Compromising the Billionaire_A Scandals of the Bad Boy Billionaires Novel Read online

  Since I had no interest in eating lunch with them anyway, I ignored them. Mostly. It was hard to be the subject of such unrelenting dislike, but I tried to remind myself that it didn’t matter. They weren’t my friends, and I wasn’t going to be here long. If they wanted to act like they were still in elementary school, that was their problem. I wouldn’t let it be mine.

  “Everyone at lunch?” Aiden asked.

  “Yes, sir,” I said. A glint flashed in his eyes when I called him ‘sir’ and the side of his lips quirked up.

  “I ordered lunch in,” he said, “the same thing we had last week. When it gets here, put the phone on voicemail, and bring it into my office. You’re eating with me, and then I want your help with the next revision on those contracts.”

  “Yes, sir,” I said, trying not to notice the way the quirk of his lips bloomed into a grin. I couldn’t ignore the blush that grin brought to my cheeks. I swiveled my seat back to face my computer, but I heard a choked laugh as Aiden went back to his office.

  The Ramen arrived fifteen minutes later. Dreading the meal ahead, I carried the food to Aiden’s door and rapped twice.

  “Come in, Violet,” he said, still sounding amused. I was on edge, my throat tight, my stomach in a knot. I could handle playing the professional with scary Aiden, but playful, amused Aiden was a different story.

  That grin knocked me off balance.

  I took a deep breath and squared my shoulders, striding into the room as if I didn’t have a single worry. Aiden pushed his chair back and gestured to the seat beside him.

  Crap. Why did he want me to sit next to him? It was just as easy to sit on the other side of his desk with all that heavy, thick wood between us.

  Masking my nerves with efficiency, I crossed the room to the seat he’d indicated and began unpacking the cartons and covered bowls in the bag of takeout. I’d had takeout from this place enough on my own to know what to do and I busied myself combining broth and noodles with meat and seasonings until we both had a complete meal sitting in front of us.

  After that, I was forced to take a seat beside Aiden. This close I could smell him, that woodsy, warm scent I thought was half soap and half him. I leaned forward and dipped my face over the plastic bowl of noodles, inhaling the salty rich broth, trying to banish Aiden from my senses.

  It didn’t work. Now I was smelling noodles and soup, but it didn’t erase the man beside me. I didn’t think anything could do that.

  Surprising me, he dug into his lunch and gestured for me to do the same. It felt like a stay of execution. Maybe this would be like the other night. We’d eat. We’d work. He wouldn’t grin at me like that again.

  As we ate he filled me in on the progress of the contracts. He was doing some business with a friend out in Las Vegas who owned a casino, and as soon as they got these contracts wrapped up, they’d move on to the next phase of the project, a mixed-use development that combined retail and condos.

  Real estate wasn’t my thing and contracts bored me to tears—I was a numbers girl—but I couldn’t help but get a little excited about the project as Aiden described it.

  Not for the first time I had the feeling that Aiden didn’t work this hard for the power or the money, or not only for those things. He had a genuine enthusiasm for his work. He loved this company, not just as a means to an end. It was disarming, and it didn’t fit the rest of the picture.

  We’d long since finished our lunch and were going over the contracts, line by line, re-examining changes and double checking the numbers, when the door to Aiden’s office swung open.

  The outer office was still empty, and with no one to stop her, Aiden’s visitor strolled right in.

  Chapter Five

  Violet

  She was tall and slender, with a sweep of champagne blonde hair as sleek and shiny as glass. Her gray eyes were granite, hard and impenetrable, until they narrowed on me in cold disapproval.

  She came to a stop in front of Aiden’s desk, propped her hands on her hips, and said, “Aiden, we need to talk.”

  This woman was trouble. I didn’t have to feel Aiden go stiff beside me to know she was up to no good. Not that I could talk, but still. Anyone who had Aiden Winters bracing was bad news.

  She knew exactly how beautiful she was with her sharp cheekbones and red, red lips. Standing before Aiden’s desk with her hips canted slightly, her elegant charcoal sheath dress showed her long legs to their best advantage.

