“Hudson,” he corrected.
“No, thank you, Hudson.” His eyes widened slightly when I said his name. “I’ve already eaten.”
“A drink then? Though, I know you work at eleven.”
I licked my lips, thinking more about the man sitting across from me than of thirst, wondering what he had in store for me. “Maybe an iced tea.”
“Good.”
Out of habit, I reached to press the button in the middle of the table to summon the waitress, but he beat me to it, our fingers colliding. I moved to pull my hand away, but he was quicker again, taking my hand into his. I inhaled sharply at the sensation of his skin against mine.
“I didn’t mean to startle you. I was admiring your soft skin.” But his eyes never left mine.
“Oh.” I thought about saying I’d been to an amazing spa, but really, did he care? And besides, talking was difficult with that thing he was doing to my skin, burning it so thoroughly with his caress.
His phone rang and he let go of my hand. I pulled it to my lap, needing the warmth of my body once it’d lost the warmth of his.
“Excuse me,” he said, taking his phone out of his pants pocket and silencing it without looking at the screen.
“You can take it if you need to.” I could use a few minutes to gather my thoughts. Because, what the hell did he want with me? Not only was not knowing killing me, but the more time I spent with Hudson, the easier it was for me to think about him and his amazing gray eyes. And his hard body. And his smooth voice.
“There can’t be anything important enough to interrupt this conversation.”
And even smoother lines.
I opened my mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the door opening. Sasha entered with a tray of food and drinks. I watched as she set down a plate of sea bass and a glass of Sancerre in front of Hudson and a glass of iced tea in front of me. Hudson must have preordered, but how did he know I’d get iced tea?
He must have sensed my question. “I asked Liesl what you usually drank. If you had said you wanted something different, I wouldn’t look quite so cool at this moment.”
That earned him a smile. Whatever his game was, he was working for it. “Hmm, cool is not quite the word I’d use for you.” Hot, blazing, volcanic. All of those words were much more appropriate.
“What word would you use for me then?”
I blushed and delayed answering by taking a swallow of my tea.
Thankfully, Sasha spoke at that moment. “Anything else, Mr. Pierce?” I raised my brow. Would he invite her to call him Hudson as well?
“We’re good.”
Nope. No first name basis for Sasha. Only me. Well, didn’t that have liquid pooling between my thighs?
The door had just shut behind Sasha when Hudson asked again. “What word would you use for me, Alayna?”
The way my name sounded in his sensual voice brought goose bumps to my skin. “Controlled,” I said, without hesitation.
“Interesting.” He took a bite of his bass and I watched, hypnotized by the way his mouth curved around the fork. “Not that controlled isn’t an accurate description of me. But I had thought from the look on your face that you would say something else.”
I began to ask what he had expected me to say, but I wasn’t certain I wanted to walk through that door he’d opened. He didn’t press it, spending the next few minutes eating in silence.
Wanting to let him eat, I turned my body to look at the club below me. Even with my eyes averted, I felt Hudson’s presence hanging on me like a cloak. I wondered about the man sitting across from me. Why had he bought The Sky Launch? What did he want from me? And the most intriguing question, how did I feel about this domineering male who bossed me and chastised me and made me want to climb on to his lap and rub against him like a kitten? Yeah, he was good-looking, but did I like him? Or was he just another rich pompous ass that I was inexplicably drawn to?
“I know why you agreed to dine with me, Alayna.”
I turned back to face him and stilled, wondering where he was possibly going. First of all, I hadn’t actually agreed to dine with him, if that’s what this was. He’d sort of led me there. Secondly, many of the reasons I hadn’t fought against coming with him would be embarrassing if he voiced them. They were numerous: to find out his plans for the club, to get a promotion, to make David jealous. To get in Hudson’s pants.
No, not to get in his pants. That could not be on my list of reasons. Could. Not.
Hudson took a swallow of his wine, then wiped his perfectly formed lips with his napkin. “I have to be honest with you. I don’t intend to help you with your desire to make management.”
I fidgeted, not knowing if I should relax or be disappointed. On the one hand, that was probably the least humiliating reason he could have mentioned for me dining with him. On the other hand, there went my promotion.
“That doesn’t mean you won’t be promoted.” Did Hudson have some sort of mind-reading capability? It would explain how he did so well in the business world. “David said you’re quite capable, and I’m sure you’ll get the position without my help. I may own The Sky Launch, but I am not your boss. David is your boss and will continue to be unless the business no longer thrives under his command.”
Well, then. I could live with that. David had all but guaranteed me a place in management. Plan back on track. And it likely meant that Hudson wasn’t planning on spending a lot of time around the club. I might have sighed audibly.
Hudson leaned back against the couch, draping his arm across the top. “But I didn’t invite you here to discuss the club.”
Finally. I swallowed. “Why did you invite me?”
A hint of amusement crossed Hudson’s face. “Perhaps I like you.”
I shuddered as a thrill traveled up my spine. But I didn’t trust that he was merely trying to pick me up. He was taking too long to make his play, and that would never be Hudson’s style. There was more.
God, I hoped there was more. If he was just trying to pick me up, what the hell was I going to say?
