Indiscretion: Volume One (5 page)

“I, what? I did not…” she stammered.

Good. I had her off-kilter. At least now I knew the feeling was mutual. “Look, it’s fine.” I shrugged and grinned, showing her I wasn’t all that bad. “Why did you take off that night?”

She looked at me, contemplating her answer. “I was embarrassed. I’ve never done anything like that before. I had a little too much to drink and let’s just say I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

I took a step closer, my gaze locking on hers. My hand moved to her face and cupped her jaw. I couldn’t resist. “Oh, I’d say you were clear enough with me about what you wanted.” I grinned and inched closer to her. The heat between us was palpable. I enjoyed making her uncomfortable. Maybe it was payback for her having left me in the dust that night.

Who am I kidding?
It was the attraction that still pulsed between us, even months later, in the light of day and stone-cold sober.

Her mouth dropped open. “Please, you were the one who kissed me first!”

“True, but you were the one who straddled me like you were gearing up to ride bronco,” I said with a pretend laisse-faire tone.

Ah, there was that adorable flush in her cheeks again, when it had just started to subside. She took a step back and pulled her face from my hand. Her attitude today was such a stark contrast to her behavior in New York. That night she’d been open and friendly at first. And later, a wild cat with no inhibitions, taking what she’d wanted.

“Anyway, why are we even talking about this? I asked you what you were doing here.” She crossed her arms over her chest and looked indignant.

I tried very hard not to notice the way the movement plumped her breasts up. “Yes, ma’am. Well, honestly I was coming over here to check out what the competition had to offer.” When she looked puzzled, I added, “I’m running the new condo build at the other end of West Street.”

Her arms dropped to her sides. “Bullshit.”

“Not bullshit.” I grinned.

“You don’t sell real estate around here,” she argued. “I’d know if you did.” It sounded more like an accusation than a statement.

I raised a brow. “You’re right, I don’t. But I
am
the Development Manager of my father’s latest and greatest condo build, so I have to be onsite, see the project off the ground.” I placed my hands in my pocket and rocked back on my heels.

“Your dad?” she asked, confused.

Here it was again—the part that always changed everything. I ran a hand through my hair. “I’m Winston Richfield’s son.”
The billionaire
, I added to myself. It didn’t need to be said aloud. It went without saying.

Her eyes widened. “As in Richfield Developments? The ones who built the Hovart building in New York City?”

I nodded. “One and the same.”

“Oh my God, I had anonymous sex with Winston Richfield’s son.” She said it more to herself, but I didn’t miss the disgust in her voice.

“You make it sound like it was torture.”

She shook her head absentmindedly, staring at the carpet below. “Sorry, no. I just, I had no idea. If I had I would never have let that happen.” Her gaze flicked back up to meet my own.

“Why not?” There was genuine confusion in my voice. I’d always gotten special treatment from women after they learned who my family was. When I was younger I’d used it to my full advantage, but at thirty-three it no longer held the same appeal.

She looked down momentarily, then raised her head. Those warm, brown eyes full of shame looked directly into my own. “Because not only would you have thought I was a slut, but a gold-digging one to boot.” She meant it. Sincerity was right there in her face.

I took a step forward and gripped her upper arms, looking directly into her eyes as I spoke. “I didn’t think you were a slut, or I wouldn’t have slept with you.” I held her gaze for a moment then released my hold on her. “I didn’t keep it from you purposely…it just didn’t come up.”

“No, I know. I wasn’t exactly worried about getting your last name and personal resume that night, I guess.” She laughed a little and it lightened the atmosphere. “So do you always spy on your competition?”

It was my turn to look embarrassed. “I wasn’t spying. I was merely coming in to get a look at your floor plans and pricing. All info readily available to the public, I might add.”

She smiled up at me. “Really, I don’t mind. I’ve already been online to check out what Richfield had planned for their suites.”

“Well then, I’d say we’re even.” I returned a grin. “Enough talk about business, though. What do you say to me taking you out one night?”

She gulped. “On a date?”

“That was the general idea,” I said, raising an eyebrow. Christ, she looked taken aback. What the hell for? We’d already fucked in the back of a bar.

“I can’t, sorry.” Her head was down, her eyes looking up at me.

“Can’t or won’t?”

“It’s just not a good idea. Nothing personal,” she said.

Someone needed to tell my ego that. “What exactly about us having sex after knowing each other for about a minute, and then going on a date a couple months later isn’t a good idea?”

She blanched at my boldness and reciprocated with her own. “Look, I’m just not looking for a relationship, okay? Especially with someone like you.”

I fisted my hands at my sides. This was really starting to piss me off. Where did she get off? “First up, who said anything about a ‘relationship’, and second, what do you mean, ‘especially with someone like me’?”

“We come from two different worlds. You seem really nice, but I’m just not up for anything right now. Relationship or no relationship.” Her tone was final.

“Look, we had some real chemistry,” I tried to reason with her, though I had no idea why. I never had to convince any woman to go on a date with me. This was definitely a first. “Why not spend some time together, have some fun, and leave it at that?” At her blank stare, I added, “I’m certainly not going to beg, and I’m not going to defend myself to someone who doesn’t even know a damn thing about me.”

I clenched my jaw. This woman raised my blood pressure in more ways than one. I needed to get out of here. I made my way across the sandy-colored carpet, grabbing some pamphlets and Chloe’s business card on my way before I turned back to face her. “By the way, red is your color.” I smirked.

She looked down at her outfit, confused. The moment she grasped my meaning, she grabbed the paperweight off the desk and threw it in my direction. Lucky for me, she missed.

