by Alexis Angel
And this happened fast. “He’s that notorious troublemaker, right? Malcolm Bane?” Julia asks me, sitting on my desk and folding her legs as she looks down at the documents in front of me.
Julia has been my best friend for years now. We’ve met when we were still in college, and we hit it off right from the start. I don’t believe in soul mates when it comes to love, but that’s an expression I simply have to use when it comes to Julia. Friends like hers are something as rare as true love—perhaps, even rarer.
“Yeah, he is. Can you believe this? He didn’t care about any of these girls,” I tell her, pointing at the discarded stack of briefings on the far end of my desk. She reaches for the stack and picks a few of the documents, casually appraising the girls in there.
“Mm. He’s picky, that's for sure. Which is weird. Wasn’t he supposed to be some kind of sex addict?”
“Yeah, but I guess he’s a picky sex addict. Besides, getting him to be with a woman isn’t enough. I need to make him fall in love,” I sigh, running one hand through my hair.
“You might need to lose your panties on this one, Athena,” Julia smirks, looking at me with an amused expression on her face. “Or else you might lose your shirt.”
“Thanks for the encouragement,” I tell her with a frown, and she just shrugs.
“It wouldn’t be that bad, would it? I mean, just look at him…” she says, picking up the folder where I have Malcolm’s picture and all of his personal details. She opens the folder on top of her legs and gazes down at his picture, biting down on her lower lip. “He’s a piece of heaven...” she whispers, more to herself than to me.
“Very funny. Aren’t you late for your yoga class or something?”
“Oh, crap,” she breathes out, unlocking her phone and looking at the timestamp there. “Crap, crap, crap.” She jumps up from the desk and rushes toward the door, picking her gym bag up from the couch lining the wall. “I’ll call you later. Keep me in the loop on this one,” she continues, opening the door and stepping outside so fast that she crashes against a man standing there, his fist raised as he prepares to knock.
“Julia,” the man says, a grin on his lips.
“Mr. Piece of Shit,” she replies without even thinking, standing up straight as an expression of disgust takes over her face. There’s no love lost between Mr. Piece of Shit (or Ben as I know him, although the nickname fits) and Julia. In truth, though, Julia is just defending me.
You see, Ben Danvers was the man who broke my heart. Tall and handsome, he lured me with sweet words, took my virginity and then crushed my heart under his heel as if it was nothing. Not one week after I gave him the spare key to my apartment, I walked in on him and some random slut going at it on my own bed. The same bed where he took my virginity and whispered I love you into my ear.
Yeah, Ben’s a real classy act.
It doesn’t help that Ben travels in the same fucking circles as me.
That's right. I have to see this man at every cocktail party and gallery show that I go to.
The world of the Manhattan elite is pretty fucking small once you take out all the nouveau-riche posers who made their money playing basketball or making rap videos, sex videos, or getting on the cast of Jersey Shore. You take those people out and then subtract anyone that can’t hold a conversation and now you’re left with a small circle of folks that you see pretty much every weekend.
Everyone calls them the 1%.
I call them my friends and family. And Ben. Fucking Ben.
“Charming as always, Julia,” he grins, walking past her and casually sitting down on the chair facing my desk. “Nice seeing you again, Athena. You look even more beautiful than I --”
“Shut the fuck up, Ben,” I tell him right away, not even bothering to play nice with him. He’s lucky I haven’t kicked his balls up into his brain by now. “What the hell are you doing here?” Julia gives me a look that I can only translate as a Do you need backup? but I just shake my head slightly. With a nod, she turns on her heels and leaves my office, closing the door behind her.
“Maybe I decided to pay you a visit?” he replies, the tone I once found charming now making me feel sick to my stomach. Has it ever happened to you? When you find a man handsome and charming, and then you start seeing everything from another angle? Because that’s what happened to me. And now, instead of seeing him as charming, I only see him as sleazy.
My eyes are open now.
