by Lauren Wood
“Really, where else? Would I know the place?”
I knew that he was from the city, but I also figured that he wouldn’t know the place. “It’s just a bar in the city that I work at.”
“What do you do?” Chris appeared interested and I wasn’t going to be able to eat until I told him, so I put down my fork and took a drink.
“Just tend bar. Make a few drinks. The pay is crap, but the tips are good.”
“So you are a hustler?”
“I don’t like to call it that. It is just survival.”
“I admire your attitude. Most people would feel sorry for themselves to have two jobs.”
“Well work like no one else for a little while, so you can live like no one else the rest of your life, right?”
Chris liked that saying and I could tell that he was warming up to me. I didn’t know if that was a good thing or not, but at the end of the day being admired by such a man for anything other than my looks was good enough for me.
“Exactly. That is what I tell people all the time. Keenan used to be the same way. There was no stopping him, but now he is ruined, chasing after some skirt.”
“You really don’t like women, do you?”
“I do, I love them, but there is a time and place for all of that. A woman should never come between a man and his business.”
“Maybe you haven’t met the right one yet.”
Chris chuckled and sat back. “Yeah, I have heard that before. I don’t see a reason for one more than a few hours.”
“Pity.”
“Why do you say that?”
“You will never find anything of substance looking for a few hours of a good time. How can that be conducive to anything good?”
“I make them come until they can’t walk and I get my own pleasure. It is a win-win situation. No one has complained.”
“Did you stay long enough to hear a complaint if one was made?”
He laughed a little harder. “Not usually. Man, you sure have my number.”
“I have met men like you before, rich men.”
“I am not like all of the rest.”
I could tell that there was something special about him, but it didn’t mean that I wanted to have anything to do with it. I knew that he was a dangerous man that I had to stay away from. It was going to be hard to do with this weekend looming ahead, but it was just a couple of more days and it was strictly business. I told myself that enough that I started to believe it.
“I am sure you are not Chris.”
He just smiled at me like I was being silly and I couldn’t help but return the gesture. His whole face softened and my body responded to the change in just one smile.
“Well let’s get out of here. I am afraid you are going to be wildly bored for this first meeting. I am the speaker and I have a feeling you don’t want to hear me talk.”
“Sir, you have me mistaken.”
“You were clear this morning how you felt.”
“Well you ruined a good swim for me. I didn’t know who you were and in my world if some drunken guys starts calling you sexy, getting close, you get away from them.”
Chris’ smile faltered and I was almost wished that I hadn’t said anything to get him upset and to take that smile away, almost. I had to lay down some ground rules if this was going to work.
“I didn’t mean to appear like some drunken thug.”
I laughed that time, surprising us both. “I can’t see you as any kind of thug, drunk or not.” The idea was preposterous. He was so straight and narrow that I doubted that he even knew the real meaning of the word.
“There is a lot that you don’t know about me Stacy.”
He was so serious for a moment I was at a loss of words and didn’t really know what to say. It was clear that there was more to the rich bad boy than what met my eye first. Maybe there was more to him, but once again, not for me. I didn’t need the stress.
“I am sure there is. Keenan told me a little bit about you, but I know enough for the capacity of this weekend. I thank you for the ride home and help. I will make sure that Keenan feels like he was actually here.”
“Back to business huh?”
“I think it is better that way.” I stood up and waited for him to sign the bill and do the same. Truth was that I had to get away from him before I forgot what I kept reminding myself of. Chris was bad news and I needed to stay away from him.
Chapter 5
Chris
This woman was maddening and even though I knew where we stood, I still wanted to push it. I wanted her to act as the other women around me acted, but it didn’t appear that it was going to happen. I called her up to be my assistant when I was giving my conference speech and while she had played along, I knew that she was not enjoying herself.
Stacy was the quiet type and putting her on the stage in front of thousands had really messed with her. I was trying to take her off of her game, but in the end it had all back fired on me and instead of her leaving with me after the event, there were several people that wanted to talk to her, not me after the speech. It was irritating, but I could see what everyone else seen in her.
The woman had a gentle way about her, though I knew from experience that she said what was on her mind, even if it was in a tiny voice. Her tongue was sharp and I had already been cut by it a couple of times. I didn’t want a replay of that, but I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to give up. How could I when she was absolutely perfect in all ways that I could see?
Stacy smiled at everyone and made people feel welcome. I didn’t get a smile like that because my drunken-self had ruined out first meeting, but I knew that I had to have the raven-haired beauty. She was hot and didn’t even know it. I loved women like that and I was going to get into her pants before we went back to the city. I wasn’t going to waste the mood of Jamaica without getting to her. It was hard not to feel sexy in such a place.
“Are you ready Stacy?”
“Oh Chris, sorry I forgot you were waiting for me. I would like to introduce you to Ali Mambia.” She looked to the man that she had been talking to and smiled. “Did I say that right?”
