Chapter 46
Jeremiah
“Hey, babe?” Sadie called out from the living room as I poured myself a glass of water in the kitchen.
I took a sip and looked out over the island to where she was lying in her usual corner of the couch, a white throw blanket covering her growing bump.
She looked at me with those green eyes of hers, dancing with a familiar look.
She either wanted sex or had some strange pregnancy craving.
“Yes?” I asked expectantly, hoping it was sex she was craving.
It had been so good lately. Her hormones were all over the place, but her sex drive remained steady.
We had pulled out the box of sex toys I thank my lucky stars her friend sent over that fateful night, and had used just about every single one.
Sadie was insatiable and my hands and mouth couldn’t get enough of her growing, supple body.
There wasn’t a room in this apartment we hadn’t wound up naked in.
“I think baby wants some green olives,” she said with a smile that tugged at her lips.
I laughed and shook my head, walking over to her. “Baby or you?” I asked, cocking my head as I handed her a glass of water.
She took a sip and smiled up at me, batting her eyelashes. “Hey, I can’t help what baby deems is necessary on any given day.”
I leaned down and kissed her plump lips. They had grown bigger with pregnancy too, among other things that my eyes drifted over now. Sadie giggled and pulled her blanket over her low-cut tank top.
“I know what you’re thinking. Olives first,” she said with a smirk.
“Fiiiiine.” I let out a dramatic sigh and walked toward the entryway table. “I’ll be right back.”
I grabbed my keys and opened the door.
“Maybe grab some Fruit Loops too!” she called after me.
“You’ve got it!” I called back with a laugh.
I walked down the hallway with a small smile on my face.
I had grown used to this routine of going to the corner market almost every night for whatever she was craving.
One night it was Lucky Charms. Another it was a block of sharp cheddar cheese.
One other it was peach cobbler that I had to travel a little further out for to a bakery that stayed open late.
I could easily ask my driver to go out and shop, or ask my private chef to whip something up, but I found it satisfying doing in myself.
Things had been good between us lately. She had put in her two weeks’ notice at work, as not to raise suspicions and to also have it on record with HR for her next job.
Though I didn’t totally understand why she wasn’t content on just focusing on her health and the baby, I had to admit I found her work ethic sexy. And to think I had ever questioned it.
She hadn’t started a new job yet, but had been sending out her résumés from the comfort of the couch, while I trained my new assistant at the office.
His name was Luke, and while he wasn’t as easy on the eyes as Sadie and didn’t know my quirks yet, he seemed proficient enough.
Sadie had helped me find him through a headhunter she knew.
The press hadn’t published a scandalous story on me yet, but it was probably because my lawyers were fighting tooth and nail for it to be kept quiet. I wanted my story to come out on my own terms when I was ready. Eventually.
I had agreed to take an interview with NBC tomorrow to talk about my position as CEO at the firm and for a business segment they were running.
At first, I was hesitant to do it, but after talking it over with my lawyers, I agreed.
I had never run from a business interview before.
In fact, I reveled in getting my name out there and boasting my accomplishments.
I hadn’t done much press lately with everything going on with me and Sadie.
It was probably time to come out of hiding.
The agent said it would be a live interview that focused on self-made billionaires.
It seemed safe enough, and my lawyers had gone over the contract carefully.
I expected to be asked how I got started, where I saw myself in five years, blah blah.
The usual. It was nothing I couldn’t handle, just as long as they stayed away from my personal life, which they insisted they would.
The familiar neon light from the corner mart flickered as I opened the door. The bell rung overhead, bringing the clerk’s attention to me.
“You again!” He smiled brightly.
“I’m back,” I said with a laugh. “Olives?”
“Second aisle on the left.”
“Thanks.” I walked toward the aisle and perused the shelves for green olives. I grabbed a large jar from the shelf and walked it up to the counter.
“Anything else?” asked the clerk with amusement.
“Ah shit. Fruit Loops?”
“Third aisle on the right,” he said with another laugh.
I thanked him, returning shortly with the small box of colorful cereal.
He scanned the two items, smiling all the while.
He probably thought I was high or had a pregnant wife at home.
Girlfriend. Whatever Sadie was. I wasn’t sure, but she was certainly much more than I had ever really had in my life.
The clerk bagged the two items and handed the bag over to me with a grin. “See you tomorrow,” he said knowingly.
I chuckled and headed out the door into the cool night air.
Sadie clapped her hands excitedly when I walked through the door, holding the jar of olives in one hand and the cereal in the other.
“Thank you!” she said, thrusting out her hands like a hungry child.
I laughed as she twisted the lid off the jar of olives, popping one in her mouth. Her eyes rolled back as she let out a low “mmmm.” The sound made my cock twitch in my pants.
