Tackled by the King: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (45 page)

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lix was a fashion photographer, and he had been working for French Vogue when he met Alison- he claimed to have fallen for her the minute he laid eyes on her, and I didn’t doubt it. I secretly envied Alison and Felix’s wonderful relationship, and their incredibly cool lifestyle- I loved them dearly and I was certainly happy for their success, but sometimes, I just wished I had something like that for myself. I mean, I was thirty years old, and I was finally where I wanted to be concerning my career, and sometimes, all I wished for was someone I could love, and who would love me back. Sighing, I stood up and walked over to my closet, pulling out the same black skirt suit I always wore to first meetings, and I slowly got dressed. I pinned up my hair in a chignon at the nape of my neck, and a few curls immediately escaped, framing my face instead. I narrowed my large green eyes at my reflection, unsatisfied with the result, but I just shook my head instead, continuing with the rest of my morning routine. Once I was ready, I checked my watch- I was going to be late if I didn’t hurry up and get moving. I walked out of my apartment and hurried down to get a cab. There weren’t any cars on the road though, and I couldn’t see a single cab- sighing, I decided to walk. I had just walked the first few steps when the first few raindrops fell on me.

Why do these things always happen to me? Cursing my luck, I thought of turning back and getting an umbrella from my apartment, but I was already late, and it was better to show up rain soaked than not to show up at all. It’s just that kind of day, isn’t it? Everything that could go wrong would- I was sure of it. I saw a black limo approaching me, and I foolishly imagined that it might stop and offer me a lift. It slowed down as it reached a traffic light, and I was able to peer into it as I walked past it on the sidewalk. Inside was a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties reading a newspaper, he didn’t look up and so, he didn’t notice me staring at him awestruck. I hungrily took in his thick brown hair, his ruggedly handsome features, and his piercing blue eyes- I knew it was rude to stare, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from his face, and so, I didn’t realize that while I had been standing under a bus shelter to keep dry, a giant puddle had been forming next to me on the road. Without warning, the limousine sped away and splashed me with the dirty puddle water. I shrieked as my knees and skirt were sprayed with brown water and in a fit of rage, I started swearing at the limo as it drove away. Neither the driver nor the handsome man inside noticed, and my entire body convulsed with anger as I tried to calm down. I couldn’t believe I had been stupid enough to waste my time looking at someone like him- probably a spoiled child trapped inside an adult’s body.

“Ugh-” I groaned out loud and shook my shoes to get rid of any dirty water that may have collected in there, feeling mortified and angry. Part of me wanted to turn around and go home, but I knew that this client wasn’t to be trifled with, and sighing, I walked on to my meeting. On the way, I decided to swear off men- so what if Alison was deliriously happy with Felix? I didn’t need a man to make me happy; I would be self-sufficient and make myself happy. I thought back to my last relationship, which had only lasted a few weeks before I realized what a creep the guy had been. What’s wrong with me? I tried not to answer my own question as I hurried towards the Garrett Industries building. The structure loomed up ahead, and I caught my reflection in the window of a parked car, making sure I looked alright before I hurried inside to meet with Simon Garrett himself. I was nervous yet excited to meet him- the man was a legend after all, and everyone told stories about how a poor young boy from Brooklyn made it so big that he now owned a chain of hotels and properties that made him a billionaire. I walked into the building and felt my jaw drop as I looked around at the marble surfaces and the giant stone sculpture in the center of the lobby- people just walked right past it without stopping to notice its breathtaking beauty, but I couldn’t tear her eyes away from it.

“Ma’am, are you looking for somebody?” I turned to find myself facing a young uniformed guard, who repeated his question. Aren’t we all?I thought to myself, amused, but I just smiled at the guard and said, “Yes, may I know where Mr. Simon Garrett’s office is located?” The man nodded and said, “That’ll be the penthouse, miss- there’s a receptionist up there who handles that floor, you should go find her, she’ll guide you.” I thanked him and reluctantly dragged myself away from the beautiful lobby and into the elevator. It was bigger than my fucking bedroom- my gaze traveled from the golden double doors of the elevator to the luxurious plum colored carpeting on the floor. I waited patiently as the elevator went up thirty-five floors, stopping at last at the penthouse. I stepped out and saw the receptionist’s desk behind the glass doors separating the elevator area from the offices. I walked over to it and said, “Excuse me, I have an appointment with-” the lady behind the desk looked at me impatiently and held up her hand causing me to abruptly stop talking.

