Page 5 of Ruthless Financier
Downstairs she’d paused when I gave my name. I thought she’d figured it out. I said, “Jacob Donovan.”
Her face turned white as she backed away. “It’s you. Fuck.”
Her team came to stand beside her, and I towered above them all. Without looking at anyone else, I said, “I’d like for us to talk, without our teams.”
Frank, my lawyer, said, “Sir, that’s not a good idea.”
Oh, he had no idea. He’d probably try to talk me out of my plan with Indigo, but I paid him for the safe answer. And since that stupid picture had come out, Frank had been background-checking every party’s guest list.
This needed to stop. I’d never let my biological father rule my life, and I was certain he’d set me up for that stupid picture to prevent my takeover.
So, my staff was top-notch and loyal. But I made us all money when I ignored their advice now and then. And once Indigo agreed to my plan, we’d all continue on the winning path.
And I needed to win.
Indigo patted her female assistant’s arm like they were friends, and said, “Yes.” She nodded at me. “Let’s talk, Jacob. Alone.”
Her assistant directed the young boy with her out of the room as she said, “We’ll be right outside.”
I motioned with my finger for Frank and Russ to follow.
Once the doors closed, I pulled the blinds in case her people could read lips. She retook her seat and I took the seat beside her.
The air smelled floral, like she’d just sprayed herself in perfume. She hadn’t needed to. I was already hard for her, but I kept that in check as I said, “Indigo Steel. I had no idea I had a meeting with the answer to my search until I met you.”
Her cheeks had a slight blush, but she shook her head and said, “Look, my team and I have prepared a plan to get out of the scandal where you don’t have to marry anyone. It will pass.”
Right. The stupid man I’d had a drink with a month ago was now arrested for sex trafficking. I’d had no idea at the time. From what I read in the news, he deserved to be in jail.
The photo seemed staged, now. I didn’t say more than hello to that predator, and then moved on.
And I hadn’t been in charge of the guest list. I’d gone to that party to find out what my birth father was up to, and that sicko had been there.
Indigo had no idea about my father, or my plan to stop him, and she didn’t need to. She’d be the perfect temporary wife. I said, “Look, a few of my best investors all promised to stick with me for my next deal, if I find a wife.”
She pushed her paper proposal at me and said, “Or maybe they’ll stick with you without you tying the knot with any stranger from the hotel lobby.”
“Not anyone. You,” I said. But I flipped open her proposal. I had the feeling she’d insist, anyway. “You’re perfect for my needs.”
Downstairs, she’d blown me away with her candor and convinced me she was perfect. And part of that meant reading this proposal, so I did, as she said, “Let me tell you my plan.”
“Sure,” I answered as I scanned her proposal. “And then I’ll tell you mine.”
I read the highlights:Good press … Quiet personality … Six months or more …Nope. Her timeline didn’t work with mine, though I was confident this would have been my strategy if time wasn’t running short on my own plan.
“I’ve run models and projections and collected data,” she said. “The good news is that you weren’t implicated in any of the sex stuff.”
My pleasure stayed behind closed doors; I didn’t need to fuel any fires against me. I closed her proposal and said, “I try to be a good boy.”
“Doubtful,” she replied, but she then leaned closer. “You rip apart people at the height of their power and destroy their lives. You’ve left a trail of tears.”
That was one way of looking at it. I made a fortune doing what I did, and I’d almost achieved my goal. My father deserved to be penniless and live the life he’d forced my mother and me to live. I didn’t even blink when I said, “I saw my opportunities and exploited them.”
She inhaled, like she didn’t like my attitude now. She gripped the arms of her chair like she was about to get up. “You’re a man of extreme privilege, Mr. Donovan—”
“Jacob,” I reminded her. We needed to get back to why she was perfect for my plans. My investors wanted me to be stable. No scandals. And a convincing wife was exactly the prop I needed.
No one would believe I’d go for either a gold digger or a debutante. A woman with a head on her shoulders; beautiful, but not vain; and who complemented my taste without being excessive was necessary.
