by LK Collins
“Me too.”
“So listen, we might have a little problem with this weekend’s plans.”
“What? No! Why?”
“There’s a huge oil company that just came on the market. This would be monumental for our company and me if I can close the deal. Right now, I’m trying to nail down a price and if I can’t, I’ll likely have to fly to California to do it in person.”
“Can’t your dad do it? He lives there.”
“You know he can’t. I’ve got to prove to him that I’m ready.”
My heart keeps sinking further and further down to the bottom of my stomach. As I enter my building, I imagine not seeing him ‘til next weekend, and I say to him, “I don’t think I can make it nine days without seeing you.”
“Me neither, babe, that’s why I’m gonna get this deal closed, and it’s not gonna interfere with our plans…but I had to be honest.”
“I’m back at work; I should go.”
“Don’t be down. I’ll get it done.”
I hang up with him and wander to my desk, bummed out. Sitting down, I realize that I’m falling for him and I’m not sure how it happened and so damn quickly. The same patterns I always try and avoid always seem to happen, and this is when things begin to go wrong.
Chapter 36
Merritt
“Should I book it, Mr. Smith?” Suzy asks me as I stare at my computer, waiting for a response from Exlon, the company we’re trying to acquire.
“Give me a little longer.”
She walks off, and I pick up the phone, calling my contact at the company to see if we’ve gotten a response. There is no answer, and I’m pissed off to be dicked around so badly. I call my dad’s office to see if they’ve heard anything.
His receptionist patches me through, and I ask him raking my fingers through my hair, “What if I don’t close the deal?”
“Then I don’t think you’re ready to run this company.” I pace across my office, pissed, that again it’s coming down to one deal. “We need this deal, Merritt, more than we’ve ever needed to close a deal before.”
“That’s what you always fuckin’ say,” I scoff at him. “It’s like you’re changing your mind and giving me a task that’s unrealistic. You know as well as I do that we aren’t going to come to terms with them. They want way too much money.”
“Merritt, you’re not looking at the bigger picture. This is how we’ve gotten to be as big as we are. I don’t have much time left here, and you know it. You’ve gotta prove to me you can steer this company into the future.”
“I’m ready, and you know I am. I’ve been working my ass off for you, I got the Serranos back, and this week alone, I’ve acquired ten new sites with prime oil ready for us to begin drilling.”
“Closing the Exlon deal will be like acquiring a million new sites, so if you want this company, then close the fucking deal.”
Looking at my own reflection in the glass window of my office, I could go off on him for so many reasons. It’s always something else when it comes to him, another reason to stall or another hoop to jump through. He always says, “You know my time is coming…” But when? I just hope in the end it’ll all be worth it.
Hanging up on him, I buzz Suzy and tell her, “Book it.”
“Yes, sir,” she tells me, and I hang up, hating that I have to call Quinn and tell her that I’m not coming to Denver this weekend. But what other choice do I have? He’s leaving me with none, like always.
Closing my office door, I dial her number, and she answers on the first ring.
“The flowers are gorgeous.”
“You got them?” I ask, almost forgetting that I had Suzy send them to her.
“I did, just now. They are sitting on my desk, and now my office smells like a garden. I can’t wait for you to see them, I’ll bring them home tonight.”
“About that…I won’t make it after all. I do have to go to Cali.”
“Okay,” she sounds understanding, not the response I’d expected. I guess I don’t really know what I was expecting.
“You sure?”
“Of course, I know how much your work means to you. I’ll catch up on some TV and see you next weekend.”
***
Glaring at my father as he sits next to me during our lunch with the Exlon execs, I’m pissed he showed up. This was supposed to be all me, my chance to prove I was ready to run the company, and now here he is.
“Can I get another?” I ask the waiter, pointing to my drink.
I haven’t said much of anything this entire time, my dad being the center of attention like always.
“Haven’t you had enough?” he asks me, leaning over, and I finish the rest of the drink in front of me not answering him.
