MATCHMAKER (A Billionaire Bad Boy Romance) (9 page)

Sterling wanted to laugh out loud. “She’s the best,” he said.

CHERISE

“You look so sad,” Eric said, startling Cherise. She lay out by the swimming pool, trying to focus on a psychology book. The morning’s events would not leave her mind. Half the time, she was fantasizing about the way Sterling took her on the rocks. The other half, she cursed his name for putting her in this position. She couldn’t keep her attention on the page. She’d read the same paragraph three times and still didn’t know what it said.

“No, just deep in thought.”

“May I sit?”

“Please, do.”

Eric sat on the chaise lounge next to her. “Can I get you anything? A drink?”

“Only if you’ll have one with me.”

She could tell he wanted her, and if she wasn’t so distracted with thoughts about Sterling, she’d want him, too. No. She would forget Sterling, and she would focus on available men. Like the one sitting in front of her.

Eric glanced around. “I shouldn’t. I’m still on my shift. Mr. Bachmann is resting, so I have some time, but I don’t think a drink would be a good idea.”

“So what would be a good idea?” She propped herself up on one elbow and stuck her chest out towards him.

He swallowed. “Have you been shown the best way to operate the blinds in your room? They can be tricky.”

She almost laughed because she hadn’t been able to figure them out when she went to bed the night before, and bright moonlight streaming in had kept her awake. “No. Can you help me understand how to use them?”

“It would be my pleasure.”

He extended a hand to help her up, and she took it, leaving her book face down on the chair. She followed him through the cool house and into her bedroom. He closed the blinds, dropping the afternoon brightness down to a shadowy dusk.

“Thank you.” Her voice was husky with lust. She never, ever did this. Had never slept with a stranger. Before Sterling, she’d only slept with boyfriends. “Can I repay you?” She let the words hang in the air suggestively.

“However you see fit.”

She sat him on the edge of her king-sized bed and undid the button of his trousers, eased his zipper down, and pulled out his hard cock. Eric was extremely well-endowed. Almost frighteningly so, especially considering she already ached from her morning’s encounter. She didn’t care.

She dropped to her knees and took him in her mouth, starting with delicate kisses at the head, then licking his shaft. He tasted like soap and sweat, not at all unpleasant. He never thrust into her, never was rough. He leaned back on the bed, appreciating her attention. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder and squeezed. She kissed him, sucked and tongued until he came in her mouth—his ejaculate tasting different than Sterling’s, she noticed. He sagged back on the bed, grinning.

“Can I take you out tonight? After my work with Mr. Bachmann is done for the day?”

She thought about saying no. Her head was so taken up by Sterling, even though she didn’t want it to be. Eric wasn’t asking her to marry him; he wanted to go out. Have a fling. Do something fun. “That would be nice.”

“I will finish around nine. You don’t have anything planned with Mr. Waters and Ms. Kerrigan?”

“I’m a third wheel with them. It’s nice they want me around, but I’m just getting in the way of their budding romance.”

“She’s a very lucky woman. In all the years I’ve known him, I’ve never seen him bring a woman and spend the week with her here.”

Cherise wanted to tell Eric all the reasons Jenna was
not
a lucky woman but bit her tongue.

“I would like to run home after my work is done, then I will come back to pick you up?”

“That sounds lovely,” she said. He left her in the afternoon darkness of her bedroom, wondering how her life had changed so much that she had casual sex in Dominica.

She asked herself if she regretted responding to Sterling’s job offer. Should she have passed on it, let it go to one of the other grad students in her department?

If she hadn’t gotten this job, would she and Ricky still be together? Or would she be back in South Africa, forced to give up her dreams? Neither of those options appealed to her. If it all worked out, she’d get her doctorate and graduate one hundred percent debt-free. It was a luxury almost no one in her generation had. She was working hard for her money here. She just wished it wasn’t taking a toll on her emotionally. Well, they had until spring for the wedding, so she hoped for her own sake, Sterling was out there doing his damnedest to woo his future bride.

STERLING

Sterling tracked Cherise down in her dark bedroom when he got back from the beach. He needed to fill her in on the conversation with Jenna. Let her know everything was going according to plan.

“What are you doing in here? Why is it so dark?”

“I was taking a nap.” She sounded awfully defensive. “I was out by the pool all afternoon and got sleepy.”

“Good news. I mentioned I wanted to get married and that I wanted it to happen quickly, and she sounds on board with it.”

“You proposed to her?” Cherise’s tone was flat.

“No, I just kinda floated the idea. Testing the waters.”

“When we first met, you told me you couldn’t trust anyone’s motives because of the scale of your wealth. Of course she’s interested in marrying you. You’re good-looking, you’re rich, and you’re not a horrible human being.”

“Thank you?”

“I’m being serious. There’s no way she’s going to say no to you.”

“Well, great for all of us.”

“Sure is. I get my PhD.”

“That you do.” He’d give it to her regardless. She deserved it and deserved not to have to worry about the cost. He didn’t, however, need to let her know that. “We’re going to head into Roseau for dinner at eight. It’s on the fancier end. Maybe you can wear the green dress.”

“I think I’ll pass.”

“Pass? On dinner? Is this because of what happened this morning?”

“No,” she said. “Eric asked me to go to dinner with him a little later. I said yes.”

“Eric?” Sterling said. She didn’t know anyone here. And why was she glaring at him like that?

“Ben’s assistant, Eric, remember?”

“That guy is taking you to dinner? Seriously?”

“Why is that so hard to believe?”

