“So, tell me a bit about yourself,” I asked. We’d just ordered our food, and the silence was beginning to make me uncomfortable in a hyper-aware kind of way.
Everything about this Hendrix Parker was killing my resolve to stay poised and not let him run this meeting. He was a heady concoction.
How he looked at me.
His masculine scent and the way it violated my senses.
The casual way he smirked each time I was caught checking him out.
“I’m sure you already know who I am.” Hendrix sat back in his seat and raised a brow. Appraised me. Dared me to refute his claim.
Cocky much? And while that normally would annoy me, it worked for him. Made him a bit more desirable.
Women were attracted to men that were trouble, and I wasn’t immune to that syndrome.
Especially not dressed as he was in a pair of tailored navy dress pants that were molded over the lower half of his over six-foot frame. The moment he ushered me into my seat, I’d raked my eyes over every delicious inch and didn’t miss the bulge under his zipper.
Above, he wore a pinstripe shirt in a combination of maroon, blue, and white with a slim tie in the same tint of red around his neck. On his wrist was a thick gold watch.
But it was the rolled-up sleeves that did me in. How could forearms be this sinful?
Clearing my throat, I brought my soda up to my lips and took a sip. “I’m sorry, but to be honest with you, Mr. Parker...I have no clue who you are.”
“Hendrix, please, and I find that hard to believe.” His hazel orbs narrowed, his intensity causing me to fidget. I felt his eyes sweep over me, a gentle caress across my collarbones and the top of my breasts that made me nervous. “Everyone in this city does.”
Statement.
This man wasn’t hiding his status or the position of power he thought he wielded. Maybe that was part of the sugar daddy allure. His way of telling me he could provide what I needed.
A few beads of sweat rolled down the back of my neck, and I felt flushed. Reality was setting in. How I was about to sell myself to pay for my education.
It weighed heavy on my heart.
“I don’t.” It came out low, a whisper, but he heard. The twitch of his lip told me as much.
“Lying isn’t the best way to start our negotiations, Beau. No need to be shy.”
“Well, it’s the truth,” I said, and then licked my bottom lip. They felt dry all of a sudden.
“You should.” Hendrix’s eyes followed the movement. Hooded, his pupils were slightly dilated. Leaning forward, he reached a hand out toward mine and skimmed a single digit across my wrist, and goose bumps broke out across my arms.
“Should I be worried?” Part of me already was. This was moving into a territory I wasn’t ready for just yet; his gentle touch was unsettling.
“What if I’m a psychopath, Beau?” And damn him if I didn’t love the way my name rolled off his tongue. “Beautiful little girls like you should know better than to meet up with strangers.”
Chest expanding—nostrils flaring a tiny bit—he let out a hum from the back of his throat that made every muscle in my body tense. Pleasurable, it was as if he were breathing in something arousingly pleasant. Approved of my scent.
Fast and crazy, I was perturbed by my reactions to him. That little girl comment came out condescending, and yet, I was more concerned with the direction things were heading.
“Are you a psychopath? Should I be scared?” My nipples were hard beneath the top of my dress, rubbing against the fabric with each inhale of my own. They throbbed each time his eyes swept down, appraising me once more.
Since the moment we were seated, I’d gulped down my soda, avoided eye contact—as much as I could without seeming rude—and clenched my thighs a total of eight times.
This man was the definition of dirty, hot sex.
Confident.
Powerful.
Someone who knew what he wanted, and at the moment, his attention was on me.
“Terrified.”
“Why?” And damn if my voice didn’t come out breathless. “Why should I be?” What is wrong with me? His chuckle pulled me from that thought. The calculating man sitting across from me seemed amused now, his features softening. “What? Something on my face?”
“No.”
“Then?”
“You’re a breath of fresh air, Miss Carter. Perfect for what I need.” As soon as those words passed through his lips, he sobered, and a guarded expression overtook his features. What sat before me now was a businessman, and the boyish grin from a minute ago became a memory. “My proposition will be beneficial to the both of us.”
“Who ordered the Prohibition?” A waitress came to the table then, interrupting us. Hendrix pointed toward his side of the table and she placed his large burger before him. “And here are your lettuce wraps, ma’am. Need anything else?”
“Refill, please.” I pushed my empty glass toward her, and she nodded with a smile before walking away. Looking back toward my lunch date, I opened my mouth to speak—ask him to lay out his request before I did mine, but he held a hand up to stop me.
“Eat first. I’ll explain how this will all work afterward.” Nothing else was said; Hendrix picked up half of his massive sandwich and took a bite. For a few minutes all I did was watch him eat; enjoyed the way he would savor each morsel and then how his Adams Apple would bob while he swallowed. “Eat.”
“Sorry.” Could feel the blush overcome my face, and I looked down toward my own food. Meek, it came out low, and I paused just as my fingers touched the fork beside my plate.
