Share (Double Delights 3)

“Oh yes, of course, let me just bring up my electronic diary. I sat back at my desk and tapped on my keyboard until the main diary displayed. It was easier than trying to stare at the app on my phone, which made everything hard work.

“Okay, I’m in. When would Mr. King like to see me?”

There was a pause. “He wondered if you could meet him this afternoon at 2 pm.”

Of course, he did. He was a billionaire. They didn’t wait for meetings. If they wanted to see you, you jumped. I looked at my itinerary for the day and hoped Tiff wasn’t too busy and could fit my clients in. “That would be fine. I will meet him there at 2 pm.” I knew I would be there by 1:45 pm at the latest. Never would I leave a man of his waiting.

“You’ll be met at the gates to the development and given a visitor’s badge and anything else you need. He looks forward to seeing you then.”

“Thank you, Alexandra, please pass on my regards and tell him I look forward to meeting him too.”

I put the phone down and called Tiff, passing on my client's details for that afternoon and then I drove home as quickly as I could because although I looked smart, I did not feel I was dressed good enough for a billionaire.

At 1:39 pm I arrived at the gated development where I was given a security badge and directed to a car park. From there a man in a suit introduced himself and handing me a hardhat took me into the main entrance of the development. The vast mansion had been separated into four, five-bedroomed residences, each with their own entrances. The only thing connecting them all was one vast marble-floored hallway. There were two apartments upstairs and two downstairs, each with their own long hallway that led down to their grand entrances. It was homes within a home.

“If you’d like to wait here, Mr. King will be with you shortly.”

I thanked him and while I waited I strolled around the vicinity. The building work appeared to be largely completed. The façade of the building was limestone clad and each apartment had its own balcony or private patio. The lawns outside were almost the size of a small park and meant that residents would maintain a degree of privacy, maybe not always from the three other owners but at least from the general public.

“Miss Martin. Thank you for joining me at such short notice.” I startled. I was so lost in the architecture of the building I hadn’t realized the man himself had arrived.

“My apologies.” He placed a hand gently on my shoulder. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

My skin shivered under his touch and I moved further away from his body, wrapping my arms around my shoulders. “It’s fine. I was just admiring the beauty of this building.”

“Yes, I made sure my architect knew that the outside of the building was to be maintained. It’s the inside that has been modernized. Come and I’ll take you into the one apartment that has been completed.”

I’d only seen the completed apartment in photographs. The last time I’d visited, the front of the building had been wrapped in protective materials, there had been scaffolding everywhere and the apartments were finished in terms of the main construction but had yet to be decorated.

“If you’d like to follow me, Miss. Martin.”

“Please call me Haley. Miss. Martin makes me sound like an old maid.” Elias laughed. “You’re hardly that. How old are you if it’s not too personal a question? You look around the same age as my daughter. She’s twenty-one. By the way, call me Eli, that’s what my friends call me and I’m sure we’re bound to become them with you handling this development.”

“I’m twenty-four, Eli. You have a daughter? Is she interested in joining the family business?”

He laughed again; it made his face light up. He really was an attractive man, although far too old for myself. “No. No. Unfortunately, she takes after her mercenar

y mother, doesn’t believe she needs to work for a living and likes spending my money. Are you married, Haley?”

I blushed a little. “No, I’m not.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not propositioning you. I just wanted to offer some advice. If you become wealthy, ensure you have a pre-nup because there are people out there who think they deserve a large part of your wealth when they did nothing to contribute towards it.”

“Your marriage was a success then I take it?” I quipped.

“Well, let’s put it this way. I never made the same mistake again and don’t intend to. Marriage is not for me. I prefer the single life, and golf.”

He opened the door to one of the downstairs apartments. It was bright and airy and had all the amenities one would expect from a luxury residence. It was beautiful.

“I can’t wait to begin selling these residences. They won’t be available for long, Eli.”

“Well, that pleases me. If we work well together, Haley, I’d very much like Green’s and yourself, in particular, to represent King’s on the property front.”

“Oh.” My forehead creased. “A colleague of mine felt you were going to expand into the business yourself, cut out the middle man, so to speak.”

“I considered it at one point but I don’t have the time. Why mess around when Arthur Green has been in the business as long as he has and knows how to sell. Would you consider being the first point of contact for my businesses? It would take you away from a large portion of the day to day real estate selling of Green’s.”

“It sounds fantastic, and I have a friend and colleague, Tiffany, who would also be a good back up for myself.”