9

"Do you want to ruin my reputation?" James asked calmly as he paced back and forth.

"You can do that all by yourself, Jamey-Bear," she teased.

"Don't call me that ever again."

"Or else what?" She knew she was his weakness. James stared at her for a little too long, probably reminiscing their times together.

"Anyway," he cleared his throat, "I'll clear the debts, don't worry yourself too much."

"I see you're still stuck up," she said as she walked towards him, catching him by surprise as she kissed his jawline. James slightly pushed her away, making her look at him like a challenge.

"We agreed we'd be friends. Plus you have someone now," he reminded her, his eyes blazing with desire for her.

"Oh, it's an open relationship," she said, scratching her eyebrows. She suddenly felt out of place.

"Dad," the CEO called as he walked into his father's office, stopping abruptly when he sees the two standing too close to each other. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Yes, I was just busy telling James that he can just cash in electronically, isn't that right?" Kanti lied, not bothering to turn and face the intruder. James stepped away from her and straightened his suit.

"Yes. And as always, it was a pleasure discussing business with you, Ms. Mahi."

Kanti narrowed her eyes at James and blew him a kiss as she picked her bag up.

"Is this the son you were telling me about?" she asked with genuine interest as James came to stand beside her.

"The name's Nathan Nicolson. It's a pleasure to meet you," the CEO said politely as he extended his hand.

"Of course it is," she met his hand and shook it a little too firmly before letting go. "Well, I'll be on my way."

"I'll walk you out," Nate offered.

"No!" Kanti panicked, casting her eyes down and quickly raising her chin up, looking for a way out. James immediately knew what was up and he intervened.

"What she means is, she's been here before. She knows her way around, right?" he looked at Kanti, his eyes telling her to play along.

"Exactly that, and only that," she said as she walked out. Nate watched her walk away before turning back to his father.

"You think you're smart, huh?" he teased his father.

"I don't know what you're talking about," James denied as he took a seat behind his desk. Nate sat down as well and dropped the topic of this Ms. Mahi and his dad.

"Who was she?"

"As I said-" James started to repeat himself but Nate interrupted him.

"You know what I mean. Who was she?" he eyed his father, trying to extract the answers he's looking for.

"Kanti Mahi, niece of my associate, Roland Mahi."

"Of Dynamics?" Nate followed up, feeling like he's still missing something. James nodded.

"They are not the ones to cross paths with," James chuckled as he thought back to when he had met the two girls at a function. "They are exactly like their mentor; sweet one second and hard as stone the next. You know, they entered into partnership with the Dykes people," James paused, smiling proudly.

"What's with that goofy look?" Nate asked knowingly. There could only be one reason behind his father's typical smile.

"Kanti is a predator. She'll come after you."

Nate chortled as he shook his head, thinking his dad was joking. "I'll be expecting her then."

"Two are alike. Dominant. Power-driven. Ambitious. Sex freaks. Perfect, really."

That caused Nate to choke and raise his eyebrow. "Are you suggesting me and her? She and I? No way!" he furiously shook his head as he loosened his tie. It was getting too hot in the properly air-conditioned office.

"Soon you'll be my age and still single," James warned lovingly.

"I saw her just now. That woman is not my type," he said.

"Wait, how old are you?" James asked curiously.

"28. My birthday was last week, dad."

"You need to find the right girl for you and settle down. And I should be sure she'll tie you down for life, unlike me."

"Maybe I've already found her," Nate said lowly, hoping his father hadn't heard him. And even if he did, he choose not to push it further. Something Nate was grateful for. He had not been one to discuss his love-life solely because he didn't have one. He wasn't a player, but he wasn't the most celibate man to walk the earth either.

"Go out, find dates and do all that youth stuff," his father instructed as he started looking through some work papers.

"Are you encouraging me to sleep around some more?"

"That's not what today's youth do," he said in a serious tone.

"Then what do they do?" Nash inquired.

"They bring babies home," he said in a duh tone.