“You did Stacy. Your pronunciation was perfect.”
I jeered at the man and groaned to myself. I wasn’t the only one that saw perfection when I looked at her and I don’t know why I didn’t want anyone else to look at her. She was mine, even if she hadn’t agreed to it yet, I still felt like I was able to claim her as such.
“We need to get to lunch Stacy. We are going to be late.”
“Oh, well I guess work stuff comes first. Maybe I will see you again Ali?”
The man nodded and smiled and I for one didn’t return the look. Stacy was happy to and that just enraged me even more. What did she see in him that she didn’t see in me? Never had I wanted a second chance for a first impression so much in my life.
“Well how about we all go out together? You don’t mind, do you Chris?”
I didn’t know the man well enough for him to call me by my first name. I didn’t even know who the hell he was, just that he was encroaching on the woman I had my eyes on.
“Sure, that would be great.” It wasn’t great, but I didn’t want to seem like a man that was not confident in myself. I knew that it was going to look bad if I let them see how bothered I was by the man’s presence.
Stacy looked at me skeptically like she knew that I was bothered, but she wasn’t going to take me out of my misery. She agreed that it was a great idea and smiled at me in a way that told me she knew how uncomfortable I was about it all. That just made it worse that she knew.
***
Lunch was an affair that I could have done without. The man that went by Ali was not someone that I knew, but I knew of him. I don’t know his exact number, but he was in the billions like I was. He was stiff competition and for some reason Stacy responded differently to his flirting than to mine. To be fair he was a lot better with it, less cocky. I was sure it was because he wasn’t from
America and in his culture things were different. Here the strongest one won and I didn’t understand why I hadn’t. I was obviously the stronger man, smarter man, but it was Ali’s jokes that Stacy laughed to, not mine.
“That was a great lunch, don’t you think?”
She was practically glowing and I didn’t want to see it anymore. “I guess it was okay. I wouldn’t have chosen that place, but I guess local cuisine is good to try, as long as you don’t get a disease out of it.”
Stacy waved me off like I was being silly and I felt that way, something I didn’t feel often. I felt off and I knew it was how she had acted at lunch, as well as the fact that she had promised Ali that she would go out to dinner with him tonight. She asked me if we had anything going, but I was too shocked to answer and now I wished that I had come up with something to keep her away from him. Ali just became my worst nightmare.
“Are you okay?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Because you seem really upset all of a sudden and I was wondering if there was a reason for it.”
Didn’t she know that her flirting with Ali had really gotten to me? Surely she couldn’t have missed that?
“Just been a long day and I will be happy when the last conference is over in a little while. Are you going to be able to come and do your job or will that cut into your date?”
She waved me off like it wasn’t a concern. “It’s not a date Chris. It’s just two friends going out. He is interesting and more into the marketing side of things. I want to pick his brain.”
Why did that bother me more than her being attracted to him? I didn’t like her wanting to be around him because he was more interesting. That is what it boiled down to though and I groaned inwardly, my tongue hurting from biting it so much. I couldn’t say anything, even though I desperately wanted to so badly it pained me not to.
“I don’t think he will help you much Stacy. He is international and barely does any work here in the States.”
She just told me that it was an opportunity to see another side of it. “He is not in it to teach you about marketing and become your mentor Stacy.”
Stacy didn’t answer me or even look at me to make a comment, so I went on because I figured I was going to have to.
“He wants to get into your panties Stacy.”
She shot me a look and then moved her gaze out the window. “Do you really think that is a woman’s only worth, her panties?”
I knew this was a loaded question, but I wasn’t thinking very clearly. I wasn’t thinking about the consequences of what I was about to say.
“No, but I know that some hot chick like you, that is all a man is ever going to think about.”
Stacy actually looked sad from my words. “I know.”
I didn’t think she would agree with me. But it was the way she said it that bothered me the most. Suddenly, the truth was I didn’t want to be right. I wanted people to see how great she was without her smoking looks involved.
“So why are you going to go out with him then?”
Stacy shrugged like there was no other choice. “What am I supposed to do? As you said, they all are thinking about bending me over the table and taking me, or whatever, how am I going to learn if I ignore them all? I would never learn anything that I needed to know. If they aren’t too forward like you were at the beach, I can deal with it better. Ali may want that, but he is a gentlemen and I won’t have to worry about him too much.”
Her words were not what I was thinking. She certainly had a reason for why she was going out with him that made me feel a little better, but I didn’t like the way she made reference to me. What had I done so bad? Called her sexy? And why does she have to deal with it? Stacy talked like it was such a chore. I started to understand that while I said I had many secrets she didn’t know about, Stacy had a host of her own.
“I just want you to be careful. Keenan told me to keep an eye on you and I would be remiss if I didn’t say something about it.”
“Thank you for your concern Chris, but I am a big girl. I can handle myself.”
The driver was taking us to the conference center and I knew that I was going to have to go to a drastic measure for her to understand how false that statement was. Or maybe I just wanted to kiss her and see what happened.
