“I don’t either,” Aaron said, then flinched as she swatted him on the arm.
“I said not to talk with food in your mouth. What will Jenny think?”
But I was laughing at the indignant look on Aaron’s face and disapproving expression of his mother. These two were quite a pair.
“I was trying to agree with you,” Aaron exclaimed after he’d swallowed his biscuit.
“Yeah, yeah. No need to kiss up to me. I’ve already made you extra food to take home this week. I swear, I don’t know how you eat so much.”
“I’m a growing boy,” Aaron said with a smile.
His mom just rolled her eyes again and turned to the counter, mashing the avocadoes in a rock mortar and pestle.
“So, you’re a grown man that still needs his mom to cook his meals?” I teased him with a small grin.
“What can I say? I’m a man of many talents, but cooking isn’t one of them,” he shrugged.
I looked around the kitchen. It wasn’t a huge room, but it had a cozy feeling to it. There were ceramic hens along the tops of the cabinets and the refrigerator was covered with pictures of people that had to be their family members.
“These are my brothers,” Aaron said, following my gaze and pointing to a picture of himself with two younger guys. “Ruben and Tony.”
“I walked over to the fridge to get a closer look. “And these kids?”
“Ruben’s girls. He and his wife are actually expecting a third girl in a couple of months.”
“Wow. That’s amazing,” I said. It was sweet to see the love on his face as he spoke about his family. We stood there talking about them for a half an hour while his mom worked to finish up dinner, humming to herself. He told me about growing up as the oldest of three boys and how proud he was that they had both turned out to be such good men. When he talked about his nieces, whom he referred to as princesses, I could tell that he utterly adored them.
“Can I help you with anything at all?” I asked his mom after the rundown of his family.
“You two can set the table, dear. Silverware is in the drawer by the sink.”
I gathered silverware while Aaron gathered up plates and napkins. We moved into the dining room together and started to set the table. The table was large and could easily accommodate his whole family. “Do your brothers usually come to this weekly dinner?”
“Ruben brings Steph and the kids most of the time, but they won’t be able to make it today. Tony lives in Nevada, so we don’t see him as much as we’d like.”
“Did you guys grow up here?” The house had a homey feeling to it and I could just imagine three rambunctious young boys running around the place.
“No. I bought this house for Mama right after SXz took off. It was the first big purchase I ever made in my life,” he said, looking around thoughtfully.
“You bought it before your own home?”
“Of course. Mom comes first.”
His response was so matter-of-fact that it seemed he wasn’t even aware of how amazing that mindset was. I felt my chest fill with a sentimental warmth as I looked at him. If I wasn’t careful, I was bound to lose my heart to this man.
Chapter Sixteen: Aaron
After dinner with my mom, we went back to my house, loaded up with six days’ worth of freezer meals that she had made for me. The logical thing to do was to drop them off at my home while they were still cold so that’s where we ended up.
I was stuffing food into my nearly empty freezer when I bumped against the only thing in there, a bag of ice. It came tumbling out onto the floor and split open, sending ice cubes scattering across the kitchen floor around us. “Dammit,” I mumbled, squatting down to start scooping up the ice and throwing it into the sink.
Jenny kneeled down to help, and we made quick work of the cleanup, until there was only one cube left between us. Reaching out at the same time, our hands touched, and I felt a spark travel through my body. I had resolutely avoided any kind of sexual situation in the last few days because I didn’t want to take advantage of Jenny’s vulnerability, but, as our eyes met, I felt compelled to give her a kiss.
We moved toward one another at the same time, meeting in the middle with a slow, gentle touch of our lips. Without speaking, we embraced, the last piece of ice forgotten to melt on the floor as we stood together. When we broke apart, I entwined our hands and started to tug her with me to the bedroom.
This wasn’t like the last time we had been together, which had been fast and passionate. This felt different, heavier. We weren’t talking about our relationship with words, but we didn’t need them as we caressed each other and slowly stripped. As I lowered Jenny onto the bed and pulled her jeans off of her legs, I knew that there would be no acting like nothing had happened after this encounter. If we continued, this was a commitment.
I didn’t stop.
Once she was spread out naked before me, I lowered my body over hers and scattered kisses across her chest. Making my way down to her core, I gripped her hips and lifted my head just before I reached my destination. Looking at her face, I saw desire swimming in her eyes. “So beautiful,” I said softly, before burying my face between her legs.
I heard her gasp and felt her body go stiff around me. I loved the sounds of her moans and the uncontrollable thrusting of her hips as I pleasured her with my mouth. I’d never felt more powerful than I did as I brought her to the edge of completion.
I pulled away before she orgasmed, earning a tortured groan from her. Standing, I shoved my boxers down my hips as she watched with fire in her eyes.
“Aaron, please,” she groaned, rubbing her thighs together and squirming with frustration.
“Don’t worry, baby. You’ll come. But I want to feel it happen while I’m inside of you,” I quickly rolled on a condom and settled myself between her thighs. Firmly gripping my swollen member, I lined myself up with her entrance and covered her mouth with another kiss as I pushed in, stopping only when I was completely within her.
