"Look out there," she says, pointing to the glittering cityscape of New York City. "Together, you and I will rule this city."
"Not if I have anything to do with it," I mutter. "There is no 'we.' There's just 'I.' And we'd certainly never rule anything …let alone the whole of New York City by making bad investments."
"Oh come on now," Lorna laughs. "Are we going to talk about that again? I thought we've moved past that. Let's have a little fun, shall we?"
She hooks her fingers under my belt loops and slowly unbuckles my belt. I can hear the clink of the metal buckle unfastening and I shift uncomfortably, my pulse increasing.
"I can't do this," I say, pushing her hands off my belt.
She isn't listening. "Of course you can," she purrs, "and you will. We're married, remember? This is what husbands and wives do." She renews her efforts, shoving her fingers under the waistband of my boxers.
My stomach lurches at her touch and at the thought of Lorna as my wife. She's one of the most heartless people I've ever encountered in my life—and I've encountered a lot of despicable people on Wall Street. There's no upside to being with a woman like her.
I push her off me again, and this time I stand up from the couch. It's a bold move and Lorna isn't happy. Her eyes are as cold and unpredictable as a brewing storm.
"I won't say this again, Mason," she says, glaring at me. "You better do as I say and follow my lead, starting with Red Lion Aviation."
"I've already told you, it's a terrible investment," I say. "Red Lion Aviation is an Indonesian airline with one of the worst safety records in the industry. It's not uncommon to hear that another one of their planes has taken a nose dive into the ocean."
"Minor details," Lorna waves dismissively. "Planes go down. People understand that. They're still far safer than cars."
I'm not willing to hear her reasons for why we should invest in Red Lion Aviation because no matter what, I've performed the market research, crunched the numbers, and I know that it doesn't make sense on any level.
"I won't do it," I reply.
"What did you just say?"
"You heard me."
"I'd carefully reconsider what you're saying," she hisses. She walks over and grabs her purse from the table. "Because if you don't, I'll make sure the Board sees that you are unfit to lead this company."
Without saying another word, she walks to the door and steps out before slamming it shut behind her.
Fuck me. How did I allow myself to get into this mess?
Just as I'm about to sit back down on the couch and try and forget about Lorna for the night, I hear a knock on the door.
I hope she isn't back for another round.
I open the door.
And I see her … it's Becca.
But she looks different. There's a suspicious look to her eyes.
Becca
I shouldn't be here at his apartment. Every fiber in my brain is telling me that I should just turn the other direction and walk away.
No, I should probably run away.
As far away from Mason and my mother as I can get.
If I have half an ounce of common sense in my head I won't go any deeper. I'll cut my losses and tell myself it was what it was—a very hot, passionate affair with an older man who just happens to be my stepdad.
But that's if I had any common sense.
That's if I could make myself forget how hot he made me when he held me. How excited I got when my hand wrapped around his hard shaft. How I felt him grow in my hand. How I made him hard.