My phone vibrates, and I pull it out, I’m here, where are you? Quinn texts me.
What the fuck?
Like here-here? How is that possible? Looking at my phone, the screen becomes blurry. Fuck, I drank a lot. I text her back. Where?
Cali, your hotel. Probably shouldn’t have given me access to your calendar. But I brought the sash.
Now anxious to leave and take out some of my pent-up frustrations the way I love to most, I ask the question of the hour, “So let’s be honest.” The group of six men, my father included, all look at me. I clear my throat and try not to sound so drunk. “What’s it gonna take to close the deal?”
One of the men leans forward, resting his elbows on the table and says to me, “I think about a half million more.”
“What about a partnership?” I offer, knowing…I have to close the deal. He didn’t say we had to be the sole owner, just to close it.
The men all seem intrigued. My father, on the other hand, is suddenly tense. “What did you have in mind?”
“Let us take over your leases for one year, with the option to buy at the end of the term. It’ll give you the cash you need from going bankrupt, and it’ll give us the oil we need to produce revenue.”
The men seem to all be considering it, and my father says, “As CEO, I’m sorry, but I’m only looking to purchase your company, one hundred percent.”
“A half million more,” their CEO says, and then they stand, shaking our hands before leaving the table. My father, as usual, ruined the negotiations.
“What the hell was that, Merritt?” he scolds me.
“You told me to close the deal, so I was closing it.”
“I told you I wanted to acquire them.”
“Sure, but you didn’t say how. And a lease-to-buy option is a good one. We’d have revenues coming in next month. Which is way faster than the process of purchasing them is going to be. You know with lawyers and paperwork, it’ll at least be a year, and what, are you gonna stay until that’s done too?”
He doesn’t answer me, and I walk away from my dad. He’s pissed and hot on my heels. “You don’t have the authority to make those decisions,” he says.
“Of course I don’t, ‘cause had I come here alone like I’d planned, I’d have the deal closed, but without the authority to do it.”
Walking up to my hotel, my dad walks off not saying anything else. I hope he feels fuckin’ stupid for shooting down my idea, ‘cause he’s gotta know it’s brilliant and the best way to acquire one of the largest commercial oil producing companies.
My thoughts are cut short as I spot Quinn, as gorgeous as ever, sitting in one of the chairs in the lobby. She’s really here, and I have no clue how I got so goddamn lucky. But this shit day just turned completely around.
Chapter 37
Quinn
“I can’t believe you’re here,” Merritt says, taking me in his arms and pinning me down on the bed.
“I couldn’t help myself.”
“Is that why you were so cool when I said I couldn’t come?”
“Uh huh,” I tell him, because as we talked on the phone earlier, I was already booking my flight.
“Fuck, I’ve missed you,” he tells me, pressing me hard into the mattress and
kissing me. Holding on to the back of his head, I kick my shoes off and work my tongue against his.
He pulls back for a second; his eyes are glazed over and red. “Are you drunk?” I ask.
“Maybe a little,” he confesses and slides off me, pushing my dress up and fingering me.
“How was your meeting?” I ask, worried that he’s drunk and handling business.
“It sucked. My asshole of a dad showed up, and it really made me wonder why I even came here.” He’s no longer fingering me, just cupping my sex and I can tell that his brain is spinning.
“Let it go, baby. Don’t let him into your head. We’re together now, and you can focus on me all night long.”
He nods and kisses my neck. Taking him by the shoulders, I roll him onto his back. He lets me straddle him, his hands both resting on my thighs. Lifting my dress over my head, my tits spring free and his eyes get wide. “You flew without a bra and panties on?”
“Maybe. Does that turn you on?”
“A lot!”
Leaning down, I kiss his neck, nibbling and sucking on his skin, and he moves his hands squeezing my ass cheeks, spreading them wide.