I mumbled an apology, embarrassed, and waited as the receptionist spoke to a tall man. I couldn’t help overhearing her giggle and say, “Oh, stop- you’re too kind!” I felt a twinge of annoyance at the knowledge that my meeting was being delayed because some guy was flirting with the receptionist. Suddenly, I caught a good look at his face and with a surge of anger, I realized that it was the same man from the limo. Unable to control my anger on both this asshole and the receptionist bitch, I stepped forward and forcefully said, “Excuse me- I’ve been waiting here for a while, and I’m getting late.” The man from the limo walked away from the desk, and the receptionist finally turned to face me and irritably said, “Yes- what can I do for you?” I replied in an equally exasperated tone, “I’m waiting to speak to Simon Garrett, regarding the-” once again, the receptionist interrupted me and said “Well- you’re going to have to wait. He’s already speaking to someone at the moment,” she pointed to a door behind me, and I spun around to see the same flirty limo guy disappearing through the door that read
Simon Garrett- CEO
.

Chapter Three: Lucas

“Lucas!” My father said in a gruff affectionate tone as I opened the door to his office. I had been trying to ask the receptionist whether my dad was free to see me, but she kept flirting with me until she was interrupted by a woman, and I had seized the opportunity to get away from the receptionist and quickly pop into Dad’s office. As I started to close the door, my father craned his neck to see behind me, and said in a confused voice, “Where’s Monique?” I shook my head and said, “She didn’t come along, Dad, it’s just me.” He frowned and said, “Was she jet lagged- did she go straight to the hotel?” I considered lying for a second, but knew the truth would come out sooner or later, and I said, “No Dad- I mean she didn’t come to New York. She stayed in Paris.” He shook his head and said, “I don’t understand- is she sick? When will she fly out? The wedding is in two days.” I shook my head too and sighed before I said, “Dad- Monique isn’t coming to the wedding at all. She and I- we broke up.” My father removed his glasses and stared at me for a few seconds before he muttered, “When?” I sat down across from him and said, “This morning, actually. We had a big fight again- that’s all we’ve been doing lately and I guess I’d just had enough.”

Dad banged his fist on the table and said, “Goddammit, when are you gonna grow up Lucas?” I raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything as my father continued, “You’re thirty-five years old for God’s sake- you shouldn’t be going from woman to woman- adults fight sometimes but they stick it out. When are you going to stop being such a brat?” I tried to maintain an even tone of voice as I said, “Dad- she wasn’t right for me, okay? That’s all that it was- I wasn’t happy.” Dad was almost shouting now as he said, “She wasn’t right for you? She wasn’t right? She was perfect, Lucas! Her family owns half of Nice and Paris! She was beautiful, she was rich, and she was willing to put up with someone like you!” I could feel my blood boiling with anger but I didn’t lash out- instead, I practiced breathing deeply to control my temper. “Couldn’t you have tried to work things out with her? You should be thinking about getting married, and starting a family- but no, all you want to do is party and sleep around.” I kept my tone steady as I said, “Monique and I were over a long time ago, we stayed together because we were fooling ourselves into believing we were right for each other. We know now that isn’t true.” He shook his head as he rubbed his temples, and said, “You know how much Sophia loved Monique- she’ll be devastated.” Like I cared what that vapid bitch thought about my love life- but I still didn’t let my anger show. Only the slight flare of my nostrils seemed to indicate how I felt, but otherwise, I managed to keep it together and present a cool, collected façade.

