I broke our kiss and pulled myself off his lap.

  “Lose the pants,” I demanded, and he scrambled to comply.

  When he was bare before me, I knelt in front of him and wrapped my hand around his thick length. He kicked his head back into the sofa cushion and I saw his hands fist at his sides. Working him up and down slowly, I licked the tip when a drop of liquid appeared.

  “Judy!”

  His voice had a pleading tone to it and I decided to give him what I knew he wanted. Grasping his base firmly, I ran my tongue along the underside of his erection as I took him into my mouth as far as possible. His hips surged forward, and the back of my throat was prodded. I didn’t pull away, just readjusted and started to bob up and down.