Leaning in, I pulled her face towards mine and met her lips. I was soft for a moment before I deepened the kiss. She tasted like sweet cream and I wanted more as soon as I got ahold of her. It was no longer about proving a point. It was now all about the feel of her against me. I never wanted to let her go.
Stacy made a small sound in the back of her voice that stripped me of all thought and reason. I pulled her onto my lap, my hands pressing her bottom against the hard bulge in my pants. Stacy finally seemed to notice and pushed off of me suddenly. Her eyes were wary when she looked over from next to me.
“Do you see how unprepared you are to handle yourself Stacy? What if I was a man that didn’t take no for an answer?” It was scary how close I had felt to being that sort of man.
I wanted to take the innocence that I could taste on her lips. God, I wanted her badly.
Chapter 6
Stacy
We didn’t say much as we made our way to the last convention of the day. I wanted to talk to Chris about what had happened, but after we had kissed, he had said what he’d said and that was that. Next thing I knew I was beside him in the seat and there was nothing that I could do but sigh to myself. My body was going a mile a minute with the heart in my chest, but I wasn’t worried about that. I was more interested and consumed by the throbbing that started in between my legs. Why was I feeling like this all of a sudden? It just didn’t make sense and the feelings overwhelmed me and confused the hell out of me.
“I am sorry if I went over the line Stacy. I just wanted to prove a point.”
I still wasn’t sure what the point was that he was trying to prove, but I think I was more afraid that he would want to do it again. I didn’t have it in me to refuse and maybe that was what he was proving. Would I have felt the same way if Ali had kissed me like that? I smiled to myself, knowing that Ali was too much of a gentleman for all of that. Why was I suddenly so saddened by the idea?
“Well I get your point Chris, but you didn’t have to go there to make me see it. I know that you are not used to being turned down, but I am just not into you that way. And for the record, I am not into Ali that way either.”
“I don’t think he knows that.”
I just shook my head and tried not to look at him. There was no point in arguing with him and I was still a little befuddled by it all. The truth was that I wanted to blame my current state of being on something or someone and Chris was it for me.
“He will find out soon enough then I suppose. It wouldn’t be the first time that I had to bring a man back to reality.”
I started towards the conference hall and didn’t even look behind me to see if Chris was coming or not. I knew that I was going to do my job and stay as far away from him as possible. It was hard to do when I was kind of supposed to stay with him, but I was better off on my own. There was no way that the island could be any more dangerous than he was. Chris was damaging to my thinking. It was like I went into a brain fog around him. Those were the men that I feared the most.
The conference was boring, but at least I wasn’t dragged on stage like I was for the last one. Chris sat next to me, but he didn’t say much and I was thankful for that, although I would have been a little more comfortable if Chris would have given me a little more space. I was still affected by the kiss, even if he wasn’t. I wanted some distance between me and him and quick.
I took notes, mindlessly writing things and figures that I really didn’t understand. I knew about as much as the next person when it came to the stock market, but that was not a lot. This felt like a class for advanced learners and I was not one of them. So I did my best and hoped that what I was writing made better sense to Keenan, then it did to me. It
was all just scribbles as far as I was concerned.
Chris brushed against me several times with his knee, but I didn’t even acknowledge it or look at him. I was too worried about writing down the gibberish I was hearing. Chris was much like a child though and soon his hand rested on my thigh because I wasn’t giving him the attention that he wanted. I finally gave him a look to remove the hand and he did rather quickly.
It wasn’t long before he was touching me again and I finally said something to him because my senses couldn’t take it anymore.
“What?!” I whispered over to him, wanting to stop whatever it was he was doing. Like a kid, I finally gave him some attention to get him to stop.
“I just wanted to let you know that I am recording this. I will give you a copy when we get back to the hotel. You don’t have to sit there and write everything down Stacy.”
My face turned red and I had an urge to slap him. He could have told me that about an hour ago when the lecture first started. Slamming the notebook that I was writing in, he chuckled beside me and told me that I was even sexier when I was mad. Chris grated at my nerves, enjoying every minute of it. I had to wonder if he knew what he was doing to me. I had a feeling that he did.
“Well then I should be damn well glowing by now!” My words were whispered to him in a harsh tone. He made me so mad and I didn’t understand why he seemed to enjoy it so much. Why did he take such pleasure in enraging me? And in public no less.
I was able to listen to the lecture, but nothing was really sinking in. I was still steaming mad when it was over and I wasn’t able to handle Chris’ smiling face for another second.
“I am going to grab a cab. If you could send that tape over, I would really appreciate it. I am sure our friend Keenan would appreciate it as well.”
“I thought we were going to go out to dinner?”
“You know that I have a previous engagement Chris, but thank you for the offer. You don’t have to watch over me anymore. I will meet you in the lobby before the last conference tomorrow if that suits you.”
