Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Chase
I climbed into my car and began to drive home with the music blaring as loud as it could go.
My fingers gripped the steering wheel as I tried to calm down.
Kinsley Davis was a trigger, and I sure as hell didn’t see that coming.
I changed my mind about home and kept driving to a club I visited regularly called Phantom.
I pulled up to the valet and tossed my keys to Kevin.
“Good evening, Mr. Calloway.” He smiled.
“I wouldn’t really say there’s anything good about it. At least not yet.” I winked.
I walked through the doors and headed straight to the bar.
“Hello there, Chase.” Linda seductively smiled as she pulled a glass down and poured me a scotch.
“Hey, Linda.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Just a bad night.” I threw back my drink and set my glass in front of her.
“Why don’t you tell me all about it?” she spoke as she leaned across the counter and ran her finger up my arm.
“I don’t feel like talking about it.”
“Okay. If you do, you know where to find me.” She smiled.
I threw back my second drink and stared at the beautiful women that were in my sight, especially the tall brunette with the bright red lipstick that was headed my way.
“Hello there, handsome.” She smiled.
“Well, hello, gorgeous. May I buy you a drink?”
“Of course.” She took the seat next to mine.
“Hello, beautiful,” I answered my phone with a smile.
“Are you coming into the office today, or do I just have to sit around and play the guessing game?” Lexi asked.
“I’m on my way in now. I’m about fifteen minutes out.”
“Okay. I’ll let Steven know. The two of you had a meeting scheduled twenty minutes ago.”
“I know. Tell him I’m on my way.”
I was in a fantastic mood today, and nothing was going to ruin it, except maybe the backup I suddenly found myself in.
“Good morning, love.” I smiled at Lexi. “Can you let Steven know I’m here?”
“Sure.” She gave me an odd look.
I walked into my office, set my briefcase next to my desk, and took a seat.
“Here’s your coffee. Steven is on a call. He said to give him about ten minutes.” She cocked her head at me and narrowed her eye. “Rough night last night?”
“Actually,” I grinned, “Alania was a bit rough.”
“I can tell by the hickey on your neck. How old was she? Seventeen?” Her brow arched.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Lexi. Is it that bad?”
“It’s visible and ridiculous for someone your age. What’s going on with you and Kinsley?”
“What do you mean?” I sipped my coffee.
“You drove her home after the party. Anything happen?”
“No. You know I don’t take advantage of drunk women unless I’m totally plastered myself. Anyway, I don’t want to talk about her. No, wait. Actually, I do. Did you know that when she left Indiana, she wrote her mom a note and left without even talking to her or saying goodbye?”
“No. I didn’t know that. When did she tell you?”
“Last night.”
“I thought you were with the seventeen-year-old last night.” She smirked.
I rolled my eyes.
“I took dinner over to her place. I figured I'd bring dinner to her since she refused to go out with me.”
“Then how did you end up with the seventeen-year-old and the hickey?”
“For fucks sake, will you stop saying that! I may or may not have gotten a little angry, and she asked me to leave.”
“What did you do to her?!” Lexi’s voice raised as her eyes glared at me.
“All I said was that leaving a note was the coward’s way out, which was disrespectful. Then I asked her if she habitually left notes and ran.”
She placed her hand over her eyes and slowly shook her head.
“It was a trigger response, Lexi.”
“You don’t know her circumstances, Chase.”
“It doesn’t matter.” I leaned back in my chair.
There was a knock on the door, and Steven walked in.
“Hey. I just saw Kinsley out there, and she said your dad wants to see you in his office now.”
“Shit.” I sighed. “I’ll come to your office for our meeting after seeing him.”
“Sure, bro. Hey,” he smiled, “nice hickey.”
“She was seventeen.” Lexi smirked at him.
“Dude! Shut the fuck up! Awesome!” Steven replied.
“She was not, and if you say that again,” I pointed at her, “I’m firing you!”
Lexi stood there with a smile on her face as I walked out of my office and down to my dad’s. The last thing I wanted to do was run into Kinsley today, but it couldn’t be helped since she was sitting right outside his office.
“He wanted to see me?” I asked as I stared at her.
She wouldn’t look at me and kept typing away on the computer.
“Yes. But he’s on a phone call right now,” she spoke in a flat tone.
I lightly tapped on his door and slowly opened it. When he saw me, he waved me in and motioned for me to sit down. His call only lasted a few moments, and when he hung up, he glared at my neck.
“Really, son?” He sighed. “At least cover the damn thing up.” He shook his head. “K-Com is highly impressed with your program, and they’re going to go with it. Good job, son.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I smiled.
“Listen, Chase. You’re thirty years old. Have you considered that maybe it’s time to find a nice girl and settle down?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Me, settle down? Right. Never happening, Dad.”
“This party life of yours can’t go on forever.”
“Why not?”
“Because, son, it’s not the way to live.”
“But marrying and divorcing four times is?” I arched my brow at him. “And now you’re marrying bridezilla for the fifth time? You do know she’s only after your money, right?”
“I made her sign a prenuptial agreement, and it’s ironclad.
She wouldn’t have signed it and called off the wedding if she was only in it for the money.
But she didn’t. She was more than happy to sign it.
You never gave her a chance, Chase. You hated her right off the bat, and I don’t understand why. I love her.”
“Just like you loved Mom?” I arched my brow.
“I loved your mother.” He pointed his finger at me. “And I’m not discussing this anymore. Get your fucking life together and act like a Calloway, or there will be consequences.”
“Consequences?” I cocked my head. “If it weren’t for me, Calloway Tech wouldn’t be where it’s at today—a company worth twenty billion dollars. Don’t you forget that!” I spoke through gritted teeth as I got up from my seat and flew out the door back to my office.