by A. Valentine
“I’m really busy right now, but if you don’t mind doing me a favor, I’d suggest you go and lock the door,” Lydia grinned and did as she was told. Soon she was in between David’s legs trying her hardest to dull the stress he was feeling. David held her head as she pleasured him with her mouth, but his mind was on other things. Yes, I will definitely inherit the company because Daniel isn’t half the man that I am.
****
“What is this?” Jeffery asked Daniel after reading the note that Jordan had written up. Here we go, Daniel thought to himself.
“Jordan, one of the ranch workers that I supervise, was asked to inquire if an individual who is trying to open up his own ranch could purchase some cattle and receive advice from you.” Jeffery wasn’t normally a mean guy, but when it came to business, he didn’t want anyone to get ahead of him. Jeffery balled up the letter and tossed it into the garbage.
“You know that I don’t sell or help the competition.” Daniel sighed but he wasn’t surprised by his father’s behavior, it wasn’t like Daniel thought that Jeffery was going to offer any help to the man.
“I know, but I still followed the appropriate procedure. If anybody has something to say to you, no matter how big or small, have them write a request to you so that you can review it. If I would have thrown it out or told Jordan not to write it, I would have been going against your rules.” Jeffery pursed his lips together. Technically that was one of his rules; however, Daniel should already know that the rule did not apply to this scenario.
“I admire your ability to follow my rules because that shows me that you can get the job done. However, that rule does not apply to people asking for handouts. I will not offer any assistance to someone who wants to compete with me.”
“Alright dad,” Daniel said and turned around to make his leave.
“You’re going home, son?”
“Yeah, I’m tired and hungry.”
“Have you given any thought to what I told you and your brother this afternoon?” Daniel stopped in his tracks and turned his head so that he was looking at his father.
“Yes, I think it’s wrong that you just won’t let us run it as co-owners. Of course, I want to continue with our company long after you’re gone, but I don’t want it under the conditions that you made for us. It almost feels like you’re trying to force us into marriage.” Daniel didn’t wait for his father’s reply, and his father didn’t try to offer one. He walked out of Jeffery’s office without a second glance. Everyone left for the day and Daniel just wanted to get back to his condo and relax.
The street was not as crowded as Daniel navigated through the small city and he was glad for that. Daniel didn’t want to be in traffic, and he didn’t want to attempt to find a quicker route. Daniel’s Lincoln, a gift from Jeffery, cruised down the long road that Daniel knew all too well. Once Daniel pulled into his condo’s driveway, he pushed the button to open his garage and maneuvered his vehicle inside before closing the garage door behind him.
“I wonder what type of scheme my brother is coming up with,” Daniel said to himself as he opened the side door and found himself in his oversized kitchen. Daniel already knew that David was probably going to do something drastic to wed somebody, he just didn’t know what. His brother was good looking; they both were, so Daniel knew David wouldn’t have a problem meeting a charming young woman and taking things slow. But slow wasn’t exactly David’s style. “Knowing him he’ll just flash some money in a decent lady’s face, get her to give it up, and then throw a ring on it.” The thought of that disgusted Daniel and even though David is his brother, he wouldn’t put it passed the accountant.
It took everything in Daniel not to just strip off his clothes, throw it anywhere on his floor, and make his way to take a hot shower. Daniel would have loved to do that, but unfortunately, for him, he wasn’t the typical guy living in a bachelor’s pad. Daniel actually took pride in the cleanliness of his place, thanks to Judith, his housekeeper. Plus, he didn’t want to give the woman in her late forties more work than she needed to do. Going into his master bathroom, Daniel disrobed and placed his clothes in the hamper. Turning the shower on and adjusting the temperature, Daniel eased his body under the spray of water and closed his eyes.
“This feels good,” Daniel said and started thinking about his father. Jeffery was getting older and he hasn’t been quite himself as of late. Daniel was starting to wonder if his father was feeling sick. The man always complained about feeling exhausted and he had this cough for several weeks that hasn’t let up. When was the last time he’s been to the doctor? Daniel and David’s father often neglected his health because of his need to make sure the ranch is running smoothly and Daniel wouldn’t be surprised if Jeffery’s neglect was coming back to bite him in the ass. “I just can’t even deal with this mess right now.”
As soon as Daniel was done with his shower, he quickly dried himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist. He didn’t feel like checking the fridge to see what there was for him to eat and he didn’t feel like working out. He exited his master bathroom and headed straight to his king sized bed. Without a second thought, Daniel crashed into the bed and was soon fast asleep.
Chapter Four
It’s been a full week since Jeffery Marshalls told David and Daniel that the first to marry and bare him a grandchild would inherit his company upon death. Daniel stressed about it for the first few days, but soon he put it behind him. He didn’t want to worry himself about something that wasn’t happening shortly. David, on the other hand, had been plotting since then. During his lunch break, David decided to head to the local library so that he could do a little research without having the company track his browsers history.
