Seduce Me Page 3

  Erika banished those thoughts from her mind and shifted in bed, trying to find a comfortable angle so she could fall asleep again.

  “Stop moving, princess,” Pierce said. Erika smiled. His morning voice was even deeper than the usual one. She loved it. It made her wish that she could hear it every day of her life.

  She turned towards him with a little bit of difficulty and saw that he was staring at her with a slight smile on his face.

  “Good morning,” she said shyly, looking down.

  Pierce wondered how she was still shy after last night. But he found it adorable, so he didn’t comment on it, which might have made her feel self-conscious. So all he did was place a kiss on her nose.

  “Give me a proper greeting,” he ordered. At her confused look, he added, “Kiss me.”

  Erika’s eyes widened. “Pierce, no!” Morning breath is disgusting, and I’m not risking that.”

  “I don’t care about your morning breath,” he said, staring at her intently. Pierce could stare at this woman all day.

  “Well, I care about yours,” she retorted, the tried to burrow herself into the covers.

  Pierce lifted her with no difficulty and laughed at the surprised look on her face. He took advantage of that and kissed her. Erika moaned into the kiss. There was a wondrous expression on her face when Pierce pulled away.

  “Good morning, princess,” he said with a smirk on his face.

  The only response Erika could give was, “Hmm.”

  A short time later, both of them were sitting at the breakfast table in the kitchen, eating whatever Erika had whipped up.

  “I want to spend today with you,” Pierce said.

  Erika lifted her head and met Pierce’s gaze. This man was so intense. The tone of his voice let her know that there were no arguments. And Erika had no desire to fight. Or maybe not.

  “What if I don’t want to?” she retorted with a lifted brow.

  “I’ll convince you.”

  “How?” Erika asked, giggling.

  “With my tongue,” Pierce said.

  Erika’s mouth grew dry and dropped open. That was a great incentive.

  “Believe me, I’m convinced,” she said breathlessly.

  As soon as Erika said those words, Pierce’s phone started ringing. He looked at it. “Work,” he said. Just as he was about to decline the call, Erika stopped him.

  “No! It might be important. It’s always better to respond,” she said.

  Pierce looked at her in wonder. He had never met a woman like Erika. And he knew without a doubt that he was going to keep her. She was going to be with him forever. At this point, he could care less about the age difference. She was his. And nothing was going to change that.

  Pierce answered the phone and heard his assistant’s voice. “What’s the latest?” he asked.

  “Jacob Stevens refused the money? I thought you said he was in dire need. Offer him any amount, Grey. I need him to shut down by next week.

  Erika listened to Pierce with a sinking heart. It was obvious that he was talking about her company. When he had mentioned Jacob’s name, her heart had started beating faster. And then it sank when she heard “shut down by next week.”

  It was one thing knowing that this man wanted her to close her company. But it was another hearing him saying it. It was hurtful. And the worse part was, she couldn’t complain because she did not let him know the truth. The truth that she was the one in charge of the company.

  Even if she did tell him, there was no guarantee that he would stop whatever business plans he had. Pierce is a driven man who knows exactly what he wants in his personal life as well as his business life. Would his feelings for her make any difference regarding her company if he knew the truth? Erika did not know the answer.

  She was distracted by his tired sigh. “Is everything okay?” she asked hesitantly. A look of pale exhaustion was on his face. She hated the way he suddenly looked older. Her Pierce was youthful and bright.

  “Just some transaction that is taking far too long to be done and dealt with,” he sighed.

  Erika frowned. She wondered what were his motives behind shutting down her company? She had to ask. “What happened?”

  “This infuriating startup. No matter how much I urge them, the owner refuses to shut down his company. I have promised them monetary compensation. But still nothing.”

  Erika fought the urge to shout, “That infuriating startup is mine, you asshole. And you are messing with my dreams. No amount of money will be enough to make me shut down. None!”

