The Billionaire's Secretary (Billionaire's Series Book 1) (11 page)

“There’s an award ceremony next Friday at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. The company will be fêting its top performing employees of the year and all our biggest clients will be there as well. Everyone in your files will be there. Why don’t you come with me? It might help you find out some more.”

“Are you asking me out on a date, Adrian Guyton?”

“Well, you could come as my date.”

“I think it’s a great idea.”

“Wonderful.”

Aurora stood and walked to the base of the stairs, then turned back to look at Adrian seated on the sofa.

“I’m going upstairs. I’d like very much for you to join me, Mr. Guyton.”

Chapter Twelve

“Mr. Guyton,” Cheryl, his assistant, called from the door. “Mr. O’Conner has arrived, sir. Shall I show him in?”

“Uh, yes Cheryl, please do.”

Adrian took his seat behind the big, oak desk and leaned back. This was going to be very interesting. He secretly looked forward to seeing Derrick O’Conner squirm in his presence. As usual, O’Conner walked into the room as if he owned it; he even looked a little irritated to have been called into the boss’ office.

“Good morning, Adrian,” he said, offering his hand over the table.

Forever the gracious one, Adrian stood and shook his hand cordially before inviting him to take a seat and sitting down himself.

“I doubt you know why I asked you to come see me today, Max. I have to tell you it does not give me any pleasure broaching this subject with you.”

“Gosh Adrian, you sound like you’re about to tell me that my wife died.”

“Oh, you may wish it after you see this.”

Adrian tossed the envelope of photographs across the table and leaned back. He watched as O’Conner picked it up and opened it, sliding the pictures out. The smug look of self confidence that Max always wore melted slowly from his face.

“Adrian, what the hell is this?”

“Come on, Max. You know what it is. When did they first approach you?”

“Adrian, I don’t even know how to start explaining...”

“Just tell me everything. Do not leave anything out. This could be the difference between you staying a victim of this whole racket and becoming a suspect in a corporate espionage case.”

Outside the office, Cheryl stood on the other side of Adrian’s door, trying to catch some of what the men were saying. She was so preoccupied with her eavesdropping that she never heard the elevator door open or saw Aaron Guyton alighting from it. When he spotted the misbehaving secretary, he cleared his throat loudly.

“Oh, Mr. Guyton! I, um, I wasn’t expecting you.”

“I don’t make appointments to see my brother.”

“Well, Mr. Guyton is in a very important meeting. He asked not to be disturbed.”

“Really? Who is he in with?”

“Derrick O’Conner.”

“Then it must be serious business. I won’t barge in on them... but I will wait. Get me a cup of coffee would you, dear? Sugar and cream.”

“Certainly, Mr. Guyton.”

***

With a loud sigh, Derrick started telling Adrian his story.

“Well, Adrian, you were there at Lue-Sang’s club that night too, so I don’t need to tell you what happened, other than I didn’t have the presence of mind or the restraint to leave like you did. Of course the photos are authentic. I did everything they imply that I did. I got a call from a man about two weeks before the Kong Kong incident to say that he knew everything I did that night and that he had pictures. He said he would send me transaction details in a day of so and after that I would have seven days to deposit $100,000 into a numbered account so that he wouldn’t pay my wife a personal visit.”

“What did you do after that?”

“Damn, Adrian, Come on. I was ready to pay the money of course. But then the whole Alan thing happened and the exchange details never came through. The clincher is that a couple of days ago, I got a call from someone demanding $150,000 instead in order to not release the photos.”

“Did you recognize the voice?”

“No, they used one of those digitizer things both times. They gave me until tomorrow at 3 p.m. to make a drop. I’m supposed to go to the corner of Pine and Lovejoy down near the old Techwood Homes area and look for a trash can marked 333, place the bag in it and leave.”

“Are you going to pay?”

“Christ, Adrian. This is my family we’re talking about; of course I’m going to pay and I’ll keep paying if I have to, just to keep this under wraps.”

It was unusual for Derrick O’Conner to lose his cool. Adrian wanted so badly to be enjoying it but he couldn’t find the heart to revel in Derrick’s misfortune. He was also incredibly curious as to who the blackmailer was.

“Relax, O’Conner. I want you to do the drop, but let me give you the money. I’m going to get to the bottom of this once and for all.”

After discussing the details of the plan a little further, Adrian walked Derrick to the door and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“Whoever it is, we’ll catch them.”

“Okay, boss.”

Adrian watched as O’Conner got onto the elevator and the doors closed before he turned to go back into his office. As he turned, he noticed his brother seated in the waiting area sipping a cup of coffee and of course, waiting to be acknowledged.

“Aaron?”

“Oh, Adrian, is your meeting finished? I was asked quite sternly by Cheryl not to disturb you.”

“I am finished, yes.”

“May I have a word then?”

“I have an important phone call to make. Give me about five minutes.”

“Very well.”

Adrian rolled his eyes as he walked back into his office without answering him. He was well aware that he was walking a fine line with Adrian since the incident at his house in Atlanta. Adrian decided to put him off for a few more minutes while he hurried to call Aurora to update her.

“Aurora?”

“Hi, Adrian.”

“Oh, I am glad I caught you before you went into your meeting. I just spoke to Derrick O’Conner.”

“Really? What did he have to say?”

“Well, it seems he is still being blackmailed by someone. He got a ransom call two days ago.”

“So, the blackmailer has gone back to business now that the Hong Kong business is out of the way. We can only hope that this is the actual initiator.”

“That’s what I’m hoping for as well. I told him to do the drop and that I’ll take care of everything. We will need to have surveillance all over that.”

