Mendacious (7 page)

“Arghhhhhhh! Get out of my fucking head!” I launch the tumbler across the room. It hits the opposite wall and shatters, scattering fragmented shards across the floor.

Slumping back against the sofa in defeat, I hang my head in my hands. I’m not sure how long I stay like this, but I’m only interrupted when I hear my phone.

“Y-Yea?” I slur into the receiver, not bothering to check the display.

“Alex?” Alice’s concerned voice fills my ears. “Why haven’t you been answering your calls?” she screeches, making me pull the phone away from my ear with a wince. “I’ve been trying to call you, but it’s been going to voicemail. Mum said you were going to see Grandma tonight, so I wanted to check in with you, but you haven’t been answering.”

“Stop!” I yell when her whining becomes too much for my already inebriated head to handle. “Stop whining.”

Alice clucks disapprovingly. “You’ve been drinking, right? How much have you had? Are you at home?” She bombards me with question after question and I find myself clutching my forehead as pain shoots across my temple.

“What the hell is this?” I mumble. “Stop asking me so many bloody questions. Just leave me the hell alone.”

She sighs and I hear her muffling the phone. She’s talking to somebody in the background, but I can’t make out what she’s saying. My interest wavers and I decide that I don’t actually give a shit.

“It’s the next left and then a sharp right,” she says, uncovering the phone. “You can pull in this carpark here and use this key fob to get in.”

“A-Alice?” The pounding in my head grows sharper, almost to the point where I’m about to smack myself in the face to try and relieve the pain. “A-Alice ... Alice.” She continues to ignore me, which pisses me off more. I can hear her shuffling around in the background and various other sounds; a car engine, a door slamming shut, and the sound of a male voice.

“Ms. Lewis, is Mr. Lewis expecting you at this hour?” My ears prick at the sound of Jeffery’s voice, and I’m immediately on edge realising my little sister is downstairs. This changes things and I’m definitely caring a little more now.

“He’s actually on the phone right now. Alex, tell Jeffery we can come upstairs,” she demands.

“Mr. Lewis?” Jeffery asks uncertainly.

“Let her up.” I spit my response and stagger to my feet. It takes me a couple of seconds to get from the living room to the front door, and unluckily, I manage to bump into every wall and bastard doorframe in the process.

“You look like shit,” Alice snaps, pushing open the door and taking in my arseholed state. “Look at you. Bloodshot eyes and you can barely stand. What the hell have you done to yourself?” She turns to her left and speaks to somebody hidden out of sight. “Sorry ‘bout this, but can you help me haul his arse back to the living room? He’s gonna keel over in a minute.”

Your vision isn’t half shit when you’re drunk. I’m staring straight at my sister, but she looks like a fuzzy blur. And she keeps dancing around, which is making me more and more nauseated.

“Don’t worry. Here it comes,” I hear Alice shout as the contents of my stomach erupt over the Italian marble in my hallway.

It’s a pretty spectacular projectile, and I feel instantly relieved after it’s happened. Alice leads me into the kitchen and props me against the counter while she wrings out a flannel. When she’s done, she slaps it against my forehead with a sigh.

“Are you gonna tell me what’s goin’ on?” she asks, eyeing me suspiciously. “This isn’t you. The last time you got like this was years ago.”

“Ahem.”

My head turns and I falter slightly. Standing in the living and kitchen area is Holli. She’s got her arms folded and a very smug look splashed across her face. It’s an ‘Are You Really This Stupid?’ look, which makes me feel like I’m a naughty school boy, and I’m immediately embarrassed about acting this way in front of her.

“Sorry, babe. Have a seat over there while I sort him out,” Alice says, nodding over at the large, brown leather sofas in the sitting area. “And get rid of that bottle for me?”

“Don’t touch it!”

Alice takes the flannel and smacks it back across my forehead. “You can shut-up. I’m taking the bloody whiskey away, because you’ve had way too much.” I open my mouth to protest, but close it as soon as she gives me
the look
.

I’m helpless as Holli picks up the bottle of whiskey and walks over to the sink. Popping open the lid, she up-turns the bottle straight down the drain. I’m supposed to be appalled by the action, but I know I’ve got a stash of bottles in my liquor cabinet.

“Is something going on at work?” Alice carries on with her intrusive questions when I feel the pain in my head starting to subside.

I nod.

There isn’t much else I can say. I’m pretty fucking sad about my grandmother, but I don’t want to upset Alice as well. Those types of feelings I’m better off dealing with alone. And work is just the icing on the cake at the minute with everything that’s going on.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Holli jumps into the conversation and joins forces with my sister.

