Heart of Stone

by Dakota Willink

  TO: Alexander Stone

  FROM: Krystina Cole

  SUBJECT: My Apologies

  To The Devil On My Shoulder,

  Thank you for taking care of me last night, but I must apologize for being such a lush. I am not in the habit of losing self-control the way that I did and I hope that you do not use last night as a reflection of my true character. But, either way, after my behavior, I would completely understand it if you wanted to cancel our plans for this evening.

  Sincerely,

  Krystina Cole

  I thought my words were apologetic and tactful all at the same time. I gave him the chance to withdraw his invitation, without sounding too pathetic.

  Perfect.

  Pleased with my email, I hit the send button.

  However, after I clicked the key to send my apology into the world of cyber communications, a wave of sadness came over me. I felt like I was saying good-bye in a strange way. Alexander had cracked open a door that I had managed to keep closed for so long, and it pained me to think that I would have to close it again.

  What if he decides to take me up on my offer and cancel our plans for tonight?

  For the first time in years, I had left myself vulnerable and I was afraid of the rejection.

  Maybe I shouldn’t have given him such an easy out.

  After about ten minutes had passed, my computer pinged, signaling the arrival of a new email. It was from Alexander. I eagerly opened the incoming message.

  TO: Krystina Cole

  FROM: Alexander Stone

  SUBJECT: No Apologies Needed

  To My Angel,

  No worries. It happens to the best of us. As for your behavior, I must admit that I rather enjoyed your loose tongue. You gave me a small insight as to what you are really thinking, something that I find myself struggling with frequently.

  I am looking forward to our evening together. Do not consider canceling. I’ll be waiting in anticipation until I can see you again.

  Until Later,

  Your Anxious Devil

  I smiled to myself after I read his response. It looked like I was about to have a very busy day.

  ****

  I knew that I couldn’t go to Alexander’s tonight without a lick of knowledge about BDSM. He was insistent that I know what I was getting into. And if I was honest with myself, I knew practically nothing. Research was key to a better understanding. I had felt very naïve last night, more times than I cared to admit. I needed to broaden my horizons, expand on my awareness – if for no other reason than to protect myself. This was an unknown world to me, but one that I wanted to explore. Walking into it blind would be extremely foolish.

  I made myself comfortable in sweats and a T-shirt, and then sprawled out on my bed with my laptop. It was time to get an education.

  My initial search results of BDSM turned up descriptive online encyclopedia definitions and various shopping pages.

  Boring.

  I wasn’t looking to shop for vibrators and leather outfits, and I certainly wasn’t interested in clinical definitions.

  Hard limits, soft limits, safe words, blah, blah, blah.

  I wasn’t even sure what all of it meant.

  So what is it that I’m looking for?

  I bit my lower lip, trying to decide on what exactly I wanted to find out. I thought perhaps something with pictures would give me more to go off of. I clicked on the images tab.

  Holy fuck!

  The extreme images that filled the screen were nothing like what had happened in Alexander’s penthouse last night. Even his crazy insinuations would never have led me to envision the things that I was viewing. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw on the screen.

  The pictures were borderline frightening, and some were out right disgusting. Women brutally tied up and caged, with weird contraptions hooked up to their female parts. It looked painful, and a lot of it looked dangerous.

  Is this what Alexander wants?

  I thought that I had at least a mild understanding of what he wanted, but now I wasn’t so sure. My eyes grew wide and I felt my heart begin to pound inside my chest as I tried to decipher what the pictures were portraying.

  A Nine Inch Nails song began to sound in my head and I slammed the laptop closed. I couldn’t imagine how any sane person would get off from being bruised, burned, or poked at with needles. To me, there was nothing sexual about the sadistic images that I had just seen. They were beyond extreme, for obvious reasons. I could not believe that was what Alexander wanted.

  Wait…what was it that I was reading about hard limits?

  I hesitantly opened the lid for the laptop and went back to the link that I had initially considered boring.

  At least that page won’t give me nightmares for the rest of my life.

  I read the dry and very long explanations about the history and culture of the dominant and the submissive.

  There has to be something better that this!

  It was impossible to believe that there wasn’t just a basic explanation available. After reading for more than an hour, I still felt like I knew nothing.

  I finally found a page of S&M resources and began scrolling through the articles. The more I read, the more I found that kinky play was actually very normal. But more importantly, I learned of the different levels of BDSM.

  Most people’s kinks were fairly mild, practicing only my initial ideas of BDSM. A few spanks and some role-playing. Yet, there were other people who were more extreme – like the scary pictures I just saw. I just couldn’t figure out if there was a middle ground in it all.

  This shit is way too complicated.

  I could research all day and into the night and still not really understand it. There was only one thing I was certain of – Alexander had some serious explaining to do.

  CHAPTER 21

  I pressed the button for the intercom on my desk, ending the call with George Canterwell. Leaning back in my chair, I rubbed a hand over the back of my neck. It was shaping up to be a long week, and it had barely even started.

