#Chapter 3: I'll make her mine

ARTHUR

I sighed as I listened to my mother's grating voice on the phone.

"Are you listening?"

"Of course, I am, Mother."

It was impossible not to hear her. She couldn't stop hounding me that I needed to meet her boyfriend, Bob.

"I can't meet your boyfriend tonight," I said. My seven-year-old precious adopted daughter was my priority. "You know I always spend extra time with Mia on Sundays."

"I can't believe you're choosing your not-even biological bastard over my fiance!" my mother screeched.

I hung up on her.

Monday morning, I boarded my private jet to France for a business negotiation.

"I know you've got a very tight schedule," my assistant, Nathan, said. He handed me a stack of papers once we got settled. "You'll find this deal has a great return on investment."

I nodded, quickly scanning Nathan's good work.

“One more thing Nathan, I need you to investigate the woman I was…intimate with last night."

“What?!” Nathan stared at me with a look of surprise, but he quickly composed himself and nodded. "Understood, sir. I'll get right on it."

I could tell Nathan was surprised. Very surprised. First of all, I usually kept to myself. I was pretty reclusive for a man as famous as I was by name. I didn't even splash my photo on social media.

Secondly, I hardly ever dated.

Lastly, we were busy. I usually gave Nathan so much business work to do I hardly ever asked him to do anything personal.

Nathan looked at me as if waiting for me to say more. I could tell he was very curious, but he was too classy to ask.

“I know it’s not your normal assignment, but it’s important to me. I don’t know much about Doris. I’ll give you everything I do know, and I want you to tell me everything you find. Everything.”

I settled back into my seat, trying to focus on the upcoming negotiation, but my thoughts kept drifting back to Doris. I couldn't believe how much she had gotten under my skin in just one night.

Part of me felt bad investigating Doris without her permission, but I had to know. She was a mystery. She was so sexy.

Doris was so perfectly submissive. So vulnerable, needy, and complex.

I couldn't stop thinking about how her body felt pressed against mine, the sound of her moans as I took her to new heights of pleasure. Yet, there was so much I didn't know about her.

She paid me.

I had to return her money, for one thing.

I needed to know everything. I needed to find her. And when I did, I was going to make her mine.

DORIS

I took a deep breath and entered Andrea's office, trying to keep my composure. I knew I had to be strong and assertive.

"Good morning, Andrea," I said with a calm smile on my face. " I've moved out of the apartment I shared with Bob."

Andrea raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

I kept my voice steady. "I will focus on doing a great job at work here."

Andrea leaned back in her chair, basking in her power. "Good."

I dodged a bullet. I hated that I had to move out. I hated that I had to suck up to Andrea.

But I did what I had to. I ran out of the office, my heart racing.

Thank God that was over.

It occurred to me I didn't know when Andrea and Bob got together. It could have been months ago. When I thought about all the out-of-town assignments Andrea sent me on, I realized it probably was.

Does it matter? I had to move on.

And Andrea said she was pregnant! In all my stomach-clenching pain, I almost forgot that. I made myself forget that.

Fuck them.

Then I thought about that stripper, Arthur. I smiled. At least that was a moment of sunshine in a truly horrible week.

The sound of the hospital phone ringing sent shivers down my spine. It was a reminder to pay for my foster father Noah's medical expenses.

Noah had sacrificed everything for me five years ago in a car accident, and now, it was my turn to fight for his life.

I had to work hard to keep Noah alive, even if it meant exhausting my savings. The medical bills were astronomical.

Now that Bob wouldn't be helping me with utilities and food, there was no way I could manage the cost by myself.

Bob. Ugh.

As I walked to the water cooler, the women in the office whispered in mean tones. They must know about Andrea and Bob's affair.

This was so wrong. But because I needed the job, I had to grin and bear it.

I was above this mess. I had to keep a smile on my face.

I was stronger than this.

As the expression went, this too shall pass.

When I got back to my desk, there was an email. Bob got promoted. He took credit for some of my friend Nina's work, and she got fired.

I couldn’t believe it.

I sat frozen in my chair. Bob had taken advantage of Nina's hard work and dedication, and now she was out of a job because of it.

I clenched my fists, feeling the urge to storm into his office and give him a piece of my mind. But I knew I had to be strategic.

Revenge is a dish best served cold, and I needed to bide my time. Bob may have won this battle, but the war was far from over.

No matter how much I tried to be calm, I couldn't.

Bob was such a jerk.

I decided to go to my favorite deli but was too upset to eat. I took my sandwich to go, and I just started walking.

That's the great thing about New York City. You can walk anywhere. I walked up Madison Avenue and tried not to let my emotions get carried away.

It had been a hell of a week so far. I could barely process it.

Bob cheating.

My boss, betraying what little courtesy I thought she’d have.

Andrea… pregnant.

I sighed and stopped to look in a fancy boutique window. The sky suddenly turned gray, blanketing the world with ominous-looking thunderclouds that matched my mood.

I kept walking.

I kept replaying the awful things that happened. Catching Bob and Andrea in the act! Then Bob taking credit for Nina’s work and getting her fired!

I can’t believe I wasn’t a better judge of character. I’m supposed to be smart.

I walked so much my feet began to hurt.

A little smatter of rain started and I looked up at the sky.

I saw a homeless man and gave him my sandwich.

"Looks like it's going to be a downpour of epic portions," a silver-haired lady said to me and then hurried away.

I watched her go. She looked familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it.

Then it started raining hard, and then harder. Within seconds, it was a torrential downpour.

As the rain came down even harder, I tried to find an awning to duck under, but in this part of town the storefronts don’t have any.

I looked down at my clothes. “Ugh.” I was already drenched so badly.

Suddenly an umbrella appeared above my head.

I looked up in surprise. I quickly stifled a slight gasp that threatened to escape me.

The tall and handsome man who looked like a movie star, suddenly holding an umbrella over me, was none other than my sexy stripper!

My eyes widened as huge as saucers, I'm sure.

My shoulders relaxed for a second because it was nice to have some protection from the rain.

His deep, charming, blue-gray eyes sparkled like he had a secret, or maybe he was just happy to help me.

Then he stepped even closer. His musky scent, accented by the rain, and the way the water molded his clothes to his muscular body, made me tense up again, but this time with anticipation.

Arthur’s expression was both heated and kind.

I smiled and tried to tamp down the giddy feeling.

This gorgeous man appearing out of nowhere, looking so dashing, having a huge umbrella to hold over me…it was like a scene out of a movie.

Arthur gave me a half smile, and I knew it wouldn’t take much for the spark of attraction I felt to blaze up into a full-on bonfire.

I knew at that moment that I was in trouble. His gaze captured me, like the surface of a lake shining brightly in the moonlight. I was helpless to resist.

I could barely breathe.