Chapter 19
Lucien
I was fortunate enough to be born into indescribable wealth.
The Americans would call it old money. Wealth that had grown not over decades, but over centuries. Passed down from generation to generation until it eventually landed in my metaphorical lap.
Many in my position were content to merely accept such wealth. To welcome the comfort it brought, to never do anything except spend it. I know this because it was how I lived the first part of my life, floating from one luxury to another.
Yet when my parents passed on, and I inherited the full weight of my family’s fortune, I realized I wanted something else.
Something more.
Money was a resource. It was meant to be used. Spent, invested, even squandered sometimes.
The only true sin was to allow such wealth to sit in a bank uselessly.
This was how I had decided to live my life. Using my wealth however I saw fit. Taking chances. Growing it. Sometimes losing large portions of it when I made a mistake.
But I never sat idly. I never laid back and relaxed. I would have time for that when I was dead and my body belonged to the worms.
And so I spent my money. I purchased companies on a whim.
I made intelligent investments… and I made poor ones.
Perhaps I took some joy in disrupting others, in throwing stones into a lake if only to watch the waves it created.
If nothing else, it reminded others of my presence in the business world.
It forced people to acknowledge me. That was, I had come to realize, something I desperately needed. To avoid irrelevance.
Even if it occasionally upset my business partners like Harrison Blackstone.
I would never do anything to truly damage my business relationship with Harrison. I was not that reckless. It was just a little fun, you see. Poking a cat to see how loudly it hissed back.
But when I met the woman writing his biography…
I was drawn to Caroline Fairfax the moment I laid eyes on her. Perhaps a small part of it was the fact that she was Harrison’s, and I was a jealous man who wanted what others had. But she also had an aura about her that drew me in.
Normally, my infatuations faded after a day or two.
But Caroline’s cutting smile had not left my mind since that day in Paris.
It was a feeling I had never experienced before.
The more time passed, the stronger it became.
She made me want to burn down my empire so I could lay with her atop the ashes.
I would not, of course. I was not a truly reckless man.
And yet…
I was unhappy with the way Harrison and I had left things after Paris.
He was quite unhappy with my impulsive AI purchase, insisting it was a conflict of interest that undermined the overall goals of our firm.
He was right, of course. Occasionally, I needed to be reminded that my name was on the second half of Blackstone & Moreau.
Surprises were something I delighted in, so rather than call ahead, I jumped on a flight to New York. What was the point of owning a private jet if one never used it?
I did not own any property in America, but I had enough friends who did that it made no difference.
One of my business associates was in Singapore and was happy to allow me to stay in his Manhattan apartment, a penthouse that occupied the entire ninety-second floor of its building.
The Americans so loved their skyscrapers.
I was sipping an espresso on the balcony, admiring the view of Central Park, when I received the phone call for which I had been waiting.
“Harrison. Good afternoon. To what do I owe this pleasure?”
“I’m calling to ask you that very question. You’re in New York?”
“Keeping tabs on me? I would call you a stalker if we were not such good friends.”
“You flew into Teterboro and intentionally parked in the hangar next to mine. If you’re trying to fly under the radar, you are doing a poor job of it.”
“I am here to take in a show on Broadway,” I lied, “but I would be delighted to see you while I am here. I do not like how we left things in Paris.”
“You mean you don’t like that I’m unhappy you purchased a competing AI company without consulting with me.”
“Let us discuss the details over coffee. I can meet you at our office in an hour.”
“Funny that you call it our office,” Harrison said dryly, “when you rarely visit. The last time you made an appearance was the earnings report three years ago.”
“I am a busy man, as you know. Which is why we should take this opportunity to meet. I will see you there shortly.”
I took my time getting ready before taking a car over to the Blackstone & Moreau building. His man, Rafael, was waiting at the curb when we arrived.
“An escort? How lovely,” I said.
Rafael showed no expression as he said, “Right this way, Mr. Moreau.”
I whistled a tune in the elevator up to the main floor where all of our best traders had offices and cubicles.
Then I walked as slowly as possible to Harrison’s office, forcing Rafael to stop and wait for me several times.
It was an open floorplan, and I drew every eye.
As Harrison had said, it wasn’t often that I visited.
All of this had been an enormous gamble by me, but it paid off when I walked into Harrison’s corner office. The person I had actually come to meet was seated in a chair to the side, a notepad in her lap, pen tapping impatiently against the page.
I made my face into a mask of delight. “Ms. Fairfax! What a wonderful surprise. I was not expecting you to be joining us today.”
She nodded, but said nothing. Harrison narrowed his eyes suspiciously at me. He only now realized his mistake, that she was the true reason I had come.
And he had brought her right to me.
I immediately ignored her and turned all of my attention on Harrison. For the following hour, I was a model business partner. I apologized for purchasing the rival AI company. I offered to sell it, folding it into our firm in a merger that would help his recent acquisition.
“You would do that?” he asked, suspicious of my motives.
“Of course.” I spread my hands. “I want to do what’s best for our firm, and to show you that my intentions were not malicious.”
We spent some time hammering out the details, then turned it over to our lawyers. We rose to leave, shaking hands before embracing in a cold hug.
“How long are you in the city?” Harrison asked. “Do you have time for dinner?”
“I have the show tonight, I am afraid,” I replied. “Perhaps next time?”
“Next time,” he agreed.
On the way out, I stopped at the door. “Do you mind if I have a moment with Ms. Fairfax? There is something I would like to discuss with her in private.”
Harrison hesitated, glancing into his office. “Of course.”
I took significant pleasure in closing the door to his own office on his face. Rafael glared at me through the window.
“I’m not sure there’s anything we have to discuss,” Caroline immediately said.
Now that we were alone, my skin practically tingled. How did this American woman have such power over me?
“I would like you to have dinner with me tonight,” I said.
She crossed her arms in a way that pushed her breasts up. But I was a man of class, and kept my gaze locked onto her eyes. “I thought you had a Broadway show tonight,” she said.
“I would prefer to dine with you.”
“Sorry, but I’m going to have to pass.”
“That is a shame,” I said. “I was hoping to discuss giving you an exclusive interview. For your Wall Street Journal.”
That got her attention, although she did a fine job hiding it. One of her eyebrows rose slightly and she said, “You don’t give interviews.”
“I do not,” I agreed. “But I think that is because I have not met the right journalist. Until now.”
She studied me for several long moments. I stared back coolly.
“I am already occupied with Mr. Blackstone’s biography, along with my normal responsibilities at The Journal,” she finally said. “I think it would be best to schedule an interview for next year, when my business with him has concluded.”
Her response was unacceptable. I could not wait a year. If I went even months without seeing her, I felt as if I would die.
“Yes, his biography must come first, of course,” I admitted. “However, I have been in business with Harrison for many years. I am certain I have a number of stories to share. Some of which are quite… juicy, you might say.”
Now that really got her attention. Those captivating eyes widened in surprise.
“I would meet with you to discuss Harrison’s biography,” she said. “But only that.”
I clapped my hands together. “Wonderful! I will send a car for you tonight.”
“I can take the subway,” she replied.
“A woman as beautiful as you should not share space with the working class of this city,” I said distastefully.
“I’m sure I’ll manage.” She slid past me, opening the door and walking away.
But I had her now.
I followed Caroline into the next room where Harrison and Rafael were waiting. “I will see you tonight, Ms. Fairfax,” I said.
And then I gave Harrison a big smile.