This man, who I’d barely known for more than an hour, was turning me into a blushing fool. A bumbling teenage idiot, which I wasn’t.
Never had been.
We ate in silence while my mind ran. Nothing, not one of the things Zoe had prepared me for had happened thus far.
He approached me. He set up this meeting. He wanted to dominate the negotiations...
“Something wrong with your food, Beau? Not to your liking?” That time his condescending tone rubbed me wrong, and I glared. Who did he think he was?
Our meeting wasn’t going to work.
“Do us both a favor and quit telling me what to do or how I feel,” I spit through clenched teeth. Whiplash was a bitch, and our interaction thus far had thrown me off my horse. One second, I lusted over him and the next, I wanted to turn and run.
“Did I upset you?” A corner of his top lip curled into a sinful smirk. “Were you expecting something grander than a gastro pub and beer?”
My brows furrowed. “What are you talking about?”
“Just that maybe this isn’t luxurious enough for you.” Hendrix waved his hand around the space.
And that’s when it hit me. He was judging me for being on that site even though he was too.
Won’t deny that it’d hurt.
“Have a good day, Mr. Parker.” Placing my napkin down beside my food, I slid from the cozy booth and took two steps. This placed me just beside his clenched fist atop the table. Mimicking his earlier move, I fingered the smooth edge of his gold watch. “It was nice to meet you, but I believe our ventures just won’t match. Good luck in your future endeavors.”
With more grace than I thought I possessed at that moment, I walked out. My knees shook, and stomach clenched with each step I took, but on the outside, I was confident. Head held high.
Hendrix Parker was not about to make me feel ashamed about the recent choices I’d made. Fuck him.
The closer to my car I drew, anger turned into sadness.
Digging into my purse, I grabbed my keys and with a trembling hand pressed the fob to unlock my car. Fingers had just touched the latch when a large male hand grabbed my arm and turned me around.
“The hell,” I yelped, my knee coming up to hit my attacker and missed. Fight or flight, I reacted and threw a punch that landed square on a strong jaw. “Ouch.” That had hurt. My hand throbbed. Nothing deterred him though, one hand held tightly onto my arm while the other squeezed my hip. “Let go!”
His breathing grew labored, a low hiss escaping the back of his throat.
My eyes tried to focus through the tears forming. Ignoring them, I blindly threw another hit.
“Enough of that.” Hendrix’s voice carried through my panic, and at once I sagged in relief. That feeling of calm lasted a minute before the ire took a hold once more.
“You need to—”
“Calm down, woman. No need to draw an audience,” he growled low; his face twisted into a scowl. And while his words were said with a tinge of anger, his touch remained gentle. “Just give me a few minutes of your time.”
“No.” It was the first thing that came to mind. I’d never thought in a million years that he would follow me out of the pub.
He didn’t seem like the kind of man that chased.
Hendrix loosened his hold on my arm, his hand finding purchase on the other side of my waist. Fingertips flexing, he pressed me back. I was at his mercy.
Was how I realized just how close we were.
His lips touched the shell of my ear; his exhale caused my breath to catch. “We need each other.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mr. Parker.” It left me on a whimper.
“Call me Hendrix, Beau.” Thumbs running soothing circles over my lace-covered hip bones, he breathed in deep and let out another happy hum.
“Hendrix, I—”
“Shhh...” He placed a single finger over my lips while smiling down at me. Gone for the time being was the jerk from inside. This stranger was the man I let lead me toward our table and I found irresistibly handsome. “You feel that?”
“Yes.” Couldn’t deny it. Insane, intense, and a whiplash-inducing desire that had me doubting the world around me.
At my reply, his smile curled into a cocky smirk. “There’s a certain electrical buzz between you and I...” the fingers on my hips tightened and my eyes rolled back “...that works in our favor. Lust is a powerful emotion, and I welcome it, nymph.”
A second ago he insinuated you were a gold digger...
“Wait!” My hands, which had been pressed against his chest, tried to push him back. Create some space between our bodies. “Step back.”
Hendrix did as I asked, but not before giving my hip another toe-curling squeeze. “As you wish.”
“Thank you.” Taking in a deep breath, I tried to calm my erratic heart. Gather my thoughts while he watched me with a calculating gaze. This man unnerved me to the core, and I wasn’t prepared for his games.
We’d never work out when all he saw in me was an opportunistic bitch.
“Stop overthinking things, Beau. Nothing has to be complicated unless we make it so.”
I crossed my arms over my chest and raised a brow. “Says the man who insinuated I was an escort back there.”
“I’m an ass, Beau, and make no apologies for it.” For a quick moment there was a flash of regret that danced across his features. Came as quickly as it vanished. “But, and here’s where I make up for this fault...I’m an even better business partner. Help me, sweetheart, and I’ll take care of your every need. Trust me.”