“Come on.” Alice ushers me over to the sofa and sits down beside me. “Spill—” She pauses and fishes out her vibrating phone. “It’s mum. I’ll go let her know you’re alright.” She stands and rushes off to my office to take the call.

An awkward silence ensues.

“So, do you wanna talk?” Holli breaks the ice and takes a seat on the sofa opposite me. She’s wearing a fitted purple skirt that stops about mid-thigh and showcases her amazing legs. She is such a pretty girl, but I still think Libby’s prettier. From the soft curve of Libby’s jaw, to her bright aquamarine eyes, and stunning figure, the sight of her never leaves my mind.

“It’s just work,” I huff, trying to think about something else other than Libby.

“What’s up with it?”

I shrug. “You don’t want me boring you.”

“Try me.”

“I’ve just signed a business deal. But it’s only to inflict revenge against one woman,” I confess.

This gets her attention. “Revenge?” she asks, her eyes alight with curiosity. “Tell me.”

I don’t want to go into too much detail, but it feels good to get it off my chest. Talking does help, I guess.

“I got offered an opportunity. I grabbed it with both hands. I’m gonna take the company and sell it bit by bit from under her. I’m gonna ruin everything about her after I’ve taken all the money I can.”

Holli’s mouth drops open slightly. “Wow. She must have been a bitch to deserve this. Are you really going through with it?”

Her words hit me.

“If you knew about us, then you’d understand why I’m doing it.” The words feel conflicted in my head as they leave my lips, and I feel almost wrong for thinking about Libby the way I do. But I need to remember this is just business. And in my neck of the woods, you do what needs to be done, and you do it without guilt.

“Right, mum’s happy, so we can leave the waster now she knows he’s alive.” She fixes me with a pointed glare. “See you later, and make sure you clear up that sick.”

Holli gets up and I see the disappointment all over her face. It’s almost as if she doesn’t want to leave, and I know right now I’ve got this one in the bag if I wanted it.

“I’ll see you later then, Alex.” She smiles sadly.

Without showing any emotion, I simply nod and give her a basic, “Yeah, see you later.” I know I’ve got to let her leave. There’s too much potential for drama with this one, and I know it’s never good to sleep with your sister’s friends.

Unless you’re prepared for war when you fuck her and chuck her the same night. Then you go right ahead, my friend.

Being driven around is supposed to be like living in the lap of luxury, right? Well, I fucking hate it with an absolute passion, but know it’s something I’ve got to do to keep
first impressions
and
appearances
intact.

I’m a businessman. My wealth isn’t something I tend to joke about, so naturally people expect me to play the part and be waited on hand and foot. Of course, I don’t want to break the mould, so I do the things expected, even if I don’t agree.

Like today for example, I hadn’t planned on being chauffeured to my meeting, but Kelly had persuaded me at the last minute for the sake of etiquette and the importance of keeping up the company’s appearances. In my head, the word
bullshit
immediately sprung to mind.

It had taken every ounce of strength this morning to not laugh directly down the phone at my assistant. Sometimes she thinks I’m an absolute idiot and that I’m not going to know my sister has shopped me in. Of course Alice must have told Kelly about last night; I wouldn’t expect any less from my little, meddling sibling. After all, we share the same blood, and I’d probably have done the exact same thing if the shoe was on the other foot, and she’d been the one having a lapse.

Yeah, that’s exactly what I’ll call it—a lapse from my usually cool ethos. It was just one of those nights where the combination of too much alcohol and bad news tips your emotions to the surface. I’ll have to be more mindful in future.

“We’re here, sir,” my driver calls a couple of seconds later.

My hands fly instinctively to the buttons of my waistcoat, checking each and every loop is securely fastened, as the car rolls to a stop. I’m going full throttle today in my dark, charcoal three-piece suit. The games officially commence, so I’m kicking off by playing dirty. Real dirty.

“Thank you,” I mutter, stepping onto the pavement. The cool air hits me straight in the face, and it’s then I realise some of last night’s alcohol is still lingering potently in my veins.

Reaching into my jacket pocket, I pull out a packet of mints and dump a load in my mouth as I walk through the lobby and over to the reception desk.

“Alex Lewis, I’m here to see Elizabeth Lewis and Daniel Thomas.”

The receptionist flashes me a bright smile. “You can go right up, sir.”

“Thank you,” I nod, stepping away from the desk and heading for the set of glass lifts. My reflection stares back at me in the glass, and I take the opportunity to double-check my suit till the lift comes back down.

“That’s not good enough.” My attention draws immediately to the sound of high heels clicking across the floor and venom filled hissing that follows. “I told you I wanted this sorted, Rachel! That bastard thinks he’s got the upper hand in all this. I knew we should have gone with Daniel’s ideas. There wouldn’t be this big mess if we had done it his way.”

