The Billionaire's Personal Shopper

Sweet and Mischievous

Lucas took me to a place his friend Owen recommended. It was an Italian restaurant which served the best pizza ever. I might be biased because the mozzarella tomato pizza just melted in my mouth and I could eat the whole damn thing by myself but it seemed like Lucas also quite enjoyed the food here.

Or he might just enjoy watching me stuff my face but that would be weird and creepy.

The third option was that he was actually having a good time, enjoying amazing food and the company that came with it. I doubted I was great company though. Lucas did most of the talking and I just went along with it. I was grateful that he was the cheerful type, always making people laugh because I selfishly needed that right now.

“This casual look.” He gestured to me from my hair to my sweater, “I like it on you.”

I smiled, gesturing to him, “And I like you in your sweater but I’m not going to lie. I also quite like you in a suit. Neatly pressed with a bright white button-up underneath it and a nice tie. That look suits you too.”

He narrowed his eyes on me, “So you have a thing for people in business attire?”

I looked away, trying to hide my embarrassed look. He wasn't wrong after all. I had a thing for men in suits. It was all I knew my whole life. I just liked a man who looked put together with nicely gelled hair, a fancy suit, and awesome shoes. I couldn't help it. Mr. Blackwood's walk-in closet was like my own personal heaven whenever I was there.

“I see.” He leaned back in his seat, looking comfortable almost as if he was home. This was the kind of confidence I liked in a man. Just someone who looked relaxed and didn’t care about those around us. But he was still polite and didn’t lose his manners. I loved it, “So you were taken by my suit the other day?”

“You looked great but I was more or less taken by your personality.” I sat up and flashed him a confident smile, “And I’m not saying that to score a second date. I honestly I enjoyed my night with you. You made me laugh and you genuinely made me feel happy.”

Maybe admitting those things to the man himself was more embarrassing than him finding out my fetish for men in suits. I couldn’t take it back, it was already too late for that. The urge to run was there again, I stayed put though. I couldn’t behave like that twice a day, my family would question my sanity then. It was best to face the consequences and deal with it. Adults behaved like that, didn’t they?

"You just take my breath away every time we meet," Lucas told me straight out.

There was no smirk on his face, no smile. His eyes were looking straight into mine. He didn’t feed me a line he was being genuine. Something between us shifted. Mr. Blackwood and that embarrassing but hot moment in his office was completely pushed back into a tiny box. All I could see right now is this man who genuinely seemed to like me. No games, no lines. Just Lucas Chase.

“This just became serious, didn’t it?” I asked in a small voice, afraid of breaking the spell we were in.

He still held my gaze with that steady look in his deep green eyes, "I think so."

I assumed the urge to flee would kick in, but it didn’t. I wanted to stay and I wanted this man to completely consume me. He would handle me with care, I just had a good feeling about him. Reaching across the table I held his hand. His lips then curled to a smile. It felt good between us, maybe this thing became very serious quick but I had no regrets.

If it felt good why play the waiting game?

***

After the movie Lucas and I decided to walk around town, it wasn’t around ten in the evening. It was chilly out, we held each other’s hands and decided where we’d buy some tea to-go. We could hold our cups while strolling around. The mood between us was good. It was peaceful, it made me feel at ease. We didn’t find a good place to buy our drinks so we bought something warm to drink at a fast food place. We took our cups with us and walked around at a slow pace. I thought it was the perfect date.

"This tea is not the worst I ever had," I told Lucas.

“You can mess up tea?” He asked curiously.

I stared at him as if he just told me Aliens were living among us for years now.

“Of course you can mess up tea. It can either taste so bitter your whole mouth becomes dry and the aftertaste you just can’t get rid of or it can taste like plain lukewarm water. No flavor to it whatsoever. I can't decide which one is worse."

“I think the first one is worse.” Lucas pointed out casually, “You can always do something about the warm water but the bitter tea is just a lost cause.”

I stopped walking, only now realizing that he was right.

“I never thought about it like that.”

He chuckled, “Aren’t you the tea expert?”

We started walking again, side by side. Occasionally sipping our tea to keep us warm.

“I had more tea than I would have in a month these past few days but I figured it would be better to drink tea when I feel stressed. I’m sure coffee would make the feeling worse.”

He glanced at me, “Is it a work thing?”

I met his gaze, “I mean my job is not as demanding as yours. I heard about your insane schedule and the weird demands of your boss. But Mr. Blackwood.” I pouted my lips, knowing I couldn’t tell Luas about my out of place attraction for the man. That wouldn’t go well now that things were becoming serious between us, “He can make you feel like you are not worth his time in a very casual kind of way that it makes things confusing but not less hurtful.”

