Chapter 18 – Drake
DRAKE
Olivia kissed my neck and rutted against me, making my cock harder than steel.
This woman knew all the ways to torture me.
Gripping her waist, I rocked my hips and kissed her.
I’d waited too long to touch her. Too long to make her mine.
After years of denying myself what I wanted, she was in my arms and purring in my ear.
“Drake,” she moaned, wrapping her thick legs around me. “Oh god. Yes.”
I tilted her head to the side and licked her neck, loving how she shivered from my touch. Her big breasts rubbed my bare chest, and I loved how she felt on top of me.
And then…
She slapped me.
Olivia gripped my shoulders and shook me. “Open your eyes, you idiot.”
Just like that, my perfect dream transformed into a bitter reality. I blinked to clear the sleep from my eyes. My head pounded from all the shots of Blue Label I drank last night after we kissed.
I glanced at the clock.
It was a little after seven.
Sunlight crept through the slit in the curtains, warming my cheek. I shielded my eyes and winced at the pain gnawing into my skull. I probably shouldn’t have drunk that much knowing I had all-day meetings at Battle Industries. It was also Olivia’s first day of work.
With Olivia on top of me, her big tits falling out of a low-cut top, I squeezed her thick ass to see if I was dreaming.
Her palm crashed into my cheek.
So, this wasn’t a dream.
Fuck.
She sat up, straddling my thighs, and slapped my bare chest. “Were you having a sex dream about me?”
I rubbed the spot she hit and frowned. “Yes, but it doesn’t warrant violence.”
Olivia sighed. “I’m your assistant now. And as your assistant, waking you up is part of my duties. But this… No more sexy dreams about me. Not unless you’re going to stop playing games.”
She slid off me and pulled the covers over my half-naked body. I rarely slept in clothes, but Olivia lucked out. I was too drunk and tired to remove them before passing out. Although after seeing her naked last night, it would have only been fair to let her see me.
“I’ll call down to the kitchen for your breakfast. Do you want the usual?”
I nodded. “Sounds good.”
She nudged my arm and then hopped off the mattress. “Drake Battle, get your ass out of this bed before I drag you out of it.”
I rubbed at my tired eyes. “I’m awake, woman. Do I need to remind you who’s the boss?”
Olivia bent over me, her sweet scent, like cotton candy, filling my nostrils. I love how she smelled. And now that I knew how she tasted, I wanted more. Once would never be enough.
“You’re paying me to do a job.” Olivia put her hands on her hips and scowled. “So, quit dragging your feet and get ready for work?”
I loved being in control, but I loved it more when Olivia put me in my place. Her feistiness turned me on. Every bossy exchange left me wanting more.
Think with the right head, Battle.
I sat up and yawned, raising my arms above my head. “What’s on my schedule for today?”
“Tate wants to see you ASAP. He’s already at the office waiting for you. Then, you have a meeting with Senator Kane. After that, the CEO of Avanti Corp. And a follow-up call with that company in England. You know, the one that rhymes with yellow.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Bello Tech?”
She nodded. “Yeah, that one. I’m still getting used to your calendar. Give me a few days, and I’ll have it all memorized.”
“You’ve got this, Liv. I have total faith in you.”
As the owner of the largest weapons manufacturer in the world, my days were endless. I worked more than I slept. Heads of state, tech moguls, and criminal organizations wanted to meet with me. And with that kind of recognition came other unwanted attention.
Olivia opened my closet and then angled her body to look over her shoulder at me. “Do you want me to get your suit ready?”
I shook my head, laughing. “I’m a big boy. I don’t need you to dress me.”
A smile touched her pretty pink lips. “Whatever. Get your butt moving. My brother has important news. He got a call early this morning. He wouldn’t tell me anything. Just said it was life-changing and to get you to the office an hour earlier than scheduled.”
