Chapter 1

Nathaniel

Fuck, I thought as the first rays of sunlight hit me.

Why did my right arm suddenly feel numb and my head like it was being hammered from left and right?

Oh, that’s right, I got wasted last night.

And the hammering was probably coming from the Smiths apartment.

What was the point of paying a hefty amount of rent every month if I still had to get up every other month to the sound of builders, redecorating the apartment to whatever new edition “American Homes” Mrs. Smith was reading to nowadays?

I turn my attention back to my right arm, where a blonde woman seemed to be having the sleep of her life.

Well, that explains the numbness in my right arm.

The sound of a message popping up on my phone jolted me back to the reality from trying to remember the blonde’s name.

Oh well, that can be done another time.

Stacy’s name on my phone gives me another reminder that I needed to get my ass out of this bed and to the office.

Being the boss certainly did give me more than a few privileges such as all the best looking secretaries, but sometimes being the boss also meant getting to work on time on a Monday when financers were coming for their monthly ‘bore everyone to death” meetup.

Alright, Nate, I think as I try to get my hand from out of under my sleeping companion, but before I could do it, the icy blue eyes smile back at me lazily.

Now I know why she’s in my bed, as she pulls my face closer to us.

”Where do you think you’re going? ”, she asked all the while pulling me closer.

“Nowhere”, as I close the distance between us.

Screw work.

I am the boss. I get to walk in whenever I want.

Chapter 2

Alexis

Damn this skirt, I think as I pull on my black pencil skirt.

Well, this is what happens, Alexis when you wear your five feet two inches roommate’s skirt.

Why did I think it was a good idea to throw away my two black interview skirts?

Oh, that’s right, my ex-boyfriend thought they were hideous.

Funny listening to a man’s opinion that spent all his days lounging on my couch and playing World of Warcraft.

Oh well, I hope he is happy with his online buddies who probably can sleep with him and make his stupid “mom’s secret recipe pasta”.

What was I even thinking? Secret pasta recipe!

And what is with this elevator and the huge line?

Some huge company this is which can’t have more than one working elevator?

“Excuse me, ma’am, can you move?” I turn around to see a forty something short portly man in a gray suit hobbling from one foot to another.

“No I cannot move, I am waiting to go up”, I reply back while trying to handle my CV, water bottle, and my handbag.

“I can see that, but you are obviously standing in the wrong line. This elevator is only for the first two floors which have the eating area of the entire building. And judging from your CV,” he says pointing towards the file I was holding in my hand, “You are not applying for a job as a waitress I presume?” he finishes as-a-matter-of-factly.

“That’s the elevator for the offices of Dunlow”, he points towards another set of the elevator which had a steady stream of men in business suits and ladies in the latest YSL.

Great. Just great I think as I move away from the long line without saying a word to the man.

Why was there such a long line for restaurants at 10 in the morning?

New York folks, don’t have a proper sleeping pattern and apparently neither do they have a proper eating one either.

The man in gray was still giving me one of the long searching looks.

He must think I am an idiot.

I walk into one of the elevators and press the button for the sixth floor.

Here it goes, I say under breath as the elevator starts to climb up.

Chapter 3

Nathaniel

I look down at my phone which still was still popping notifications ever since Stacy’s text about today’s meeting.

Yes, Arthur, I know I am a couple of hours late for a very important meeting, but there was no need to send an email and cc all the heads of the departments.

Stupid, idiot I say under my breath as I pushed the button to the sixth floor after pushing through a throng of people, which by the way for a Monday morning were just a little bit too much.

I look back at my phone’s screen as the messages and emails continued to flood in.

Damnnnnnn Arthur, there was no need to send an office email about office timings. You aren't the great grandfather time of Dunlow.

I sigh as I take a look around the elevator.

Two men with salt and pepper beards were trying their best to avoid eye contact with me and one was pretending to read a milk advert again and again.

I hope that milk advert gives you some calcium intake, I think to myself as the elevator finally stops at sixth.

I wait for the door to open and am immediately greeted by an exasperated Arthur, who from the look of it, looked like either the company had gone down the drain or that somebody had just told him that his weekly golf with the rest of the losers in accounts had been canceled.

“Nathaniel where have you been all morning?” Arthur asks me half laughing, half crying.

“In my bed”, I reply back with a smirk as I walk towards my office.

Chapter 4

Alexis

“Hey, I am here for the job interview,” I ask a blonde receptionist with winged eyeliner so edged it could kill.

The receptionist raises one eyebrow, gives what I can assume is a full body scan and points a red painted nail towards the left where beyond glass doors, sofas were occupied by men and women, dressed to the nines, clutching files just like me.

“Thanks”, I say as I make my way to the double glass doors emblazoned with Dunlow.

Walking in I sit down next to a dark haired girl in a really smart gray business suit who was busy typing away on her phone. 

I took a look around, to survey my competition. Everyone looked fresh of the Ivy League boat with slicked back hair and looking like a million dollars. 

Funny, if they already had a million dollars why were they applying for a job here. 

Meanwhile my skirt was trying its best to ride itself, up my thighs and all I could do to stop the beach blonde sitting right across from me, was to cover them with the files, which was in fact not that great of a cover up. 

"You here for the job also?” the dark hair girl next to me asks.

I nod and reply with a smile.

“Alexis Strope”, a woman in a thick bun called out.

“Yeah, here,” I reply half getting up while trying to keep my skirt in check.

“Right this way,” the woman points to a brown polished door.

I take a deep breath as I push open the doors.

Chapter 5

Nathaniel

‘Mr Dunlow your 10 o clock is here”, Stacy’s voice brings me back from my morning endeavors.

“Send them in”, I say wondering who exactly my 10 o clock was.

Halfax, of course as Stephen Halfax walks in.

Well there goes my next two hours.

“Hey Nate, how is it going?” Stephen says in usual “I am surprised you are here” manner.

“The usual, last Monday of the month, meetings and of course Arthur giving himself an early heart attack perhaps,” I say enthusiastically.

“Sounds like you have got a lot going on”, Stephen says while helping himself to some drinks.

“Well I do, but since you are here might as well waste time and do nothing about it,” I say hoping he might get a hint.

“Ah well, the things a man has to do to keep the company going, no one will ever understand,” Stephen says making himself comfortable on the couch in the office.

“Mr. Dunlow I am so sorry but Mr. Ash needs to talk to you immediately”, Stacy says with a look of utmost annoyance on her face.

“Well if Arthur wants to see me, Arthur can come to my office and talk to me about it,” I reply.

“Well sir”, Stacy says emphasizing on the word sir, “He needs to see you, immediately”.

I roll back my head and get up.

“Sorry Steve got to go and handle Arthur, can’t have the man putting himself in an early grave”, I say as I make my way to the door “I need him to run the company”

“Yes, yes you go and do what you have to do. I’ll be out on my way too right after this”, he says showing me the glass of drink in his hand.

I whisper thanks to Stacy on my way out of the door.

I have got to give her a Christmas bonus, I say to myself as I make my way to a make believe emergency meeting with Arthur.

“What is with all these extras walking around the office today”, I ask one of the office secretaries.

“It is hiring season. Got interviews going on today”, she replies.

“Interviews huh”, I say as I think back to how all the new candidates always ended up in my bed, for a seat at the boss’s desk.

“We have a lot of potential this time around”, she continues, bringing me back from my day dreaming.

“They always do”, I say as I make my way back to my office, hoping Steven had has his monthly fill of my drinking cabinet.

Chapter 6

Alexis

“So how was it?” Jess asks while trying to balance on one foot.

“Could have gone loads better had it not been for your skirt”, I reply back as I sink into the couch.

“Girl why you blaming my skirt, blame your stupid ass boyfriend and yourself for listening to him”, she says.

“Ughhhhhhhhhhh’, I roll back my head as Jess starts chanting to go along with her morning yoga ritual.

“Why are you up anyway? Didn’t you like have a late night, last night?” I ask Jess.

“I did, but I have an off today, so I decided to get a head on with today”, she says with a smile.

“It is people like you that make people like me look bad”, I say as I slide further down the couch.

“Hey I didn’t ask you to have a fancy ass college degree and an impressive CV”, she says with her eyes closed. “You can just stop this and start living like me”.

“Right. Of course”, I say.

I kick my heels off and think back to when things were not so hard.

To be honest things had never exactly been so hard for me.

Academically I might not have been an honor student, but I wasn’t exactly down the ladder either.

I had good grades and got into all the colleges I applied into.

I never had any trouble in the boy department either which made it harder for me to have girlfriends.

It wasn’t that I stole their boyfriends or distracted them; I just had an easy time talking to them. I never gave them a second thought that I wanted to drag them into my bed, I just had a way of talking with people, which usually didn’t work out well if the person happened to be someone’s boyfriend.

I wasn’t exactly the hot and sexy type that had all the boys falling head over heels in love with me, but I wasn’t so bad looking either, at least according to my mother.

I took after both my parents. I had my mother’s auburn hair, that I wore down to my waist and I took my height from my father.

At five feet nine, I was the stuff models were made of.

“Hey you want to go get a drink?” Jess asked bringing me back to reality.

“It’s the middle of the day and besides don’t you have your weekly laundry to catch up to?’ I pointed towards a pile of dirty clothes at the foot of Jess’s bed.

“Yes, but you look like you could use a drink.”

“I look like I could use a job and pay the bills and maybe eat something else besides mac and cheese.”

“Well you don’t have to eat mac and cheese every night, you could always nip down to the restaurant after hours and have a five star meal made of leftovers at the Grill House.”

“I don’t want to nip down to the Grill House, It is on the other side of the town”, I reply back, mentally making a note to actually make a note to ask Jess to get me leftovers tomorrow.

“Ashley doesn’t mind,” Jess says.

“She and the others eat at the restaurant anyway everyday”.

Ashley was Jess’s girlfriend, who was a hostess at the Grill House, one of SoHo’s classier options for food.

According to the Manhattan Food Review, the Grill House was the Gramercy Tavern of SoHo, where anyone who wanted to feel what it is like to eat at a fancy restaurant dressed in jeans and t shirt went.

“Yeah I will think about it.”

“Anyway I promised Ash that she could come over, I haven’t seen in her almost a week”

“Do you want me to get out of my own apartment?” I asked point blankly

“No I want you to stop moping around”, she says rolling up her yoga blanket.

“UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH”, I say as I shove my face into the couches pillow.

Chapter 7

Nathaniel

“Why am I here again?” I ask Sam over the loud music that was playing at the club.

Sam was my best friend. I had known him since our days together at Fordham.

“To find me the one”, Sam said taking a look around the room.

“And how do you suppose I am going to help you out in this area”, I say surveying the rooms many options.

“You are my wingman and my best friend. And as my wingman and my best friend it is your scared duty to make sure I get laid tonight”, he says as a matter-of-factly.

“Yeah you don’t need me to be your wingman, you bring out the money and the ladies will start coming out from left and right”, I say and drain the last of my drink.

Sam, like I said was one of my best friends. We met at one of the freshmen year college parties and hit it right off.

He was a hit with the ladies and so was I. And with the deep pockets we had, neither of us ever had the problem of landing girls.

Sadly none of the girls that we landed ever had any long term potential, it was always Benjamin Franklin that attracted him and once the appeal of it apparently faded away or we got bored of them, the ladies went away and we moved on the next one.

However, lately Sam had been increasingly after the idea that it was time to settle down.

At 31 he believed he had achieved everything. Well almost everything.

His inheritance which came about at 29, after an unfortunate incident with his father, along with his empire was Sam’s start of the quest for a perfect.

Unfortunately for the both of us, we had no idea what a perfect woman was, since whatever we wanted we always got.

Money, they say can do anything they want, which is exactly what it did for us.

“So is the next Mrs. Wilson drinking a vodka martini or a dry sherry as we speak?’ Sam said while pointing towards the waitress to refill our glasses.

“I don’t know man. Maybe a club isn’t exactly the place the find “the one”, I say it while quoting the air.

“Well they aren’t exactly going to fall into my lap either.”

“Hey boys, you drinking alone?” a voice interrupts our discussion.

I look up to see two dark haired women with smiling down at us.

“Maybe they just did”, I reply as the two women settled themselves between us in the VIP section.

Chapter 8

Alexis

Despite my numerous protests, Jess had talked me into going out to the hip new club in town, where apparently anybody who was anyone, was going to be there.

Going to a club on a Monday night just felt out of place. This was funny, because if someone had ever asked me to go to a club on a Monday night three years ago, I would have happily agreed.

But at 25, with a job that demanded me to get up at six in the morning, this was not something I was looking forward to.

However, according to Jess, missing out on the opening night of the only club, which might make get an appearance by Kanye West, was devastating for her social standing.

Her social standing which included her thousands of Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat followers.

Jess was a bartender six nights a week at a bar down the road and when she was not behind the bar she was travel guide, not like the ones who wore uniforms and made sure the tourists enjoyed the city but on social media.

Apparently her day to day shenanigans had gathered her a following and now she spent much of her time that she was not bartending, sleeping or doing laundry, visiting clubs and restaurants around town and dragging me along with her.

Leave no friend behind was her motto and she followed it religiously.

“Come on, we are getting late”, Jess shouts from the living room.

“Can’t I just skip tonight? I have to be in early, Jeremey will have my ass for showing up late,” I say hoping, I would get a pass.

“It’s just one night and besides it’s not like you’re going to be working in that filing cabinet of an excuse for a cubicle anymore”.

“You never know. It’s not like Dunlow is dying to hire me,” I say remembering my awkward walk of shame to the interview with my skirt riding up, every opportunity it got.

I might just have given them enough reason to never hire me with my wardrobe malfunction.

“Don’t be a party pooper”, Jess sticks her head into my room. “Put on your shoes, we are leaving in two”.

I sign as I put on my heels, take a last look at my face and head out of the room.

Chapter 9

Nathaniel

I woke up the sound of a television blasting with the morning news.

It took me a while to realize where I was.

Of course it had been another night and another drunken escapade with another woman.

Or was it?

The last thing I remember happening was getting into a car with really hot women who had been very eager to get into my pants.

All I remember after that was hitting either a couch or a bed with one person on top of me while someone else, possibly the second candidate trying to get my pants off.

Now, as I looked around neither one of the women could be found on the bed around me.

High pitched laughter from the kitchen cut me from my thoughts as I made my way out of the unfamiliar bedroom.

Standing in the kitchen were two women who deeply resembled my last night companion except now instead of dressed in short evening dressed, stood before me two women dressed in business suits.

“Good morning handsome”, said one of them who was brewing coffee with a wink.

“So did you enjoy last night?” asked the other one who in the middle of looking her face in the mirror that hung next to the fridge.

“It would have been a whole lot better if I could actually remember what happened last night”, I say as I look around for a glass of water.

The sooner I get out of here the better, I think to myself. Cannot have another late start again.

Arthur’s face from yesterday was still swimming at the back of my head.

“Want to go for round two”, the woman fixing her face in the mirror finally turned around to ask me.

“Yeah, no I don’t think so, I don’t think last night was that memorable”, I say as the two exchange rather astounded looks.

“I mean I usually stay awake for all of my memorable ones. Guess even two of you could not do a good enough job to keep me awake”, I say as I pick up my shoes and made my way out of the door.

Chapter 10

Alexis

I wake up to the sound of my phone buzzing; groggily I put out my hands towards my side table, knocking my EarPods off the side table in the process.

With one eye closed I look at number that was flashing on the screen, trying to decipher who was calling so early in the morning.

But before I could answer it, the call ended and I took a look at the time on the clock, it was 10 in the morning.

Fuck, I thought to myself, there is going to be hell to pay with Jeremy today.

My thoughts turn away from Jeremy to my phone buzzing again.

I pick it up.

