Page 22 of Arrogant Heir

I’m sitting with Grandfather filling him in on the latest on the takeovers, when Albert announces her arrival for dinner, and she walks in.

My mouth gapes and I have to seize a hold of myself. It’s not that her outfit is revealing, but she looks so beautiful. She wears her wavy red hair loose, and it sweeps over her shoulders like an autumn blaze, and she’s done something different with her makeup. Smoky eyes, or something. I don’t know what else has changed, but she shimmers. I’m drawn to her like a moth to a flame.

The difference in me since I returned is evident. I knew I was thinking about her a lot—it was her face I kept seeing when I was fucking the girl from the club the other night, which is a first. Usually, it’s my ex’s face that haunts me no matter how I’ve tried to banish her. I hadn’t realised how happy I would feel to see Jamie again, but it’s official.

What a fool I made of myself when we bumped into each other earlier. She must see the effect she has on me. To be honest, I’m embarrassed, which is not a state I usually find myself in.

I take what I want—who I want—when I want… But she casts a spell on me, and I don’t know what to make of it. Sure, women have bewitched me before, especially in my younger years. But I’m a completely different man now. I make sure I am the one in control.Always.The sensitive, weak side of me was closed off long ago after Stephanie left, and I vowed never to let a woman hold that kind of power over me again. I thought we would be together forever, but she destroyed me and cast me aside. For a long time, I was a complete wreck.

I shake my head. This attraction for Jamie is obviously a temporary weakness, not helped by us being in such close proximity. I’m not used to attractive women being at Greystone, except for my mother and sisters, but they don’t count. My brothers are single—okay, so Seb is divorced with a kid—but they’re not in serious relationships and rarely bring their women here. We have an unspoken agreement that we use our London homes for our dalliances.

We play when we’re away, and only bring partners home if it’s serious. Partly, I think it’s because we don’t want Grandfather casting his judgements on us, and we’re all too aware he monitors us regarding who we’ll marry to secure our full inheritance.

It makes me nervous, and I prefer to see my women in Chelsea. Not that many make it back to my apartment. Usually, I just fuck them in a private room at one of the clubs and if it’s a house party, then all the better. But I don’t go to many of those anymore because I’m too busy to take whole weekends away from my desk. And it was those types of high-profile parties that got me into trouble with my face plastered over the papers.

Now I’m the CEO of our media division, we need to be reporting the stories, not featuring in them, as Grandfather reminds me frequently in case I fall back into mypromiscuous waysas he calls them. I sayremindsme butscoldsme is more the reality of it. I hate being told off like a schoolboy, so I’ll do anything to avoid it. And the wily old fox knows it, and plays on it. I’m aware he knows just how to manipulate me and, mostly, I let him get away with it.

It’s true that I need to clean up my image, and so I’m doing everything I can short of living like a monk. I can’t do that. I have a voracious sexual appetite and I think the reason Jamie is affecting me so dramatically is that I’ve been neglecting those needs since being so involved in the takeovers. I make a note to change that. It’s unhealthy—one dimensional—and if this is the result, I can’t afford to let it continue.

Caspian told me he now has a fake girlfriend, which is funny, and I tease him relentlessly, but it explains his situation perfectly. He suggested I do the same, but the thought of being tied to one woman—even if she’s afakegirlfriend—turns me off, which is the opposite of what it’s supposed to do.

I told him I’m fine as I am. But now I wonder whether having someone I can always call on when the need arises might be a better solution than doing what I did the other night. Hooking up with random girls, even in private clubs, leaves me open to risk and any day I could see my name splashed all over the media, no matter how careful I think I am.

I think back to the woman from the other night and try to recall her name. I realise it’s not that I’ve forgotten her name, but that I never asked for it.Easier that way.But if she were to talk to a reporter, I don’t even know who she is. I decide to talk to Caspian about his fake girlfriend arrangement and get control back before this situation spirals any further. We’ve got another two months of working together closely like this, and it feels like sweet torture.

