He interlocked his fingers and stared at me from the other side of the desk.
I stared back.
"So," he said.
"So," I replied.
We sat there for an awkward amount of time like high school kids who had a crush on one another.
"Oh my God, Finn. Just come out and say it."
"Excuse me?"
"Just come out and say it was a giant mistake. All of it."
Finnley stood and walked toward me. I stood as well. Once he was in front of me, I smelled his soap, his clothes, and everything that made him Finn. He ran his fingers through my hair then leaned in and brushed his lips so gently across mine that he stole my voice. Before I even muttered a word, we were kissing one another softly, taking our time, and I wished the moment would never end.
"I admit that I'm your occasional asshole, but what we did was not a mistake."
Then he looked at me as if he were waiting for me to agree. I contemplated saying something smart alecky, but I couldn't, not when he was looking at me with such a burning intensity.
"I don't think it was a mistake either," I said. Then I snaked my arms around his waist. "Are you embarrassed of me?" I asked into his chest.
He pushed me away from him and looked down into my eyes. "Embarrassed of you? Are you fucking kidding me?"
"Why did you lie? Why did you tell Jesse I refused Luke, and you fired me for that reason?"
Luke; his name left a giant gaping hole in my heart. The thought of him that night, so sweet and vulnerable, never left me. It haunted me.
Finnley sighed. But I knew he wouldn't hold back. He at least owed me the answers to my questions.
"I would never be ashamed of you or what we did. Ever. I couldn't tell Jesse. I don't want anyone knowing, especially the Girls. It's easier this way. Women talk, and the rumors will spread like wildfire. I can't have that."
"She's in love with you, you know."
"I know."
"Why don't you fire her, then? It's only fair."
"First, Jesse is a manager… not one of my Girls. Second, I would never, let me reiterate this, never act upon her feelings. She's a beautiful woman but not my type at all, and I need her around to run the daily tasks. She is an asset to the company. It's just a little infatuation, puppy love, and it's harmless, really."
"That harmless infatuation is why she rode my ass for the last two months."
Finnley grabbed my hand and led me to the windows. Las Vegas was a soup bowl of sin and flashy attractions. As I stared out the window at the gloomy gray sky, I realized a small part of me would miss being a part of The Elite culture with pretty clothes, fancy parties, curfews, and rules.
"Move in with me," he whispered.
"I just moved out. Don't you think that wou—"
"You honestly don't think my official residence is at the Estates with all the Girls." He laughed. "I have a private house in the Ridges."
I didn't know what to say.
What else didn't I know about Finnley Felton? I closed my eyes for a few seconds then opened them. I didn't have anywhere else to go. My options were to move in with Finnley, or find an apartment, today. I was all for easy.
Finn lifted an eyebrow and when I smiled his lips found mine. He backed me against the windows. Cool glass pressed on my back while his warm lips and body pushed against mine.
"Yes, yes."
I didn't know why I said yes, but I thought back to the first time I took a chance with him and joined The Elite. Lady Luck loved my ass, and I knew that if I gambled with her again, she would do me right.
"You have no idea what you just agreed to," he said.
"That's a known fact whenever you're involved." Finnley leaned in and gave me another kiss and as I walked away, his hand connected with my ass. Before I opened the door, I turned and looked at Finnley, with his arms crossed, watching me leave. I shook my head and left.
Jesse waited for me outside of Finn's office. Her nostrils flared when she looked at me. Intimidated, much? When I passed her, she grabbed my arm, hard. I looked down at her hand, and she looked at me with so much hate in her eyes that I almost shuddered. Almost.
"I've already told you once, don't you ever touch me like that again."
"Take this as your warning. You may not be an Elite any longer, but you need to stay away from Finnley, or you'll be sorry."
I yanked my arm from her grasp then took a step closer to her, leaning in toward her face.
"I don't take kindly to threats, Jesse. I'm not sure if you understand what I'm saying, but you aren't my boss anymore. I don't have to listen to the shit that you say. Now, I've got plans, so if you'll excuse me."
"It's not a threat. It's a promise."
"I pity you." I stepped inside the glass elevator, but she didn't follow. My adrenaline spiked, my pulse raced, and I was so pissed off at the audacity of her actions that half of me wanted to return to Finn's floor and punch her in the throat. Who the hell did she think she was?
I took my time walking through the atrium then exited through the double doors. Charlie waited outside the limo. Decisions.
"Jennifer, I will be taking you to your new home. Your belongings are already there," he said.
"But how did you know?"
"Mr. Felton had no doubt that your answer would be yes."
I looked up the building and thought I saw him standing at the windows smiling down at me, but the reflections of the clouds made it too dark. That sneaky little bastard knew me way too well.
FINNLEY
Two
I knew she would say yes and move in with me if I asked. Not many had succeeded in refusing me over the last few years, and I appreciated that she hadn't either. I basked in the glory of knowing that I could make women beg and plead to have me, but the truth was Jennifer didn't have to. I wanted to give her every piece of me, but not all at once. It really was about the chase.
Her living with me was a huge step, but just like everything else with Jennifer Downs, I seemed to jump in heart first, dick second, and brain last. Though occasionally the order would switch.
When I saw her today, I thought my heart might stop. The way those eyes matched her brown dress and boots… damn, it made me want to rip off her clothes and make sweet love to her on my desk, or the floor, or up against the window. I didn't care. But Jesse—determined to be my number-one cock block—wouldn't have it. Once Jennifer left my office, I could finally breathe. She made me nervous. Something a woman hadn't done in years.
I sat at my desk and arranged my afternoon meetings so that I could leave early. Jennifer constantly drove me crazy and pissed me off with her snarky attitude. No one had ever stood up to me the way she did Friday night. No one had ever slapped the shit out of me either. Her fierceness, sweet smell, and the way her hair fell over her face—I fucking needed her. I didn't care if I'd seen her moments ago and that she just left. Her smell lingered in my office, and it distracted me.
I took Jennifer's file from my desk, glanced at the picture she took the day she agreed to become one of my Girls, and made sure all the documentation was finalized. There could be no loopholes; every signature, date, and initial had to be complete so that Jennifer couldn't be sued. Her being fired was partially my fault after all. I only take partial responsibility because she wanted it too.
No one knew she was no longer a virgin, and I would gladly keep the secret to myself. Only a few days had passed since Friday, the day we made whatever it was we had going on official. Saturday, I carried her to her room and left the house. I couldn't be around her because all I wanted to do was be close and intimate. I wanted to kiss and touch her, but it wasn't possible with all the Girls around. I refused to break my own rules openly, so I went to the office and drafted her release letter. Then I traveled to my house at the Ridges. I knew then that I wanted her there with me, warming my bed, sleeping beside me every night. I wanted to see her beautiful face every morning when I woke. It was then that I made the decision to ask her to move in with me after she signed the release papers. This shit was planned and accomplished.