Chapter 17: Housewarming

Thursday, 8:51 pm

The SUV drove away, leaving Emily and me in front of the doors of the building I now lived in - what I’d learned was called the Liberty Elite. It was occupied by a diverse collection of residential and commercial tenants. The first floor was a prime spot for high-end shopping and dining. Several stories above that were reserved for parking. More commercial space and some government offices took up the next twenty to thirty floors, with the remainder used as residential spaces, including my apartment, which took up the top remaining floors.

As we approached the ostentatious glass and black marble entry, a concierge opened held the door for us, and said, “Have a good evening, Mr. Upton!” He looked to be in his early twenties, unlike the older gentleman I had met when first arriving. I did a double take, then gave him a nod and a smile; I was surprised he knew who I was. Whoever managed the operations of this location was doing a hell of a job.

“Your own doorman?” Emily asked after we passed into the lobby.

“Well, it’s the building’s doorman, but yeah.”

She spun around, taking in the beautiful design of the massive lobby as we headed toward the elevators. “Oh my god, Marcus!”

“This is just the lobby, Em. Wait till you see the actual apartment.”

The elevator ride to the top was faster than anyone had a right to expect from a sixty-story journey. The first time, I had Danielle and Erin to keep my company and had been too busy checking the new girl out to notice how long it had taken to get to the top. This time, it was just me and Emily. Not to say Emily wasn’t distracting. I’m sure she turned the heads of every man she came across. She was a tall, fit woman with captivating looks, a kind smile, and a lovely personality, but she was my sister and one of my best friends. At sixteen years old, when I was nothing but a bag of boiling chemicals ready to explode at anything resembling curvature, it was impossible to ignore how her jeans molded to her ass, but I was a little more in control of my penis these days. A little. Besides, I had a foursome with three impossibly gorgeous angels only a few hours ago. My libido was mostly in check.

The doors eventually opened and Emily stepped into the impressive open-floor living room complete with balconies, rich furniture, and a breathtaking view of New York’s city skyline on the opposite end from where we stood. The sun had already set, so approaching the window revealed the twinkling cosmos of The Big Apple’s vibrant nightlife. The apartment was illuminated by sconces on walls and columns, and an inferno was blazing inside the fireplace, giving the apartment a sense of coziness.

There were two people other than Emily and me currently in the apartment - one I had expected, and another I hadn’t. Erin was currently roaming the kitchen and taking stock of the current situation. After recovering from the foursome, I took the time to make sure she was alright. After things heated up at the pool, Danni and I moved to the master bedroom while Erin was occupied eating out Helen. They joined us a little later, and I’d taken Erin’s compact ass with her consent and Helen’s insistent and enthusiastic urging. My assistant swore she was fine, and after enough interrogation, I believed her, but that didn’t stop me from feeling at least a little guilty about the entire thing. I was growing attached to Erin, and the last thing I wanted to do was hurt her or give her cause to leave. The other two women had stayed in bed while Erin and I had our heart-to-heart downstairs. By the time I left, Erin was going through resumes for bodyguards and we heard moaning from upstairs; the other two hadn’t had their fill yet.

That was hours ago, and I suspected those Danni and Helen were long gone. It made sense that Erin would still be here, but what didn’t make sense was the other person in the room. Ashlee VanCamp had been sitting on my new couch and scrolling through her phone. As soon as the elevator door opened and we stepped out into the lobby, she looked up from her device and over the back of the couch toward us. She had a large, warm smile for me and looked like she was about to say something. Then she noticed Emily and her smile faded.

“Marcus! Your new home is lovely,” Ashlee said, ending the sentence in a tiny frown. She recovered quickly enough and banished it, standing up and coming around the couch.

“Thanks,” I said, more than a little confused. I glanced at Erin, who was rummaging through one of the drawers at the kitchen island. I looked back at Ashlee. “It’s good to see you. What brings you here?”