“If you came here because you want to be my client, you’re in the wrong place, Ben. You have to have a heart in order to find love,” I tell him, slowly standing up as I prepare to dismiss him.
“I’m not here for that,” he tells me smugly, enjoying the fact that he knows something that I don’t. I know you have an interesting client now.” I can’t help but react instinctively at that, blinking in surprise. “So, I’m not wrong, huh? Malcolm really is your client, isn’t he?”
“I don’t see what --”
“Calm down, Athena, don’t get pissy,” he says with an annoying wave of his hand, cutting me short. “I just want to make sure your company lives up to its promise. I want Malcolm to find love.”
To hear Ben say something like that is almost laughable; and, if I didn’t know how sleazy he is, I’d be laughing right now.
“My company always delivers, Ben, you should know that. But why the hell are you so interested in Malcolm?”
“That’s my business. But don’t think I’m just hoping for the best here,” he says, lowering his voice until it becomes a whisper. “It’s really important that Malcolm falls in love. Because if he doesn't …” he trails off, allowing his words to hang in the air to goad me in: he wants me to start asking questions, but I just remain silent, my eyes locked on his. “If Malcolm doesn’t fall in love...” he finally continues, narrowing his eyes into slits, “well, let’s just say I still have those tapes of you. Remember them? It’d be a shame if they went viral.”
Those tapes.
The fucking bastard taped me quite a few times, without me even knowing it; back when I broke up with him, he told me what he had done and he threatened me with them. Back then, I had nothing to lose and so I just shrugged it off. I guess he held on to these tapes so that he could use them as leverage when the time came.
And now here he is.
I’ve built an aura of intimacy and love into my company, and if these tapes ever leak … I don’t even want to think about it. People would tear my company and I apart. Nobody would want to have anything to do with a company that basically sells love when, in truth, its CEO is a slut whore nasty freaky wild woman in the bedroom who gets cheated on and never finds love. Yeah, that’s a marketing disaster waiting to happen.
“Fuck you, Ben. Just … fuck you,” I whisper, gritting my teeth and balling my hands into fists. I could choke him right now, swear to God.
“You can hate me as much as you want to, babe,” he says right back, that disgusting grin on his face, “just make sure that you do your job.” With a wink, he then turns around and leaves me alone inside my office.
“Fuck,” I mutter under my breath, sinking back down into my chair. There’s no other way around it. That exclusive club of friends and family I have? Vacationing with the Kennedy’s and having mimosa’s with Melania Trump?
No way they’ll ever let me live down the shame of being caught on a series of sex tapes.
Malcolm must fall in love. Even if that means I have to be the one seducing him.
Athena
Remember when I told you that Malcolm was being picky about the women I was sending? Well, tonight that pickiness comes to an end.
If you’re wondering why I’m saying that, the answer is a simple one: tonight Malcolm has a date with me. Yeah, this is the first time I've ever agreed to go out with a client of my company, but what can I do? It’s not like I have any other option. If Malcolm doesn’t fall in love with anyone, the money I’ll owe him will be like a nail in my coffin. And then there are those fucking
tapes … Yeah, if I don’t seduce Malcolm, my company is finished, and that, dear, will never happen under my watch. My company is my baby, and I’ll fight tooth and nail to protect it.
We’re meeting at Masa and I’m already late—20 minutes, to be precise. That’s on purpose, of course, but I bet you already knew that. You see, even though most of the girls I sent to meet Malcolm were high quality ones, I bet they fell under his spell the moment they saw him. I mean, it’s not like I can blame them—wealthy, handsome, and charming? Yeah, I had to fight hard not to fall under his spell as well. Thing is, I had my heart broken before, and I know exactly what kind of man Malcolm is.
I won’t be a fool again, and I have Ben to thank for that.
I spot Malcolm sitting at one of the tables in the dimly lit dining room, his back turned to me. Stopping for a few seconds, I watch him check his wristwatch, and only then do I approach him.
