Chapter 1

Grant

My favorite café in the whole world was a hole-in-the-wall spot just around the corner from my building called Split Bean. The food wasn’t anything spectacular. The coffee was usually weak. It was always overcrowded, and for some reason, it carried the distinct odor of old cheese. Even the wait staff had more bad days than good. They had messed up my order so many times, I couldn’t even count them on two hands. Still, for some reason, I couldn’t get enough and went there nearly every day.

Today was no different. It was getting close to lunch time, and my best friend, Jack Cooper, called me up and asked if I was free. I told him that I was, on the condition that we get a coffee there first. I had taken Jack to Split Bean one other time, and it had been as unremarkable as ever. In fact, if I remembered correctly, they’d burned his coffee and put cheese on his sandwich, even though he’s lactose intolerant. I thought it was hilarious. He did not.

“I still don’t know why you always suggest this place,” Jack said. He grimaced as we settled ourselves into a small booth in the corner of the café. The place was hopping as usual, and even as Jack asked the question, a customer bumped backward into our table. He didn’t even apologize before picking himself up and moving away.

“It’s cheap,” I said dismissively, picking up the menu. There was no point to this, of course. I had the thing memorized by this point.

“Cheap?” Jack asked, snorting. “How about this? I’ll buy the place, refurbish it, and then you can eat here for free? How about that?”

The funny thing was that Jack wasn’t even kidding. Jack was a very successful club owner, owning some of Manhattan’s most successful nightclubs. He had more money than he knew what to do with and wouldn’t have hesitated to go through with his statement if it meant never having to come here again.

“You could try. But I don’t think they would sell. In fact, I know they wouldn’t.” I knew this for a very specific reason, one I didn’t tell Jack. The fact was, I used to work at this very café. When I was in my teens and doing all I could to scrape my pennies together, I was one of the below average waiters that this café wore like a badge of honor. No one knew this, of course, aside from myself and the owner.

“Okay, okay, enough about this dive,” Jack began, looking over his shoulder as he tried to get the attention of one of the waiters. “I wanted to have lunch today so we could discuss your new store. I think it’s going to be a fucking hit. So much so that I might even—”

“Hello!” Just then one of the young waitresses popped up by our table. She was no older than twenty, with big brown eyes, long brown hair, and a very pretty face. And although she wore an apron over her t-shirt and loose jeans, I had noticed, on more than one occasion, an athletic body to accompany the face. “Mr. Marcus and—”

“This is Jack Cooper, Sally,” I said.

Sally was one of my favorite waitresses, and I had the distinct impression that I was one of her favorite customers. I hated feeling so full of myself, but I always got the sense that she tried to serve me specifically each time I came in. I often wondered what I would have done had I been just a few years younger.

At the moment, Jack had managed to grab her attention and then some. Jack was without a doubt a good-looking guy. Although he boasted an English name, he liked to tell people he was of Italian descent. He could usually get away with this, too, on account of his olive skin, dark hair, and darker eyes. He also had a wicked smile that he used to great effect on Sally.

“Sally, was it?” he asked, taking her hand and kissing the back of it. “My, oh my, aren’t you something? Say if you’re ever looking for work I happen to run a—”

“Okay, Jack,” I cut in, stopping him before he got going. Her cheeks were quickly turning a deep shade of red. “Sally, I’ll just have the usual, and he’ll have the same thing.”

“Sure thing,” Sally said, scurrying away.

“Hmm, now I know why you come here,” Jack concluded, watching the spot where Sally disappeared. It was only after a few seconds of this that he suddenly remembered himself and turned his attention back to me. “Right, where was I? Oh yeah! Your new store. I’m glad you’re finally taking the leap. I’ve been telling you for ages how well your products have been selling at my clubs. It’s about time you opened an actual location.”

“I know, I know. These things take time though.”

“Well, how much longer? I’m almost out of those chocolate dildos. Not to mention the anal walnuts.” Jack wasn’t exactly a soft talker. As he said this, a few people nearby turned their heads around to see who was responsible for the obnoxious, somewhat inappropriate discussion.

“Will you keep it down?” I asked, holding my hand up in apology to a middle-aged couple with their infant son, sitting one table over. “Two weeks, okay? Then you can have all the chocolate walnut anal beads your heart desires.”

“Excellent. You know, if your store does well, I’m even thinking of opening up a club branch. Think of it, Luscious: The Club. Now that’s what I call a winning combination. The place will basically print money for the both of us.”

I appreciated Jack’s excitement. I’d been toying with the idea of this new shop for a while now. It was a bit of a risky business venture, but it encouraged me that Jack looked to dip his own fingers into it as soon as he was able. For the better part of seven years, I had owned, run, and managed a series of very successful candy stores.

Not only did I run these stores, but I had invented a line of state of the art manufacturing machines to produce candy and other foods. Most of my money had come from the machines. Food companies all over the world bought these devices, making me a very wealthy man. But my candy shops also did very well. That was where my true passion lay, in candy-making. My sweet confections were so popular that most of my competitors stocked them, too.

