Chapter 18
Chester
The meeting with Mr. Craddock had gone as I anticipated.
Two men puffing their chests at each other, waiting to see who would cave to the other’s ideas and demands.
If he was thinking we would be able to work together to monopolize the industry, he would have to think again or at least come at me with a better tactic.
I had never gone into business with anyone as an equal partner, and I didn’t intend to start now unless it was absolutely necessary or would be some real financial gain.
People tried. Often. Pitching ideas at meetings or charity events or randomly on the street, as if that last one would really work.
I always entertained the idea, but truthfully, I was doing just fine on my own with Will as a silent partner.
The meeting had dragged on and on. It didn’t help that I was still completely distracted by Juliet who had left quite an impression with the show she put on playing waitress.
I still couldn’t get over the fact she had strutted in there with nothing underneath that ass-skimming skirt.
Mr. Craddock’s face was as red as a tomato, and he hadn’t even seen what I saw, which was the bottom of her beautiful, bare ass.
The sight of it made anything Mr. Craddock was saying sound like he was underwater.
And then her little antic in her office…
Was that a hot pink thong?
She was getting more creative with her teasing gestures, and I was growing more and more impatient with myself for keeping my composure.
Eventually, I was just going to snap and take her into my office to fuck her brains out.
It was just a matter of time, and judging by the measures she was now taking, she wanted it just as badly. She was asking for it.
Now, alone in my office, still feeling annoyed by my meeting with Mr. Craddock, I wished I hadn’t sent Juliet home early.
The whole waitress thing had been fun, leaving me fully erect for most of my meeting, but the deal was she got to go home.
I now regretted it because I had some tension that needed some release and I knew she could give it to me.
I looked across the hall toward her office.
Her desk was empty and the rest of the office was beginning to clear out.
I drummed my fingers against my desk, unsure of whether I wanted to go home or stay late with a glass of bourbon to go over business plans.
I eventually opted for the small bottle of bourbon I kept in my bottom desk drawer, taking a swig straight from the bottle.
I propped my feet up on my desk and started going through potential business partnerships I had been eyeing, figuring out exactly who I needed to schedule a meeting with.
It wasn’t like I needed any more mergers or acquisitions, but this was what I did.
This was why Mr. Craddock’s ego couldn’t handle being in a room with me. I was a titan.
As I took another swig of bourbon, the liquor sweet and strong as it ran down my throat, my phone buzzed on my desk.
Will.
I picked it up and swiveled my desk chair around to take in the view of the city, dusk settling over the buildings and Central Park.
“Hey, rockstar,” I said.
He chuckled. “Hey, CEO.” I could hear music playing in the background and a crowd of murmurs. I assumed he was playing another show.
“Where are you now?” I asked curiously.
“Colorado.”
“What the hell are you doing way out west?”
“I got a gig out this way,” he said casually, as if he weren’t over a thousand miles away.
“Things are really taking off for you, huh?” I asked.
“Ahh. It’s no big deal. A small venue out here asked me to play. A booking agent saw clips of my New York show and called me up.”
“Seems like a big deal, man,” I said.
“We’ll see.”
I could tell from his voice that his nerves were getting to him. He wasn’t his usual cocky, sarcastic self, so I let him change the subject.
“What about you? Where are you on this fine night?” he asked, the sound of music fading in the background, and being replaced by the sound of a car horn. He must have stepped outside the venue.
“Work,” I muttered, taking another sip of bourbon.
“What? Why? It’s like eight o’clock your time,” he said.
“I have nothing better to do.”
A ridiculous statement when all of Manhattan was literally at my feet.
“How are things going with the new company?” he asked, a hint of worry in his voice. I wasn’t sure if he was asking as a friend or a business partner.
I rubbed the back of my head and leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling, the canned lights now dim at this hour.
“Honestly. It’s a little more complicated than I had anticipated.”
“Well, shit.”
“Yeah. Some assets still need to be sold off, and a little more dead weight needs to be trimmed before we can fully streamline.”
“Who knew non-profits would be this tricky. Still think you made the right move?”
“It looks great in the press. We look like saints. Now, I just need to get it looking good internally.”
“You will,” he said confidently.
“I know.”
“Did you ever end up getting a new assistant or are you still answering your own phone?” he asked with a laugh.
I chewed the inside of my cheek as I remembered I hadn’t told him about hiring Juliet yet. Now or never, I guess. It had been his idea after all.
“I did, actually.”
“Well, who is she? She hasn’t quit yet?” he joked.
“Funny thing…” I chuckled.
“What?” he pried further.
“Remember that girl, Juliet. The one who—”
“Livestreamed naked in her shower?” he finished my sentence.
“Right. Well, I kind of hired her to be my assistant.”
There was silence on the other end of the phone. After a moment, I pulled it away from my ear to make sure Will was still on the other line. He was.
“You’re kidding…” he said finally.
“Nope.”
“I was just joking when I told you to hire her!” he said, his voice rising.
“I know…” I said hesitantly.
“What’s up, Chester?” asked Will. “Did something happen between you two?”
I turned my back to the view of the city, dark and glittered with lights. I drummed my fingers on my desk, debating telling Will what had happened with Juliet at his show. This was where business partner and best friend became tricky. It was miraculous we had balanced both for so long.
“It did, didn’t it?” he asked, his voice low, sounds of traffic drowning him out even further.
