Until I Met You

by Jaimie Roberts

  I don’t know how, but I managed to put one foot in front of the other, making my way out into the cool breeze.

  I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves, and was gently directed towards a chauffeur holding the door to a black Rolls Royce. The driver smiled and ushered me in. I looked back at Seth and he motioned me inside.

  “Phantom?” I asked.

  That damn sexy eyebrow of his perked up as he answered. “You know your cars.” He looked impressed.

  “My dad’s a car salesman. He loves luxury cars and I spent a lot of time with him at work as I was growing up. I learnt a thing of two along the way,” I said, dipping my head down to the seat and thanking the driver. Turning my attention back to Seth, I sighed. “Why don’t you drive?”

  “I do, but London is big city. It’s just easier and quicker to get around this way.”

  He smiled, making my heart skip a beat. I tried to remember last night and his arrogance. I can’t let him see that he affects me. That would just get his already massive-sized ego another boost he doesn’t deserve. I decided it was best to just try and ignore him as much as I could, and only answer when asked. I had a job to do.

  We made the journey in less than ten minutes. It would have actually been quicker if we walked it there, but for some reason Seth wanted to use the car. I did notice a few times in the corner of my eye that Seth was checking my legs out. When I fidgeted, he smiled—making me want to punch his lights out even more. I don’t think I have ever had this kind of reaction to man before. Ever.

  We eventually got to the main entrance, where I keyed in the security code as he held the door open for me. He smiled, making me hate him that little bit more as I thanked him. It wasn’t the most gracious of thank yous, but it would have to do.

  Calling the lift, I pressed the key in for the penthouse suite. “I’ve been told this is not something you normally go for. It’s more the projects you like to take on rather than the finished product, is that right?”

  “Yes, I do like to turn something unloved, tired, and miserable into something beautiful, sexy, and enticing,” he said, edging a little bit closer.

  I knew what he was doing, I wasn’t stupid. He was talking about me. Unloved, tired, and miserable my arse! And I’m not—nor will I ever be—his project.

  “Having said that, I know buying off plain is profitable and sometimes I have to put my business head on, as it is just that.”

  “Well, as you know, it is still unfinished so you will have to see past all the mess.”

  “Oh, I always see past all the mess,” he said seductively.

  I traded one foot for the other in a bid to stop the throbbing downstairs. It was no use, and it just made me look like I wanted to pee. Luckily for me, the lift came to a halt and we were now walking inside the humongous penthouse. There were builders everywhere, which made me feel somewhat safer around Seth. Not that I thought he was a psycho or anything, I just didn’t want us alone together. That would be trouble with a capital T.

  “This is the hallway,” I said, starting my rambling.

  “I gathered that,” he said cheekily. I turned to him scowling and he winced. “You really don’t like me, do you? This is going to be more of a challenge than I thought. But I do like a challenge.”

  Now I was beyond mad. “Excuse me?”

  “You know, you really are rather sexy when you’re angry. I could do all sorts with that anger, challenge it into something a bit more… beneficial,” he said after a brief pause.

  “You know, you really are something else,” I said, agitated.

  “I take that as a compliment.”

  “It wasn’t meant to be one.”

  “Are you this rude to all your clients, Angel?”

  “My name’s not Angel,” I spat. “And no, only ones who have humongous chips on their shoulders. Now, can I show you around, or are you going to stand here and argue with me all day?” He looked at me, raising an eyebrow and a cheeky grin. “On second thoughts, don’t answer that,” I replied stepping forward.

  We walked around the expanse of the hallway and into the kitchen/come diner. The kitchen had yet to be fitted and the walls plastered, but you could already tell this was going to be one spectacular apartment. To the left hand side was a magnificent view of London, which was helped by the wall-to-wall windows lined up toward the oversized patio. On the patio, I noticed there was a Jacuzzi. That was obviously put there on purpose to help sell it that bit more. Not that it needed it.

