Ace
How in the crooked hell was she gonna bring me the deal?
I mean she was successful, much to my shock. Her bubbly character doesn't fit for a business woman, I thought both can't fit in the same body.
But I have an example which proves me wrong sleeping beside me every single night.
I kept listening to her ranting about her jewelry and designs, all the while skipping her head off. I couldn't believe her stamina. I was very bad with skipping. I wouldn't be up for 5, my legs would get tangled with the rope.
Taking a shower I headed to my office, all the while wondering what kind of persuasion that I didn't use would help her get the deal.
She would get it, such was her confidence.
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"Tada!" Athena popped in front of me, twirling around for me to see. "So... How is it?" She said in excitement while I stared blankly.
"You are gonna wear that to the gala?" My question made the wide smile on her face slowly drop to a faint one.
"Why, is it bad? Don't I look good in this?"
"Are you even wearing anything? It's just a thin piece of cloth that doesn't cover your back." I scoffed. Along her spine was a hot dragon tattoo.
All this for strangers? Nope.
"Now I have to tear the eyes of anyone who looks at you for longer than 2 seconds." I grumbled, making her gasp.
"That's the most romantic thing you have said to me in weeks." I rolled my eyes with a single command. "Change."
"I can't." Athena frowned, her pink full lips slightly jutting out in a pout. "Layla was the one who chose this for me, I don't have anything else." Her frown deepened, so did mine.
"Who is this Layla?"
"Great. She is my best friend, Ace." I raised an eyebrow, staring at her. "So your best friend...gives you a dress...that shows almost everything...for a gala...?" I asked slowly, making it clear.
"Yeah." She grinned, happy that I got it. "You have to stop talking with her, she is a bad friend." I turned to do my tie just as she released another dramatic gasp.
"She has been there with me since childhood! You know what? I will wear only this." She scoffed, walking out the closet and beside me to fix her shiny black hair.
I shrugged, getting frustrated again. Ace Williams, in the list of top 5 business men in the world, having numerous hotels and managements, numerous meetings and connections, unlimited wealth and power...
Can't do a fucking tie properly.
"For Christ sake, you are choking." Athena slightly screamed, pushing my hands away and undoing the tie hastily. I only realized I was running out of breath when I felt the tie loosen around my neck, making me breathe easily again.
"I am sure you will die one day just because your ego didn't ask for help from anyone." Athena mumbled, coming closer to do my tie.
And I hate how perfectly she can do a tie.
"Well, if I die I don't have to do my tie anymore." She grinned at this, her ocean blue eyes glancing into my grey before breaking it off quickly and focusing back on the tie.
Huh?
I stared at her a bit confused. She never avoided my gaze. "Athena."
"Hm?" She hummed, not looking at me for even a second. "Athena, look up." Her brows crunched together yet she didn't look up but a slight annoyance crossed her face.
"What is it Ace? Spit it out." I held her wrists from doing anything at all, making her look up. "You can't look at me." She gave a confused look at my statement, quickly going back to my tie.
Fucking tie.
"I just looked at you."
"Look into my eyes." I demanded, making her scoff. "What's wrong with you? Don't want to keep me away now?" Athena snapped, making me almost roll my eyes.
"Can you or can you not?" I asked in annoyance. I have no idea why, she not looking me in the eye was bugging me, perhaps even pissing me off.
"Can and can't." She replied after a few moments of thinking, making me grab her chin and raise it up. Her ocean blue eyes finally rested on my grey, making my heart go normal. The fuck? I should take a medical appointment.
"Why are you avoiding my gaze?" I stared down at her as she bit her lower plump lip from the side. That was...hot.
"I didn't avoid." She mumbled, and didn't break away this time. I stared hard at her, her unsure ocean darting between both my eyes.
Athena sudden shook her head, breaking the gaze as she went back to my tie. "Do you like storm?" I frowned at the sudden change of topic.
"Not much, I guess. You?" Her face lightened up as she finished up with my tie, and looked up with a faint smile.
"I love it. Especially the dark grey ones." Who loves storm? This girl was weird. "Why?" I played along, turning to my mirror to almost scoff at how perfectly the knot turned out.
Turns out I am very bad at something.
"It's beautiful, how it rages a second and calms the next. Grey is a really beautiful color." Athena finally mumbled, looking down at the floor before striding to grab her clutch.
"Let's go?" My wife was totally weird. "Let's go."
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"Now this, is the party." Athena declared excitedly, her ocean blue eyes roaming her surroundings.
It was packed with people, and I was already tugging on my collar uncomfortably.
"Ace, you will do great. And for that, perhaps a drink or two won't hurt." She almost dragged me to the open bar through the people, her backless dress in view for me to see.
