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“We’ve always had a great business relationship. Suddenly, London comes around, and everything I value about our partnership goes out the window. I don’t know what your problem is, so you need to tell me.” I wondered if she was jealous seeing me with another woman. In all the years we’d been working together, I’d never suspected she saw me as anything more than a business partner and friend. There was never any attraction between us, any sort of chemistry. I’d never made a pass at her because I didn’t mix business with pleasure. She seemed to share my same ideology. But if that wasn’t it, I couldn’t figure it out.
“I’ve seen you with your women. You’re cold, heartless, and right to the point.”
I stared at her blankly, unsure why she was stating the obvious.
“But when this woman comes around, everything changes. You don’t hand her over to Bones like you planned, and she’s sleeping in your bed every night. It’s none of my business who you fuck and I really don’t care about your sex life, but this woman can’t turn into something more. And it seems like it’s going in that direction. We both know there’s a very small pool of women you can spend the rest of your life with. London isn’t on the list.”
Now everything made sense. “That’s what you’ve been worried about?” I had to hold back my laugh because it was ridiculous. “If that’s what the problem is, we don’t have a problem. London is something I keep around for entertainment. That’s it.”
“But you can’t keep her around forever.”
“I realize that.” I had no idea what I was going to do with her eventually. “And I don’t intend to. She’s just like all the others. Don’t worry about that.”
Ariel didn’t seem entirely convinced. “You’re different with her. I’ve seen it.”
“No, I’m not. I comforted her on the plane because she was scared. Doesn’t mean I love the woman.”
“But it doesn’t mean you’re indifferent either. Have you been with other women since she’s come along?”
I refused to answer that question. “You’re approaching a line you shouldn’t cross.”
“I’m not being nosy. I’m just proving my point.”
Ariel knew a lot about me. She probably figured out I hadn’t been chasing tail lately. “It doesn’t matter. London doesn’t mean anything to me. I’m not going to repeat myself.”
She searched my gaze as if she was searching for a lie. Ariel was invested in my personal life because my future marriage affected her. If I’d married Josephine like I originally planned, it would have been easy to expand my scotch business into foreign territories. Ariel would be much richer in that scenario than she was now. Not to mention, it opened a lot of other doors for her as well. If I ended up with a nobody, then she had very little room to advance professionally. We were both ambitious businesspeople, determined to grow our wealth as much as possible. “You give me your word, Crewe?”
She knew my word meant more than anything else in the world. “Yes, I give you my word.”
London had already showered by the time I arrived in the bedroom. She opened the Mediterranean doors to the balcony and stood at the railing. She looked into the darkness surrounding the house, only seeing the stars because everything else was invisible. She stood in one of my t-shirts with just her panties underneath.
“Wait until you see it in the morning.” I undressed and tossed my clothes on the hardwood floor. I’d been wearing the same thing for hours, and I was eager to shower and appreciate a bottle of scotch.
She came back inside and shut the doors behind her. “I can tell it’s beautiful without seeing anything. The air is nice…reminds me of home.”
I was sure she was homesick all the time, but I never felt bad for her. She didn’t have freedom, but she still had the opportunity to see the world on my dime. I scooped the ice cubes into the glass and poured some scotch.
London eyed my action judgmentally. “Crewe, you’ve been drinking all day.”
“I’m aware.”
“Just from friendly advice, step it down a notch.”
“Noted.” I downed half of the glass before I returned it to the counter. “I’m gonna get in the shower. When I get out, I expect to see you naked on the bed with your ass in the air. Got it?” I didn’t want to talk for the rest of the night. I just wanted to fuck her from behind and stare at that beautiful little asshole then go to sleep.
A fire always leapt in her eyes when I told her what to do, but she invariably controlled her mouth. “Yes, sir.”
I knew it was so hard for her to answer that way, and knowing she struggled made me hard. I loved conquering an unconquerable woman. It gave me the kind of power I craved, the kind of undeniable control I needed constantly. I turned to walk into the shower.