“You’re late,” Malcolm tells me, raising his eyes to meet mine, an easy smile on his lips as I sit across from him. “I thought you were the consummate professional.”
“I am a professional, you’re right about that,” I start, smiling back at him. He’s wearing a Tom Ford suit, and God he looks amazing. Why does a man like him even need my services? Just look at those lips… they were made for kissing, and I can’t help but wonder what else they were made for. Okay, okay, I know … I have to take my mind out of the gutter right now. I need to keep my focus. “But I’m not here on work, am I?”
“Depends on how you look at it, doesn’t it? I’m surprised, though. I wasn’t expecting you.”
“Of course,” I merely say, grabbing the empty cup in front of me and raising it slightly. Malcolm grabs the bottle of sake and tilts it toward me, the fermented rice drink dropping smoothly into the glass. “I thought you’d enjoy the surprise.”
“And you were right.”
You see, Malcolm had no idea that I’d be the one showing up today. All he knew was that my company had booked a dinner date for him at Masa; he had no idea which woman he’d be meeting today.
“Are you that desperate you have to go out with me?” he continues, his jab a well placed one. I knew that, by coming here, Malcolm’s guard would be up, but I came prepared for it. “Desperate? I’m just curious,” I reply with a grin, taking a sip out of my sake while I keep my eyes trained on him. “My girls tell me you’re insufferable.”
“Oh, really? They didn’t behave like it, you know?” He doesn’t waste any time thinking of his replies, and I can’t help but allow a smile to take over my lips as I realize that Malcolm is a quick-witted man. I like men who are more than just a pretty face, you know?
“Women know how to hide their true feelings. But I see what they meant now… You’re too full of yourself, aren’t you?” My question could be a rhetorical one; the moment I saw him walk into my office, I knew he had an ego big enough to fill a ballroom.
“Maybe, I guess,” he tells me with a shrug, and this time he catches me off-guard. Is he really admitting it?
“Are you trying to play the humble card with me, Malcolm? Because I’m not the kind of girl that falls for that.” This time I decide to play defensively, test how thick the ice is before I put both of my feet on it.
“The humble card? I don’t even know what the hell that is, Athena,” he tells me, that innocent expression on his face. “I know I can be quite the asshole sometimes, but I don’t apologize for who I am.”
Jesus Christ, is he opening up to me? Or is this how he usually gets inside a woman’s panties? Careful, Athena, I hear a whisper echoing inside my head, and I have to resist the urge to bite down on my lower lip.
“I’m not in the habit of apologizing for who I am, either. So that’s something we have in common,” I tell him, and this time I really mean it. Running the tip of my tongue between my lips, I try and remind myself that I have to keep my guard up—men like Malcolm are dangerous. Very dangerous.
“And we both would like to see each other’s naked body, so that’s another thing we have in common,” he tells me, so casually that he could be commenting on the weather. I was taking a sip of my sake, and I’m so surprised by his words that I almost spit it all out.
“Who says I want to see you naked?” I ask him, trying to keep a poised posture, and that while my heart pounds hard against my chest. The moment the words naked body fell from his lips, I couldn’t help but imagine him undressing in front of me, revealing his cut muscles and perfect body… I imagined my fingers going for his boxer briefs, pulling them down and revealing his large cock and—sweet mercy, it’s hot in here all of a sudden.
“You told me. The moment I stepped foot inside your office, your eyes told me all about it… There’s no shame in it, Athena,” he smiles smugly, finishing his sake and refilling his cup.
“Maybe I’m just curious,” I try to feign his jabs, but I’m a mess right now. My pussy is growing wet with each passing second, and that image of his naked body simply refuses to leave my mind. C’mon, Athena, focus!
“Maybe … but, just like I said,” he continues, lowering his voice and smiling, “I’m curious as well.”
I’m about to answer when the waiter comes to our table, notepad in one hand and pen in the other.