“It’s hard working for your parents when they always have their nose in your business,” David mumbled as he looked through dating sites and the women’s criteria, but the more he read through the profiles, the more he began to realize just how complicated women are. They required too much attention when it came to going steady with someone. It didn’t take David too much time to realize that this was going to be harder than he initially thought. “Tsk…” David muttered and looked at the time. He’d been at the library for a while and it’ll probably be a good idea for him to head on back. Just as David was about to log off of the computer, an ad caught his attention.
David looked around the small library to make sure nobody’s eyes had found their way to his computer screen, and then he directed his attention back to the words in colorful lettering. “Mail Order Bride,” David said to himself and clicked on the link. He’s heard of Mail Order Bride agencies, a man would post an ad for a woman, frequently coming from the east coast to travel to where the prospective husband was at and then they’d be married. He didn’t know that people still did that though. David didn’t know anyone who used this type of ‘service,' so he couldn’t ask anyone if they’d been lucky with the match-up,
“Besides, I don’t want anyone in my business,” David said and read the about page for the company. David pulled up a separate screen to read some reviews about the company and the type of women who answered the ads and the results proved favorable. Of course there were some negative reviews, but it wasn’t enough to turn David off of the whole thing. Once he read enough of the reviews, a sly smile marred his handsome features. “This should be interesting,” David commented and quickly created an account and posted his advertisement. By the time he got back to his office, he was grinning from ear to ear, definitely a rare thing for the accountant to do. As soon as he was seated a knock sounded at his door and before he could answer, Daniel came strolling in. David’s smile immediately turned into a frown.
“What’s going on with you?” Daniel asked marching over to David’s desk. Daniel’s attitude and demeanor made David’s frown deepen. Not only did Daniel barge into David’s office uninvited, but he also came in asking him questions.
“What?” David asked irritated. For Daniel to always be shouting ‘you need
to be more respectful to people, the ranch’s supervisor definitely wasn’t respectful when it came to David and his personal space. “What has you barging into my office and demanding answers from me?” Daniel looked around as if he was looking for something in particular and this just strengthened David’s irritation. “What the hell Dan,”
“One of the workers saw you hustling in with a huge smile on your face. What did you do and are the police on their way here?” David looked at his brother like he had lost his mind.
“You came in here just to ask me that nonsense? A man just can’t be happy?”
“You are the epitome of a serious dude with a stick up his ass. You always look angry.” David resented Daniel’s response, but it wasn’t like he could refute it.
“Shut up,” David said and glared at his brother. “I’ve had a good day, I’ve learned new things, and I’m progressing in my goals.” Daniel raised his eyebrow at this.
“What goals?” Daniel asked. David and Daniel seldom spoke with each other about their personal lives, but given the recent developments, Daniel happened to know one of David’s goals. David gave a wicked smile and leaned back in his chair.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” David asked and Daniel frowned. Daniel could tell just by looking at David that he had something cooking under his sleeve. Daniel was also sure that it was something that he wouldn’t like. “Go and make your own goals and stop worrying about mines little brother,” David said with a wave of his hand. He was ready for Daniel to dismiss himself, but the man held his ground.
“Are you seriously about to marry some random woman just so you can inherit the company?” Daniel knew that this was more than likely the reason behind David’s ‘good mood’.
“Mind your business Daniel. What I do with my life is my business and not yours.” Daniel raised his voice then.
“Do you know how crazy that is, David. Besides weren’t you the main one talking about you’d never get married? You’re supposed to get with a woman because you care for her, not for money or material things.”
“Get out Daniel; you don’t even know what you’re talking about.” David stood up then. He wasn’t going to let Daniel or anyone else get in the way of what he’s after. “I don’t know why you’re so concerned about the whole thing anyways. I should be the heir for the mere fact that I’m the eldest. Now leave me to my work and go manage my employees.” David saw the angry expression that went across Daniel’s face at that moment and he couldn’t help the small smirk that stretched across his face. Daniel bothered him on a daily basis when it came to him just inviting himself into David’s office. It was time for Daniel to get a taste of his own annoying medicine,
“Bastard,” Daniel said in between clenched teeth and David merely walked passed him and stood in front of the door waiting for his brother to take his leave.
“Name calling will get you nowhere, now please grow the hell up.” David’s jaw tensed as Daniel made his way slowly over to him. Daniel couldn’t stand David’s arrogant attitude and David couldn’t stand the fact that Daniel thought he was good enough to run their father’s company.
“You will never find true happiness if you choose to continue using people for your own selfish needs.” Daniel said and walked through the door.
“Humph, I’ll obtain every ounce of happiness that I can milk from this world just by taking it.” David turned his head and slammed the door in his brother’s face. “There,” David said as he locked his door. After, walking back to his desk, David logged into his email to see if anybody emailed him regarding his ad. David made sure to include his picture in his ad because David knew that any sane woman wouldn’t turn him down. David was a looker and he knew it. After logging into his account, David sighed when all he saw was business related emails.
“Just be patient. I’m sure emails will come rolling in soon.” David said and closed his eyes as he pictured what kind of women would reply to him. Daniel stood outside of David’s door still shocked that his brother slammed the door in his face.