“Is this Miss. Strope?” a curt voice on the other end asked.

“Yes it is”, I said trying to untangle myself from the mess of my blankets.

“Miss Strope, we would like to inform you, that you been offered a position here at Dunlow as an associate”, she says as I pull myself more upright.

“Would you be able to join us from the following Thursday?” she continues.

“I, uhhhhhhhh, yeah”, I stutter still trying to wrap my head around her words.

“Great then we will see you at sharp 8 on Thursday”, she said and cut the call.

Still trying to make a sense of what had just happened as my phone starts vibrating again.

I look down to see Jeremey’s name flashing down on the screen.

I ignore Jeremy and make my way out of the room which had started to resemble a hoarders place day by day.

Outside there seemed to be no sign of life, so I make way to Jess’s room.

I open the partially closed room door to see Ashley and Jess sprawled on the bed, still dressed in last night’s clothes.

I walk up to her and shake Jess awake.

“Wutttttt”, Jess says half asleep.

“I have news for you”, I say and attempt to remove her blanket.

“Go away I am sleepy”, she says and pushes me down the bed.

“No this is very important”

“Fine, what is so important that you could not wait for me to get up?” Jess’s says finally throwing off the blanket off that she had been trying to get me off from.

“Dunlow, it happened. I GOT INNNNNNN!,” I scream the last part out.

“What, what happened? Is everything okay,” a bewildered, wide eyed Ashley asked, jumping out of the bed.

“It won’t be if she doesn’t get out of my room”, Jess’s says practically pushing me out of the room.

“But I got into Dunlow,” I say with the same enthusiasm as before, as Jess still pushed me out of the room.

“Yes I am very happy for you, but if you don’t get out of my room right now, you won’t have much to be happy for”, Jess says as she kicks me out of the room.

Looks like I need an early drink today, I think to myself as I make myself to the kitchen to find a drink to pour myself.

Chapter 11

Nathaniel

I make my way into my office hoping to avoid Arthur who had taken it upon himself to personally welcome me every time I stepped off the elevator.

Thankfully this time around he was not here to do so.

With a huge sigh of relief I made my way to my office only to be stopped by the very strict and the very unpopular Mrs. Stroman from Human Resource.

Despite being the CEO of the company and having everyone on my pay roll, Mrs. Stroman was one person I did not want to get on the bad side of.

After all she made sure all my inner affairs remained confined to my office’s glass walls alongside legal.

The morning look that she wore this morning, made me go back to the days of my school where I was a regular guest at the after school detention party, who’s in charge was a similar Mrs. Stroman who has made my life a personal living hell.

“Dunlow, a word”, she barked.

I stopped in my tracks. If Mrs. Stroman wanted to have a word with me then she will have a word with me.

Even I did not want to get on the bad side of her, especially when she was in one of her moods.

“What can I do for you this morning, Mrs. Stroman?” I asked hoping there was nothing too serious.

“Tomorrow the new batch of recruits will be coming in”, she says to my obviously confused face.

“And how exactly are the new associates any of my issue. They don’t work with me,” I say still thinking why she was telling me about this.

“Don’t try to be smart with me”, she says in her school like voice.

“This is just a gentle reminder about what happens every time new associates come,” she says as a matter-of-factly.

“A few days in, everyone gets the general idea of who the “boss” is,” she continued. “And once everyone gets to know who the boss is, everyone wants to get in the pants of the boss”.

“Well it’s not my fault everyone wants to be with me”

“Well then it shouldn’t be HR’s problem either after your numerous one night stands”, she says with a look that was enough for me to stop arguing with her.

“Listen Dunlow, I don’t want anything happening this time around, I have been a part of this company longer than you have and I am tired of Dunlow men not being to keep it in their pants”.

“So tomorrow, when they walk in and you happen to meet any of them, leave them,” she says with an air of finality.

With that Mrs. Stroman turns on her heel and marches towards the end of the hall to have another talk with young man who was very obviously trying to charm one of the younger associates.

Stacy walks up to me and hands me a bunch of yellow post its and gives me the you-just-got-schooled looks.

“Arthur is waiting for you”, she says

“Has he given himself an aneurysm yet?” I asked breaking into a stride with her.

“Ha ha, no. You have missed out on every single meeting since yesterday,” she says settling down herself in her chair. ‘He will have one if you skip out on anymore”.

She says as I make myself to Arthur’s office.

Chapter 12

Alexis

Still reeling from the news that I had officially been asked to be a part of Dunlow, I spent the entire day dreaming of how my first day at the office was going to turn out.

I had officially annoyed Jess to a point where she was even considering going to the bar early just to avoid me.

What Jess did not understand was that this was an opportunity of a lifetime and if you made it through the rigorous three month probation period then that was it.

Even having the name Dunlow on your resume was a huge thing.

People were known to go to great lengths to work at the offices of Dunlow.

But of course that was not the only reason why anyone wanted to be there.

Dunlow or rather Nate Dunlow was known to throw some of the biggest parties in town where only the town’s best were a part of.

Dunlow’s employees were frequently known to be there and were often photographed and appeared in the social pages, which did wonders for their social standing.

And then of course there was Nate Dunlow, the CEO of the company, young billionaire, CEO by day, billionaire bad boy by night who was known for his flings with all the hottest A list celebs, that the city of New York had to offer.

“So still dreaming about your dream job?” Jess asks putting down the bag of groceries in her hand.

“What else?” I get up to help her put the things away.

“I don’t get all the hype about Dunlow, sure it’s a big company but it’s not the only one, I’m pretty sure if you went to Chicago or California, they would have their very own version of Dunlow’s running about”, she says opening the fridge to put in a carton of milk.

“Dunlow is a stepping stone for the next big thing, you have an experience with them and you become one of the most sought after person in the financial district”, I said trying to make Jess understand.

Jess rolls up her eyes and continues to put things in cabinets.

“I got to go and get ready for work”, Jess says heading for her room.

“I will see you in the morning; maybe”, she adds leaving me to go back to dreaming about Dunlow.

Not knowing what to do with the rest of the day, since I had not even bothered to go into work today and inform Jeremey that I won’t be coming in anymore, I decided to give him and a call and put him out of his misery.

“Look who decided to finally call”, Jeremey familiar drawl on the other end send me into one of my moods where all I wanted to do was punch him.

“Hey Jeremey, you free to talk for a few minutes?” I asked hoping the entire conversation would actually last a few minutes.

“Depends, what you want to talk about”, he said in a tone which made me uneasy and mad at the same time.

Stopping myself from uttering curses at the man whose life’s biggest goal was to hook up with every girl in the office I, told him that I would not be coming in from tomorrow.

“So what happened? Did you suddenly land yourself a sugar daddy?” he asked sarcastically.

“Christ Jeremey, can you not?” I say almost losing my patience with the man.

“All I wanted to do was to inform you, that I will not be coming in from tomorrow. I have got another job, that is all,” I say hoping this would be the end of the conversation.

“Well you can forget about getting paid then, you have to service a notice period like any other employee, After all, you did sign a contract here,” he says

“Jeremey at this point I only care about getting off the phone with you and enjoying the rest of my day. So if you don’t mind, fuck off and thank you for one an entire year full of misery”, I scream at him and end the call.

“Did you just tell your boss to fuck off?, “Jess asks, with half her makeup on her face.

“Ex-boss,” I say with a sign.

Jess gives me an approving smile before going back to finish doing her face.

Of course this was not the first time I had butted heads with Jeremey.

More than once he had tried to ask her out. After the third time, I tried telling him off, but things took a rather nasty turn, where I almost would have lost my job had it not been for the fact that the rent for apartment was coming up and there was nothing left in the fridge to eat except for vegetable patties.

This new job better work out because in all honestly I cannot live on vegetable patties for the rest of my life, I think to myself before picking up my phone to order myself a pizza.

Chapter 13

Nathaniel

“Nate my man, thank you for coming in”, Arthur said in a voice that sounded more annoyed than usual.

“Hey Art,” I say hoping that whatever he had planned to tell me was of not much importance.

“Halifax is not happy,” he says without any change in his tone.

I look at Arthur as if he had completely lost his mind.

“What are you talking about Arthur? I just had Stephen Halifax drown my entire liquor cabinet and you’re telling me that he is not happy?” I nearly scream at him.

“Well I don’t know what YOU are talking about?” he says pointedly. “He came to me the day before, he didn’t look very pleased with the meeting he had with you”.

“I didn’t have any meeting with him,” I said while racking my brains around what had actually gone down that day.

“Well that seems to be a problem with you doesn’t it?” Arthur says half smiling, half crying.

“He flew all the way from Chicago to meet you and you could not even sit down with him for five minutes and have a talk with him”.

“I had other things to do,” I say remembering perfectly well that I had walked out of the door for a supposed sit down with Arthur.

“He is one of our biggest clients; five percent of the money that flows into this company is because of him”.

“I get it you’re important and busy all the time, with waking up next to a different woman every day, but this is important too,” he says, looking defeated and a hundred years old.

“You show up late, sometimes you don’t show up at all and then I am left to answer, which is okay, that is what my job titles entitles me but what happened when one of your biggest client doesn’t want to have a sit down with your head of legal for a session?” he says.

“Well Arthur that is why I have you, just because my name is on the door, it does not mean I have to be here to entertain drunken old men whenever they feel like hopping down and meeting me,” I say to an awe struck Arthur.

With that I turn away and make my way to the office.

Arthur had been one of the longest serving people at Dunlow along with Mrs., Stroman. He had been my father’s second in command during his time.

After my father passed away, just like the company, Arthur was one of things that came along and I could not get myself to part them away.

He had been serving the company for forty years and I could trust him with my life.

However at times he drove me insane.

I didn’t exactly ask for this company for myself. Sure it was inevitable that I was going to take over once dad retired, but it wasn’t going to be for another few years.

His death had seen me suddenly fly down from Monte Carlo and put myself into work the very next week.

Sometimes I think I should blame my father for things. I was never prepared to work in a company as big as this. I never had an interest in its running. All I wanted was to travel the world and meet different women.

Anyway, Arthur will be Arthur, I think as I think of the best way to repair the damage with Halifax.

A bottle of the finest drink would have to do. Or maybe I could fly to Chicago and surprise him.

What am I his girlfriend?

I shake my head and give Stacy a reminder for a meeting with Halifax.

Chapter 14

Alexis

I take a deep breath as I step out of the taxi, thanking my lucky stars that I was not caught in the New York morning traffic.

The wind blew around me as I adjusted my handbag’s strap and caught my coat that was flapping away with the wind.

The mid in between weather in New York always had me in the edge.

It wasn’t exactly chilly chilly, but it wasn’t exactly warm either.

The weather in May had a mind of its own.

The honking of car horns bought me back to reality to get a move on and not be late on my first day of work.

I make way to the familiar lobby of the large glass building where the next great big adventure for me awaited.

The steady stream of men and women dressed in the latest YSL and Gucci, made me make a mental note that I needed to indulge in some serious shopping therapy and a wardrobe upgrade.

I make my way to the end of the lobby where a large number of people were mulling around.

I stand in line for the last elevator before I catch a familiar looking face giving me a searching look.

Who was this man and why was he giving me the look?

And then I remembered the interview day, the man in the gray suit who thought I was an idiot.

Maybe he doesn’t think I am much of an idiot after all I made it here.

Maybe he doesn’t really care that I made it here either.

I take a step back as a lady in bright red lipstick talking fast on the phone approached the lifts.

“No I don’t care who you have to bump off the list, I need an appointment for today at 1, she continues while admiring her hands.

Typical, I think to myself as the elevator stops on the ground floor and I climb in.

The lady, still on her phone.

As the elevator stops on the sixth floor, my stomach does a kick skip before I step off.

Immediately I am faced with a woman who distinctively reminds of the head mistress in Monster’s University.

She points a finger towards me and says, “Ms. Strope?”

I nod my head and follow her where she leads me to a conference room marked C.

The room is filled with equally nicely dressed men and women who turn their heads to look at me as I take a seat at the back.

“Now that you’re all here, I would like to welcome you to Dunlow,’ the lady who had bought me here starts.

“My name is Mrs. Stroman and I am the head of HR here at Dunlow”, she continues.

“While it is a huge deal that you have made it here and you might think this is it, let me just tell you that it’s not,” she says firmly.

“You all will be on a three month probation period, after which a lot of you will not be here for the actual job part,” she says while taking a look around the room.

“Do not for even a second think that these first three months are going to be any less of a competition,’ she adds with finality.

Still trying to absorb in her words, another lady starts talking about the rules and regulations of the office and the codes and ethics in place.

While she talked I started to take a look around the conference room and took it all in.

Just as I looked out, beyond the glass walls of the room, I see a tall dark haired man being hounded by another relatively shorter man, who was talking to him animatedly.

“Ms. Strope if you are done taking in the office, would you mind telling a bit about yourself to the rest of the people in the room?” the woman had stopped talking about codes and ethics and now was looking at me.

The rest of people in the room were looking at me to.

Caught off guard, I stand up and tell them about where I had moved from and what I had studied in college.

I sit down and tried to be more attentive before, the “headmistress” took out a sheet of paper and started reading names off.

One by one, people in the room started getting up and walking towards the pointed directions outside.

“Ms. Strope you have been assigned to Mike Hadderly, he is the head of our marketing and communications department. Please follow me.” The headmistress says as I pick up my bag and follow her to the elevator which took me up to the eight floor.

Chapter 15

Nathaniel

The day had been nothing but one meeting after the other with last one so intense it even put Arthur on the edge.

I finally took a break at 1 to get some lunch and to be away from numbers.

Numbers had never exactly been a favorite of mine, but ever since I took over the company all I got to deal with ever was, numbers.

Signaling Stacy to send my lunch in, I made my way into my office.

Exhausted from the morning, I took off my coat and loosened my tie and sprawled on the chair behind my big mahogany desk.

I closed my eyes to take a break, when Stacy’s voice floated in from the intercom telling me the lunch was right outside my door.

Buzzing the door, I let the chef from the downstairs restaurant into my room, who, came into the room beaming as usual.

“Hey Clark, how is it going?” I asked the ever smiling forty year old chef.

“Same old, same old Mr. Dunlow,” he said before putting down the tray and moved towards the door.

“Hope you like today’s special” he said before moving walking out of the door and closing the door behind him,

Clark was known for his specials all over the building.

Whenever a client was needed to be impressed, Clark was the way to go about it.

Just one of his specialties was enough to get the person hooked, and the deal done and dusted.

And that was when it hit me; I needed Clark and one of his specialties for a meeting with Stephen Halfax.

Sure the only way to get to that man was to gift him a barrel of the finest scotch there was but food was another one of his weakness and I knew just the way to handle it.

Abandoning my food, I pressed the button on the intercom where Stacy picks up on the other end.

“Stacy set up a lunch meeting with Halfax, here, Chicago wherever and whatever time he’s free, but as soon as possible”.

“Also get Clark to cook up,” I continue.

“You got it,” she says on the other end and disconnects.

Food is defiantly a way to the man’s heart I think and return back to my food.

Chapter 16

Alexis

“So, how has you first day been so far,” a tall guy with beach blonde hair and too much tan asked me as I sat down for lunch in the break room.

Go away I think to myself. I just want to eat my sandwich in peace and not talk about it.

She smile over my growling stomach hoping he had heard the whaling of my stomach and would leave me alone.

I take a bit of my sandwich as surfer boy pulled up a chair and started making casual conversation with me.

Despite having a full mouth at every question he threw at me and I politely nodding to it, surfer boy did not leave me.

When I was done, for which he was obviously waiting and hadn’t moved an inch since he had sat down with his coffee mug.

“Yeah so listen I have a boyfriend and I am really not that interested,” I say to his obviously very taken back face and walk out of the break room.

