Hired Lover

"It's time for you to settle down with someone, Bennett."I looked up from where I was reclining on my VIG Chesterfield sofa, in the middle of a shift to avoid indenting the material, as I'd trained myself to do. My mother stood at the foot of it, giving me such a deep disapproving look that I nearly, almost made an effort to sit up properly. Her expression was the epitome of dissatisfaction. Thin nose turned up, demon red lips twitched. With a sigh, I let my cheek fall against the cool leather, knowing where this talk was going."This again?" I inquired."You're almost thirty, Bennett," she murmured, folding her arms across her chest, her many diamond-studded bracelets jingling as she moved361."You're almost thirty, Bennett," she murmured, putting her arms across her chest, her many diamond-studded bangles jingling as she moved. Her dark hair was wrapped in a tight bun on top of her head, giving her an overall stern appearance.I cocked my brow at her. "I'm twenty-five years old. Th

Bennett"The hotel plans in Wailea, Maui, have gone as planned. The blueprints have been authorized by both our construction team and the mayor of the municipality. I have the anticipated budget here, and if you approve, you may sign and we may begin construction the following week."When I looked up from my phone, I noticed several worried pairs of eyes blinking at me. I looked across to my wild-haired helper, Henry, who had the same worried expression on his face. I hadn't realized I was in the middle of a meeting. I had no idea what we were discussing. I swallowed and cleared my throat. "Let's go along with it if my mum approves.""Um, Bennett, your mother asked you to supervise this," Henry murmured quietly to me. "If we go to her, she will reprimand us."My seat shifted awkwardly. Were they still discussing the construction of the Wailea hotel resort? Or had we moved on to another topic? Today I couldn't concentrate.It was entirely Henley's fault. It had been a week and she stil

BennettHook, line, and sinker are all included.I knew I'd won Henley over the instant I made my offer and saw her face go blank. After all, money could buy anything."Well, what are the terms?" she inquired, and I found myself wide-eyed."Should we talk about them?" I proposed. I unlocked my phone and opened the agreement I'd worked on all week.I unlocked my phone and opened the agreement I'd drafted over the previous week.Sebastian rose from his seat at the table, opting to give us some space. He stepped over to the counter to keep the other girl company while she looked over at us wistfully, obviously intrigued but not wanting to intrude on our privacy.I could practically see Henley's inner conflict as she observed me carefully. While I didn't blame her for having difficulty agreeing to this, I didn't perceive it as negatively as she did. We were utilizing one another. That's how all business transactions operated."Don't you think $10,000 is a bit much?" she inquired."Not at

HenleyEverything went swimmingly for the first half of the vehicle ride. Bennett kept his mouth shut while the music remained loud. Finally, at the hour mark, he turned down the sound."I'll park my car just outside of town, and a driver will pick us up to take us the rest of the way," he explained."Why don't we just pull over to a gas station and ride in?"He creased his brow. "Why would I take dirty public transportation when I can pay a driver to drive these streets?"While I wasn't a huge fan of public transportation, I wouldn't have gone quite that far. In the congested city, the subways and trains were extremely handy. We'd probably spend more time stuck in traffic than it would take to ride into town. But I didn't argue. I expected my comments to fall on deaf ears. Bennett appeared to be the type to do whatever he wanted regardless of what others thought.And I was being paid to do it, so I didn't have much say in the matter."What are we going to do?" I inquired, staring dow

Bennett"What are you waiting for, Bennett?"My mouth hung open as I glanced at the door Henley had just exited through. I was speechless for the first time in a long time. Not only because of the offense of her remarks, but also because of her tenacity. Nobody has ever spoken to me like that before. Not even my closest companion. And what about the hair flip? Was it really necessary?"Bennett," Sebastian said again, his voice firm.Turning to face him, I cleared my throat and straightened up a little straighter in my seat. "W-what?"His brows raised slightly, but he swiftly returned to a disapproving expression. "What are you doing just sitting there? Follow her."Should you go after her? "Why would I do such a thing? You just heard what she said to me—""Have you been listening to yourself all night?" he asked. "Ben, I'm serious. I knew you were stupid, but I didn't realize it was this terrible."I attempted to recall what I had said. Nothing felt particularly insulting to me. Maybe