by Sandi Lynn
“Hello there, Chase.” Linda seductively smiled as she pulled a glass down and poured me a scotch.
“Hey, Linda.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Just a bad night.” I threw back my drink and set down my glass in front of her.
“Why don’t you tell me all about it?” she spoke as she leaned across the counter and ran her finger up my arm.
“I don’t feel like talking about it.”
“Okay. If you do, you know where to find me.” She smiled.
I threw back my second drink and stared at the beautiful women that were in my sight, especially the tall brunette with the bright red lipstick that was headed my way.
“Hello there, handsome.” She smiled.
“Well hello, gorgeous. May I buy you a drink?”
“Of course.” She took the seat next to mine.
“Hello, beautiful.” I answered with a smile.
“Are you coming into the office today or do I just have to sit around and play the guessing game?” Lexi asked.
“I’m on my way in now. I’m about fifteen minutes out.”
“Okay. I’ll let Steven know. The two of you had a meeting scheduled twenty minutes ago.”
“I know. Tell him I’m on my way.”
I was in a fantastic mood today and nothing was going to ruin it, except maybe the backup that I suddenly found myself in.
“Good morning, love.” I smiled at Lexi. “Can you let Steven know I’m here?”
“Sure.” She gave me an odd look.
I walked into my office, set my briefcase next to my desk, and took a seat.
“Here’s your coffee. Steven’s on a call. He said give him about ten minutes.” She cocked her head at me and narrowed her eye. “Rough night last night?”
“Actually,” I grinned, “Alania was a bit rough.”
“I can tell by the hickey on your neck. How old was she? Seventeen?” Her brow arched.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Lexi. Is it that bad?”
“It’s visible and ridiculous for someone your age. What’s going on with you and Kinsley?”
“What do you mean?” I sipped my coffee.
“You drove her home after the party. Anything happen?”
“No. You know I don’t take advantage of drunk women unless I’m totally plastered myself. Anyway, I don’t want to talk about her. No, wait. Actually, I do. Did you know that when she left Indiana, she wrote her mom a note and left without even talking to her or saying goodbye?”
“No. I didn’t know that. When did she tell you?”
“Last night.”
“I thought you were with the seventeen-year-old last night.” She smirked.
I rolled my eyes.
“I took dinner over to her place. I figured since she refused to go out to dinner with me, I’d bring dinner to her.”
“Then how did you end up with the seventeen-year-old and the hickey?”
“For fucks sake, will you stop saying that! I may or may not have gotten a little angry and she asked me to leave.”
“What did you do to her?!” Lexi’s voice raised as her eyes glared at me.
“All I said was that leaving a note was the coward’s way out and it was disrespectful. Then I asked her if she made a habit of leaving notes and running.”
She placed her hand over her eyes and slowly shook her head.
“It was a trigger response, Lexi.”
“You don’t know her circumstances, Chase.”
“It doesn’t matter.” I leaned back in my chair.
There was a knock on the door and Steven walked in.
“Hey, I just saw Kinsley out there and she said if I saw you to tell you that your dad wants to see you in his office.”
“Shit.” I sighed. “I’ll come down to your office for our meeting after I see him.”
“Sure, bro. Hey,” he smiled, “nice hickey.”
“She was seventeen.” Lexi smirked at him.
“Dude! Shut the fuck up! Awesome!” Steven replied.
“She was not, and if you say that again,” I pointed at her, “I’m firing you!”
Lexi sat there with a smile on her face as I walked out of my office and down to my dad’s. The last thing I wanted to do was run into Kinsley today, but it couldn’t be helped since she was sitting right outside his office.
“He wanted to see me?” I asked as I stared at her.
She wouldn’t look at me and kept typing away on the computer.
“Yes. But he’s on a phone call right now,” she spoke in a flat tone.
I lightly tapped on his door and slowly opened it. When he saw me, he waved me in and motioned for me to sit down. His call only lasted a few moments, and when he hung up, he glared at my neck.
“Really, son?” He sighed. “At least cover the damn thing up.” He shook his head. “K-Com is highly impressed with your program and they’re going to go with it. Good job, son.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I smiled.
“Listen, Chase. You’re thirty years old. Have you considered that maybe it’s time to find a nice girl and settle down?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Me, settle down? Right. Never happening, Dad.”
“This party life of yours can’t go on forever.”
“Why not?”
“Because, son, it’s not the way to live.”
“But marrying and divorcing four times is?” I arched my brow at him. “And now you’re marrying bridezilla for the fifth time? You do know she’s only after your money, right?”
“I made her sign a prenuptial agreement and it’s ironclad. If she was only in it for the money, she wouldn’t have signed it and called off the wedding. But she didn’t. She was more than happy to sign it. You never gave her a chance, Chase. You hated her right off the bat, and I don’t understand why. I love her.”
“Just like you loved Mom?” I arched my brow.
“I loved your mother.” He pointed his finger at me. “And I’m not discussing this anymore. Get your fucking life together and act like a Calloway or there will be consequences.”
