“What’s up Chase?” Brooke walked, no she sauntered in and carefully sat down at one of the chairs in front of his large oak desk. His eyes were glued to her legs as she crossed one over the other. Brooke opened her tablet in a few swipes and looked to him for direction. “Chase? Sir? Is everything alright?”
He was startled out of his daydream and pinched the bridge of his nose. “No Brooke I’m not alright. Vance called.” She nodded her understanding and he continued. “He has summoned me and my brothers to Silver House.”
“Your country estate?” She had seen photos of the outside of the famed mansion in a gardening magazine at her grandmother’s house. There was a lavish rose garden, a wild English garden and a greenhouse. It was magnificent. She knew this trip to the country couldn’t have come at a worse time for them. “I’ll reschedule your meeting with the Steele brothers and have the financials couriered to you as soon as they arrive.”
He watched her swipe and tap the screen of the tablet resting on her lap, the perfect picture of efficiency. “Don’t bother. You can do it on the road. You’re coming with me.” Chase groaned at the seductive picture she presented, her flushed cheeks, those moist lips, the breathy gasp that left her succulent mouth. He felt his pants growing tighter under the desk and began to rethink bringing her with him. But he needed her. “Sorry Brooke but I need to work on this Steele Tech deal and I can’t do it without you. Who knows what Vance wants or how long we’ll end up staying.”
She could see the frustration and stress on his handsome face, his blue grey eyes practically silver against the gloomy sky behind him. “Very well sir. I’ll need to go home and pack a bag, but first--,”
Chase cut her off with a swipe of his arm across the air. “We don’t have time Brooke. Tell Rose everything she needs to cover your desk for at least a week, including where to send all information on Steele Tech. Call one of the Steele Brothers and see how they feel about meeting at Silver House and then we’ll stop at your place on our way out of town.”
She nodded as she rose from her seat careful to keep all emotion from her face. Back at her desk she plopped down and released a breath she didn’t even realize she had been holding. A week at Silver House with Chase Silver was a dream come true. At least it would be, if he realized she was a woman. Now however, it would just be torture.
***
They were close to Silver House. Brooke could tell because they were well into the countryside where people owned horses and each property was miles and miles apart. She sighed, happy to be here with Chase but not so happy that she’d had to cancel her date. She’d finally gotten the hint—5 years later—that nothing would ever happen between her and Chase and she had started to date again. Most of the guys were duds, like the financial planner who told her she had ‘breeding hips’, but Charlie was nice. And cute. And nice. And tonight would have been their third date. It was the sex date if she was being honest, but maybe cancelling was a blessing. She wasn’t ready for sex with Charlie, not when she still dreamed of hot, crazy dirty sex with Chase. She sighed again, this one thick with confusion and resignation.
“So you had a date this weekend?” Chase white knuckled the steering wheel, angry for feeling jealous when he had no right to and angry that he had to right to feel anything about her personal life. She nodded but kept her gaze on the passing fields. “I didn’t know you were dating.”
Because you never ask, she wanted to say but she didn’t. He was her employer not her friend so why would he? She shrugged. “How would you?”
He said nothing and they continued to drive in silence. Tortured, uncomfortable silence. Thirty minutes later they turned onto the long tree-lined driveway of Silver House. Brooke gasped at the magnificence before her. It was a massive Georgian revival style mansion with red brick and pristine white shutters on the dozens of windows facing forward. Just slap on some columns and call this place Tara, she thought cynically as she eyed the mansion. “This is Silver House?” She huffed in disbelief, may as well call it a cabin if we’re going for understatement of the century.
“Yeah my dad loves this house. My brothers and I grew up here so it’s no big deal.”
“Yep, no big deal.” Who cared about things like three story mansions made totally of brick, real brick, hundreds of windows and probably dozens of bedrooms. This place was beautiful, if a tad ostentatious.
Inside Silver House was even more gorgeous than the outside. The foyer was gargantuan, with a few marble busts and big dark oil paintings, but of what she could see so far the place was warm and inviting. Dark woods, earthy masculine colors and subtle accessories were everywhere. Brooke decided instantly that she loved Silver House.
“We should head to the study, I’m sure that’s were Dad is.” Brooke followed quietly, taking in every detail as she passed each room. Familiar artwork dotted the walls and detailed sculptures lined the long hallway they walked until she heard voices. “Sounds like one of my brothers beat us here.” Inside the study Vance sat in a chocolate leather club chair swirling amber liquid in a crystal glass while he and the youngest Silver brother, Jackson laughed together.
“Ah Chase, you’re here. And you’ve brought a guest.” Vance smiled sweetly at Brooke. “Is that Brooke?”
She returned his smile. “It’s me sir, how are you?”
Vance beamed a smile at her that belied his advanced age. Dimple winking and violet brown eyes sparkling. “I’m an old man Brooke but seeing your face is a balm to my weary soul.” She laughed at his flowery words.
“Then I’m glad I could help a not-so-old man out.” She winked back and he laughed.
