6. Matt
6
MATT
I t had been so long since I'd enjoyed casual sex that I forgot how freeing it was to know there would be no strings attached.
I sat up in the bed, alone, and looked at the side where I remembered thrusting into that blonde.
How she cried out in pleasure. How her tits bounced and swayed as she rode me. How her hair fell over her shoulder and curtained her demure face once she relaxed from coming—again.
It took me a good few minutes to want to leave the bed, knowing that once I did, a memory was all she and last night would be.
Like a dream I couldn’t hold on to.
I left, preferring to shower at my place, but I hated the thought that I was washing her off my skin. That I would soon see her erased from my body as the claw marks from her nails on my back healed.
It wasn’t normal to want strings attached. That wasn’t how this was supposed to work. But she remained at the forefront of my mind. Sure, I was relaxed. My body felt limp and used in a good way, almost like a hard, satisfying workout but ten times better.
She sure worked me hard.
I grinned, unable to dismiss these thoughts.
No attachments could form, though. We’d seen to that without sharing a name, a detail—hell, any type of a clue. Yet, I felt like I’d learned so much about her. Not only that her laughter and giggles were sexy as hell as I discovered that she was ticklish on her side. Nor how she blushed so prettily at dirty talk, then also admitted how much it turned her on. I also learned that letting loose and doing something spontaneous with the right woman could really, truly reset me.
I haven’t felt this good in a long time.
I left my building feeling lighter than I had in days, and it was the perfect mood to be in before facing my team to prepare for the Gammon campaign.
Except when I stopped by the café I frequented every morning, I tensed up. I only came here, where I trusted the baristas not to screw up my order because I had been a regular for twenty years and I never deviated from my black coffee, iced or hot.
Sometimes, Aaron DuPont came by this café too.
This morning happened to be one of his visits.
Just my fucking luck.
He turned and smirked at me as soon as I walked in, and I had a bad hunch that he’d come here today to see me, singling me out like that. And that expression of disdain…
I was proven right when he approached me.
“Morning, Mr. Richards,” the barista said. “Your order will be right out.”
“Thanks,” I replied dully. The young man wouldn’t take offense. He knew me and my moods, and the fact that I tipped very well.
“Well, well,” Aaron drawled as he sauntered up close. He was shorter and beefier than I was, too addicted to spending time at the gym to make himself look mighty. “Look who it is. The cheat who thinks he can steal my client.”
I let a gritty smile cover my face. “I’m not stealing anything, ass wipe.”
Even though we both worked in the corporate world, I wasn’t afraid to slip with profanity around him.
“Gammon is a DuPont client,” he snarled. “So imagine my surprise that I heard through the grapevine that you’re trying to take them from me .” He jabbed his finger at his chest for emphasis.
He heard that we’re interested already? That was fast. But of course, he’d hear about it. Why wouldn’t we jump on acquiring Gammon? We were rivals in the same industry.
I crossed my arms, standing with my feet shoulder width apart. “Imagine my surprise when I heard you run such a shoddy ship that you lost them in the first place.”
He screwed his too-tan face up in a scowl. “That’s not true. We still have Gammon for multiple accounts.”
“If by multiple you mean more than one, sure, you have two remaining accounts. Small ones.” I rolled my eyes, loving this chance to gloat. “They probably kept them with you out of pity.”
“No one pities me, Richards,” he spat. “If anyone is in need of pity, it’ll be you after you try and fail to score them as a client. I never had to wonder why they chose us over you every time.”
I huffed, taking my drink from the counter. “They only ever started with you because old man Gammon was a family friend of your grandfather. Nothing more, nothing less. It only took you ”—I jabbed my finger at his chest this time—“to screw it up and lose them.”
“That’s not true.”
“No?” I arched a brow and sipped my coffee. “Then all those reports about your managers slacking, harassing their employees, and embezzling money are false?”
He clamped his lips shut. A vein bulged on his brow, and I fought the urge to chuckle. Throw a little water on his shaved head and it’d turn to steam. “Those employees have been dealt with.”
“Sure. After a juicy scandal. How many years were they getting again for those fraud cases?”
“That’s irrelevant,” he replied. “This is just like you, cheating and being sneaky, thinking they’re fair game for you to pounce on.”
“Gammon is fair game because they’ve made it crystal clear they aren’t going to choose you for their new line rebranding.”
“We’ll just see about that.” He huffed, giving me a long sneer, as if I were filth. “You’re never going to get them. Not for the line they want rebranded. Baby products?” A slow, sinister grin took over his face. “Can’t say I picture you knowing a single fucking thing about that .”
It was no secret I was one of New York’s most eligible bachelors. I was interviewed last year and quoted to assume I’d never be a parent.
