Dirty Beginning (Dirty 0.50)

“Shh,” he says. “You have to keep it a secret though .”

I pretend to lock my mouth with a fake key, like I do whenever anybody else tells me a secret. My father laughs again. He’s always laughing at me, and I love to make him laugh .

“For now though, let’s just say you want to be a princess .”

“Princess Kinsley and King Daddy !”

I’ve never thought about that memory—until now. I don’t even know if my father was serious when he said I could be CEO. And I never thought to ask. I never thought I wanted to run a company. I don’t have the talent, the skills, or the schooling. But maybe it’s what I want—to follow in my father’s footsteps. It’s all I’ve ever wanted—to be just like him .

I make my way back to the table and find that my plate has been taken away. In its place is a piece of chocolate cake and ice cream. Confused, I look up at Killian .

He shrugs. “To make up for not getting you that burger you wanted and for telling you what to do. Don’t all girls love chocolate ?”

I smile. Killian really does have some good qualities to him when he’s not being a bossy, arrogant ass. I dig in and melt in my seat as the ice cream melts in my mouth. I forget about everything, except for how good this tastes in my mouth .

“So, you’ll agree to the plan then?” Killian asks, seeming slightly nervous for the first time since I’ve met him .

I take one more bite. Chewing slowly, I savor every last drop in my mouth .

“Maybe,” I say on autopilot .

He smiles, thinking he’s won .

“I mean…no,” I say, realizing my screw-up. “I don’t think your plan will work .”

“Then, what do you propose ?”

I wince at the word propose . That’s what will happen if I don’t find a way out of this. If my plan fails, it will end with Killian proposing to me. It’s not that I wouldn’t want to look at a handsome man like Killian for all of eternity, but he doesn’t want to look at me in return .

“I propose that you find a new company that will make you CEO because that current position is already taken .”

“By whom ?”

“Me.”

He laughs, hard and uncontrollably. And then he laughs some more while I sit in my seat, frowning. When he finally stops, he seriously looks at me. “You can’t be serious ?”

“I am .”

“You can’t make a decision to save your life. You can’t even choose what you want to eat in a timely manner. You have no skill set. You don’t have a college degree. The only thing you have going for you is …”

“That I’m beautiful .”

“No.” His eyes meet mine. “I was going to say that you’re family .”

I shake my head. He’s wrong about that one. Granddad doesn’t care that I’m part of the family. He already thinks I will make a terrible candidate for CEO even though the company has been passed down to members of the family for three generations now. He’s only willing to pass it down to my husband. My beauty is the only thing I have going for me .

“Well, this should get interesting. But go ahead and try. This week is going to be amusing .”

“I will.” I stand from the table while digging into my purse to throw some cash on the table .

He grabs my arm again, keeping me from walking out. He pulls me close to him so that he can speak into my ear, but this time, there is nothing sexy about the move. “And when you realize what a mistake you’ve made, call me, and then I can work out a real plan to save you from marrying an arrogant, bossy ass like me,” he says, repeating the names I called him earlier. “Because trust me, princess, nobody wants that .”

“I don’t have…” That’s when I remember I already have his phone number .

“Although you should probably change the name in your phone to arrogant, bossy ass. I kind of like that.” He winks at me .

I pull away from his grasp and run out of the restaurant. He’s right. I don’t want to marry him, not now after that conversation we just had. I wouldn’t marry him if he were my only choice .