Greyson

THE DOOR SWINGS OPEN

"A hickey!?" Sage hisses. "You gave me a freaking hickey!?"

I casually leaned backwards, not removing my eyes from her.

"How old are you? Seventeen?"

I chuckled, dryly. "No, but you are."

"You know what? If you thought this was going to stop me from seeing Dorian—"

"—That was the least of my motives. If I wanted you to stop seeing him I'd simply make him disappear from our lives."

"What'd you plan to do, kill him!?" Her eyes went wide.

I scoff. "Honestly, there are less messier ways of getting rid of someone Sage. I'd simply offer him a scholarship to travel abroad to any country of his choosing so he can study architect at it's finest. I'm not a barbarian, Sage, and sadly I'm hurt you would think that."

"Then why would you give me these stupid hickeys?"

I grinned. "Simple. I'm not stupid enough to think you'd stop seeing him because I asked. And this way when you're out it'll be known that you're mine."

"But I can cover this up, so the purpose of doing this was irrelevant if he won't see that I'm supposedly 'yours'. So in the end, that was just a waste."

My eyebrow arched, but my grin remained. "Who said I wanted just him to know you're mine? You can cover it but do you think you'll be able to remove it from you mind? You'll self-consciously look down to see if it's there or hidden, graze your fingers across it, maybe even remember how you got it." I lick my lips.

Sage immediately flushed, a mixture of rage and embarrassment. "You're...you're evil."

"And you like it." I inform her. "Otherwise, you would have complained. Which I remind you, you have not."

Her eyes widened. Check mate.

"Fuck you!" She yells.

"As bad you want me to, I cannot do such inappropriate things to a minor." My grin widened.

Sage stuttered around with her words, when finally it became coherent. "Y-You...I hate you...ugh!"

I'd be lying if I didn't admit the affect I had on her was pure entertainment for me. I'm amused that she'd fight such lengths to ignore the facts. In fact I think the only reason why she's even seeing Dorian to rile me up, truthfully, she had been successful. I, unfortunately, don't know why it bothers me so much and I would rather not find out.

I shrugged. "Not what you said as I pinned you down onto the couch, in fact if I remember correctly you did let a whimper of protest when I stopped."

"Go to hell!" She begins to storm away.

"You'd miss me if I did." I tell her.

Before leaving the room Sage turned to me and huffed. "And as for Dorian, I'm seeing him again, real soon. So don't pop at my house and expect me to be there because I'll most likely be with him."

Then she slammed the door behind her and left me alone in my office.

If she wants to play this game then I'll happily comply, Sage Slade must not know who I am if she thinks that a bloody hickey was my only plan of defense. Please.

I didn't think a stupid hickey would tame her, I actually anticipated for her reaction to be exactly the same. If it wasn't it would be rather disappointing.

Anyways, I have a phone call to make.

→←

"Well, isn't someone a little more grumpier than usual."

I look up and scoff. "You're late."

"Woah there, a private jet can only get here so fast from London." He grins.

Not amused, I frown. "I sent you a private jet two days ago, Hudson."

"Didn't say you didn't," Hudson sat himself down on one of the couches, leaning his head back into his hands. "so what's this 'emergency' you made me end an explosive night with two beautiful ladies and fly all the way back here for?"

If there was a person on this Earth who understood me, it was Hudson Grant. A man who was raised by wealth, who lives and does whatever he wants, and prefers no strings attached. He is exactly like me and functions just the same.

He's a manwhore, like myself, which made it very easy to become friends with him since we could relate to each other so much. Hudson has been my closest friend since my adolescence. Not to mention a close work colleague because of his career choice which is spyware and surveillance. If you want to know something all he needs is one thing to trace back to you and he's got your entire life in his palm. And it also helps that he can be a very frightening fellow thanks to several kinds of training to be that way.

I clear my throat. "You remember a few months ago I gave you a job?"

