Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
R upert
I don’t even know how it happened. One second I was setting up the small security monitor and the next there was an outage. I jerked my hand away, which resulted in me slicing it through a metal plate that stuck out. It bloody hurt and now I had this gorgeous red-haired woman fussing over me. It was heartwarming.
While she was tending to my wound, I stole a glance at her. Fuck … that was a mistake. My strong attraction towards her made this whole thing so much more complicated. We were going to work closely together. But every time I was near her, I kept recalling our night in Greece. She leaned down, trying to stop the bleeding, but I’d cut myself deeply.
She had makeup on and I bet she would still be as stunning without. The sudden heat rushed to my groin and my cock hardened again.At least that might stop the bleeding with all the blood redirected.
Her skin was a perfect sun-kissed bronze and her fiery red hair was tied up in a messy knot on the top of her head. I lowered my gaze further to her light purple dress, her nipples sticking out through the material.
“I don’t understand why such a wealthy snob like you had to deal with the security system in your own club. I’m sure Rowan has people who can deal with shit like this,” Veronica retorted.
I didn’t lift my gaze off her amazing tits quickly enough and she smirked.
“Rupert Banks, were you just ogling my tits?” She feigned exasperation.
Her sultry voice did a number on me. I licked my lips, thinking about all the things I could do to her.
“Guilty as charged, and your tits are begging me to suck on them,” I growled.
She pushed my chin up so I was staring into her whiskey-coloured eyes again, not at her chest.
“Well, after your arsehole behaviour last night, that’s not going to happen anytime soon,” she muttered, and then lowered her face to my wound and blew air on it.
The blood still seeped out of the cut. Thankfully, not as much as before. Veronica laid out the bandages and plasters from the first-aid box, focused on her task. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. It had been only twenty-four hours, but she was already driving me bonkers with her snarky attitude. I just couldn’t get past the fact that she fucked our club’s wealthy clients when I just wanted her to belong to me, and me alone. However, I had no right to put a claim on her.
“What are you doing?” I asked her, snapping out of these depressing thoughts.
She lifted her head and smiled at me. “I’m trying to ease your pain, hotshot. My mum used to do this for me whenever I grazed my knees from running after the boys on the council estate,” she replied. Opening the bottle of alcohol, she tapped it over the cotton pad then patted it down over the cut.
It burned like hell. I gritted my teeth, trying not to make a sound, and let her finish bandaging me up.
Hotshot. I like that nickname.
“You ran after boys?” I questioned, raising my eyebrows.
She laughed, a rich and hearty sound that made my heart pound faster.
“So, you grew up on a council estate?”
She continued bandaging my hand, not looking at me. I realised I really didn’t know much about her, other than the fact she worked as an escort and had a roommate. I had to do a little research. For Spencer’s and my sake.
“I liked playing with the boys and had to keep myself entertained while my mother was at work. The boys were always nicer to me than the girls,” she explained as a wave of sadness passed through her expression. “To answer your other question, yes, I grew up outside London on a rough council estate, without a father. My mother didn’t want any handouts. So she worked long hours to support us both. I think at some point she had three jobs. She often left me with her sister who didn’t really pay much attention to me. So, I snuck out to hang out with the boys.”
We hadn’t really talked much when we’d first met in Greece. We had an instant, mutual sexual attraction to each other and then I’d taken her to my hotel room. Now, in a matter of minutes, I’d learned more about her than during that whole evening in Ornos. I was surprised she’d shared such intimate details about herself so openly. On top of that, she still patched up my hand. She could have easily left the club, not bothering to help me, but she had stayed. And this? This act alone made me want her even more.
“You’re full of surprises, sunshine. So that’s how you ended up with Matthews?” I wanted to understand the reason why she had to sell her fucking body. I didn’t think I could ever get past it, but I had to at least try to understand.
She finished bandaging and sighed. Her nipples were still hard, distracting me.
“Yes, I needed the money. Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth, Rupert. My mother worked hard, but she never had enough money. I always told myself to work smarter, not harder. We both know I wouldn’t be able to earn this kind of money working a nine to five,” she said, taking a step backwards. “You’re sorted for now, but I think you should go to A&E for some stitches. Maybe some antibiotics. That cut looks deep.” Her face showed concern, but it was as if she wiped the slate clean in an instant.
I suddenly didn’t want her to leave. Her presence was comforting and the attraction between us was slowly building again. Despite everything that had happened, I fucking wanted her.
“I’m sorry I was a judgemental prick last night. It’s one of … my flaws. But you must know that my parents weren’t always wealthy. Their social status improved when my father became an MP,” I explained. “I have never taken any money from my parents. I started renovating properties. With every house flip, my account got healthier, and before I knew it, the bank balance had crossed into the millions. I was … lucky, to a certain extent.” Still, Veronica and I were from two very different worlds.
“What made you decide to invest in Emperor? And what is it that you do anyway? Back in Greece you said you were a businessman,” she asked, looking me over.