Idiot, I think to myself, why does every boy think it is okay to hit on every girl who just seems to be sitting alone.

Maybe I was sitting alone because I did not want to have a conversation with anyone.

Maybe I was sitting down because I have had a very exhausting day so far and all I wanted to do was sit down, relax for a few minutes and eat my damn sandwich without having to nod and smile at anyone.

So far as Mrs. Stroman had mentioned in orientation, the work was hard and there was not a moment to relax and sit down.

Welcome to Dunlow, I think as I return back to my seat.

‘So here are some more pitches that Mr. Hadderly would like you to go over before he finalizes them and discuss with the rest,” Sam, Hadderly’s red haired secretary said to me while handing me a bunch of papers before settling herself in her seat before me.

I take the files from her and start going through.

Apparently this is what end of the month looked like at Dunlow, one pitch after the other that needed to be dealt with so the money could start rolling in the next month.

After about thirty minutes of going through them and correcting what I though could be made better, I pull myself up and starch my neck.

“Mike wants to see you,” Sam says and points to the glass office of Mike Hadderly where he seemed engrossed in a deep conversation, with a tall, dark haired man

The same man I had seen in the morning during the orientation.

“That’s Mr. Dunlow, if you’re wondering,” Sam says to me as I continued to look at the man.

“Nathaniel Dunlow?” knowing full well that he was the only Dunlow alive with his father passing away a few years ago and no brother or uncle was in sight.

“Uh huh”, she replies.

“Keep out of his sight will yah,” she says to me and gives me a look.

I turn my face into a scowl and wait for Dunlow to walk out of the office.

After what felt like an eternity he turned around and walked out of the office.

He gave Sam a smile before throwing a fleeting look at me and walking away.

A second was all it took for me to be enticed by his steel gray eyes.

Sam pokes at me and tells me to go meet Hadderly.

Still lost with the mere mini second look interaction with the bad boy and the heart of New York party life, I go into Hadderly’s office, who now seemed liked the most uninteresting man on the planet.

“So how has your first day been so far at the office?” the salt and pepper bearded man asked me.

“Pretty good. Everyone has been really cooperative and helpful,” I say hoping I could get out of having a conversation with the third most important man in the building.

“Well, your resume was very strong compared to the rest who applied for your position, I hope I won’t regret making this decision,” he says with a twinkle in his eyes.

Decisions, decisions I think to myself. These will be the death of me.

“Now about these new accounts, what do you think can be made better about them?” he asks and points towards a seat in front of him.

I pull up one of the chairs and sit down and start talking what could be done better.

After battling it out with Mike for two long hours, on how to best handle two of the clients biggest clients, I put my head back and twist my neck around hoping to get circulation back into my head which seemed to have frozen.

With a smile, that seemed to say, I knew I wasn’t wrong about you, Hadderly finally closed the files.

“Well you do know your stuff after all, Jeremey Rivers wasn’t wrong about you after all,” he says.

“You called up my old boss?’ I asked surprised Jeremey had anything, but nice to say about me after our last interaction.

“Why yes of course. We don’t just hire anyone who sends in their resume. Previous employer references are very important and help a lot,” he continues.

Wow, I think to myself. Jeremy not being a total dick wad for once was something new.

Maybe Jess was holding a knife to his throat when this call was made.

Huh. But how would Jess know.

I shake myself out of my day dreaming and possible murder scenarios for Jeremey’s death and head out of the office.

‘See you tomorrow,” Hadderly calls out before I close the door.

Well that was not as bad and boring as I though it would be I make my way back to my desk and pick up my coat and bag.

I say goodbye to Sam and head towards the elevator where people were starting to mull around, hoping to leave before the 5 pm rush hour traffic.

I pass by surfer boy who seemed to be chatting up a leggy blonde who obviously looked very interested by the attention she was getting by him.

I roll my eyes and passed them.

How long before they officially start dating and break up and become just another office romance gone wrong.

Two months, three tops, I say and step into the crowded elevator.

First day done and dusted, I say to myself as the doors close.

Chapter 17

Nathaniel

Fate work workouts had been a long time favorite of mine.

Well any sort of work out was a favorite of mine.

It had been a good day at the office.

Halfax had agreed to another sit down after his initial tantrum of not being given enough attention.

Arthur might have a few more years to live and I had a date tonight.

This is why New York was my favorite city; you could eat at a different restaurant every night and still have a new place to try every other day.

The same could be said about the women of the city, you could meet a new one every night, screw her, dump her and move onto the next one and you could never ever meet her again.

Until and unless you worked in the same place or just happen to cross her path every day.

Bad things do happen.

My mind wandered off to Mike’s new associate who I only had a glance at this morning.

Pretty interesting choice for a man, who had never lifted his eye to another woman as long as I had known him.

I need to know who she is.

I turn my attention to my beeping phone that reminded me that my driver was outside and I needed to go home, relax before taking out whoever it was I had decided I was going to be spend the rest of the night with.

I head for the showers, but before I could my phone starts vibrating.

Arthur, what does he want now?

It’s after hours and at this time I only entertain people I can sleep with.

I ignore the phone and head inside.

“Are you trying to wash away the last girl you slept with?” a familiar voice floated into the shower.

I stuck my head out to see Sam wearing his usual goofy grin twirling a water bottle in his hands.

“That could take some time, seeing as there were two of them last time around,” I say as I put a towel around my waist and step out.

“So what exactly are you doing in this part of the New York?” I asked

“Can’t a man come down to see his best friend?’, Sam asks.

“Not without a very good reason and that also in the middle of a work week”.

“Well I do have some big news for you,” Sam says his eyes giving away the excitement in his voice.

I turn my head to look at his very excited face.

“I am getting married!” he says, almost shouting, while getting looks from the rest of the people in the lockers.

Looking at my confused face he continued.

“Do you remember Meghan?” he asked.

I most certainly did not.

Just like me, Sam was not known to be seen with the same woman every time he stepped out of his front door.

“Do you remember the brunette we met during the Capri trip?” he said making me rack my brains which had been very drunk during the entire trip.

“Every woman we met on that trip was more or less a brunette with an occasional blonde thrown in the mix,” I say to him.

Sam makes a face.

“Well one of the women that I met during the trip was Meghan, we kept in touch. She came back to Florida two weeks ago,” says Sam.

I nodded.

“Well I met her and one thing led to another and we decided to get married,” he said ending his very short romantic story.

“Doesn’t it seem a bit fast, I mean you met that woman nearly a year ago and now when she suddenly comes back you two decide to tie the knot?” I asked.

“Huh what can I say, I am in love,” says Sam.

“Or delusional and mad,” I reply

I continue to put my stuff back in as Sam looked on.

“Whatever. You wouldn’t know love even if it was staring you right in the face”.

“Point. Because I don’t believe in love,” I reply point blankly.

‘You need to get over Olivia; she broke your heart, met another man and moved on. You need to do that too,” Sam says bringing up the one woman we had vowed to never discuss.

I give him one of looks, which stated, “we are done and I don’t want to talk about this subject anymore”.

“Sure bro, it’s completely up to you,” he says and then sits down on one of the benches, quickly jumping up when realized it’s wet.

“They should have a warning sign or something,” he says, disgusted.

“Anyway the reason why I am here is very obvious, I want you to be the best man at my wedding,” he states as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

I give him a quizzical look.

“Yeah okay, just let there be a wedding date first and hopefully a wedding,” I say.

Sam shakes his head, gives me a Nazi salute and heads out of the room.

Weddings and Sam. This has been an ongoing battle.

Every few years, Sam would find the “one”, who he would claim he was madly in love with and that, that was it.

Come a few months later and she was the probably the worst person ever that Sam had ever come across.

But a wedding was a step too far even by Sam’s standard.

He had always talked about it, but had never actually gone ahead with it.

Well there is a first time for everything, I think as I make way out of the gym for a dinner date.

Chapter 18

Alexis

The dark and dangerous stories of Nate Dunlow continued to float around the office.

It seemed like everyone was obsessed with the man who was known for his playboy type lifestyle.

Every morning there seemed news dedicated to him on page 6 to the young CEO who had taken over the family company after the death of his father.

I wonder when he sleeps, after all every next morning there seemed to be some new place he had been seen partying along with a new lady on his hand.

Whatever, it’s not like he would ever be interested in me, and besides I didn’t come here to be the boss’s latest fling.

I just wanted to work and make it past the probationary period and maybe stop with the job hunting for at least a few years.

The work so far had been challenging and kept me so busy that I barely had time to get up from my desk to look around except to pee and eat, when my stomach started growling like a dying whale and needed to be fed.

“So Mike wants you to sit down in one of the meetings today,” Sam told me as soon as I put my handbag down and sat.

“Sure. Who is it?” I asked, obviously curious about this.

“Soderman. They are a new company and they just left their old firm a few months in, business with them. It’s a chance for Dunlow to get their business and get them on board permanently,” she says filling me in.

“Alright”

This could turn out be good, after all meetings this early on hardly happened and more importantly associates were hardly ever asked to be a part of it.

Hadderly comes in and asks me to join in his room.

“So I have decided that you should be present at the Soderman meeting. You know how smaller but new companies work and who have a lot of money to spend”, he says shrugging himself out of his coat.

“They left their last company because they did not how to handle them. Let us make sure that we don’t make the same mistake with them, this time around,” he concludes.

I nod and go back to my seat to read up on Soderman and their business and best how to handle them.

At around 11 in the morning, Hadderly makes his way out of his office and points at me to follow him.

I get up and follow him to a conference room marked B at the end of the hall.

We wait and are pretty soon joined by four men who looked like they had just walked out of one of the most important meeting of their lives and that this was just a courtesy visit to see the “little” people.

The meeting goes more smoothly than I had imagined and the four men seemed to be pretty impressed with the way things had turned out to be.

Just as we were about to close, the man himself Nathaniel Dunlow walked in.

All I could do was stop myself from ogling the man who was a walking talking Greek god with his dark hair and chiseled jaw.

The air was suddenly filled with the perfume he was wearing, and there were not many things I could do to stop myself from constantly staring at the man.

The all powerful walk came to a halt in from of Mike who introduced the man, as if the man needed an introduction.

I mean open any paper in the morning and there his face was plastered for all to see or you could just Google him and you could get everything about him.

I bought myself back to my senses as Mike started talking about the latest acquisition and the plan they had decided to follow through.

“Ms. Strope is the brain behinds this one,” Mike said jolting me back to reality.

He turns around and does an entire top to bottom scan that made my stomach churn, in a good way.

“Well I am glad to see Miss. Strope taking such an active interest in the happenings of the office,” he said in a voice laced with approval.

I continued to look at the LCD next to his head to avoid looking into his steel gray eyes that had not left me since he had walked into the room.

“Well we need to get going, we have a business lunch to get to,” one of the men in a dark blue suit said, hoping to get out of the conversation that had reached its standstill.

The four men walk out with Mike accompanying them to the elevator.

Dunlow lingers back for a while before parting the room with a smile.

Chapter 19

Nathaniel

The meeting with Soderman was far from my mind.

The only thing that was on my mind at the moment was Ms. Strope.

Even though this had been only the second time that I had seen her, today I had the chance to look at her from top to bottom.

The boys in the break room had been right, she was not your pretty with the big beautiful eyes and blonde hair but she had an air about herself, with her dark brown hair and the right amount of legs at least that is what I could figure out so far from the look I had at her.

I needed her.

I needed a way to have her around me.

Mrs. Stroman’s warning rang in my head about dragging the newest face into my bed.

Screw that. I am the boss, I can do whatever I want which included me dragging anybody into my bed as I pleased.

Keeping that in my mind, I walked straight up to Stacy who was busy talking on the phone.

Looking at the urgency on my face, she excused the person on the other end and looked at me.

“Tomorrow I need a follow up meeting with Mike about the Soderman account,” I say in one breath.

“Weren’t you just with him, Sam said Mike was meeting them today for a potential signup deal,” she said looking confused.

“Yes I was, but I am talking about a follow up with him,” I said hoping she wouldn’t divulge more into my sudden interest in Mike’s work.

“Sure. Anything else?”

“Yeah, and make sure whoever worked on this with Mark should be with him the next time he comes for the follow up,” I say.

Stacy gives me a nod and makes a note on a post it.

I go to my office to attend a stream of calls that I had been ignoring for the past couple of days.

Life of a CEO.

There were a few drinks invite, which I thought was best to decline keeping in mind the people who had invited me, wanted nothing much to do but get a few pictures with me and call me up for a favor when needed.

I sigh as my thoughts turn back to Alexis.

I needed a night with her.

Chapter 20

Alexis

“You know you need a night out”, Jess says as soon as I enter the apartment.

“Jess I have literally just walked in and you want me to go out again?” I ask her while plopping down myself on the sofa and kicking off my heels.

Christ I needed a new pair, this one had reached its limit and had started to give me blisters.

“Well yeah, all you ever do is go to work, come back from work and sleep,” she says pulling her hair in a bun.

“Well I need a bath, not just sit in the tub for a few minutes, but like a long ass one where I just go to sleep in one bath,” I say already imagining the long relaxing bath that was awaiting me.

“We never go out anymore, at least under Jeremey you were fun,” Jess reminds me of the man who had made his life mission to hit on me.

I slide further down on the couch as the day’s events hit me.

Jess meanwhile finished getting ready and heads out of the door.

‘Friday, we are going out. No excuses,” she says finality before closing the door behind her and heading for the bar.

Jess never had the work to pay her bills kind of problem.

She had the looks and mostly she used those to her advantage.

If she wanted she could have easily landed herself a guy and would never have to worry about money ever in her life, but sadly she had no interest in guys and that had resulted her in being disowned by her parents at the age of 18.

After years of estranged relations between Jess and her parents, last year they had come together.

They didn’t exactly shower her with welcome back to the family money, but they didn’t exactly throw her out on the street either.

But Jess being Jess had not easily swayed in the sudden love shown by her parents.

Turned out, her parents were under the impression that maybe the years apart had knocked some sense into her, it hadn’t.

She still liked girls and she still liked to party every other weekend and still not have a college degree.

Her motto in life was, “if you can’t drain it, it ain’t worth it”.

This had been working pretty well for her so far.

I turn my thoughts away from Jess and her lively life and turned my thoughts to Dunlow.

The man himself was a piece of art.

No wonder he had all the ladies in the office swooning over him.

I will not let that man overpower me.

Jeremey had been more than enough. All he wanted was to dick around with me and then brag about it like he did with the others.

Well no sir, I was not going to let that happen to me. I went there for work and work is all I wanted to do.

And that is exactly the same reason I came to Dunlow, to work.

No man was going to stop me from making it pass the probation period and getting permanently hired in one of the most sought after companies in New York City.

I break out of my day dreaming and head for the bath that I had been anticipating all day.

Chapter 21

Nathaniel

“Mike wants to see you after 12 today,” Stacy informs me as soon as I step off the elevator.

“Jesus woman, let me breathe,” the woman sometimes was too much for me to handle.

She makes a face and tries to keep up with me.

“Soderman is having lunch today with him, they are finalizing everything and Halifax has decided he will accept your invitation only if he gets invited to the mayor’s ball this time around,” she says in one breath.

I stare at her if she had gone mad.

The mayor’s ball held every June for whatever disease was popular at that time was one of the most sought after event, maybe even more than the Met Gala.

But then again Met Gala had its own charm and host of celebs that attended it.

The mayor’s ball was a whole different ball game altogether.

Anybody who was rich enough to donate anything from 25k to above wanted to be a part of the event.

For men it was a chance to mingle with other likeminded fellows and spend some time with their mistresses without the fear of being discovered by their wives.

For the women it was a chance to compare their clothes and talk about who was sleeping with whom.

