Authors: Stella White
''Do you think I'm stupid? You would soon get bored of me and discard me. Then what? Being fired without a reference wouldn't look good on my resume.''
A nurse came into the room and checked
Avaline's
blood pressure and temperature. ''Your temperature's up a little. She's tired
now; perhaps
you can come back tomorrow?'' the nurse said.
''Sure. Remember
Avaline, you
're coming back to mine. I always get what I want.''
The nurse looked at him as he left the room and shook her head. ''Is he bothering you Avaline. He seems
awfully
pushy.''
''But hot wouldn't' you say?''
''Yes. I would say hot but dangerous,'' the nurse replied. They both laughed at the sisterly joke.
''Yes the dangerous bit hadn't escaped me,'' Avaline concluded.
*****
When Robert picked Avaline
up,
he was worried he was taking the fly to the spiders web. But those were his instructions. He knew what his boss
was like
. He'd ferried lots of women to Palmer Court, Colten's massive mansion in the hills around LA. None of them had stayed very long. He'd also taken most of them away again, in tears. Colten was a hard bastard. It didn't matter whether it was business or women, he applied the same principles. Robert remembered when Colten had told him about his philosophy. Colten saw life
in terms of
deals. He'd said a good deal is when you get out more than you put in. When Robert had told his wife what Colten had
said she
'd laughed. He recalled her exact words. ''That may work great for business, but it's
absolutely
the wrong attitude to relationships.'' But Robert was convinced Colten didn't give a damn.
'Here we are,
Miss
. Palmer Court. What do you think?'' Robert said pulling the Rolls up outside the mansion.
''My God, it's huge,'' she said. ''I had no idea. Maybe it won't be such a bad place to recuperate after all.''
''Miss,'' Robert began. He had chosen his words carefully. ''I've brought a lot of young women here, to this house. None of them have stayed very
long,
and most of them left with a broken heart.'' Avaline listened intently to what he had to say. ''I like you. You're bubbly and
beautiful; I
don't want to see the same thing happen to you.''
''Robert. As well as a life saver you're a star for thinking of me in that way.'' She reached from the back seat and patted him on the shoulder. ''But I want to tell you there is no way I'm entering into any
kind of
relationship with Colten. I'm his PA and not his mistress, despite what he may think.''
''Good for you miss.''
Avaline
took her handbag from the seat and put her hand on the door handle. ''No man has ever played around with
me,
and I don't intend to let him do so.''
But he's got you to come to his house already, Robert though. He
wasn't convinced
Avaline
could hold out against the firepower Colten could muster. Power and wealth were
very strong
persuaders as far as women were concerned.
''So here you are,'' Colten said as he walked down the stone steps that led from the front door.
''It's some house. I love the peacocks,'' Avaline gestured to the two birds walking across the lawn.
''They are great aren't they. Come on, let me take your bags.'' Colten and Robert carried her bags up the steps and into the house. Inside it was cool and roomy.
Avaline
had thought it would be tacky. She'd had images of gold and marble, but it wasn't like that at all. It was
exactly
as she would have furnished it. It was colonial just like the restaurant in the Hopeless Sinner.
Robert
left,
and Colten showed Avaline to her room. It was the biggest bedroom she'd ever seen. The bed alone was
large enough
for four people.
''This is yours for as long as you want it. It's south facing so you'll get lots of sunlight.''
''Colten,'' she began. He looked at her. She was more beautiful than any woman he'd ever had at the house. So
beautiful
he felt the beginnings of an erection when he looked at her. She
was dressed
in a floral dress that showed off a good amount of cleavage. All he wanted to do was rip the dress off, throw her on the bed and take her. ''I'm grateful to you.
This is
a very relaxing place to rest. But I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I'm not here to share your bed. I hope you understand.''
He smiled at her. He loved her resistance. So many of the others had just laid down and spread their legs in the belief that that's what would keep Colten interested. But it
wasn't.
He needed sport. He needed a chase, someone to say no to him. He knew he'd get what he wanted from her in the end. The only question was when.
''Sure. Of course, I understand,'' he replied. ''Anything else would be unprofessional. Freshen up and I'll show you around. Come downstairs when you're ready.''
Avaline
took a shower in the
en-suite
and dressed in a pair of shorts and a yellow blouse. She tied her hair in a ponytail and decided not to bother with makeup. Colten heard her coming down the stairs and shouted to her. ''I'm here.''
Avaline
followed the sound of his voice. It took her down a corridor and into a small room that was breathtakingly beautiful. It was a sort of conservatory but used as an office. There were pictures of buildings she assumed Colten owned on the walls, and a superb view of the yard. The water in the pool, which was just outside the doors, reflected the evening sunshine onto the ceiling, making
a wonderful
shimmering effect.
''Oh it's lovely here,''
Avaline
said.
''It's even better with a glass of wine.'' He rang a
bell
and a tall man appeared. ''A bottle of Rojo please Edwin.''
''Jesus. Is he a butler?'' she asked open mouthed when Edwin had gone.
''I suppose so. He's Dutch and as gay as they come. I've got a cook as well.''
Colten opened the doors and stepped outside. ''It's been damn hot today, but it's great now,'' he said. ''Come and sit here by the pool.''
