Chapter 9: Gina

In the morning I had another fight with Nina. She didn't want to hear me out at all and left shouting that Robert was the love of her life. Patrick told me to take it easy, that sixteen was old enough for a boyfriend, but I went to work in a bad mood.

My head was banging when I walked into the building. A few hours later, Davies showed up in my office, asking me to redo my reports. He barked at me that I had missed some very important details. That guy was really grating on my nerves, but I corrected the reports like an obedient lamb.

I was looking forward to my class tonight. Dancing and stretching on the pole always de-stressed me. Some of the ladies had really made huge progress in the past few weeks and that made me proud. Money that I could invest in my business was tight, and I had no choice but to do some extra hours in the office soon to cover some unexpected expenses.

I couldn't keep working full time and then run a pole dancing business. My accountant had warned me that my tax bill was going to be huge in January. Soon, something needed to give: either the job or the classes.

I loved pole dancing too much to give it up. Adler McDougall was the man who could turn my future around. I had a vision, and I knew my business could bring a lot of revenue, thanks to my background in marketing. Women wanted to be empowered, and I knew there weren't many pole dancing studios in Edinburgh or Glasgow. I could easily expand, hire someone to run less advanced classes. This had been my dream since the moment I showed up at my first class.

"Hey, Brittany, can you get Mr. Erskine on the phone for me, please? I need to talk to him about his campaign," I said into the speaker. My assistant was bright, but she could easily be distracted by all sorts of things.

"The handsome blond bloke who came in yesterday?" she asked with a giggle. I rolled my eyes and squeezed my thighs together. I remembered the way he leaned over and whispered that I was beautiful. The temperature in my body was rising fast. Harry Erskine was the guy who could take me to the moon and back, but why should I trust him? He would turn out to be like every other man and make my life miserable.

"Yes, the good-looking man, Brittany," I responded, rolling my eyes again. She giggled once more, and a moment later, she connected the call.

"Erskine speaking," said the deep voice that sent a shiver down my spine.

"Hi, Mr. Erskine, this is Gina Martinez," I said briskly. This conversation was going to be quick and to the point.

"Miss Martinez, what a pleasure to hear from you."

Of course, he was happy to hear from me.

"Right, I just wanted to arrange another meeting. I worked through your campaign, and I believe we can start implementing some goals right away," I explained. "Will tomorrow work for you?"

"I wouldn't want to wait until tomorrow to see you, Miss Martinez," he sang in a deep purr, and my face flushed with unwanted heat. The man enjoyed teasing me and making me hot and bothered.

"No, I'm very busy today, but will be available tomorrow morning," I said, not wanting to fall apart today, too.

"Sounds great, Miss Martinez," he said after we discussed the best time for both of us. Then he added in his usual sexy tone, "I'm looking forward to seeing what you've come up with."

"Fab, so I'll see you then. Goodbye, Mr. Erskine." I ended the conversation and hung up the phone, knowing this guy had it for me badly, and the tiny voice in my head told me that he wasn't going to give up.