“And why does Halifax want to attend the mayor’s ball? He doesn’t even live here,” I pointed out the obvious flaw in his request.

“Halifax is not interested in attending the ball, it’s his daughter. She’s going to be in New York at that time. And what better way to get her social standard up a notch than to attend one of the prestigious events around the city,” she says.

“See what you can do about it,” I say, not interested at all.

“I just want my meeting with Halifax done”.

I get to my office and get on with the day’s task which included Skype meetings with Japanese investors.

Fucking Japs, have more money than they need, still won’t put it to good use.

At somewhere after 12, Stacy’s voice floats through the intercom, informing me of Mike’s arrival.

What does Mike want at this hour?

And then I remember, I had asked for him when he gets done with his meeting with Soderman.

As Mike walks in, he is accompanied by none other than Alexis Strope.

I had been right to every last detail. She had the legs and the body that were enough to drive anyone mad.

As Mike sits down and starts going over the details of the meeting with Sodermam, all I could think about what I could do with Alexis.

She was just the right amount of sexy.

With her dark brown hair worn in loose curls and the eyes that had a hint of green flecked with gold, she was like the perfect woman you would happily show to your mom and screw in the bedroom at the same time.

As Mike continued to drone on, I continued to look at Alexis.

She was trying her best to avoid my gaze but you don’t get to that so easily.

“So Ms. Strope what do you think about our latest client,” I asked cutting Mike who had started off a rant about numbers.

“I think we work hard enough to keep them happy, maybe they won’t ditch us like their previous ones,” I say as a matter of factly.

“Well then I guess we will have to take better care of them won’t we,” I say to her pointedly.

She looks at me and then looks away at Mike who still hadn’t gotten around being cut off by me.

“Well I better be off, lots to do,” Mike says after the awkward silence hung out in the room for longer than it should have.

“Ms. Strope please stay, behind. I would like to have a word with you,” I say to Alexis who was already halfway out of her chair.

As Mike makes his way out of the door, I turn to look around at Alexis who seemed like she did not want to be here.

“Do you have a boyfriend?” I ask her.

“What?”

“It’s a simple enough question, are you with someone or not?” I asked her perching myself on the edge of my table.

“That is none of your concern, sir,” Alexis replied, putting the emphasis on the word sir.

“Well it is, I don’t want any meathead coming after me, for going after his girlfriend,” I say, speaking from experience.

“And what makes you think I’m interested in you?” she asks half getting up.

“I don’t, I just get what I want, and this time around it happens to be you. So I ask again, do you have someone?”

“And again like I said, it is none of your concern who I sleep with”.

Alexis gets up from the chair and heads for the door.

“If you think you can get away with trying to sleep with me, let me tell you something, you aren’t. You might get away with sleeping with whoever you want, sadly buddy it isn’t happening this time around,” she says and walks out of the door with a flick of her hair.

I grin to myself.

Challenge accepted.

Chapter 22

Alexis

If it was anything, working at Dunlow was a dream, come true.

Everything and everyone was so professional that at times, I felt I was out of place.

Sure I was just a girl out of Michigan and New York was still relatively new to me, but I had worked in other firms before joining Dunlow, still every time I walked into the huge glass building of Dunlow Enterprises, it left me in awe.

The work had been intense and full of challenges and kept me on my toes, but it’s learning new things every day that kept me coming back each day.

It had been a few weeks since I had started working at Dunlow and if there was one thing I had noticed as common in every place that I had worked in was; office gossip.

Be it a small form or a huge one with a fancy glass office, no one was safe from any of it.

The surfer boy and the leggy blonde who I had seen thrashing around like a pair of eels in a car a few days ago, were officially dating and spent every break they got down in the employees parking making out.

Meanwhile, others were not so lucky.

Some were still trying to score and had so far come up empty handed.

I on the other hand, was not so sure.

Dunlow’s last lunch stop over and the attempt to just straight forward ask me if I had a boyfriend or not and then preceding to ask me had left me avoiding that man at all cost.

He on the other hand had made it his own little personal game for pastime in the office, where he would have me attend almost every meeting that he had with Dunlow.

He also had started coming up to the eighth floor to have meetings with clients, something which he would never do before, according to Mike’s secretary who, in my opinion led the entire office gossip and rumors club.

The elevator runs had also become frequent.

It seemed the more I tried to avoid the man, the more he was everywhere.

So much so, that the weekend Jess and I had spent roaming around New York City for a much needed break, Dunlow was there at one of those artsy little cafés where you sat outside and had coffee and hoped that crows didn’t shit in your coffee and bagels.

I was pretty sure, this was the last place he wanted to be, but somehow he was there.

I had become furious after this.

There is one thing pursuing a person and then there is being after them.

I was not going to give into Dunlow so easily.

The last time a man had tried this hard to get me to notice him and sleep with him, he had ended up with a restraining order and I had moved out of the state.

Sometimes you just have to do things.

Of course taking out a restraining order against one of the richest men in New York, was not exactly in my best interest.

The firm would probably kick me out the first chance they would get and then I would be a disgraced employee who would have nowhere to go.

I at the moment had no prospects of being unemployed in a very expensive city, that I could not afford.

Maybe Jeremy would take me back.

But after our last conversation I wasn’t so sure that he would, but if I showed him just the right amount of leg, maybe he would.

Who knows? But this was not a chance I was willing to take.

A week later he had called me up again to his office to discuss the Soderman account which we had handled a few days ago.

Was I even supposed to give him an update?

I had just been here a month ago and I was still learning the ropes of this place.

Nevertheless, despite trying to rack my brain for every possible way out, I went downstairs, dreading what was about to come.

Maybe I should report him to HR, and they can take it up.

But I was no snitch, who couldn’t handle her boss’s attention.

Other women in the office were dying to have a piece of the man himself. And here, this man was literally serving himself on a silver platter and I wanted no piece of it.

Maybe the magic of the steel grey eyes does not work on me, I thought to myself as I walked off the elevator on the sixth floor, where everything happened.

“Go right in Ms. Strope, he is waiting for you,” Dunlow’s every happy secretary Stacy pointed towards the door, while cradling a phone in the crook of her neck and trying to eat a sandwich.

I took a deep breath and stepped into the office, dimly lit and cool, it started to creep, me out a little.

Why was his office lit so dimly in the middle of the day?

Maybe he has a migraine or maybe he is just fucking around with me.

“Take a seat, Alexis,” he said from behind his desk.

I walked up to the desk and sat down on one of the chairs.

The very same chair that I had occupied, a few days and ago when Dunlow, had enquired about my nonexistent love life.

“So what has been happening with the Soderman account?” he asked me in a commanding voice.

Taken aback but still determined to show that I was not going to give in that easily, I replied.

“I thought Mike Hadderly had already gone over the accounts with you two days ago?” I said.

“Its two days later and now I’m asking you,” he said leaning a little in front on his desk, exhibiting a great interest, while his eyes took the usual scan.

“Well it still stands where it was two days ago. Nothing has changed,” I said hoping that would be the end of the conversation and I would be out of this place.

He stared at me for a few seconds before pushing back his chair and getting up.

He then walked over to the other side of the desk where I sat and came and sat on the edge of the desk, right in front of me.

He stared at me with those deep steel grey eyes, his musk clogging up my senses.

Must fight this, I cannot and will not have this man, so easily get away with this.

Getting closer, he put his finger under my chin and turned it upwards towards his face.

“I don’t think you understand Ms. Strope what you have done,” he said in a dangerously low whisper.

“You have made the fatal mistake of walking into my life and have made every waking moment of my life a living hell,” he continued.

“I am not used to having no control over myself, but you, you have done it,” he said and let go of my face and sat himself straight on the desk.

“So here’s what I propose, why don’t you make it easy for me and say yes to me, so that I can get sleep at night and maybe, just maybe walk into this office tomorrow, with no need to call you into my office for no odd reason at all,” he finished off his monologue and waited for the effect to sink in.

Without a second thought I pushed back my chair and stood up, almost tumbling in the process.

“How about no?” I said defiantly and crossed my arms.

“I’m not used to getting a no from a woman,” he said with a slight grin.

“First time for everything, I guess,” I said and turned around to leave.

Almost on the verge of leaving, I turned around and said, “Also it would be very nice and maybe just a tad but better for your self-respect if you stopped following around or have somebody do it for you,” I said.

Amused he didn’t move an inch.

“Because the last thing you need is for everyone to know you’re going to stupid lengths to get a girl, who you are interested in just fucking and then discarding the moment you’ve had your fun”, I said angrily and walked out of the door.

Chapter 23

Nathaniel

Still staring at the door where moments ago, Alexis had walked out, I was a bit taken back by what she had said.

There was no denying that I was infatuated with Alexis Strope.

From the way she walked to the way she did all her work with that no nonsense attitude, she was a breath of fresh air in this office.

Sure having women fawning over you sounded like fun, but sometimes it just got boring.

How many times was one of the interns accidently going to drop her pen so I could have a perfect view of her butt?

Or where a shirt, so low cut, that left little to imagination?

Or accidently run into me, at the same gym as me wearing the skimpiest work outfit available at Nike?

Alexis was nothing like that.

From the first day she had made her mark. Not just with her work, but also with the way she looked.

Auburn hair and those eyes which you could get lost in for minutes.

But at the same time she was also proving to be more difficult than usual.

I have had my fill of difficult women but this one was just getting harder and harder to handle.

There were only so many times I could get her to come down to my office, only to have her walk away without me making a single move.

And “accidently” running into her in elevators was also becoming tiring, with someone always riding in the car, making it impossible for me to grab her and give her the Dunlow, elevator edition.

Having someone track her or at least have some sort of call up whenever she was in a nearby area was also becoming a bit tiresome.

The amount of shitty hippie coffee “made with love and unicorns” I have had in the past few weeks was enough to get me off coffee forever.

No this was not going to happen just like that.

I needed her in a place where she just couldn’t refuse me and I needed that girl away from her, who seemed to be always accompanying her.

But having her followed might just soon get me a restraining order or could get me thrown in jail.

Yeah right.

I chuckled to myself at the thought of being behind bars.

Orange is definitely not my color.

Just then my phone rang; it was Sam on the other end asking me if I had plans for the night.

Alexis Strope.

“You need to come with me, you’re my wingman,” Sam said.

“Sam you can get any woman you want, you just need to put that brain of yours to work for something other than putting famous people behind bars,” I said sniggering.

“Ha ha,” he said in a sour tone.

“Nine, and don’t be late,” he said and the call ended.

Great another night, another useless club with drinks with fancy names and sex with a stranger that no one was guaranteed to remember the next day.

Sighing I walked back to my chair and plopped myself down.

I needed to do something and something fast.

But for the moment I was down for another mindless party with Sam and whoever his newest “love of my life” for the week was.

God, that boy needs to find someone and fast.

Maybe I’ll just get lucky with Alexis somehow and then maybe I could stop fantasizing about her.

“Sir, your three o clock is here,” Stacy’s voice floated through the intercom.

“Tell them to come at four,” I said, hoping that was the end of the conversation.

“You’ve already moved it twice, in one day,” she said.

I made an ugly face,

“Coming” I said and stood up rolling down my shirt sleeves, ready to sit through another hour, of “why we are the best clients you’ve ever had” meeting.

Chapter 24

Alexis

The nerve of that man!

Thinking he could just get away with anything that he wanted.

Yeah well Dunlow you might think you can have everything that you want this is something you won’t.

Jess’s made up face, bought me back to reality.

Of course she wanted to go out tonight.

Well I will just have to cancel it, again.

“So what’s new with you?” Jess asked looking at my face.

“Dunlow”.

“Ahhhhhh Mr. Dark and Dangerous, what’s up with him?” she asked, clearly very interested in him.

“He asked me out”, I said flatly.

“Have you been doing drugs again?” she asked with a concern.

I make a face and launch into the whole scene at lunch today.

The amount of time Jess’s eyebrows went up, they would have become like that only had I not eventually stopped telling her the tale.

“So what are you going to take up on his offer?” Jess asked.

“Are you mad? He’s New York’s very own version of the bad boy. I do not want anything to do with him,” I said clearly trying to end the conversation.

“He also happens to be one of the richest men in New York, with an amazing taste in women………well not always,” she adds with a pause.

The prospect of saying yes to Dunlow needed a lot of thinking; in fact it was out of the question.

“You know what you need, you need a night out,” Jess says.

I look up at her.

‘Don’t you have work tonight?” I ask her.

“Not really, I covered for Danny last week. She is doing mine tonight,” she says with a smile.

“Go put something on that doesn’t scream death and despair and let’s go,” she said pulling me off the couch.

Still not totally into the whole going out plan, I reluctantly get up and change into a dress and a pair of my most comfortable heels.

My face was still screaming death, so I applied another layer of lipstick and put a hand through my hair.

Ready to face the world.

Jess’s idea of way to relax was nothing more than a club where according to her the best nachos were sold.

Nachos and a club didn’t really bode with me well, sounded like a very shady place.

Turns out, the place was not as shady as I thought it was. It was pretty nice with the usual amount music and people moving about and enough lighting that you weren’t exactly blind, but you weren’t exactly one hundred percent in the spotlight either.

After a couple of rounds of drinks, Jess dragged me to the middle where everyone seemed to be nodding to Machine Gun Kelly.

After some time of dancing, I walked to the side to take the place in, it seemed a hip enough place with old men cozying up to much younger girls, who seemed to be enjoying the attention and the drinks that were I constant supply to them.

Still taking in the “young women and sugar daddy, episode 1”, my eyes caught a tall man staring back at me, wearing a look of amusement.

It took me a second to figure out who that man was.

Dunlow.

What was he doing here? Didn’t he have a much fancier and richer club to go to or perhaps one where paparazzi were more readily available?

I rolled my eyes at him, before he started to make his way towards me.

Just as approached me, Jess appeared at my side out of nowhere.

The lopsided grin that she wore, said it all.

“I’m going to go and get a drink, do you want something?” she asked still grinning like an idiot.

“Uhhhhhh no, but I think it’s time to go,” I said while grabbing her elbow.

“Why don’t you stick around for a few minutes, it looks like you have company”, she points towards Dunlow who was enjoying me being uncomfortable.

“Also Rick and I are going to go”, she said moving away.

I wore the pained expression that she knew very well and still chose to ignore.

“Are you following me now?” I turned my attention to Dunlow who was still wearing the stupid look of amusement on his face.

“No, we just happen to be in the same place at the same time,” he said with a smirk.

“Let’s get out of here,” he said while tugging on my hand.

“Uhhhh yeah I’m not going anywhere with you,” I said pulling my hand away.

“Is that right? Let me tell you something Alexis”, he says while leaning in a bit too close for my liking, “I get what I want”, he says.

I looked at him as if he had gone mad and then follow his resigning.

I had to admit there had been mad sparks every time Dunlow had been in the room, especially when his steel grey eyes took a look at me from top to bottom.

Airport scanners did a far worse job then his eyes did.

I see him texting on his phone, as I stand next to him as the wind around flaps my skirt.

His car pulls up and he opens the door waiting for me to get inside.

Chapter 25

Nathaniel

As I wait for her to climb into the back seat, all I could think about what I would be doing with her.

Time to give the lady a little taste of the Dunlow magic.

I climb in after her and signal the driver to drive.

She took in the exterior finally settling her eyes on me.

“So what’s the plan then?” she asked making herself comfortable beside me.

“For starters, Ms. Strope, where would you like to do it?” I asked point blankly.

The twinkle in her eyes gave it away as she put her hand bag to one side and jumped onto my lap and straddled me.

This was all I needed as she started running her hands over my chest, slowing unbuttoning my shirt.

I put up my index finger to give her hold one sec signal, and pressed a button to roll down the barrier mirror between us and the driver.