I took a sip of my iced tea, wishing it were something stronger. When I lowered my glass, I said, “Perhaps I’m seeing someone.”
“You aren’t. No man would let his woman wear the outfit you wore yesterday. Not in public, anyway.”
The mention of the outfit I’d nicknamed trouble and the idea that any man would let me do anything ruffled my feathers. “Perhaps I’m not into controlling boyfriends.”
His mouth twitched slightly. “Very well, Alayna.” He cocked a brow. “Are you seeing anyone?”
Of course I wasn’t seeing anyone, damn it. I looked at my lap, my expression telling Hudson all he needed to know. Why did this man make me so flustered? I was a confident, well-spoken woman on a normal day. But not around him.
I sat straighter, attempting to find some semblance of sure footing. “That isn’t why you invited me, Hudson. You have an agenda.”
“An agenda.” Hudson made a sound that I think must have been his version of a chuckle. “Yes, Alayna, I have an agenda.”
And then, instead of sharing his agenda, he changed the subject. “I presume you enjoyed your time at my spa last week.”
Startled by absolutely everything he was saying, I attempted to follow the topic swing. “Oh, I didn’t realize you owned…wait...” And the light went on. “The gift was from you?”
“Yes. Did you have a nice time?”
“No. Way.” I’m pretty sure my jaw dropped. Actually, physically, literally dropped.
“No way?”
Realizing my remark hadn’t expressed what I meant it to express, I tried again. “I mean, yes, I had a nice time—a wonderful time, in fact—but no way could you have done that. Why did you do that? You shouldn’t have done that.”
“Why ever not?”
A whole range of reasons ran through my head, number one being because it was creepy and psychotic. But I had been called both of those things many times and would not thr
“Not for me.”
“But for me it is.” How could he not understand? The vastness of it built in me like champagne bubbles in a newly uncorked bottle. “It’s huge! And you don’t even know me! It’s completely inappropriate and unprofessional and unprecedented and inappropriate. And if I’d known it was from you, I never would have accepted it.” This couldn’t be only about getting in my pants. I could have been won over by much less, as ashamed as I was to admit that to myself.
Hudson took a deep breath, trying to remain patient. “It’s not inappropriate at all. It was simply a gift. Think of it as a golden hello.”
My voice was tight as I strained to keep myself from screaming in frustration. “But you don’t give gifts like that to women who work for you unless you’re running an entirely different kind of club.”
“You’re overreacting, Alayna.”
“I’m not!” Finally his previous statement registered. “And what do you mean a golden hello? You mean, like a signing bonus?” Several of my peers had talked about the bonuses they’d been offered when they’d accepted their six-figure positions after grad school. Cars and stuff like that.
“Yes, Alayna.” He tossed his hand in the air. “That’s my agenda. I would like to hire you.”
He couldn’t have startled me more if he’d asked me to strip for him. Or maybe that’s what he was asking. What exactly did he want to hire me to do? “I already work for you and I’m happy where I am.”
“Again, I don’t feel that you do work for me. I am not your boss. I own the establishment that you work for. That is all. Is that clear?”
Semantics. But I understood what he was attempting to do, separating himself from me and my job at The Sky Launch, so I nodded.
“This wouldn’t affect your employment at the club.” He removed his arm from the couch and sat forward. “Maybe hire is not the correct term. I’d like to pay you to help me with a problem. I believe you’d be perfect for the job.”
The whole conversation had my head spinning, but he had my attention. “You win. My curiosity is piqued. What’s the job?”
“I need you to break up an engagement.”
I coughed, wondering if I heard him correctly, knowing I had. “Um, what? Whose?”
Hudson leaned back, his dazzling gray eyes flickering in the strobe lights. “Mine.”
Chapter Four
Hudson tapped one long finger on the table in front of him. “Close your mouth, Alayna. Although it’s quite adorable to see you flabbergasted, it’s also very distracting.”
I closed my mouth. A million questions circled through my mind, too quickly for any to take shape. And somewhere behind all that, I registered that he’d called me adorable. I needed a drink, something stronger than iced tea. Hudson scooted his Sancerre toward me and I took it, grateful.
The wine gave me back my voice. “I didn’t realize you were engaged.” I blushed then, remembering all the dirty thoughts I’d had about Hudson and how I’d believed—okay, hoped—he had been flirting with me. I took another swallow of wine.
Hudson glanced out the window, maybe hoping to hide the torment that flashed across his face. “I’m not really.” He turned back to me, his expression now reserved and emotionless as usual. “That’s the problem. Neither Celia nor I are at all interested in the arrangement.”
This relaxed me, for some reason. But it did little to clear anything up. “Then why not just break up with her?”
He sighed. “It’s not that simple.”
I gave Hudson my best dumb-it-down-for-me-dude expression. Apparently, it worked.
“Her parents have been friends with mine for decades. They have a specific plan for their daughter’s life and they do not accept her choice to not marry me. If she broke it off, they’d cut her off emotionally and financially. That’s not something I wish for my friend.”
