The Love Of Money - S01 E242

Story 3 days ago

The Love Of Money - S01 E242

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 242

Once we landed, we climbed out, and I made my way over to Helen. Since there was no one else on the rooftop besides me, Erin, and my security, she took a liberty she might not otherwise have indulged. She placed her hands on each side of my face and pulled me in for a kiss. Her tongue immediately invaded my mouth, pushing past my lips and seeking out mine as the kiss deepened past the point of carnal familiarity into burning intimacy.

With the rotors of the chopper still roaring as they slowed, I could feel Helen hum into my mouth more than hear it, and as we made out, a faint whiff of her familiar perfume enveloped my sense of smell. The beast in my pants stirred in that all-too-familiar way, and I pressed my crotch into her, seeking any sort of temporary relief for the sudden tingle running down my length.

A few moments later, she broke the kiss, her mouth hovering millimeters under mine as her cold blue eyes looked up at me with anything but ice in them. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," I said, and I meant it. I'd had my issues with Helen in the past, but she was my first in a lot of ways, and that meant something. Besides, I liked Helen with her stunning good looks and calm demeanor; she seemed so unapproachable to most, so sharing moments like this with her was like being privy to a secret very few people knew.

I wondered how long it had been since Roger had been the target of that secret affection or anyone, for that matter.

"Is he here?" I asked.

Helen nodded. "This is too big to not attend. Karl is here too."

"Alright," I said. "Lead the way."

"Of course," Helen sald, but before doing any leading, she turned and grabbed my assistant's face in a similar way she'd done to me and brought their lips together for another heated kiss.

I glanced at Chloe, but she was scanning the rooftop. However, John was watching the pair of women as they exchanged tongues and saliva. He caught me looking at him and quickly glanced away as if he were also scanning the rooftop. No matter the amount of training, I guess it was difficult for any red-blooded man to ignore two gorgeous women as they made out.

Helen broke the kiss, whispered something into Erin's ear, and stepped away. My assistant was wearing a shit-eating grin as she swept her silvery hair out of her face and looked up at me. Her dark eyes shined with arousal. "We're supposed to have our heads in the game," she said. "She's not doing us any real favors, is she?"

"Nope," I said, looking back at Helen's ass as she walked ahead of us. "Glad we have this walk to cool us down."

"So, no teasing, then?" Erin asked.

"I'm putting a moratorium on all teasing until the meeting is officially over," I said, giving my assistant a faux-serious look.

On the way, Helen filled us in on who had made it so far. The meeting was set for nine-thirty, but most of the members intending to be here had already arrived.

Nina Haley-formally Gerrard-was already in the boardroom, so I would get the chance to meet my aunt today. Meeting her had me almost as nervous as the actual board meeting. Others present included Chandler, Kelly Maddox-the contender for the throne; a Silicon Valley guy named Gus Hathaway, Rajesh Desal-the owner of Pakistan's largest telecommunications company, Amber Bell-a representative from Brantwood Holdings; Hiro Tanaka, and Carla Tanaka.

The news that Carla Tanaka was here made my stomach turn; the last time I'd seen her, she was drunk and had been fooling around with one of my best friends. Before that, she'd tried to corner me in the restroom of a coffee shop and ended up giving me her number. Hiro was one of my few allies, and Carla was an agent of chaos that could easily complicate matters for me if she wanted to.

Wayne Prudem-my other ally-would be present via phone, as would Peter Michaelson, a lawyer representing my twin siblings in the vote. I was a little disappointed that I wouldn't meet my brother and sister, but considering how nervous an aunt made me, it was probably best that I only have one family member to contend with today.

Helen gave me a brief rundown of the formalities, the meeting structure, and other bits of etiquette. I was so engrossed in trying to pick up any last-minute tidbits of wisdom from the seasoned lawyer that I hadn't even realized we'd entered an elevator, gone down five floors, left the doors, and were approaching a large boardroom walled almost entirely in glass.

The large meeting table in the center of the room almost shone under the soft overhead lighting. Its dark walnut grain told of how it was as expensive as a brand-new car. Chandler stood on one end, talking to Karl and Roger. I saw a man with a strong nose and swarthy complexion sitting next to a woman who appeared to be in her early to mid-forties. She wore short hair layered with rich curls and streaked subtly with grays amid the raven black. She had black rectangle glasses and wore crimson lipstick that matched the dark red blouse underneath a charcoal jacket. Her fingernails were painted to match her lipstick. It was Kelly Maddox.

Another figure stood just on the other side of Kelly, pulling some documents out of her briefcase bag. She had hair the color of wheat pulled back in a severe bun gathered at the back of her head, very little makeup, and thin wire-framed glasses perched on the edge of her nose.

And I recognized her.

All common sense and reason evaporated as I suddenly bolted away from my group, brushing past John as he strode in front of me and broke for the boardroom. As I approached it, one of the chairs spun around, a blonde head revealing itself as the high back moved to the side. Carla Tanaka caught sight of me as I closed in on the glass wall. She offered me a dazzling smile that lasted a split second before melting into concern on seeing the look on my face. She said something, but I couldn't hear it through the thick glass. The chair next to her started to turn, and I saw Hiro's bespectacled face as he turned to watch me.

As I rounded the corner, my hand hit the glass wall to help me slow my momentum. The slap against the glass caught everyone's attention, and they turned to watch as I rounded the parameter of the enclosed space and reached the entrance. With my jaw set and fists clenched, I tore open the boardroom door and stormed inside.

"What the fuck is this!?" I shouted. "Is this some kind of joke!?"

Everyone in the room grew silent-people I knew and people I'd only seen images of. They all looked around at each other, expressions ranging from scandalized to concerned. It was probably the first time someone had barged into their boardroom like a complete madman. Hiro stared at me with a harsh, disapproving gaze over the rim of his glasses.

Right now, I didn't fucking care.

"Marcus?" Chandler asked, looking terribly confused.

I barely noticed him. My attention was on the woman with the briefcase. Her face was burned into my memory, and I could have described her perfectly if I lived to be eighty. The last time I'd seen her was a little over a week ago when I'd been kept against my will in a warehouse in Vegas.

To Be Continued...