Sterling was being an idiot. But he was jealous, dammit. He liked it when Cherise was around because it gave him something to talk about with Jenna. It was a little weird when it was just the two of them. He didn’t quite know what to say. At least with Cherise there, the conversation kept moving. Ben wasn’t going to join them, either. Just a romantic evening out with him and his almost-fiancée. He should be excited that no one else was crashing their party.

“What’s this guy like? What’s his deal?”

“If he’s good enough for Ben, he’s good enough to take me to dinner, don’t you think? Besides, you and Jenna need to get to know each other.”

Sterling opened his mouth and closed it again. “I hope your dinner is good. I want to get some work done in the morning, and I’m going to need you for it. Probably at eight.”

“Don’t be an asshole, Sterling.”

“I’m not. I have to get shit done.” He glared at her, perfectly aware he was, in fact, being an asshole. “If I don’t make money, no one will like me, remember?”

“I never said that.”

“You don’t have to. Don’t stay out too late.”

He left her room, feeling agitated and pissed off. He ought to fire her. Send her on her way. He’d give her the money for all her degrees and tell her to have a nice life. That way, he wouldn’t be tempted to sleep with her anymore.

Marry her instead of Jenna.
The thought stopped him in his tracks in the hallway, and he looked around to see if anyone was there to notice, like the thought might have audibly escaped his mind.

It would never work. Someone like Jenna, going in cool with no expectations… That made sense. Cherise wasn’t trophy wife material. She’d want to be an equal partner, would want to be loved, and it just wasn’t going to happen. Jenna would be happy with him. Going to spas, getting her nails done. Different personalities. He and Cherise would be hot at first, but then she’d realize he was empty inside, always had been, and then she’d leave.

It would be better to get it over with now. Get the hurt out of the way quickly instead of have it keep building. But he wouldn’t do that. He wasn’t sure if it was because he was stupid or selfish or what. He didn’t want to see her go. He didn’t want to see her go out with Eric. Didn’t want to see her go out with anyone. It wasn’t fair, he knew.

He found Ben in his study. “What’s up with Eric?”

Ben tipped his head down to study Sterling over his glasses. “Is this in reference to his taking Miss Cherise out to dinner tonight?”

“I’m curious about the guy, is all. I’ve kind of taken Cherise under my wing. She’s an asset to my company, and I want to be sure she’s in good hands for the evening.”

“She is.”

“Good.”

“Sterling?”

“Yes, Ben?” He’d put his foot in it now. He should have known Ben would see through him. He always did.

“It doesn’t always have to end like it did for your parents.”

The words hit him like a knife through the heart. “I know that.”

“Are you sure?”

He wanted to get out of here. Wanted to back away from the whole conversation. Hit rewind. He hadn’t been thinking about his parents when he’d walked into the room and didn’t want to think about them, ever.

“I know you’re getting married to get my money.”

Sterling opened his mouth and closed it again. He couldn’t argue with his mentor. “It makes business sense to merge Waters Enterprise and Bachmann Entertainment Group. We’ve been building the companies for this from the day Waters Enterprise started. It would be crazy to give the shares to the board.”

“You’ve been running from any real human interaction for years, Sterling.”

It hadn’t had any ill effects on him. He was fine. He had friends, he had hobbies, he had his dog. Not everyone was built for a relationship. Sometimes, he actually resented Ben for trying to force this normal lifestyle on him. It wasn’t who he was.

Ben was dying. Sterling had spoken to two of the guy’s doctors, and both of them said the same thing. The cancer spread before they could catch it, and even if they’d seen it six months earlier, with Ben’s age, there was no guarantee they could do anything about it. Sterling didn’t have the heart to argue with the guy. He hated seeing him like this.

“Do you love Jenna?”

“Ben, don’t.”

“I mean it.”

“She’s a good woman, and I’m going to do right by her.” Sterling thought about this morning by the waterfall. He was already not doing right by her. Dammit, this was so convoluted.

“You’re a better person than you let yourself be. Open your heart to someone with two legs instead of four.”

A million rebuttals flared in Sterling’s mind. He wouldn’t let any other living person talk to him like this. With Ben, it was different. Especially since he wasn’t going to be here much longer.

“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, and ducked out of the study. Panic and feelings crashed down on him. The kinds of things he’d carefully cultivated his life to avoid. He tried to imagine life without Ben and could only envision a gaping black abyss.

In the next few months, Ben would be gone, and most likely, Ambrosia, too, the two beings he cared most about in this world. He knew he would function without them, but he couldn’t see how. What would there be left to live for?

If he didn’t get his shit together, he was going to cry. It had been a long time since he had, and it wasn’t about to happen now. There would be a lot of crying in the coming months, he knew, but not today.

“Sterling, are you all right?”

Dammit. Jenna. Probably the one person in this house he least wanted to see him like this.

“I’m fine,” he snapped.

“What’s wrong?”

Oh nothing, just contemplating the mortality of everything I love and realizing I’m an insufferable prick.

“Nothing. I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine.” Jenna put her hands on her slender hips and frowned at him.

The next twenty years of his life flashed before his eyes, the years before the inevitable divorce.

“I just need a minute.”

“Why do you need a minute if there’s nothing wrong?”

He didn’t want to snap. Didn’t want to rage at her. He’d spent so long trying to curb his temper. A yell bubbled up in his throat, but instead, he stalked past her and out the door into the sunny afternoon garden. He headed past Cherise’s room to the edge of the lawn, to the same path he’d taken running earlier in the day.

CHERISE

Cherise wasn’t expecting the knock on her door and certainly wasn’t expecting to see Jenna there, her face red and angry.

Oh shit, had he told her?

“Jenna,” Cherise stammered. “What’s wrong?” Sweat sprang out on her palms, and she pressed her hands to her shorts to dry them. Did she know?