CHAPTER 9
My feet pounded through the last mile on the treadmill. Sweat dripped down the side of my face and I wiped it away with my hand. A solid cardio workout was what I needed to clear my head, as work just didn’t seem to be cutting it lately. My life, and all that was in it, had suddenly become uninteresting. All except for one thing.
Krystina Cole.
I had gone into the office that morning, only to find that I was completely bored with the tasks that awaited me. There was no excitement, no challenge. The only highpoint from the morning had been reading Krystina’s snappy text messages.
Disgusted with myself for lack of focus, I ended up canceling my appointments for the rest of the day, and headed down to the gym in Corner Stone Tower. I had looked for my trainer, but he was with another appointment. I could have pushed for a session, but decided that it would be better to go at it alone. My sullen mood dictated the necessity for solidarity.
Up until recently, I had been satisfied. I had money. I had status. And I’ve never once had to pursue a woman. Yet here I was, chasing after some chic that I barely knew, playing a game that I’ve never before had to play. I tried to shut it down, but Krystina’s brown eyes haunted me even in my sleep. Images of her naked and kneeling consumed me, so much so that I could barely think about much else.
And it was seriously pissing me off.
I finished the final mile and slowed the treadmill to a cool down speed. I could have easily gone another five miles at a run, but I was done. Even the workout was boring me.
I’ve been too long without a Sub. That’s my problem.
Grabbing a towel, I hit the showers.
Bracing myself against the shower wall, I let the water steam over me as I thought about the last time I had a good fuck. Nobody really stuck out in my mind, at least not one that I’d care to hook up with again. I could only think of one person that I wanted, despite my efforts to forget about her, and I wasn’t even sure if she would even be open to my sort of lifestyle.
But I could show her the ropes…
Ropes.
The metaphor put another image in my head, and I slammed my fist against the tiled wall.
How old am I? I seriously need to get a grip!
I had to think about this rationally. Too many things had gone wrong since meeting Krystina. Despite what she thought, I really did have every intention of giving her a formal interview that day in my conference room. But at some point, my intentions had changed. I didn’t mean to seduce her.
Or did I? Who am I kidding?
I’ve wanted her under me, hot and submissive, since day one.
But be that as it may, I had handled the situation with her without thinking and had been forced to wait it out. Krystina needed space after the interview gone wrong. There was truth behind the expression about patience being a virtue, so I had deliberately given her a few days to cool off, maintaining silent neutrality between us while I put together a plan. The cell phone swap was just the beginning of what I had in mind, even if she was ticked off about it. I had known before sending it that she wouldn’t be the most receptive. For once, I was able to accurately predict her reaction. But Krystina’s anger had been a risk that I was willing to take if it meant that I got to see her again.
Stepping from the showers, I quickly towel dried and threw on jeans and a t-shirt. I collected my duffle bag and the garment bag that contained my suit from earlier in the day, and headed out of the locker rooms.
As I approached the front desk of the gym, I saw that Gretchen was working the counter. Gretchen was attractive, a pretty face with a tall and lean physique, and was currently sporting yoga pants and a pink crop top. She had been skirting around me for months, dropping elusive hints to show her interest in me every time we spoke.
She gave me a coy smile and averted her eyes down when she saw me approaching.
Definitely the submissive type. Maybe I should just scratch my plans for Krystina and satisfy my bug with this one.
In just a few short strides, I closed the distance between us and stepped up to the counter. Gretchen’s eyes remained downcast, even though she knew that I was right in front of her.
“Hey, Gretchen,” I drawled out, deliberately turning up the charm for the gym employee. However, even to my own ears, the greeting sounded false. Fake. I flashed her a toothy grin and a wink in an attempt to be more convincing.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Stone. What can I do for you today?” Gretchen asked. Her words were professional, but her tone was suggestive and could be easily picked up on by anyone with a sharp ear.
You can do a lot of things for me, baby. Particularly anything that will make me forget about a brunette’s curls and big brown eyes.
“Actually, I need a couple of things. First, I need you to send this suit up to Laura. I want it sent out for dry cleaning,” I told her, handing over the garment bag. “Secondly, I need to use an office for about fifteen minutes or so.”
She took the suit from me and allowed her fingers to hesitate slightly on mine. Her gaze traveled from our hands to my face, her eyes narrowing provocatively. After a few seconds, she turned to place the bag on the counter behind her. When she spun to face me again, her cheeks were flushed a rosy pink.
Hmm. She’s almost making this too easy.
“The manager’s office is available for you to use if you will be requiring a computer. Or you can use the meeting room if you want a locked door with a little more privacy,” she offered.
It was hard not to notice the way she emphasized the last word. Or the obvious mention of a locked door. She shifted her eyes to the side, bit her lip, and nervously tugged on the ends of her blond ponytail.
She couldn’t have been more conspicuous.
In the past, I’ve always brushed off her flirtations. She went against my rules. I never take on the unknown, or I’d risk jeopardizing too much. It was much safer to stick to women that I knew had interests that reflected my own, as they understood the value of discretion. Privacy was hard to maintain for someone of my stature. Gretchen worked in my building and people talk. People talk a lot.
