Acquired Asset

by ZN Willett

  I headed out of the conference room and straight to the balcony. The sun was setting and I wondered if Christopher would mind if I woke him up early. It was around 4 a.m. in Paris. He had to leave for France to handle an upcoming EU labor dispute. It’s taken him weeks of negotiations with the unions and government officials, though when I last spoke to him, he said there was an agreement on the table.

  It had been three weeks since we had seen each other in person. If it weren’t for the constant phone calls or video chats, I would have thought we were in an overseas relationship versus a long distance one. Surprisingly, it worked for us, although the distance had taken a toll. The more Christopher was away, the more I missed his ass.

  I would have offered my assistance in the negotiations, but I had my own fires to put out. The funding for the new software was going to cost substantially more than the original projection, and having to babysit Reagan Colby was beginning to be more of a chore than I had first expected.

  If Christopher had told me in the beginning that Reagan was interested in Evan, I would have sent her back to New York. Nevertheless what could I have said, since I was dating her brother and a co-worker myself? She had seemed to have gotten under Evan’s skin, and all I was doing lately was putting out fires.

  Reagan was cleverer than I had anticipated. We owned a group of hotels that moonlight as private clubs for the rich and famous. They hadn’t turned a profit since they had opened; however, the publicity had been good for the Colbys throughout the years. When they gave me the West Coast region, the first order of business was to sell these hotels. I told Evan to make it work, but when Reagan got a whiff of it, the Board soon became involved and started to change their tune.

  Reagan made a plea as to why we needed to keep them, and offered to take over operations. Of course, Millicent Colby loved the idea, and I wanted to wring her neck. I explained that even with the membership fee, celebrities loved freebies. Giving away the house wasn’t how we did business. If we continued doing business that way, we would be pulling from our other hotels’ bloodline. Reagan suggested raising the membership fees and pitched a few more ideas that they loved. Because they were under the West Coast, I had the final decision on the matter.

  I spoke to Christopher about it and mentioned how his parents insisted that Reagan takes them over. They were both fooling themselves. The girl was bright, however she was far from ready to walk in and take over operations. She only wanted to save her party hangouts. Half of the paparazzi footage on Reagan was of her entering or leaving these hotels.

  Christopher let me talk, and I noticed he didn’t make any suggestions as to whether he agreed with me or not. He stated the facts and gave his unbiased assessment of what he recommended when he had been in charge of them.

  I didn’t say anything, but the fact that he placed the well-being of the business before his family was impressive. He stated that Reagan had previously been a soft spot, yet when it came down to it, he made some important points. With all of that said, I recommended Reagan be put to work under the General Manager of the LA club. If she could assist with making that one hotel turn a profit, then I would recommend her to become the General Manager.

  There was no way Reagan was going to step right into running operations without getting her hands dirty first. I assigned Evan to personally oversee this little experiment to the end. Maybe next time he would keep his people in line. I don’t care who they are.

  I tried to reach Christopher, though received no answer. I hoped that he had been working through the night, like he usually did, and was still awake. But, I was sure he needed to rest and was asleep.

  Another hour passed, and it looked as if we were finally getting to a solution. The biggest hindrance was that the programmer of the software was a cocky jackass. We were in the middle of a heated discussion when I saw the conference door slowly open.

  “You are under contract, and I expect you to meet the deadline or we will find you in breach of said contract!” I yelled out in Japanese.

  The damn translator was taking too long and I wanted to drive that point across. I took off the headset, and spoke directly to the group of men on the large conference screen.

  “If you breach the contract, I can guarantee that I’ll personally make sure that this software is buried in the court system for years.”

  I headed back toward the door, and my breath hitched at the sight of him. I knew my expression was one of shock, while everyone turned to look at Christopher as he came in taking a seat in the back. Our eyes locked, while I silently questioned how he could be here. He gave me that smirk and my body was instantly turned on.

  I lingered a bit too long, as the men on the other side of the world summoned my attention. I was done with the back and forth. There was something else that needed my attention and she was a greedy whore. “We can resume this at a later date. You have a month to get the logistics worked out. Keep me informed.” I disconnected the conference call as the translator finished up. “Thank you everyone. We’ll regroup on Monday. Mia will set up a time. Now, go home and enjoy your weekend.”

  As everyone exited the conference room, they greeted Christopher until the last person had left. Our eyes stayed on each other’s as he walked over to the door, shutting and locking it. We met half way and before I could ask him how, he passionately kissed me. It wasn’t rushed, just needy. When we came up for air, I asked how?

  “You are incredibly hot when you’re mad Quinn, and more so when you speak in Japanese.”

  I chuckled. “I thought you were still in Paris?”

  “I left right after the agreement was finalized.”

  “You came straight here?”

  He backed me against the table. “Did you miss me?”

  I narrowed my eyes. “I wouldn’t say that, Colby.”

  His lips dragged down my neck. While his hand slid up my thigh, under my skirt, as his finger glided between my folds. “Mmm, I think you missed me very much.”

  My hips bucked at his touch, wanting to feel him closer. He lightly feathered his fingers through my increasingly moistened lips until my panties were soaked to the core.