Our bodies grind together, like a couple of high schoolers dry humping, and I make quick work of removing his pants. His hard cock makes me unbelievably wet, and I don’t waste a second before I settle down on it, my pussy clenching him as he pushes himself up inside me.
Knotting my fingers into my hair, I bounce with him, his balls hitting my ass with every thrust, he’s moving so fast, and then he stops. Looking down at him, he’s got that look—the one that says he wants more, needs more. Without a single word, I lift off of him. He spreads my cheeks wide, and I reach back, clenching his sloppy dick as I line it up with my ass.
Our bodies connect like a puzzle, he fits right inside of me. The feeling of fullness makes me want to come undone. Still holding my ass he pumps himself in and out of me, giving me every single inch that he is. My noises arc and my breathing is so quick that I won’t last much longer.
I fight to stay in control, but it’s too much. My insides quiver and the instant he really picks up speed, I come hard. “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” I chant, having an unbelievably intense orgasm. Each stream of his white is hot inside of me, and as he finishes, he flips me onto my back, ripping his shirt off as he pummels into me. One hand is splayed across my chest while his other holds one of my legs to the side.
He’s ruthless, fucking me harder than ever, my body scooting up the bed. I reach above me, pressing my fingers to the headboard to keep myself in place.
“You like being fucked hard?” he asks me in a deep, sexy tone.
“Yes.”
Our eyes are connected, locked on each other’s in a whirlwind of sex. With Merritt, there are no rules or boundaries, just each other’s rawest desires, and he brings so many desires out of me. Every single hidden fantasy that I have, I want to experience them all with him.
***
“Should we order room service?” I ask Merritt, as I dry off from our shower.
“If you want to, but we can also go out.”
“Whatever you want to do is fine with me.” He walks up behind me, his large hands roaming my body as he rubs up and down it.
“We should go out,” I tell him, knowing if we stay in, all we’ll do is fuck, and as much as I love it, I need to be able to walk normally for my dad’s birthday Monday night.
“God, you’re beautiful,” he tells me, kissing my neck and then getting dressed himself.
“Thank you. Would you put this on me?” I ask handing him my bracelet he bought for me in Steamboat.
“Did you ever put a wish inside?”
“I did.”
“What’s it say?” he asks me curiously.
“I’m not telling you, or it won’t come true.”
He rolls his eyes at me and pretends to open the box. I smack his arm, and he acts like I have superhuman strength and actually hurt him. Giving him a hug, I kiss the spot I hit. But he tries to open my bracelet again.
“Fine, fine, I’ll tell you.”
“You will?”
“Yeah, ‘cause it’s already come true.”
“Then tell me.”
“I’m just joking.” I grin from ear to ear and grab my purse, waiting for Merritt at the door. He spanks me as he opens the door, and we wander down the hall hand in hand. He presses the down button on the elevator and says to me, “Have you ever fucked in an elevator?”
“No, you?”
“Nope, wanna try?”
I nod and raise my eyebrows to him. As the doors open, we go to step in, but someone exits and when I see the guy standing there, my world halts.
“Dad,” Merritt says, and I…What the fuck is going on? I have no clue how this is even fucking possible. Merritt’s dad doesn’t answer. Instead he’s staring at me, the same way he used to, the same look he gave me that made me fall for him in the first place.
“I didn’t know you had company, son.”
“Oh yeah, this is my girlfriend, Quinn. She flew in and surprised me. Quinn, this is my dad, Charles.” I swallow not sure how to respond, and he stretches out his hand in a friendly gesture as if he doesn’t know me. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Quinn.”
As I shake his hand back, I’m stunned, sick to my stomach, and not sure what to do.
Chapter 38
Merritt
They shake hands, and he says to me, “Merritt, I was just coming up to see you. I got to thinking about your idea with Exlon, and it might not be such a bad way to go.”
“Really?” I ask him shocked.
“Yeah, I mean, we do need the revenue, and I’m not gonna stick around for much longer. We should discuss it more.”
“Quinn and I were going to grab a bite to eat, do you wanna talk afterwards?”
