They finished their dessert in silence, listening to the sounds of the ocean. The servers refilled their champagne flutes and cleared their dishes. “Thank you for everything,” Quin told them. “Would you mind giving us a little privacy?”
“Yes, of course, Mr. Rexford, we’ll just leave this bottle here,” the first steward told him, putting the recently opened bottle in an ice bucket on the table. “We’ll be downstairs. Page us if you need anything.”
“Thank you. We will.”
Celia sat back in her seat and closed her eyes as she sipped from her glass. “This is how the other half lives, huh?”
“Yeah, I could definitely get used to this,” he told her, not taking his eyes off her resting form, unable to look away, transfixed by the rise and fall of her chest.
She tilted her head. “Huge house, fancy cars, expensive restaurants, popping bottles in the VIP section? Dude, you are the other half. This is your life.”
“I wasn’t talking about any of that stuff. The house, the cars, the business, they don’t matter.” He paused, letting the meaning of his words sink in. “I missed you this week.”
“I noticed that you were distant. I missed you, too.” She pushed back from the table and stood, walking to the railing, and he joined her.
Quin moved behind her and grasped the railing on either side of her, pinning her to it. Instead of pushing him away, he smiled to himself when she instead leaned against his chest, sipping her champagne. “I’m sorry I was distant. I haven’t been able to...” He paused, trying to figure out the words he wanted to say. “Sort out my feelings.”
“What are they?”
“My feelings? I don’t know. I was just conflicted. Over you. Over the deal with Jared. Did I want to go into business with a man like that?”
“But you chose not to.”
“After seeing what he is, I couldn’t. My conscience wouldn’t let me.”
“What did Reid and Gemma think?”
“They understood. I think Reid was pissed that it means Jared will probably make a deal with our competitors. But they both understood that it’d be worth it to be able to sleep at night. I feel good about the decision.”
“As long as it’s something you feel good about, that’s what’s important.”
He kissed her on top of her head and looked out at the way the moonlight reflected off the water. “Enough about that,” he said. “I don’t want to talk about work anymore.”
“Neither do I,” she said, leaning back against his chest. He heard her light sigh over the lapping of the water.
“You okay?” he asked.
“It feels like we’re leaving friend territory here, doesn’t it?”
“Does that bother you?”
“Yeah, a little. But only because I’m afraid.”
“I don’t want to give you any reasons to be afraid,” he said.
“I know.”
“What are we doing here?” she asked, staring out at the ocean.
“I wish I knew,” he admitted. “It would probably be easier for us to stay away from each other, stop putting ourselves in these kinds of situations. But not seeing you this week has been torture.”
“I know. I missed you.”
“I know I don’t deserve your trust after what I did. But you see that I’ve changed. I won’t hurt you.”
“I don’t believe you set out to hurt me before.” She paused. “Why did you do it? Why did you react like that?”
“I was dumb.”
“Yeah, I know that.”
“But also, I think I was afraid. I knew that if we slept together that night, I wouldn’t be able to forget you, like I did every other woman. It would have meant a lot more with you. It does mean a lot more.”
“Oh, boy, I think we’re in trouble, here, aren’t we?”
He lowered his head and chuckled into her hair. “We definitely are.”
Pressing her into the railing, he flexed his hips against her, showing her exactly what she did to him. He pushed the short flowy skirt of her dress over her hips. She was wearing a lace thong, that covered only the top of her gloriously round ass. He smoothed his palms over the mounds before pulling back and smacking her hard, and she cried out before laughing.
“Did I hurt you?” he asked. His throat was thick with need, and he could barely get the words out.
“No, of course not, you just surprised me.”
He dropped to his knees and peeled the lace from her firm behind, pulling the panties down her legs. “Spread your legs,” he told her, and she did as he ordered. He leaned in close and snaked his tongue between her sweet lips, finding her wet and warm on his tongue. She moaned at his touch. “Quin,” she muttered. “What about the crew?”
“You heard them, they’ll stay below,” he told her. “Now hold on to the railing.” He went back to work, and using his lips and tongue, he smoothed over her. Her moans and tremors showed that he was hitting the right spots. Her thigh muscles began to tremble and strain, pushing against his mouth as he ate from her. Celia came with a low sob, and he stood again, quickly reaching into his wallet.
He turned her head so that he could look at her. Her lips were full, soft, parted and waiting for his. With his grip on the back of her head, he held her in place as his mouth took hers in a kiss that was far too rough, but she reciprocated in earnest, and took the kiss deeper. He stroked her tongue with his own, entwining, dancing, dueling for who could get the most taste from the other. Not removing his mouth from hers, he pulled the condom from his wallet, tore open the foil, unbuttoned his pants and rolled the latex over his painfully rock-hard dick.
In the light of the moon, he lined up his dick with her pussy. She was wet and ready for him, and he slid inside of her sweet heat. Each time with Celia was better than the last. And with each passing day, each encounter, he felt himself becoming closer to her. It might be reckless. It might be stupid. But as he pushed into her, goddamn it, he couldn’t help himself. He had no intention of just being her friend. Soon, she was pushing back on him, matching his pounding rhythm, the moonlight bouncing off the light skin of her ass, and contrasted with her own. His stomach tightened, and his heartbeat stuttered in his chest.