  Sending me a flinty look she said, “You can leave.”

  Aiden’s hand closed over my leg as he gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head.

  Crap.

  I would have loved nothing more than to escape.

  Okay, my good sense was telling me to escape, but I was just a little curious. No, I was a lot curious. This woman was not here on business. That dress was not office appropriate. Just a little too short, with a little too much cleavage. And I already knew Aiden wouldn’t have tolerated an employee with the nerve to speak to him so rudely.

  Ignoring her comment he said, “Elizabeth, this is Violet Hartwell. Violet, this is Elizabeth.”

  With an impatient huff, she added, “Elizabeth Winters. His wife.”

  With Aiden’s hand on my leg, I couldn’t hide my jerk of surprise. His fingers tightened, sending an unexpected bolt of heat between my legs.

  “Ex-wife,” he clarified. “Elizabeth, I can’t force you to give up my name, unfortunately, but we’ve been divorced for four years. You haven’t been my wife for a long time.”

  Apparently, Elizabeth had decided to ignore me. The flinty look left her eyes and her lips turned up in what I guessed she thought was a sweet smile. It didn’t look sweet to me, it looked predatory. I found myself leaning into Aiden, my shoulder brushing his.

  “Wishful thinking, darling. We made a mistake—”

  “We made a lot of mistakes, Elizabeth,” Aiden interrupted. “I’d like to avoid making any more.”

  “That’s why I’m here. Your little sister and her—husband—” At the word husband, Elizabeth rolled her eyes, “have been spreading rumors that you and I are at odds, and it really has to stop. I’m still not sure why you allowed her to marry him. Though I suppose you couldn’t stop her. Charlotte has always been uncontrollable.”

  I’d never seen Aiden’s brown eyes go cold so fast.

  In a voice like ice, he said, “She prefers to be called Charlie, and I couldn’t be happier about her marriage to Lucas. Among his other noteworthy qualities, he loves her to distraction. As I learned the hard way, that’s the most important factor in a successful marriage.”

  Elizabeth tossed her hair back over her shoulder and let out an amused laugh. “Aiden,” she chided, “you and I both know love has nothing to do with marriage. Not in our circles. I’ve long since forgiven you for deciding to go your own way, but don’t you think it’s time we talked?”

  She shot a sidelong glance at me, wordlessly commanding me to leave. With Aiden’s hand still gripping my thigh, I wasn’t going anywhere.

  I wasn’t sure I wanted to. Had I thought Aiden a shark? If I had it was only because I hadn’t met this woman yet. How had he been married to her? She didn’t look like there was an ounce of softness to her, from her angular body to her sharp smile. He worked too hard, had too much responsibility on his shoulders to come home to a woman like this.

  “Elizabeth, I can’t imagine what you think we have to talk about. Charlie said that you told her we were getting back together. I have no clue where you got that idea, but hell could freeze over and I still wouldn’t want to be in the same room as you.”

  Ouch. Even Elizabeth flinched at that. She took a step forward and opened her mouth to say something. Before she could get a word out, Aiden surged to his feet, pulling me up beside him.

  He moved so fast I wobbled a little on my heels. Aiden wound his arm around my waist to steady me, pulling me tight to his side.

  Inappropriately tight. Coworkers did not plaster themselves against
one another like this. What was he doing? Even if I’d wanted to step away, knew I should step away, Aiden’s arm was like iron around me. And I didn’t want to leave him. Whatever point he was trying to make with this harpy, I’d rather help than get in his way.

  “I thought you could take me to the Foundation event tomorrow night,” she said, smoothly, as if Aiden hadn’t just told her how much he disliked her.

  This woman had some serious balls.

  “Is it possible that you don’t have an escort? I can’t see you leaving something like that to the last minute,” Aiden said, wryly.

  Elizabeth waved one red-tipped hand in the air, dismissing her would-be date. “He can make other arrangements. I’ve been thinking about it, and after hearing some rumors at lunch the other day I thought it would be more sensible for us to go together.”