Olivia turned her back to me, flaunting her perfect ass. What made Olivia more beautiful was the fact that she was oblivious to her power. Men stared at her all the time. But she took their interest as pity. She worried so much about her weight that she couldn’t see past it.
I wanted to close the distance between us, drop to my knees in front of her, and taste every inch of her incredible body. That’s what I should have done last night. Instead, I fucked everything up by pulling away. By telling her our kiss was a mistake.
Every day with Olivia was a battle for me. I constantly struggled with wanting to bend her over my desk, especially when she wore tight, black skirts. Like the one she had on today.
Olivia stopped in the entryway, hands on her narrow hips. Her eyes lowered down my chest and to the waistband of my boxer briefs. She sucked in a deep breath when she noticed my hard cock, the tip peeking through the slit in my boxers.
“Take a shower.” She coughed to clear her throat. “You look hungover and smell like a brewery.”
Since it was only fair that she got to see me naked, I rose from the bed and shoved the boxers past my hips, letting them slide to the floor. Her eyes widened along with her mouth as she took in the sight of me. My cock was still semi-hard and aimed right at her.
Yep, this is all for you, baby.
“Drake,” she whispered, unable to take her eyes off my body. “What are you doing?”
I thought if I pushed her over the edge, she’d force me out of my comfort zone. My heart and body said one thing while my mind and words said another.
“Get in the shower with me,” I said to see how she would respond.
Please say yes.
Olivia eyed up my chest, and then her eyes wandered to my cock. She wet her lips with her tongue. Her nipples poked through the silky shirt barely containing her big tits.
“You’re still drunk,” Olivia said after a brief pause. “So, I’m going to pretend this never happened.”
After giving Olivia a tour of Battle Industries, we met with Tate. Early morning sunlight shone against the bulletproof glass, making the towers across the street gleam like spit-shined armor.
Tate sat behind a large mahogany desk resembling something from an old Western saloon. He insisted on choosing the tackiest desk he could find. None of the furniture matched the vibe of Battle Industries. My corporate offices had polished, high-tech, modern, and ergonomic features.
I knocked on the open door. “Ready for us?”
Tate glanced at me from behind a computer screen. “One sec. I’ve gotta take care of this real quick.”
His fingers pounded the keyboard, typing with a purpose. Tate disliked office work. He was best suited out in the field and hunting down my enemies.
As my head of security, he handled all communication between employees and contractors. His team reviewed every incoming and outgoing email and document.
Like me, Tate had demons.
He wrestled with all the tough choices he made to protect his sister and me.
Death threats were a daily occurrence. Targets on my back also meant threats to my family and The Devil’s Knights.
Everyone in my life was in danger, so I fought my feelings for Olivia, even when she was the only woman I ever loved.
“All done. Wait until you hear the news.”
My best friend and half-brother had worn a perma-frown from the moment we met.
He always looked in a state of mourning, like the darkness had already swallowed him whole.
I understood the feeling. After years of death surrounding me, I had become desensitized.
Tate’s rare moments of genuine happiness shocked me but caught me off guard.
Tate approached us, buttoning his black suit jacket. He hooked his arm around my back and hugged me tight. “We did it. Well, you did it. Battle Industries won the defense contract. Lovelace is a go.”
I hugged him back and then pulled Olivia into our circle. “This wouldn’t have been possible without the two of you. Thank you.”
Tate squeezed my shoulder. “Lovelace is your baby.”
“I’m with Tate on this,” Olivia chimed. “You did all the hard work.”
I named my artificial intelligence program after the first computer programmer, Ada Lovelace.
When I created her, she lacked personality.
She sounded computer-generated. Then, Olivia came into my life.
Over time, I incorporated all of her best features, including the sweet cadence of her voice.
Now, I had two bossy women in my life who talked back to me.
“I wouldn’t have figured a way around the tactical issues without you.” I said to Tate and then to Olivia, “And you helped shape her personality.”
Olivia kissed my cheek. “Congratulations, Drake. You deserve this.”