“Consequences?” I cocked my head. “If it weren’t for me, Calloway Tech wouldn’t be where it’s at today; a company worth twenty-billion-dollars. Don’t you forget that!” I spoke through gritted teeth as I got up from my seat and flew out the door back to my office.
Chapter 17
Kinsley
I could hear parts of the heated argument between Chase and his father. I was still angry with him for what he said to me last night, and the instant change I saw in him was unreal. It was like he was a totally different person. If I didn’t need this damn job so bad, I would quit so I didn’t have to see him again. The night of the party, I felt something. I didn’t want to, and I tried to ignore it, but I couldn’t. Then when I woke up and he was there, in my apartment, I felt it again. He hurt me with his words, especially calling me a coward. He hadn’t a clue, and the more I thought about it, the angrier I became.
It was the end of the work day and everyone had left. I stayed behind to finish typing up a proposal Mr. Calloway gave me at the last minute. When I was finished, I set it on his desk, grabbed my purse, and headed to the parking garage for my car. Once I climbed inside and turned the key, the car wouldn’t start.
“Oh, come on. Don’t do this to me,” I spoke in frustration.
I popped the hood, got out of the car, and looked underneath it.
“What are you doing?” Chase asked as he pulled up.
“My car won’t start.”
He shut off his car, got out, and stood next to me.
“What exactly are you looking for?” he asked.
“I think it’s the starter that’s bad. I’m just checking for any loose connections.”
“And you know a thing or two about cars?”
“Yes. A little bit. Don’t you?” I glanced over at him.
“No. I know nothing about them.”
“I’m not surprised.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked.
“Nothing. Just go. I’m going to have to call a tow truck,” I spoke with irritation as I pulled my phone from my purse.
“I know a guy. Let me make a call, and then I’ll drive you home.”
“I can call an Uber.”
“You’re not calling an Uber.” He sighed.
“I’m sure you have plans tonight.” I stared at the hickey on his neck. “Maybe round two from last night.”
“Don’t worry about my plans. I’m not leaving you here alone.”
He walked away and made a call. A few moments later, he walked over to me.
“Carl is on his way. He’ll be here in about twenty minutes and tow it to his shop, which isn’t too far from here.”
“Thanks.” I looked down.
“Why are you here this late anyway?” he asked.
“Your dad gave me a proposal at the last minute and it needed to be typed up for his meeting tomorrow morning.”
“Sounds like him.” He rolled his eyes.
We both leaned up against my car, me looking down at the ground and him standing there with his hands tucked into the pockets of his dress pants. It was awkward to say the least, yet somehow, I felt the strong need to tell him about Henry.
“Me and Henry were together for a little over a year. It was his birthday and I wanted to surprise him. So, I took the day off work, stopped at his favorite bakery in the morning, went to his apartment, and found him in bed with my best friend, Krista. They claimed they only slept together twice, but I knew it was more than that.”
“I’m sorry,” Chase softly spoke. “That must have been quite a shock.”
“I left his apartment, went home, packed what I could, and hopped on a plane here. I only stayed in Indiana because of him. A year of my life wasted when I could have already been here and established.”
The tow truck pulled up and I told Carl that it was most likely the starter. He looked at me with a smile and spoke, “A girl who knows about cars. I like that.” He hooked my car up and drove away.
“Climb in,” Chase spoke as he opened the passenger door for me.
“Thanks.”
He sped out of the parking garage and I held on for dear life. But watching him drive his sports car was quite a turn on. Something I needed to get out of my head.
“This isn’t the way to my apartment,” I spoke.
“I know. We’re making a stop first.” He glanced over at me.
“Where?”
“You’ll see.” He smirked.
He pulled into the parking lot of a restaurant called Water Grill Downtown.
“Why are we here?” I asked.
“I’m starving and I’m sure you are too. So, before I take you home, we’re going to eat.”
He got out of the car and opened my door.
“You don’t have to open the door for me,” I spoke with irritation as I climbed out. The last thing I wanted to do was have dinner with him.
“I am a gentleman.”
“No you’re not.” I rolled my eyes as I walked ahead of him.
“How dare you,” he spoke.
Once we entered the restaurant that had a two-hour wait, we were seated immediately because L.A.’s sexiest and most eligible bachelor had arrived.
“Impressed?” He smirked.
“Not really.” I picked up my menu.
I heard the sharp intake of his breath as I held the menu up to my face.
“Chase Calloway.” A pretty blonde-haired waitress smiled.
“Kara, darling. How are you?”
“I’m good. It’s been a while.” She winked.
I sat there with a narrowed eye as I watched the nauseating interaction between the two of them.
“It has. Maybe we should catch up over a drink sometime.” Chase grinned.
“I’d love that. Call me.” She stood there swooning over him as she bit down on her bottom lip.
“Excuse me,” I spoke. “I totally hate to interrupt this special moment between the two of you, but can we order?”
“Oh sure.” She turned to me, holding her notepad in her hand. “What can I get you, sweetie?”
“I’ll have the sea scallops and the butternut squash,” I replied.
“And for you, handsome?” She turned to Chase.