Fuck the rules for one day. I should just go for this one.
But as soon as I thought it, I dismissed the notion and resigned myself to the inevitable.
Rules or no rules. It isn’t going to work.
“I only need to make a couple of calls. Joe’s office will be fine,” I stated indifferently. My tone was clipped rather than polite, as I was irritated with myself for giving her even a moment of consideration.
“Whatever is easier for you, sir,” she accommodated with a slight nod. The light in her eyes extinguished, her poise returning to all business. “I’ll just phone ahead and make sure that Joe clears the space for you.”
“Thank you, Gretchen.”
Any decent man would have felt a small twinge of guilt about leading her on, only to shut her down seconds later. But I wasn’t one of those men. For me, the rationale was simple. Gretchen wasn’t what I wanted. She was easy. Simple. Lacking any sort of challenge. A one-time roll in the hay with her would never dispel the restless energy that I had been dealing with for days. There was only one woman that held that power.
Krystina.
I walked away from the obviously disappointed Gretchen and headed down the corridor that would take me to Joe’s office. When I came around the corner, I spotted the gym manager closing his office door behind him.
“Mr. Stone,” Joe greeted when he saw me coming towards him. When I reached him, he extended his hand to me.
“Joe,” I returned, accepting his handshake. It was loose, like a limp noodle, and cold and clammy against my palm. It was not the sort of handshake one would expect from someone with shoulders like a linebacker. “Thank you for the space. You saved me a trip back upstairs to my office. I’ll only be a few minutes.”
“Take all the time you need, sir. If you need the computer, I left the guest login password on the desk for you. I’ll just b
e in the training room reviewing schedules. Please don’t hesitate to call me there if you need anything else.”
“Will do.”
Once he walked away, I wiped my hand on the leg of my jeans, attempting to dry the dampness that had been left there by the handshake. Joe was always nervous around me, although I could never understand why. In fact, everyone seemed to be nervous in my presence lately.
Has it always been like that? Or is it that I’m just noticing it for the first time?
Even Krystina was tense around me. The way she twisted her hands together, or fiddled with the hem of her shirt – I intimidated her. She practically told me as much in her interview.
I’m not that much of an asshole, am I?
I stepped into the small office and closed the door behind me, my thoughts once again returning to Krystina. Phase one in my plan had already been set in motion. It was time to forge ahead with the next step.
I knew that she would not be showing up for her “rescheduled” interview. I never had the notion that she actually would. But that was okay, as long as everything else fell into place.
I took a seat behind Joe’s gray metal-framed desk, and dialed Matteo Donati’s cell number. Matteo and I had been friends since high school, and I knew I could count on him to be discreet.
“Matt, I need a favor,” I said when he picked up.
“Whatever you need,” he obliged, his Italian accent still prevalent even after the twenty years he had spent in the States. “What’s up?”
“I need to arrange a private meeting with someone. It’s got to be tonight. Is the restaurant ready to entertain me and a guest?”
“If you don’t mind a nameless place with limited selections,” he joked, despite that fact that I knew he was frustrated. Matteo had mapped out every tiny detail for the restaurant, from the font printed on the menus to the wattage of the light bulbs. He had a true vision, but he was stumped when it came down to naming his lifelong dream.
“You’re over thinking it. I’ll help you figure out a name, don’t worry,” I assured him. “I know that the place isn’t finished, but I’m really just looking for somewhere that’s free of outside influences and interruptions. Can you make it work?”
“Enough is done that I could pull it off. Who’s the guest?”
“She’s a prospect for Turning Stone Advertising.”
“She?”
“Yes, she,” I confirmed. I knew that the request was probably more than a little odd, especially for me. I made a habit of conducting as much business as possible at Cornerstone Tower. I pursed my lips, waiting for the questions to flood. To my relief, they didn’t.
“I’ll go out this afternoon and get the things that I’ll need to put a dinner together. I should have the place ready for you by six o’clock.”
“That’s perfect. Thanks. See you soon.”
“Ciao!”
Confident that Matteo wouldn’t disappoint, I hit the end button and made my next call. This request would be even stranger than the first.
“Hale. Get a hold of Gavin from Tech. Have him pull up the GPS tracker for the company phones. I need to know where Krystina Cole is right now.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line before Hale spoke again.
“You’re serious?”
“Yes, I’m fucking serious,” I snapped, thoroughly irritated that I had to tell him twice. “Just do it. She had an interview today that she didn’t show up for.”
It was an absolute lie of course, but there was no need for Hale to know that I was completely bordering on stalking.
“Right, boss. Give me a minute and I’ll text you the location.”
I have to be out of my goddamned mind.
CHAPTER 10
I sat at a little table in La Biga, staring at the heart shaped pattern on the foam of my cappuccino. This was espresso number two, and my already frazzled nerves were jittery. I forced myself to look back at my computer screen and scroll through the job listings, attempting to keep thoughts of Alexander Stone at bay.
It was practically impossible.