Ducking out the door into the heat of the Maine summer day, I began the short walk down West Street, running my fingers agitatedly through my hair. It grated on me that she’d left without a word that night in New York. Now the fact that she wouldn’t go on a date with me was just salt in the wound. Maybe it was personal pride, more likely it was that I hadn’t been able to get her out of my fucking mind since I’d met her. Chloe might think her veiled insults had scared me off, but I wasn’t through with her yet. If there was one thing my father had taught me, it was that Richfield men didn’t settle for “No” when it was something they really wanted.

CHAPTER SIX

Max

I hustled through the crush of tourists on Main Street, risking running headfirst into someone as I glanced at my watch. Shit, Paul had already been waiting for half an hour and Geddy’s Bar wasn’t even in sight yet. Quaint shops lined the street on either side, a mix of stores selling the usual tourist crap and homemade art, jewelry, and décor. It was actually pretty charming if you liked that sort of small town thing.

Thank God Paul would be around this summer to provide some form of entertainment in this tourist trap. After he and I graduated college, I’d gotten his foot in the door at Richfield Developments. Paul had blazed his own trail within the company though and was now the Site Superintendent. My favorite projects were always the ones he and I teamed up on.

As I entered the bar, my senses were assaulted by the sheer number of license plates, pictures, and signs lining the walls from times long gone by. It was all a little dodgy. I could tell no effort had been made to preserve the integrity of the wood floors as a patron scraped her wood bar stool away from one of the many circular tables dotting the room. Not quite what I was used to, but the place had a comfortable, lived-in feel.

Based on the number of people crowded in the place, Geddy’s was a popular hangout. I spotted Paul standing on the far side of the room near the bar. To look at his chin length, blond hair, and overly tanned skin, he looked more like a surfer than Richfield Development’s Site Supervisor. I made my way over. Paul shook his head and tapped his watch.

“Some things never change,” Paul teased with an easy grin. “You couldn’t be on time if your life depended on it.”

“Sorry, man. My dad called as I was heading out. He demanded a play-by-play of our progress.”

“Ah, so that’s the reason for your foul mood over the past few days. Daddy crawling up your ass?” He raised his eyebrows in question.

True, dealing with my father on a regular basis worked my nerves on the best of days, but my mood over the past three days had nothing to do with my father and everything to do with Chloe and her dismissal of me. “You could say that.”

“I thought only chicks had daddy issues.” He chuckled.

I rolled my eyes. “Enough about work. Let’s get a drink.”

Paul turned to flag down the bartender, yelling over the heads of the other patrons, “Brent! Two Buds here.”

“Why are you getting served before everyone else? You two hook up or something?” I said with a shit-eating grin.

“Fuck off. You wish I swung that way. I’ve been here every Friday since we landed in town. This is about as good as it gets on the weekends. Let’s just say I’ve been generous in my tips so that I don’t have to wait around with the masses.” Paul excused himself through several people and came back moments later, holding our beers. “Come on, let’s check out the entertainment upstairs. This hot chick sings here on Friday nights. I think I’m gonna try and cash that check tonight.”

“Do you ever think of anything besides trying to get laid?” I asked, shaking my head.

He slapped my shoulder. “When I’m on company time, I’m thinking about how I’m going to get all those subs to do their goddamn jobs. On my time, it’s sports and chicks.”

I laughed to myself. Paul would never change. He was responsible and good at his job, but deep down he was still a teenager. I followed my buddy to a set of stairs that ran along the wall at the back of the bar. A melodic voice floated down and grew louder with each step I took. As I listened, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. The first time I’d heard that voice it was lower and breathy. The second time it had rung with irritation. Neither time had it sounded like the haunted and ethereal voice I was hearing now.

When we stepped onto the second floor, I saw Chloe at the front of the room, sitting on a small stage with just a guitar and a microphone, singing some song about a favorite mistake that I sort of recognized. It might’ve originally been done by Sheryl Crow. The tight jeans and loose-fitting V-neck shirt she wore made her look wholesome. I tried to keep that wholesome image in my mind as I fought not to focus on what she would look like naked, wearing just her knee-high brown boots.

Chloe raised her head to her audience of about thirty or so people, when her gaze moved to the entrance and locked with mine. There was an instant flicker in her eyes. For a brief second, it looked like excitement, but it was gone as quick as it had come, replaced with a look of…embarrassment? No, shame maybe.

In the middle of a verse, she missed a chord change, and her back went ramrod straight. Her strumming became more aggressive and disjointed—she no longer looked at home on the stage. I had a feeling the change in her demeanour was because of my presence and I couldn’t decide whether that was a good or bad thing. When the song ended, she announced that she was taking a short break. Almost immediately, a classic rock tune rang out through the overhead speakers.

I watched her make her way over to one of the tables at the front to sit with a brunette and a redhead of about the same age. I didn’t realize how intently I was staring at her until Paul nudged me.

“Told you she was a stunner.” He grinned wide.

“She’s not yours to have,” I practically growled before I could stop myself.

“What? Who?” Paul’s eyebrows scrunched together on his forehead. “You can only call dibs on one, my man. You want the blonde, the brunette, or the redhead? I’m an equal opportunity kind-of guy. Doesn’t much matter to me.” He laughed and slapped me on the back.

“The blonde.” I gave Paul a steely look. “She’s the sales agent at the other condo development down the street. I don’t need any complications on this job, so stay away from her.” It sounded like a lame excuse—even to my own ears.

A knowing grin spread across Paul’s face. “Ah, now I see why you were so eager to blow some steam off tonight. Blue balls, buddy?”

“Bullshit. I’ve been working non-stop and needed a break, nothing more.”

“Right,” he dragged out the word. “If you say so. So when did you meet her?”

Paul wasn’t the type of guy to go grazing through another man’s field, and as much as it would keep him away from her, I didn’t want to mention anything about New York. I was sure Chloe wouldn’t appreciate it.