Daddy's Best Friend Read online

  I stepped off the elevator and walked to the door before turning the key quietly and entering. As I walked past the living room, I could see my father sitting in his normal chair, reading the New York Times. I tried to walk past quietly, but he was sharp .

  “Lexi,” he said, looking over his glasses. “How was your swim ?”

  “Good,” I said, taking in a deep breath .

  “Did you see Hunter down there?” he asked, staring at me blankly. “I’m pretty sure he was planning on going for a swim this afternoon as well .”

  “Um, yeah,” I said, trying to act nonchalant. “I saw him. He said ‘hi.’ I’m going to go shower .”

  My father nodded his head, and I walked back toward my room, letting out a deep breath and rolling my eyes. As messed up as it might have sounded, the exhilaration of the whole thing was kind of arousing, keeping secrets like this, doing something I knew I shouldn’t be doing .

  Hunter Riggs was one of the most successful and powerful men I knew, besides my father, and I knew I would be seeing a lot more of him .

  Chapter Three

  H unter

  I stood in front of the mirror, fixing my hair and thinking about my time with Lexi in the pool. It had definitely not been what I’d expected from my Saturday afternoon swim, but I’d welcomed it with open arms. Her body was so fucking perfect, with her strong curves, her perfect bouncing tits, and the way her mouth had curved up mischievously as she ran her hands down my body. I felt completely guilty about everything, but I also couldn’t help how much I was attracted to Lexi. She was like fire, and I was like a moth being drawn to her. Instead of dampening my desire for her, getting a taste of her amazing body had only made my interest deepen. Usually, when I slept with a woman, once it was done, my need and lust were gone, too. But our rendezvous in the infinity pool seemed to have only made it worse .

  I shook my head and picked up my toothbrush to brush my teeth as I walked around the apartment, cleaning up a bit. The maid service came daily, but I always felt bad leaving too much of a mess. When I was done, I grabbed my keys, figuring I would go grab a Sunday lunch out somewhere. I was not a very good cook, and I’d been starving since I’d gotten back from my swim the night before. Hot, sultry sex in the pool worked up an appetite. It just so happened that Lexi was scheduled to work at the café, where she was making extra cash until she could figure out what she wanted to do with her life. It wouldn’t hurt to grab a hot cup of coffee from a hot-as-hell barista .

  As I rode down the elevator, I made polite conversation with a few older women who joined me from the thirtieth floor. When the doors opened, I stood to the side and let them exit first, straightening my shirt and feeling excited to see Lexi. I walked off the elevator and out onto the floor, scanning the café for any sign of her. She was helping a customer and had no idea that I was watching her. I looked over at the door, reaching back to pull my wallet out, and froze. Kam stood in the lobby, waving at me as he handed his golf clubs off to one of the bellboys. I glanced back over at Lexi and sighed before walking toward Kam. He was the last person I wanted to see right then, but it seemed I didn’t really have a choice. My heart was beating quickly, but I knew he didn’t know anything since he was smiling and nodding his head. I reached out and shook his hand .

  “Hunter,” he said happily. “Just the man I wanted to see .”

  “Really? What for ?”

  “Well for golf of course,” he said, chuckling. “It’s a gorgeous day outside, and I was just heading over to the club right outside the city to play a round or two. You up for it ?”

  “Golfing? Oh, I don’t know. I was planning on doing nothing today .”

  “Tired on a Sunday? What? Did you have a hot date last night that wore you out ?”

  “Something like that,” I said, smiling .

  “Ah, how often do we get to go out on the course together? Go get your clubs. It’ll be fun.” He grinned. “It’s whiskey Sunday at the club, too .”

  “You sure you’ll even make it out to the course ?”

  “This time, I promise,” he said, laughing .

  “All right,” I replied, realizing there was no getting out of it. “Let me just change into a collared shirt .”

  “No need,” he said, putting his arm around my shoulders. “I have a couple extra in the car .”

  I smiled and walked with him toward the doors, glancing back at Lexi at the café. She glanced up at me and smiled before turning and going back to her work. Electricity shot through my chest, but it was quickly diminished by her father walking next to me. We climbed into the car and set off for the course—not something I had been expecting to do today .

  “So,” he said, leaning back in the limo, “how’s business going ?”

  “Good,” I said. “Definitely busy with everything going on in this country, and definitely on the rise since that whole thing with Patrick blew over .”

  “Yeah,” he said, shaking his head. “I saw him at a bar the other night, but he steered clear of me. What exactly happened between the two of you ?”

  “He was a lazy son of a bitch,” I said. “I swear, after becoming partners early on, he was determined to take us down. He never worked, was always on vacations that he charged to the company, and he complained about shit when he didn’t want to take the time to put the work into it. It all got to be too much, and when he started doing shit behind my back, I put my foot down. I convened the board secretly, and we all voted to kick him to the curb. He still owns stock in the company, but not enough to make a difference at this point .”

  “That’s a shame,” Kam replied .

  I laughed. “What? You’ve hated that guy since the beginning .”

  “True, he was a bit of a peckerhead, but still, it had to have affected the business,” he replied .