  Stone Enterprise had been purchasing properties from Canterwell for a couple of years. Our transactions had been easy at first, as he was pulling up stakes, retiring and traveling the world. He wanted to be done with it all, and scooping up his properties for a cheap price had been simple. But old age, and his new young wife, had made him a greedy bastard. And while I could appreciate his ruthlessness, I wasn’t willing to pay more than market value for what he had to offer. It was time to cut ties with the old man and move on.

  The intercom buzzed and I groaned.

  Laura better not tell me that it’s Canterwell calling back…

  “Yes,” I clipped into the speaker.

  “Mr. Stone, Kimberly Melbourne is here to see you,” Laura informed me.

  Good.

  My appointment was twenty minutes early, but would be a welcomed change of pace after a stressful morning.

  “Tell her that I’ll be right out. Also, I’m going to send over some info regarding a property in Westchester. I need you to set a meeting time with the property agent. I’d like to negotiate a selling price.”

  “Yes, sir. I’ll have the date and time uploaded to your calendar within the hour.”

  “Thank you, Laura.” I quickly sent her the link that contained the information about the listing. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with the land as of yet, but I liked what I saw. It would be a great investment if I could obtain it for the right price.

  Once the computer gave the swooshing sound that signaled the email was sent, I got up from my seat behind the desk, threw on a navy sport coat, and made my way out of the office.

  I found Kimberly Melbourne sitting on the sofa in the waiting area, picking invisible pieces of lint off of her pricy business suit. Her hair was pulled tight into a severe twist that matched her perfectionist personality.

  “Kimberly,” I greeted when I approached her. The design engineer looked up at the sound of my voice an
d stood to extend her hand for me to shake.

  “Mr. Stone,” she nodded in return. I took hold of her outstretched hand. Her grip was firm. No nonsense. It was why I appreciated her so much. She was confident, efficient. And she worked fast.

  “Thank you for taking on this project at such short notice. I know how busy you are, but my new marketing director will begin her employment sooner than I had anticipated. I would like her space completed before she starts.”

  “Oh, don’t even think twice about it,” she brushed off with a wave of her manicured hand. “It’s been a while since you’ve sought my expertise. When you called, I was more than happy to accommodate.”

  And I’m sure that the sum I offered had you dropping your other clients to be here.

  However she managed to juggle her schedule was no real concern to me. What mattered was that she was here, and that Krystina’s office would be completed before Monday.

  “I appreciate that. Now, if you’ll follow me this way, I have a large space that I want you to take a look at. The thirty-seventh floor vacated about six months ago, and the old tenants left a bit of a mess. Rather than clean it up, I had the floor gutted until I could decide what to do with it. That being said, you’ll have a fairly clean slate to work with.”

  Together, we headed to the elevator and began the decent down to the floor that would soon house the marketing division of Stone Enterprise.

  When the doors opened, a dusty construction site was revealed. Plastic sheets hung from the ceiling, blocking off certain areas where work was already underway. The loud vibrations of machine sanders could be heard from various points of the floor.

  “I didn’t realize you had already begun work, Mr. Stone,” Kimberly said, seeming somewhat surprised by the mess before us.

  “Only the walls, Kimberly. I wasn’t kidding when I said I had the floor gutted. I had my construction engineer get started on the basic drywall work, since that takes some time. Rooms still need to be divided, flooring has to be picked out, paint, the works.”

  “And that’s where I come in,” she finished with a smile. “You’ve given me a blank canvas, Mr. Stone. I’m looking forward to the design.”

  “Before you leave today, I’ll get you in touch with all parties needed for the job. Very little will be brought over from the existing offices. I’ve already instructed Gavin, my computer technician, to purchase the workstations that will be needed. And as for the blank canvas, you’ll also have a blank check. My accountant will see to it that you have everything you need on this project.”

  She didn’t even flinch at that, having worked for me in the past.

  “Perfect. Any thoughts on what your Marketing Director might like?”

  “Her name is Krystina Cole. And honestly, I don’t know much about her décor preferences,” I said with a frown. “She loves music. I think its safe to assume that she will use it often in her radio or television advertising strategies. Whatever you decide, her office needs to incorporate a high end sound system at the very least.”

  “That will be easy enough. What about the other areas of the floor? Do you think Miss Cole would want the space divided up into separate office spaces? Or perhaps cubicles?”

  “No cubicles. I detest them,” I told her.

  “I didn’t think so, but I thought I’d ask just in case. Since this floor will be for marketing, separate offices will most likely work out better. They will allow people to think creatively, without any interruptions from the person at the next desk over.”

  “My thoughts exactly,” I agreed. Kimberly placed a finger on her chin and looked around contemplatively.

  “Any preference on room sizes?”

  “Miss Cole’s office should be spacious. You can’t see them from here due to the plastic that’s hanging, but there are large windows at the far end of the floor. Incorporate those in her personal space. She’ll need a sizable conference room of sorts, a place for meetings and design planning. As for the other areas, I think eight to ten offices should be sufficient enough. You’ll have to get with Josh Swanson on the space layout. He’s here somewhere…” I trailed off, scanning the floor for the whereabouts of the construction engineer.