“I like this one Chase. Keep her.” A gorgeous ice blonde with porcelain skin and mile high legs walked in with a cart full of goodies that made Brooke’s mouth water. “Thanks Galina. You can leave that here so we can serve ourselves. No need to be so formal this week it’s just family,” he winked a Brooke. “But I would like you to put Brooke and Chase in the green and gold rooms. She nodded her understanding and they followed her upstairs.
Chase was happy with his position at the back of the line since it afforded him an up close and personal view of Brooke’s fine backside. It was a thing of beauty the way it swayed to its own rhythm with every step she took. He was mesmerized by the hypnotic sway, so much that he failed to notice she stopped at the landing and he smacked right into her. She gasped when his large hands circled her waist to steady her and the fire in his body stirred to a raging inferno. “I’ve got you,” he whispered in her ear, smiling at the small shiver that shook her body.
“Uh, yeah okay. Thanks,” she muttered before crossing the threshold into her room. The green room.
“Dinner is in an hour, I will come and get you then,” Galina spoke in stilted English, her accent thick and enchanting.
“Thank you Galina.” Brooke smiled at the small grin that lit up the housekeeper’s stunning face.
“My room is right next door,” Chase added with a smug smirk on his face. “I’ll pick you up for dinner.” He winked and left her staring at the empty space with a stunned look and flushed face.
Chapter Two
“No way Dad. No way in hell!” Ethan, the middle Silver brother, arrived after dinner for his father’s latest attempt to control their lives. The old man was crazy if he thought he could manipulate them this way.
“I’m with Ethan, Dad. This is crazy even for you.” Jackson was in no mood for his father’s games. He would settle down when he was good and damned well ready and not a moment sooner. Hell he was just 27 and that was way too young to settle down.
Chase said nothing. He was as angry as his brothers but there was no point getting angry when Vance would have his say anyway. He knew there was more to it so he sat, drink in hand, and waited.
Vance Silver stood slowly and walked to the bar in silence. He sat his favorite crystal glass down, picking up two pieces of ice and dropping them with a loud clang into the glass. He reached for the decanter of Whiskey—Irish o
f course—pulled out the stopper and sniffed gently before pouring two fingers’ worth into the glass. “Now I know you boys are reluctant to settle down, especially with so many pretty young things offering their favors without commitment.” He took a sip and let them stew while he made his way back to the comfort of his favorite chair. “But I would like to retire and I can’t do that while all three of you are out tomcatting around like you’ve just discovered your peckers.”
“No offense Dad but my sex life is none of your business.” Ethan’s fury was barely controlled, his violet brown eyes narrowed into Vance’s identical pair.
“You may be right about that boy. But Silver Enterprises is my business and I’m not turning over my life’s work to men lead around by the short hairs. Prove to me you’re committed to SE and you’ll get your portion of the company. You will each have a one-third stake in the company when you do. Ignore my wishes and you get nothing.”
“That is bullshit!” Chase roared causing all eyes to turn his way. “You’re a hypocrite on top of everything else,” he snorted in disgust. “All this talk of settling down when you don’t even keep a woman past the one year mark. That’s rich, real rich.” He slammed the glass down and stalked out of the study.
“I’m not doing this dad. Ever. So you can divide up my shares between Jack and Chase.” Ethan looked defeated and angry as he left the room and that broke Vance’s heart.
He knew it was his fault that his boys were so down on love. After Chase and Jackson’s mother, Zoe died in a horrific boating accident he didn’t remarry. He couldn’t remarry, but he was still a young man with the needs of a young man. As a rich man he had his pick of the ladies and picked well and often. Chase was right, he had enjoyed sexual affairs with women but he never kept them for longer than a year. It was his choice to keep his relationships superficial with an expiration date. And now he was paying for it. But they didn’t get it and if they kept on this path they wouldn’t get it until it was too late. Vance knew he was an old man and he wanted beautiful daughters with loads of grandbabies bringing life and laughter back to Silver House. He was sick of the silence, the loneliness, the emptiness.
Ethan, he feared, he might lose forever with this recent decision. The boy was as anti-marriage as they came and most of that fell on Vance’s shoulders, he knew. He’d enjoyed a brief affair with a paralegal which resulted in Ethan’s birth. A year after Zoe’s death Ethan’s mother killed herself and he came to live at Silver House. Despite the fact that he was born a year after Chase and a year before Jackson, the boys took to one another immediately. They were close and always had each other’s backs. But those were the only relationships Ethan gave a damn about. He kept his women for no more than three dates and then he moved on.
He’d hate for his boys to lose their birthright but he would hate it more if they followed his path and ended up lonely old men dating women young enough to be their daughters. Hell.
***
Chase was still fuming as he climbed the stairs to the gold room. He knew his dad loved to play the benevolent overlord but this was taking things too fucking far. He couldn’t think about that now, he had to work on the Steele Tech acquisition if he wanted it done by the end of this quarter. After a quick trip to his room he knocked on Brooke’s door and entered after a few muffled words and his heart rate doubled at the sight before him. Brooke, sexy and efficient Brooke was standing before him like a vision from the gods of lust and sex. Wearing nothing but a small scrap of black lace and a matching bra dangling from one arm, she wore a startled and slightly dazed expression at his intrusion.
