Katherine Garbera - Seducing His Opposition / Secret Nights at Nine Oaks - Seducing His Opposition

“Hey, it seemed like a good idea at the time,” Cam said.

“It was a good idea, I’m just glad we didn’t have to do it. By the way, Selena suggested calling the marketplace the Mercado. I like it.”

“Yes, I like it, too. Who is Selena?”

Justin took a deep breath. It didn’t matter that he and Cam held equal positions of authority in the company; Cam was always going to be Justin’s big brother. “She’s the lawyer the Gonzalezes hired. She’s also their granddaughter.”

“Pretty?”

“Breathtakingly beautiful,” Justin admitted. “Can you still be objective? If not, we can use one of your junior managers to take the lead on this.” “No,” Justin said. “I’ve got this under control.” “Is she staying at the Ritz?” Justin just nodded.

“I’m not sure how under control you have this,” Cam said.

“I’m not going to let you down or do anything to hurt the Luna Azul.”

“I know that,” Cam said. “What about yourself? Are you going to do anything to harm you? ”

Justin finished his drink with a long, hard swallow and then got to his feet. “I’m the Tin Man, Cam. No heart. So nothing to be hurt by Selena.”

Justin walked away from his brother and wished that it wasn’t true. But he had learned a long time ago that women and love never really touched him on a deep level. True, this attraction to Selena was intense but it would burn out like all things did.

Justin walked through his house, pausing beneath the portrait of his family that had been done when Cam graduated high school. They looked like the perfect family. Picture-perfect, he thought. On the outside they’d always made sure to present a front that others would envy.

And what a front it was. His father, the pro golfer, who traveled to tournaments in his private jet, and their socialite mother, who moved in all the right circles and made sure that her sons were successful and dated the right kind of girls.

He glanced up at his mother, really staring at the blonde woman with her perfectly coiffed hair, and wondered why she’d never been happy with their family. No matter how well he did in school or how well Nate had played baseball, she’d never been pleased with them. She’d never smiled or shown them any real signs of love or affection.

He’d often thought that all women were that way but he’d seen his brother fall in love with Jen and therefore got to see a different side to women. Jen had cracked through Nate’s doubts. Justin was still a bit cynical but seeing how Jen and Nate had worked together to make their relationship successful … well, it made him wonder why his mom hadn’t tried just a little bit harder to make it work with his dad.

“Mr. Stern?”

He glanced over his shoulder and saw his butler standing there. “Yes, Frank?”

“I have your bags ready. Do you want me to drive you to the Ritz?”

“No. I’m going to take the Porsche.”

“I will park it in the circle drive. Do you need anything from me? “

“No. You can take the next two weeks off.”

“Thank you, sir, but I don’t have anywhere to go,” Frank said.

Justin knew that Frank was always at work and he appreciated it. “Don’t you have any family?”

“Not really. I left them behind a long time ago. I could go to Vegas but I really don’t like to go more than once a year.”

Justin smiled at his butler. Frank was a very carefully measured man. He didn’t want to give in to his enjoyment of gambling and let it become an addiction. Frank would only go to Vegas and only once a year.

“I get that.”

“Can I ask you a question, sir?”

“Go ahead.”

“Why are you going to the Ritz? You have a better place here.”

Frank was making perfect sense, logically speaking. “I am … let’s just say there is a woman at the Ritz.”

“And you want to be closer to her? I think you should invite her here,” Frank said.

“That would make things a lot more complicated.”

“I guess it would,” Frank said.

It probably still didn’t make sense, but Frank was his employee and was never going to tell him he was barking mad, even if that was what he thought. Frank was good at holding his tongue. “Frank, sometimes I think I don’t pay you enough!”

“I agree, sir,” Frank said. “I’ll bring the car and get your bags in it.”

“Thank you, Frank.”

“Just doing my job, sir.”

“I appreciate it,” Justin said. Frank left and Justin moved away from the portrait.

Was he making the right decision or was he just going to come off as a stalker? If he and Selena were going to have a vacation fling it would make sense for them to both be at the hotel. That’s how vacation flings happened.

He knew from experience. He liked the anonymity that being at the hotel would afford them. If he brought her to his home, she’d see his family and his neighbors and it would make their fling seem more real.

And when she left to go back to New York he’d have memories of her in his space. He didn’t want that. He wanted their relationship to be uncomplicated. To be a true fling. One where neither of them got hurt.

He wasn’t going to pretend that she didn’t have the potential to hurt him. He had no idea what the outcome would be of an affair with her but he couldn’t resist the thought of having her in his arms. He wanted her.

That was the bottom line and he was going to do whatever he had to in order to get her. He didn’t care if he had to pay the cost later.

All around him were the trappings of success and that made him even more determined to ensure that this thing with Selena worked out. He wasn’t used to failing and he wouldn’t this time. Selena was the first thing he wanted just for himself.

Selena was buzzed and hot and had forgotten the last time she’d had this much fun. Clubbing wasn’t her thing. To be honest it never had been. She’d always been a very studious girl and when she’d met Raul he’d kept her isolated from others. Part of the reason his con had worked so well.

But tonight she didn’t want to think about any of that. Jorge came out of the club and sat down next to her on the bench. “Are you hiding out? “

“No. Cooling down. I haven’t danced that much in years,” she admitted.

“What do you do for fun in New York?” he asked.

“Nothing. I don’t have fun. I just work and go home.”

“All work and no play makes for one big boring life, tata.”

“It didn’t seem so bad until tonight,” she admitted. “It’s a quiet life but also an uncomplicated one.”

Jorge put his arm along the back of the bench and hugged her to his side. “You need to relax.”

“I think you are right. Tonight was a lot of fun. I never guessed that just dancing would be so liberating. I forgot about everything when I was out there.”

Jorge smiled at her. His grin reminded her of her father’s and she felt a pang in her heart. She missed her parents so much.

“That’s the point of clubbing. I think we will have to take you out again.”

“I might let you,” she said. “But I’m worn out now. I am going to call a cab to take me back to my hotel.”

“Hotel? Why aren’t you staying at your old house?” Jorge asked.

“Too many memories,” she said.

He nodded. “Why haven’t you sold that place?”

She shrugged. “I sometimes get income from renting it and I give that money to abuelito . It’s the least I can

do.”

“Tata , you have to let go of the past or you are always going to be stuck in it,” Jorge said.

“I did let go, remember? I live in New York,” she said.

“That wasn’t letting go, that was running away,” Jorge said. “You are punishing yourself by staying away. No one in the family blames you for what happened. You need to forgive yourself.”