“I have a meeting,” he says, and I look at Quinn, hoping she doesn’t mind if I invite him. She smiles at me, and I squeeze her hand.
“Wanna join us?”
“Sure, if you don’t mind?” he looks at Quinn, and she says, “Oh, not at all.”
He presses the call button on the elevator and says to us, “So how long have you two been together?”
“What’s it been, babe?” I ask her, and she shrugs her shoulders, seemingly quiet.
“A few months.”
“How did you meet?” he asks.
“On that trip, Ari invited me to in Colorado.”
“Ahhh, so you know Ari?”
She nods and he says, “Where should we eat?”
“Wherever.”
We follow my dad into the restaurant at the hotel and get seated right away. Quinn hasn’t said much, and it’s not like her to be quiet. “Are you okay?” I ask her.
“Yeah, I’m just getting a migraine, that’s all.”
“This okay?” my dad asks us.
“Yeah, it’s great,” I respond and open my menu. I glance over mine and decide on steak and eggs. Then notice my dad hasn’t touched his, he’s studying Quinn in a very peculiar way.
“So what made you change your mind on Exlon?” I ask him.
“I was going to wait to tell you this on your birthday, but December 31st will be my last day with the company. That’s why I’ve been pushing you so hard. So we don’t have much time. I’ve contacted our legal team, and they are drafting up the paperwork as we speak.”
“Wow, okay.”
The news kinda comes as a shock. I mean, I knew or hoped it was eventually coming, but just yesterday he was busting my balls about being ready to run the company, and now he’s having the paperwork drafted for it.
“So I think we should move forward with Exlon in the way you proposed. I trust you can close the deal, however you see fit?”
“Absolutely.”
I’m stunned sitting here. I’ve got the girl of my dreams and what I’ve worked all my life for, is finally coming true.
“So, Quinn, what is it that you do for a living?” he asks her.
“I’m in the financial industry.”
“Oh, what do you do?”
“I’m an investment advisor.”
“Nice, I should really get one of those. Do you have a card?”
“Quinn doesn’t work with people she knows,” I tell him, trying to save her from the awkwardness. She already seems quiet and not herself, so I don’t want her to have to explain to my dad, who she just met, that she can’t help him.
“Probably better, I’ve been there myself. Merritt and I have had our fair share of issues.”
As I look at my dad, his sudden change in attitude is so bizarre that I begin to wonder if he’s putting on a show for Quinn. And if he is…why? He’s not one to care what others think about him, so why start now?
***
“Well, that was weird,” I tell Quinn as we get back to our room from breakfast.
“What was?”
“Uhhh, my dad, being all nice. I know you don’t know him, but that’s not how he normally is. Do you really think he’s actually drafting up the documents for the business?”
“If he says so, I’m sure he is.” Quinn lies down on the bed; her eyes are heavy, and I can tell her head is killing her. “Do you have any medicine here?” I ask.
“No, I left it all at home.”
“Want me to go and get you something from the pharmacy?”
“You don’t have to, just hold me.”
Kicking off my shoes, I line my body along hers and wrap her in my arms. Breathing her in. Her scent is so amazing. I’m not sure how everything turned out the way it did, but it has, and soon I’ll be taking the first real step in owning my own company. All of my years of hard work are finally paying off.
Chapter 39
Quinn
Watching Merritt leave so he can go meet with Exlon, I’m still so sick to my stomach, and mentally I…I’m a mess, so fucked up about all of this, and not sure what to do. I’m lying to him, and I hate it. But what do I say to him? How do I tell him? I keep asking myself over and over, and each time, I come up with nothing.
My palms are sweaty, and my insides are sick with deceit. I can’t bear to hurt him; he’s been so good to me. Biting my thumbnail, there is a knock on the door. Getting up to answer it, I assume it’s Merritt, and he forgot something, but as I look out the peephole, it’s Charles, and I’m not sure what to do.