  I took him further through, showing him the four bedrooms and five bathrooms this flat had to offer. It also sported a cinema room with bar attached to the corner. This was definitely a millionaire’s playboy pad.

  “So, how many are left in total in this block?” Seth asked, pulling me from my daydream.

  “Well, as you know the original buyer for this pulled out, so you were lucky to have a viewing. I have another two lined up this afternoon to see it. Apart from this one, there are only three others left.”

  Seth nodded his head. “What floor are they on?”

  “One is on the first floor, one on the fifth floor, and the other on the eighth floor, all three bedrooms.”

  I regarded him as he pursed his lips a little in thought. “Do you have the keys for those by any chance?”

  “Yes, I always keep all the keys just in case anyone wants to see the others.”

  “Hmm, not just a pretty face,” he sighed, smiling.

  Why did he have to be so irritating? “That was nowhere near condescending at all.”

  “It wasn’t meant to be. Angel, I think I’ve seen enough of this apartment. I know what I want when I see it. I’ll take this one and will also take the ones on the fifth and eighth floor, if they’re to my liking.”

  My head snapped up in shock. “What, just like that?”

  “Yep,” he quipped. “Just like that. I don’t dilly dally, Miss Bradshaw. I take what I want, when I want it.”

  I walked away and muttered “Conceited little prick” under my breath.

  “I heard that,” he said amused.

  Swinging my heels round, I faced him. “Oh, so we have x-ray hearing now do we?”

  “I don’t know why you’re fighting this, my angel. It’s going to happen one day.”

  This guy really got under my skin. “Number one, I’m not your angel—and two—one day will happen when hell freezes over!”

  Most of the builders within earshot stopped the hammering and looked over to me. A couple of them smiled and one of them winked. Seth saw this and smiled himself.

  “I’m getting out of here before I drown in too much testosterone.”

  Seth followed, laughing, although I didn’t find any of this funny whatsoever. And did he also have to be so damn sexy when he laughed, too?

  “You are just too cute; do you know that, Angel?”

  “Will you stop calling me Angel?” I got in the lift, practically pounding my fist on the number eight button.

  “Have you ever thought of taking Anger Management classes at all?”

  I took a few calming deep breaths. I knew he was trying to get a rise out of me, and I also knew he was enjoying every minute of it. I was determined not to give him the satisfaction.

  “Oh, we’ve lost our voice. That must be a first for you,” he said laughing.

  I opened my mouth to bite—I very nearly did—but again, I wasn’t giving in to him.

  I showed him around the apartment, which was about half the size of the penthouse, but still very big nonetheless. The views weren’t as spectacular, but it was still impressive.

  Once finished, I began looking at my watch as it was getting closer to one, and I knew I had another viewing at two.

  “Am I keeping you, my angel?”

  “No, I have those other appointments in just over an hour.”

  “You mean the ones coming here to see the penthouse?”

  “Yes,” I answered.

  “Well, I’ll soon deal with that.
Be back in a bit.” Within a flash he made his way out onto the patio and shut the door.

  As he stood outside I watched him with distasteful interest. Who am I kidding, I watched him like I was a bitch on heat. Not a lot of men tend to look like sex-on-legs in a suit, but this guy oozed it. He must have his suits custom-made as it just fitted to his body perfectly. I watched in interest as he shifted and then bent over the balcony in rapt conversation. His pert bottom, sticking out now as he hunched over, was begging to be touched—caressed even. I stared, biting my lip as he turned to look at me. His expression was one of mild amusement as mine turned from lustful to hateful in a tenth of a second. He winked at me and I turned away from him. I had to, so as not to give myself away.

  I heard the patio door sliding and Seth’s voice appearing. “That’s great, thank you, Jonathan. I’ll get the funds transferred to you by first thing tomorrow morning.” He looked toward me and nodded his head. “I will, don’t worry, Jonathan. I’ll have her back in one piece by three o’clock.”

  What? He hung up and I stared at him, waiting for his explanation.

  “I asked Jonathan if I could take you to lunch to celebrate.”

