Chapter 19 Alexander
ALEXANDER
I’d never been more sexually satisfied in my life. And yet I would take Harper again in an instant if given the chance. I could not get enough of her. I’d lost count of how many times we fucked over the weekend. Still not enough.
All day.
Every day.
For the rest of my life.
Maybe after fifty years or so, I’d finally be able to go a day without wanting her.
Doubtful. But by then I’d probably be dead and waiting for her in the afterlife.
I’d claimed Harper in every possible way, and I would do it all again.
I wrenched my thoughts away from our weekend together and poured a cup of coffee. The rich aroma reminded me to check in on the coffee corner downstairs. Julian had mentioned they were using cheap beans, when I knew for a fact I’d expressly ordered they shop the best.
Only the best for our employees. That was the promise we’d built Elevate on, and it was the guarantee I’d pledged to uphold.
I opened the blinds on my way to my desk and paused to admire the view.
New York in early morning created a unique backdrop to the work day.
Cars trekked up and down the street far below.
No doubt horns honked and people shouted, but I was high enough to be removed from the sounds and smells.
Instead, I enjoyed a quietness that settled in my bones.
A satisfied sigh loosened the coiled muscles in my back and shoulders. We’d needed the weekend away, a chance to fully be ourselves without consequences or prying eyes.
Turning away from the window, I scanned my office on my way to my desk.
Memories cut across my mind, the images sharp as a blade.
Harper on my desk. Harper on the couch with all three of us inside her.
It was enough to bring out a wide smile and an urge to track her down and invite her up for another meeting.
Except we’d promised to keep things professional at work, which meant I needed to settle the fuck down and do my job.
The coffee scalded my tongue on the first sip, but I drank it anyway as I sank into the thick leather chair and turned on my computer. An alert pinged as soon as I logged in.
What the hell? I’d set up my own system that tracked any news outlets and social media that mentioned us.
The alerts were infrequent enough that they always caused a jolt in my gut.
I set the cup aside and clicked to open the alert.
A dozen images filled my computer screen, along with headlines not fit for public reading.
“Fuck.” I slammed my closed fist onto the desk. More images appeared, Harper in all of them.
Harper in the bedroom with us, her body spread across the bed and Dante between her legs.
Harper on her knees with my cock in her mouth and Julian in her ass.
Image after image of Harper in the cabin with us. They kept going. These were more than compromising. These were damning. I punched in Julian’s number, then Dante’s on my cell. Both answered after the first ring. “Get to my office. Now.” I hung up before they had a chance to ask a single question.
Minutes later, the door burst open and Dante strode in. He reminded me of a dark angel when he did that. All righteous fury and brooding intensity.
In contrast, Julian would be heaven’s angel with his golden hair and jaunty stride. It wasn’t jaunty today. He stormed in with the same kind of purposeful energy as Dante.
“What?” Dante powered forward until he reached my desk. He stopped at the corner and looked around. “Why did you order us here?”
I pointed at the computer screen, too angry to form words at first. “We have a problem.”
Julian rounded the desk first and leaned over my shoulder. “I’m guessing you didn’t set up a hidden camera to record our weekend?” The hard tone bit out every word.
Dante scowled hard enough to make even me reconsider my safety. “This is not going to happen.”
If only those words could be heard around the world. I clicked through the images, showing them the depth someone had gone to make sure that all four of us were visible in many of the images. “They want the world to know all our secrets.”
“Not. Going. To. Happen.” Dante drilled his index finger into the desk with every word. “I’ll make some calls. I need a name.”
I activated my search program and ran the images through. Seconds ticked past, each one drawing the air from the room.
“Harper cannot see this.” Dante’s gaze landed on me. “She’ll be devastated.”
“I know.” It was the only response available to me. The search finished, and a name appeared on the screen. I grabbed Dante’s phone from his hand. “Let me call them first.”
“No.” His jaw jutted out.
I glanced at Julian. “Help me out, here.” I pocketed Dante’s phone and took out mine. “If you call, you’re going to scare the living hell out of whoever answers the phone. They’re more likely to hang up and call the police than talk to you.”
“Maybe I should pay them a visit. In person.” His gaze darted to the screen, where a home address flashed.
