wrist. He dangled it off his index finger and nodded. “Here, you want time? Take it.”
“We can’t take that,” the second man said.
“Why not? You’re wasting my time right now, the most important time I have. You think time will make your company profitable, here, try it.”
The first man reached out and took the watch. He stared it in amazement.
Derreck then turned, taking Macy with him.
“What was that about?” Macy whispered.
“Punk kids. They get a fancy degree from a fancy school and find me, thinking I’ll budge. Just because I’m under thirty they think we’re on the same level. I didn’t go around begging people for money or time, I went out and made both.”
Hearing Derreck so strong, his voice stern and confident turned Macy on more than she ever thought possible. He had just been a complete ass to those young men but when he explained it, it made sense.
Perfect sense.
“At least they got your watch,” Macy said. “Maybe they’ll keep it. As a reminder.”
Derreck laughed and stopped walking. He turned to face Macy, taking both her hands into his hands.
“You’re almost too innocent for me,” he said. “They’re probably in a cab on the way to a pawn shop.”
“They’d pawn your watch? Why?”
“Macy, that watch is worth thirty thousand dollars.”
Macy opened her mouth to laugh, knowing Derreck had to be kidding. No sound came out of her mouth as she remembered the heels on her feet.
Derreck was a multi-billionaire, he could do what he wanted, when he wanted to.
Including handing out thirty thousand dollar watches.
“That’s...”
“No big deal,” Derreck said. “Plus, I needed them away from us. We have plans tonight.”
“Plans?”
Derreck walked again. Macy saw two large doors open just ahead. It was the room where Derreck invited everyone to relax and have a few drinks. She shut her eyes for a second, not wanting to become some object of Derreck’s to be paraded around. The fact was she, in so many ways, was trapped by Derreck. She couldn’t just leave, she had nowhere to really go. Stand out front and wait for a cab, maybe. Or stay with Derreck and live out a little fantasy.
As Derreck hurried by the open doors, Macy looked inside, catching the quick sound of a hundred voices all talking at once. The rich mingling with the super rich. And the richest of the them all led Macy to the elevator, pressing the up button.
It left her confused. She wanted to question it, but didn’t want to ruin any moments that were about to happen.
The doors opened and they stepped inside.
Before the doors could close, Derreck spoke.
“So, you’re innocent, and beautiful, and you hide behind your friend’s success.”
He was brutal, but honest.
“I want to know why.” He looked at Macy. “Why hide?”
“I never said I was hiding,” Macy said. “I’m right here.”
“And yet... if I...” Derreck side stepped and allowed his left hand the slide around Macy’s wide body. His fingers played with her dress for a few seconds, moving towards the front of her body. And down. “... touch you... Macy...” Derreck moved slightly behind Macy, placing his right hand on her right side, this time keeping his hand high, moving up as though he was going to touch her breast. “... you shudder... don’t you?”
Macy did shudder, and she nodded.
“Of course you do,” Derreck said. “Why is that?”
Macy took a deep breath. Her heart bounced in her chest. “Because you’re a stranger to me.”
“A stranger?” Derreck asked. “A stranger... so you’d flirt with a stranger? You’d stand up a stranger? You’d take gifts from a stranger? You’d ride in a limo with a stranger? You’d ride in an elevator with a stranger?”
Shit, Macy thought.
The way Derreck said it... he almost wasn’t a stranger. Not at all.
Shit.
Before Macy could think of something to