Libby’s heading straight for me and I do nothing to keep the salacious smirk off my face. She’s too busy with the takeaway cup in her hand and the phone pressed against her ear that she hasn’t spotted me yet.

At least she doesn’t notice me having a cheeky peek at what she’s wearing. It’s another short, fitted dress, but in cream today with matching stilettos. Her hair is up off her neck and secured tastefully in a stylish bun. It’s an outfit that means business, and I love it.

I look away when she approaches, the smirk suddenly wiped from my face. I try and think of anything but her and that dress. My cock stirs within the confines of my trousers, and I do my best to keep the beast at bay.

“Bollocks,” I mutter under my breath, trying to discreetly adjust the raging hard-on that’s trying to burst out my zipper all of a sudden.

“Rachel, my ex-husband is being an absolute—” She cuts off when she spots me, that porcelain looking skin of hers turning redder by the second when she pulls the phone from her ear and disconnects the call. “A-Alex,” she stutters, moving to stand in front of the lift, her eyes trained directly at the floor.

I pull my hands away from my trousers and disguise the grimace on my face. My cock is still pulsing away beneath the material, but I try and keep my cool.

The lift comes to the ground floor and the door opens in front of us. “After you,” I mutter, letting her pass first before stepping in behind. She decides to stick near the front, while I occupy the back wall. It’s a small space, yet we couldn’t be more apart if we tried. There’s an obvious tension in the air between us that’s only magnified when we reach the first floor and more people get on.

There are voices chattering animatedly around us, but I can’t focus on anything but Libby’s clear discomfort. She is in a crowded lift, which I know won’t do anything for her claustrophobia. Her back looks rigid and her head has dipped to the floor. It looks as if she’s breathing through her fear with the technique she always used to use.

We ascend through a couple more floors, the lift stopping and gradually packing in more people as we go. With each stop, I sense Libby’s growing panic as she’s pushed closer and closer toward me.

By the time we reach the sixth floor there isn’t much room. The entire lift shifts backwards and I find myself in an unexpected, but satisfying position nonetheless.

“Well,” I chuckle under my breath when Libby pushes back against me. “All you had to do was ask, sweetheart. I’d have happily obliged. You know, for old times’ sake and all.”

The joke is supposed to take her mind off things, so I’m not in the least surprised when she bites back.

“I already took care of myself this morning, but thanks for the offer. I’ll be sure to call you when you’ve learned how to locate a woman’s G-Spot.”

Her response catches me off guard, but amuses me all the same. She’s still the same little firecracker she used to be. My girl that loved it when she had me chasing after her till the bitter end. She loved making me work for
everything
, because she never gave it up for free. Every night I worked and prided myself when she rewarded me with the tight warmth of that perfect fucking body.

My banter and filthy mouth were how I won her over. She couldn’t resist the charm and overpowering sex drive that controlled and possessed her each night.

I flick a discreet but mischievous glance around the lift, checking everyone is busy with their own conversations, before I drop my mouth close to her ear.

“Sweetheart, have you forgotten how many times a night you used to scream my name when I was pounding into your tight, little pussy? It doesn’t get any better than what we had, and I bet you’ve missed it every day for the last seven years.” I pull away and quickly take a whiff of her sweet scent. The familiar waft of coconut fills my nostrils and I discreetly revel in the haze.

The lift stops on the twelfth floor and I’m still waiting for her response when we step off. I spot her assistant hurrying toward us, and I realise she’s about to disappear before our meeting.

Leaning forward, I grab her shoulder. She spins on the spot to face me, her eyes viscous and disgusted that I’ve touched her.

“Don’t flatter yourself,
Ace
,” she spits under her breath, shrugging out of my grasp.

~

Libby walks away and I feel the colour drain from my face.

She called me Ace.

I haven’t heard that name in so long, it tweaks an unnatural emotion with me, and I’m left wondering what the heck I’m supposed to retort back with.

“Mr. Lewis?” My eyes snap to the young girl stood in front. “Please follow me. Mr. Thomas is waiting for you in his office.”

This confuses me. I could’ve sworn I’d asked Kelly to arrange the meeting with Daniel
and
Libby. Sitting in this meeting for the next however many fucking hours with that prick is going to do nothing but piss me off.

My thoughts drift back to my exchange with Libby. The name is driving me fucking crazy. The more I walk, the more it starts to bother the shit out of me.