“Oh, definitely. I think we should...”

At that moment, Adrian’s office door burst open and in stormed his brother.

“Aurora, I’ll talk to you when I see you later.”

He hung up the phone and sat staring at Aaron, fuming.

“What do you want? I have no interest in arguing with you about my private life any further. I already told you, you can accept her or you will no longer be a part of my life.”

“Adrian, please. I didn’t come to argue, but I did come to reason with you.”

“About what, Aaron? Aurora is finally a part of my life and that is not negotiable. I’m really sick and tired of this ping-ponging back and forth with you; I don’t want to hear another word about it.”

“Adrian, I’m begging you. Please forget about her. She is no good for you, it’s not a good match. There are so many more suitable women that we know. You’ve even dated a few of them.”

“Like who? The Adelaide’s daughter or the Mitchell’s? Forget it. I love Aurora, I always have and if you can’t accept us as a couple, then the choice is yours. She is a part of my life; you should decide if you want to continue to be a part of it too.”

“Adrian...”

“I’ve said all there is to say, Aaron. Please leave my office and make your decision.”

Adrian sat back in his chair and watched him leave. Aaron didn’t huff and puff, he just walked out, almost dejected. He had won and Aaron would stop fighting him over it now, but it might be that he would never speak to him again.

***

The plane landed at the airport on time and as they stepped out into the private hangar, Aurora tried not to seem overwhelmed by Adrian’s lifestyle. They had been served filet mignon medium rare, just how she liked it, accompanied by mashed potatoes with a garnish of sour cream and caviar and sipped a red, full bodied
Côtes du Rhône,
followed by smooth cognac during the trip. She was completely sated.

The steward extended his hand to help her down the aircraft steps and as she took his hand, she looked back to see Adrian smiling broadly at her. He looked so happy and she couldn’t say that she didn’t feel the same way. Being with him these last days had bordered on surreal for her. Emotions that she had thought long dead had been reignited and bellowed into an inferno by the prowess of maturity and understanding. They were no longer two unsure adolescents playing at love making; they were two experienced adults insatiably exploring the boundaries of their passion. It had taken all they had to restrain themselves while onboard; that and the fact that the steward now holding her hand had been extremely attentive to them both, leaving them hardly a private moment.

As they sat in the town car, Adrian could no longer bear it and as soon as the door was shut, he locked the doors and quickly took her in his arms. They kissed passionately and while Aurora’s hands went around his neck and into his luxurious hair, Adrian head dipped instinctively to the perfumed valley between her breasts. He was intoxicated by her perfume. The scent had become so familiar to him, almost a beacon of sexuality that he could not resist. As he kissed the tops of her breasts tenderly, a knock came on the divider and they paused. He touched the intercom button.

“Yes, Gerald?” he said, sounding a little irritated.

“Umm, excuse me, sir, but where to?”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Adrian replied, embarrassed. “We should be going to the apartment at the Waldorf, but I’d like to make a few stops first. Take us to Lexington and Fifty Fifth East.”

“Very good, sir.”

He turned off the intercom and pressed another button marked DND and returned his gaze to Aurora. All that time, he had not let her go, and he positioned himself so she was reclined in his arms again.

“We have thirty minutes.”

“How do you know that?”

“I shop a lot when I come to New York,” he said, smiling, “but with the ‘Do not Disturb’ on, Gerald will find every traffic jam between here and Lexington Avenue.”

He ran his hand over the fabric of her pretty aubergine silk blouse and cupped the curve of her breast in his hand. He had always loved that color against the creamy tone of her skin. His fingers deftly unbuttoned it to discover a sexy, black, front-clasped bra. He smiled at her.

“Looks like you had this all thought out: my favorite color, easy access bra and that delicious scent on your skin... What is that? It’s been driving me crazy for weeks.”

Aurora laughed.

“Bulgari, what else? Ironically enough, it’s called Northern Lights.”

“How perfect is that?”

He undid the clasp of her bra with one hand while supporting her back with the other and, as Adrian’s mouth surrounded one erect nipple, Aurora melted beneath his touch. Her hands went to his solid shoulders and to the nape of his neck as she arched her back in ecstasy. His patient and deliberate ministrations made her head swim with wonder and she could feel the tension building in her loins as his hand made its way up the smooth stockings that covered her legs and thighs. He let out a breath of desire when his fingers felt the lacy garter that held up the silky garments before his trembling fingers continued the journey to the groove of her sex. He tugged at the skimpy covering and shimmied the thong down over her thighs and over her ankles. Pulling her closer, he returned to kiss her lips and Aurora urged on his passion by undoing the belt at his waist and unzipping his trousers, pushing them down over his chiselled hips.

The tension was high-strung by the time Adrian pushed into her moist, warm sheath. A gasp of sensual release erupted from them both and Adrian was stirred to action immediately. He moved inside her purposefully, unable to extend the fruit of their passions. Suddenly, Aurora clung tightly to him and he could feel her body shuddering under the intensity of her orgasm. He smiled and kissed her neck tenderly moving inside her faster to extend her pleasure. She cried out into the flesh of his shoulder and the muscles of her sex contracted around his engorged manhood with the intensified pleasure he had given her. The sensations drove Adrian wild and he threw his head back as the waves of passion overcame him and threatened to drown him in a sea of complete ecstasy.

They lay in each others arms, sated and recovering as Gerald’s voice came softly over the intercom.

“Sorry to disturb you, Mr. Guyton, but we are approaching your destination.”

“Thank you, Gerald. Did you call ahead for me?”

“I certainly did.”