He looked down at the curve of Celia’s body, and he realized that he would do anything for her. She’d been right before. He’d never been the relationship guy, but Celia had changed him. She’d awakened long-dormant feelings within him, and he wasn’t sure how she’d sneaked under his skin and gotten to him. Somewhere along the way, he’d developed some serious feelings for her. He gripped her hips, stilling her as she held the railing, and he slammed into her, taking what he wanted, bringing them both to a hard, powerful finish, and their satisfied cries mingled in the quiet air of the bay.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
THE NEXT DAY, still reeling from the revelation of his feelings for Celia the night before, Quin sat in one of the ultramodern conference rooms at Seacoast Prestige. He wasn’t sure why he’d been called in by Jared Foster. The other man had wanted to talk to him. But as he waited in the empty conference room for Jared, he checked his watch. Quin had told the man they wouldn’t be doing work together. But he didn’t seem to get the point. The door opened, and when Quin looked up, instead of seeing Jared walk in, he saw a woman. She was wearing a short trench coat and high heels.
“Who are you?” he asked. “I’m supposed to be meeting with Jared Foster.”
“I’m here for that meeting instead,” she said, undoing the belt at her waist.
He shook his head. Jared had set him up. “Hun, what you have under that coat is most definitely spectacular, but I’m not interested. I’m here to meet Jared Foster.”
“Well, I was hired to meet you,” she told him. She dropped the coat, standing in front of him wearing only her stilettos.
Quin rubbed his hand along the lower half of his face. So, Jar
ed had hired an escort for him. He’d been set up. Jared, assuming that most men were like him, probably thought Quin would have fallen for it. And hell, there was a time when Quin would have agreed in seconds. But not when he’d woken up with Celia and was still able to feel her on his skin. He stood, picked up the woman’s coat and handed it to her. “I’m sorry you came over here for nothing.”
Her pout was calculated. She drew her fingers down the buttons of his shirt. “You don’t want me?”
“Not today. I’m involved with someone.”
She took her coat back and put it on. “That’s too bad.” She looked him up and down. “We could have had a lot of fun.”
“That’s probably true.”
She reached into her pocket, pulled out her card and put it in his breast pocket. “You’re cute. If you ever change your mind, give me a call.”
Quin watched her walk away. She was a gorgeous woman, but he would never call her.
He pushed his fingers through his hair. He was done with Jared fucking with him. He strode down to Jared’s office and saw his assistant sitting at her desk.
“Where is he?” he demanded.
“You don’t have an appointment.”
“I actually did,” Quin corrected her. “Jared called me for a meeting. Now, where is he?”
“He’s not in yet.”
“What time does he come in?”
“Whenever he wants.”
He heard a noise behind the closed office door. Someone was in there. Quin walked past the assistant and into the office, where he found Jared with a woman. Both of them looked shocked, but only one of them looked relieved.
Jared pointed at the door, telling the woman to go. She scurried out of the office and when they were alone, Jared stood from his desk. “What can I do for you, Rexford?”
“I want you to stop fucking with me.”
“What are you talking about?” Jared feigned ignorance.
“Setting me up with a woman in your conference room? I don’t want anything to do with Seacoast Prestige, or you. So, leave us alone.”
“Us? Are you talking about Celia? One of my most valuable employees?”
“Get her name out of your mouth,” Quin threatened. But Jared laughed.
“Quin, I have to say, I’m glad you stormed in here. I’ve got something to show you.”
“What is it?”
Jared touched a couple of buttons on his desk, which activated a white projection screen. “I have to say, I was really disappointed when you told me you didn’t want your rum on my boats.”
“Really? Then why did you tell me you were also in talks with Cain Rum? They don’t have any integrity, so you guys are a match made in heaven.”
“I was bluffing you. But you must have seen right through it. I’ve been talking to those guys, but we want Rexford. We have a lot in common, you and I—we’re both young guys who like the finer things, same taste in women.”
“We have nothing in common.”
“We have Celia in common.”
“You have nothing to do with Celia.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. We’re going to stock your rum, and you’ll give us a good price for it.”
Quin was still acutely aware of the projection screen, and Jared’s claim to have something to show him. “No way in hell.”
“You’re wrong. You might want to ask Celia about that. I have the power to make her professional life easy or difficult.”
“Don’t you dare go near her.”
“But if that’s not enough for you to change your mind, why don’t you consider this?”
Quin turned to the screen. He watched a video from the sky deck of the yacht he and Celia had been on the evening before. He knew then that they’d been recorded having sex. That was why he’d been invited to use the yacht. He should have known that Jared would do something like that. “Stop the video. What’s your plan here? You stock our rum for pennies a bottle?”
“Yeah, or the tape goes public.”