  As if on cue, Josh came out from behind a hanging plastic sheet, his dark hair, shoulders, and arms completely covered with drywall dust. He removed a pair of safety glasses from his face, giving him a raccoon-like appearance. He looked surprised to see us standing there.

  “Mr. Stone, I didn’t realize you were here. You’ll have to pardon my appearance,” he joked casually, attempting to remove some of the dust that covered him. “What can I do for you sir?”

  “Josh, I’d like you to meet Kimberly Melborne. She will be the designer on the project. Kimberly, this is Josh Swanson, my construction engineer.”

  “It’s nice to meet you ma’am,” Josh told her with a nod. “I’d shake your hand, but as you can see, I’m full of dust and drywall mud.”

  “That’s okay! You can keep the mud to yourself,” Kimberly said with an easy laugh.

  “We just started work. So far, we’ve managed to get the drywall up and seamed. We’re just finishing up with the sanding today.”

  “You’ve made great time, Josh. I’m happy with the progress,” I appreciated. “From this point forward, you can take direction from Kimberly. I trust her judgment. Whatever she wants, build it.”

  “I have a tight time frame to work with. I promise not to come up with anything too extravagant,” Kimberly assured him.

  “Do you want to take a look around? I can show you what we’ve done so far?” Josh asked us.

  “Absolutely. I want to get a good look at the space that I have to work with, as well as take some measurements,” Kimberly said. She reached into her oversized shoulder bag and pulled out a tape measure and a pad of paper.

  “The two of you can go on ahead. I’ll catch up with you momentarily,” I told them.

  Once they had stepped away, pulled out my cell to call Krystina and ask her about any specifications that she might have for the office. I dialed her number, but paused before hitting the send button.

  If I called her, she would know what I was doing. As of right now, she had no idea that I was giving her an entire floor in my building. She didn’t know that she would have her own domain, her own world within mine, and full access to every convenience Cornerstone Tower had to offer. I wanted her to be surprised.

  Deciding to keep her out of the loop for a little while longer, I pocketed the phone rather than calling her. I looked over to where Kimberly and Josh were standing. Kimberly was pointing to something on the ceiling.

  What would Krsytina want in a workspace?

  I thought about Krystina’s apartment as I made my over to the engineers. Her home wasn’t flashy, the colors more muted. Her bedroom was much of the same, only slightly more eclectic, with its Maya Angelou quotes and lily printed bed comforter. Her space was soft. Feminine.

  “Josh and I were talking, and we thought about opening up the ceiling. Exposing the ducts will give the floor a more industrial and modern –,” Kimberly started when I reached them.

  “No, nothing too trendy,” I interrupted.

  “Oh, um…okay,” Kimberly said, glancing at Josh.

  But neither of them knew Krystina like I did, even if my knowledge was limited. She had a conventional way about her. She would want her office to be warm and inviting, not looking like a busted open industrialized warehouse. It would be too cold for her tastes.

  “Stick with traditional. Earth tones will be best,” I advised.

  “I can work with that. Once we figure out the floor plan, I’ll collect some paint chips, and then Josh and I will go through them together to decide what color is going where.”

  “And lily’s,” I added as an afterthought. “Miss Cole likes lily’s.”

  They both took on a curious look, but neither of them asked how I knew that piece of information. They knew better than to question me.

&nbs
p; “Music, earth tones, and lily’s. I’m sure I can find a way to tie it all together,” Kimberly said confidently.

  Josh looked skeptical, but I paid him no mind. Kimberly was the best in her field. She had twenty years of experience, and five of them were spent working for me. I knew she would find a way to incorporate my wishes into a design that would flow seamlessly.

  “I don’t care how you do it, as long as it’s done right.”

  ****

  I left Kimberly and Josh to tackle their new project and headed back to my office. Once I was there, I went through the last few remaining items in my calendar. I sent off an email to my accountant with an update on the construction, and I responded to a few others that needed my attention.

  I noticed that Laura had scheduled an appointment with the selling agent in Westchester, and I was pleased to see the notes that she had included in the calendar. Laura was the best PA that I’ve had in my employment to date. Not only was she efficient, but she also had a knack for obtaining useful information. Apparently, the seller was anxious to move on the property.

  Back taxes.

  That would make negotiations all that much easier. I made a mental note to give Laura a raise.

  A call to Justine was the last order of business. I almost dreaded it, only because I knew she was probably waiting for an update on the Charlie situation. However, as much as I wished that she’d let it go and let me handle things, a call to her was a necessity today. We needed to discuss the charity dinner that would take place in a few weeks.

  Justine was the driving force behind the fundraising efforts for The Stoneworks Foundation, and I wanted to check on the progress of the largest annual fundraiser that the foundation hosted. The success of this dinner would ensure that Stone’s Hope Woman’s Shelter would open on time.

  I dialed her cell number and waited for her to answer.