  “There’s something I wanted to tell you, but I can’t wait any longer to be inside of you.”

  Suddenly, he lifted me onto the table as our lips collided. I quickly unbuttoned my blouse, as he pulled down my panties. I helped him undo his pants before he yanked them down. The moment he reached behind me grabbing my ass toward him, and my legs wrapped around his waist, the stress of the week vanished. We both exhaled a collective sigh. He stilled for a moment while we both took in the feel of each other.

  Christopher moaned in pleasure as I greedily took what was now mine. He sat back and watched as my body moved in waves of pleasure. His eyes darkened as the rhythmic movement increased. Then, he laid me back, taking hold of my hips as he guided me.

  I placed my hands over my head enjoying the feel of his control as he joined our bodies. At first it was unhurried, both enjoying the fullness as we gazed at each other. When Christopher increased his pace, our movements became primal.

  Christopher’s grip tightened around my hips. “Did you miss this, Quinn?”

  “Yes! Ooh, yes!”

  “Mine!” He growled.

  I screamed as the first wave of my orgasm shot through me. All I could do was scream out the word “yes” as Christopher increased his speed. Sweat dripped from his face and our eyes stayed locked. My mouth hung open, and scrambled sounds rang out as another wave of pleasure came over me. That did it, and Christopher finally fell until he collapsed on top of me.

  We lay and caught our breaths for a few moments before he leaned up, moved the dampened hairs out of my face, and smiled. “You did miss me.”

  I laughed. “I missed your junk.”

  “That too, but admit it, or I won’t let you go.”

  “Who says I would want that?” I chuckled out, and then saw the strange look in his eyes before he rolled off of me complet
ely.

  I lay there surprised that I was still needy, although more so at the feeling of loss when Christopher got up. I watched him wiggle back into his pants before he offered his hand to me. I sat up and redressed.

  “That was not how I thought the meeting was going to end.”

  Christopher buttoned the top two buttons on my blouse, before lifting me off of the table and onto my feet. “Get used to it. I plan for many of our meetings to end in this manner.” He chuckled, and firmly kissed me.

  I moaned into his mouth before leaning back. “Hey, don’t start something you can’t finish. Are you staying or going?”

  He quickly kissed me. “I’m staying; at least until the weekend.”

  Hearing him say that made me smile inside. We both said we would try, and Christopher was trying, and I thought I should as well. “Stay with me while you are here.”

  That smirk graced his face. “That would be nice.”

  “Did you eat? Do you want to grab something for dinner?”

  “I was planning on eating you later, but I can eat now.”

  I shook my head amused, and now turned back on, as I led us out of the conference room. When I reached my office, Dad was talking to Mia. “Dad, did you need me? I was on my way out.”

  “Joseph,” Christopher greeted.

  “Christopher. I thought you were heading back out?”

  “I had a change in plans.”

  I turned to look at him. “Did you need to do something?”

  “I told your father I was working this weekend, and then heading back to New York. That was before your offer.”

  “Christopher came to see me,” Dad added, a bit perturbed.

  “Oh he did?” I stared at Christopher, surprised.

  “He wanted us to have dinner and talk. I told him I would think about it.”

  I looked back to my dad. “That’s a good idea. I think we all should go.”

  “I thought this time it would be good for Joseph and me to discuss some things, privately.”

  “You know, honey, get to know the boyfriend and such,” Dad said with a sneer, and I knew Christopher and Mia could hear it as well.

  “Dad . . .” I warned.

  “I’m heading out. I wanted to stop by and say goodnight. Christopher.” He walked past us to the elevators.

  “Mia, have a goodnight,” I said, and walked into my office, followed by Christopher, who shut the door behind us. “You spoke to my father?”

  He sat down on the couch. “Before I came in, I stopped by his office. I thought it would be a good thing to hash out any issues that he may have concerning my intentions of dating his daughter.”

  I poured two glasses of wine, and sat next to him. “If you would have told me your plans, I would have warned you that he wasn’t too thrilled about us.”

  “He stated that plainly.”

  “He was pretty surprised, Colby. He knew we didn’t get along, and I had made my feelings of disdain for you and your family quite clear. He was a bit disappointed, more so in me, however, I think once he gets used to the idea . . . maybe . . .”

  “That’s what I told my mother. Although, she said she really liked you.”

  I eyeballed him. “And . . .”

  He chuckled, before taking another sip. “She thinks you won’t last after our ‘tryst.’”

  “That’s not too bad.”

  “I omitted most of the other words.”

  I woke up to Christopher’s hot breath on my face as he continued to sleep like a rock. The poor guy had worn himself out last night. He had done most of the work. I was not that heavy, yet lifting me against the glass door wore him out. In fact, he did a lot of heavy lifting last night. The moment we stepped into my place, clothes were discarded, and Christopher was immediately mounted.

  I decided to let him sleep as I made us coffee, and instead planned on letting the aroma wake him. But, it was three busy bees that ended up doing that.