  But she held her tongue. She didn’t want Pierce to discover the truth like this. All it would do is spark up rage, arguments, and rejections. She wasn’t ready for any of those at this moment. So she asked her next burning question.

  “Why do you want them to shut down?” Erika asked. She mentally crossed her fingers, hoping that Pierce was going to come up with some sort of valid reason. If he did so, then she was going to tell him everything.

  “Competition. You have to crush them before they become too big,” he replied flippantly, taking a sip of his coffee.

  “That’s it?” Her tone was that of disappointment, and Pierce easily caught on to it.

  “Princess, there’s no room for emotions in business. I might be successful now, but this is the next big thing. And if I don’t try to stop them, I’m letting a potential threat grow even bigger.” he explained.

  Erika blinked to keep the tears from falling. It was amazing that he thought her ideas were big, but he still wanted to destroy everything she had worked so hard to build. It was hard hearing all this.

  “Is everything okay?” Pierce’s voice brought her out of her thoughts. She couldn’t lie, so she nodded. “What happened?” Erika didn’t answer, so he asked another question, “Was it something I did?”

  Erika shook her head. Pierce took her into his arms and led her to the bed. “Let’s lay here for a while, alright?”

  She nodded and enjoyed the peaceful feeling of being in his arms. It gave her a temporary escape from all of her problems. Yet, she was still wrapped in the arms of her business enemy.

  Chapter Six

  “Are you sure you don’t want to sleep over? Will you be fine on your own?” Pierce asked for like the hundredth time as they sat in his car in front of Erika’s apartment building. He had been trying to convince her to come back to his place.

  “Pierce, I’m okay. I’ll be fine. I should be asking you that question, big baby. You don’t want me to leave,” she said.

  “If I had it my way, princess, you would never leave me,” he slowly said. Erika looked at him with a surprised look on her face. “Don’t doubt it,” he added, then placed a soft kiss on her lips. What was supposed to be nothing but an innocent peck turned into a passionate kiss that neither of them wanted to stop. But they had to.

  “I’ll miss you,” Erika confessed when they finally pulled away from each other. She sighed and lifted her head. “Bye, baby,” she whispered, then kissed his cheek and got out of the car.

  Pierce watched as she walked into her apartment building. He couldn’t bring himself to drive off just yet. It was probably creepy, but he wanted to make sure that she was safe.

  Pierce frowned as he thought back to the events of the day. Erika had the strangest reaction when he mentioned that startup company he wanted to shut down. Pierce knew his methods were unorthodox and maybe a little cruel. But without being as pushy as he was, he would never have gotten to where he was in life. Like he told Erika, there are no feelings involved in business. It was more of, “I want it. I’ll get it.” And that type of thinking was something he wasn’t sure he would ever apologize for.

  He looked one more time at Erika’s apartment, noticing that all the lights were on. He smiled a little, then drove off.

  ***

  The next morning, Erika felt better than yesterday. Of course, there was the issue of Pierce and her company in the back of her mind. But, at least it was in the bac
k of her mind. And she was determined to keep it there. Until everything blew up, which she hoped wouldn’t happen, she would continue enjoying the time she had with him.

  After getting ready for work, she walked to the bus stop. Erika knew that she had seen Pierce just the previous night and they had spent the whole day together, but she already missed him. And, she had only slept with him one night, but now her whole sleeping pattern was ruined. She couldn’t count the number of times she had twisted and turned in bed just to find a position that was going to be comfortable enough for her to fall asleep in. Finally, she had to cuddle a pillow.

  Erika sighed in contentment as she reached the coffee shop. Before she could walk in, someone held her waist. She knew it was Pierce, so she giggled and leaned back into him.

  “How did you know it was me?” he asked quietly in her ear, his deep voice making her shiver.

  “I know your scent. And your feel,” she explained. Then he turned her towards him and kissed her softly.

  “I missed you,” he said, leaning his head against hers.