“Don’t you dare.” Julian slapped Dante’s back. It did nothing to sway him, but the contact did loosen his jaw.
I dialed the number and held the phone to my ear. “Keep your mouth shut.”
“You don’t give me orders.” His eyes went flat and cold.
“You don’t scare me, Dante. Go look out the window or something. I brought you in here to help mitigate the damage, not make it worse.”
Dante continued to stare, but he pushed away from the desk in silent agreement.
The phone rang. And rang.
Just before it clicked over to voicemail, a male voice answered. “Hello?”
“Good morning, Bradley.” I purred the words in a sweet symphony. “It seems you’ve been a naughty boy.”
A sharp laugh drifted through the phone. “Who the fuck is this? You know what, never mind. I’m hanging up. Pervert.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t do that. You see, I’m currently staring at some pictures of yours. Pictures of a young lady with three older men. Do you know what I’m talking about? The ones you’re attempting to leak to the Business Weekly magazine, along with several others.”
Silence.
Oh how I loved that panicked moment when the shit hit the fan.
A loud gulp sounded. “How…how do you know about that? They haven’t gone live yet.”
“And they won’t if I have any say about it.
” I rocked back in my chair, making sure every sound came across as smooth and completely unbothered.
“You see, I’m in the business of making things like this disappear.
How that happens is entirely up to you. But I should let you know that I have a considerable budget when it comes to keeping things quiet.
Much more interesting than the meager few hundreds you’ll be offered from any magazine. ”
“How much more?” The breathless question told me all I needed to know.
For once we were up against a money-grubbing photographer and not a cutthroat who genuinely wanted to ruin us.
“Why don’t you give me a number? We’ll start there and work our way to something that satisfies both of us.
I will need every photo pulled, of course.
I want any hardcopies destroyed. All digital files deleted.
I’m sure you know the drill.” I rocked forward and back, the slow squeak in the chair punctuating my words.
Bradley remained quiet several seconds.
I let him think. Let him stew in the possibilities.
Dante crossed his arms but let me play my part. If it had been him, the demands and threats would have started with his first breath. His intimidation worked most of the time, but I’d learned to finesse these situations.
Julian clicked through the images, his gaze hungry. I knew how he felt. I wanted to keep the pictures. I’d frame them and have them hung in my bedroom. No other art in the world compared to the sight of Harper in the midst of her pleasure.
The images would have to live in my head, because anything else was too risky.
“How do I know you’ll pay?” Bradley asked.
My smile stretched, and I drummed my fingers on the desk. “I suppose I could make a good faith deposit. Let’s make it ten percent of the final price once we settle on a number. You provide the details, I provide the money. Once it all goes away, you receive the rest of your payment.”
“I need time to think about it.” A slyness entered Bradley’s voice, one that told me he hoped to make the best of both worlds and stab me in the back.
I played his game because it suited me for the moment.
“You have fifteen minutes. You should be glad I’m patient.
My colleague is less than impressed with your attempt to publish the photos.
I should also warn you that if you choose to take our money and the photos end up online or in any public format, there will be consequences.
” I ended the call and placed my phone on the desk.
“We should go see him. But that runs the risk of further blackmail if he realizes we’re the men in the pictures. ”
Julian perched on the edge of my desk and scrolled through the images at a slower pace. “Looks like they were all taken with the same camera. Same angle. Same shot of the bedroom. I don’t think there was a live feed. Most likely the camera was set up to record and they took still shots from there.”
“Which means there’s a fucking recording out there somewhere?” Dante’s hands fell to his sides.
My office door swung open and Harper walked in.
Julian let out a low curse and pushed the computer around to face me.
Too late. The look on Harper’s face said it all. “What was that?”
“Nothing.” Julian answered at the same time Dante said, “We’re taking care of it.”
Harper ran across the room and threw herself in front of the screen before I could close more than two of the pictures.
Her mouth hung ajar, her entire body quaking.
“I’m guessing you didn’t take these. If you did, I’d be pissed for a whole other reason.
But you would have asked. You would have given me the option to say no.
” She took a step backward. “Which means you didn’t know.
And now there are pictures of us out there. ”
“Not yet.” If Julian meant to calm her, he failed. “We’re taking care of it.”
Harper turned on her heel and fled. Her sobs sent all three of us leaping into action.