Page 4 of Submit
“Only for you.” She sighs. “You’ve got this.”
“Thank you honey. Back to work now.”
“Yes, Sir.” She giggles and sashays away from me, giving me a little show with the sway of her hips as she goes back to her desk.
I bite my lower lip as I watch her ass move under that tight skirt, then bring my knuckle up to my mouth and bite that too.
Fuck, that woman is gorgeous.
The office seems to get busier as I make my way to the private escape I own in the corner. It’s my little piece of heaven away from home and doesn’t match the pristine whites and chromes of the rest of the building. It resembles more of how I like to keep my home, dark woods, warm colors, and a scent that reminds me of the holidays all year round.
Hanging my suit jacket up on the coat rack in the corner, I roll up the sleeves of my pale blue dress shirt and walk across the vast space, straightening up the magazines on the coffee table between two dark brown, leather couches in the center of the office. A quick pat to the forest green and cream throw pillows makes everything look homey and inviting, even though I don’t really like people in my space.
My desk waits for me in front of the massive glass windows that look out over the city and the edges of Central Park. It’s the prefect view to people watch, even from this height. I can see all the benches beyond the wrought iron fences of the park, see all the runners on the paths, and ogle all the cute nannies pushing the strollers of their charges.
The scenery is beautiful with all the snow on the grass of the park and glistening in the branches of the trees under the morning sunlight. Not many people are out and about with the cold weather, but I do recognize some of the regular joggers as I stand behind my chair, sipping my macchiato in the warmth of the inside.
“Adrian?”
“Hmmm?” I answer the voice of Daniel, my V.P. of operations and best friend since high school.
Turning around I see him at the door, his head through the opening of it, his body still out in the hall. He knows never to come all the way in unless invited, and he looks at me in question, finally coming in when I give him a curt nod.
“I got your memo over the weekend, and I think that everything should be fine. I double checked those acquisitions you were concerned about by the Japanese, and they are all on the up and up. They looked a little shady at first, from being run through Russian banks first, but it’s all legit.”
“Good.” I sigh, taking another sip of my drink, offering him a seat on one of the couches with a sweep of my tattooed hand towards it.
“Nah, I’m gonna run. I wanna get a couple more things done before we start.” He answers me, running his hand through his thick black hair that drops just to his nape.
He’s an attractive man, just as much so as me, and has no problems getting the ladies, but he’s chosen to be single all this time, the same as I. We really are two peas in a pod, working together and playing together for so many years that he could easily be my brother.
“A couple things? Or a couple…playthings?” I chuckle, watching him waggle his eyebrows in jest before he throws me a wink and backs out the door, closing it quietly behind him. “That’s my boy.”
My chair squeaks quietly as I sit behind my desk, the supple leather enveloping me in its natural warmth as I put my feet up on the desk and clasp my hands on my chest, closing my eyes. The silence of the room hugs me tightly, relaxing me as I run through the words I want to say in the meeting that is drawing ever so close.
I’m lost in my thoughts, my body motionless, the only movement is the pictures behind my closed eyelids as I visualize the president of the Japanese company shaking my hand and agreeing to my terms. If I think and wish hard enough for it, maybe I can make it a self-fulfilling prophecy.
“Adrian. It’s time.” Ashley’s voice comes through the speaker in the phone that sits on the massive mahogany desk, rousing me from my thoughts. “You ready?”
“Be there in two.” I say back to her, kicking my feet off the desk, pressing the intercom button so she can hear me. “Thanks.”
“See you in there.” She says, her words laced with the desire she always has for me, and it calms me even more. She’ll be in there with me, at my side, like a good woman should be.
Good woman. I need that.
Grabbing my suit jacket again, and shrugging it on over my broad shoulders, I button the front and make my way out of my office, and over to the stairwell. Taking the elevator for one flight seems lazy, and I quickly jog up the steps to the top floor and the grand meeting room of glass and mirrors.
Chapter Three
“We have a deal.” Mr. Kinochi says as he shakes my hand with a broad smile.
His eyes wrinkle at the corners as he grins at me, showing his advanced age, and the wisdom that lives inside them. He’s made his company a multi-billion-dollar force, and now I own forty-nine percent of it, and the majority vote on his board of directors after himself.
“I look forward to our first transaction together, Sir.”
“No, it’s not Sir anymore, Adrian. We are Kazoku now, family.” He replies, releasing his grip on my hand and bowing at the waist in a show of his countries respect.
I mirror his actions, keeping my eyes on him as he does me. “Absolutely Ryota. Kazoku.”