I was suddenly very nervous. This was the first time Ashlee had been around any of the other women in my life other than Helen. I was starting to suspect that the young paralegal was chasing after a wealthy, eligible bachelor. How was she going to react around someone like Erin? Or Danni? Would she cause some sort of scene if she felt slighted? Were Danni and Helen still actually here? I mentally kicked myself for not checking in with Erin before coming back to the house, especially with my sister.

Emily was my other concern. I wasn’t exactly thrilled with my sister finding out that I’d been fucking every good-looking woman I’d come across lately. I also didn’t want her to bear witness to any drama that Ashlee might bring with her. If things went poorly here, I would probably never hear the end of it.

“Helen returned to the office to work with insurance and get the appropriate things taken care of on your behalf. Something came up for her, so Roger had me finish everything and bring it over for you to sign.”

Roger. She must have meant Roger VanCamp. Also known as Ashlee’s father and Helen’s husband. Every time his name came up, I remembered this was the man that not only knew I was screwing his wife but had given his blessing. Had Richard kept Helen from completing the due diligence on my apartment? What kind of situation had come up to keep Helen away? Did it have something to do with our arrangement?

“Thanks,” I said, “but couldn’t you have just emailed it over?”

“Eh ... Daddy’s a little old-fashioned,” Ashlee said, “besides, I heard about the new purchase and had to see it for myself! Marcus, this is amazing!” As Ashlee approached and interacted with me, her body language and stance made it clear that she was trying to exclude Emily from the conversation.

“Thanks, Ashlee,” I said, growing more uncomfortable with things by the minute. “This is my sister Emily. She showed up at my apartment and decided to tag along so she could see the house”

As soon as I said the word ‘sister’, Ashlee’s entire demeanor shifted. That full, genuine smile she’d first displayed returned, and her eyes shined with genuine interest. “Oh my god! It’s so good to meet you!” she exclaimed and reached out to take one of Emily’s hands in both of hers.

Emily, who looked confused at first, mirrored Ashlee’s warmth and returned the handshake. “Thank you, Ashlee! Same! How do you know my brother?”

“Ashlee works at my law firm,” I explained.

“Oh cool! So you’ll be working with Marcus pretty regularly,” Emily said.

“I hope so,” Ashlee returned with a giggle. “God, you’re so tall, Emily! And gorgeous! Where do you get your makeup?”

That was my cue. I backed out of the conversation about makeup and approached Erin, who had quit rummaging through the cabinets and was watching the situation unfold between the other two women. I leaned against the island next to her.

“Are you guys the only ones here?” I asked quietly so our conversation wouldn’t disturb them.

Erin slowly rubbed her palms together, studying the other pair of women as she said, “Yep. Danni and Helen kept it up for about another twenty minutes. Then I decided I’d had enough of resumes and jumped back between them for a while. Danni got the brunt of it, then she had a thing. Helen stuck around long enough to kiss everything better, then headed back to her office. No one here to make it weird for your sister.” Her eyes still fixed on the ladies, he leaned close and whispered, “No one except Ashlee, anyway.”

I snorted. “Thanks.”

So the girls had continued without me? The images her few words left in my mind were enough to get my cock stirring in my pants again, and I wanted to ask for more details, but before I could, Erin decided to change the subject.

“Is there something going on with you guys?”

Something about her tone seemed slightly off, and my concern about what happened earlier bubbled to the surface again. I studied her, trying to gauge why she would ask me about Ashlee like that. Was Erin harboring a little bit of jealousy, or was there something about Ashlee that she didn’t like? I recalled Helen mentioning that Ashlee and Erin knew each other.

“If she had her way,” I replied. “She offered, but I said no.”

Erin studied them for a moment longer then finally looked at me for the first time. Usually nothing but grins and mischief, this look was more subdued. Her dark eyes were penetrating, and there was a note of caution in her expression. It was a little unsettling. A closed-lip smile finally crept onto her lips. “Okay.”

“Okay?” I asked.

“Erin!” Ashlee said, “Emily’s dying to see the apartment! Do you think you could show her around while I get Mr. Upton to go ahead and get those papers filled out, so I can get out of your way?”

