The Love Of Money - Episode 242
08-08-25 (16:04)
Once we landed, we climbed out, and I made my way
over to Helen. Since there was no one else on the
rooftop besides me, Erin, and my security, she took a
liberty she might not otherwise have indulged. She
placed her hands on each side of my face and pulled
me in for a kiss. Her tongue immediately invaded my
mouth, pushing past my lips and seeking out mine as
the kiss deepened past the point of carnal familiarity
into burning intimacy.
With the rotors of the chopper still roaring as they
slowed, I could feel Helen hum into my mouth more
than hear it, and as we made out, a faint whiff of her
familiar perfume enveloped my sense of smell. The
beast in my pants stirred in that all-too-familiar way,
and I pressed my crotch into her, seeking any sort of
temporary relief for the sudden tingle running down my
length.
A few moments later, she broke the kiss, her mouth
hovering millimeters under mine as her cold blue eyes
looked up at me with anything but ice in them. "I
missed you."
"I missed you too," I said, and I meant it. I'd had my
issues with Helen in the past, but she was my first in a
lot of ways, and that meant something. Besides, I liked
Helen with her stunning good looks and calm
demeanor; she seemed so unapproachable to most, so
sharing moments like this with her was like being privy
to a secret very few people knew.
I wondered how long it had been since Roger had been
the target of that secret affection or anyone, for that
matter.
"Is he here?" I asked.
Helen nodded. "This is too big to not attend. Karl is here
too."
"Alright," I said. "Lead the way."
"Of course," Helen sald, but before doing any leading,
she turned and grabbed my assistant's face in a similar
way she'd done to me and brought their lips together
for another heated kiss.
I glanced at Chloe, but she was scanning the rooftop.
However, John was watching the pair of women as
they exchanged tongues and saliva. He caught me
looking at him and quickly glanced away as if he were
also scanning the rooftop. No matter the amount of
training, I guess it was difficult for any red-blooded man
to ignore two gorgeous women as they made out.
Helen broke the kiss, whispered something into Erin's
ear, and stepped away. My assistant was wearing a
shit-eating grin as she swept her silvery hair out of her
face and looked up at me. Her dark eyes shined with
arousal. "We're supposed to have our heads in the
game," she said. "She's not doing us any real favors, is
she?"
"Nope," I said, looking back at Helen's ass as she
walked ahead of us. "Glad we have this walk to cool us
down."
"So, no teasing, then?" Erin asked.
"I'm putting a moratorium on all teasing until the
meeting is officially over," I said, giving my assistant a
faux-serious look.
On the way, Helen filled us in on who had made it so
far. The meeting was set for nine-thirty, but most of the
members intending to be here had already arrived.
Nina Haley-formally Gerrard-was already in the
boardroom, so I would get the chance to meet my aunt
today. Meeting her had me almost as nervous as the
actual board meeting. Others present included Chandler,
Kelly Maddox-the contender for the throne; a Silicon
Valley guy named Gus Hathaway, Rajesh Desal-the
owner of Pakistan's largest telecommunications
company, Amber Bell-a representative from Brantwood
Holdings; Hiro Tanaka, and Carla Tanaka.
The news that Carla Tanaka was here made my
stomach turn; the last time I'd seen her, she was drunk
and had been fooling around with one of my best
friends. Before that, she'd tried to corner me in the
restroom of a coffee shop and ended up giving me her
number. Hiro was one of my few allies, and Carla was
an agent of chaos that could easily complicate matters
for me if she wanted to.
Wayne Prudem-my other ally-would be present via
phone, as would Peter Michaelson, a lawyer
representing my twin siblings in the vote. I was a little
disappointed that I wouldn't meet my brother and
sister, but considering how nervous an aunt made me,
it was probably best that I only have one family
member to contend with today.
Helen gave me a brief rundown of the formalities, the
meeting structure, and other bits of etiquette. I was so
engrossed in trying to pick up any last-minute tidbits of
wisdom from the seasoned lawyer that I hadn't even
realized we'd entered an elevator, gone down five
floors, left the doors, and were approaching a large
boardroom walled almost entirely in glass.
The large meeting table in the center of the room
almost shone under the soft overhead lighting. Its dark
walnut grain told of how it was as expensive as a
brand-new car. Chandler stood on one end, talking to
Karl and Roger. I saw a man with a strong nose and
swarthy complexion sitting next to a woman who
appeared to be in her early to mid-forties. She wore
short hair layered with rich curls and streaked subtly
with grays amid the raven black. She had black
rectangle glasses and wore crimson lipstick that
matched the dark red blouse underneath a charcoal
jacket. Her fingernails were painted to match her
lipstick. It was Kelly Maddox.
Another figure stood just on the other side of Kelly,
pulling some documents out of her briefcase bag. She
had hair the color of wheat pulled back in a severe bun
gathered at the back of her head, very little makeup,
and thin wire-framed glasses perched on the edge of
her nose.
And I recognized her.
All common sense and reason evaporated as I suddenly
bolted away from my group, brushing past John as he
strode in front of me and broke for the boardroom. As I
approached it, one of the chairs spun around, a blonde
head revealing itself as the high back moved to the
side. Carla Tanaka caught sight of me as I closed in on
the glass wall. She offered me a dazzling smile that
lasted a split second before melting into concern on
seeing the look on my face. She said something, but I
couldn't hear it through the thick glass. The chair next to
her started to turn, and I saw Hiro's bespectacled face
as he turned to watch me.
As I rounded the corner, my hand hit the glass wall to
help me slow my momentum. The slap against the
glass caught everyone's attention, and they turned to
watch as I rounded the parameter of the enclosed
space and reached the entrance. With my jaw set and
fists clenched, I tore open the boardroom door and
stormed inside.
"What the fuck is this!?" I shouted. "Is this some kind of
joke!?"
Everyone in the room grew silent-people I knew and
people I'd only seen images of. They all looked around
at each other, expressions ranging from scandalized to
concerned. It was probably the first time someone had
barged into their boardroom like a complete madman.
Hiro stared at me with a harsh, disapproving gaze over
the rim of his glasses.
Right now, I didn't fucking care.
"Marcus?" Chandler asked, looking terribly confused.
I barely noticed him. My attention was on the woman
with the briefcase. Her face was burned into my
memory, and I could have described her perfectly if I
lived to be eighty. The last time I'd seen her was a little
over a week ago when I'd been kept against my will in
a warehouse in Vegas.
To Be Continued... Don't forget to leave a Comment 
