Duke

“Your schedule for today is you have six meetings, two conference calls, and lunch with your brother’s. I have answered some of your more mundane emails, but HR and Payroll have some pressing concerns that I added to the “Today” folder in your inbox. Payroll needs a response before noon, so that there is no disruption in paychecks going out to the satellite office in Indianapolis.”

“Got it. Anything else?”

“No sir. That’s all for now.”

“Thanks,” I tell her. When she makes no move to go, I clear my throat. “Yes?”

“Why don’t you ever smile, Duke?” she asks.

Bernadette is an older woman. The woman is best friends with Ingrid and my mom, so she has known me since I was twelve years old. She is one of the only women who I’d allow to ask me an imposing question like that.

“I smile, Bernie. You know that I do,” I say, rolling my eyes.

“Fine, I relent. You know how to smile but never do. What about a woman, then? Your mother wants more grandchildren.”

“Isn’t the two on the way enough for now?” I ask, laughing.

“No,” she deadpans.

“Fine. I’ll get right on that,” I deadpan back. “Anything else?”

“No, that should do it,” she says, getting up and leaving the room, while closing the door behind her.

Pulling up my calendar, I see that I still have twenty minutes before my first call. I eat my breakfast and answer Payroll and HR emails before it’s time. As soon as I finish, Bernadette calls in with the first conference call and my day begins. Finally, work ends, and I head out to wait for the elevator. Baron is waiting as well, and we go down together.

“You okay, bro?” Baron asks.

“Yeah. Great. Didn’t sleep well last night. You?”

“Yeah. Terrific. Frannie is popping out even more than last Sunday,” he says excitedly.

“That’s great. She’s due any day now, right?”

“In about another month,” he says.

“Congrats again,” I say.

I want what he has. A wife and a family, and I want it with Esther. It’s time to up my game.

Come hell or high water, I am going to marry that girl.Chapter TwoEstherStaring up at the building I will hopefully be working in, I cannot help but feel trepidation. I have never worked a day in my life. At twenty-four years old, my whole life has been spent being a… society girl. A spoiled brat, depending on who you ask. I was born into money and a life that is supposed to be so great, when in truth I find it stifling, degrading and fake. Who would have thought, living in a fishbowl and having your every move dissected and blasted for the whole world to see, is ok and fun? Sure as hell not me. However, I have never been able to show that side of me out in the open. If I am being honest, I have never wanted to. Until Duke.

I met him briefly, during my best friend Frannie and Baron’s wedding. Although we didn’t have time to talk, the moment he took my hand into his will forever be engulfed in my veins as my blood ran through me, filled with desire and need. I looked into his eyes, and in it I could read everything. For a brief moment, I was engulfed in his essence. But the thing that gave me pause, that stopped me from walking up to him and telling him what I was feeling, was the inadequacy of being...well...me.

I stared as he walked away. My mouth was watering as I took in the beautiful black man. His skin is the color of Shemar Moore, all caramel and delicious and built like Kellan Lutz. Twilight Kellan Lutz. Not ‘Love, Wedding, Marriage’ Kellan Lutz. In those few seconds, I could picture his big body on top of mine with my curves molding into his body perfectly. Jesus.

He and his brothers own a multi-billion-dollar company and are used to a certain caliber of woman. My parents may have money and I may be part of the social scene, but I am nowhere near their status. Let me clarify, I don’t care about the social status. What I do care about is him seeing me as a spoiled little girl, who is living off of her dad’s money and not doing anything with her life. That is not who I want him to see me as, and certainly not who I want to be.

I shake my hands to try and get the nerves to calm. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a man standing across the street taking pictures of me. He looks like someone I should recognize. I think he used to follow Frannie and I around. We found out that Baron had hired him to sort of report back to him, if you will. But if he was here for Frannie, why would he be here now? I turn around shaking my head, knowing I have no time to try and figure this out.