by R. R. Banks
Sulagna laughed as she remained on her back, looking across her naked body at Jacoby leaning against the arm of the couch. “Oh, we’re going to try again,” she said with a foreshadowing tone. “This was not a one night stand or a friends with benefits situation. Tomorrow night, you’re taking me out for a real date in Sydney.”
“Yes ma’am,” replied Jacoby. “I would want nothing more than to show you a great time.”
“I look forward to it,” she said. “I absolutely look forward to it.”
Chapter 6
Nathanial and Alexis walked into their rental house on the beach without saying a word to each other. Since leaving the restaurant, Nathanial’s thoughts had been on his future and what all Dillon and he spoke about over dinner. ” Nathanial, let me give you shares in all of these other companies that I own so that it puts you in play to make a lot more money later,” said Dillon as the two were eating their swordfish. The thought of what was offered to him continued to go through his mind while he ignored Alexis.
“Are you going to be alright?” asked Alexis as Nathanial walked in and immediately sat down in a chair away from the rest of the furniture in the living room. With a window looking out at the ocean in front of him, Nathanial let his mind drift away as he continued to think about everything that Dillon said and continuing to ignore Alexis. “I’m going to step out front and call Hannah,” she continued, acknowledging that Nathanial was lost in thought.
“No,” said Nathanial. “I don’t want her knowing what’s going on.”
Alexis nodded as Nathanial finally started speaking. “Why not?”
“Because it’s ultimately my business and I don’t want the world to know that I’m being muscled out of my company,” he explained. “If anything, I’d like to maintain whatever dignity I have left over so that after tomorrow, I can pickup the pieces and move on without much thought.”
“You’re not going to have to move on,” replied Alexis. “You’re still going to own a minority stake in the Australian company. So, you won’t be in charge of the day to day aspects of the business. You hated that part, even if you won’t admit it.”
Nathanial leaned his head back against the headrest before sighing. “It’s not that I didn’t enjoy it, or even hated it. I didn’t get an opportunity to finish what I started.”
“Finish what you started?” she asked with a puzzled inflection. “What did you start?”
“Fixing the company,” he replied. “I’m currently responsible for fixing the broken company and I want to stay on until it’s complete.”
Alexis was even more confused. “But Nathanial, Hannah and I fixed your company,” she stated solemnly.
“I allowed it!” he shouted in defiance. “If I would have said no, then the two of you would be back in the United States right now picking up the scraps from your good for nothing bosses!”
“Stop it!” screamed Alexis. “You’re not thinking straight right now. Everything that’s happened is making you a different person than the man I’m dating.”
Nathanial leapt up from the chair and looked through the dark room at Alexis. “No, I see clearly now,” he said with a seething tone. “You and Hannah have both been incredibly tight lipped but I know that in the back of your mind, you were out to make sure I got out of the way. No one in that consortium thinks that I am capable of running my own business and I refuse to go out like this! I refuse to take a handout from some guy who they view is the second coming of Christ!”
“That’s enough, Nathanial!” screamed Alexis again as he approached her. “You are acting like a spoiled brat! I can’t change the fact that the board of the consortium wants you out because they don’t see you as a fit executive, but how dare you take it out on me and even think I was in on your ousting? I need you to stop having this tantrum and start thinking like an adult. What, if anything, would I gain from a change in ownership? I work for the Consortium of Oil Traders, not for any specific company that happens to exist within them. Why would I want you to be forced to sell off your shares? What would that get me other than an upset boyfriend, which I clearly have right now?” She paused for a moment while she looked at Nathanial in anger. “Why do you even care about that stupid company? It clearly was about to go bankrupt and there was nothing you could’ve done to save it. What does it matter?”
“What does it matter?” asked Nathanial rhetorically. “It matters because it’s mine and my name is on the door!” he shouted. “I own it so if it fails, I fail!”
“Then you failed!” shouted Alexis, clearly fed up with the direction the conversation went. The two stared at each other for a few moments with malice in their eyes. With heaving breathing between the two of them, Alexis put her hands in the air and turned around. “What’s gotten into you?” she asked calmly as she turned around. “When I found out this morning about this, I honestly thought you would be happy about this news. I figured, so long as the deal went through and you were compensated fairly, you’d be happy to be rid of the burden. What gives? Why are you so vehemently upset about all of this?”
Nathanial shook his head and turned around, walking back to his chair and sitting down. “Because I don’t have a say in any of this,” he said weakly. “Alexis, if I were asked if I wanted to sell the company, I would sell it and not think twice. I would unshackle myself from that burden, but because I’m being forced to sell, I want to hold on as long as I can to be a thorn in the side of whoever is making me give up. Alexis, I’m sick of this life and I don’t want to live it anymore, but I want to go out on my terms. I want to sell the company because I’m choosing to sell it, not because they’re telling me I have to.”
Alexis nodded. “So, you’re ok with selling the company but you’re not ok with someone telling you that you have to sell it?” she asked. “I don’t understand.”