  “No fucking way,” Aiden said, flatly.

  “There’s no need to be rude,” Elizabeth said, one thin eyebrow raised. She was both repellent and fascinating. She considered his use of the word fuck to be rude but not the part where he told her he wouldn’t want to be in the same room with her even if hell froze over. See, I would have taken it the other way around. I wasn’t big on swearing myself, but the second was a far bigger insult.

  Then again, Elizabeth Winters seemed impervious to insult.

  Elizabeth was gathering herself to retort when Aiden went on, “I’m not available, Elizabeth. I’m involved.”

  “With whom?” she demanded. “I would know if you were dating someone. There’s nothing that goes on in the city that I don’t know about. At least nothing that matters.”

  I never saw it coming. If I had, I would have gotten the heck out of there the second Elizabeth walked in.

  I think.

  Aiden’s arm tightened around my waist, turning me, angling me to face him. He shot Elizabeth a triumphant look and said, “I’m involved with Violet. I would have thought that was obvious.”

  Before I could say a word, Aiden’s head dipped. His mouth slanted over mine. At the touch of his lips, I went stiff with shock. In my heels, I was only a few inches shorter than him and our bodies fit together like puzzle pieces, my hips pressing to his, my breasts pillowed against his chest.

  This close, I could feel the heat of his body through his dress shirt and my blouse, the steely strength of his legs against my own.

  His kiss started out possessive, a statement of ownership more than anything else. I barely had the chance to taste his breath, to feel his fingers splayed out across my back before he angled his head and took the kiss deeper, his lips claiming mine, urging them apart for his tongue.

  He licked across my lower lip and it fell open, letting him in. The stiffness drained out of me and I felt my body molding to his, my head tilting up, everything in me opening, meeting him halfway.

  He tasted of salt and heat, his lips firm but soft, not bruising, but sampling. Savoring. One hand slid down my back, his fingers curving around my hip, pulling me harder against him.

  Somewhere beyond the buzz of arousal filling my brain, I heard Aiden’s name repeated over and over, and a bang, like something being thrown or a door slamming.

  I didn’t care what it was.

  Two seconds after Aiden’s lips touched mine, my brain stopped working and my body had taken over.

  The bar of his erection pressed into my stomach, thick and hard despite the clothes between us. I rolled my hips into him, letting my legs part when he pushed his thigh between them, reaching up and sinking my fingers into his hair. Thick and soft, like silk, I twined my fingers in the strands and pulled his mouth harder against mine.

  He let out a groan.

  Or I did.

  I don’t know. I didn’t know anything except that this kiss was everything I never knew I’d needed, and I never wanted it to end.

  Big hands closed over my hips, lifting me, setting me on the desk. Papers slid, cascading to the floor. We let them go, Aiden nudging my legs apart to stand between them, his fingers deftly sliding the button of my jacket open.

  My blouse was a flat grey silk, buttoned to my chin. Prim. Dull. And so thin the heat of his hand might as well have been touching my bare skin. My nipple pebbled against his palm as he squeezed, hefting the weight of my breast, and groaned into my mouth.

  The shrill peal of the phone sliced through the fog of arousal clouding my mind.

  The phone was ringing.

  Why was the phone ringing?

  Why was there a phone when Aiden was kissing me?

  Every muscle in my body locked tight.

  Why the hell was Aiden Winters kissing me?

  And why was I kissing him back?

  I jerked away, breaking his hold, and slid off the desk, almost losing my balance. Aiden let me go, his fingers trailing down my arm as if he was reluctant to move away. I couldn’t look him in the eye. If his phone was ringing, that meant someone had taken it off voicemail.

  The outer office wasn’t empty anymore, and I was in here kissing the boss.

  My knees went weak and I sank into my chair. What the hell was I doing kissing my boss? Never mind the whole mess of why I was here in the first place. I knew better.

  I knew better, and I wasn’t that kind of girl. I didn’t go around kissing people, much less at work. After the fiasco at my first job, I never got involved with anyone at work.