  “Celebrate what? And when do you need to seek permission from Jonathan about taking me to lunch? Aren’t you asking the wrong person?”

  “You’re a tough cookie to crack, my angel.”

  “I am not your angel!” I screamed. I think I may have stamped my foot a little. I’m losing it, I’m losing it. Calm down Angelina, he’s only a man. A man-whoring sex God. Oh boy!

  “And another thing,” I said, trying to calm myself. “You’re not cracking my cookie!”

  An eruption of laughter left Seth’s lips again as I tried to cling onto any remnants of dignity I had left after my little child strop. He looked at me and smiled. A great big, heart-warming, show-stopping smile. I couldn’t help it, my lips curved up.

  “There it is! Blimey, it’s beautiful.”

  I almost went weak at the knees. “What?” I asked trying to be as casual as possible.

  “Your smile.”

  “Oh shut up,” I blurted, turning my heels to head for the lift. I couldn’t help the silly grin plastered on my face. “By the way,” I said getting into the lift. “Not that I’m entertaining the idea of lunch, but why are you celebrating?”

  “I’m going to buy all three. I asked Jonathan to cancel your appointments. There’s no need for them to come now that they’re all mine. Besides, I’ll get to have you all to myself during that time.”

  Heat and throbbing, heat and throbbing. Is it more heat, then throbbing? I couldn’t tell, one seemed to mesh with the other. All I knew was, I ached, and it wasn’t because I drank too much rum last night either. This was a different ache, in a completely different part of my body.

  Trying to gather myself together, I punched in floor number five.

  “There’s no need to view it—unless of course, it’s empty and you want me all to yourself?” he asked, smiling.

  This man never failed to amaze me. “You can’t just buy three apartments without looking at them all. What if there’s something wrong, or you don’t like it?”

  Seth frowned a little. “Is there something wrong with it?”

  “No,” I answered.

  “Then I trust you,” he grinned. “They’re pretty much all the same right?”

  I nodded, but insisted on at least him taking a peek. He might not like the view, or something—anything. You don’t just spend two point two million just like that without seeing what you’ve bought first.

  He seemed to go along with it; I think to amuse me more than anything. We got there, he peeked, spent all of about ten seconds looking around, and that was it, he was off.

  “Now, can we get to lunch? We’ve wasted enough time already.”

  “What, a few seconds?” I huffed.

  “A few seconds less that I could be spending sipping a bottle of beer and staring into those magnificent eyes of yours. They look—I don’t know—somehow familiar.”

  I frowned and shifted again. What could I say to that? I’m supposed to hate him. Right?

  Seth’s driver took us to the restaurant around the corner from where I worked and lived. The one that’s supposed to be over-priced, but oh so over-the-top, melt in the mouth good. I’d been dreaming of going there ever since I heard of the place. For three weeks I’ve been passing this restaurant on the way to the shops, and for three weeks I’ve been dreaming of one day entering it, rather than passing. Now I was here, with sexy arsehole.

  As we entered, Seth was greeted by name by the Maitre d’, who escorted us to a discreet table in the corner. Of course he’s well known here, silly me. He probably brings all his bunnies here, and now the Maitre d’ thinks I’m one of them.

  “What can I get you, Mr Jacobs?”

  “I’ll have a beer please, Terence, and Angel here will have a…?”

  “Orange juice please,” I answered quickly.

  “Had enough booze last night?” he asked, amused.

  I shook my head, trying not to smile. “No, I have clients later; it never looks good when I turn up stinking of drink.”

  That lip of his curved up as he drank me in. “Who says you’re not smelling of it now?”

  I felt really conscious then, so pulled my blouse up and sniffed. This just caused Seth into a fit of hysteria.

  “Tosser,” I said under my breath.

  “I heard that.”

  “Oh yes, of course. Mr X-ray hearing.”

  Seth leant his elbows on the table and shuffled slightly. “You really don’t like me do you? I think if you ever took the time to get to know me, I think you would like what you see and hear.”