“Yeah. It kind of just happened. It’s your fault really.”
“My fault?” he asked exasperatedly. “Please explain that to me.”
“She was at your show. I ran into her there.”
“Seriously?”
“Your music brought us together…” I joked.
“Shit,” he said, as if realizing something. “That was the girl you were sucking face with. I thought she looked familiar. You two left together…”
“Back to my place.” I smiled.
“Jesus. So did you hire her before or after you fucked her?”
“After.”
He stayed quiet on the other line. Again. Maybe I shouldn’t have told him. It’s not like anything had happened with her again. Not yet at least. Technically, we had sex before I hired her as my personal assistant, which was worse than her just being an accountant on a different floor. Right?
“I just want you to be careful, Chester. You’re treading dangerous waters here. I’m sure it seems fun, but is it worth the risk?” Will said carefully.
Hot pink thong.
Definitely seemed worth the risk.
But I knew where he was coming from.
“Just don’t do anything stupid, okay? At least, not again,” he warned.
“She’s not making it easy,” I said, shaking my head frustratedly.
“If you can’t keep it in check, then maybe you should keep your distance. Move her back to accounting. Or let her go,” he suggested.
I sighed, knowing deep down he was probably right. I just didn’t want to admit that to him, or myself. This thing with Juliet was getting more and more risky, each of us inching toward crossing the line again.
“I don’t know, Will…maybe, you should just come back and work with me…” I said, offering a solution that didn’t even make any sense. I just felt like having my best friend and business partner here would keep things in perspective.
“Is it that serious with this girl?” he asked.
I didn’t know what to say. Juliet and I were nothing but a pair of what seemed like flirty high schoolers, seeing how far we could push the other until one of us bended.
I didn’t know what it was past that besides great sex.
Mind-blowing sex. For me, it never went further than that with any woman. But Juliet wasn’t just any woman…
I must have stayed quiet a beat too long because I heard Will let out a worried sigh on the other end of the phone.
“I still own forty percent of the company,” he started. “I could come out of retirement temporarily.”
It sounded like it was the most miserable idea he had ever come up with, and I felt bad for even suggesting it. All because I couldn’t seem to keep it in my pants. How old was I? Seventeen?
“I’d rather not though,” Will continued. “I could possibly have a slate of shows coming up. If tonight goes well, I could have a gig in California next. Vegas possibly.”
I perked up at that.
“I’m supposed to go to Vegas to meet with a client soon,” I said.
“When?” asked Will, a tinge of excitement in his voice.
“A week from today,” I said, double checking the calendar on my computer.
“Well, shit. That’s when I’d be playing. If I get the time slot.”
“You will,” I said confidently.
“I’ll know after tonight…” he said, the same nerves creeping back and making his voice edgy.
“Look, Will. I’ll get everything handled here,” I said firmly. “I’m not going to rip you away from music just because I’m an idiot.”
“Good. Because I really don’t want to have to come babysit you.”
I chuckled.
“How was she, though?” he asked after a second, his curiosity getting the better of him.
“You don’t even want to know…” I groaned.
“Careful, Chester,” he warned. “I better go. I’ll let you know about Vegas.”
“Break a leg,” I said, hanging up the phone and sliding it across my desk. I frowned slightly. I thought getting it off my chest would make me feel better, but sharing what happened with Juliet only made me feel worse. Will was right. I needed to get a handle on this before it blew up in my face.
It just seemed impossible, like we were on a train heading toward a broken track. At full speed. Naked. I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to stop it, or if I really wanted to.
I sighed frustratedly as I rubbed my hands down my cheeks.
Just then, the lights in the hallway flickered on.
For a brief second, I wondered if Juliet had forgotten something and had come back to retrieve it.
But then I saw the cleaning crew pushing their cart down the hallway.
It was late. I grabbed the bottle of bourbon off my desk and screwed the top back on before carefully placing it back in the bottom drawer.
As I emerged from my office, the two women nodded a hello at me before getting back to their vacuuming and dusting. I gave them an easy smile and strode for the elevators, feeling foolish for thinking it was Juliet. After I had just told myself I needed to get a handle on things.
Idiot.
That was how much that girl had a hold on me. I swore I could smell her vanilla perfume in the elevator as I rode down to the lobby.
I would get a handle on things. Eventually.
What Will didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him, and I had no plans of getting caught.
Juliet and I could still keep up this little game.
We weren’t hurting anybody, and no lines had been crossed.
Not again. I wasn’t about to fire her, and it would look fishy if I transferred her again. At least, that was what I told myself.
When the elevator doors opened, I stepped out into the lobby, surprised to find a few people working and sipping on coffee at some nearby tables.
The glow of their laptops contorted their features just so in the dim lighting of the grand entryway.
They had a cardboard tray of coffees in between them, fuel to burn through some late-night work hours.
I wasn’t sure what department they were from, and they were, thankfully, unaware of my presence.
I headed for the large glass door to get in my limo that waited just outside.
“Hello,” said a woman’s voice to my right, making me jump slightly.
I looked over to see a dark-haired woman, her hair cut close to her head, accentuating the sharp features of her face.
Her eyes glittered through the dim lighting as she smiled at me like she knew me.
Unable to place her and not in the mood to talk, I nodded politely, and kept heading for the doors, leaving the mystery woman leaning against a marble pillar of the lobby.