Desire Page 3

  “They’ll be waiting. Let’s wait a bit longer, but in the light,” Leo says.

  He shifts his body away from mine, and noisily runs his hands over the wall. A switch clicks, and the space fills with light. My eyelids blink furiously, adjusting to the sudden brightness.

  After a moment, I can take in my surroundings. We’re in some kind of janitor’s closet and storage area.

  The room is small. Widthwise, I can touch both walls at the same time. It’s maybe seven feet long, with a bare-bones utility sink at the far end. Mops and buckets are crammed alongside it. Stacks of packs of toilet paper run along one wall.

  This is my chance. The big break I’ve been waiting for.

  “Mini Motivations aims to be the most effective yet positive way for parents to motivate their children in everything from chores to schoolwork to simply rewarding behavior,” I start.

  “For fuck’s sake,” Leo says, rolling his eyes.

  “And it’s done in a way that’s fun for parents and children. But at this time we need real brands to motivate most effectively, rather than our in-house created virtual toys and games. We would like to—”

  “I am not discussing this now,” he says, shaking his head.

  “If you’d just hear me out, I’m sure it’s something you would love to be a part of.”

  “I ran into this cupboard to get away from people trying to pitch their ideas to me.”

  “But this one is different,” I say, my voice pleading.

  “No, it isn’t.”

  “If you would listen, you would understand that it is. I’m just asking for a chance.”

  “I’m out of here,” he says, and grabs the door handle.

  His hand yanks back and forth, but the handle doesn’t budge.

  “We are all about making life fun, even the boring parts of life. “

  “Fucking hell.” He wrestles harder with the door, pushing and pulling and jamming the handle and door every way he can.

  “Because what’s the point of living if everything’s a chore? Your brands are safe with us. They are loved by children and parents everywhere, and we will do everything to ensure our app only increases their brand value.”

  “Would you stop talking!”

  “I can’t. We need them to make our app a success.”

  Leo turns to me, puts his hands on my shoulders, stares into my eyes and growls, “We’re locked in a fucking storage closet. We have to get out of here. This isn’t the time to talk about whatever hare-brained idea you have.”

  My shoulders sink. I’ve barely registered the situation. I’ve been too focused on pitching the company. Is it more important to focus on getting the license for his brands or on getting out of here?

  I open my mouth again. “We’d be willing to take a short-term contract, say a period of twelve months?”

  “What is wrong with you? We’re stuck in a cupboard.”

  “If you listen I think you’d find our idea is solid. There’s nothing hare-brained about it.”

  “Save your breath, I’m not giving you my brands.”

  Chapter 5

  Leo

  I bang on the door as hard as I can. Surely there’s someone around to hear me. Now I wish I hadn’t gone down so many unused hallways. I was trying to get away from those vultures.

  Now I’m stuck in a closet with one.

  Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I scroll through my contacts to find Martin’s number. I hit call, but there isn’t a signal. Not even the hint of one.

  Holding the phone in my long arms, I wave it through every inch of the little room, desperate for cell phone coverage.

  There is none.

  “Try with your phone,” I snap.

  “I’d love to show you what our app looks like,” Grace says, digging her phone out of her little purse.

  “Grace,” I bark. “What is your problem? We have to focus on getting out of here. Do you have any coverage?”

  Her mouth quivers. She looks at me with her big eyes, looks at her phone, and looks back to me again. Shaking her head, she stuffs the phone back in her purse.

  “What do we do?” she asks, mindlessly trying to turn the door handle.

  “Make noise,” I say, and kick the door.

  “Help!” she screams.

  I continue kicking and pounding on the door, as Grace screams over and over. My eardrums are bursting from her yelling, but I ignore it in the hopes of getting free.

  After ten minutes, I say, “It’s no use.”

  “My throat,” Grace says, rubbing her neck.

  She turns to the little sink and turns on the faucet. Bending over, she scoops water into her mouth. I can’t take my eyes off her luscious ass. And bending over has made her already short dress ride up higher, revealing more of her creamy thighs.

  Why did she have to turn out to be from a startup, wanting something from me? Everyone I meet wants something from me, with no exception.

  Too bad. I was really looking forward to fucking her.

  Grace stands and turns back around to face me. She takes a deep breath and I recoil against the door, waiting for her to start going on about her company again.

  “Since we’re stuck here and all, you might as well listen. And look.” She digs in her purse again and pulls out the phone. “Let me show you. You will love it, I promise.”

  “I won’t, I promise.” I glare at her, willing her to stop.

  What kind of torture is this? Being stuck in some cruddy little storage room with the sexiest woman alive, only she isn’t interested in getting down and dirty. All she wants is my money.

  “Just have a look, please.”

  I need out of this cupboard. Now. My blood boiling, I turn back to the door and start kicking it as hard as I can.

  “There’s no point, remember?” she says.

  “It stops me from having to listen to you.”

  “I don’t know why you won’t hear me out.”