"Not another cock-block. You cannot keep doing this to other guys my man." He groans, throwing his head back. "What was the last guy's name? Pierce Radwell?"

Yes, a few months ago I hired Hudson to stray away this very Pierce Radwell. The attention he would bring to Sage would not be good, especially with him always being on the tabloids for trash. Her image needs to be pristine if she is to marry into my family.

I nodded. "Correct. I need you to do the same to another guy by the name of Dorian Daray."

"Listen, Greyson, you and I go way back." Hudson stands up and scratches the back of his head. "And not once have I seen you go to these ridiculous lengths to keep some random guy away from some mystery girl."

"That's none of your concern." I inform him. "I'm paying you to do a job, nothing more. Nothing less."

He sighs. "True, but, I'm your friend and probably your closest since you're kind of a douche to anyone that gets close to you." My eyebrows fly up and he snickers. "Anyways, I just don't understand why you out of anyone would care about a woman. I mean are we having another Bianca moment because if you are I must warn you—"

"We do not bring her up." I growl.

The name brings a sour taste into my mouth and an immediate recollection of her pops up in my mind. That woman is rotten to the core and I'd prefer if she never existed, ever.

"Still haven't gotten over that I see." Hudson rubs his temple. "Alright fair enough. But still, I can't let you do stupid shit for women again. So as your friend either explain to my why you're doing this or find another guy to do this stupid job."

"Fair enough." I say, picking up my phone. "You're excused while I call another man to do the job you clearly cannot do."

"Woah there!" He walks over to me, placing his hands on my desk. "Now come on, after more than ten years you can't trust me?"

"I trust you." I tell him. "This isn't a matter of trust, it's a job. Nothing more—"

"Nothing less." He finishes. "Gotcha. Alright fine, so you want me to scare him away from this Sage chick like I did with Pierce?"

"Correct, but be resilient because this one will be much more tougher to stray away than some stupid teen heartthrob." I cringe just thinking of him.

"You realize that you're a teen heartthrob, right?" His right brow arches. "I mean dude you're the gossip of the town. Especially since you took Brynn out, fuck, she's smoking hot. You have to got to start share her."

"She's not mine to share." I remind him.

"True but she's in your bed everytime she comes to bloody New York."

I look at him. "If you want her so bloody bad, have her. I'm no longer associating with Brynn in that manner anymore."

"Woah." Hudson grabs his chest. "Did you...Did you just say you're no longer fuck buddies with Brynn! Greyson she's like the longest fuck buddy you've ever had not to mention she's SMOKING HOT."

"Certain circumstances have led me to remove her from my life." I inform him.

"Does she have STD's?" He asks, dumbfounded.

I sigh. "No."

"She married?"

"Has that ever stopped me before?"

"Then what the fucks wrong with you...?" Hudson backs away. "Are you whipped?"

My brows furrow. "What?"

"Are you whipped?" He gasps. "Has a girl finally made you learn your evil ways!? Is it this Sage chick you make me scare guys away for?"

I stand up. "Hudson, may I remind you of who I am? Do I look like the kind of guy who get's 'whipped'?"

"I mean it happened once it can happen again." Hudson holds his hands up defensively. "Just saying, it happens to the best of us. Before I ruined it with Dawn I did in fact love her."

Yes, Dawn and Hudson have dated in the past a very long time ago. High school sweethearts is what they referred to themselves as, that is, until Hudson learned that once you're a manwhore you're always a manwhore.

Truthfully, Dawn isn't happy that he and I are still in contact after her heartbreak. But learned to deal with it once she realized he was one of the only men in this world who I would consider a friend. She didn't want me giving up someone like a friend for her, and after she remarried Hudson no longer existed in her mind. Only Mr. Mercer.

"Enough of this." I walk away. "Lucas has the information on this gentleman on his desk with a check for you, pick it up and make sure he's no longer associated with Sage Slade."

"Alright, Greyson." He says behind me. "I'll get it done."