Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 74220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 297(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 297(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
“Thank you for taking me to dinner.”
He drank his wine.
“How long are you going to be mad at me?”
“That depends entirely on you, sweetheart.” When the bill arrived, he had his card ready and slipped it inside.
“We don’t only have to go to fancy places, you know. I’m fine with something more casual.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know, Bo and Mie, McDonald’s.”
He stilled at what I said, like it was blasphemy. “McDonald’s.”
“What? It’s good.”
“I’m not taking you to fucking McDonald’s.”
“You have me, Bastien. You don’t need to impress me with fancy dinners.”
“You think I’m trying to impress you?” He cocked his head slightly, on the verge of a scoff. “Boys impress girls with nice dinners. Men impress women by making them come. I take you to places like this because I don’t eat horseshit—and I’m not taking my woman to eat horseshit.”
“Spoken like a true snob.”
“I take that as a compliment.”
The waitress came over and grabbed the bill to process in their machine across the room.
Bastien adopted his quiet confidence again and stared at me in silence.
“Why do you have that investment company?” I wanted to change the subject because I didn’t enjoy it when he was angry with me. Right now, I needed to do some damage control so he wouldn’t change his mind about taking me back. I was also interested in the topic, too, now that I worked there and realized it was a substantial company.
“I make money from criminals through the Fifth Republic. And I make money from wealthy non-criminals through the company. They can put their money in the stock market, but they can also put their money in commercial property, skyscrapers in London, Dubai, New York, places like that. The dealers may avoid prosecution from the government, but they still have to clean their money. The government can steer clear of territories, but they can’t hide those kinds of money-related crimes from financial institutions. Other countries and the United Nations would quickly catch wind of what was happening, and that would be bad for business. So they use my company to clean their money, while ordinary citizens use it to grow their wealth. Making the money is one part of the business, but transferring it into usable funds is a separate sector.”
I gave a nod in understanding. “I’ve quickly learned it’s a huge enterprise.”
“How’s Robert treating you?”
“I like him. He’s easy to work for.”
“He knows you’re my woman.”
“What does that mean?” I asked playfully. “You threatened him?”
“Just let him know what he’s dealing with.”
I gave a slight shake of my head. “You didn’t need to do that—”
“I offered to make you my whore, but you declined.”
“I’m not going to fuck you for money when I’d gladly fuck you for free.”
“First rule of business, if you’re good at something, never do it for free.” The waitress came back with the tab, and he quickly signed it before he shut the folder. “If you’d taken that offer, you’d have the best job in the world—if you ask me.” He pulled out his phone and texted his driver.
“As tempting as that sounds, I want you for you, not your money.” And at some point, that position might be eliminated, and I would be back to square one. But I didn’t dare say that, not when I’d already pushed him to the edge once. My job at the company was solid, and if things didn’t work out, he could still do his business without seeing me if he wanted to avoid it.
He rose from the table and grabbed my coat from the coat rack. After he helped me bundle up, he got me into the back seat of the SUV, and we headed toward the Eiffel Tower, where his house was located.
It was a quiet drive, and he was on his phone, texting people, probably about work. Rain pelted the windows and streaked down. I watched the statues and monuments in the streets as we passed. The Eiffel Tower stunned as it danced under its lights.
We arrived at his home and took the elevator to the top floor. The fire was already alive in the hearth like Bastien had told Gerard to prepare it on the way home. I wasn’t ready to let go of my coat yet, not when I was still cold, even with the heater on full blast in the back seat.
Bastien entered his bedroom and removed his jeans and button-up. He had a watch on his wrist, and he ditched that too. He returned in his natural state, in gray sweatpants and nothing else.
He came up behind me and locked his thick arms around my body, one over my chest and the other across my stomach. He squeezed me tight against him before he peeled the jacket off my body, exposing my skin to the heat of his body and the flames from the hearth. He dropped the jacket on the floor before he bent his neck and kissed my shoulder, kissed it with a hungry mouth and a demanding tongue. His arms formed bars to a cage that locked tight around me, and he kissed my neck, nipped at my collarbone, devoured me like the cream inside a cannoli.