Page 19 of Tender Offer
“Is this him?”
“Yes,” I say to the photo of Preston in a tux at some event. Fabric does look good on him.
“He doesn’t just own a few hotels. The Donnelley Brand is worth billions. You’ve been with a billionaire and didn’t know?!Girl!”
“What?” I snatch the phone. Sure enough, there’s an article that reports his family to be worth over three billion.
No wonder he was so tight-lipped. A billion is a lot of zeroes, and he has three! Well, his family does.
This can’t be the same man who inhaled McDonald’s burgers and watched ’90s movies with me when his schedule allowed. I never thought I’d meet a billionaire, but it turns out I loved one.
I need another drink.
Chapter 10
Preston
“Is there anything else I can get you, Mr. Donnelley?” a silky voice calls from the doorway.
“That will be all, thank you.” I don’t bother glancing up from my screen.
Heels click across weathered oak, signaling Stephanie’s departure. She’s a phenomenal executive assistant…when she’s not sending subliminal messages involving my dick.
“Please tell me you tried it,” William says from the door that should be closed. My idiot brother leans back with his lip between his teeth. “What a woman.”
Stephanie is brilliant, overqualified for her position, if you ask me. She graduated top of her class with an MBA and isn’t hard on the eyes. She’s peng, as we say here, but her slim figure and large bust are what have my brother in a chokehold. I’ve always gravitated more toward wide hips and thighs.
The ample curves I’ve anchored to the bed with steady thrusts pulls my attention back to the computer. A smile ghosts the seams of her full, red-stained lips. Her stare is practiced, like it’s second nature to pose for photographers, rivaling the bestsupermodels. Cinnamon brown hair flows over her shoulder in thick waves above the silhouette of voluptuous breasts. The dress that caresses her body has my erection straining against my .
I’ve been hard all morning, searching for every glimpse into Madison’s life I can find between a lineup of meetings. It’s become a ritual in the weeks since I drove her to the airport. Time is rarely on my side, and that’s made any attempt to get to New York a failed effort. But following her digital footprint requires no passport.
I have so many tabs open, it’s a miracle my laptop still functions. Photos of her online, her social media, and the files my private investigator sent consume the screen. Three weeks is nowhere near enough time to catch up on the years I’ve missed. I need to know everything about her.
Madison found her footing as a stylist. It’s been her dream since we met, and she’s living it on her terms. I grin at her success, which is cataloged through these photos. She did it.
“Bruv, are you listening? You’re missing out.”
This again.
I massage the bridge of my nose to wish my brother away. “Give it a rest, William.”
“She’s proper peng,” he says about Stephanie.
“Need I remind you of the no-fraternization policy?” My warning provokes the smirk he inherited from our father.
Between the two of them and our grandfather, generations have violated that policy without consequence. Our family name demands power, and that unlocks consenting legs.
I’ve fucked plenty in my office, but never an employee. Sex in the workplace gets messy, especially if there’s an uneven power dynamic, which is always the case when a Donnelley is involved.
“The holiday was supposed to remove the stick from your ass. You’ve been a mope since you got back.”
“I don’t let sex dictate my life. That’s the difference between you and me,” I counter.
I was William twenty years ago. An entitled little shit with a degree, access to a trust fund, and the rest of my youth to fuck my way through. I never remembered names or faces and sidestepped commitments. Until I laid eyes on a woman who changed the beat of my heart.
Madison altered something in me. At twenty-six, with the promise of more power at my fingertips, I saw a different path with the woman who reveled in high fashion but enjoyed strolls around our neighborhood before sunset. She might’ve pretended to be someone else, but there was no faking the lighthearted laughs that filled our living room and the blinding smile I’d get when I put work away to focus on us.
The future we were creating rivaled any title or recognition I’d gain by stepping into my father’s shoes.