“I’m sorry to have to spring this news on her a few days before her wedding, but this isn’t her first wedding, I’m sure she’ll manage.” I tried his best to keep the snarkiness out of my voice, but my father still threw me a sharp glance before he said, “Sophia’s daughter, Paige, is flying out from Los Angeles, and I want you to be very accommodating and hospitable. She’s a sweet, cultured girl of exquisite breeding- I was hoping Monique would keep her company, but now that you’ve ruined that plan, I suppose you will have to do the job yourself.” I almost snorted- but I managed to stop myself in time. I mean, how good could her breeding have been if she was raised by Sophia? I smiled coldly and said, “I’d be delighted to.” Dad nodded shortly and said, “Alright- now, tell me about the meeting with the Australian representatives; Ariadne’s report was good but I haven’t heard anything back from them. You didn’t mess up the presentation, did you?” I felt a twinge of annoyance- I had done an excellent at that presentation, and I’m sure Ariadne would have told him that. I shook my head and opened my mouth to reply, but he was already speaking again. That’s how it always was with Simon Garrett- he was never happy with anybody, and especially not his son. Ever since I was a little boy, my father never appreciated anything I did, and often, I was left to the care of the maid, Eliza. I grew up spoiled, but in the last few years, I had truly worked hard to shed that rich playboy persona and I had managed to emerge as a very successful businessman, having proven myself in the real estate market of France. But no matter what I did, my father would never approve of me, and I had accepted that and given up trying a long time ago.

Dad was back on the topic of Monique, “Maybe this is good- a few days away from each other might actually help you see how good you two are together. She’s a lovely girl, and I was really hoping that you were going to propose to her soon- I mean, living together is fine for a little while, not that anyone respectable did it in my day, but after almost a year, don’t you think you should be looking to buy a ring?” I sighed and said, “Dad-” I was going to tell my father off, but decided that I just didn’t have the energy- fuck it, let him think what he wants for now.“Maybe you’re right- once the wedding is over, I’ll think about my situation with Monique.” I could see my father’s face relax significantly as I said those words, and then I said, trying hard to change the topic, “How about you? Are you okay? Do you need any help with the wedding preparations?” I couldn’t give less of a fuck about the wedding- I hated Sophia, the bride; I hated weddings, and I wasn’t very fond of my father either- but I knew that this was the time to prove that I could act like a fucking adult and make sure my father took me seriously. Dad smiled- not too warmly, but it was a start- and said, “No, thank you, but the wedding has pretty much been taken care of. Our wedding planner fell ill recently and Sophia had started to panic but the agency is very good, and they’re sending a replacement who’s supposed to be very competent.”

I nodded absently, I had zoned out as soon as Dad had said he didn’t need my help, and while my father talked, I surreptitiously checked my watch, calculating how much longer I would have to stay and talk to him before I could leave without seeming rude. He went on talking for another ten minutes, about the wedding, and about Sophia, about her daughter, and about Monique’s influential French family. I had had enough- suddenly, I stood up and said, “The flight was pretty tiring, and I have some stuff to get to- so if you don’t mind, I’m going to head to the hotel now.” Dad, who had been in the middle of saying something, closed his mouth and nodded at me as I started to walk towards the door. “I’ll see you in the evening, Lucas- Sophia’s throwing a dinner party at the house.” I pursed my lips and shrugged noncommittally- I didn’t appreciate that he had told me to show up instead of asking me if I would be able to. Nobody told me what to do. “I’ll see if I can make it.” I walked out before my dad could protest, closing the door firmly shut behind me.

I stormed away from my father’s office, and I could feel that all the anger I had bottled up was about to burst any moment.I had felt relief the moment I had broken up with Monique, but trust Simon Garrett to take something good and spin it into something that would cause me so much stress. I couldn’t wait for this wedding to be over so that I could get away from all this once more. As much as I loved New York, I just couldn’t stand to be around my father, and even half an hour with him was enough to give me the unbearable urge to drink myself into oblivion. I walked in such blind fury that I slammed straight into a woman who was waiting outside Dad’s office to speak with him. It took me a few seconds to register what had happened, and by the time I turned around to hastily apologize, she had already walked away in a huff of chestnut colored ringlets. I continued walking away from the office as fast as I could, determined not to stop and talk to anyone. I couldn’t wait to get out of the claustrophobic atmosphere of Garrett Industries and out into the city where I would finally feel the pulse of New York running through my own veins.