“I’ll have the Chilean sea bass and mashed potatoes. Also bring us a bottle of Prosecco.”
“You got it.” She grinned as she took our menus and walked away.
I was blown away by his behavior with other women when he was with a woman. Not only was it rude but insulting as well.
“Why did you tell me about your ex earlier?” he asked.
“I don’t know. You wanted to know why I left California in such a hurry.”
“Was he the only reason? Because I find it a little strange that you’d just skip town and move to a place where you don’t know anyone at all or have a place to live or a job over a guy. I kind of find that being a little unstable.”
“He was the only reason why I stayed. And aren’t you the pot calling the kettle black.”
Kara, our waitress, brought the bottle of Prosecco and poured some into each of our glasses.
“Thank you, darling.” Chase winked, and I wanted to vomit. “What do you mean by that?” he asked as he narrowed his eye at me.
“You’ve slept with just about every woman in Los Angeles and god knows where else. Talk about being unstable.”
“No, sweetheart. That’s not being unstable. I happen to enjoy sex with beautiful women. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s called life. Maybe you should try it sometime.”
“You’re right, Chase. It’s not about being unstable. It’s about being insecure.” I cocked my head.
He let out a chuckle. “Me,” he pointed to himself, “insecure? You’re delusional, darling. I’m the most secure person there is.”
“Keep telling yourself that. Because deep down, you use sex as a coping mechanism.”
“Okay. First of all, we’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you. I asked you the question, remember? Plus, you don’t know a damn thing about me to be making judgments like that.” He threw back his drink.
“And you don’t know a damn thing about me either,” I growled.
Chapter 18
Chase
This woman was fucking unbearable. How dare she say those things to me. I helped her with her car, treated her to a nice dinner, and that was how she behaved? This was totally unacceptable.
“Enjoy your dinner.” Kara smiled as she set our plates down in front of us.
“I’ll try,” I spoke as I glared at Kinsley.
I never had to deal with a woman this difficult before, and no woman had ever talked to me the way she had. She might have been beautiful, but she was stubborn, intense, and a smart mouth. I guessed that was how small town girls were raised, and I didn’t like it one bit.
We ate our dinner in silence, neither one of us saying a word. She owed me an apology and I wanted it.
“You owe me an apology,” I spoke.
“Excuse me? I owe you an apology?” She pointed to herself. “No, jerk! You owe me an apology.”
I was taken aback by her calling me a jerk.
“I don’t owe you shit. I was nice enough to help you out with your car and treat you to this nice dinner and that’s how you treat me?”
She let out a roaring laugh. A laugh so loud that the people at the table next to us looked over.
“In two days, you have called me a coward, disrespectful, and unstable!”
“Oh no he didn’t,” the lady at the table next to us looked at Kinsley and spoke.
“Oh, but he did.” She slowly nodded her head.
“Shame on you!” The lady waved her finger at me. “If you were my son, you’d get a good whooping.”
“Well then, thank god I’m not,” I mumbled. “Okay. Everyone needs to calm down. Kinsley, I’m sorry for calling
you those things.”
“No you’re not.” She pursed her lips.
I sighed. “Can we please just finish our dinner so I can take you home?”
“Fine,” she spoke.
Suddenly, I looked up and saw my father and Penelope following the hostess to a table. Shit. If he saw me with Kinsley, he wasn’t going to be happy. I gulped as he saw me and walked over to our table.
“Chase, Kinsley,” he spoke with a disapproving tone and then turned to me with a glaring eye.
“Hi, Mr. Calloway.” Kinsley smiled.
“Hey, Dad.”
“So the two of you are having dinner together?” he asked with suspicion.
“When I was leaving the office, I saw Kinsley in the parking garage and her car wouldn’t start. So, I called a tow truck and offered to drive her home and we stopped here to get something to eat on the way.”
“I see. Kinsley, this is my fiancée Penelope. Penelope, this is my temporary secretary, Kinsley Davis.”
“Nice to meet you.” She smiled as she extended her hand.
“It’s nice to meet you too,” Kinsley spoke as she placed her hand in Penelope’s.
“Well, then, we’ll let you two finish your dinner. I’ll see you both tomorrow morning.”
“See ya, Dad.”
We finished our dinner and I waved Kara over for the check.
“Don’t forget about that drink, Chase.” She winked.
“I won’t, darling.”
Kinsley reached into her purse, grabbed some cash, and threw it on the table.
“What’s that for?” I asked.
“My half of dinner.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m paying,” I spoke as I picked up the cash and tried to hand it back to her.
“I didn’t ask you to take me to dinner. Plus, I don’t want you holding it over my head.” Her brow arched.
“Kinsley, come on. Please.” I cocked my head with a small smile.
“Fine.” She grabbed the cash from my hands and got up from her seat.
“Don’t I even get a thank you?” I held out my hands.
She ignored me and walked out the door. As soon as I dropped her off at her apartment and she walked away without as so much as a goodbye, I went home and poured myself a drink. Kinsley Davis was an insufferable woman and she drove me insane. I’d never felt this kind of contempt before with any woman and it bothered me. Why was I letting her get under my skin?