Jenny grasped my biceps and held on tightly as I slowly withdrew, only to push myself back in firmly. Her nails dug into my skin as she let out a hiss. I settled into that rhythm of slow withdrawal followed by rough thrust, my lips trailing kisses down her neck. I heard her purr in pleasure as I reached the juncture of her neck and shoulder, making my thrusts pick up speed as frantic need consumed me.
“Oh my god. Aaron, I’m … I’m …”
I felt Jenny’s insides contract around me as she let out a small scream of pleasure. The sensation was too much and I found my own release seconds later, every muscle in my body seeming to tense as I threw my head back in frenzied pleasure. I looked down at Jenny, still buried in her body. Her eyes were shining up at me with an unmistakable emotion and I felt a tug in my chest.
“Jenny, I …”
Instead of finishing my sentence, I leaned down and kissed her, trying to pour my emotions into the joining of our lips. I didn’t know why I couldn’t bring myself to say it.
You’re a chicken shit.
Okay, yeah. I’d never said those three words to a woman before and I was afraid to put myself out there like that. Maybe someday.
I had pulled my boxers back on and was walking into the bathroom when Jenny’s phone dinged. I knelt down and snagged her pants off the floor, tossing them to her so she could check it without having to get out of the bed. In the bathroom, I threw away the loaded condom and washed my hands before returning with a towel for her to clean herself up with.
I found her sitting up in bed, the sheet wrapped around her chest, and staring at her phone with a horrified expression. I hurried to her side, only to have her shrink back, flinching from my touch. I couldn’t disguise the hurt in my voice as I spoke, “What’s wrong?”
She looked up into my face and I was struck by the change in her. The lines of her face were hard and set, while her eyes showed torment. What the hell just happened?
Wordlessly, she held her phone out to me and I took it, a sense
of dread pooling in my stomach. There, on her screen, were two pictures. One was her. It looked like she may have been in a group photo that was cropped. She was wearing a black dress with a plunging neckline and an open smile. The photo was me, I recognized it as one from a charity event two years ago. There was a skinny model on my arm and I was dressed in a tuxedo.
Beneath the picture was a headline: Billionaire Playboy Will Do Anything to Purchase the San Francisco Titans, Even Sleeping with the Owner’s Granddaughter.
My eyes widened as I scrolled down and scanned the article. It was a relatively short piece. The piece asserted that I was sleeping with Jennifer Condliffe to get her approval to buy the team. There were even direct quotes from my conversation with Damian. His teasing about getting what I want by sleeping with Jenny was in here, taken completely out of context. My words about the team being important and finding a way to get it were also directly quoted. What the fuck?
Of course, everything was framed to make me look like a selfish ass that was using Jenny. All information was said to have been provided by an anonymous source. It couldn’t be Damian, could it?
I looked at Jenny as she snatched the phone from my hands. She gave me an angry look that felt like a bucket of cold water being thrown in my face. She believed this, she thought that I used her.
Chapter Seventeen: Jenny
I swear I could feel my heart breaking in my chest. How could he do this to me? What kind of a person would sink to this level for a football team?
“Let me explain —”
“Explain? Explain what? I can’t imagine what you could possibly say to me that would make this okay, so don't waste your breath.”
Struck with the need to be dressed, I stood from the bed with the sheet wrapped around me as I started to pick up my discarded clothes. I didn't want him to see my naked body any more than he already had. Shame filled me as I thought of him faking an attraction to me to get what he wanted.
“No, listen. It was taken out of context.”
“Are you saying your friend didn’t suggest that sleeping with me was a good way to get what you wanted from me? How about the remark about doing whatever you need to do to get the team?”
“Okay, yes. Damian said that,” Aaron admitted. “But it was just a joke!” He hastened to add when I scoffed.
“A joke? Well, I'm so glad that you find my humiliation amusing.” My voice cracked, and I despised that I was showing him how upset I was. My pride was taking several hits today.
Grabbing my jeans off the floor, I struggled into them without dropping the sheet, barely managing. Next, I pulled my shirt over my head, not worrying about the bra. He could throw the thing out for all I cared. Once I was mostly dressed, I threw the sheet back onto the bed and pulled on my shoes.
“Hey, don’t leave like this. I didn’t try to get you in bed so you’d sell me the team. I wouldn’t do that. I’m not a monster.”
“No, you’re just an arrogant billionaire that’s used to getting what he wants.” I hurried out of his bedroom and slammed the door behind me. I heard him curse and the doorknob started to turn. I took off down the hallway, heading to the front door, ordering an Uber as I went. He caught up to me just as I was reaching out to open the front door.
“Stop,” he said, his voice pleading. I froze for a moment.
“You know, there are some things that are more important than money or the prestige of owning a pro football team,” I said, turning to face him as tears filled my eyes. “You assholes that will do anything to get your way ... you guys might not understand that. But a person’s feelings matter, even if they do stand in your way.”
"Jenny —"
I couldn't stick around for another second. Wrenching the front door open, I threw myself into the evening air. He didn’t follow. Perhaps it was because he was dressed only in boxers. Or maybe he was deciding that it wasn’t worth it. I didn’t know why he let me go, but I was glad he stayed behind. I wasn't going to let this guy see me sob over him. No, I could at least wait to do that in private. Some things, such as grieving the loss of a man you thought you knew, were best done alone.