“Have you decided on what you’ll be having for the night?” The young waiter asks us, and I realize that yes, I’ve already decided what I’ll be having tonight.
And it’s not sushi—that much I can tell you.
“Thank you, but I’m not hungry,” I tell the young guy waiting on us, but my eyes never leave Malcolm’s.
“Me neither,” Malcolm whispers, standing up and dismissing the waiter with a quick nod. “Let’s get out of here,” he tells me, his words dripping anticipation. I simply nod at him, and my eyes wander down to his crotch, my imagination already working hard as it tries to decipher what kind of tool Malcolm hides under his pants.
“Let’s,” I repeat after him, and I realize that my voice is even more loaded than his with anticipation.
What the hell am I doing?
Athena
I can’t believe what’s about to happen.
It’s like a hypnotic trance as we both leave Masa and get into Malcolm’s limo as it pulls up to Columbus Circle. He’s staring at me. I’m looking at him.
Hunger.
Desire.
Lust.
But in the back of my mind, I remember what my mission is.
I have to get him to fall in love with me. I can’t succumb.
On the same token, if this man can do whatever he wants with women, then so can I with men And that means, of course, that it’s time to have some fun. What else? But even after I try to tell my brain all the reasons it needs to stay rational and not get caught up in Malcolm, I still crave him. How could I not? After our first meeting together, I can barely think of anything else.
Yeah, that’s right.
I’m telling the truth.
I can’t get this glorious specimen of man out of my mind.
Closing the divider between the driver, and us I move closer to him in the seat, my eyes on his. I can see it all there—desire, hunger, lust. Everything that I want to see in a man at a time like this if I want him to eventually fall in love with me.
I’m breathing hard already, my cheeks flushing as I realize that I won’t be able to control myself if I don’t concentrate. Reaching for him, I lay my hand on top of his and squeeze his fingers gently. We’re sitting side by side, looking at our reflection in the mirror that faces us.
“Take me to paradise,” I whisper, turning into him and looking him in the eye; Malcolm’s lips curl upward into a slight grin and he’s ready but I need to explain myself further. “Just…no sex,” I tell him.
He looks at me.
“I can’t go all the way on a first date if I need you to respect me in the morning,” I tell him.
Malcolm’s face falls.
But I push out my chest and within seconds he’s thinking wit
h the head that must be leaking precum.
“We shall see,” he growls and I actually smile.
The man is challenging me.
Well, we shall see, won’t we.
He leans into me; electricity pulsing between our lips when they press together. Both his hands are on my face, his lips brushing against me softly. “I want you to have me, but not now” I insist, as I pull back, looking into his eyes. There’s a mischievous expression on his face, one that tells me he already knew I wouldn’t be able to resist him.
“We’ll see how long you keep that line,” he whispers. “You’re already crumbling. It went from no sex ever to no sex just for now.”
“I want to do things right,” I whisper back.
“If that’s what you want,” he smiles then, his hands going to my lower back as his mouth presses against mine once more. I grab his jacket and, with all the patience in the world, take it off of him; my fingers then go to his collar and I start unbuttoning his shirt, anticipating how it will feel to brush my fingers over the smooth skin of his chest.
“You want me to fall in love with you?” Malcolm asks, breaking the spell.
“It’s what I need,” I tell him as I come up for air. Sliding his hand under the opening in my dress, he rests the tip of his fingers over the dimples in my lower back, in that narrow patch of naked skin just before my thong. A shiver goes up my spine at his touch, my mind burning as I succumb to desire. So what if it’s wrong? Maybe I can make an exception just this once. Particularly if it involves someone as young and handsome as Malcolm.
His fingers go around my hips and he rests them over my waist, tracing the contour of my thong as he goes. My heart is already beating fast, and it’s not because of lust and desire. Sure, there’s that too, but somehow it’s different now. It’s something more powerful, more… wickedly sinful. As we touch, the alchemy of our bodies turns wrong into right, forbidden into mandatory.