  Thank goodness he couldn’t read my mind. “You’re so modest, do you know that?”

  “I try my best,” he said smiling.

  That smile. I was beginning to hate it despite the fact he looked too damn cute and sexy. The only thing I could do was just remind myself of who he really is. “I really am not in a hurry to become one of your bunnies, nor will I ever be. When hell freezes over, remember?”

  “Bunnies?” he asked with a confused smile.

  “Yes, bunnies, as in playboy.” He stared at me a little, still with an amused grin on his face. “What?” I asked trying to glance over the menu.

  “This is going to be fun,” he answered.

  I placed my menu on the table—after nearly having a heart attack at the prices—and tried my best to look annoyed. “Listen here, matey, I’m not a challenge, or a deal-breaker, or a project that you want to turn from miserable and tired, to sexy and enticing. I’m not interested, so stop trying to chase me. It ain’t happening.”

  All he did was stare at me for a few seconds with a cheeky grin. “Don’t forget unloved and beautiful.”

  “What?” I asked confused.

  “You forgot to mention unloved and beautiful.”

  In an effort to ignore him, I picked my menu back up. It was hard though as the prices were hurting my eyes.

  “Steak,” Seth quipped.

  His sudden outburst had my head snapping up to meet him. “Pardon?”

  “The steak here is the best in London. If you like steak, then I would recommend it here.”

  I had heard that, too. I placed my menu down, glad that I didn’t have to look at the prices anymore. I didn’t even want to know how much the steak was. “Okay,” I said. “You’ve sold it to me.”

  “I thought that was the other way around today, Miss Bradshaw?” He smiled and I couldn’t help but smile back.

  “You should smile more often. It makes your eyes stand out even more than normal. Where did you get those peepers from anyway?”

  “I should imagine from my parents,” I said, trying to feign interest. He was about to say something when a waiter brought us our drinks. We said our thanks, ordered the steak, and away the waiter went.

  “So, what’s the deal with you and Jonathan?”

&
nbsp; I very nearly spat my drink out. “What do you mean?”

  “Is he fucking you, because I have to know what I’m up against?”

  If only he knew! “You’re very crass, do you know that?” I could feel the anger rise again.

  “You think I’m crass?” he asked

  “Don’t you think you’re crass?” I counter-asked.

  “No, do you really think I’m crass?” he hit back.

  “I’m not playing this game with you, Mister,” I seethed. He looked at me again and turned that sexy grin on. My God, he’s an asshole. A fucking sexy son-of-a-bitch asshole!

  “Are you going to answer me, or do I have to guess?”

  Feeling like I was in need of a challenge, I decided to play along. “I want you to guess.”

  “Okay,” he said, placing his elbows on the table again. “I think he wants you. I think there may have been a time when you two could have, and you never did. Now Jonathan regrets that and wants to make you his.”

  How did he...? “Hold on, have you been talking to Jonathan about me?”

  His eyes lit up. “Ah, so I’m right?”

  I sat back in my chair and crossed my arms defensively. “I never said you were.”

  “No, but you implied it,” he replied with an impish grin. “So, you and Jonathan nearly had sex and now he’s brought you here to complete his mission.”

  Now he was really started to piss me off. “Now listen here, Mr I’m God’s Gift to Women, who do you think you are making accusations like that about Jonathan and I? You think I can’t do my job properly? That he couldn’t have possibly asked me to come here because I’m good at what I do?”

  He soon interrupted my rant by putting his hands up. “Hey, hold your horses there, Angel. One, I never said you weren’t good at your job. Jonathan gave you what must be his biggest client. He wouldn’t trust you with me if he thought you couldn’t do your job.”

  I tried speaking, but he put his hand up again to shut me up. “Two, I think Jonathan does want you and maybe he thought that by asking you here and being near to you, would bring you both closer together. Three, I for some unknown fucking reason don’t like it, and four; you think I’m God’s gift to women?” That last sentence had the show-stopping smile surface.