“I don’t expect you to,” he said rudely. “You’ve never owned anything like this in your life and you never will.”
Alexis’s eyes opened up wide as the words rolled off of his tongue, piercing her consciousness and hurting her deeply. “Ok,” she said softly as she slowly nodded her head in a forced affirmation. “Clearly, you don’t believe in me or what I am capable of. I think you and I aren’t meant to last.”
“Wait, I didn’t mean that,” said Nathanial defensively.
“No, but I did,” continued Alexis. “I fell for you in Dubai because you were charming, handsome, charismatic, and at the time, I thought you were smart. Clearly, it was all an incredibly large façade. You’re stubborn, selfish, and don’t like to be told no. You want the world to be hand delivered to you on a silver platter because of the amount of money in your bank account but when it comes time for you to actually have to work for it, there is no room. You don’t have it in you to work for something.” Alexis paused for a moment as she looked at Nathanial staring at her with hatred in his eyes. “That look that you are giving me now only confirms everything that I just said. I’m sorry, Nathanial, but we’re done now.”
“You will never have anyone as good as me!” he shouted as he stood up from his chair. “I am the absolute best you will ever do!”
“Then my best isn’t good enough!” screamed Alexis as she walked off toward the bedroom to gather her things, leaving Nathanial to sit in the living room alone to reflect on everything that happened.
She walked into the bedroom as tears started to flow from her eyes. The yelling and screaming from Nathanial scared her, especially since she had never seen him act out like this. He was angry, bitter, and above all, not the man that she was falling for. She knew the relationship was ending, though still tried to figure out a way in her head to make it work. He had been great to her so far, showering her with gifts and going out of his way to make sure that she was comfortable and happy. “Alexis,” she cried to herself. “What does he really offer you that no other man can give you?”
She pondered the though as she sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the white door that led to the h
allway. Part of her hoped he would walk through it politely and apologize. That part of her wanted it to be ok and wanted him to revert back to the man she thought he was. However, it was to no avail. She sat in the dark and looked at the door for fifteen minutes; it was never disturbed. The realization was setting in that he didn’t care about her anymore and that he only cared about his appearance and what others thought about him. His pride was his first concern and not her, which she was not content with. She reached for her phone to text Hannah and stopped herself. “No, he wants it to be private,” she said as she clutched the device tightly. “I can at least give him that.”
Alexis wiped the tears from her eyes as she stood up and walked over to a door that led to a deck. She pulled it open and walked outside, looking out as the moon hovered over the night sky and illuminated the dark blue Pacific Ocean. The breeze was blowing her brunette hair to the side as she thought about everything. Her career was her primary focus and now, without Nathanial, she would have nothing to hold her back. Though she saved his company and boosted his portfolio, he would never admit that he allowed the company to fail and that Alexis saved it. His pride ended their budding relationship before it could take off, and though sad, Alexis accepted it as the best outcome. “This is for the best,” she said as she turned and walked back into the bedroom to start gathering her things. “This is all for the best.”
Chapter 7
Marisol and Dillon walked down the pier with their hands interlocked as they looked out to the east at the ocean. Swaying their arms a bit as the breeze blew in off the ocean relaxed the two lovers as they breathed in the salty air. Walking stride for stride with one another, Dillon tried his best to not think about what just took place at the restaurant while Marisol tried to think about her future with Dillon. The two had grown incredibly close over the past few weeks, spending countless hours together and disclosing their darkest secrets and most elaborate fantasies.
“Do you know if you’re going to move here?” asked Marisol as she started a conversation with Dillon as the breeze began to pick up and sway their hair to the side.
Dillon breathed heavily as he walked down the pier with Marisol. “I will probably need to purchase a place here,” he replied. “I don’t think I’m going to move away from Monaco, though. I love it there.”
“It is a billionaire’s playground,” she stated. “It’s also close to many of the great things you enjoy in Europe.”
“That it is,” confirmed Dillon. “I’m close enough to Switzerland to go skiing and I’m right on the coast to enjoy going out in a boat. All of the luxuries that I would have here, I would still have there.”
“No skiing though,” she said.
Dillon smiled as he shook his head. “Yeah, but a much better beach,” he countered. “It’s a lot to think about.”
“But you don’t think you would want to move here permanently?”
He thought about it for a moment while their hands were locked together, not rushing to an answer and forming out the best way to say what was on his mind. “I think it’d be wise if I had the ability to be here when I needed to be here,” he answered. “There are just too many things that are important to me that reside in Europe, that really makes me want to stay there.”
“The world is much smaller than it was a few years ago, Dillon,” continued Marisol. “You no longer have to be glued to one spot. The internet has revolutionized business while there have been advancements in travel. You can plant your roots wherever you choose.”
