“I’m not.”
“Then don’t pretend you weren’t someone different. I heard you, Tempe, and you came apart in my arms.”
“What are you trying to say?” she asked.
“Don’t be my employee. Be the woman you were tonight.”
“That’s not going to work. We crossed the line, and now we have to uncross it.”
Richard shook his head. “There are some things you cannot uncross.”
“This has to be uncrossed.”
“We fucked, and I’m not going to forget it.” He stared down at her, and he stroked her cheek, forcing her to look up at him. “Don’t push me out.”
“You had a woman come to the office today, and she wasn’t a client. I’m not stupid, Richard. I know she was there for you. To service you.”
“I can’t deny that Tina wasn’t there for that reason.”
“And now you’re following me home.”
“How do you know about the club?”
“The club?”
“The fact I’m a biker.” Richard folded his arms, and watched as she walked away. The robe only went to her knee, and it was plain white giving off the air of innocence.
She took a seat on the sofa, and he watched as she grabbed a glass of wine, taking a drink. “You left your leather jacket in your office. I saw it, and I did a little research. There’s an old picture of you in a newspaper clipping some years ago. Your club made headline news. Was that woman today part of your club?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not denying it then. You’re a biker?”
“Yes.”
“A billionaire biker.”
He took a seat next to her, nodding. “Yes.”
“You do know that sounds crazy, right? A billionaire who spends his free time being part of a biker club.”
“It’s an MC, and I don’t advertise what I do.”
“You’re surrounded by rumors though, all the time.”
“I know.” He shrugged. “It gives me an edge in the boardroom.”
“If you think so.”
“I know so.”
She rested her head on the back of the couch, and in that moment, Richard finally saw her. Temperance, in her own space, surrounded by her own personality, and he liked it. Even Jay, her best friend, suited her. Pictures of Jay and Temperance dotted the walls. She wasn’t some sweet, innocent girl, but a woman who liked what she liked.
“Jay is my best friend. I’ve known him since I was a kid, and he’s an accountant. We share an apartment, and it works for us.”
He didn’t know if he should be jealous or not. He loved sharing a woman, and seeing the way Jay was with Temperance, it made him wonder if there could be something in it for the future.
“I should apologize to him?” Richard asked.
“Nah, it’s Jay. He’s very protective of me.”
“Are you two done?” Jay said, coming out of his room. He wore a pair of jeans and a plain white shirt.
“It’s your apartment as well. Anyway, you wanted to meet my boss, here is your chance. Jay, please meet Richard, my boss. Richard, this is my best friend, Jay.”
“I’d say it’s a pleasure but it’s not,” Jay said, moving around to sit in a chair opposite. “Do you think it’s right to fuck your female employees?”
“Jay?”
Richard held his hand up. “I’ve not been with anyone else, and what I had with Tempe tonight has been building for awhile.”
“Tempe? That’s what you call her.”
“This is ridiculous,” Temperance said.
“You got a problem with that?”
“She’s my friend. Only I call her that.”
“Jay, you’re sounding like a child.”
Richard stared at his opponent as Jay looked at Temperance. He hadn’t become a billionaire by failing to read all the signs. He saw it as clearly as he was seeing the yearning on Jay’s face. His earlier assumptions had been correct.
“Don’t worry about it, Tempe. I’m sure I’d be pissed, and rather territorial if the girl I’d been in love with for some time, suddenly showed interest elsewhere.”
Temperance burst out laughing. “You don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.”
“I don’t?”
“You control the boardrooms, but you don’t know everything. Tell him, Jay.”
Richard leaned back, getting comfortable as he stared back at Jay. “Go ahead, tell her, Jay.”
Silence fell on the room, and he waited. He didn’t give a fuck if Jay was in love with Temperance.
He wasn’t going to back down without a fight, and then he’d win. Tonight he had a taste of her, and that wasn’t going to be the last time. However, Jay opened up a great deal of possibilities.