  I stop kicking and spin to face her. Through my gritted teeth I say, “Do you have any idea of how many people like you try to get me to invest in their companies every single day? Did you not see the people out there trying to get things from me? Why do you think we ended up in this cupboard? Because I was running from them.”

  “Yes, but our company is different.”

  “Everyone says that.”

  “But in my case, it’s true.”

  “No, sweetheart, trust me, it ain’t.”

  “Just have a look,” Grace says, her fingers flying over her screen.

  Unbelievable. This woman will not drop it. She’s got nerves. First stalking me in my hotel lobby, then going all the way through this charade of dinner when she knew I thought she was an escort.

  God, I can’t believe the things I said to her, or the ways I touched her.

  Why didn’t she stop me? I would never treat a woman that way unless I knew they wanted me to do that.

  “Our revenue model is solid. Our marketing is solid. All we need from you is your brand license, and we are one hundred percent sure we will be a massive success.”

  I kick the door, glare at her, and say, “If I buy your company will you shut the fuck up?”

  Grace’s eyes flare at my words. She stares at me, her perky tits heaving with her breath. I could bury myself in that Grand Canyon cleavage right now.

  “Do you really mean that?” she asks.

  Shaking my head, I pull my eyes from her chest. I lean my head against the door, to listen in case anyone walks down the back hallway.

  “Mean what?”

  “That you’ll buy our company?”

  “If that’s what it takes to make you shut up.”

  She opens her mouth to speak, but I glare at her with a death stare and she shuts it again.

  I sink to the floor, with my back against the door. That way I can hear if someone walks down the hallway.

  I’m eye level with Grace’s thighs, and my mind wanders. Images of me undressing her flow throu
gh my mind. All evening, I’ve been thinking about all the things I wanted to do to her.

  My dick is twitching at the images. I should stop, but what else am I supposed to think about in a situation like this?

  Is she a screamer or a moaner? I bet she’s a moaner.

  For a moment I consider standing and pulling her into my arms to find out. But she’d probably talk about her company the whole time I was fucking her.

  Grace pulls the back of her dress down, and sits on the floor with her back against the stacks of toilet paper.

  “How are we going to get out of here?” she asks.

  “Someone will do a sweep of the convention center before it closes.”

  I glance at my watch, it’s getting close to midnight. We’ve been trapped in this closet for what seems like an eternity.

  “Your speech was good,” Grace says, breaking the long silence.

  My eyes shift up, and I worry she’s going to start talking about her company again.

  “It was really insightful, but also funny and entertaining. You were great,” she continues.

  I wait, but no plea for money comes.

  “Thanks, I appreciate it,” I say.

  “I guess it helps the nerves when you know everyone in the room worships you.”

  Chuckling, I say, “No one worships me, they worship my money.”

  “I don’t know. I think you’re more than a dollar sign.”

  “Not to them, trust me.”

  “Is that why you hold them all in contempt?”

  “Pretty much. I learned that the hard way.”

  Grace’s head tilts to the floor, and she plays with the tip of her stiletto.

  “I can understand why you react to them the way you do. It must be nonstop, and frustrating.”

  “Especially when you get trapped in a small room with one,” I say, chuckling.

  She bursts out laughing, and the two of us laugh hysterically. I can’t stop laughing at the ridiculous situation I’m in.

  We laugh and laugh until suddenly the lights switch off.

  “What just happened?” Grace asks, a remnant of laughter still in her voice.

  Flicking my phone screen on, I checked the time. Midnight.

  I hold the screen up for Grace to see, and say, “I guess it’s lights out for the night.”

  “Now what do we do?”

  “Pray for a signal?” I say, standing and moving the phone around to try to find a single bar.

  I stumble over Grace’s feet, which I can’t see in the darkness. On reflex, I flick the phone screen down and see her gorgeous face peering up at me.

  Chapter 6

  Grace

  “Here, sit on this,” Leo says, breaking the silence.

  He flicks on his phone screen, and hands me one of the packs of toilet paper. Taking it from him, I lay it flat on the floor and sit on it. He switches his phone off again.

  “Oh, that’s much better,” I say, as my butt cheeks fill with relief.

  I’ve been sitting in the dark on the hard floor for half an hour now. I don’t even want to think about dirty it might be.

  It’s weird, sitting in the pitch black like this with Leo Newbury. Since the lights went out we haven’t talked much, other than for him to tell me to save my phone battery for the morning.

  All I’ve been doing is wondering how I got myself into this situation. And how I’ve completely failed my attempt at saving our company.

  No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t even get him to listen about Mini Motivations.

  There’s no way we’re getting out of here tonight. I’m exhausted and freaked out about being stuck here but can’t imagine getting any sleep.

  Another pack of toilet paper hitting the floor sounds out beside me, followed by Leo collapsing beside me. His arm brushes against mine. We are close, but there’s not much choice in this tiny little space.

  “Sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable at dinner with the way I was talking to you and touching you,” Leo says.

  “That’s fine, you thought I was your whore for the night.”

  “It’s not my fault you presented yourself that way.”

