Bred By the CEO
None of his staff seemed capable of handling Elliot, and it was difficult juggling meetings and bouncing the little menace on his knee. As soon as he saw Rose with his nephew, the world seemed to come to a full stop. She had a calm air around her, whereas the other women in his office appeared scared or uncomfortable around children.
He noticed everything about her—that full ass, curves in all the right places, big brown eyes, and smooth mocha skin. Fuck, he was instantly hooked on the beauty. It took him a few moments to snap out of his reverie and ask for her name. He was rarely at a loss for words.
He’d never seen her before but, then again, he had thousands of employees. She was young, probably too young, but assertive. He liked that.
“You think I have the power to grant you a raise?” He sat on the edge of the desk, watching her fidget. The way she wet those luscious lips made him forget how exhausted he felt. Fortunately, Elliot was thoroughly invested in his oversized building blocks at the moment, giving him some alone time with his employee.
“Sorry, don’t you?”
He smirked. She was fucking adorable.
Darius had enjoyed his fair share of women over the decades. Lots of bleached blondes addicted to money and plastic surgery. At forty-six, he was looking for more than a quick fuck or arm candy. Rose was the opposite of girls he’d dated—and his curiosity was piqued.
“I’m just playing with you.” He didn’t stand up, didn’t move a muscle. He loved watching her squirm. “You don’t have to be nervous.”
“I’m not,” she said a little too quickly. “Maybe just a bit.”
“I’ll look up your employee file tomorrow morning, Miss Henshaw. If everything checks out, I’ll make sure you get that raise you say you deserve.”
He wanted to give her a lot more than a raise. Darius had begun thinking about his legacy more and more every year. It was becoming an obsession. With no children, he’d have no one to leave his business to, no one to teach or pass down his knowledge. Rose made him think of things like fucking, breeding, and children. He could picture her ripe with his child.
Darius shook away his wayward thoughts.
It had been a long day and his mind was apparently stuck in the gutter. He knew absolutely nothing about this girl with the wild curls and sweet smile. He’d be smart to keep his fantasies locked away and focus on growing his already thriving business. Numbers were safe. Relationships and emotions were more complicated.
He stretched his arm toward the door. “Thank you for watching, Elliot, but I’m sure you’re ready to clock out.”
“Oh.” She looked almost disappointed, which was intriguing. He waited for her to walk toward the door so he could watch the sway of her hips and full roundness of her ass. He loved everything he saw. But one thing he’d learned over the years was never to fall for beauty and curves without doing a thorough background check first. He’d been burned more than once by gold-digging bitches, and he wouldn’t let it happen again.
He drove out to his sister’s house in the suburbs to drop off Elliot, then made his way home along the freeway. She asked him to stay for dinner, but he preferred to keep to himself. It was what he did. Darius wasn’t sure why he couldn’t maintain close relationships. Something in his head was fucked up, and he wasn’t about to visit a shrink to figure it out. His rivals would love ammunition to tank his stocks, and he wasn’t about to give it to them.
The cityscape soon surrounded him as he neared his high-rise condo on the waterfront. He loved the best of everything. But it was never enough to fill the void.
His cell went off, then connected to the speakers in his car. It was one of his ass-kissing PAs.
“It’s after five, Mark.”
“I’m sorry, sir. I received your message about the accountant who showed up at your office this morning.”
He’d already forgotten about that.
“Did you find anything out?”
“She’s twenty-nine. No degree. Some community college courses. Her manager doesn’t have much to say about her.”
“Dependents?”
“Nothing listed. No emergency contact, either.”
It was hard to imagine she wasn’t a mother. She was a natural with kids, calm, and reassuring. Why couldn’t he get Rose’s image out of his head? He kept remembering how amazing she was with his only nephew. She wasn’t covered in makeup, and she hadn’t attempted to keep her curves concealed.
“Okay. Thanks for the update,” Darius said.
He pulled up to his condo, grabbed his briefcase, and tossed the keys to his valet. After today, he should be getting into the shower, then crashing for the night. But he knew himself better than that. He’d keep obsessing over Rose Henshaw. The information from Mark was trivial, just employment-related facts. He needed more. The real dirt.