My grandmother was a hardcore feminist, a savvy businesswoman ever since my grandfather died, then later, when my parents died. No one would ever get away with accusing Wendy Richards of being without a womanly touch or mind. She fundraised and sponsored numerous charities and programs for women and girls.
Just like my name was synonymous with bachelorhood, though, the Richards Consultations company was well-known for representing and marketing products and companies more geared for men. Sports products, athletic gear, and camping equipment were the sorts of things we worked with. Other than those, we had numerous clients, all more focused for men. Cigars, financial organizations, banks, and even a famous franchise of male-dominated sports bars where the servers all had enormous tits.
My grandmother wasn’t advocating for the patriarchy. She simply followed where the money was.
And now, broadening to include Gammon and their baby products. None of which I knew a thing about. Aaron was aware of my ignorance as well.
“ I remember what it was like in those newborn years,” he gloated, so damn happy to be able to claim this advantage over me.
“What, ten, twenty years ago?” I guessed rudely as we headed to the door to exit. He did have kids, but they were older. Aaron was just as out of touch as I was when it came down to the finer details.
He shrugged, cocky and pleased that he’d gotten to me. “Stay away from my clients,” he warned, opening the door and stepping out with his beverage.
“Learn how to keep them and they won’t come sniffing around me,” I shot back, leaving in the opposite way.
“Fucker,” I muttered under my breath. He had a point. An esteemed bachelor was not an ideal representative for a campaign to promote baby products. But I would be damned if I'd let him get to me like this.
Time to go.
I had to do better at letting Aaron’s words in one ear and out the other. I seldom interacted with him, despite how close our buildings were to each other. Yet, any time our paths crossed, he was unbearable. Haughty, full of himself, and never missing a chance to rub something in my face.
I’m going to get Gammon. They will be my client. And as soon as that’s a done deal, I’ll introduce myself to him as the new CEO of his big, bad rival.
The rest of my walk toward the office helped to settle my anger.
I’d woken up on such a good note, too. Aaron DuPont was a hell of a downer, uniquely able to piss me off and twist my mood fully into bitterness.
At the first beep of the alarm clock on my watch, I’d risen with a deep calm, thoroughly satisfied after a long night of sex. I was so pleased that the blonde and I had clicked and meshed, fitting with each other so well despite not even knowing each other for more than a few hours.
It was spontaneous. Reckless. Wild. And so damn good.
In the aftermath of speaking with Aaron, though, it seemed like a crappy reminder of exactly why I wouldn’t be a rep that the Gammon folks would want to sponsor newborn products.
A bachelor, hooking up with sexy, short blondes wasn’t a “family” man.
But it’s not just me.
I’d be leading a team to score the Gammon account. John felt that this new hire he found would change things up, but it was with another wince that I worried Aaron would still have the advantage.
As a promotional company more focused on service and products for men, we didn’t have a healthy proportion of male-to-female employees in my department.
It is too bad Janice left. She had recently taken a long leave to help care for her ailing parents, and when they needed more assistance, she accepted an early severance package to just retire prematurely. If she were still at the office, she’d even out the team.
Let’s hope you’re right about this new hire, John.
I glanced in the direction of his office suite, curious whether this person would start by joining the first team meeting I’d arranged. The sooner we kicked this off and began brainstorming, the better.
Suddenly, it seemed like there was not a single moment to lose.
We’ll make it work.
Even if this new hire wasn’t the asset my friend thought they’d be, I’d figure it out. My grandmother never let me climb the corporate ladder without putting in long nights and hard work.
And I’m not afraid to do it now.
“So what if I’m a couple of minutes late.” I cringed, hating my lifelong habit of being just slightly unpunctual to everything . My grandmother used to fondly refer to it as my stubborn flaw. I considered it a bad habit I was cursed to never break.
I opened the door to the conference room I’d reserved for this first team meeting.
Everyone turned, facing me as I entered. All five faces looked at me, but I could only recognize one. Sounds ceased. My skin felt too tight, and my heart raced too fast.
No.
No. Way.
I kept my face locked tight, not betraying an ounce of the shock that crashed through me.
It was her .
She stood next to Tom and another team member. The bright-red flower pinned to her blouse snagged my attention from the get-go. As soon as I made eye contact, I felt my abs tense at the potent hit of the memory of her.
How those green orbs glittered with excitement when we first kissed.
She gaped at me, recognizing me with horror. Those plump lips parted, and I was taken back to the sound of pure ecstasy she gave when I made her come the second time.
Oh, fuck me.
The gorgeous freckled blonde I’d spent all night with. She was the new hire I was supposed to count on to get my client and become CEO.