  “I missed you too. The pillow is a poor substitute for you, “ she sighed, inhaling his scent deeply.

  “For my fingers, you mean?” Pierce asked grinning.

  Erika pulled back and hit him playfully, laughing. “You have such a dirty mind! I cuddled the pillow!” she explained, laughing even more. Pierce joined in on the laughter.

  “This is why you should have stayed with me last night,” he said.

  “We both know I would have been late to work,” she rolled her eyes.

  “True,” he admitted quietly, laughing. “Where do you work, princess?”

  Erika laughed nervously. “Why do you ask?”

  “I want to know if they are treating you well enough so I can snatch you,” he teased.

  “They are, don’t worry,” she laughed, but it sounded hollow even to her ears. Pierce looked down at her with a raised brow, but she shook her head. If she continued like this every time he mentioned work, he would surely suspect something was up.

  As if in sync, they walked into the coffee shop together and got their orders. When they got back outside, Erika looked up at Pierce. In the sunlight, he looked especially handsome. There was no doubt about that. But they had work.

  “I don’t know why I’m missing you so much when I see you every day,” she complained, pouting.

  “I’m addictive, princess. You can’t help it,” was Pierce’s cocky reply.

  “I won’t miss that,” she laughed. Then she placed a soft kiss on his cheek. “Bye, baby.”

  Erika walked off briskly before Pierce had a chance to pull her back and give her a “proper kiss.” She had been late too many times to work this week. She was the boss, but she and Jacob were still struggling. So she needed to work as hard as he did, or even more.

  ***

  “Good morning,” she called out as she walked into the office. Of course, Jacob was already there, sitting at his desk and looking like a moody child. “What’s up?”

  “My coffee,” was all he said. Then took it from her hands, along with the muffins she always got him. Jacob couldn’t function without coffee and food. If you wanted him to do anything for you, all you had to do was promise him food or coffee. Or both.

  “So? Anything new?” she asked when he was halfway through the muffins.

  “I haven’t read the emails yet, but there were over twenty-five. And I have an idea who they’re from,” Jacob responded.

  Erika sighed. Both of them knew it was Pierce he was talking about. She didn’t say anything because she didn’t want to spark a fight with him. And, because he was most likely right.

  The only people they got emails from were potential sponsors, and it was too soon after the last meeting to be one of them. So it left only one slot open: Pierce Hunter. Jacob was kind enough not to say anything else about him, and for that Erika was grateful.

  “Anything exciting happened of late in your life?” Jacob asked lazily, watching his boss. The biggest smile he had ever seen before on Erika’s face appeared. He raised a brow.

  “I spent the night at Pierce’s place,” she confessed giddily.

  “So, your vCard is gone?” Jacob asked bluntly. Erika blushed. It was so easy to tease her. You couldn’t resist it when she just made is so easy.

  “Why are you like this?” she groaned as he laughed.

  “Hey, it’s a question,” he laughed. “You could choose not to answer.”

  “Fine. No. I am still a virgin,” she confessed. Jacob raised his brow again at her.

  “But we did do… some things,” she whispered with a blush.

  She had spent the night at Pierce’s place, and no intercourse had happened. But she did cum three times without him entering her. “How crazy is that I’m still a virgin!” she thought to herself.

  “I’m not going to ask you what some things are even though I really want to see just how red you can get,” he laughed.

  Erika blushed again at her embarrassment then hit Jacob’s arm. “He said he wanted us to take things slow. I was actually happy because I don’t think I was really ready.” She sighed and smiled. Then she looked up at Jacob and said, “I’ll be in my office.”

  Jacob smiled and nodded. As soon as she entered her office, the smile fell off his face. Whether Erika realized it or not, she had it bad for Pierce Hunter. All Jacob hoped for was that the man was going to treat her right. If not, he was going to have to deal with him, Jacob.