“I think by now everyone knows a thing or two about Jacob Blackwood. We don’t know what’s true and what’s not but it's safe to say that he doesn't have a good reputation around here. His past is going to haunt him someday. You can’t live the way he does without the consequences following you.”

I smiled at him, “One of his exes recently destroyed all his shirts.”

Lucas chuckled, “Well, there you have it. The consequences of his actions.”

“Sometimes I wonder about him.” I admitted to Lucas, “We rarely meet up in person, so I only know him through the assignments I received. But I feel like he isn’t as bad as people made him appear to be. But then I met up with him for the first time in a while and I just feel really uneasy.”

Lucas nodded, “I can imagine meeting someone like that in person might make you feel uneasy. Someone who dated almost half the city might be so f*****g charming everyone just throws themselves at them. It might make them cocky, knowing the effect they have on people. Someone like that might be difficult to converse with.”

“So difficult.” I whispered, “Not to mention that he is kind of a genius so that makes things worse.”

Lucas chuckled, "Life is really unfair, isn't it? He was gifted with good looks, all the charm in the world and intelligence beyond compare."

I walked ahead, turned around and faced Lucas. He stopped in his tracks amused by me suddenly deciding to stand before him with a massive grin on my face.

“Well, to me you are gifted with good looks, all the charm in the world and intelligence beyond compare.”

His eyes glittered in the city lights, he looked amused. He was tall, so freakishly tall compared to me. Reaching for me, he placed his hand on top of my head and slowly brushed it down. It was an affectionate pet which made my heart race. The softness in his eyes never faded. He made me feel loved, cared for.

“I think you’ve got it all wrong, the charming one with the good looks is definitely you.” He leaned in, bending down to kiss me. I tilted my head back to give him easy access. The kiss was quick and soft but it still warmed me up better than the average tea I was drinking ever could, “I also think you are intelligent beyond compare because you know just what to do and say to wrap a man around your finger.” He whispered to me.

He then pulled away and stared at me with a smile on his face. I had no idea what I was doing when it came to dating. I was just me. I mean I did hide a thing or two from Lucas. It could be seen as a cunning move to get what I wanted. But to be fair what happened between Mr. Blackwood and me was at the time not something I had to feel guilty about. Lucas and I were not dating then. We might be dating now. So from now on Mr. Blackwood and the kisses we shared should be locked tightly in a box and never mentioned again.

“I have you wrapped around my finger?” I asked.

His lips twitched, “You have no idea.”

I stepped forward, pressing my hand against his chest, “So things are official and serious now?”

He leaned down, meeting me for another kiss, “Yes, I like to think so.”

We pulled away, smiling at each other. At that moment it was just the two of us. The city faded to the background. The moment only lasted for a second because someone decided to clear their throat. Lucas and I stood beside each other, facing the subject we discussed earlier.

“Mr. Blackwood.” I whispered, stunned to see him here, “W-What are you doing here?”

His lips tugged to a smirk. That dark sinister smirk which made me think he was indeed a vampire.

“I had a drink with a client.” He nodded to the wine bar we were standing in front of. His eyes flickered from me to Lucas, “I see you are doing a lot better now.” His voice got a lot deeper which made shivers run down my spine, “Good for you.”

He then focused his attention to Lucas which made me panic. He held out his hand, Lucas didn’t leave him hanging and shook hands with him.

“Jacob Blackwood.” He introduced himself.

“Lucas Chase.” Lucas smiled at him.

They were the complete opposites, standing before each other made that so obviously clear. Light and dark. Sweet and mischievous. The sinister look in Jacob’s grey eyes worried me. He was up to no good. I held my breath, wishing he would just walk away. He didn’t though. He seemed to enjoy this moment a lot more than he should.

“Well, I should get going.” Jacob announced, making me sigh in relief, “This girl, she’s something else. You should hold tightly onto her.” He flashed a grin full of mischief and walked up to the awaiting shiny black car. He disappeared into the night as some freaking vampire too.

Lucas and I just stood there on the sidewalk, not knowing what to make of that meeting. Mr. Blackwood was obviously messing with me. He didn’t go into details but he said enough to stir things up between Lucas and me.

"You are right meeting that man in person sure leaves you feeling uneasy," Lucas muttered.

I nodded. There was nothing left to say, that was all there was to meeting Jacob Blackwood. This perfect first date left a bitter aftertaste in my mouth.