“Drive around until I say so,” I say to my driver and roll the mirror up again.

I look up to Alexis who wore a very determined look on her face.

With a smile, she went back to what unbuttoning my shirt, stopping as soon as she reached my belt buckle.

I held her by the thighs, pushing up her dress slowly past her knees, past her thighs, past her panties, past her navel and up to where I could feel her ribs. I held it there as I placed my tongue on her soft creamy skin and let my mouth explore the dips and curves of her body. She placed her hands on my shoulders, and apart from the quickened breathing, she barely made a sound as I let my mouth wander. Soon, her hands gripped my shoulders and she shivered as I traced my fingers along her inner thigh, inching slowly towards the center of her wet panties. I tucked my thumbs into the waistband and pulled them down, pulling her legs apart so I could reach down between them and place my tongue on her clitoris. She gasped and I looked up to find her biting her lip with her eyes closed expectantly. I moved away and her eyes flew open, “No don’t stop,” she said urgently but I stood up and when she leaned close I ignored her and proceeded to take off my jacket and tie. She looked at the tie and coyly said, “Are you going to tie me up?” but I tossed the tie aside along with my jacket and I went on to remove the shirt she had unbuttoned. She reached out to place her hands on my chest and stomach but I grabbed her wrists before she could and said, “Turn around.”

She was clearly startled, but she turned around slowly, and I unzipped her dress from the back, watching it fall to the ground in a crumpled heap. I kicked it away and relished the sight of her curved spine as I traced my hands along the curve of her waist, reaching her bra which I proceeded to unclasp. As that too fell to the floor, Alexis tried to turn but I held her in place and said, “No, don’t move.” She stopped fidgeting and stood still as I pressed my body to hers, feeling her warm skin against mine. I pressed my pelvis against her ass so she could know that I wanted her badly, but I could control myself until it drove her to the point of madness. I held her ass in my hands, and moved down between her legs until my finger was right at the opening of her slit and as I moved it around I could feel just how wet she was. Her entire body was quivering against mine and she whispered, “Please, just go in.” I smiled widely and nibbled lightly on her ear as I said, “Not yet,” and took my hand away. I caressed her ass again, and lightly slapped it. She gasped and I did it again, harder this time. “Bend,” I demanded and she bent over the seat, placing her hands on it while her ass was reaching up towards me. I unbuckled my pants and let them drop along with my boxers. My raging hard-on rose to greet her perfectly round ass and it ached to enter her, but I knew I had to make her beg me to go inside.

I geared up for another round of teasing as I started to reach between her legs, but suddenly she spun around and said, “Enough playing around- I want you.” She pressed herself up against me so I could feel her breasts pushed up against my ribcage as she threw her arms around my neck and kissed me hard. She bit my lip as I gasped- I wasn’t expecting this from her and I was pleasantly surprised. She fell to her knees and held my penis in both her hands as she brought her mouth close and seductively licked the length of it before she popped the tip into her mouth, and looking up at me, she sucked on it hard. I steadied myself- suddenly I felt very weak in the knees and I held onto her shoulders to steady myself. She bobbed her head up and down as she took the whole thing deep into her mouth and moved faster and faster- I could see her breasts moving with her and all I wanted right then was to push her down and fuck her. And so I did. She cried out as I suddenly pushed her to the floor and got on top and then she smiled and opened her legs, I pulled them further apart and was about to push my way into her when I suddenly paused and looked at her, lying on the floor with her legs wide open waiting for me, and she looked so beautiful. “Fuck me,” she moaned softly and I smirked before I pushed my way into her and she opened her mouth wide and arched her back as I made my way inside.

We moved rhythmically until she pushed me down and got down on top of me, riding me while I lay back and enjoyed the view of her bouncing breasts and her face twisted in utter ecstasy- I could feel a tightening sensation and I knew I was close. I reached up and kissed her, tasting her lips as I came inside her and she arched her back and threw her head to look up at the ceiling as she spasmed on top of me. I reached out and let her boobs fill my hands as she continued to orgasm and she almost screamed out loud before she fell off me, exhausted and said, “You’re going to kill me, Nathaniel Dunlow, if you ever make me come like that again.” I reached over and massaged her swollen clit as she writhed and moaned, “No, please- I’ll die.” I laughed and said, “I’ll stop if you really want me to,” I waited for her to respond and she finally groaned and said, “No- I don’t want you to stop.” I smiled and continued to massage the clit and solely, I bent down so I could flick it with my tongue. She knotted her fingers in my hair and pushed my face down towards her pussy as she opened her legs wide again, presenting her wet lips for me to taste and play with. I ran my tongue between them and took one in my mouth, pulling on it gently- Alexis stuffed her knuckles into her mouth from screaming so loud the driver would come rushing back to see what was happening.

Triumphant, Alexis got off me, sweating, nevertheless still wearing a look of deep satisfaction as if she had taken a charge over me, well not today.

Still reeling from what had gone down a few seconds ago, I roll down the window for a second time tonight and tell the driver to drive to my place now.

I look over to Alexis who just some time ago was protesting about not wanting to do anything, now seemed pretty content with spending the night with me. She pulled on her dress as I pulled my pants and shirt back on. She picked up her panties off the car floor and stuffed them into my pocket, winking as she did so.

Time for part two, this time, I’ll be in charge, I think to myself as the car raced into the night.

Chapter 26

Alexis

Well, what do you think of me now, Mr. Dunlow? I think to myself after a harrowing fifteen minutes of some deep intense car sex.

Still trying to make head and tail of what just had happened, the car skidded to a halt and Dunlow pulls open the door and literally drags me out, with me just getting a second to grab my bag and coat which I had flung away carelessly after jumping onto Dunlow.

The doorkeeper greets Dunlow, who he barely acknowledges and hurries up to the elevator and pushes the button to the penthouse.

Will I be sleeping over?

Will this mean I will have to change my job keeping in mind the whole workplace relationship aspect?

Was I going to be in a relationship with Dunlow?

This and a million other things were racing through my head as we reached his floor and he started fumbling around for his keys in jacket’s pocket.

He eventually found them and pushed the door open, his hand still holding mine as he banged the door shut behind him and ripped open his half buttoned up shirt that he had hastily buttoned in the car.

Kicking open the bedroom door, he threw me on the bed with urgency as if he hadn’t just made out in the car a few minutes ago.

Nathaniel pushed me against the polished wooden surface and whispered, “Do you want me to kiss you?” I craned my neck so he could reach my lips but he said, “Say it,” I nodded and he said, “Say you want me.”

I moaned, “I want you- I want you- I want you.” His eyes glinted and in a swift motion, he pulled off his pants and threw them across the room, and then he licked down the length of my neck. I started to unbutton his shirt, but he held my hands and pushed them up over my head, pinning me like that. I opened my mouth to protest but he started to kiss me fiercely and I felt his tongue push into my mouth and I greeted it with mine.

He let go of my hands and slid his down my back where he found my zipper and undid it, sliding my dress off my shoulders and off my waist until it slid off completely and fell to the floor. He stood back and gazed at me completely naked before him, his eyes traveling down my body and back up. When he pressed himself against me again, I felt something hard push up between my legs as his hands held my waist and moved upwards until he was cupping my breasts in his large hands. I felt goose bumps rise on every inch of skin he touched and his hands travelled to my back again, this time sliding down to my ass as he caressed it. He slid them back up and slowly, he cupped my breasts again, squeezing them before he let go and stepped back again and looked at my large breasts as they lay exposed to his gaze and my nipples hardened as his eyes travelled hungrily over them. He leaned close and whispered, “Are you wet?” I nodded, holding my breath, and he said, as he rolled his thumbs over my nipples and I bit my lip, “I want you to check.” I looked him straight in the eye as I slowly reached between my legs and ran my finger between my wet labia, gathering the sticky liquid on my fingertip and pulling it back out to show him. He took the finger in his mouth and sucked on it, licking his lips when he was done.

He now reached between my thighs and rubbed my clit- I gasped- and then he too slid his finger between the lips and gathered some more of the wetness on his finger tip. He then pushed the finger into my mouth and said, “Suck.” I did as he said and tasted myself, after which he pulled his finger out of my mouth and pushed his tongue in again. While he kissed me his hands went down my ass again and in a sudden swift motion, he picked me up, my breasts were now mere centimeters away from his face, and he carried me over to the bed. He sat on the edge and he set me down right in front of him. He held me by the waist and pulled me towards him so that I was straddling him, and then he ran his tongue across my breasts. I threw back my head and moaned loudly as he took my nipples between his lips and pulled on them. “My god, you’re so beautiful,” he gasped between kissing and licking every inch of skin he could reach, and I moved on top of him, feeling his hard-on through the fabric of his pants against my bare skin.

Chapter 27

Nathaniel

I picked her up and turned around, throwing her on the bed. I stood between her open legs now, and I looked down at her, naked and submissive before me, waiting for me. She was stunning- everything about her, from her large full breasts to her narrow waist and rounded hips; the way she bit her lip or threw her head back, and the way she was looking at me right then with her head expectantly tilted to one side.

I unbuttoned my shirt and slowly slipped off my boxers, greeted by the massive erection she had given me. She sat up and moved my hand away slowly pulling down my boxers for me- once they were off, she looked up at me with her big green eyes and held it with both her hands, moving closer and closer to it until, still meeting my gaze, she gently kissed the tip. I could feel my blood rushing as she kissed it again, and again, and again, covering its entire length with soft kisses, and then, slowly licking it. It was my turn to inhale sharply as her warm mouth closed over my hard dick and she started to take the whole thing in, sliding it in and out, slowly at first, but soon gathering speed. I looked at her- at her mouth closed over me, at her breasts bobbing up and down with the rest of her body, at her hair long swinging forward and gently touching my skin- I closed my eyes; I must be in heaven.

Exhausted, we rolled over and before we knew it we were both asleep.

The night had been worth it.

First the car and then the bedroom and all I could say after this was, I had not been wrong.

The pencil skirts and her button down shirts had started to drive me insane at work.

Every working moment I would spend imagining what was under it, tonight I got to explore each and every inch of it and it had been worth the wait.

I look to my left where an exhausted Alexis was snoring lightly under the silk bed covers, her one arm hanging off the edge of the bed.

Suddenly she started mumbling, but a few seconds of mumbo jumbo she went back to her sleep without a thought in the world.

Still reeling from the night, I get up from the bed so as to not disturb her and went to kitchen to get a glass of water.

I stare at the New York skyline where the sun was slightly breaking, thanking my lucky stars that I had made it far enough to see this every morning.

The thought of waking up to see dirty brick walls out of the tiny apartment building we called home back in Detroit, made me think of my mother and father and all they had done to bring me up, so I could wake up to this instead of morning screaming from the next door apartments.

Shaking my head I make my way back to the bedroom where Alexis was stirring under the bed covers.

Waking up, she took a look around, finally finding me standing in the doorway.

“Here”, I say to her as I hand her a glass of water.

I climb on to the bed and lie down and heave a huge sigh of relief.

Alexis’s hands creeps around my hair and I turn to look at her, damnnnnnn this woman looked good even with her makeup removed and a messy head.

“I need a couple of hours of sleep, too many meetings tomorrow,” I say to her as she gives me one of those sexy sleepy smiles that made me rethink my decision of taking a short break to sleep.

Without a word, she turns on her side and goes to sleep.

I turn to the other side and try to catch some sleep too before I had an entire day filled with Arthur trying to get me to attend one boring meeting after the other.

It was going to be one hell of a long day, if only I could get this woman out of my head, it would go a whole lot faster and better.

A few hours later, my phone ringing on the edge of my bed woke me up again, who was calling me in the middle of the night.

Wait, it wasn’t the middle of the night, it was almost dawn.

I look around for it and before I could find it an answer it, it stops ringing.

Should I make the effort of finding it and see what was so important?

Probably not.

Must be Arthur reminding me about some meeting tomorrow.

That old man, can’t sleep himself, won’t let me sleep either.

Annoyed I pulled on the covers and went back to sleep.

Alexis

Somewhere in the far distant I could hear the faint ringing of my phone.

Groggily I wake up and try to make some sense of where I was. This was definitely not my bed.

It was much larger and positioned at an odd angel with the windows on the right rather than my left.

Also, the sheets felt a thousand times softer and more welcoming than mine.

Unless I counted the ones my mum had given me and I had worn them down with washes and using them over the years.

With the room still in half darkness and me being barely being t make out where I was going I get out of the bed to the sound of my phone ringing.

My foot pushes against what could possibly be my purse, tangled up with my blouse.

Still half asleep< I rummage through my purse to stop my morning alarm from ringing.

A sound from the bed startled me, as I turned around to see a huge mound moving under the bed covers.

Dunlow.

Last night events flooded to my head as I watched the sleeping body of Dunlow breathe and move under the covers.

It had been one hell of a night.

Even though I did not have that much to drink, I felt as I was waking up after a long night of drinking at frat party.

Although, the frat parties rarely ended with me being in bed, of an extremely rich and incredibly good looking person.

I slowly pick up my stuff from around the room, where Dunlow had thrown is away with such carelessness as if I would never need those clothes again.

Well pal, some of us can’t afford to wear a new Gucci suit every day.

“Are you leaving?” Dunlow’s sleepy voice emerged from the bed.

Damnnn that raspy, sleepy voice. I had a weak spot for men with that incredible sexy sleeping voice that men had.

I nod and find my other shoe which was hiding under Dunlow’s pants that was taken off while trying to get into mine.

“I will have Neil take you home,” he said reaching for his bedside phone.

I turn on my heel and make way into the sitting lounge where an incredible view of the New York skyline at six in the morning was mesmerizing and breathtaking at the same time.

New York mornings were a whole different world from the pent house.

Down below in the rush hour traffic, the morning was something else, with people rushing about to get to their work, typing away on their little phones which had become such an important part of them, without taking a second to glance around and see what was happening around them.

I break myself away from these thoughts as I look down at my phone that was buzzing in my hand.

Text from Jess.

“Any plans for coming back home?”

I shake my head and make my way for the door.

Below the city of New York was just waking up with the first risers, going about their daily day.

“Miss Strope?” an elderly man dressed as a chauffeur inquired.

I nod and he opened the door to the back seat where Dunlow and I had spent quite some time being driven around the city of New York while having some very heated back seat sex.

Still exhausted from last night, the car stopped in front of my apartment building and I stepped out and noticing for the first time, the ache in my legs.

God this was going to be one long day as I made my way inside.

The walk of shame I was dreading I would have to encounter, thankfully never came about as no one was there in the elevator when I pushed it to my floor.

This is what you get when you live in a building full of budding actors and writers, no one gets up before twelve here.

I look around for my key, remembering that Jess had locked the door last night and I had forgotten to take mine.

Sighing, I banged on the door.

Wearing a Cheshire grin, Jess opened the door and before I could even drop in the stuff in my hands, she asked the question that she had been dying to ask.

“So how was it? And are you planning to make this a regular thing cause I need to know?” she rambled on.

“Right now all you need to know is I need a shower and that I am getting late for work.” I say to a disappointed Jess who was looking for all the kinky details.

I turn the shower and step into, jolting myself awake with my thoughts drifting away to Dunlow.

I quickly dress and make my hair and face to see Jess standing in the kitchen still hoping I would fill her in.

“Need some breakfast?” she said pointing towards the pancakes she had made this morning.

“Can’t. I’m already late”, I say to her as I rush out to catch a cab to work.

I get in the usual New York morning traffic. If only I had left a bit earlier or had not slept over.

I rush in, as soon as the cab halts to a stop in front of the large glass building od Dunlow towers, half hoping that Mike Hadderly had not come in yet. But when has that guy ever been late in his life.