  Chapter Seven

  The next day was a bit of a slow one. Pierce had called Erika to tell her that he couldn’t meet up for coffee. It was a little weird being at the coffee shop without him. And evidently, some of the regulars thought so as well because they looked at her strangely. Erika paid them no mind, though. She got her coffee and walked to her office alone like she always did.

  Jacob, of course, was there. “Did you read the emails yesterday? I forgot to ask,” Erika said as she walked into their office.

  “Coffee first,” he said. Erika rolled her eyes. She was going to stop getting him coffee. It was becoming an addiction. Plus, she was getting annoyed with that being the first thing he asked for as soon as she arrived.

  “You should stop drinking coffee so much, Jacob,” she said, concerned.

  “It’s either coffee or whiskey, and I think I know which option you prefer,” Jacob retorted quietly. Erika twisted her face and nodded. She was going to stop talking about his habits. She was his friend, not his mother.

  As she waited for Jacob to finish drinking his coffee, Erika thought about what could have made Pierce so busy that he didn’t have time for their morning ritual. He must have been really busy because she knew he wouldn’t just blow it off like that.

  “Okay, so, as we suspected, the emails were from Hunter,” Jacob’s voice brought her back to reality. She wasn’t really surprised that it was Pierce who had sent the emails. There was no other option.

  “What did they say?” she asked, not even sure she wanted to know.

  “Offering us $5 million if we decide to drop all this,” Jacob said, observing her face carefully. He knew Erika was a smart girl and the last thing he needed her to do was put her dreams on pause simply because she did not want to fight with the man she was falling in love with.

  Both of them knew that $5 million was a paltry sum. Their idea was an innovative one, a twist on social media apps that no one had ever seen before. If they managed to launch successfully, with enough support and with no glitches, their profit margin would go way beyond $5 million.

  “When I was at his place, his assistant called. He said pretty much the same thing. And he told him to offer us any amount so that we wouldn’t be able to refuse,” Erika explained to Jacob, who raised his brow.

  “I… Jacob, you know how much I love what we’ve created so far. You know just how passionate I am about all this. It’s my baby… it’s our baby. And I can’t just abandon it for the sake of Pierce. I might be fall
ing in love with him, but I have my priorities straight.”

  The look on Jacob’s face was definitely relieved. “Good. I thought the dick had consumed you so bad you were going to be a dumb little girl.”

  “I haven’t even had the dick!” she exclaimed, and both of them burst into laughter.

  “We all know it’s coming,” Jacob said, and Erika blushed. It was so easy to mess with her. But he wanted to know one thing.

  “Does he ever talk to you about our company?” he asked.

  “Well, I asked him. He said his only motive was removing competition. He has a lot of faith in us, ironically. He says we’ll make it big and knows that we’ll be a threat to him in the future, so getting rid of us now would be best.”

  “How do you stomach him talking about your dream like that?” Jacob was disgusted. The man treated Erika well, but there was nothing good about him. He obviously had a soft spot for Erika. But what happens when it fades away? Was he going to discard her like a used rag?

  “I burst into tears,” Erika admitted sheepishly. “Not in front of him, though. But I think he feels he did something wrong, which he didn’t. I mean, he did. I’m having a hard time separating Pierce Hunter from the Pierce I know.”

  “They’re the same person. Don’t forget that,” Jacob warned.

  “I know,” she said.

  There was silence for some time. Neither wanted to say what they were really thinking until Jacob got the courage to ask, “Do you think you could get information from him so we could bring him down? It would boost us—”

  “Jacob!” Erika exclaimed, horrified.

  “What? If he’s using underhanded methods, why don’t we use them too?” His tone was defensive, but he knew that neither of them could do such a thing.

  “Just because he’s using questionable tactics doesn’t mean we are going to as well, okay? We’ll figure a way out of this mess. Trust me.” Erika said.

  Jacob smiled at her, and she returned the smile. They were both doing great work, and it was such a shame that it was going unrecognized because of one person.