Chapter five: Dominic

I spun my pen between my fingers, my head resting against the back of my seat. The sound of traffic below provided the perfect soundtrack to my mood, and the warmth of the sun filtering through the floor-to-ceiling windows of my home office lulled me further into thought.

I should be working. Spex Corps was on the verge of closing an important deal. My assistant Darren, with his meddling and perpetually disapproving nature, wouldn't be pleased if he found out I spent the afternoon thinking about a woman who couldn't bear my presence.

But by God, she looked excellent yesterday. Ahlia Maxwell was the most beautiful human I had ever seen.

She was my undoing and the bane of my existence, but I had to have her. No matter the cost, I would pay it.

I heard myself release a chuckle at the memory of how she turned up her nose at me, as if I were gum beneath those sexy heels of hers.

She despised me, and it was thrilling.

She was assertive, and would baulk at any attention from a man like me. But she would be mine regardless, and she would come to love being mine, just as I would be hers.

In her reality, we've only met twice so far. If you exclude our passionate night together. And technically, that was correct.

Our first meeting wasn't like something out of a fairy tale. But my first glimpse of her was just enough to snare me. 

I remember her moving around the ballroom, radiant in a lacy red dress that contrasted beautifully with her skin. Her hair was in a loose braid, with dark, curly wisps framing her exquisite features.

She had been on the arm of another man, and I had thought 

A woman like that was meant to be in my arms instead.

I wanted her.

I had the host introduce us, and my decision to pursue her was sealed the moment she cast those sultry brown eyes my way.

But she looked at me and immediately despised me. I saw her eyes widen slightly when we made eye contact, and I knew she felt the same spark of attraction I did. The connection was instant. But what fascinated me most was watching her eyes harden just a few seconds later.

I could almost hear her thoughts, scolding herself for finding another man attractive while her loving boyfriend was beside her.

She became a challenge I was eager to take on.

Cara choosing to work with her had been a fortunate coincidence. She mentioned she planned to book an appointment with one of her favourite designers, who happened to be Ahlia.

I pushed to attend the meeting. It was a budget sign-off, so I called it. Cara looked at me knowingly but let me tag along.

We both pretended I didn't have other reasons for being there.

  ****

I had just started working again when Cara wandered in without knocking. She knew the code to my penthouse, so I wasn't surprised to see her. Although, considering how much she tends to ignore boundaries, maybe giving her this much access to me was a mistake. 

But she would probably bite my ear off if I tried to limit her access to her baby brother.

"You owe me," she grumbled, settling into the seat opposite me.

"Oh?" I said with a wry smile, deliberately so.

She hated it when I gave her one-word answers or dodged her questions.

"Yes, you do!" she almost yelled. "I can't believe I let you ambush my meeting with Ahlia. I was so excited to finally meet one of my favourite designers, and you had to make everything awkward.”

"It didn't seem awkward from my end," I taunted.

"Of course, you would think that," she shot back, sounding exasperated. "I got a call from Ahlia this morning to confirm that we are still on. Most likely, because she's worried I would change my mind after her altercation with you yesterday."

 “Altercation sounds a bit too serious, no?” I laughed. Cara is nothing if not dramatic.

"I don't care," she pouted. Sometimes, it's hard to believe I was younger than her. "Riling her up isn't going to make her want you, you know."

Oh, it is. Ahlia likes to be challenged. She just doesn't realise it yet.

"I still need you to do something else for me," I said, choosing to ignore her scolding.

"What is it?" She narrowed her eyes, already cautious about what my request would be this time.

"Invite her to Mum's party on Saturday."

"Why?" she grumbled. "So you can bother her again?"

"You wound me," I smiled, placing my palm on my chest mockingly. "I just want the chance to have a civil conversation with her."

"To woo her properly," I added, holding my hands up in a gesture of innocence, which we both knew was false, "You already forbade me from being at the fittings, so this is my only chance. I assure you that my intentions are pure."

Nothing about my intentions for Ahlia was pure or innocent. My motives are actually quite impure... filthy even.

"And what do I get in return if I do invite her?" she finally conceded.

"I will try to be civil with Dad from now on."

"Oh."

'Oh' was right. She knew that was the best gift I could give her. I haven't felt close to my father in years, and with every encounter, our relationship worsens.

He still held a grudge for the rift I'd caused between our family and the Monroes. But I would not apologise for refusing to be a puppet in their plans for world domination.

I couldn't tolerate him most days, but for the chance to have Ahlia, I would behave.

I had nothing major planned for Saturday. I just wanted the chance to have a proper conversation with her. How she responds to my words will determine my actions from here on out.