Chapter 4

OLLIE

Ollie had his life planned for the next ten years. He knew exactly where he’d be, what he’d accomplish, and how he’d get there. Nowhere in that carefully curated calendar had he ever planned to be obsessed with a woman who didn’t even know his name—who didn’t care to know his name.

He didn’t need anyone to tell him how fucked up that was. June had become his religion, and she had no idea what his goddamn name was.

To her, he was just another faceless man in the crowd. Yet, she was wreaking havoc in his mind. She’d slipped through the cracks of his perfectly, structured life, and now he was drowning in thoughts of her.

His fingers drummed against his leg as he tried to focus on the chess game, but his mind was stuck. Obsessing over her. Obsessing over the kiss. Sex wasn’t something he ever obsessed over, let alone a kiss. Hell, he didn't even enjoy the act itself. It was laborious and it left him feeling drained. But for some reason, he thoroughly enjoyed the lust-drenched kiss they shared at the club, and now he couldn’t stop thinking about taking it further.

Just like he’d said, the kiss had been a treasure that he’d thought of every goddamn minute. Seconds. Milliseconds.

The memory played through his mind on an endless loop. Even as he stared blankly at the chessboard his friends were engrossed in, all he could think about was the kiss, her plump lips, her soft curves, and those doe-like brown eyes.

Every detail of his life was planned, but this? This was chaos. And he hated chaos. She was stubborn, unbending, and unwilling, and everything he usually avoided in women. Normally, that kind of attitude was a turn-off. But with June, it was otherwise. He enjoyed the chase, her biting remarks and he hated himself for it.

He couldn’t go on like this. He needed her out of his system, fast. He needed his life back, where the only thing that mattered was his work, his projects, and his endless contracts. He needed his carefully planned life back.

He dragged a hand over his face, trying to focus on the chessboard and lockout June, but his thoughts refused to cooperate. No matter how hard he tried to keep his mind in check, images of June and the kiss flooded back. He could feel his control slipping, and it terrified him.

“Unfuckingbelivable.”

Landon's voice of disbelief barely grabbed his attention.

Ollie folded his arms across his chest, glancing at the chessboard. Landon had lost, yet again.

"No, it's pretty believable. You lose every single time." He said with a sardonic voice.

Landon shot him a scowl before turning back to Maxim. “One more round.”

“Aren’t you embarrassed enough?” Ollie cocked his head.

Landon's eyes flickered. “How about we bet? I need a motivation to beat you.”

“Not interested in gambling. It's illegal,” Maxim replied coolly, not looking up.

“Right, I almost forgot I was playing with a self-righteous bastard.” Landon’s tone was thick with sarcasm, but Maxim didn’t flinch.

Exactly as Landon said, Maxim was a stickler for rules. He was an FBI agent and came from one of the most powerful old-money families in New York.

The Carter-King family.

A family that supposedly built half of New York.

While Landon was the youngest son of Astor Tech, a multi-generational technology giant.

Both his friends came from wealth. But him? Not exactly. He had to claw his way up the ladder, building his real estate empire from the ground.

Landon set the pieces on the chessboard again. “I’m determined to beat you this round.”

Maxim gave a lazy shrug. “Come back when you become a real challenge.”

“Fuck off,” Landon shot back before turning to Ollie. “You want to play? I bet I can beat you.”

Ollie scoffed. Landon always lost to him. “No, I’m heading out.”

"Where?" Maxim’s eyes flickered with interest, and Landon’s curious gaze followed.

He shifted in his seat. He couldn’t exactly tell his friends that he was going to a strip club just to catch a glimpse of the woman.

He cleared his throat. "Somewhere important for my new project."

"I'm sure it is." Max was the first to call his bullshit.

“It is. The success of my next project greatly depends on it,” Ollie doubled down, though it did sound like bullshit to his ears.

"I don't believe you." Landon shook his head.

"Don't care," he retorted, not that it stopped Landon from prodding further.

"You’re always enthusiastic about sharing what you’re working on. Now you’re being vague,” Landon studied him. He was mostly unserious, but if there was one thing he was good at it was being observant.

True. He loved talking about his work. It was his life. It was all he knew.

"Can’t a man change? Maybe I want to keep some things private now,” he shrugged, deflecting.

"You are the most private person I know, except when it comes to work," Max said.

"That's it." He stood to his feet before his friends could prod him more about his very unfortunate situation.

Today was a Friday, and even though he told himself repeatedly over the week that he wasn't going to seek out June when Friday came. He was merely deluding himself.

He was halfway across Aureate club’s dimly lit chess room when he caught a glimpse of June.

Brown hair pulled up into a tight bun, lips pressed in a hard line, eyes focused, and slightly annoyed. It could only be June. If it wasn't, and he was merely seeing things, then he needed to check himself into a mental hospital.

It was in fact June with the most unimpressed expression on her face. The type that would make you want to go over and beyond just to impress her.

She was attending to two men playing chess at a table, and when she finally saw him, she had this deer caught in a headlight expression. She quickly averted his gaze and took a long route around the table just to avoid him.

Guess, he wasn't leaving after all.

When he walked back to his friends' table, Landon raised an eyebrow at him.

"Thought you were leaving."

"Well, plans changed." He slid into a chair at the table.

"Why?"

"Because," Ollie grumbled, downing the whiskey like it might burn away whatever this was.