  Ever.

  No exceptions.

  But Aiden Winters kisses me and I melt?

  What was wrong with me?

  “Violet? You okay?” Aiden asked, his voice low and a little rough.

  Slowly, I shook my head, rubbing the back of my hand against my lips. “Why did you do that?” I asked, and even to me, my voice sounded plaintive and a little lost.

  Aiden didn’t answer my question. He reached out a hand and closed it around my upper arm, urging me to my feet.

  So quietly I could barely hear him, he said, “You’re a puzzle, Violet. I like puzzles.”

  I wasn’t sure if it was a promise or threat. Since it was all I could do to stand without my knees knocking together, I decided to worry about that later.

  Aiden reached out to smooth my hair back, rubbing his thumb across my lower lip before tugging my blouse back into place, straightening my jacket, and smoothing my skirt over my hips. In that same barely audible tone he said, “There. Your lips are a little red, but otherwise, no one will know.”

  At least one of us was thinking. My mind was on fleeing, not straightening my blouse. The last thing I needed was to stumble out of the boss’s office with my hair a mess and my clothes askew. No one would call me an ice queen then. No, they’d go straight to office slut.

  Taking a step back, Aiden folded his arms across his chest and scanned me from head to toe. He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear before he said, “You’ll come with me to the Foundation event tomorrow night. I’ll pick you up at seven thirty.”

  “I can’t…we can’t. I don’t…why would you even…”

  Aiden interrupted my sputtering. “Be ready at seven-thirty tomorrow night or don’t bother coming to work on Monday. Understood?”

  Unable to think of anything else to say, I gave a short nod, turned on my heel, and left Aiden’s office. It wasn’t hard to ignore the curious stares of my coworkers as I strode past my desk and headed for the bathroom.

  I needed a minute to get my head together. An hour would be better, but a minute was all I had. I locked myself into a bathroom stall, sat on the closed lid, and dropped my head into my hands. The heat of my flushed cheeks burned my palms. I could feel the swelling of my lips.

  When was the last time I’d been kissed?

  Like that?

  Never.

  I’d never been kissed like that. I thought kisses like that belonged in movies.

  I was the ice queen. I was the frigid bitch no one could melt enough to fuck.

  One touch of Aiden’s lips and my body turned to liquid heat. My panties were damp, my bre
asts swollen, nipples scraping against the lace of my bra.

  If we’d been alone? If it hadn’t been the middle of the day and we hadn’t been in Aiden’s office?

  I’d like to say I would have stopped him. Stopped myself. But that would be a lie.

  I was in big trouble.

  And, apparently, I had a date with Aiden Winters.

  Chapter Six

  Violet

  I couldn’t see my bed. It was under there somewhere, buried beneath piles of dresses. Shoes scattered the floor, almost giving me a black eye when I tangled my toes in the straps of a pair of gladiator sandals and pitched face first into my bedside table.

  Fortunately, a long forgotten bridesmaid dress broke my fall. I don’t know what that was doing out of the closet. I was desperate for something to wear to the Winters Foundation event, but mint green chiffon was not going to make the cut. It had been bad enough wearing that thing the first time.

  Staring at the mess in my bedroom, I determined two things. One, for a girl who didn’t get out much I had way too many dresses. And two, I really needed to clean out my closet. Oh, and three, I still had no idea what I was wearing to the party. Or why I was going.

  Aiden had given me the perfect out. Be my date, or you’re fired. Couldn’t be much simpler than that. All I had to do was say No and this whole disastrous plan of mine fell apart.

  Wasn’t it time?

  I’d been there almost three months and I hadn’t found a single thing I could use against Aiden. Either his skeletons were at the very back of the closet, or he didn’t have any.

  I was beginning to think it was the latter. I knew all about the Winters family. Everyone knew about the Winters family. It wasn’t just that they were ridiculously wealthy and powerful. It wasn’t only that they ran Winters, Inc., a company that had subsidiaries in every corner of the globe and made more money than most countries’ GDPs.