by B. B. Hamel
“It doesn’t have great memories for me.”
“Seriously? This place is a palace. I’d give anything to grow up here.”
I snort and look away. “No, you wouldn’t,” I say softly before looking back at her. “And anyway, I didn’t grow up here.”
“I thought he’s always lived here?” she asks.
“Oh, he has, but I was shipped off to boarding school the second I could walk. I barely remember this place, except for the terrifying summers I’d spend hiding from father and playing with the gardener’s kids.”
“That sounds…” She trails off, clearly not sure what to say.
“It sounds shitty,” I finish for her. “Can we go?”
“Yeah, okay, fine.” She slips the book into her bag. “Let’s get moving.”
I walk behind her, head cocked slightly. I still can’t believe she dragged me out to this fucking place just for some shitty book.
But it must mean something to her…
And now I can’t help myself. I’m going to have to find out exactly what’s in that book, no matter what happens.
God, I’m just such a curious boy. I can’t help myself.
I’m smiling as we step out into the cool November air. Lucy frowns at her phone again. “No service,” she says.
“Don’t worry. I have that super fancy rich people’s cell service,” I tell her. “We get service everywhere.”
Her eyes widen slightly. “Really?”
“No, not really. I have Verizon.”
She sighs as I take out my phone and order an Uber. “Ten minutes,” I say.
She shrugs off her bag and sits on the curb. My bags are already sitting outside nearby where I left them after my taxi dropped me off.
I hesitate a second. She’s wearing jeans and a navy blue blouse, her hair pulled up in a messy bun. She looks like she’s going on a weekend trip, not acting as the babysitter to an older rich man like me.
I lean against a tree a few feet away.
“Tell me something,” I say. “What did you like about working with my father?”
She purses her lips for a second. “Honestly?”
“Please.”
“I hated it.”
I laugh. “Seriously?”
“Seriously. It wasn’t what I want to do at all, and plus, he was really… uh, difficult.”
“He was a fucking prick. It’s okay.”
She blushes a little. “He was tough. So yeah, I didn’t love it.”
“Why would he choose you for this, then?”
“I’m trying to figure that out too.”
“Hm.” I watch her carefully for a second. “I know you’re getting something from this deal, you know.”
“Of course I am. Why else would I put up with you?”
“How much?”
She raises her eyebrows and smiles a little. “A lot.”
“How much?” I press.
“Enough to make me willing to put up with you and drag your ass around whether you like it or not. Okay? Drop it.”
I grin back at her. “Oh, I like it. Already being tough.”
“Don’t be a dick.”
“Like my father?”
“No, he was a particular type of asshole. You’re a different kind.”
“I assume I’m more lovable and fun. He was more abusive and horrifying.”
“Something like that.”
I walk over and sit down next to her on the curb. She glances at me and I’m tempted to reach out and brush a stray piece of hair from her face, but I stop myself.
That’s not what I’m supposed to be here for.
“We don’t have to go through with this farce, you know,” I say softly. “We can just hole up in some hotel somewhere, hang out for a month, then go back to Reginald and say we did our best.”
“There are people waiting for us,” she points out. “Four companies, remember?”
I shrug. “Reg won’t check. He’ll take your word.”
“Even if that’s true, I’m not going to lie for you.”
“Why not?” I cock my head. “You get what you want, I get what I want.”
“Cade.”
“Oh, I like when you say my name.”
She blushes a little bit. “Stop it.”
“You’re blushing. You don’t like it when I flirt with you? I see the way you stare at me, you know.”
“Stop,” she repeats. “Asshole.”
“Come on. You’re not the uptight prudish type, are you? We could have some fun, holed up together, you know. You’re pretty fucking hot. I wouldn’t mind peeling those jeans off and—”
“Okay,” she squeaks and jumps to her feet. “Enough, enough, I don’t want to hear it.” She quickly walks a few feet away.
I can’t help but laugh. “Holy shit. You really are prudish, aren’t you?”
“Cade, I’m serious.” She’s blushing like holy hell and oh my god, it’s so fucking sexy. She’s smiling a little bit but she’s embarrassed, and I think it’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.
“Who the hell are you if that’s going to make you blush?” I stand up, head cocked. “Sweet Lucy, I have so much more I want to say to you right now, if only—”
“Car!” she shouts, pointing. “Look! Uber!”
I laugh softly as the Uber slowly pulls down the driveway. “You’re lucky.”
“I’m not sure you know what that word means.” As soon as the Uber parks, she runs over and hops in the front seat. The guy looks confused but she refuses to meet his gaze.
I grab our bags, throw them in the trunk, then slip into the back seat. The driver glances back at me then pulls out into traffic.
Lucy is silent the whole way over and that’s fine with me. I watch as the city flashes past and I wish I could concentrate on what I’m supposed to be doing, which I guess is just showing up and smiling like a good little boy, but instead I’m thinking about all the ways I can make Lucy blush.
I didn’t think she was so uptight and virginal at first. I mean, just looking at her, she has the body of someone with some serious experience. It’s like driving a sports car and never going fast.
