Chapter Two

Riley "Mr Carter, there's a phone call on line one for you." Andrea, my assistant, chimes through the intercom. The woman is in her late 50s, has worked for me for the last four years, has barely taken any days off and, on top of it all, she is always happy, polite and with a smile on her face. "Thanks, Andrea." I turn off the intercom and pick up the call and unfortunately, get stuck in an hour-long conversation with Eric from Eli Electronics. The guy has spent the last three months trying to get me to invest in his business and won't take no for an answer. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for helping out businesses, especially small local ones, but sometimes I just can't do it. Eric is blowing money left, right, and center on personal purchases. Even after he received several loans and investments, he's still a sinking ship, and as I said, I'm all for helping businesses, but I'm not for throwing money at a sinking ship. I wouldn't be where I am today if I did that. The next five hours are spent trolling through paperwork, answering endless emails and phone calls, and an unexpected meeting with my accountant that made me want to bang my head against the wall... several times, and now I'm done, done with this day and ready for a whiskey or six. "Riley, you done for the day yet?" Joshua walks into my office with both his jacket and the top three buttons of his shirt undone and his tie hanging loose. He looks like he's been dragged backward through a bush, and I'm guessing his day has been a s**t show like my own. He slumps down in one of the chairs across from my desk and runs his hands through his always immaculate hair. Josh is not only the CEO of my company, but he's also my best friend and a vein fucker at that, but we have been through a lot in our lives, and he's always been there for me when I have needed him the most... When I had nothing, he was always there and so, when I finally started getting somewhere in life, I made sure to take him with me, and it was a no-brainer to make him the CEO of my company. He's a hard worker and always puts the company first, which is exactly the type of person that I need to work alongside me. "Yep, I'm done and ready for several whiskeys, you in?" He nods and is up and out of his chair before I've even finished talking. "Yes! Let's go, first rounds on me, and it's Friday night which means one thing... easy p***y!" Yeah, Josh is both vein and a giant hoe! "Is that all you ever think of: drink and girls?" "Absolutely! It's even better when they go together," His cheeky grin and wink have me laughing as I shut down my laptop and get ready to forget today. "Don't act like you don't enjoy female company," he grunts as he smartens himself back up. He's not wrong of course, I enjoy female company, I'm a 25-year-old red-blooded male, but I'm much more tame than Josh... much more. After a quick chat with the head of my night security, we both head outside where Bruno, my driver, is waiting for us. We both have our own cars, several in fact, plus we both own a bike each, but I had a feeling we would be heading out tonight, so I called Bruno in advance. "Evening Mr Carter, Mr Evans." Bruno opens the door for me before going round to the other side and doing the same for Josh. "Bruno, how many times must I tell you to call me Riley?" Bruno has only worked for me for five months. My old driver, Kent, was with me for almost five years, but sadly, we lost him when a drunk driver hit him off his bike. I miss Kent and no one will ever replace him, but Bruno is a good guy. He worked on my security team before I asked him to move to this position and when he lets his guard down, he's a great laugh. He always starts out formal, and I have to remind him that I want him comfortable, not looking and acting like he has a stick up his ass the entire time he's driving me. I know that he's just being professional like he should be, but it drives me crazy. I get enough of that bullshit when I'm at work. When I'm out and on my own time, I want to relax, and I want others around me to do the same. "Sorry, Riley." Finally! That's probably the quickest that he's ever called me Riley, so hopefully, we're getting somewhere. "Home Riley?" I shake my head "No, to Carlos, please, Bruno." he nods as he heads out into the traffic and towards downtown. "Carlos?" Josh grunts. "Yes, I know you skipped lunch today and so did I, so we're going to eat before we got f****d!" "I like your thinking, Riley." Carlos is a short drive, so I quickly remove my jacket and tie, roll up the sleeves of my white shirt, and open the top three buttons. My white shirt and gray suit pants now look more casual and Friday night-friendly. I'll throw my overcoat on when I get out. We're currently having an insane snowstorm and it's f*****g freezing. Josh soon follows my lead in making himself more casual and just in time for us to arrive at Carlos. "Are the guys out tonight?" Josh asks as he checks out his hair in the car window before coming around to meet me on the sidewalk. Zane, Scott, and Gage are but Nathen is spending the night with his newest friends with benefits." Zane owns Carlos, an Italian restaurant, and named the place after his late Grandfather who helped him build the business, so he's meeting us here. Scott and Gage own a clothes store and will meet us later at the club. "p***y whipped." Josh grunts, as if he wouldn't act the same. We start walking towards the entrance when a woman bumps into me, but she's so small that she ends up falling backward, and I'm just about able to catch her before she hits the floor. "s**t, I'm sorry!" I pull her in close to me to stop her fall and have to blink twice when I realize that I recognize the girl. She looks up at me blinking and her bright blue ocean eyes feel like they sia through me. f**k! "It's OK, it was my fault. I should have watched where I was going." She gives me the smallest of smiles before quickly pulling away from me and disappearing into the crowd. "Did you smell her?" Josh's face of disgust angers me, but I can't figure out why, so I shake it off and follow him inside Carlos. f**k, I need a drink. As I thought, Zane joined us for food. But if I'm being honest, I haven't really been paying much attention to the conversation around the table. Instead, my mind has been on that blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl that I bumped into earlier, the same blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl that Bruno almost ran over two weeks ago while driving me home from work. If I'm being honest with myself, I've thought of her several times since that night. I don't know why, but I just haven't been able to get her out of my head. As soon as I lay down to sleep at night, I see her face and feel her body up against mine. I remember thinking that she was way too skinny, and I may have only felt her body for a short time, but even then I knew that with the right care, she would have curves in all the right places. I don't know why I can't get her off my mind. I don't know her and from what I can tell she isn't taking care of herself, but instead of feeling disgusted or just plain sorry for her, I find myself wanting to scoop her up and take her home with me where I can personally take care of her. What the f**k is wrong with me? I never have any women at my place or in my bed and yet here I am, wanting to take someone home with me and not let her leave again. Jesus, I think I just need a few strong drinks and maybe even get myself laid... Yes, it's been a while, so that explains how I'm feeling... It has to because nothing else makes sense.