Avaline
sat down
on a rattan garden sofa and looked across the yard. It was simply the most beautiful place she'd ever
been to
. Not that she'd made a habit of visiting expensive houses before. Edwin arrived with the wine and poured them a large glass.
''I think I'll cool off a bit,'' Colten said. Without a care in the world, he began to undress in front of her. She took a sip of wine and sighed as she felt its relaxing effect. When Colten took off his shirt, she stared at him. Gorgeous muscles, dark skin and a smooth chest with a hint of hair around his navel. She couldn't bear to watch as he slipped his pants off. When he stepped from the dark material, all that was left was a pair of tight fitting shorts and the most impressive male behind she'd ever seen. He walked around the pool and stood on the diving board. No Olympian had a better
body; she
thought as he raised his arms and dived into the pool. When he reached her end of the pool, he stopped and grinned. ''Coming in?''
''No. I'm fine here with my wine.'' Until that moment, she'd been amused by his flirty behavior. But now it was more. He'd undressed in front of her, knowing full well that it was bound to turn her on. Add the wine and it was a very dangerous cocktail indeed. Be strong, don't give him what he wants. Christ, you've only been working for him for a day. Who does he think he is?
Colten swam a few lengths and pulled himself out of the pool. As he did
so,
she saw the large muscles in his back flex. When
he
walked toward her, she saw a faint hint of a six pack. She didn't like body builder types but men with well-defined muscles, just like he had. He was dripping when he stood next to her to take a gulp of wine. Water was running down his chest and dripping onto the floor via the considerable bulge in his shorts. She'd tried not to look at it, but he was standing so close it was unavoidable. He lay down on a sun bed next to her sofa and closed his eyes.
''Perfect,'' he said. ''What a great evening. I've got all I want. The pool, wine and you.''
She looked across at him disapprovingly. You haven't got me, she thought. I'm just a guest. But she couldn't help look down over his chest and stomach to his bulge once more. She was sure she saw his manhood twitch and turned her reddening face away.
''Tell me about yourself,'' she said. ''You know everything about me. But I know so little about you.''
He put his arms behind his head and looked at the sky. ''Not many people have asked me to tell them my life story.''
''I'd like to know.''
''My mom and dad live in LA, in the same house they did when I was born. I've offered to buy them a new house, but they won't budge, so
why
waste my money. I've got a sister who has three kids and a man who hits her, and a brother who has bi-polar. He lives in a mental hospital most of the time.''
''Wow. Can't you get your brother-in-law to stop hitting your sister?''
''I've tried. I set some of my
heavies
on him once, but my sister went mental. Totally
mental
. I can't understand it. She kept bleating that it wasn't his fault.''
''I'm sorry to hear about your brother. That's hard.''
''Harder for him.
It's made my parents’ life so difficult.
I think they feel guilty. As for me, I went to high school, graduated and went to the Yale School of Management.''
Avaline finished her wine and put the empty glass down on the ground. He still had droplets of water on
him,
and she was sorely tempted to run her hand over his stomach and grasp his manhood. It was the wine, she told herself.
''But how did you get so rich? It's no mean feat.''
''I bought a piece of land when I was twenty for next to nothing. It was just a speculative deal. Then the military decided they wanted it to use as a shooting range. They paid me ten times what I'd paid for it. After that, I was up and running. I re-invested and bought four apartments in LA. They were pretty seedy when I bought them, but I renovated them and sold them on at the right time. I just kept the circle going. Buy, sell, reinvest. You can see the result.'' He gestured to the house.
''Yes. Well done. I would never have thought to do that.''
He turned his head to look at her. His eyes ran over her smooth legs and admired the shape of her thighs. ''You are different. You are worth more than pure money. You don't have to get rich.'' A cat appeared from somewhere and began to rub around the bottom of the sofa. ''That's Duke. He's the boss around here.''
''So you like animals?''
''Love them. They are so much more trustworthy than people.'' He put his hand out and Duke purred as Colten stroked him.''
''Do you want a family one day?'' she asked. ''Settle down with one woman and have some kids?''
''One day. But I'm only thirty-three. Time is hardly pressing.''
''Well think about this. If you wait until you're
forty
when your child leaves college, say at twenty-three, you'll be sixty-three. Almost ready to retire. You shouldn't leave it too long.''
''A very gloomy outlook indeed'', he said.
Edwin came out and asked what time Colten wanted dinner. They settled on eight pm.
They ate in a dining room that was large enough to house a fourteen seater table. It was bigger than a snooker table. They sat next to each other at one
end,
and
Avaline
looked over the vast expanse of the
unused
table and imagined it filled with children, grandparents, aunts and uncles.
After dinner, Avaline was tired. The wine has taken its toll. ''Thank you for a lovely evening,'' she said tempted to kiss him.
''My pleasure,'' he said.
When she had gone to bed, he sighed. She was hotter than hot, but for the first time in his life, he didn't know quite how to approach a woman. She just sent out negative signals all the time. He wasn't used to it. But he still had his trump card to
play,
and that was that he was the
boss,
and she had to do what he said or leave. But did he
really
want to play that card on someone so lovely? He might.
After two weeks
Avaline
returned to work. She and Colten had spent a most evening chatting around the pool. As each
evening
went past, Colten became more and more frustrated. Every time he tried to lead the conversation towards the bedroom, she refused his advances by telling him it was unprofessional if they slept with one another.