“Do that again, you won’t even make it to the Fruit Loops,” I said, leaning over her as I braced my hands on either side of her.
She bit her lip before popping another one in her mouth, letting out the same sound.
“That’s it!’’ I said loudly, taking the olives and putting them on the table before picking her up and tossing her over my shoulder.
“Jeremiah!” she squealed as I carried her to my bedroom. “The Fruit Loops!”
I made her forget all about them in the following two minutes.
The next morning, Sadie watched me sleepily from my bed, a tired and satisfied smile across her lips.
“Is my tie straight?” I asked, glancing at her through the mirror, my eyes wandering over her body’s outline in the silky sheets. She was still naked from the night before.
“You look very sharp,” she said affirmatively. “Handsome, too.”
“Thank you,” I said, adjusting the tie again.
“You nervous?” she asked.
“A little,” I said, turning toward her as I buttoned the lapel of my black jacket. “It’s been a while.”
“You’ll do great,” she said reassuringly.
I walked to the bed and leaned down, kissing her on the lips.
“After last night, I’m ready for anything.” I smirked before running my tongue over her lips.
She swatted me away. “Stop! You’re going to be late!” She giggled as she shimmied down under the covers, until just her green eyes looked back at me.
“I’ll call you later,” I said, pulling myself up and striding toward the bedroom door.
Forty minutes later, my driver pulled up to the network building in the heart of Times Square.
I had spent the car ride going over questions and answers with my new assistant.
I had been rehearsing my diplomatic answers for the past few days, and was just running through them one more time with Luke who listened intently.
“You’re going to kill it, Mr. Mason,” he said with an enthusiastic nod.
He was either just buttering me up, or I hadn’t lost my touch as much as I thought.
“Let’s do this then,” I said, stepping out of the car door my driver had opened, Luke following behind like a puppy dog.
Inside the studio, I met with the interviewer, a woman I recognized from the news.
Her dark brown hair was cut into a pixie cut that sharpened her heart-shaped face.
She shook my hand firmly, as the agent who had set the interview up went over what the interview would be about and how it would be more of a profile piece.
I listened to them excitedly ramble on as a makeup artist used a puff to apply translucent powder to my forehead and ran more pomade through my hair.
When I was camera ready, they sat me down on a small, well-lit stage in a plush armchair.
The lights were hot against my skin, making me shift slightly in my suit.
Sadie had picked it out, saying it was one of her favorites.
A small marble table sat next to me, the setup identical to the interviewer who was settling in just a few feet away.
She smiled at me reassuringly as the makeup artist did last minute primping to her rosy lipstick.
Luke came over with a glass filled with water and ice, setting it on the table next to me.
I gave him a nod of thanks, taking a sip and clearing my throat.
“We’re on in ten,” yelled someone from behind the bright lights.
I saw the countdown on the prompter. Just seconds to go before I was on live TV.
The interview started off slow and steady, just as I imagined it would.
It felt like putting on a familiar pair of shoes, and I walked through the questions with ease.
I explained how I got started at a small firm in Brooklyn before going on to start my own firm, working my way up through the ranks with the bigger fish in the large pond that was Manhattan.
I gave her the usual motivational mumbo jumbo about how setbacks only propelled you further and other quotes I knew people would eat up.
Luke kept giving me a thumbs-up from off camera.
“Now, Jeremiah…” said the interviewer, a coy smile splayed across her lips.
I felt my heart drop as I waited for what came next. We had been adamant about what questions I would stick to, but this interviewer might have other ideas in mind.
“There’s a rumor I heard that you might have found someone special in your life…” she said, her eyes wicked with delight.
Without hesitation, I sat back in my chair and smiled at her casually. “I don’t know what you’ve heard, but I’m single. I find life is simpler that way,” I replied with a shrug.
The interviewer did her best to hide her disappointment, but not before saying, “Well, I’m sure you just made a lot of women happy to know one of the most prominent bachelors is still available.”
I took a sip of water to give myself a moment to retain the composure I had feigned in front of the cameras with that last question. Thankfully, the interviewer moved on to more questions about business.
“So, what are some current challenges you’re facing in business?” the interviewer asked, looking at me thoughtfully with her chin rested on her fist.
“There’s always jealousy when you’re at the top.
The business world is one big competition.
Some people can’t accept when they’ve lost,” I crowed with a confident smile, thinking about Anderson and all the shit he had pulled.
I hoped he was watching now. I turned toward the camera, looking directly into it.
“In this line of work, there will always be someone nipping at your heels, hoping you’ll fail.
Unfortunately for those people, they don’t realize failure isn’t in my vocabulary. ”