My assistant’s brilliant smile returned, “Of course! Emily!” She rounded the island and made her way over to the pair. “I’m Erin. Marcus’ personal assistant!” She hooked an arm through Emily’s and continued, “Let’s show you the house, while your brother finishes the boring paperwork. You can tell me all his embarrassing stories. I’m sure he has a lot of them.”

“Oh, this is going to be fun,” Emily said, flashing me a grin as the pair of them embarked for the stairs.

“Be nice, Em!” I called out, watching the pair of them climb the stairs toward the first set of balconies.

“No promises, brother dear!” Em called out. Reaching the top, they rounded the first corner they came to and disappeared. I could hear their chatter begin to fade.

I sighed, then turned to see Ashlee standing much closer to me than she had been. It wasn’t off-putting. It was hard to be put off by anything Ashlee did when she perfectly combined an innocent and naive schoolgirl with a seductive vixen. What startled me was the shift in her body language. Gone was the innocent part. The only thing left staring up at me was the vixen, with those big green eyes. Her small, pink tongue darted to lick her top lip, and she had a small, knowing smile.

“Erin put the paperwork in your office,” She said, her voice taking on a huskier tone that implied intimacy.

I found myself uncomfortable for reasons other than feeling awkward. Erin’s brief description of what transpired after I left followed by whatever Ashlee was trying to do had my heart racing. I tried my best to make sure she didn’t notice. “I have an office?”

She grinned. “Of course. Here, I’ll show you.”

Ashlee slipped her arm through mine and guided me in the opposite direction of the other ladies. It was in a wing of the apartment I hadn’t even inspected. We walked through what appeared to be a second living room, built more for entertainment than the first. There was a pool table, several more couches, a massive bookshelf loaded with books, and a few display cases littered around with what appeared to be fine art. I recognized one of the paintings hanging on the wall as the Raphael I’d noticed in the list of art in my grandfather’s estate. Had the ladies already moved some of my grandfather’s things from wherever they were being stored into this apartment? Again, I was amazed at how quickly they moved.

“This really is a beautiful place,” Ashlee said, breaking the silence as I took in the parts of my apartment I hadn’t even seen. I found that there were two more sets of balconies leading to more rooms and hallways on the second and third floors. Just how big was this place?

“It is,” I reiterated, “Erin and Dannielle did an amazing job picking out this place.”

I felt her stiffen a little next to me, but then she moved on, “Have you decided how you’re going to decorate it?”

She stopped us midway into the entertainment room and let go of me so she could open one of the two heavy wooden doors set into the wall in front of us. She walked in and turned, inviting me to follow her with a warm smile and a glint in her eye. I followed her into what I assumed was my office.

“I haven’t even seen the entire place yet. For now, I think I’ll just keep whatever’s in...”

The room I had walked into was gorgeous. It was surrounded by dark wood paneling and bookshelves that lined two entire walls, leaving enough space for a large television to sit in the middle of one wall. A balcony ran around those two walls, segmenting the bookshelves into two sets - top and bottom. A massive desk carved entirely out of ebony sat in the middle of the office with all of my computer equipment already sitting on top of it in a neat little pile. A large globe sat in a wooden frame like something you’d find in the office of a Victorian detective, and there was an empty display case sitting opposite the globe. The office chair looked like it might have cost as much as a new Honda, and there were three matching, dark leather wingback chairs sitting strategically around a beautiful round table.

The other two walls were nothing but windows, currently displaying a gorgeous view of New York City at night. Between my desk and one of the transparent walls sat a leather sofa, a sofa bed, a small bar complete with a mini fridge, and a set of workout equipment. Another standing mobile desk sat against one transparent wall with a few books stacked on it.

This was my home office.

“Jesus,” I whispered as I took it all in.

“I know,” Ashlee said, slinking up beside me. “It’s amazing.”

I looked back down at her, and she cast a very warm look back at me. Her chin was raised, lips were parted, and there was a clear invitation for me to taste them if I dared.

“The paperwork?” I asked.