I walk into the eighth floor office to find Mike talking to his secretary. He gives me a look of disapproving, a first for both of us as I sit down to catch my breath.

“I want you sit in on the lunch with Zane today,” Mike addresses me.

“They have been a long time partner of ours and its time you started with some of our older ones. At some point you will need to start managing them on your own,” he adds.

I shake my head and turn my head so I could start with the already large pile of files that had started collecting on my table.

This day needs to end already.

Chapter 28

Nathaniel

From the minute I had stepped into the office, all I had done was attend meeting after meeting and it didn’t look like it was going to stop anytime soon.

At 3 I called Stacy to get me something to eat; exhausted I sprawled on the couch and didn’t move until I heard her knocking on the door.

“Mike met Zane today, he wanted you to know if there are any other changes you were thinking of making to their accounts?” Stacy asked, settling down a plate with my lunch on it.

”Just ask Mike to handle it, I have got enough on my plate as it is”, I say as I attack my sandwich.

Stacy walks out as I devour the rest of sandwich in less than a minute and lay back down again.

I wonder what Alexis is up to.

I call up to the eight floor where Mike’s secretary picks up.

“Send Ms. Strope downstairs”, I say.

The feeling of wanting her, so badly started creeping in again. I was just screwing her a few hours ago.

Control yourself Dunlow.

Ten minutes later, Alexis walked in, dressed in black from head to toe.

While she was talking, what I assume was about her meeting today, all I could do was nod and shake and give the occasional grunt in reply to her, while trying to imagine her from last night.

“You’re not even paying attention to what I am saying are you?” she asked with hand on her hip.

“Huh?” I asked caught off guard with her question.

With the smile that had mesmerized me since the first day, she walked over the sofa where I was sitting and settled, on the edge of the wooden coffee table where the remains of my sandwich were still lying.

“I said”, she said moving in closer, “were you paying attention to anything I was even saying?” she said while moving her hand to the zipper of my pants.

“If I wasn’t a minute ago I most certainly am now”, I say as she unzips my pants.

“Got room for dessert?” she asked and without waiting for an answer went about what she had obviously been waiting to do.

“What is it about you, Alexis Strope, that draws me in like this?”

She opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, I made sure she could taste my lips on hers. She kissed me back fiercely and I knotted my fingers in her hair while my other hand travelled down her back slowly.

She arched it involuntarily and she kissed me harder. Before she could react, both my hands were on her ass and I hoisted her up, moving backwards, I pushed her onto the desk and she wrapped her legs around me as we continued to kiss fiercely. I pulled away suddenly and she cried out, “Don’t stop, please.” I grinned at her and said, “Oh, I don’t plan on it.”

Before I could off with Alexis, my phone rang reminding me that the day was not over and that I still had plenty of meetings till the end of business day.

Alexis sensing that came up and pulled herself together. She pushed me away and slid off the desk where I had placed her. She straightened her clothes and her hair, and turned around to check her reflection in the mirror on the side of my office wall. “Oh my God,” she whispered, as she glanced at the lipstick smeared all over her mouth. I chuckled softly as I wiped off the lipstick I had managed to get on mine.

“Why are you laughing? This isn’t funny!” she cried as she pulled a tissue out of the little box near the mirror, “Oh my God, if Mrs. Stroman finds out she’ll fire me.” She bent over the desk to scrutinize her refection in the mirror as she hastily fixed her makeup, and I stepped back to admire that generous ass of hers.

I could see that she was panicking though and I said, in as calm a voice as I could muster up, “Don’t worry, you look great. In fact, you look amazing.” She stopped scrubbing her lips and threw a glance at me in the mirror, and for a brief moment our eyes met, before she straightened up and said, “I can’t lose this job.” I shook my head and said, “You won’t- I’m the boss remember?”

“I need to see you tonight”, she said, like a woman who was used to getting her way around.

I nod, still reeling from the post lunch adventures and started planning for the night.

Chapter 29

Alexis

It had been a few weeks in, since Dunlow and I had started seeing each other.

Seeing each other might be too strong a word for where we stood at the moment.

All we did was have incredible sex whenever we got a chance, with his office after hours being one of our favorite places to do, long after the offices of Dunlow Enterprises had emptied and people had gone home for the day.

Despite trying to keep it low profile, it became habitual for us to run into each other at clubs and bar, the least expected places which usually ended with both of us either making out in the backseat of his car, while his driver drove us around the silent streets of New York or his penthouse apartment.

Not once I had invited him over. I was not ready for him to see this side of me, at least not yet.

With my probation period over and permanent job in sight, I was a wee bit more relaxed.

Sleeping around with my boss had not been one of my top things to at a new job, but who was I to deny the man, that every girl in New York wanted to sleep with.

TMZ was having a field day for the past few weeks about “billionaire and play boy. Nate Dunlow and his latest fling”, with just no one seeming to figure out who the mysterious auburn haired lady he had been seen leaving the club with twice was.

I had known better then to show my show whenever I walked out of a place with Dunlow and so far had managed to keep a low profile.

But with us meeting every other day or running into some place, it was getting harder and more impossible to shield myself.

I am not going to be one of your flings Nathaniel Dunlow, for far too long, boys have used me up as an excuse. Not this time around.

Back at home, all Jess could talk about and wanted to know the details of how each of my encounters had been.

Each late night was met with her famous “someone has been naughty” grin and a plate of my favorite chocolate chip pancakes.

Way to bribe me Jess.

Another upcoming event that had Jess all excited was the Mayor’s ball.

The Met Gala of the political world as it was known for in New York. Everybody important from the entertainment to the business industry was a part of this event and with fall approaching fast, so was the event.

Normally Jess and I would spend, the next day after the ball looking up the red carpet pictures of the women and their thousand dollars gowns and hair and makeup, this time around the situation was a little way of the track.

The Grill House where Ashley worked was owned by the very same man who owned the place where the Mayor’s ball was going to be held this week.

Naturally, the Grill House was responsible for the food and Ashley was a huge part of it and Jess was automatically invited.

All she could talk about was what to wear even though she had never really cared much for looking nice, a slap of lipstick and some mascara was her go to look.

This time around she was going in, all the way.

“So I think I have found the perfect look for the ball,” Jess’s voice broke me from my train of thoughts.

“Let’s see what Jess is going to dazzle the high and mighty of New York with”, I said hoping it was really something she was going to dazzle me with.

“Ta da”, she said holding up a simple yet, stylish pant suit.

“Isn’t this kind of like what Angelina Jolie wore to one of her movie premiers or something?” I asked, looking at the familiar suit in Jess’s hand.

“Yup, original YSL, Rick’s sister works in one of those fancy boutiques uptown, got me this on her employees discount,” she said obviously proud of her purchase.

“Looks like you’ll be turning heads instead of the others”.

“That’s the main idea,” she said.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come? It would be fun to mingle with the rich and famous,” she asked hanging her suit on the coat rack near the door.

“I think I could do with a quiet night in and besides if Dunlow is there, he would do anything to drag me out of there and have sex with me there and then”, I said.

‘And besides, the last thing I want is the paparazzi actually having to put a face to his latest fling,” I finished off.

Chapter 30

Nathaniel

“You’re going to the Mayor’s ball with me”, I said rolling off Alexis.

I climbed off the bed and padded to my dresser where I had dropped my suit jacket and retrieved a box of cigarettes.

I took one out and lighted it up.

I walked over to the window and started smoking.

“I didn’t know you smoked,” Alexis’s voice floated from the bed.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me”, I said continuing to look outside the window, mesmerized by the way.

The New York skyline never ceased to amaze me.

‘Well why don’t you fill me up then,” she said speaking from behind me, her hands circling my stomach.

“I think the newspapers carry enough about me, for you to know, or you could always Google me,” I say pushing her hands away as I continued to smoke.

I turn around to face Alexis who had gone and sat on the edge of the bed, taken back my sudden lack of interest in her.

It was not that I was not interested in banging Alexis and making her scream all night long. I just didn’t feel like sharing my personal information much.

Already the press hounded me day and night, hoping to catch a glimpse of me and whoever wasn’t the latest addition to my list of women I had slept with, I certainly did not need another one of them prying into my personal life.

There was a reason I never kept a woman around, long enough.

Sooner or later they tried to change you and that was something I could not take.

If I wanted to change I would do that on my own, I had no intentions of changing for anyone.

“So Mayor’s ball, I will have you picked up at 7,” I say.

“I didn’t say I was going,” she replied in an icy tone.

I look at her already; already she was putting on her clothes back on.

“Sorry sweetheart you don’t have a choice,” I state as a matter of factly.

She raises her eye brow as if she had not heard anything more absurd than that.

“You might get away with things in your own twisted world, but not here,” she said pulling on her skirt and adjusting her blouse.

I eye her as she finishes putting on her clothes and walks out of the door.

Women.

Always trying to get into the deep end of things.

Well one less is just less headache and drama for me.

I finish the rest of my cigarette and throw away the cigarette butt in the trash can and lay back down on the bed.

This was not the first time that a woman had tried to have a connection with me.

The last time it had happened, I almost fallen in love with her, never gain I had said to myself.

Well, if she doesn’t want to go with me, I am sure there are plenty of other women who would be willing to go with me.

With that thought, I turn on my side and give way to sleep.

Chapter 31

Alexis

Still processing the Dunlow incident I arrived at my apartment.

It had been a few days since the icy cold encounter had happened in his bedroom, but it was still there at the back of my head.

Who was he to dictate who could do what and not?

If he thought he was the king of New York who could get away with anything and anyone well then, he’ll come to the battle ground, player, you’ve just put yourself in the midst of war you cannot win.

For far too long, men had thought they could get away with anything.

Here’s a reality check. This is the 21st century; you can’t just force a person to do something they don’t want to.

Back in high school, the star of the basketball team thought it was his duty that he could hit on anyone, regardless of them being available or not.

He was the star, the whole school, in fact the entire district sometimes turned out to see him, why couldn’t he get away with this?

Of course he did.

Then came college.

It was not all roses and butterflies as I had imagined.

Sure not everyone you meet in college was an asshole, but then again who wasn’t on any given time of the day.

I didn’t exactly fall in the category of easy, but then again a few drinks into me and you could always get away with anything you wanted.

Not now.

After graduation I vowed that I would never let another person get away with saying or doing anything to me.

This applied to Dunlow as well.

He might be my boss, but he most certainly could not dictate me, on whether I wanted to go with him or not.

A knock on my door brought me back to reality.

There was nobody home besides me and I didn’t order anything, neither was I expecting a delivery of ay sorts.

Must be Jess.

Jess and her obsession with candles.

Jess had this weird obsession with scented candles.

Half the time when she was not working, she spent browsing any page that she could get her hands on for scented candles.

If it was not online, it was a store downtown or Target’s latest scented candles collection.

Sure it was a bit weird, but thanks to her candle mania, our place tended to smell like roses or jasmine or whatever was that day’s fancy.

I open the door to come face to face with the man himself, Mr. Dangerous, the playboy billionaire of New York City, Nate Dunlow, in all his glory.

“What are you doing here?” I asked crossly.

“I came to see you,” he answered pushing passed me.

“You can’t just walk into somebody’s place like that,” I said still not moving away from the open door, from where he had just casually walked in.

“Sure I can, if I happen to know the person,” he replied wearing the same smirk he had, at the club.

“What do you want?”

“You”

“Yeah well you can’t, you just cannot have everything you want”, I replied.

Pinching his face into, “I don’t think you know, but I’m a billionaire” look, he took two strides and before I knew it, he had pinned me against the wall.

The air suddenly seemed a whole lot warmer or maybe that was just because Dunlow had closed in the gap between us both.

Leering down at me, he kissed me with full force, crushing my lips, while his hand moved towards the underside of my shirt.

I pushed him back, catching my breath.

“Like I said, you don’t get everything you want,” I said to him calmly while my heart was beating in my chest as if I had just run a thousand miles.

Putting his hands up in defeat, he smiled crookedly and adjusted his suit jacket.

‘I will still see you there”

Turning around on his heels, Dunlow walked out with an air of triumph as he had just won gold at the Olympics, I sat down, still taken aback with his sudden appearance.

Asshole thinks he owns the world.

Well its time somebody showed him that just because he’s rich doesn’t mean he can get away with everything.

Looking around the apartment, I realized it had not been cleaned in a long time, well maybe I should do it, seeing as how Jess was the least clean person of the two.

An hour later, the place was in a much better condition than it had been before looked like it had been inhabited by humans rather than occasional visitors who paid the rent.

A shower at this point seemed almost welcoming and I went to the bathroom and left the bath tub to fill.

The bath bombs were nowhere to be found, of course as I remembered, I had use up the last one of them after a particularly gruesome day after an encounter with Jeremey at work.

Oh well, I will just have to do without it. No harm done.

Sliding in, I let the warm water embrace me as I sunk in even further and closed my eyes.

A knock at the door woke me up.

How long had I been in the bathtub for?

Jess’s head peers in through the bathroom door.

“You okay?” she asked with a concerned look.

“Yup, just has been a very interesting day,” I told her sitting up.

“Fill me in,” she said perching herself on the edge of the toilet seat.

And that I did. Told her about Dunlow and how he had come to our apartment and wanted me to attend the Mayor’s ball with him.

“I don’t understand the problem, the most eligible bachelor in town wants you and you push him away?” she said in a confused very Jess like manner.

“He doesn’t want me, he wants downstairs part of me,” I said pointing down.

‘Either way, sooner or later he will want the rest of you also,” she added, handing me a towel as I stood up to get out of the now cold tub of water.

“Highly unlikely, people like Dunlow, hardly ever stick around with one person and even if they try, few months down the line, something to the other pops up and BAM they are done,” I said wrapping the towel around myself and started looking for after shower moisturizer for my face.

“Have fun, and if it gets too much, dump his ass”, she said.

I rolled my eyes at her.

It was not as easy as everyone thought it was. Once you go in, you go in. I wasn’t a fan of these half assed relationships where neither one of the parties even tried to make it work.

For far too long, this had been the case with me.

One came, one fucked and one went away. None of them decided to stay because too much fun had happened and it was time to move on for them.

Well not this time, Dunlow was not going to get his fun and get away with it.

I finish drying myself and step out of the bathroom, starving and hoping Jess had brought some food with her.

Chapter 32

Nathaniel

Hard to get women had always been my favorite kind, they always had a way of making them seems like they were the best and god knows they were.

Alexis was quickly turning into one of them.

The way she would take on and challenge me, was different.

Every other woman that I had come across was always ready.

Nahhhhhhhh, I needed to take them by surprise and be surprised by them too.

Alexis Strope did all that.

She was smart and good looking, with amazing skills in bed.

Nevertheless, the motto of “I always get what I want”, was going to be in play and Alexis Strope was going to be a major player in it.

“You ready?” I asked the blonde who had just popped her head into the bedroom.

“Always”, she said.

Christine David, socialite, philanthropists and the play girl of New York City, along with whatever, women who had too much daddy money and time on their hands was going to be my date for the night.

Of course it was just a formality.

The two rich and equally good looking people of New York appearing together, for a cause that clearly no one cared about, just the rather expensive drinks was all anyone was going to read about in the next day’s morning papers.

Taking one last look at myself, I head out into the hall where Christine was sitting on one of the sofas, sipping champagne.

The off the shoulder she had picked for the night was hugging her in all the right places and thigh slit was showing a perfectly toned leg that just a few hours ago had been wrapped around me.

After all, what was a high fi event without a pre screw to get the blood flowing.

Draining the last of the champagne in her glass, Christine got up, walked to the mirror at the end of the hall and put on her lipstick again after majority of it had been transformed to the glass.

A model pose later, she turned around and was ready to leave.

“I really don’t like this dress, the color is completely wrong for me,” she said half admiring her backside in the mirror.