I turned to face her, and unexpectedly she lunged into my arms. My hand fell to her back, and I pulled her into my chest, taking in the scent of her sweet perfume. If we were alone, I wouldn’t have let her go. But Tate was there and clearing his throat.
I released Olivia from my grasp, and she stepped back to straighten her blouse. “We should celebrate. I’m taking the two of you to dinner. My treat.”
I shook my head. “Yes, to dinner, but you’re not paying. You haven’t even gotten your first paycheck.”
“This is supposed to be an unpaid gig,” Olivia pointed out. “How else will I pay you back for my education?”
“You’re not.”
Olivia sat on the leather couch between us. I needed some space from her. Being around her all the time was messing with my head. This morning was so out of character for me, but with all the stress, my resolve was fading.
“Why not?” Olivia crossed her legs, drawing my attention to how good she looked in that skirt.
Stop it, Battle.
“The contract is a win for Battle Industries. Dinner is on the company. Make a reservation for three at Giovanni’s tonight.”
“Gio’s sounds good to me.” Tate rubbed his stomach. “Brainiac over here is going to change the world. Drake’s AI will save lives.”
Or end them.
If Tate, Luca, and The Devil’s Knights had it their way, they would use Lovelace as a weapon. In their minds, I had already entered dark territory. But I drew the line at slaughtering entire groups of people, regardless of how much they deserved it.
“Lovelace is kind of a bitch sometimes,” Olivia said, laughing. “But she’s like family.”
“Yeah, she is.” Tate pressed his index finger to his mouth and glanced at the ceiling. “Don’t let her hear you. She’s always listening.”
“On days like this, I wonder what my dad would say if he were alive.” I leaned forward, resting my arms on my thighs. “I took his old school weapons and turned them into something unrecognizable.”
My father had developed military-grade weapons but lacked the vision to see his business into the modern age of technology.
Sure, he made billions of dollars. The Battle name meant something.
But he hadn’t envisioned the world the way I did.
Battle Industries was the largest supplier of guns, machinery, aircraft, support equipment, and now autonomous weapons systems that used Lovelace’s artificial intelligence.
Tate reached over and patted my back. “Oh, I almost forgot. Tech Wars invited you to present Lovelace at the conference next week. Do you think we’ll be ready for a full-scale demo?”
“I have solid prototypes we can demo. I need to tweak a few things to adapt Lovelace for the altitude change.”
“Need me to come by the lab and run through the scenarios with you?”
“After dinner. I do my best thinking at night.” I shifted my gaze to Olivia. “We need to finish our building tour.”
She checked her watch and sighed. “Okay, but we have to make it fast. Your next meeting is in twenty minutes.”
We said our goodbyes to Tate and hopped into the elevator.
Tate’s office was two floors below my secret lab.
No one was allowed upstairs without a special keycard and top-secret security clearance.
Tate and Olivia were among the few people in the building, except for my security detail, and a handful of scientists were allowed in my lab.
My tech was worth stealing.
Plenty of companies tried to mimic the quality of Battle Industries, only to produce a sub-par piece of shit that didn’t even compare to my brand. Lately, The Lucaya Group had wanted to get its hands on Lovelace. They would have done anything to use her to create weapons of mass destruction.
Inside the elevator, I inserted my key into the slot on the wall and hit the button for the fiftieth floor. Olivia clung to my side, our bodies so close I considered sliding my hand onto her hip. Arms crossed over her breasts, she watched me as if waiting for me to make a move.
This woman drove me mad.
She could have taken a shower with me this morning. Instead, she chalked up my offer to being drunk or hungover. It was supposed to be a peace offering. A way to make up for being an idiot last night.
Olivia peeked up at me. “I thought you were taking me downstairs to meet my new co-workers?”
I leaned against the mirrored wall and shook my head. “They can wait until later. First, I want to show you something.”
Olivia invaded my space with her delicious scent. “What is it?”
I winked. “It’s a surprise.”