She didn’t respond. Instead, she just stared up at me, open hunger written all over her face. I had to look away from her eyes and drop my gaze lower. That was a mistake; the top two buttons of her dress had been unfastened, exposing a considerable amount of the valley between her breasts. I quickly averted my eyes back up to hers and caught her smirking, clearly able to see the effect she had on me. She clasped her hands behind her back and made her chest stick out a little more, and though I wasn’t looking directly at it, I could see the top fastened button strain a little in my bottom peripheral vision.

“Under the laptop,” she said.

My gaze fell to her lips, and I noticed once more that they were parted, inviting me to take whatever I wanted. However, something was preventing me from acting on every hormonal impulse I had with this young woman, and considering how I hadn’t hesitated with anyone else, I couldn’t figure out why. Was it because she was a VanCamp?

Helen had given me an off-handed warning about her in the bathroom that day I’d officially reached an agreement with YPV. Had she meant anything by it? Why hadn’t she told me of their connection sooner? Did she care if anything happened between me and what was likely her stepdaughter? On the off chance that she did, I couldn’t afford to make Helen my enemy. She was too valuable to me. My hesitation could also have to do with the fact that this girl was clearly looking for something long-term, and if I still had room for someone like that in my life, Ashlee wasn’t that person.

No. Ashlee wasn’t worth the possible drama, especially with Emily in the house.

“Cool,” I said as I whirled on my heels and made my way over to the desk. I found the papers where Ashlee had told me they would be and dropped into the chair to sign them. Someone had enough foresight to leave a pen on my desk within plain sight, so I unlocked my phone to see if I had any messages as I laid it down on the desktop, grabbed the pen, and started leafing through the papers to get them signed and initialed.

Ashlee didn’t move at first. She simply stood where I’d abandoned her as I scribbled away at the documents, and I did my best to ignore her presence. After a few moments, I heard her approach and pretended that I wasn’t aware. She placed a hand on my shoulder and simply stood there, giving me the impression that she was simply watching to make sure I was signing in all the appropriate spaces. For the remaining few minutes, we continued like that: me signing away while she stood next to me. No matter how much I tried to concentrate on what I was doing though, I was acutely aware of how her fingers were tracing little patterns on my shoulder.

When the last line was signed, I looked up at her. “Is that everything?”

The smile she gave me was hard to read as she leaned forward and placed her hand on the paperwork, her eyes never leaving mine. She leaned forward a little further, her blouse falling open to give me a perfect view of her perfect, lightly tanned breasts cradled in a pink, frilly bra. Her face was much closer to mine than necessary.

“Is it?” she husked and glanced down at my lips.

After a rejection at the coffee shop and me playing hard to get here, it was clear she was desperate to get something from me. She was trying so hard that it was hard not to notice ... it almost felt like we were in a bad movie.

But...

There was no doubt I wanted this woman. I know I’ve probably said this about most of the ladies that crossed my path lately, but Ashlee was among one of the most beautiful women I had ever seen. Her combination of cute and seductive kept driving me crazy. The hint of taboo that came with her being Roger VanCamp’s daughter made her even more intriguing.

And she smelled nice, like herbal shampoo and flowers.

My gaze dropped down to her lips once more and I seriously considered kissing those lips. Why couldn’t things be as simple as they’d been this afternoon? It felt like Danielle had never kept a secret in her life. Erin felt like an open book since we met, except for tonight while Ashlee was here. Even Helen, the mysterious temptress that always seemed to be withholding things from me seemed open and frank today. It had been refreshing. Ashlee’s presence seemed to shatter that.

I stood up quickly, our faces nearly bumping, and Ashlee straightened, looking slightly startled.

“What do you want, Ashlee?” I demanded.

She simply looked up at me with wide, expressive eyes. Her breathing became a little more rapid, plump lips still parted.

When she didn’t answer, I asked her again, “What do you want?”

She looked confused, her brow furrowing as she glanced around the room briefly seeming to look for an answer among the bookshelves. “Isn’t it obvious?” she asked, looking back at me, “I want you.”