His explanation prickled me. Were we living in the early twentieth century with arranged marriages and shit? God, rich people lived such strange lives. I picked my words thoughtfully, careful to not show the extent of my irritation. “Never mind that parents shouldn’t be controlling their grown daughter, they don’t control you. Do they?”
Hudson’s eyes blazed. “No. No one controls me.”
His emphatic response had my body turned on. That command and authority, it was so…hot. I licked my lips, and then delighted as he zeroed in on the action. I hadn’t imagined it. He was reacting to me. Maybe not as forcefully as I reacted to him, but the energy between us was real.
I crossed my legs attempting to ease the need between them. “I’m missing something.”
He nodded. “I suppose you are.” He retrieved the Sancerre from in front of me and finished it off in one quick swallow. Knowing we’d shared the glass sent another tingle to my lower regions.
“Alayna, if there is anyone in the world who has any power over me, it’s my mother. My mother knows that I am…incapable…of love. She worries that I will…end up alone. A marriage with her best friend’s daughter, at least, insures that won’t happen.” His words were measured and even. And just like every time he spoke, he hypnotized me with his voice.
“It would make my mother very happy to see me marry Celia. If it comes to Celia losing her entire life, then I’ll willingly enter into a loveless marriage. However, I’d hate to rob her future of happiness she might find with someone else.”
I shook my head, confused, overwhelmed, dazzled. “Where would I come in?”
He raised his brows. “Ah, see, if Celia’s parents believed I was in love with another woman—”
“They wouldn’t want her to marry a man who was in love with someone else.”
“Exactly. And my mother would be so thrilled that I’d found someone I was happy with, she’d stop worrying about my future.”
The idea of betraying someone who only wanted Hudson to be happy bothered me. But I was also extremely attracted to the sweetness of this hard, virile man in front of me caring enough about his mother and his friend to go to such extreme measures.
I also saw enormous potential for me to be made the enemy in the scenario. “So I’m supposed to be the floozy you’re in love with.”
His lips curved at the edges. “No one would ever mistake you as a floozy, Alayna. Even when you dress like one.”
That damn trouble outfit again. I was burning it when I got home. Mention of it made me suddenly cold and defensive. I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned back—away from Hudson Pierce. “Why don’t you hire a real floozy to put on your charade?”
He smirked. “My mother would never believe I’d fall for a floozy. You, however, have particular qualities—qualities that would make the story quite believable.”
I didn’t want to play this game anymore. My answer was no. But I couldn’t help myself from asking, “What sort of qualities?”
His eyes darkened, and I was caught up in them. “You are exquisitely beautiful, Alayna, and also extremely intelligent.”
“Oh.” I dropped my hands to my lap, stunned. It was a good thing the wine was gone. I’d have slammed it, and I still had a shift to work.
Hudson broke the intense eye contact. “And you’re a brunette. All three make you ‘my type’ so to say.”
The absence of his heated stare was both chilling and releasing. I could think again, make coherent sentences. But I also wanted it back with a fierceness I couldn’t explain.
“I sense your hesitation, Alayna, and I understand. Perhaps this would be a good time to discuss payment.” I admired how he could move from moments of magnitude to straight business with such fluid ease. Me, I had whiplash. I didn’t even have time to wonder what someone got paid to fake a romance before he continued. “I understand you have a substantial amount of student loans. I’d like to rid you of that debt.”
I laughed. “That’s way too much, Hudson.” He had no idea how much I’d needed to get through school. No idea how heavy of a burden they were on me now.
“Not to me.”
“It is for me.” I sat forward, challenging him. “It’s eighty thousand dollars.”
“Eighty four thousand two hundred and six, to be exact.”
I froze. How did he know that?
As he often did, he answered my unasked question. “I own the bank that holds your loans. I looked them up today. It would be very easy for me to have them written off. No actual money would exchange hands, if that makes you feel better.”
“That’s an awfully generous payment.” Too generous. And just like I jumped to buy a lottery ticket whenever the pot got particularly high, I wanted to jump on his offer. But nothing that paid that well ended in good.
“It’s worth it to me to see this project succeed, Alayna.”
My answer was no. I’d already decided. It had to be no. There was too much risk at entering into an arrangement—any arrangement—with him.
But I couldn’t help but want to know more of the details. “What exactly would you want me to do?”
“Pretend we’re a couple. I’d invite you to several gatherings where my mother would see us together. I’d expect you to hang on my arm and behave as though we’re madly in love.”
“And that’s all?” I couldn’t imagine it would be that hard to pretend to be in love with Hudson. And that was the problem with the whole damn thing. Pretending to be in love with someone who already affected me so intensely was a big fat trigger for obsessing.
“That’s all.” His shoulders had visibly relaxed. He thought I was taking him seriously, that I was considering his ridiculous idea, and I almost wondered if I actually should.
I swallowed. For eighty thousand dollars there had to be more he expected. Since he wouldn’t spell it out, I tiptoed around the topic myself. “This pretend relationship—to what extent would I be expected to perform?”
“Don’t pussy foot about it. You’re asking about sex.” His eyes darkened again. “I never pay for sex, Alayna. When I fuck you, it will be for free.”
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