“Thanks. I’m relieved it’s going so well. It’s unfortunate that things didn’t work with Ms. Alexander. You’re sure you can’t change her mind?”
No doubt in my mind that I couldn’t. “I actually wanted to talk to you about that.”
“I’m listening.” Titan adopted her serious mood anytime business was on the table. Even in her relaxed attire, she looked like she belonged in a conference room.
“Ms. Alexander isn’t going to change her mind. She has a very interesting character. But you can’t afford to have her as a competitor. With any other person, I’d say you could destroy them. But since she’s the source of innovation, it’s a different scenario. She has a brilliant mind, and you aren’t going to recruit a scientist of her caliber. I say you revisit the idea of a partnership. I think it could only benefit you, Titan. And rejecting her offer could only hurt you. That’s my take on it.”
She stared at me with that icy expression, absorbing the ghosts of my words as they drifted across the room. Her brilliant mind was working furiously, dissecting my words with invisible knives. The longer she stared, the more I feared she knew about my fondness for Autumn. I suspected she was about to accuse me of it right then and there. Thankfully, she didn’t. “I’m surprised you feel that way.”
“It’s the only solution. The only thing stopping you is your pride.”
“I don’t work well with other people.”
“I realize that. But you’ll have to make an exception if this is a path you want to follow. You’ve already accomplished so much that you could abandon this and still retain your professional power. But if you pursue it, you could be securing one of the greatest innovations the world has ever seen. Wouldn’t you rather share that responsibility with someone than lose it altogether?”
Her piercing gaze turned more forceful. “I’ve never heard you speak so highly of someone, Thorn. You speak of Ms. Alexander like she’s made a significant impact on you.”
Her impact was more than significant. “I’ve met a lot of people in this business, and most of them are full of bullshit. They’ve been handed their wealth from their families, and they’re as stupid as an ox. But Ms. Alexander is just like you. She pursued her dreams in a storage shed until they came true. She doesn’t have just the intellect you need, but the ambition and drive. You two are a lot alike—in many ways.”
“That’s not necessarily a good thing…”
“In this case, I think it is. You should take this compromise, Titan. You’ll regret it more if you don’t.”
She finally turned away, her lips pursed as she considered it.
I waited for her to make her decision. Titan considered propositions from every single angle. She anticipated the least likely events so she was prepared for anything. After a few minutes, she returned to the conversation. “I trust you, Thorn. So I’ll give it a shot.”
I smiled in response, glad she was on board. “Great. I’ll speak to her.”
“But I want to speak to her myself. Can you have her come here so we can speak face-to-face?”
I saw an issue with that. “What about Diesel?”
“What about him?” she countered.
“I thought you weren’t supposed to be working.”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s just one meeting. He’ll get over it.”
“Do you not know Diesel?” I asked incredulously.
“Well, I’ll make him get over it. Did you talk to Vincent about Kyle and me doing business with him?”
I let her change the subject. “Yeah, he mentioned it. I’m meeting Kyle tomorrow.”
“Great. You really are on top of things.”
“Of course. Your best interests have always been my best interests.”
She smiled at me. “You’ve always been so good to me. I hope one day I can reciprocate.”
She’d given me more than she realized. Just having a loyal friend in this cruel world was more than enough. “You already have, Titan.”
Nearly a week had come and gone since I’d last seen Autumn.
We had a great night together, and she slipped out the following morning before I woke up—the second time.
After one-night stands, I usually forgot about the woman and moved on with my life. They were moments that only existed at that particular instant in time. Once it was completed, it was just a memory I could barely recall.
But I hadn’t stopped thinking about her.
Her kiss.
Her touch.
Her perfect pussy.
She was a lay I wouldn’t forget—not anytime soon.
I knew she wouldn’t forget about me either. She was the recipient of a long night of pleasure. I fulfilled fantasies she didn’t even realize she had. She begged me to fuck her because I was so good at it. She’d wanted my big cock from the moment she laid eyes on it, and her expectations were never let down.
I gave it to her good.
Whether she was thinking about me or not, she didn’t contact me.
I wasn’t sure if I expected her to or not.
Maybe I did. Maybe I didn’t.
After I spoke to Titan, I knew it was time for me to seal the deal with Autumn. I purposely waited a few extra days so our last interaction would feel fainter. When I walked into her office, I wanted it to be about business. I didn’t want her to think I was making some kind of move on her.
After I had my appointment scheduled, I went to her facility on the other side of town and waited in the lobby. It looked exactly the same as before, sleek and simple. I was offered water and a pastry, but I declined both.
The glass