  “Only a little,” I said. “We were able to keep the media coverage under control and the story out of the papers. We gave him a severance package that forced him to sign a nondisclosure and noncompete clause .”

  “Smart,” Kam said, looking out the window as we pulled into the winding road leading to the country club .

  We got out at the door, and the staff met us and carried our clubs to a cart parked out front. We checked in at the desk and then headed out, deciding to catch the service cart on the way for a whiskey. When we got to the first tee, Kam went first as I pulled on my golf glove and gripped the shaft of the club. Kam got ready to take his first shot, aligning himself with the ball .

  “Did you see Lexi at the café?” He reared back and took his shot, his ball pulling to the right and landing slightly in the rough .

  “Yeah,” I said once we saw the ball land. “How does she like working there ?”

  “She hates it,” he said, laughing as he bent over and pulled his tee from the ground. “But she needs to learn some responsibility. She’s kind of adrift right now, not knowing what she wants to do with her life. One of her biggest problems is always looking for the next guy to date. Until she gets a job, though, I am forbidding her to date anyone. She needs to figure out her life without any distractions .”

  “That’s kind of a lot to ask, isn’t it? I mean, she can’t help if she falls for someone, and that just might scare her in the opposite direction .”

  “What are you, a dad now?” he asked .

  “No,” I said, laughing. “Just a guy who grew up in a really strict household. Whatever my parents wanted me to do, I would do the exact opposite .”

  “She’s not a child anymore,” Kam said. “The stakes are higher. I’ve already told her that if she steps out of line and I catch her with anyone, I’m going to cut her off, period. If she wants to play, she has to learn to do the work, too. I don’t really think it will come to that, though. She’s always been pretty responsible. I think she’s just going through a phase .”

  I shook my head and hit my ball straight down the fairway. I watched it curve slightly and land right down the center in a perfect shot to the green. Ka
m shook his head and laughed .

  “Leave it to you to be off the course for a long time and come in here like a pro,” he said, chuckling .

  I shrugged my shoulders and climbed back into the cart, and we headed over to our balls. I didn’t know what to say in response to Kam’s feelings about Lexi. I felt like it was a bit dramatic, forcing her to keep her distance from the dating world or face being cut off. Then again, I really didn’t have any place to say anything. He was her father after all. I also knew part of my feelings about it stemmed from the fact that I planned on seeing more of her. Much, much more .

  Chapter Four

  L exi

  W orking these early Monday mornings at the coffee shop was kicking my butt. Sure, I’d had early classes back in college, but there all I had to do was sit and listen. This was a whole new ball game. I was carrying buckets of ice, stocking drinks, and getting ready for the morning rush. At least I didn’t have to do it alone. I was working with Mandy this morning .

  Mandy had been my best friend for years even though we were pretty much complete opposites. Mandy was shy, conservative, and barely ever did anything that would raise an eyebrow. She was constantly listening to my stories and shaking her head, not understanding why I did things the way I did. Still, she was amazing at giving good, no-bullshit advice and trying desperately to keep me in line. She had decided to go to graduate school, so my dad had helped get her a job at the café to pay her tuition .

  Of course, when my dad had heard she was going to grad school, that had opened a whole new can of worms, and I’d had to endure almost two months of his guilt-tripping before he finally gave up and focused on something else. In the meantime, I’d come to work with Mandy, and I was glad to have a friend here with me. I walked around the corner and set the tray of muffins on the counter, opened the display case, and set them in one at a time. The complex had strict rules about their pastries. Everything had to be perfectly placed, no crumbs, with the stripes of the muffin wrappers matching up. It was tedious, but I didn’t mind it so much. It gave me something to do .

  “I still don’t get why you work here,” Mandy said as she brewed a pot of coffee. “You could buy, like, fifty of these cafés, but instead you make pennies to sort muffins .”

  “I like it,” I said cheerfully. “Makes me feel like an actual person instead of the little rich girl living off daddy. Plus, it keeps him off my ass when I go to an actual job every day. I swear, he treats me like I’m fifteen years old sometimes .”

  She laughed. “Lexi, not to be the bearer of bad news, but you are twenty-one years old and this is your first job .”

  “So?” I replied indignantly. “That’s why I went to college, to get skills and to find a job, although I never thought it would be at a coffee shop .”

  “Well, if you could make up your mind about what you want to do, you could get out of this place,” she said, poking me in the side. “You have an Ivy League education; you can use it anywhere. Just decide what pumps you up, what makes you want to go out and get a job—and I don’t mean for more shopping money .”

  “I will,” I said, smiling. “Right now I just like being part of society .”

  As I put the last of the muffins on the rack, my mind switching back to Hunter. I wanted to tell Mandy about what had happened, but I also knew she was going to lecture me for making such a reckless decision. Still, she was my best friend, and I needed to tell someone. I felt like I was going to explode. There was so much going on in my mind: my future, my father, and now Hunter. That had been the best sex I’d ever had with anyone, and I really didn’t want to keep it to myself. In reality, what I needed was advice, someone to tell it to me straight from the outside. I knew Mandy was that person. She had never sugarcoated anything for me the entire time we’d known each other .