And every other fucker. She had the attention of almost everyone since we crossed those magnificent doors, and that made my insides clench. "Athena, slow down." I pulled her back and she walked beside me, looking at me confused.
"Stay by my side all the night." I ordered in a low voice, snaking my arm around her curvy waist and pulling her closer. She opened her mouth, possibly to protest. "Okay." Wait what?
That was easy.
"Whiskey on rocks?" Athena nodded, so I ordered four of it.
"Now, introduce my target from afar." She demanded, taking her shot and finished it in a gulp. I finished mine too, nudging her to follow my gaze towards a young woman.
"That is Claudia Jameson. Wife of the man I want the deal from. She handles all the business and their empire whi- -"
"Why don't you introduce me to the man and not the woman?" Athena cut me off, her hard gaze on Claudia.
Huh?
"Okay...? The man she is clinging onto? That's her husband Dale Jameson. Claudia is heads over heels for her husband, and she would do anything without arguing if Dale demands something." I gave her a short look of what she was dealing with, and she simply nodded, her ocean eyes still glued to Claudia.
"What is our deal?"
"I want to buy their property in Las Vegas to build a new hotel, but they are not giving it up. I could have simply used force, but that would later make our relation fragile. I need them to agree with their own terms."
"Why aren't they giving it up? Any excuse?" Athena asked while downing her second drink. I was more worried she would get drunk than me getting the deal now.
"Don't know. Never said, although I think it was because Dale said not to." Her mouth formed a small 'oh' in realization.
Of what?
"Stay here until I give you a signal to go talk to Dale casually." I frowned, not too happy with the idea. "Since when did I start taking orders from you?" Athena grabbed my shirt collar and pulled me to her face, our lips inches away. Her ocean eyes shone in excitement, like the ocean under afternoon sun.
What is there to be excited about?
"Since I got you convinced that I could pull this off."
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"It's settled then. Meet you on Thursday, Mr. Williams." I shook hands with Dale unbelievably.
What did that little wife of mine put in their drinks?
"It's our pleasure." My minx replied from beside me, smiling sweetly. Now that I look closer, she had a devilish smirk.
Dale and Claudia walked off smiling to talk to others, while I stared at them. They were dead set on not selling me their property, what the heck?
"And that's how you play. Fuck that was fun." Athena mumbled, resting her cheek on my shoulder. "Fuck alright. How in the...?"
Athena smirked, pulling away. "Drinks? Or dance?" I crossed my arms and stared at her. "Answers."
"Oh don't be such a killjoy. Your deal was pretty good, but Daley boy was jealous." She erupted in pearls of giggles while pulling me back to the open bar. Her statement made me more confused. Dale was jealous of what?
"Duh, Ace. You got the looks, you got the girls, you got an empire. He felt a bit less than that and the way his loving wife liked your deal, pretty much made him guarded." Athena explained, ordering drinks by showing signs at the bartender.
"Then how co- - oh, I got married." I was married, making him free from that thought. Great, all is well.
"Alright. Be around here, I need to mingle." She gave me a lopsided grin. "So has my husband lost his hate to talk."
"It's buried, not dead." I mumbled, leaving her at the bar as I walked around to strengthen my connections.
Communication is key. Why? Why can't it be anything else?
"Ah, Ace. How long has it been?" Stephen. Great. He had a big mouth, to my dismay. "It hasn't been that long, Stephen. How have you been?"
"Good, good." He replied in his deep voice, more like a weird rumble. I have heard that...oh shit.
"Already a bit over the drinks, don't you think?" I asked hesitantly, seeing him stop another waiter passing by and grabbing two more glasses.
"There is never too much when it's drinks. Free alcohol." He grinned happily, chucking down one. His face was red, the liquid slightly ran down the sides of his lips to his sturdy beard. Urg.
Is it time to go? No.
"What about you, how is married life treating you?" Stephen asked, eyeing me with unstable eyes. "Has your wife got you drinking?" I really laughed, it was the common joke of marriage.
"If I was a drinking person she would have changed it. She is an angel." Please, I don't even know Athena. "Where is she, didn't bring her?" I looked at the bar and he followed my gaze.
She was still there, her backless dress showing off her tattooed clear back as I saw her order two more drinks. Fucking dress.
Her friend is a monster to make me suffer.
"Ah, an angel alright. I haven't heard of your honeymoon..?"
Oh no. Fuck, what the hell man?
"Probably because it haven't happened. It's planned for this weekend." He smiled in satisfaction with the piece of news I said, while I was ready to leave.
Now he will tell everyone, and we would have to go.
Fucking Stephen.
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They are going for honeymoon! 😉😏