“Why didn’t you wear something else?” I asked adjusting my cufflinks.

“Because Roberto Chee is paying me a butt load of money to wear this and announce himself to the world, she said still looking at herself in the mirror.

Women, too many issues, never enough clothes.

Always complaining about this and that and never satisfied.

Unless you were talking about being actually satisfied, then a date night with Nate Dunlow was all they needed.

After another 10 minutes of Christine complaining just about everything from the weather to the drinks they were probably going to serve at the ball, I finally dragged her outside to the waiting car.

I was known for being fashionably late, but never Christine David fashionably late.

That was just awful,

We sit in and she starts smoking.

God knows all this woman did was smoke and drink and still managed to look first class every day and appear at every photo worthy place.

After some 20 minutes we arrived at the Jameson Center for Arts, where this year’s event was being held.

Scores of people were milling around, helping ladies out of the car and making sure nobody stepped on anybody’s train or boy there would be drama and page six would finally have something more than just people looking pretty on its pages.

The others reasonably dressed, press card wearing were busy clicking away pictures of the second most sought after event in New York.

As our car drew to a stop, five people rushed up to the vehicle in the hopes of being “the one’ who would open the door to the Dunlow car.

As soon as the car stopped, Christine who had still been smoking the last of her cigarette put it out and stepped out of the car.

The sound of surprise from the press and the onlookers was more than audible.

Christine David steeping out of the car of Nate Dunlow and that also with the very man himself, at the Mayor’s ball

How scandalous.

You have your story page six, go forth and have the biggest newspaper sale of your life.

After another 10 minutes of posing for the cameras, I again drag Christine who enjoyed being in the spotlight, a little bit too much for liking.

Successful, she took my hand in hers, and walked inside where the real party of the rich and famous was happening.

Showtime.

Chapter 33

Alexis

Mike Hadderly had asked a day before if I had wanted to go to the Mayor’s ball.

In doubt whether I would accompany him not, I asked Hadderly to give me a couple of hours to see if I was free that night.

In reality I had zero plans for the night seeing it was an off the next day, but the thought of being there after rejecting Dunlow’s offer to go with him, had put me in an uncomfortable positon.

Of course there was nothing wrong with Mike Hadderly.

He was nearly fifty years old and was a widower who had lost his wife to cancer 5 years ago.

Anyone who knew spoke nothing but praise for him and there were rumors of him taking an early retirement, because of his recurring back problems.

Day end I had said yes to him.

Screw Dunlow.

If I wanted a night of dressing up in an expensive gown and on point make up, then that was exactly what I was going to do.

Trouble was, I wasn’t exactly great at either one of these things.

When it came to clothes, comfort came above everything and make up was well beyond for me.

Most days, lipstick and mascara went a long way.

But this I needed to look on spot.

After all, it is not like every day you get to rub shoulders with the rich and powerful of New York City with all the free champagne you could drink.

Ashley was a great help when it came to looking like an A lister with a D lister’s bank account.

She knew all the right places where one could get the best clothes and look like a star without spending thousands of dollars.

At exactly seven, Mike Hadderly picked me up and spent the entire way talking about his work and his wife.

They had been high school sweethearts and had married straight out of high school before Mike left for college.

After about 15 minutes we arrived at the Jameson Center for Arts, the place for the ball this year’s event.

The place and the people looked like a billion bucks and everyone seemed to know each other.

Feeling a little out of place, I grabbed a drink off the nearest waiter and took a look around.

So far I had not seen Nate Dunlow.

Maybe he had decided not to show up, but then again this was one place he was never to miss.

Women and quality free booze, this place had all the making of a perfect place for Nate Dunlow.

I spotted Arthur, another one from work, who always seemed like, the world was about to explode and he needed to find the hero who would save it.

Tonight, with his wife on his arm, he seemed at home.

The rich and famous, maybe this is what it felt like to be a million bucks, designer dresses and paparazzi.

I took another sip of my champagne and before I could swallow it, I spotted him,

Mr. Dark and Dangerous, dressed in a midnight blue suit, he looked right at easy, laughing and smiling at all the right people at the right time.

And hanging on to his arm was none other than Christine David, the socialite who was just about everywhere nowadays, the infamous party girl of New York City, who had inherited her father’s fortune after a much public dispute with him over his fourth marriage.

Dressed to the nine, in an off shoulder, thigh split red dress and hair in an uptight bun and pearl drops earrings; she looked like a million bucks.

Probably spent that much on her dress even, from the looks of that and that jewelry that adorned her.

I turned around to face the incoming crowd.

The last thing I wanted was a chat session with Nate Dunlow with Christine David at his side.

Men, a day ago he was all up in my business ready to take on me, now he was all up in another girl’s pants.

Boy, he moves fast.

I looked around and waved to Ashley who was on duty, making sure the entire thing ran smoothly, while stood on the side taking it all in.

This was the stuff dreams were made of for Jess.

As I turned around I saw Dunlow talking to Mike Hadderly who pointed towards me.

Shit.

He knows I’m here.

Draining the last of champagne I braced myself, for the trio that was walking towards me.

Should have stayed at home and caught up on my Grey’s Anatomy.

More drama there.

“Ms. Strope, how nice to see you here,” Dunlow said, extending a hand towards me.

“This is Christine David, a longtime friend of mine”, he said pointing towards the uber gorgeous woman who had zero interest in being in being introduced to a complete nobody.

“Nice to meet you, I work at Dunlow Enterprises,” I said extending a hand towards her.

“Nice”, she replied shortly and curtly.

“That’s a nice dress you’re wearing,” I said pointing towards her dress, which would pretty soon be sold out by noon tomorrow.

“Robert Chee, it is not available yet,” she said again with an air of haughtiness.

“Pretty sure that won’t make a difference to me”

She raised an eye brow before snatching up a glass from a passing waiter.

“Excuse me, I see some friends,” she said and with a sweep of her gown was gone to mingle with some more of her equally gorgeous looking friends.

“I see Randy, I am going to go see hello, do you mind Alexis?” Hadderly asked me.

“Nope, “I said as Hadderly left me standing alone, with the man himself.

“Mike Hadderly huh? I didn’t know you were into older men?” Dunlow said once Mike had disappeared.

“It is none of your business,” I said in an angry voice.

“You made it my business when you said no to me. I am not used to hearing no, especially from good looking women”, he said, clearly enjoying making me angry.

“Yeah I got to go,” I said clearly not in the mood for a conversation.

“Not so fast,” he said grabbing my arm before I could move.

“You and I have unfinished business,” he said before steering me towards the end of the room.

Trying not to create a scene with hundreds of super important people in the crowd, I gave in and let myself be led by Dunlow, who crossed the throngs of people, occasionally stopping and saying hello or just nodding as went by.

He led me through the door at the end of the hall, where we went through the door to the other end.

“Where are we going?” I asked him once when we were out of the room.

“Somewhere”

At the end of the hall, there was a room with a door market manager.

The man himself out for the night, rubbing shoulders with the elites had left his room unattended.

Dunlow walked right in and locked the door behind me.

The look in his eyes said it all.

“Like I said, we have some unfinished business left”.

Before I could utter a word in process, he had pushed me against a wall and had closed whatever gap was left between us.

“Alexis Strope, you are driving me mad,” he said softly against my ears, raising the tiny hair on my arms.

“And I don’t like being driven into madness and losing control. Never have, never will,” he said again in that low whisper, sending a shudder down my spine.

And then it was all over, he was one me again and pushing me and against the wall as I tried to keep my feet steady which kept slipping under him and his giant frame.

With his mouth still on mine, Dunlow picked me up and transferred me to the couch in the room.

Pushing him back, once I got the chance, I looked him dead in the eye.

“You can’t just screw me here; half of New York is out there,” I said, waiting for him to move his hand which he had firmly kept on my thigh and seemed uninterested in moving at all.

With a wicked laugh, which sounded like a half growl, Dunlow was all over me again.

He pushed me against the wall and started to kiss me fiercely, and I returned it with passion. Everyone who was anyone in New York was out there, a few feet away from where Natahaniel Dunlow had cornered me. Holding me in place he reached behind and undid my dress.

It fell to the floor, and he commanded, “Take off your panties.”

I tucked my thumb and forefinger into the waistband of my underwear and pulled it down, letting it slide down my thighs. He reached behind me again and unhooked my bra, letting it fall to the floor too.

All the playfulness from his face was gone, replaced by a sense of wonder as he whispered, “Beautiful, so beautiful.”

I blushed and tried to cover it up by reaching up to kiss him but he held me down and said, “No, you stay like that- I want to remember you like this forever.”

Slowly- so slowly- he traced a finger along my jawline and let it wander down the curve of my neck and nestle into the hollows of my collar bone. I looked up at him, but his eyes stared straight into mine and I couldn’t bear it- I looked away, but he said in a soft yet commanding voice, “Don’t- don’t look away. Stay with me.”

My breasts rose and fell rapidly as I tried to calm my nervous heart and he whispered, “Alexis- Alexis- Alexis- do I scare you?” I shook my head and I swallowed as I managed to say, in a voice so small it was barely audible, “You amaze me.” He smiled a strange hungry smile then, and from where I was standing, he looked like a panther gazing down at his next meal. He bent his head down towards me, and I closed my eyes as I felt his lips, his tongue, and finally his teeth as they bit down on the soft skin above my chest and I moaned.

He moved lower, lightly biting my breasts, my waist, the swell of my hips, my abdomen- I sucked in my stomach the moment his mouth made contact and he kissed it instead of biting and continued kissing along the light of down that led to the soft dark triangle between my legs. “Alexis,” he moaned, with his mouth pressed against my skin, and I felt his voice reverberate through my entire body as it carried my name. I arched my back, raising my waist to meet him, and he slowly parted my legs. I stretched them wide open and he gently kissed the lips that furled in on themselves, waiting for him. I fumbled clumsily with the buttons of his shirt and he hastily undid them, pressing his warm bare skin against mine. I reached down towards his pants- I felt him hard against me, and I held on to the stiff erection. He closed his eyes and let me rub my palm across it. I sat up until I was sitting on his lap, straddling him, and I reached down to unbuckle his belt. He quickly pulled his pants down enough for his big beautiful hard on to greet me. I took it in both hands, and pressed it between my legs. I moved myself up and down along the shaft, careful not to let him enter me, but wetting him all the same. His hands gripped my arms as I continued to move and his grip grew tighter and tighter until his eyes flew open and he pushed me down onto the sofa again.

He got up long enough to pull his pants off completely, discarding his clothes in a pile in the corner, and then got on top of me. He pried my legs open and pushed himself up against me- I opened them further to welcome him in. He placed his dick right at the opening of my vagina and said, “Yes?”

I nodded quickly and whispered, “Yes- yes-” he entered swiftly and I half-screamed, “yes!”

We were soon locked in a rhythm of pushing and pulling each other, and his mouth founds its way to my breasts again as I wrapped my arms around his neck and let my tongue explore his neck and his earlobes. “Harder,” I whispered in his ear and he thrust himself inside me deeper and with more force.

I bit my lip, but pulled it out with his teeth and locked me in a fierce kiss that lasted until I couldn’t breathe and I surfaced from it just in time to feel the wave growing to a crescendo in my stomach and I screamed out, “Nate- don’t stop, don’t stop.” He winked at me, panting, and went faster and faster until I placed my hands firmly on his chest and arched my back, unable to take the pleasure.

In a huge burst of relief, I came. He smirked at me, and I was still panting when he pulled out and bit my neck softly. I was still coming down from the high when he suddenly moved away from me and started to dress himself. He picked up my dress off the floor and threw it at me. My panties he picked up with his thumb and forefinger and announced, “These, I’m keeping.”

Finishing up and leaving me to adjusting my now half assed hair and makeup, Dunlow turned around at the door.

“See you in the office on Monday”

And just like that he was gone.

Chapter 34

Nathaniel

It had been a good weekend.

The ball had been its usual bowl of disappointment, with everyone dying to get a picture with another to increase their social standing.

After all, it was going to a be a whole year before they got to dress up like a million bucks, unless they got invited to the Oscars, which was pretty much not happening.

Screwing Alexis in the manager’s room had been the highlight of the night.

With both of us giving into it, it was a huge success.

Sunday had been eventful again, with Christine popping over and spending and entire day, draining my liquor cabinet and me.

After she left in the early hours of Monday morning, I finally got some sleep.

I was definitely going to have Alexis stop over my office for a lunch break.

The car stopping in front of the office, brought me back to reality,

Another long ass day.

I hope Arthur had a little bit too much to drink over the weekend and did not have his usual energy and zeal to bounce around the office on a Monday morning.

I just cannot take him at all today.

I make my way up to the elevator where I come face to face with Alexis.

She did not seem interested in making eye contact or pursuing a conversation in an elevator full of people.

I passed the 6th floor where my office was, where the entire elevator emptied out, leaving just me and Alexis and in it.

“You didn’t text me back or return any of my calls,” I said to her

‘I was busy,” she replied and then stared at the changing number that was fast turning from 6 to 7 and now to 8.

“Come see me at lunch,” I said grabbing her elbow before she left the elevator.

Clearly annoyed by the proposition, she got herself free from my hand and walked out.

Confused I pushed the button for the 6th floor, ready to face another day at the office.

Maybe she had a bad weekend.

Well how could it be bad, I practically made up for an amazing weekend.

Walking in, the was as usual filled with the Monday night blues with secretaries trying their best to keep up with the ok load that was about to engulf them.

In my office I turn on my laptop to check the news, since Stacy had conveniently forgot to put the daily newspaper on my desk.

The stock market was unusually stable for a Monday; the guys down at Wall Street must be doing something right after all, they did pay thousands of dollars to go to business school and live in debt for years.

Sports page was a bit better with the Yankees winning against the Red Sox.

And then my normal mood turned fowl.

Splattered on the top page was a picture of me along with Christine David’s who was leaving my place in the early hours of the morning.

What the hell?

How did they even get this?

Can’t they leave a person alone?

The fact that my picture was in the newspaper was not a big surprise. I was a regular feature there, so was Christine.

But something about this news piece triggered in me.

In the past I had been linked with numerous women and they had often been photographed leaving my apartment in the early hours of the morning, in more than decent way.

But this news piece, claiming that after the ball, Christine had stayed back and that her and I might possibly be together, was enough to turn my mood foul.

Then it hit me, Alexis had seen this.

Only hours before I had been with her, telling her that I couldn’t live without her and here I had a woman leaving my house, after possibly staying over.

Actually staying over and having sex with her.

I was a little mad at myself even.

If I was starting to like someone, maybe I had to stop screwing around with other.

But was I really falling for Alexis.

Sure she was pretty and smart and just the right amount of sexy.

I had seen her around the office and the way she took on people here who tried to make move on her.

She was a no nonsense woman and she was what I needed exactly and here I was screwing up the chance royally by sleeping with Christine David, the woman who was known from jumping from man to man in a day.

Disgruntled with myself, I called up Stacy on the intercom and asked her to send, a bottle up to Alexis with a card saying, I needed to see her at lunch.

Distracted I couldn’t concentrate on anything at all.

I spent the major part of the day before lunch, attending one big meeting after the other.

Maybe I should go see her up.

But what will that look like?

The boss coming to see up a newbie.

Of course it will look like what it looks like.

That I was screwing her.

What else was anyone else going to think?

I texted Stacy to asked her if she had sent the bottle up and if she had received a reply.

Negative.

Maybe she just wasn’t interested anymore.

Maybe she hadn’t been interested at all and it was all just screw the boss because he’s the boss dilemma for her.

Another half an hour and I decide to go up on my own.

Screw what everyone else thinks.

It’s my office I can see and talk and have sex with anyone that I wanted.

I make my way up to the 8th floor, where Alexis worked and was surprised to see her desk empty.