Grandfather and I stand as she enters, and I follow his lead and extend my hand to her in greeting. I’m glad he’s not yet so friendly with her that we’re at the kissing stage. He should not have made the terms of the contract for her to stay at Greystone. I can see which way this is going, and it makes me shift in my seat. Even now I’ve got the hots for her and the visions I’ve been having of taking her over my desk consume me again.

At this rate, she’s becoming more than someone we’ve employed to write a book. She’s going to end up becoming a friend of the family, and frankly, it troubles me. I struggle with hazy boundaries and have no wish to be friends with Ms Jackson. I’m far too sexually attracted to her for that and would rather keep her at a distance, but it’s proving harder and harder.Literally.

My mind flicks back to Sebastian, who has clearly taken a fancy to her. But she’s engaged, so thankfully that shouldn’t come to anything. Seb was cut up by his wife, leaving him for another guy, and I don’t think he’d do the same thing to someone else. The thought of her being with Seb turns me over, and I wish there was a button to press to stop this flood of disturbing thoughts.

She looks at me and smiles, her brown eyes sparkling. ‘What a pleasant surprise. I didn’t think you’d be joining us for dinner.’

Her comment throws me further off balance. After all, she’s the visitor and I live here. ‘Where else would I be?’ I say, arching one eyebrow and returning her stare.

Her caramel eyes draw me in.I’ve found myself secretly calling herRed. A spiral of red hair falls over her face, and she moves it away impatiently.Red for danger.I’ve got several pet names for her and she’s consuming far too much of my bandwidth.

She coughs. ‘Don’t you have a working dinner at your desk most days? That was what you said when we discussed your typical working day.’

Grandfather fires his shotgun laugh. He must really like her. ‘She’s onto you, Damian,’ he says, clearly amused by her no-nonsense approach.

I laugh to cover my discomfort, and I see her eyes are curious as she studies me like I’m a cryptic crossword. On second thoughts, I don’t think she has any idea what effect she has on me. She’s not that kind of girl—at least I don’t think she is. As far as I can make out, she is wholly unaware of how devastatingly gorgeous she is, which is just as well, really. A twinge of desire spirals through my crotch, and I rearrange my legs and link my hands over my lap.

‘Ah, yes. And so, I did.’

Grandfather adds, ‘I was as surprised as you when Damian said he’d do us the honour of joining us.’ His eyes twinkle as he teases me and he’s being alarmingly obvious that he thinks I’m here because of her. I give him a look, but he ignores it.

It’s not true. Or is it? Now she mentions it, my default is to decline invitations to do anything that involves being away from my desk unnecessarily. When we discussed it in one of our sessions, she remarked that as a writer she’s driven similarly, but she makes herself take time out to do other things, so her life isn’t one-dimensional. She says she doesn’t want to be a workaholic.

One dimensional—is that what my life has become? Perhaps she’s right, and I should break away more. And that takes me full circle back to the thought of making an arrangement with a woman for dating and sex. But it seems more appropriate for my grandfather’s generation, not for someone like me in our modern world. It seems weak somehow, as if admitting I can’t get the woman I want without paying.

Caspian says it’s not that way at all. He and his fake girlfriend, or whatever he calls her, like each other a lot, which sounds like another pit of snakes with which to grapple. The problem with any relationship is that people always get hurt. It’s just easier not to indulge in anything that lasts longer than a night.

I chuckle at the ridiculous idea of Grandfather having a girlfriend tucked away in a swanky London apartment. He was so head over heels in love with my grandmother, I’d be amazed if the thought ever crossed his mind, even if his counterparts recommended it. He was in a terrible state for a long time after Grandmother passed and has often said he was a one-woman kind of guy. She was the only one for him. Which just goes to show how different we are. We’re from the same DNA, but we couldn’t be more opposed in our approach to women. I might fall prey to lust, but one thing I can promise you is I will never fall prey to love. Not again.

I snap back to the present when Grandfather says my name. ‘Hey? Sorry, I was thinking about something at work.’

‘He’s not at his desk physically, but his head is still there,’ Grandfather says to Jamie, and they laugh like it’s their own private joke.

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