“He says I’m childish, but he slams the door when someone’s trying to confront him about his dumb ass ways.” Daniel sighed and made his way outside. Talking to his brother sometimes left a sour taste in his mouth and it mentally drained him. Daniel wanted to get some fresh air before he did something that he would regret because he didn’t take a liking to getting a door slammed in his face. Daniel walked out of the door and stretched as soon as the sun hit him.
“This is more like it,” Daniel said and looked over at the ranch. Jeffery thought it would be a good idea to have his company’s office building built on the same land as the actual cattle ranch. He told the construction workers that he wanted to see with his own eyes that the ranch was doing alright. In some aspects that was a good idea; however, Daniel could live without walking outside of the headquarters to the smell of fresh manure.
“Hello Daniel,” Daniel looked towards the direction of the soft voice that greeted him and was surprised to see Lydia, David’s personal assistant, approaching him.
“Hello, Lydia. It’s very rare to see you outside. Are you checking out the ranch?” Daniel asked and Lydia shook her head causing her ginger locks to shake.
“No, Mr. Marshall wanted me to pick up a few items from the store for him.” Daniel shook his head.
“You know, you can call my brother David when you’re with me. I won’t tell him or anything like that.” Lydia laughed at that and shook her head.
“Mr. Marshall is a vital man in this company; I’d feel awkward calling him by his first name.” Daniel thought that was a load of bologna but he didn’t say what he felt.
“Does he treat you right? Is David disrespect to you?” Daniel could tell that Lydia tried her best at everything that she did. But David was a perfectionist and a control freak that preferred for things to be done a specific way, his way to be exact. Even though Lydia tried to hide it, Daniel didn’t miss the slight blush that darkened Lydia’s cheeks.
“Oh yes, he treats me real good.” There was no mistaking the lust in her voice. Daniel already had a sneaking suspicion, but Lydia’s response confirmed that they were sleeping together. Daniel inwardly sighed. He personally felt that David was being highly unprofessional when it came to sleeping with one of his employees, but it specifically pissed Daniel off because he knew that David was using Lydia for his own sexual gratification.
“I’m glad to hear he’s treating you well.” Daniel tried his best to not allow his sarcasm to show. Lydia pulled out her phone then and gasped.
“I’ve got to go now, Daniel. I’ve kept Mr. Marshalls waiting too long.” They said their goodbyes and Daniel held the door opened for her. Daniel watched after Lydia for a while, disappointed that she fell victim to David and then out of nowhere a thought flashed through his mind.
“Is that idiot going to try to marry, Lydia?” Lydia was the only woman that Daniel knew of that David saw on an everyday basis so he wouldn’t put it passed David to pretend that he fell for Lydia and take it to the next level by proposing to her. “That bastard,” Daniel said and he could feel anger building under his skin.
Chapter Five
“Damn I needed that,” David groaned after he pulled out of Lydia and readjusted his pants. David decided to stay later that night because his workload was starting to pile up and Lydia was ‘nice’ enough to volunteer to assist him. Lydia sat up on the sofa that David had just pounded her into, and fixed herself up.
“Glad I could be of assistance, Mr. Marshalls.” David didn’t give Lydia a second look as he made his way back to his desk and grabbed some Kleenex. He dabbed at the beads of sweat that had formed on his forehead and mopped the back of his neck.
“You can go now; I don’t need you anymore tonight.” David said coldly. Lydia flinched at the harshness of David’s words and stood up.
“Are you hungry? I can grab you something to eat right quick. What are you in the mood for?” Readjusting his tie, David took his seat
and clicked on the keys of his keyboard to turn his computer off of sleep mode.
“Nothing, I told you that I didn’t need your assistance any longer. Didn’t you hear me the first time?” David got exactly what he needed from Lydia, now it was time for the red haired woman to make her leave. Blushing, Lydia decided to be bold and walk closer to David instead of exiting his office. Her boldness however was met with an angry frown. “What do you want? I asked you to leave,” David knew the younger woman liked him, but he didn’t have time for her childish ways.
“Mr. Marshalls…” Lydia said hesitantly. “Have I done something to offend you? You’re a lot more… cold towards me lately.” Sighing, David finally decided to look the woman in her eyes.
“Look, you know our arrangement. When I want some, you give it to me and then be out on your merrily way. Why are you lingering around today?” Lydia blushed at how blunt the accountant was being.
“I just wanted to talk to you a little longer. Is that such a bad thing since we make love so often? I wanted to see if maybe you wanted to catch a movie or go out to din….” David raised his hand out in front of Lydia’s face in attempts to silence her.
“That’s not going to happen, Lydia.” The anger in David’s voice was apparent as his personal assistant tried to cross the boundaries that had been set for her. “This is the extent of our relationship. If we’re not having sex, then you are working for me and vice versa. There will be no dates, no talk of the future, and no getting to know each other. If this is what you’re after from me, then I suggest you hand in your resignation.” Lydia’s cheeks went crimson at that moment and she quickly looked away from David. She couldn’t believe that she had just been told that either she’s an object to be played with for David’s amusement, or she was just another replaceable employee. She couldn’t help the hurt expression that lingered on her face.