The heat in her eyes, Chase was sure, mirrored his own. He took in every detail he could absorb. Her full breasts with stiff raspberry tipped nipples, that flat stomach tight with muscle and the flare of her hips calling out for his touch. Those high cut, barely there panties left very little to the imagination, giving him a glimpse of the small heart shaped patch of hair underneath made him clench his fists rather than run a finger up and down her sweet spot. He took one long look at the miles of leg on display before mumbling his apologies and shutting the door. “Shit,” he knocked his head on the heavy wood door behind him. “Brooke meet me in the library in thirty minutes.” He ran down the stairs as fast as he could as though he could outrun the image of his assistant looking like a walking wet dream.
After three hours of almost total silence in the library, both Chase and Brooke were ready to call it a night. The work was done but the room was thick with tension, both thinking about what happened earlier. Chase couldn’t even look at her without seeing those sweet pink nipples begging to be tasted by his mouth, those long legs wrapped around his neck, his hips as he thrust into her over and over again. For her part Brooke kept replaying the heated look on his face as he took in her naked body. She knew she was decent to look at with lots of wavy dark blonde hair, bright green eyes and more curves than she would like, but the way Chase looked at her in that moment made her feel like she was as beautiful as the women he was often photographed with at parties and fundraisers. Who are you kidding, he was simply reacting to a naked woman. Not you, she reminded herself. She had to remind herself time and again because she was moving on from her ill-advised crush on her boss.
“Let’s call it a night. We’ve done all we can and we can send the contracts to the lawyers tomorrow for review.” He stood, shaking out his stiff muscles and held the door open for her.
“I’m not going to argue with that.” She smiled shyly and slid carefully between his big body and the small doorway. She felt the heat of his body close behind her as she walked up the stairs, cringing at the thought of her big ass in such close proximity to his face. She quickly shook it off. If he doesn’t want to see it, he shouldn’t be so close dammit. At the door to the gold room she turned around to find Chase chest to chest with her. “What time should I,”
Before she could say another word Chase’s hands cupped her heart shaped face and his lips were on hers. Gentle at first and then hot and intense as he claimed her lips. His tongue worked magic on her mouth, inside her mouth, sending sparks of desire and electricity shooting throughout her entire body and centering at her increasingly wet core. She leaned in and pressed her body against his bigger, harder body and she let him own her mouth. It was a heady feeling to be the sole focus of Chase Silver and his wicked mouth and Brooke soaked it all in, giving as good as she got. A moan split the silence and she realized it was her but she didn’t give a damn. Chase was kissing her, taking over her mouth as though it was his. She could feel her arousal growing, the telltale moistening between her legs, her nipples hard to the point of pain. And she felt Chase pull away from the kiss. A dark frown marred his gorgeous face, his eyes more grey than blue at the moment and her heart sank. He regrets the kiss. She stood stock still as he frowned and muttered a barely audible, “goodnight” before slamming the door behind him.
Tears welled in her eyes, rejection washing over her like a warm suffocating blanket. She couldn’t believe it, she had come so close to forgetting about him and his handsome face and fun loving smile and he’d sucked her right back in with that hotter than hell kiss, only to frown in disgust like she was some ugly mutant. Well to hell with you Chase Silver and your bone melting kisses!
Two hours later and Brooke’s devastation and rejection turned into white hot anger. She’d been at a slow boil for the first hour after his door slammed on her heart and her ridiculous crush, but now she was just pissed off. How dare he make her feel like she was one of his discarded lovers, she was his assistant dammit. At times she thought they might even be friends but now she knew. She knew she would always and forever be his trusted assistant. The woman who made reservations for his dates with other women, sent breakup flowers and gifts to the discarded women and intercepted angry post-breakup calls. She was fine with that. She was. Really.
What she wasn’t fine with, however, was her boss ramming his tasty tongue down her throat and then storming off as if she’d done
something wrong. With all her pacing she had worked herself up to a good bit of mad and she knocked on the door adjoining their rooms to confront him.
Chapter Three
He heard the quiet yet insistent knocks at his door and went to open it, sure it was one of his brothers wanting to commiserate over Vance’s high handed behavior. It was Brooke. Correction, it was Brooke wearing a pair of impossibly tiny emerald silk shorts with a matching lace top. It covered almost nothing and he was so mesmerized by all the flesh on display that he failed to notice the angry glint in her green eyes or the aggressive stance she took across from him.
“My eyes are up here.”
He looked up at the icy tone and the smile died on his face. “Can I help you Brooke?”
“Not hardly. But you can tell me what the hell you were thinking earlier?”
His shoulders slumped. He knew kissing her was a bad idea but he hadn’t been able to help himself. He’d swear he had been hypnotized by the sexy swing of her hips and the curve of her ass and when she turned around her mouth was like a magnet to his own. “I don’t know what I was thinking Brooke, but I am,”
BILLIONAIRE ROMANCE: The Unforgettable Billionaires: The Complete Collection Boxed Set 1-12 (Young Adult Rich Alpha Male Billionaire Romance) (Alpha Bad Boy Billionaire Romance) Page 57