Leaning forward, she squints as she reads it over. “Yeah, I didn’t think it was part of your vernacular.”

Standing, she trades the chair for the couch, scooting closer to me so that her face is inches from mine as she looks over my shoulder and studies the screen more closely. She has an amazing profile. Long, black eyelashes fan out from her wide eyes, there’s a slight bump on the bridge of her downturned nose, leading to her full, rose petal lips and a stubborn little chin.

She’s gorgeous.

“I’m full of surprises, princess,” I say, hearing the dark rumble of my own voice. Her expressive eyes flicker up to mine, and I feel the heat of that look straight down to my cock. Before I grab her up and indulge in my fantasies, I turn back to the tablet and the schedule still showing on the screen.

“I’ll send this to your email so you have a copy of it. I can’t be your babysitter, so make sure you study it.”

She glares up at me—a reaction I’m waiting for. It stirs the desire in me even more and, still, I restrain myself. She thinks she’s done with me, but she’s only denying the inevitable. Growing up, I always got what I wanted. In that sense, I am my father’s son, and what I want now is her. All I have to do is bide my time and eventually, she’ll come.

In more ways than one.

14

Heads covered in varying shades of silver turn our way as Vista and I walk into the conference room on the tenth floor of my father’s firm, Black Investments. It’s an agency of sorts that specializes in forming marketing campaigns with a focus on athletics.

Naturally, my father recruited me early, before I’d even entered high school. He’s a natural when it comes to speaking, and he can sell just about anything. With him at the helm, I’ve made millions. I wonder how he’ll react when I tell him I’m severing our contract and branching out on my own.

Thankfully, my father hasn’t arrived yet. All eyes are on us, and I can just imagine what they’re thinking. They know who Vista is, and I’m sure we make quite the picture walking in here together, her body aligned with mine, my hand pressing possessively against the small of her back, me whispering in her ear. I don’t care a lick about what the old buzzards waiting for him think. They don’t cut my checks and soon, I’ll never have to look at their shriveled faces again.

“Wait for me over there.” My hand on her back, I press a kiss to Vista’s temple then send her on her way, directing her to a seat in the corner of the room, away from the main table where I’m about to get down to business.

Picking the chair at the far end of the table, positioned opposite the one my father will assume, I release the zipper on my leather riding jacket and sit. “Gentlemen,” I greet them. “How’s business?”

The only answer I get is a few faint smiles, and then total silence consumes the room. These men only answer to one thing, and that’s power. Anywhere else in the world, I hold that power, but in the face of David Black, I’m no more than the gum on the bottom of their shoe.

Glancing over my shoulder, I catch Vista’s eye and give her wink. Her cheeks flush a pretty pink that makes me smile. I hate being in this place, but having her here makes it somewhat tolerable. At least now I have a stunning view to look at.

Some fifteen minutes later, the door flies open and my father steps in. His black pinstriped suit and matching tie lay perfectly on his fit frame, and when he ambles across the room, the air of superiority precedes him.

David Black’s eyes meet mine as he draws back his chair and pauses a moment to take me in. Every person in here besides me is dressed in expensive tailored suits with their hair combed back and their noses stuck in the air. I, on the other hand, am in my usual fair: jeans, t-shirt, Doc Martens, and my leather jacket. They drove here in their luxury cars and I on my motorcycle. We’re worlds apart in all aspects. My father doesn’t have to speak the words for me to know how disappointed he is in me. By now, he should expect it. I’ve never pretended to fit the mold.

“Levi,” he says curtly as he releases the button on his suit jacket and lowers himself into the chair. “I’m glad to see you could make it.”

“Yeah, Vista and I were in the neighborhood.”

His gaze travels to my left, just now realizing she’s also in the room. A look of surprise flashes briefly in his eyes, but being the man he is, he covers it with a bright and welcoming smile. Only I know him well enough to recognize the strain tightening his lips and his words to razor sharpness.

“Vista, how good to see you. Is my son forcing you to tag along on business meetings?”

“He certainly twisted my arm,” she says, casting me a shy smile.

I return it, knowing I didn’t have to twist very hard. The only motivation Vista needs is the promise of a job, and with David Black backing her, it’s already in the bag.

“Well, as long as he’s not working you too hard,” he says, a thread of warning leaking into his voice.

“So, down to business?” I ask, eager to move this thing along. I feel like Tom Cruise in The Firm. There’s just something sinister about this place that I never liked. The sooner we get out of here, the better.

“Right.” My father snaps into business mode. With a single look, the man to his right hands over a folder that he immediately opens and begins leafing through. “I’m actually happy you brought your sister along today,” he says, emphasizing her title. The men flick judgmental looks at me, but I ignore them.

“I see you got the cast off and you’re no longer using crutches. How is the recovery coming along?” When he doesn’t get an immediate response, he casts an expectant look across the room to Vista.

“Oh, you mean me?” She jumps to attention, sitting up straighter in her chair. “Um, good. He’s making progress every day. I’m hoping to start him on water exercises today so we can start rebuilding—”

“Good, so we’re on track,” he cuts her off. I clamp my jaws together, biting back the angry words I want to say. It’s fine for him to treat me that way, but disrespecting Vista digs in my craw.

“Your rehabilitation will be complete in three weeks. You’ll be on a plane three days after that for a game scheduled that Saturday in Florida. Until then, we’ll keep you busy making appearances. Did Becca send you the revised schedule?”

He’s floating right along, dictating everything about my life to me as if he’s the director and I’m merely a player in it. I grit my teeth, leaning back in my chair and folding my hands across my stomach before I leap out of it and cause a scene.

“Not that I’m aware.”

His dark brows furrow in disapproval and he makes a note on the paper in front of him. No doubt, Becca will be looking for another job by lunchtime. “The Adidas commercial went live this morning,” he rolls on. “My sources tell me that it looks set to go viral by the end of the day. If it does, and I don’t see why it won’t, we’ll set up an appearance at the expo coming up next month.

“ESPN contacted us yesterday. They’d like to interview you for one of their morning broadcasts. I told them you’d be there.”

I’m shaking my head before he’s finished his sentence. “No.”

Still speaking, my father’s words cut off abruptly and his cold eyes focus like laser beams down the table. “Come again?”

Drawing in a steeling breath, I force myself to say the words that have been circulating in my brain for months. “I’m not doing the interview. In fact, I’m not doing any of it.”

“Levi—”

Cutting him off, I tell him, “I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I’m going to retire after this season.”

He laughs, the sound nothing more than a short, condescending bark. “You’re going to retire? You’re not even twenty-five yet.”