  I wavered back and forth on whether to bring it up. I tried to keep myself busy, preparing for the opening of the café, but it was nearly impossible. All I could think about was Saturday night, having the craziest, most satisfying sex I’d ever had. Just thinking about it got me all hot and bothered. Then, on Sunday, when I had looked across the room and locked eyes with Hunter, I’d felt electricity crackle through my chest. I had pushed it down, knowing I needed to focus on work, but it had been difficult. He had been so sexy walking across the lobby, his hair perfect, his smile charming, and his eyes glued to mine as I poured a customer coffee. The only thing that had pushed the thoughts from my mind had been seeing him leave with my father, reminding me of how careful I had to be. My father could never find out, no matter what .

  I stacked the dishes by the sink in the back and contemplated my next move. I couldn’t hold this in any longer. It was going to drive me crazy. I needed to tell Mandy even if she looked down on me for it. I walked back out to the front and stood next to her .

  “I have to tell you something,” I said, putting down the tray and turning to face her .

  “What?” She looked curious .

  “Something happened last night at the pool,” I whispered, looking around. “I went there to swim, and Hunter was there. We talked, flirted, and then, before I even realized what was happening, we were all over each other. It wasn’t planned. It just kind of unfolded organically .”

  Mandy stared at me, the information I’d just given her flying through her mind. I could see her going through the emotions one by one. There was a hint of excitement, a flash of worry, and then the emotion I was waiting for: disappointment. She grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the back, looking around to make sure no one was listening .

  “You can never tell anyone else that,” she said. “Do you understand ?”

  “I know,” I said, sighing. “I just needed to tell you, to get it off my chest. Mandy, it was seriously the best sex I’ve ever had .”

  “Who cares about sex?” she asked, clearly frustrated. “This is your relationship with your father and his reputation we’re talking about here .”

  “I know,” I said, looking down. “It’s more than that, though. Hunter is charming, handsome, and so freaking funny. When he looks at me, I feel like the only girl in the room. I always have. He has a serious side when it comes to business, but he also has this charm to him that is absolutely insane. I smile every time we are close to each other .”

  “I don’t know, Lexi,” Mandy said with disapproval .

  “I’ve had a thing for Hunter ever since I was a teenager,” I said. “I just want to see where things go. If it’s just sex, then I’ll take advantage of it for a while and then cut it off. But who knows? Maybe it could be something more .”

  “He could be your freaking soul mate and your dad would still murder both of you,” she said, shaking her head .

  “That old man can sit on it,” I said in irritation. “It’s my life, not his to control .”

  “Well, he controls the bank account, so he kind of has an edge,” she pointed out .

  “I’m not going to let my father rule me forever with money,” I said, shaking my head. “One day I will be self-sufficient .”

  “And I applaud you for your goals, but sleeping with your father’s best friend is not really the way to start out,” she said, looking over at the elevator as people began to come down. “We’ll talk about this later. Can you get one more bucket of ice ?”

  “Sure,” I said, smiling .

  I walked to the back with the bucket, but Hunter was the only thing on my mind. It was hard to concentrate on anything else. My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out, smiling down as Hunter’s name flashed across the screen. I poked my head around the corner to make sure Mandy wasn’t coming and then answered .

  “Hello?”

  “Hey there, beautiful,” he said, filling my chest with butterflies. “You busy ?”

  “I’m at work, but I have a second,” I said, not wanting to sound too desperate to talk to him .

  “Good. I’ll cut to the chase then,” he replied. “Have dinner with me tomorrow night. I made res
ervations at the Lovehouse at eight. You can meet me there so no one sees us leaving together .”

  “Sure,” I said happily. “That sounds awesome .”

  “Great,” he said. “I’ll let you go. Have a good day at work .”

  I hung up the phone and held it to my chest, excitement flowing through me. I wanted to run and tell Mandy, but I knew she would disapprove. I took several deep breaths and finished filling the ice bucket before returning to the front. Dinner with Hunter at the Lovehouse. It was going to be amazing .

  Chapter Five

  H unter

  I walked across the parking lot of the Lovehouse with my hands in my pockets. This was one of the most sought-after restaurants in New York City, hidden away in the middle of Central Park by the lake. I never had issues getting a table here, or anywhere in the city. Most people knew my name because I owned one of the largest companies in the world. However, coming here with a date I was trying to hide might not be as simple as I had originally thought it would be .

  Luckily, when I got inside, they moved me to a more private area where people wouldn’t notice me as much. I sat down and waited, running the edge of the tablecloth through my fingers, wondering what excuse Lexi had given her father for meeting me here. The dull roar of conversation and clinking dishes echoed through my head, and I looked up as the front door opened. There was Lexi, looking absolutely stunning in a short, sparkling red dress, heels, and her hair billowing down around her shoulders. I stuck my hand in the air and stood up, meeting her at her seat to kiss her on the cheek and push in her chair once she was seated. I walked back around to my chair and sat down, looking up at the waitress as she poured us both a glass of wine .