But it’s also exciting. Clearly she’s inexperienced, if all it took to make her blush was the suggestion of something dirty. And if I didn’t know any better, I’d say that she liked it… really liked it.
We get dropped off at the building across from the television station. I head inside, Lucy close on my heels. It’s an upscale hotel, the sort of place that barely advertises and only has a single sign out front.
“Ah, Mr. Moore,” the front desk girl purrs. “It’s nice to see you again. Checking in?”
“Yes,” I say. “One room. Nicest one you got.”
“Two rooms,” Lucy snaps, glaring at me.
I grin and feign innocence. “Oh, sorry, my mistake. My fiancée here is very, ah, strict, you see. No funny business before marriage.”
Lucy stares at me, totally aghast, but the front desk girl just smiles.
“Of course, Mr. Moore. Might I say that, if I were in her position, I’d be much more eager.”
Lucy looks like she wants to throw up, but it’s the girl’s job to massage my ego.
“Thank you, that means a lot.”
The girl types on her computer for a moment then produces two keys.
“Here you go. We have two rooms on the top floor. They’re both yours. How long will you be staying?”
“The week,” I say, taking the cards. I hand one to Lucy. She snatches it from me, face bright red.
I can’t tell if she’s embarrassed or angry. Probably both.
“Very good. Thank you for staying with us, Mr. Moore, and please let me know if you need anything at all.”
I wink at her and lead Lucy back to the elevators.
“Fiancée?” she growls at me. “Are you insane. What is wrong with you?”
“I was just joking around,” I say mildly. The elevator arrives and we step on.
> “It’s not funny! Oh my god, and the way that girl was… throwing herself at you. That was so gross.”
“Just doing her job.”
“Is she a prostitute?”
I raise an eyebrow. “Here? Probably not. But I know a few places if you—”
“You’re disgusting.”
“I’m just saying.” I laugh and lean against the wall. “Look, in a place like this, the staff is told to make all the rich people happy. They say or do whatever they can to make us feel special. It’s actually pretty annoying but you get used to it.”
Lucy glares at me for a second. “You like it,” she says finally. “Don’t act like you don’t.”
I grin at her and shrug as the elevator reaches our floor. “Okay, I love it.”
She grumbles as she follows me into a very short hallway. On either side of the space are two doors.
I look at my key. “I’m one,” I say, looking left.
“Got it. We have work in the morning. Meet me here at six sharp, don’t be late or this is all over.”
I blink as she hurries to her room. “What, that’s it? No nightcap?”
“It’s two in the afternoon.”
“Afternoon cap, then. Whatever.”
“No, thank you.”
“You’re just going to sit there in that huge, empty room all by your lonesome?”
She turns back to me. “Yep. And you’re doing the same.” She steps closer. “No bullshit, Cade. No getting in trouble. No inviting random hotel girls up to your room to keep you company. Nose clean.”
I nod solemnly. “Nose clean,” I repeat.
“Good.” She turns away.
“Tongue, though,” I say thoughtfully. “And fingers and lips? I don’t know. I don’t think I can keep them clean, not with you right across the hall.”
She turns on me, looking angry, but I step closer before she can snap at me.
“Oh, relax,” I say softly before she can start into me. She blinks, surprised by my proximity, and steps backward. She runs into the door. I want to pin her there, hold her wrists above her head and taste that delicious skin, but I hold back. “We’re going to be working very closely together for the next month, Lucy darling,” I say softly. “You’d better get used to me.”
“Getting used to you doesn’t mean dealing with your crap,” she shoots back.
“Maybe, maybe not. But the thing is, I think you like it, and if you didn’t, I think you’d just fail me and be done with it.”
She frowns. “What if I can’t just do that?”
I smile and shrug. “I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?”
We stare at each other for a second. God, I want to kiss her so badly.
But I step back instead.
“Have a nice night,” I say. “It’s a gorgeous room. You’ll like it.”
“Fine,” she answers, turning to the door.
“And if you want company, you know where I’ll be.”
She glances back at me again and I swear, there’s a note of yearning in her gaze. She looks at my eyes, glances down my body, then tears herself away.
She opens her door and disappears inside.
I’m grinning as I open my own. It’s going to be a boring day, but playing with Lucy for the next month…
That might be totally worth it.
3
Lucy
I look at my phone.
Ten past six in the morning.
I sit on the little padded bench next to the elevator door and sip my coffee.
He’s late. He’s freaking late on the first day. I don’t know why I’m surprised, but I shouldn’t be. Of course that asshole’s late.
He’s too busy flirting with me to try to get anything real accomplished.
I sip my coffee again and glower at the floor. At least my room is really gorgeous. He wasn’t kidding about that. The view is fantastic, the amenities are insane, and there’s enough space to sleep ten people.
I’ll admit, I got a little lonely. I’m not perfect. There’s a moment where I thought about knocking on his door. Not for anything illicit or whatever, but just because I wanted some company.