  While the coffee finished brewing, I answered the door to three munchkins running into my house asking to go swimming. Alissa had slipped my mind, and we had a play date. Well, the girls and I did while she ran errands. I was about to tell Lissa about Christopher when I saw a very naked body walk across the hall upstairs. He was oblivious to the fact that people were in the house, so I yelled out, “Girls, there’s ice cream in the kitchen.” I heard their little feet running the opposite direction to the kitchen, as Christopher halted in his tracks; he looked down at us, horrified.

  “Quinn, are you serious? How could you feed the girls—what are you looking at?” Alissa yelled out.

  I lunged at her, and I tried to stop her from looking upstairs while Christopher hightailed it back to the bedroom.

  “Was that Christopher Colby’s ass I saw?”

  “Yes. That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. He’s here for the weekend.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I’ve been a little busy.”

  She lowered her voice. “Busy my ass, busy sexing Mr. Colby.”

  “I’ve been working!”

  “I know you have. Girls!” she yelled out. They came running in. “You’re coming with me. Auntie Quinn has company. We will visit later.”

  Their little faces were all upset. “Hey, I will take you guys to the park, okay?”

  “Do we still get the ice cream?”

  “No,” Alissa answered. “But if you girls behave while mommy’s shopping, daddy and I will take you for pizza and ice cream.”

  They all jumped and cheered, and everything was right with the world again. Alissa collected their things and left as quickly as she had come.

  I brought two cups of coffee upstairs. Christopher was leaning back against the pillows, looking at his phone. I sat the coffees down next to him and straddled his legs. “Sorry about that. I was supposed to have the girls this morning.”

  “Is your friend upset that I messed up her plans?”

  “Not at all, and that was Alissa, Justin’s wife. She wants to meet you officially. I told her we could plan on the basketball game for next weekend.” I chuckled to myself. “I think your ass made a good impression.”

  He looked up from his cell. “It always does, Quinn.”

  I swatted him on the chest. He was preoccupied. “Do you need to work?” I asked, as I grabbed my cup of coffee.

  He reached over and took a few sips of his before answering. “The Union is haggling over a few minor details, and trying to prolong the strike until after the holiday.”

  “They do this every holiday. Easter is early this year. Do they want Good Friday off?”

  “We’re trying to stop the frequency of these disputes, period.”

  I placed my cup down. “Does this mean you’re going back?”

  He looked up at me. “Yes, this afternoon. I was coming down to tell you.”

  We gazed at each other for a moment. “Christopher, I’ll be in Tokyo after next week, and I was planning to inspect Australia before the two weeks I’m in Africa.”

  We focused on each other again, saying nothing. He showed no emotions and I was sure my reflection mirrored the same, except my heart was pained. One month of not seeing Christopher was not going to be easy. We had already been separated for three weeks. This whole time I had been worried about having an office romance was for naught, since we both were never in the office.

  I climbed off of him and undressed. I headed to the shower and let the hot water soothe my body. I turned on the steam feature, and within minutes the room filled up into a sauna. I stood under the running rain shower head hypnotized until the feel of his hands brought me back to reality.

  “It’s not easy for me either,” he whispered behind me.

  “We just started this . . . how can we make something work when we’re not even in the same country half the time?”

  “It comes with the territory.”

  “I know that! It’s a long time, Christopher.”

  “Change the visits.
”

  “Would you change yours?”

  He said nothing. We both stood there for an uncomfortable amount of time. When I started to walk out, he grabbed hold of me.

  “Quinn, I would expect you to continue to do what you do best, and for me to ask you to change things because of my needs is selfish. However, I won’t hide the fact that not seeing you for four weeks is going to be easy.”

  “Do you think it’s going to be easy for me?”

  “Honestly, I thought you planned this as an excuse to try to not make this work.”

  I gawked at him. “Why would I do that?”

  “You said it yourself. This relationship isn’t easy for you.”

  “Yet, I thought I made it quite obvious that I was going to try.”

  “Trying and doing are two different things.”

  “This trip has been on the books for over a year.”

  “But, Australia hasn’t.”

  “It makes practical sense to check them out while I’m in that area of the world and you know this. I wouldn’t question your business trips. You’re gone half the year as it is. Should I be worried? I have no clue who you’re with—”

  “When are you going to trust me?”

  “I do!”

  “It shouldn’t matter where I am. I’m still committed to you!”

  “For now!”

  He huffed out. “You think I have a side piece now? Should I be worried about you? What if some other guy finds you in a—” he abruptly stopped. Our chests were both heaving and I was ready to kick his ass for what he had better not be saying.

  My eyes narrowed as my fist clenched, and I found myself getting angrier from something that hadn’t happened.

  Christopher pushed me back against the cold wet tiles, and leaned in close. “Nothing is going to happen while we’re away. I trust you, and you are going to trust me, Quinn. It’s only thirty days. We’re both blowing this out of proportion.” He lifted my chin. “I don’t like being away from you either.”

  I closed my eyes. I hated being away from him and that was what scared me the most. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him, more so that I didn’t trust myself. Christopher was nothing like who I thought he would be, and that scared the hell out of me. I was falling too quickly, and he had broken through every defense I had. Now, when I have some sense of . . . us . . . we’re never together for there to be an “us.”