Chapter Eighteen: Aaron
I walked into Damian’s office without knocking. He looked up in surprise and frowned when he took in the look on my face. “What’s wrong?”
“Have you seen this?” I asked him, setting my tablet on the desk in front of him and standing back while he scanned the article.
“No, I hadn’t,” he said, looking up at me when he had finished reading it. “Somebody’s fucking with us.” His face was serious, but clear of any guilt. My shoulders sagged as I let out a sigh. I hadn’t really thought it was him, but I felt reassured nonetheless.
“You didn’t tell anyone else, right?”
“Just Gigi,” he said, shrugging.
Well, that was a dead-end. I sat heavily in the chair in front of his desk. How did everything go so wrong, so fast?
“Has she seen it?” Damian asked.
“Oh, yeah. And reacted as you would expect.”
“I’m sorry, man.”
“She stormed out yesterday and hasn’t answered my calls since. I don’t know if it’s better to give her space or chase her down and demand she listen.”
“Tough call. I went the ‘give her space’ route with Gigi. In my experience, that’s not the way to go. You gotta make things right before she decides you don’t care enough to bother.”
“I need to find out who did this first.”
“No leads?”
“I have a meeting in ten minutes that I hope will illuminate the situation for me. But I wanted to let you know first. You’re not mentioned by name, but I thought you should know just the same. And we’ll need to talk about negative press affecting the company.”
“I don’t think it’ll be a problem. Jenny isn’t connected to SXz in any way. Besides, this sensational crap usually blows over pretty quickly.”
“I hope so,” I said, getting to my feet and heading to the door. “In the meantime, I’m going to find out who did this and make them pay.”
When I returned to my office, I found a man sitting behind my desk with long, wild-looking brown hair and a full beard. He was wearing a black panama hat and a long grey trench coat. I could see a pink and purple shirt peeking out from under the coat. He was leaning back in my chair with his feet up on the desk and his hands folded behind his head. He looked perfectly comfortable as he watched me walk into the office and glare at him.
“What’s going on here?” But as I asked the question, a piece of memory floated to the surface of my brain. Days ago, when I had met Damian at The Empty Glass, there was an odd-looking man sitting at the far end of the bar. I had avoided staring at him but had noticed his appearance nonetheless.
“You? You were there when I told Damian about Jenny. Who are you?” Anger filled me. This couldn’t be a coincidence. He had to be the source of information to the press. I took a step forward and the guy popped up out of the chair and held his hands up in front of himself defensively.
“Whoa! No, no, no. It’s me,” the man said, his voice slightly familiar. He whipped the hat off his head and then removed his hair … oh, it was a wig. “It’s Alex.”
Indeed, Alex’s hair and eyes were now visible. As I watched, he started to pull off the beard. “What the hell are you doing, dressed like that?”
“My job,” he responded, as if it was obvious. “The one you hired me to do.”
“Why were you in the bar that day? I didn’t hire you to follow me.”
“I wasn’t. I was chasing down a lead.”
“Dressed like that? Doesn’t that draw a lot of attention?”
“That’s the point. Most people shy away from the weird or awkward. This outfit is a way of hiding in plain sight. Yeah, people see me, they notice me, but no one looks too close. They think they know what they’re looking at, an oddball, and they move on.”
I considered his reasoning for a moment. “That makes
sense.”
“Here.” He pulled a folder from the inside of his trench coat and handed it to me. “there’s your source.”
Opening the folder, I felt my eyes widen as I took in the picture on the inside. Flipping through the whole report quickly, I felt my blood boil. “You’re sure?” I asked Alex.
“Yep,” he responded, popping a piece of gum into his mouth and chewing loudly. “The evidence is all there.”
I nodded. Indeed, it was. Closing the file and sitting in on my desk, I walked over to my office window and looked out, a plan forming in my mind.
“I need you to do something else for me,” I said to Alex. “Another job. It’s not part of your usual services, but I’ll pay well. Besides, you can wear a ridiculous disguise if you want.”
“I’m in.”
I walked into The Empty Glass with a smile on my face. Strolling to my usual booth, I took a seat and got comfortable. The place was dead, which was to be expected on a Monday afternoon, but I preferred it this way. I was just glad that Mel was working today.
“Hey. What’s up? How you been?” she greeted me as she approached my table, a wide grin on her face. She had changed up her hair from pink to blue. It made me think of Alex’s explanation of his disguise and hiding in plain sight. Surely Mel didn’t want anyone looking too closely.
I had been such an idiot.
“I’ve been better. But things are going to turn around for sure,” I told her coolly.
“Good. You want your usual scotch?”
“Actually, no. Why don’t you sit down with me for a while?”
She looked around, as if expecting to see a manager standing over her shoulder. “I’m not really supposed to.”
“The place is empty. I’m sure management will understand.”
“Well…” she hesitated for another couple of seconds before sitting in the seat across from me. “Just for a bit. And I’ll have to get up if anyone else comes in.”
Tech Titans: The Complete Billionaire Romance Series Page 37