He’s not so bad. I mean, he’s nice to look at. Every time he makes a lewd comment, I can’t help but think about him doing it to me… about his lips on mine, his hands on my body…
But no, I can’t go down that road. That’ll only complicate things. And besides, I can’t give in to that asshole. It’s what he wants.
I check the time again. Quarter after.
I bounce my knee up and down impatiently. This is what I expected from him, if I’m being honest. Cade has this reputation, after all. Playboy billionaire, total asshole.
Although I saw a different side of him yesterday. He gave me a glimpse into his life. I’m not surprised that he didn’t get along with his father. Frank Moore was an extremely difficult man.
I didn’t much enjoy my time with him, but I put up with it.
I can’t really imagine being the man’s son.
He was a perfectionist. He needed things done just so. For whatever reason, I could make him happy most of the time. I got good at reading his moods and figuring out what he’d need before he even asked for it, more out of sheer survival than out of anything else.
Living up to those standards every single day of my life, my entire existence controlled by that man…
Well, okay, I can see how maybe Cade’s story isn’t as neat and clean as I want to believe.
Still, he didn’t have it hard. He’s a rich kid. He has everything he needed and then some. He didn’t have to work hard like I did. I’ve earned everything I have. I worked for that asshole during the day and studied my ass off at night. I had no life because of how hard I had to work.
And there’s Cade, poor Cade, given everything he could ever want.
I sigh and lean back for a second. I can feel myself getting worked up.
I don’t need to hate him. There’s no reason to, honestly, and this would be easier if I didn’t. I don’t know why I keep trying to convince myself to dislike the man. There are good things about him.
Those eyes, those arms, that face… that sense of humor… quick wit… clearly smart…
Maybe that’s why I’m doing it. Maybe, I don’t want to let myself like him too much.
Because if I do, I know what he’ll do with that.
Finally, his door opens. He steps out wearing a crisp suit and holding a dark briefcase in one hand. He turns to me and smiles.
“Good morning, my darling Lucy,” he says.
“Morning,” I grumble. “You’re late.”
He grins and ignores me. “How many times did you want to come over last night, huh? Ten, twelve? I myself had to hold back on numerous occasions from knocking on your door. You see, it gets mighty lonely and you’re a very attractive woman. I thought we might warm our—”
“Enough,” I say, rubbing my temples. “Oh my god. It’s so early. Are you always like this?”
“No,” he admits. “I just really like annoying you.”
“Great.” I stand up, sip my coffee for strength, and summon the elevator. “You’re late,” I say again. “I said I’d fail you for that.”
The elevator arrives almost instantly.
“I called your bluff,” he says as we step on.
I glare at him for a second, but I know he’s right. It was totally a bluff.
“Look, we can’t do this to each other,” I say. “You can’t keep pissing me off.”
“True,” he admits. “I don’t want to tease you for a month.”
“Okay, so let’s—”
“I want to get you there,” he interrupts me. “I want to get you within inches, my sweet Lucy, and then tip you over into incredible, toe-curling oblivion.”
I groan and feel myself blushing, picturing him making me come in that huge, stupid bed I slept in last night.
“Stop,” I say. “Okay? Can we be professional.”
He nods
once. “Okay. For this morning, we can be professional.”
“Thank you.”
We ride the elevator in silence, but I catch him giving me looks, a little smile on his face.
“I know what you’re thinking,” I grumble at him as we step out into the lobby. “And stop that too.”
“Purely innocent, I swear.”
Fortunately, it’s an easy commute. The Moore Company is an enormous conglomerate that owns a ton of different companies in all different industries. This particular studio films a bunch of different things, notably the local news, which we’ll be shadowing for the week.
We head inside, get temporary badges, and get sent up. “They’re expecting you,” the security guy says.
“Of course they are,” Cade answers cheerfully. I sigh and follow him onto the elevator, riding it up to the sixth floor, and stepping out into a clean and well-lit office.
It looks like a newspaper office, if I didn’t know any better. Bullpen beyond the welcome lobby area with reporters bustling around.
“Patricia!” Cade walks over to the receptionist, an older woman in her seventies, all wrinkles and cheerful smiles. “How are you, my darling? You’re looking radiant.”
“Hello, Cade,” she says. “You’re still a charmer.”
“Of course. Hard not to be with you around.”
She beams at him. “You’re full of shit, but I like it.”
“That’s what I tell him,” I say, coming up next to him. “I’m Lucy.”
“Hello, dear.”
“Is Robert coming?” Cade asks. “I’m hoping for Robert. Tell me we got Robert.”
“You got Ken.”
He sighs. “Fuck.”
“What’s wrong with Ken?” I ask.
“Ken hates him,” Patricia says.
“You know people here?” I ask Cade.
“Of course I do. Despite what you may think, I’ve actually been working for my father’s company for a long time.”
“He comes and goes,” Patricia adds.
“Huh,” I say, genuinely surprised. “I figured you just, you know, hung out in clubs and did drugs all day long.”
“I do that at night,” he mutters, frowning off at the bullpen.
“If it helps, dear, that’s what I assumed as well,” Patricia adds chipperly.