Maria came over to my table to check on me, a worried expression on her face.
“You look lost. Where is your beautiful smile today?” she asked, wiping her hands on her apron.
“I’m okay. I just have a lot on my mind,” I said, forcing a smile.
“Tell Maria. Maybe you will feel a little better.”
“Don’t worry. It’s nothing I can’t handle. I just need to get rid of an annoying little problem, that’s all.”
“Difficulties with a man?” she assumedly asked, her eyes kind as she sat down in the chair across from me.
“Oh, you could say that,” I admitted.
“Ah! Say no more. I understand. Men! Impossible to live with, but we need them all the same,” she said with a knowing smile.
“No, we don’t need them,” I said firmly. “Men are nothing but trouble – the whole lot of them.”
I heard the bells jingle on the café doors, signaling the arrival of a customer. Maria looked over my shoulder to see who had come in.
Oh, thank goodness!
That sound meant that Maria would have to busy herself with another customer. I appreciated her concern for me and I felt a twinge of guilt for wanting her gone. I just wasn’t up for conversation at the moment, even if it was with the kindhearted woman.
“Maybe you’ll change your mind when you see the handsome man coming our way,” she said as she stood up, pointing her finger at someone behind me.
I turned to see whom she was pointing at, and felt my stomach plummet to my feet. Alexander Stone, wearing blue jeans and black t-shirt, casually strolled towards my table.
As much as I didn’t want to look, I couldn’t help but take in his godlike appearance. His denim fit loosely around his hips, while his black shirt was fitted, stretching tight across his pectorals and around his bronzed biceps. He looked irresistible and self-assured, his blue eyes piercing through me like knives. If I had once thought that he was mouthwatering in a suit, the man was undeniably deadly in a pair of jeans.
“Hello, Krystina,” he greeted smoothly in that ever so cultured voice. A sexy grin spread across his features.
Oh. My. God.
A thousand emotions ran through me at the sight of him. It didn’t matter that I hated him. I didn’t matter that I never wanted to see this infuriating, arrogant man again. Just the sight of him flickered a spark and I felt my heart skip a beat. I was practically swooning in only a few short seconds. His smile alone made my insides quiver. I had to remind myself that I had been furious with him just moments before.
I’m supposed to be pissed off! Not drooling like a dog after a bone!
But the reality was, I was more irritated over the fact that I was being so pathetic, and allowing his pure male hotness get to me.
So rather than reveal how utterly captivated I was by his presence, I threw him an icy glare, allowing my fury at him and myself to come out in full force.
“You have some nerve! Why are you here?” I demanded, my tone menacing. People glanced in our direction and I realized that I was shouting. Maria raised an eyebrow at me and quickly retreated back behind the counter to busy her self with the pastry case. Angelo was there as well, concern showing plainly on his face. I knew that they were alarmed by my sudden outburst and were probably straining their ears to catch my every word. I forced myself to lower my voice. “I don’t want to see you!” I quietly hissed.
“I’m here to finish your interview,” he casually stated as he sat down in the chair that Maria had vacated. He appeared completely unperturbed by my wrath.
Was this guy for real?
His hair was slightly damp, like he just took a shower. He smelled of soap and sweat with a mild hint of musky cologne. The very masculine combination reeked havoc on my senses.
“Please, Mr. Stone. Take a seat,” I sarcastically replied.
“Sarcasm is not becoming on you, Krystina.�
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“Don’t call me Krystina,” I snapped.
“Would you prefer to be addressed as Miss Cole?” he asked calmly, a curious expression on his beautiful face.
“Everyone calls me Krys, and that’s what I prefer.”
“Krys is a boy’s name,” he retorted.
“Well, it’s my name all the same. And once again, it’s the name that I would like to be called,” I said, my irritation reaching an all-time high.
“I’m not going to have this debate with you. Your name is Krystina and that’s what I’m going to call you.”
He waited a second or two, as if gauging my reaction.
When I didn’t respond, a satisfied smile slowly formed on his face. I refused to waste my breath on an argument with him, so I bit my tongue instead of lashing out the many profanities that I was thinking.
I turned back to my laptop and pretended to be searching for a job. It was either that, or keep on staring like some nitwit at Alexander Stone. If I did the latter, then I’d have to acknowledge how incredible he looked or that he still made my insides turn to mush every time he flashed one of those to-die-for smiles.
I could feel his scrutiny and I tried not to acknowledge him. But after several minutes, his careful watch won out and I looked up.
His face was amused, like he had been assessing how long I would be able to ignore him.
Oh, no. I’m not playing your silly mind games today.
“What do you want from me, Mr. Stone?” I asked impatiently.
“I already told you. I’d like to continue your interview. Since you didn’t show up today, I thought that I would bring the interview to you.”
I glanced at the clock on my computer screen. It was half past two o’clock.
“Are you really arrogant enough to believe that I’d show up for that two o’clock appointment?”
“It’s not arrogance. It’s simply finalizing business,” he said with a shrug, acting as if nothing was amiss. “As I recall, we left a few things unfinished.”
Heart of Stone Page 9