Out the corner of my eye, I spot people watching me as I make my way through the office, curiosity etched across their nosey faces. Not that I’m interested in keeping up appearances at the minute, I still do my best to wipe the ‘Do Not Fucking Talk To Me’ look off my face. If I’ve gotta win people over then the last thing I want is to look unapproachable.

“Here you are, sir.” The young girl nods politely, leaving me in front of a set of frosted glass doors.

“Why the fuck is everything frosted in this place?” I mutter under my breath, knocking on.

“Come in,” Daniel calls.

With my hand poised on the handle, I cast a quick but pleading glance to the sky, hoping that someone is looking down on me today. The next hour is going to be the longest of my life, sitting in this boring office with this boring arsehole.

“Ah, Alex.” Daniel springs to his feet and races to greet me as I push open the door. “Glad you could make it,” he says, extending his hand toward me.

“No problem.” I look over his shoulder. The office is identical to Libby’s in every sense of the way; plain, clinical and glass orientated.

This place is starting to depress me.

“We’ve got a lot to discuss, so Elizabeth has said she’ll join us later into the meeting.” Daniel lets go of my hand and points to some white armchairs surrounding a small glass coffee table. “Let’s sit. Do you want anything to drink?”

“I’m fine,” I reply, taking a seat.

Daniel nods and grabs a remote control from the side. With a quick flick he’s turned off the lights and switched on a projector. It transforms a plain white wall into a full-sized presentation.

Here we fucking go.

He begins his animated speech and I’m instantly regretting my decision. Libby is nowhere to be seen and I’m left trying to stay awake by Mr Talks-A-Lot and his boring drivel.

“What do you think, Alex?” Daniel fixes me with a bright smile that reaches all the way to the hopeful gleam in his eyes.

“Good. Yes, I like it.”

I’m lying. I actually don’t have the foggiest clue what he’s been going on about for the last hour. My mind switched off as soon as the presentation had started, my thoughts occupied by something else, or more precisely, someone else. “E-mail me the slides and I’ll review them in more detail.”

“No problem. Did you want to go over anything?” Daniel asks, placing the projector clicker on the table.

“No. I think you’ve covered off all the points. I’ll give my consideration.” Daniel’s face falls at my comments and I find myself trying to sweeten the deal. “I’ve been thinking about having a desk here. What do you think? That way, I can be around for a couple of weeks until we get the expansion off the ground and a team of my guys in place to oversee things.”

I have no idea what the fuck I’m doing. I’m pandering to a prick I want to shove off the face of the earth.

He’s your key to Libby. Treat him well and she’ll follow.

“That’s a great idea, Alex. I’ll speak to my assistant and get it arranged. You can always share my office—”

“That won’t be necessary,” I reply, nipping that idea in the bud before he finishes suggesting it. “Li—Elizabeth has kindly offered to share her office with me.” I manage to correct myself before the incorrect name tumbles from my lips.

Daniel’s face crinkles, but softens. “O-Oh? Well, if she has offered then—”

I sense a draft from the door opening behind me. High heels click across the floor and alert me to her arrival. “What have I supposedly offered?”

Rather than turn around, I keep my eyes fixed on Daniel’s face, watching the shift in his expression and the way his eyes light up at her arrival.

I know who you’re looking at. Fucker.

“Elizabeth,” he beams, fixing her with a wide smile.

My knuckles curl and I tighten my hands into fists. This bastard is in deep with Libby—too fucking deep. I’m going to shatter his little fairytale at some point, but in the meantime, I’ve got to sit and watch this bullshit. There isn’t anything I can do,
yet
.

“Alex was just telling me about his idea to work from the office. I think it’s a great idea,” Daniel says, rubbing his hands together.

Rising from the chair, I straighten my tie and face her. She’s got her arms folded, her eyes unmoving and her expression serious.

“I was just telling Daniel how you’ve agreed to share your office. He offered his, but I had to turn him down. I mean, after you offered in the lift this morning, I’d feel kind of bad accepting from somebody else.” With my back to Daniel, I fix her with a cocky grin and flash a warning with my eyes. A silent threat I hope she takes note of.

“W-What?” Libby stammers.

Silly girl. If she’s going to be in business again after this hostile takeover, then she needs to learn how to keep her poker face intact. Her emotions are scattered all over her eyes and face. I sense her anger, frustration and sheer fear at my presence, which only boosts my confidence knowing I’ve rattled her.

“I’ll work it out with my associate, and start from tomorrow. If you can have a desk and network connection for me in your office by the morning, I can get cracking with what I’ve got planned.” I turn to Daniel and nod my head. “Thank you for the information. Please e-mail me the details and I’ll look them over.” Turning back to Libby, I step forward and watch as her body freezes. “
Elizabeth
.”