“Where is Ms. Strope?” I asked Mike’s secretary who was busy scribbling down.

“She went home, sir,” she replied still not looking up from her scribbling.

“Home?” I asked ridiculously.

“Yes she went home. She came in, wasn’t feeling too well so she took the day off and went home,” she said finally looking up from her scribbling.

“IS there anything I can help you with?” she asked.

“No,” I said and walked back to the elevators.

Well if she went home, then I guess I better see how she is, I think to myself as I press the button for the lobby and call my driver to pull up the car.

Chapter 35

Alexis

Ben and Jerry was basically the answer to everything.

Have cramps, have some ice cream.

Having a bad day? Ice cream.

Bad breakup? Ice cream.

Basically, ice cream was a once stop solution for just about everything.

The day had started out like just any other day.

I had still been on a high from the Mayor’s ball, where his highness, Mr. Dangerous of New York City had screwed me, royally in the manager’s office.

It took him an entire day and a half to get back to me and ask me how I was, if only had he done it sooner.

The next day’s papers had been all full about who had been in attendance at the ball and who had been wearing what. But more than that what had caught my attention had been Dunlow’s face next to Christine David and a possible dating rumor.

But was it a rumor?

There were also pictures of her leaving his place in the early hours.

The very same place where I had been a few times, and did my walk of shame, feeling more than satisfied.

Sure Dunlow was known for his various so called girlfriends and he had practically been linked with every girl living in New York, so why was this news piece suddenly bothering me so much?

It’s not like Dunlow and I had been together or anything.

Sure we had great sex, amazing in fact but that was it.

It had never moved passed it.

We never had an actual conversation which didn’t stem from him asking me to come down so he can do me.

We had never been out on an actual date, unless you counted our awkward encounter at a restaurant where we both were eating at the same time, at different tables with different people.

The feeling that this news was personally attacking me was making me mope around so much so that work had been unbearable for me today.

Sure I had got up, made my face and hair and took a cab for the fifteen minute ride and got stuck in traffic, but it all came back to me after I saw Dunlow walk into the same elevator as me.

The last thing I had wanted was to have a conversation with him.

But Dunlow being Dunlow had caught me.

I had managed to get away and avoid him at every possible meeting he had scheduled for the day but the bottle with the card, saying I need to see you, had been too much for me.

What was happening to me?

I had wowed that I was never going to let a man make me feel like I needed him ever again.

After I had broken up with my last boyfriend, I have had enough.

It was always the same, It started out with us being in love, making out whenever we got the chance and then the needing a person more than you could handle came.

That was not going to happen this time around.

A knock on the door, made me break my train of thoughts of self-pity and put my carton of ice cream down.

Who was here in the middle of the day?

Again there was no delivery scheduled and Jess was out of town for a week with Ashley.

Maybe if I just don’t answer it, whoever it is will go away and I can return back to the ugly feeling in my stomach haunting me again.

A second knock made me groan and got up.

Once again the face of Nate Dunlow was staring back at me, making my stomach twist about in an ugly way.

“Ughhhh not you again. Why can’t you just leave me alone?” I asked Dunlow, who looked like he had run the last flight of stairs.

“Do you homestly want me to answer that?” he asked, still standing in the door way.

“Look I took a day off work because I needed to. You are work. I don’t want to see anyone or anything work right now,” I said defiantly hoping he would go away and I could return to my ice cream.

“You want me here and you know it”, he said, as if reading my mind.

“Fat chance,” I scoffed.

“I think one of the other twenty women you slept with this weekend need you. Me, not at all,” I said crossing my arms over my ratty grey t shirt.

“So this is about that,” he said finally pushing his way through to get inside.

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about?” I say knowing perfectly well that at the back of my head this was what had me in a bad place the entire day.

“You know exactly what I am talking about; this is about me and Christine. You act like you don’t care. But you do,” he said pointing towards me.

“You should have seen your face when I had waked over to you with Christine on my arm at the ball. You say you don’t care, but you do. You can’t stand having me screw someone else can you?” he said.

“Wow. Really?” I say sarcastically.

“You think I care who you screw? Sorry to disappoint you Mr. New York. I don’t. It’s not like we were together. All we did was have some good sex and then take a shower and walk away. Nothing else. Don’t make mountains out of molehills,” I scream at him.

He stares at me for a while and then sits down at the kitchen table.

“I love you”, he says.

I stare at him as if he had gone mad.

“I get it. Billionaire, playboy, super good looking, I have all the makings of an asshole. And maybe I am. But not always,” he said.

“Ever since the day I saw you, all I wanted was you. You have been driving me insane,” he added.

‘Every time I see you, all I want to do, is have sex with you, the crazy kind, that’s what you look like and feel like. A crazy person, a crazy person who is determined to drive me insane”.

“I have never have had a steady girlfriend, never found a girl, smart enough to have her stick around for so long. But you, you’re different. You either care too much or not at all,” he said, staring at me with those steel grey eyes.

“You have not spoken two words to me outside of work, ever to ask me who I am and what I like. All we do every time we meet is rip each other’s clothes off and have mindless sex and then walk away,” I again half scream at him.

“Do you even know anything about me? Where I’m from and what is my favorite food?” I say.

“And now you’re telling me you love me? What is this?’ I say and let out a short laugh.

He pushed back the chair and got up and in two strides had closed the distance between us.

“That is exactly what I am saying,” he said.

Before I could say anything he had covered my mouth with his and had his arms wrapped around.

Trying to push him back unsuccessfully, I gave in and put my arms around his neck as he continued to press down on me.

A few seconds later we broke apart a silly smile on both of our faces.

“So which one is yours?” he asked pointing towards the two bed rooms doors belonging to me and Jess.

Chapter 36

Nathaniel

I woke up with a jolt not knowing what had suddenly woken me up from my sleep.

A soft snore rose from the bed and brought me back to where I was.

Alexis’s bedroom.

We had spent the greater part of the day in the bedroom, her bed to be exact and had only left when the food arrived.

Waited a couple of hours and had dived right back into the bed.

Never had a day felt more productive than it today.

A text on the phone, and Alexis stirred before she went back to her sleep.

A few seconds later, her phone started ringing and she woke up.

Groping around, she found her phone but before she could answer it, the call ended.

“Hey beautiful,” I said as Alexis turned on her side to face me.

Giving me a half sleepy smile, she got up, pushed the covers off her and climbed on top of me, straddling me as she reached for the hem of my shirt, pulling it over my head. I marvelled at the perfect lines and curves of her body- the hardened light brown of her nipples, the perfect taut skin that stretched over smooth stomach and the swell of her hips. She leaned over me laying her palms flat across my skin, pressing down hard as she reached down to kiss me.

I bit her lower lip and she kissed me harder- I knew she could feel my erection between her legs and she wriggled her hips, pushing against it. I tucked my thumb and forefinger into the waistband of my boxers, slipping them off with some difficulty since I didn’t want her to stop kissing me- and I didn’t want to stop touching her. My fingers made their way between her legs and as I started to rub her clit, she bit her lip, unable to stop herself from letting out a loud moan.

My fingers moved faster and she threw her arms around my neck, pressing her body against mine as I breathed her in- she smelled of fresh bed sheets and coffee and I tasted sunlight on her skin. She bit down on my shoulder, leaving an imprint of her mouth as I slid two fingers inside of her and moved them in a swirling motion.

She moved like she had never had an orgasm like that before- her entire body felt like it was on fire from within and it was as though she had no control over her movements.

She jerked rapidly forwards and backwards and I placed my hands on her delicate waist as she stretched my neck as far back as it would go and let out a scream of pure pleasure. She fell down exhausted and I stretched out next to her, lazily kissing her arm as she draped it over her eyes.

“You’re a loud one,” I said, making sure she could hear the smile in my voice. She removed her arm from her eyes and looked at me just as I looked at her- the gentle light of the day filtered in through the lace curtains of the window and glowed upon her face. I sighed as I reached out and traced her mouth with the tip of my finger; she opened her mouth and lightly bit my finger as she pressed her body to my side. She reached over and patted my crotch to see that I was still hard. She winked at me and sat up and half-twisted her upper body to face me as I propped myself up on one elbow and looked at her languidly. I leaned over and kissed her, slowly this time, pulling away as she started to get invested in the kiss. She started to kiss me again but I moved away- I wanted her to want me so much that it drove her mad.

I kissed her neck and started to move lower down the length of her body, kissing her breasts, her stomach, her abdomen and then I pulled her back on top of me. She opened her legs again and slowly let herself down on my dick, riding it as she leaned forwards and whispered, “You ready for round two?”

I lay back and watched her do the work, her breasts swinging and bouncing as she moved her lithe little body in a rhythm. I reached behind her and started to caress her ass, running my hands lightly over the rounded cheeks before I swiftly spanked her hard.

She gasped, looking at me with surprise, and then she half-closed her eyes and whispered, “Again.”

I grinned and spanked her again, harder this time. Her muscles tightened on my dick and she gasped, her breasts bouncing as she leaned down towards me. I pushed myself up a little and took her nipple in my mouth, lightly biting it. She started to move up and down, taking me deeper and deeper into her.

It was my turn to gasp, she twisted her body in ways that blew my mind. Her long legs were on either side of me and she pressed her palms down on my chest as she grinded against my dick. I slipped in and out of her wet pussy and she reached down and licked my lips. I kissed her fiercely and held her there as I started to feel it building up inside me.

“Don’t stop,” I warned her. “I’m so close, don’t you dare stop.”

She moved faster and faster, taking me even deeper into her. Suddenly, I wrapped my fingers in her hair and pulled, clenching my jaw as I felt pure unadulterated pleasure and came inside her. She kept moving until I was done, and then she leaned forward and bit my ear. It was too much, and I threw back my head and moaned her name.

Rolling off me, she sighed with satisfaction, and I recovered from the mindblowing sex we had just had. I turned to her.

“Would making this official make you happy?” I asked her as she sat up in the bed, shaking her long man of auburn hair.

Dammnnnnnnnnnn she looked amazing in that color and with those green flecked eyes, she was a perfect package.

“Do you think you will stick around long enough to make it official?” she asked playfully, the wicked spark back in her eyes.

“I guess we will just have to see about that now, won’t we,” I replied and pulled her back into towards me.

Chapter 37

Alexis

Everything was different now.

I was with Dunlow now.

Jess had taken the news not entirely happily but she was nevertheless ecstatic to know what Dunlow’s private apartment looked like and if he did have the rumored sex room, some tabloids claimed he had.

Filling in Jess about what had gone down after the ball didn’t take too long.

We screwed, we went home.

He screwed someone else at his place and I got jealous and that was how I ended up with Dunlow.

It wasn’t the perfect fairy tale but it wasn’t so bad either.

I mean the papers had a field day when they officially uncovered who the mysterious red head had been with New York’s most powerful man.

With all the press there was constant digging that came along with it and it got too a point, where my mother who rarely bothered to check up on me since I had moved to the big apple, called, distressed that people had been calling her left and right asking about me and my family and how I was like a kid.

I wasn’t big on sharing my childhood with anyone, let along complete strangers, but then again I had done what no other woman could do before.

Get Dunlow to settle down.

Of course he still went out at night and partied and drank like there was no tomorrow, but then he also made sure that he did end up coming back to his place or mine and slept.

Which was very unlike him.

The wild beast of New York, late night was finally taming down.

I wasn’t sure how he was taking it, but so far he had made sure, he was not seen photographed with another woman.

It’s not like I was some psycho who didn’t want him seeing other people, it’s just I didn’t want another rumor mill starting and me being harassed at all times starting again.

I liked my unknown phases where I was just another person who went about with her everyday life.

Work had also turned around for me ever since it became official I was seeing Dunlow.

The girls who had made it through with me after the three month probationary period wore killer looks all the time.

If they didn’t talk to me before this, they now completely ignored me.

Not that I cared or anything, but I don’t think throwing themselves at the boss was not going to work with Dunlow.

He had plenty of women already doing that to him.

The boys on the other hand, who had made it their business too ogle me every time I had walked into the break room for coffee, tried to have conversation with me, hoping I would do them next.

Not this time boys.

I had my eyes on only one man and his name was Nathaniel Dunlow.

Chapter 38

Nathanial

Having a person steady in your life was something new to me.

Never before I had one person who, I met every other night and made out with.

High school, college and all after that had been one roller coaster of a ride, at thirty two I had finally decided that maybe it was time to find someone and try to have a normal relationship with them.

Maybe this was not the best decision for me.

I was not made for this.

Sure Alexis was amazing but I was a little tired with all the constant news about us that was plastered on the entertainment pages.

I mean come on. It was becoming a little tiresome.

And then the endless office gossip.

First it had been about how practically woman in the office wanted to get into my pants and now it was this.

And to top it all off, Mike Hadderly had not exactly been very welcoming and charming since the whole Alexis and I dating thing had come out.

Come on man what exactly had you been thinking.

His being cold and distant only remained for a few days before he realized that we both were in this for the long run.

On the other hand Arthur was more than happy for some strange reason. He had finally decided to retire and spend the rest of his time, cruising the world in his newly purchased boat.

If that was humanely possible.

Damnnnnn you Arthur, just as things were finally settling down you had to go and retire.

Who was going to keep a check on things and make sure that I don’t screw up?

However, the happiest person in the office seemed to me Mrs. Stroman.

She now could look forward to less complains, about made up attacks against girls by me.

Idiots.

Didn’t these people realize I had way too much money and I could use that to drag cases for years through the courts?

Some people just wanted to watch the world burn.

Alexis was starting to grow on me, slowly and steadily, sure I loved that woman, but there was this irresistible charm to her that made me think twenty times before I wanted to do something to her.

Shaking my head as a knock on the door brought me back.

“You ready to go?” a dressed up Alexis pushed open the door and walked into my bedroom.

“Woah you look good,” I said admiring her in the green dress that went with her auburn hair.

“What can I say, I am dating a person with some amazing taste in clothes,” she said perching herself on the edge of the bed that made the dress ride up even higher exposing her long legs.

Looking at her, something inside me stirred.

‘What time is our reservation?” I asked her.

“7:30”, she says.

I looked at my watch to see my watch telling the time as 6:45.

“If we leave at 7 we can make it in time, also what is the point of me being rich if I can’t strut in and demand a table whenever I want?” I say removing my shirt and moving towards her.

“Well, for starters, it might not make the others feel bad, whose place you eventually take up”, she said slowly sliding the strap of her dress off.

“Ehhhhhh, doesn’t matter, also I think ten minutes is more than enough for us. Don’t you?” I asked catching a hold of her hands and pushing her back into the bed.

“5 if you’re good and ready,” she said with a smirk.

Chapter 39

Alexis

Four months in and I think both of us were finally getting the hang of this boyfriend girlfriend thing.

Neither one of us wanted to be labeled but then again who does?

But as people would have it, we eventually were.

The initial reaction to both of us being together had not exactly been welcoming, but with four months down the line, and with neither one of us giving a crap about other people, we had stuck around.

Eventually, it just became another story and the wonder and amazement started to die down.

The press not so much.

Jess had finally come to accept that Dunlow did not have a ‘secret sex pad” where he took all his women and had a long and hard discussion with him on why he should have had one and it would have just made things easier for him.

How exactly, she never said. Not that Jess ever gave a straight answer for anything.

On the other hand she had come to accept that there were going to be some days when Dunlow would just come walking out of the bathroom in nothing but just a towel around his torso, and that, that this was going to be normal.

As for her and Ashley, a summer wedding was on the books, with yours truly serving as bridesmaid.

Things had taken quitter a turn for me ever since I came to New York, from being the outcast, to the marketing major and an asshole boss who just wanted to sleep with me; it had all turned out okay in the end.

THE END