He couldn’t imagine why anyone would be interested in a video of two regular people like him and Celia. He didn’t care what happened to him, but he couldn’t have Celia’s reputation tarnished. He hoped he could call Jared’s bluff. “Everyone has a sex tape these days,” he said. “I don’t give a fuck. Release it. No one will give a shit.”
“You might want to talk to Celia about that. I’m sure she’ll give a shit. And that’s another thing.”
“What?” Jared was right. He didn’t care what happened to him or his reputation, but Celia didn’t deserve to be embarrassed because he’d put her in a compromising situation.
“I want the girl.”
“You want Celia?”
“Yeah, she looks like a pretty good lay. I want her.”
“You’ll stay the fuck away from her.”
“That’ll be tough, seeing as how I’m her boss. Maybe she’d be willing to do a little overtime for a promotion.”
Quin watched the video of himself and Celia. The conversation they’d had—the promise that he’d never hurt her.
“But what will she say about what you just did in my conference room?”
“Fuck you. I didn’t touch that woman.”
“Really? That’s surprising.”
“It shouldn’t be. Most men have some amount of self-control.” Jared laughed, annoying Quin. That guy needed a punch in the mouth. “What’s your plan? Tell Celia that I met up with an escort in your conference room. Even you should see how stupid that sounds.”
“Women will believe anything. I’ll tell her. Just in case you don’t stay away from her, this will ensure she hates your guts, and comes running to me.”
Quin wasn’t worried. Jared was delusional. He knew that Celia would never believe a word Jared told her. “You’re an asshole.”
“You don’t get far in this business without being one.”
Quin thought about his own family. They’d gotten far enough without shady tactics or ruining anyone’s life. “You’re going down, Jared,” he told him. “And when you do, I’m going to laugh.”
Jared shook his head. “I’ll give you a day to think about it.”
* * *
Celia was working at her desk when her email pinged. It had already been a long day. She’d reached out to other women who’d been harassed by Jared, and she anxiously awaited their responses. She was nearing the end of her plan. Soon she would lower the boom on Jared. Hoping the email was from one of those women, she looked over both shoulders to confirm no one else was around, then opened her email.
But it wasn’t an email from one of Jared’s victims, it was from Quin. She clicked the email. It was a video of him sitting in what she recognized as one of the Seacoast Prestige conference rooms. She saw a woman enter the room, take off her coat and stand naked in front of him. The camera changed positions so that she could see the woman from behind as she obscured Quin sitting in the chair.
Again, Celia looked over both shoulders; she was still alone. She turned back to the video. Celia noticed the camera angle had changed so that she was given another view of what was happening. The camera was now behind the woman, and she mounted Quin, who stayed seated, undid his pants and started riding him. Celia was shocked. Why would Quin send her this video? She checked the sender’s information. Quinn Rexford. That wasn’t how Quin spelled his name. Relief washed over her. Quin hadn’t been the one to send it. But there he was on the video with the strange woman, as she straddled his thighs and kissed him.
Her heart thundered in her chest. She’d trusted Quin—he’d made her fall in love with him again. And he’d betrayed her. She knew that they’d agreed to be friends, that they would no longer sleep together. But they’d been together last night. Of course, Quin didn’t owe her anything. But the thundering in her chest, the tears in her eyes, tol
d her how stupid she’d been. How could she trust him? How could he break her heart again?
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
AFTER WHAT FELT like the longest day she’d ever worked, Celia arrived at Quin’s house. She wasn’t sure what to think of the video she’d seen. She didn’t think Quin was a cheater. But she’d seen the video with her own eyes. She rang the doorbell, and when Quin answered, he smiled, happy to see her.
She didn’t say anything outright. She wanted to see if he had anything to tell her.
In his bedroom, she walked by the hamper that held his dirty clothes. There was a small, black rectangle of paper next to it. She turned it around. The picture was that of the woman shown on video with Quin. He had been with her.
“What the fuck is this?” she asked.
“Let me explain.”
“Go ahead and spare me the lies. I saw the video.”
“I’m not going to let Jared release that video of us. I’ve already been on the phone with my lawyer.”
“Wait. The video of us?”
“What video are you talking about?” he asked.
“The one where you’re fucking that woman in the conference room at my workplace.”
“There can’t be a video of that,” he said. “I didn’t touch her.”
“Are you sure about that?”
* * *
Was he sure? “Of course, I am,” he told her. Quin knew exactly what Celia was going to show him, and he wasn’t surprised to see himself on the screen, while sitting in the conference room. He watched as the woman came in. He wasn’t worried, though—he knew nothing had happened between them. But it surprised him as he watched the tape deviate from the reality of what had actually happened. The camera point-of-view changed and that was when he knew. Someone else was sitting in that chair. The video showed someone having sex with the woman, but it wasn’t him.
“Jesus Christ, Celia, you have to know that’s not me. It’s not real,” Quin explained. “It was edited. I didn’t touch the woman. Jared hired her to come on to me. For blackmail, I guess. Or just to play with me, drive us apart. I don’t know.”
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