AllFreeNovel
Share Us
We’ve stayed friends and partners by acting as if our sexy encounter had never happened. I try not to think too hard about our complex little trio, but I suspect we were both conscious of protecting our relationship with Sterling.
My relationship with my ex is convoluted after our amicable divorce. Our marriage was short—both of us realised almost instantly that we’d rushed into it. I was desperately seeking the happy-ever-after my siblings had, and Sterling seemed intent on proving something to his overcritical stepfather. We were equally to blame, so we shelved our disillusionment and hurt. We valued the growing business we’d started after u
niversity, and we’d just entered into a lucrative partnership with Hudson. We couldn’t allow the divorce to ruin all that. Now it helps that we live on separate continents.
Hudson pushes his chair away from the table and swivels to face me. ‘Sterling and I can always rely on you to keep us in check.’ He rests his chin in his hand and shoots me a rare look of indulgence. Perhaps he too is enjoying the different dynamic in Sterling’s absence.
Interesting...
‘I’m glad to hear you acknowledge that you can’t spell Bold without D.’ I grin, delight warming my blood. Sparring with Hudson has never felt this sexually charged.
The sound of his throaty chuckle skitters down my spine, setting off a series of delicious shivers. Clearly I’ve sorely neglected my sex life of late. But working with two driven, self-assured men requires constant impetus. Hudson in particular will settle for nothing less than global domination. One of the reasons he’s pushing to expand Bold farther into Europe and Asia.
‘It’s the B in BLD that’s most important.’ He flicks off the screen we’ve used for our meeting, as if he’s won the argument, and then heads to the bar. ‘Drink?’
I nod, relaxing now business is done for the day. ‘Scotch, please.’
He pours generous measures from a crystal decanter into two glasses and grins. On any other man, his arrogance would be repellent. But playful Hudson, a sight rarely seen, could charm a nun out of her knickers. And he more than compensates for his God-given confidence with his wit, his razor-sharp intelligence and his ruthlessly insightful business mind.
Despite that, I can’t allow him to think he’s bested me with the naming order. ‘Keep believing that if you like.’
He quirks an eyebrow, his expression irresistibly roguish. ‘Everyone knows the first initial takes precedence. That’s why Sterling fought so hard for the spot and got stuck in the middle.’ Sterling’s surname, Lombard, accounts for the L in BLD.
We laugh, more sparks bouncing between us. Spirited exchanges are how we’ve managed our attraction all these years since we first met, when I was engaged to Sterling. Neither of us would risk our highly successful multinational company for something as clichéd as meaningless sex.
I join him at the comfortable seating area, which faces his corner office views of Tokyo. The sky has lost its pink and orange hues of earlier and turned drab shades of grey, which dampen the vista of the Imperial Palace gardens thirty-two floors below and the glow of Tokyo Tower.
‘Well, as your equal partner, I heartily contest that.’ I take the tumbler he offers, my fingers unintentionally brushing his.
Our eyes meet. I watch him over the rim of my glass, excitement fizzing in my veins. I’m taking a gamble by flirting back. Or maybe I started it. I take a sip of the top-shelf liquor, allowing its potency to deliver a delicious thrill.
‘Of course you do,’ he says.
I love that he knows me so well. I’m the youngest of five siblings. The baby. I’m used to fighting battles, wrestling my share of attention and clamouring to be heard over the hubbub. I’ve never allowed coming last in the birth order, or in the company initials, to define or hinder me.
We settle side by side on his sumptuous sofa. I hold his eye contact in challenge, enjoying the playful direction our trivial argument has taken. ‘Don’t you agree that it’s the climax that’s the best part?’
Hudson brings out my competitive side like no one else, perhaps because in business he himself is so cut-throat. So audacious. So relentless. In truth, neither Sterling nor I are as resolute as Hudson, who’s made venture capitalism—risky money-making that makes the world’s top financiers quail—a contact sport. But then neither of us has experienced the uncertainty of Hudson’s early life growing up in the foster system. His drivers are understandable. And his success is an aphrodisiac. Not that he needs to wield one. Not with that sculpted face and virile body that I can confirm he knows how to use.
And tonight, for some reason, I’m struggling to ignore the potent combination.
Tiny flecks of gold shimmer in his irises. ‘In the right situation, I’d have to agree with you about the climax, Dove. I’ll concede this one point.’ He raises his glass. ‘Cheers.’
I smile, awash with happy hormones. ‘To Tokyo—there’s nothing better than a day of good business and good company in one of my favourite cities in the world.’
Well, perhaps one thing... But we can’t go there again. We’re colleagues. Friends.
With his unrestrained smile, Hudson relaxes back into the sofa, his glass resting on his flat stomach. It’s a captivating sight. I’m so used to seeing him in control, being inspiring, authoritative. I watch him with renewed fascination, as if noticing him for the first time. His broad chest strains against the fabric of his shirt, his muscular arm bulging where he rests, one hand behind his head, his long, powerful legs stretched out.
He settles his stare on me, and that sexual heat we seem to be generating fires my endorphins. This is dangerous.
‘It’s a shame Sterling couldn’t make it,’ Hudson says. ‘I had plans to take you both to a new saké bar this week.’ He rubs at the sexy five o’clock shadow on his strong jaw.
I’m momentarily distracted by the disarray of his usually tamed dark hair. My fingers itch as if my hands were once more responsible. But the reminder that Sterling should be here douses the perilous direction of my thoughts. I nod, genuinely sorry that he was detained by his cousin’s funeral. A few times a year the three of us meet face-to-face to reconnect, brainstorm and plan long-term strategies for Bold, rotating Tokyo, London and New York, where Sterling lives.
‘We’ll catch up in London next week instead,’ I say, referring to the impromptu meet-up we’ve brought forward. ‘Besides, I can’t make it tonight.’ I smooth a wrinkle from my skirt, ignoring the irrational sinking feeling in my stomach. ‘I have a date.’
I shouldn’t feel uncomfortable admitting this to him, but I do. It’s as if my body missed the memo that I’m not supposed to find Hudson Black sexy. That I’m supposed to forget that one time and how it ruined me for mediocre sex. That I shouldn’t be flirting with him just because we’re alone. I swallow another sip of Scotch to chase off the errant feelings I don’t wish to analyse.