But after seven years of this, I craved something different. Candy was still my passion, but I wanted to explore a different avenue. That avenue, I soon came to realize, was adult-themed candy.

The idea started when I saw a lollipop dildo in a novelty store. I thought it was funny and provocative. But as I came to find out, the candy itself was garbage. There was no reason it couldn’t be both fun and delicious. So, I decided to give it a go myself.

At first, I used Jack and his clubs to test their popularity. They proved to be a hit, and Jack insisted that I open up an actual store that sold them to the public. And so, after a little persuasion, I did just that.

“Do me a favor,” I said. “If you can hold on for two weeks before making any sex club announcements, that would be great–ah, thanks, Sally.” Sally arrived with our coffees. I took mine with a smile, hoping she hadn’t heard the talk about the “sex club.” Jack took his with a wink. Sally smiled at him and left.

“Two weeks?” he asked. “So everything’s ready? Who’s managing the place–Oh! You know who you should get? That redheaded chick with the big butt? She runs your store on Fifth, I think.”

“No, I need her to stay there. Besides, I’ve got someone in mind.” I took a sip of my coffee. Jack wouldn’t be too impressed with my decision so I opted to give myself a moment before making the reveal.

“Okay... and the lucky lady is?” he pushed.

“Kendra Lange. She manages my flagship at the moment and—”

“Oh no,” Jack groaned. “You’re kidding, aren’t you?”

“What, you don’t think she’s a good choice?” I asked, feigning confusion, although truthfully, I knew exactly what his objection was.

“Hey, don’t get me wrong. Physically, she’s a shoe in. Those curves of hers? More than once, I’ve wondered what it might be like to get behind that and really–Oh, sorry.” Jack smiled apologetically at the young couple at the next table. They glared at Jack like he had a dick growing out of his forehead. Grimacing, he leaned over the table closer to me and lowered his voice. “I ‘m just worried you’re not thinking with your head right now. You sure she’s the best option?”

“Trust me. My head is all I’m thinking with.”

Jack had every right to be skeptical about my choice of store manager. I could tell him I chose her because I thought she was the best option. I could tell him it was a choice based on what was best for the business. I could tell him she was the best manager at any of my stores. But even I didn’t believe that. Not fully anyway.

Kendra Lange wasn’t just the manager of my flagship store. She was also my ex-girlfriend. And not just my ex-girlfriend, but my very first girlfriend to boot. We had dated for a brief time in high school, back when I was a skinny little runt with no aspirations and few opportunities. And back then, I truly thought that she was the one. Until she broke my heart.

“Tell me this isn’t personal?” Jack continued. He sounded worried, but I knew he was only worried about his own future stake with the candy line. It had nothing to do with me or my store.

“It’s not personal,” I assured him, making sure to sound as convincing as I could. “She’s a hard worker. Plus, she came to me for a raise a month ago. Damn near begged, actually. Her rent has gone up, and she’s still paying off the lease on a new car. Trust me, the spot she’s in right now, she’ll do anything I ask of her.”

“Is that right?” Jack asked raising his eyebrow at me.

“For the store. She’ll do anything for the store.” I hid my face behind my mug of coffee as I took another sip.

Jack had the ability to read people. It was probably why he was as successful as he was. And right then, I could tell that he saw through me like a piece of glass.

Of course, my intentions behind hiring Kendra weren’t as honorable as I made them out to be. She’d broken my heart, but it was so much more than that. When we started dating, she was as plain and unassuming as I was. Then during our senior year, she filled out, realized how much better she could do, and dropped me like a bag of dirt. Getting dumped sucked, but getting dumped because the dumper assumes that they’ve outgrown you is even worse.

What I had told Jack about Kendra’s circumstances was all true. She needed to keep her job. It made her the perfect candidate. Most of my employees would scoff at the idea of working at an adult-themed candy store. That wasn’t what they signed on for when they came to work for me.

But Kendra didn’t have much choice. Either she accepted the new position, or she had to find a new job. I figured it would be fun to push her to her limits at the new store. It was a little bit of payback for breaking my heart in high school.

Maybe it was a little petty on my part, but as revenge went, it was fairly tame. She’d be getting the raise she asked for, and I wouldn’t make her do anything degrading. But that didn’t mean I couldn’t have a little fun with her, too. Just the thought of making her bend over backward for me brought a smile to my lips.

Besides all that, a sexy woman like Kendra would sell a shit ton of candy.

“Whatever you say,” Jack sighed as he reached into his wallet. He pulled out a small business card, quickly scribbling what I knew to be his number on the back of it. He then slipped it under his empty coffee mug. “Just remember, this is the face of the guy that told you so. You know, when that time comes.”

“Yeah, we’ll see,” I said. “I’ve got this.” I gestured at the coffees. I slipped a hundred-dollar bill under the mug and stood up. Seeing Jack’s confused expression, I shrugged. “Good service.”

The service was just okay, but I was a waiter once. It always brought a smile to my lips, thinking about how Sally, or any other waitress, would react to such an audacious tip. It wasn’t that big of a deal for me. I could afford it.