God, she was gorgeous, and she knew it. Even though I wanted her, she was too dangerous for me.
“In all honesty, I was a little bored of investing in property, and I knew Matthews needed more cash to expand. So I decided this would be a fun change,” I told her. Because I had nothing to hide, and also, at the same time, I wanted to keep an eye on the club since Spencer had started using it on a regular basis. Last night, after Veronica left, I’d asked my brother if he had ever fucked her. I was so relieved to hear that he hadn’t. I don’t think I could have handled it well if he’d said otherwise.
“Property development. I wasn’t expecting that. To be honest, I thought you would be all over the stock market,” she replied, still smiling.
“My business made me very wealthy. And I enjoy what I do. The club is just an add-on,” I said.
The more I connected with her, the more I wanted to know. This included info on her previous clients. She’d taken down the video last night, but that didn’t change the fact that a lot of people had seen my face all over TikTok. This could truly backfire, and not in a good way.
“When I met you in Greece, I truly thought I would never see you again. I had been travelling all over Europe that summer with my friend, Clara. I never hooked up with another guy during that whole trip. When we met it was my last night, and it really was wonderful,” Veronica said.
I was a little shocked she’d admitted that.
“And then it turned out that you were closer than I could ever have expected. I don’t understand how our paths never crossed before, especially since you’re friends with Rowan.”
“Maybe we were always meant to meet, but the timing wasn’t right back then,” I mused.
We were moving around in different circles. Matthews was my friend, but he had been travelling a lot before he opened Emperor. So we didn’t always keep in touch that often, but I didn’t believe in this kind of coincidence. I was still concerned about Spencer and his new nanny. James was right, she was a liability. He had to get rid of her.
“Maybe, I don’t know. I truly wasn’t expecting any of it. Well, I should get going … and so should you.” She stared at my hand.
A pulsating ache reverberated through my body. I should really make an appointment with the doctor in case I needed stitches.
“Veronica! Good, you’re still here. You missed a box on one of the NDAs.” Matthews showed up unexpectedly. He lobbed his gaze from me to Veronica for a moment. “What happened to your hand?”
“I was trying to reset the security alarm and I had a small accident, but don’t worry. Veronica took care of me already.”
He had the paperwork in his hand.Veronica had come to the club to sign another NDA, which meant she was going to see a new, high-profile client next week. This realisation made me suddenly fucking infuriated and I had to talk to Rowan about this. Time for me to take over the list of her clients.
“Yeah, it was like a bloodbath for a minute. Well, let me just sign this quickly and then I’ll be off.” She turned and took the pen from Matthews. She signed the form, gave me a quick glance, and then left. Her scent lingered in the air in her absence.
I released a ragged breath. Too much had happened over the past few days.
“We both know she’s not going to see this client. I suggest you find another girl for that wealthy prick,” I told Rowan, who looked at me strangely.I stared at him pointedly until he got my point.
He shook his head, and I knew what he was going to say even before the words came out of his mouth.
“I thought you said you didn’t want anything to do with her? Veronica is one of my most popular girls and the clients adore her. I’m reluctant to say this, but she knows how to be a great escort. Maybe we should reconsider our partnership if you’re going to have a problem with this?”
Completely taken aback by what he said, I knew I needed to choose my words carefully.
“I don’t like this, any of it … the fact that she works for you and the fact that her roommate is Spencer’s new nanny. It’s too much of a coincidence. And I’m not interested in her the way you think,” I said, but I was lying to myself and Rowan. Of course I was fucking interested, but I wasn’t planning to make any moves until she quit working as an escort. Quit selling herself for money. I’d fucked a lot of other women, trying to get her out of my head, but none of them compared to her. I was still very much hung up on her. I don’t think there was anything I could do to not be hung up on her.
“Do you really think Veronica could have set all that up?” Matthews asked me seriously. “I have no idea who made a phone call to Spencer’s new nanny, but I am going to find out. In the meantime, you shouldn’t get involved in her affairs. She’s one of the highest paid girls at Emperor,” he added, looking directly in my eyes. Translation: her money was his money.
I wanted to punch him. However, he was right—one thing I’d never admit to him, though. I didn’t think Veronica had it in her to make her roommate go and pretend to be Spencer’s escort, unless she’d found out that he was my brother so she could take advantage of his position.
“I don’t fucking care! I will get you someone else. I’ll be dealing with her clients personally,” I growled, suddenly even more pissed with Matthews. My gut was telling me that this whole thing was way too much of a coincidence.There had to be something else.
“This is going to end badly, I can already sense it,” Rowan warned me.
“No, it won’t. Besides, have I ever let you down thus far? We both know I always deliver on my promises.” I knew that at some point I would have to talk to Veronica’s roommate, Spencer’s new nanny.
Several hours later, a perfect opportunity came up when Mum texted me saying I was invited for Sunday dinner and Spencer’s new nanny was going to be there. Bingo…