  I sigh, too exhausted to go down that path again.

  “How was I supposed to know you use escorts? Why do you use them anyway? Someone like you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a date.”

  It’s something I can’t get my head around. Aside from being rich, he is insanely attractive. Women must fall at his feet.

  “That’s none of your business.”

  “Is it the money thing again?” I ask.

  Leo grunts, and says, “Something like that.”

  Silence falls between us again, making the room seem even darker. I still don’t know how much Shawna set me up, or if she told him I was a virgin and that he could sleep with me. Just thinking about it fills me with rage.

  “Did my boss tell you about me ahead of time?”

  “I have no idea who your boss is.”

  “So, you didn’t specifically know I was supposed to be your escort?”

  “I just assumed from the way you were dressed. And remember, you are the one who came up to me in the hotel lobby.” His voice is unexpectedly tender, and all my previous anger about it seems to vanish.

  “She dressed me, the company owner. She picked the dress and did my hair and make-up.”

  “She did a good job, you got my attention.”

  “Yeah, as a prostitute.”

  “She must be desperate, sending one of the young employees out the way she did. I’ve seen some pretty extreme attempts to get my attention, but this one takes the cake.”

  “Why did you keep saying things at dinner about it being my first time?” I ask, my voice hesitant.

  “Because you weren’t acting like a normal escort does, I figured it was your first night on the job.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Yeah, what else would it be? Unless…” Leo’s voice trails off.

  A wave of relief washes over me. I’m so happy he wasn’t talking about me being a virgin over dinner.

  After a moment, Leo asks, “How old are you?”

  “Twenty-three. Why?”

  He pauses, and says, “Young enough to be pretty inexperienced, huh?”

  My eyes flare in the dark. Is he hinting at what I think he’s hinting at?

  “I have plenty of experience, thank you,” I snap.

  His hand brushes against mine, and I flinch at the surprise. Leo rests his hand over mine, and a burst of tingles rushes over my skin. I swallow hard. Afraid of his intentions, I pull my hand away and clasp it with my other hand on my lap.

  Leo clears his throat, and says, “It’s weird being with someone in the dark. I was just checking you’re really there, is all.”

  I can hear him shuffling his body, but don’t know what he’s doing. It’s freaky. He could be naked and masturbating for all I know.

  I wonder what he looks like naked. He’s probably ripped, if the way his hard body felt when we walked into the event with his arm around me is anything to go by.

  Closing my eyes, I try to clear my mind of him. He talked to me like a jerk all the way here and over dinner. But I guess that was my own fault, since he thought I was something I’m not.

  “What do you like to do for shits and giggles?” he asks.

  “What? It’s the middle of the night, and we’re trapped, and you’re asking me that?”

  “Why not? Got to pass the time somehow.”

  “I don’t know, I’ve been so focused on trying to build a career that I don’t do much else.”

  “Are you from California?”

  “Tennessee originally, but I left soon as I could.”

  “Big plans to conquer the world?”

  “Not really, I just don’t want to repeat my mother’s life is all.”

  “It was that bad?”

  “It was, and my older sister is living it now. I had to get out. I didn’t want to get pregnant before
I was out of my teens.”

  I don’t know why I’m telling him all this. I haven’t even told Anna, and we live together as well as work together. I suppose it’s the darkness. It’s almost like talking to yourself, and makes you say way more than you ever would with the lights on.

  “You seem determined, I admire that,” Leo says.

  I laugh, and ask, “Where are you from?”

  “New York City, although I grew up in Connecticut.”

  “Of course, the rich boy.”

  Leo huffs, and I feel bad for my comment.

  “You can tell me about your company now, if you want,” he says.

  It’s funny. Those are the words I’ve been trying to get him to say all night, but now that they have been said I have zero desire to talk about it.

  “Let’s talk about something else,” I say.

  “Do you like movies?” he asks.

  “I prefer box sets. I love getting sucked into a big story for the weekend.”

  “Ha, me too. I love getting a day off and spending it at home, where no one can bother me, and finding some random new show on Netflix,” Leo says, his voice animated.

  “I bet you’re an Orange Is the New Black man,” I say, laughing.

  “That’s one of my favorites.”

  We spend ages talking about our favorite shows and characters. Turns out Leo’s not so bad, once you get to know him. We talk until I can barely speak through my yawning.

  My eyelids are heavy, and my body aches. Although I kicked off my stilettos as soon as I could, I’m dying to get out of this tight dress.

  “Anyway, it looks like we are here for the night. We should try to sleep,” Leo says.

  We both knew we wouldn’t get out of here until morning, but it didn’t seem real until now.

  “There is no way I’m lying on this floor,” I say. Half my skin is exposed, and I shudder to think of how gross the floor is.

  “No problem, I’ll make us a mattress out of the toilet paper.”

  Leo uses his phone for light, and starts lying out the packs of toilet paper until he uses all the packs. The floor is almost entirely covered with them.

  “Are we sleeping head to toe?” I ask.