Dillon smiled as they reached the small house he was renting. “I know, and I want to always make sure that I’m close to you,” he said with a cheesy grin. Marisol, blushing slightly, stepped away from Dillon and walked into the house, flipping the lights on before Dillon followed her in. Marisol walked toward the small counter while Dillon immediately headed for the couch, sitting back on it and letting his mind wander for a minute while she foraged for refreshments.
At dinner, Dillon sent his entire portfolio of investments over to Nathanial Jenkins to review, so that he could have the opportunity to put together a package that would suit his needs. “I hope he takes what we talked about seriously,” he said as he let his mind wander a bit more, leaning his head back on the couch while Marisol rustled about.
“I’m sure he will,” she replied as she pulled a couple of glasses out of a small cabinet beneath the counter. “Once you calmed him down, he started to seem very receptive to what you were offering.”
Dillon continued to lean back and look up at the ceiling fan circulate the air throughout the room. “Yeah, I think he was. I just want him to believe that I am trying to treat him fairly.”
Marisol smiled while she opened a few more cabinets, trying to find the liquor she and Dillon wanted. “I’m sure he does,” she replied. “You’ve put an offer on the table for him to name his own price so that he knows he will be compensated fairly. You’re doing the right thing.”
“I know I’m doing the right thing,” smiled Dillon as he picked his head up and turned it toward Marisol. “I just need him to think I am too.”
Dillon exhaled as he shook his head, clearing his mind as his eyes became affixed on Marisol and her radiant beauty. She was everything Dillon wanted in a woman and as he continued to spend more time with her, he began to realize that he was incredibly fortunate to have found her.
“Tell me, Marisol, what do you want in your life?” asked Dillon as he sat up on the couch and turned his head to look at Marisol standing at the counter pouring a drink.
“What do you mean?” she asked as she placed a couple cubes of ice in the small glasses before grabbing the bourbon whisky. “And what made you start wanting to drink this?”
Dillon smirked. “I learned to love bourbon when I was in college in Nashville,” he answered. “And what I mean is, what are your life goals? If you knew you were going to die next week, what would you want to make sure you accomplished before then?”
Marisol tilted her head a bit as she poured the two of them drinks. “That’s a pretty deep question, mi amore,” she said, as she poured the amber liquid. “It’s not something that I think about very often.”
“But it’s something you’ve thought about before, right?” asked Dillon as he rotated his hips to see Marisol walking toward him with a drink.
‘Of course! What girl hasn’t?” she asked rhetorically as she placed the drink on the coffee table in front of the couch. “Every girl, no matter what walk of life she’s from, has always thought about what she wants and what she dreams of.”
Dillon chuckled as he reached forward and grabbed his drink. “Great, then can you answer my question?”
Marisol laughed while she watched Dillon take a sip of his drink. “Well, I want what every girl wants.”
“And that is?”
“A man with a giant…”
“Well you’ve come to wrong place,” joked Dillon as he interrupted her.
“…heart,” she finished after a brief pause. “I want a man who has a big heart and a lot of compassion, but most importantly, I want a man who will love me for me, no matter what becomes of me just as I hope to find a man that I can love for who he is, no matter what he becomes.”
Dillon nodded. “So you want someone that you know, no matter what happens, you will always be in love with and that he will always be in love with you.”
Marisol smiled. “Every girl wants that,” she answered solemnly. “No matter her age or where she’s from, wants a man who will love her forever.”
“Really, is it that simple?” asked Dillon as he leaned back on the couch with his drink in his hand.
“It’s always that simple,” she replied with a coy smile. “Men just overcomplicate it.”
“Do what?” questioned Dillon sarcastically. “You cannot be serious. Men do not overcomplicate what a woman wants.”
Marisol held her drink in her right hand as she bit her bottom lip. “Men think women are incredibly difficult to understan
d and that we are just the most complicated creatures ever created. Honestly, the second part is true, but men do make it more complicated than it should be.”
Dillon chuckled as he sipped on his drink. “Women are incredibly complex creatures that cannot be summed up in one simple statement.”
“Yes they can,” she replied. “Don’t try to understand.”
“That’s more of a warning label,” quipped Dillon as he leaned forward to place his drink on the coffee table. “But back to my question. What do you really want in life?”
Marisol shook her head as Dillon continued to prod. “I don’t know how to answer that question,” she said innocently. “I mean, I guess…I don’t know…” she stammered, unable to put her words together to answer Dillon’s question.
“I want to have a family one day,” he said as he leaned forward to look into her eyes. “I want to know that when I come home, from whatever God forsaken corner of the globe I happen to be at, I can know that I have a woman that loves me, waiting on me with some children who look up to me. I want to work my ass off now so that I can provide for a family so that we won’t struggle or stress or worry about anything. I work as hard as I do now so that when I get have that family, I can spend as much time with them as humanly possible.”
“Really?” asked Marisol. “So, you don’t want to be a billionaire playboy forever?”
Dillon shook his head as he suppressed a sly grin. “That’s not what I want,” answered Dillon with in a sincere voice. “Honestly, I’ve never wanted that.”