"You need an exorcism or something?" Lan asked out of nowhere.

"No?" He wasn't even sure what he was answering for. "Why?"

"You are acting weird, man."

"He's always acting weird," Maxim added without looking up from the chessboard.

"Great, love the support." Ollie took a sip of the second glass he poured.

Was he now? Landon should witnessed what he became when June was involved. Max and Lan focused back on their game while he zeroes his attention on the real reason he was still there.

He kept his eyes on June as she went about doing her work, watching and tracking her every movement. Once in a while, June gave him a brief, disinterested flick of her eyes, and every time it felt like he could breathe better.

Unlike the other girls, she didn’t smile or flirt for tips. And yet, she still got them. Her deliberate indifference to men around her would always work in her favor because of men's ego. He wasn't so sure it wouldn't work on him too.

Maxim called June to their table, and He suddenly found the whiskey bottle in front of him far more interesting than it had any right to be.

"What can I get you?" Soft, sweet voice, he didn't know she had it in her.

"Anything you'd like to offer," he blurted out before he could rein it in.

Three pairs of eyes turned toward him. And the best Ollie could come up with was clearing his throat.

"Forgive my friend's rudeness." Maxim cut in.

"It's fine. I'm used to rude men like him." June threw a jab at him.

Landon choked back a laugh, and Ollie tilted his head to hide the grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. See, this was what he was talking about. Her biting remarks did nothing but intrigue him.

"True. They are everywhere." Maxim said. "Halmore 62, please."

"Okay," June said and she was turning away.

When she was out of earshot, Maxim asked. "Know her?"

He rubbed his thumb over his jaw with feigned indifference. "Kind of."

"Ah, She looks like she wants nothing to do with you," Maxim said with a trace of amusement in his voice.

"Don't I know it?" His lips pulled into a smirk.

"It isn't a call to get competitive, man."

"Should have talked sooner." His eyes continued to follow June until she was out of view.

Landon glanced at her too. “She looks familiar, or is it just me?” It was fair Landon didn't recognize her. He was so drunk out of his mind the day they went to the strip club. I doubted he remembered any faces he met there.

"She works here, and you’re a regular,” Maxim replied dryly.

Landon furrowed his eyebrows, genuinely confused. "How do you know that?"

Max sighed as he pressed his thumbs against his eyes. "Jesus Christ." He would be exaggerating if he said his friend was hit in the head as a kid.

"What?" Landon eyed him, still confused. When he turned his attention back to the chessboard, he said, "No foul move. No way I'm accepting it."

June came back with their orders, served to his friends, and left without so much as a glance in his way. He zoned out his friends and turned his full attention back to June.

It gave him a strange satisfaction that June was disinterested in men generally. Sadly, he was included too. Though with him, her disinterest looked like she was putting in extra effort.

Thankfully, June's shift ended sooner than he expected. The worker's entrance was different from the main entrance, so he didn't say his goodbyes before he moved out of the chess room.

To his luck, she was only a few steps ahead when he stepped outside.

As he caught up with her, her scent wrapped around him, heady and intoxicating. He fought the urge to reach out, just once, to feel the softness of her skin again. One touch had never been enough.

"Couldn't even tell me you won't be at the strip club today?" he asked, shoving his hands into his pocket.

She didn't even glance at him. "Oh, my bad. I'll be sure to send an email next time."

He played along anyway. "That'd be so sweet of you."

She side glared at him, and he couldn't help the chuckle that slipped out.

"What is it, Ollie?" June bit out.

Nothing," he said, moving around her to position himself by the side of the road. "Just extending my greeting to an acquaintance."

"Acquaintance?" She gave out a huff. "I don't even know you."

"Wow, baby. You do wonders to my ego." He turned slightly toward her.

"Because I've made it my mission to help men with overinflated ego like you."

"Is that concern in your voice?" He dragged his eyes over her body in a slow, appreciative sweep.

Baggy top. Baggy pants. Nothing remarkable, and yet, the way she filled them out made everything about her feel extraordinary.

She let out a sigh. "You are so insufferable."

"I'll take that as a compliment, baby."

"Of course, only you would." Her words lacked the usual bite, and as much as he hated to admit it, he was excited over his little progress.

His gaze flicked to the street behind them before he turned back to her. "Where are you headed?"

"Why?" Her shoulder bunched up instantly and she shot him a wary look.

"Because I want to give you a ride," he replied.

Her shoulder slumped, but she still asked, "Why?"

"It’s a gentleman thing to do."

She scoffed. "You consider yourself a gentleman?"

"I can be. Sometimes," he added with a playful smirk. "Is that what you're into, gentlemen?"

"Get off my back, Ollie." She walked past him, the slight brush of her shoulder against his sending a jolt of electric wave through him. Fuck him.

"Let me give you a ride and I will."

"No, thank you." She said and walked ahead of him, but he caught up with her effortlessly, this time he was the one who brushed his shoulder against hers just to get as close to her as possible as he could. She eyed him but didn't say a word.

"What're you doing, Ollie?" She asked as they walked a few paces together.

"Walking." He feigned ignorance.

"You're following me."

"Or, I'm going the same route at you."

"That's a lie."

"Prove it."

She stopped in her tracks, fixing him with a stare that could cut steel. But all they did was make him fascinated by her brown eyes. "What do I need to do to get you off my back?"

"You know what." He winked at her as her frown deepened.