His eyebrows waggled. “I know. Sinfulandtaboo. A delectable combination.”
Kieran O’Rourke was the king of taboo. The Irishman was known in our circles as the one to keep an eye on at all times. I’d known him for close to two years, been in business with him for six months, so I could attest that the rumors as to his devious desires were true, although I didn’t have firsthand experience.
Then again, my own desires ran pretty dark, and I had no shame when it came to them. For one, I was openly bisexual, which was not the norm for most on theForbesTop 100 list. My sexual orientation was a hot topic among my competitors, something the media loved to exploit during their attempts to belittle me and my success. Add to that the fact I wasn’t into monogamy, and I was often classified as the billionaire playboy. But I did have my limits, which was the very reason I’d walked away from my sweet, innocent stepsister all those years ago.
“A little too taboo for my taste,” I told him.
“Never too much of a good thing.” Kieran took the glass I offered, cradled it in his hand. “Thanks.”
I loosened my tie, freed the top button on my shirt as I took a seat in the armchair angled beside his. “He waltzed right in and pretty much offered her up on a silver platter.”
“Personally, I would’ve jumped at the opportunity.” Kieran sniffed his drink before taking a sip. “That stepbrother/stepsister stuff is bloody hot.”
I swirled the whiskey before taking a sip, glanced his way. “A bit cliché, even for you.”
“What? I like the idea of you taking your stepsister as payment for a debt. There’s…”
“A porn theme?” I filled in when he paused.
“I was going to say promise.” He chuckled. “But I like your version, too. Is she hot?”
I wasn’t going to dignify that question with a response, but mentally I was thinking she wasn’t so much hot as she was mind-numbingly beautiful.
And so fucking sweet.
Toosweet.
“I know that look,” Kieran said, his brogue thicker, his tone rougher. “Tell me about her.”
“It’s not like that,” I lied.
He cut his eyes to me. “Bullshit.”
I hated that Kieran could see right through me. The man knew me better than anyone. Sometimes I thought he knew me better than I knew myself.
It was true. I was obsessed with Emily. Had been since I’d seen her on the balcony. So much so, I’d inserted my own employee in the Campbell residence to oversee Emily’s day-to-day, paid to keep me apprised.
Like I said, obsessed.
Three years and counting, and this morning’s encounter with her father hadn’t done anything to help my obsession. Actually, it might’ve spurred it more.
“Tell me about her, Knox,” Kieran repeated as he shifted, crossing his long legs at the knee, looking regal, which seemed to be his default setting.
Kieran was a striking man with his dark chocolate-brown hair, midnight-blue eyes, his prominent rounded chin, and high cheekbones, but his good looks didn’t fool me. He might look like a man women wanted to sully themselves beneath and men wanted to imitate, but Kieran O’Rourke was in a league of his own. He was experimenting with his hair again, this time going for the close-cropped look. He’d taken a page from my stylist’s playbook, going shorter on the sides, a little longer on the top, and it looked good on him. Especially with the clean-shaven jaw and those thick, dark eyebrows. Then again, most styles did. And he filled out an Armani suit like no one I’d ever met.
But Kieran’s looks weren’t the only thing he had going for him. For many, his wealth played a big part in his appeal, but not for me. He hadn’t been born into money the way I had. He’d built his fortune brick by brick, proving himself a brilliant, if not ruthless, businessman. But he wasn’t your regular, everyday billionaire. He didn’t believe in playing it safe. Not in the boardroom and certainly not in the bedroom, which was something else I admired in him.
His devilish desire to hit where it hurt the most was what had attracted me to him initially. And I wasn’t talking physically on either count. Kieran was capable of uncovering people’s weaknesses as though they’d whispered them in his ear. He was brilliant when it came to getting what he wanted.
“Fine, don’t tell me about the girl,” Kieran grumbled, his disappointment evident.
“I hadn’t planned on it.”
“Tell me this. What exactly is it you hold over your stepfather?”
I exhaled heavily, staring out the wall of windows at the city. The view from here was far more appealing than the one from my office, but it was still just a view. I wasn’t enchanted by the hustle and bustle of the city the way some people were, although New York felt more like home to me than anywhere else.
“He stole from me.” I cut a sideways look his way. “But you know that already.”
