"What do you want, Caleb?"
"You're here early." He cocked a brow. "Does this mean you took my advice?"
I closed my laptop and gave him the attention he was obviously begging for. "What advice would that be?"
"You fucked the girl, right?"
I bristled. I didn't like him talking about Olivia like that, but I knew Caleb wouldn't understand. I had never shown an ounce of annoyance over his vulgar comments of the girls who found themselves at my mercy in the past. I didn't know why I was bothered now...but I was.
"Do you have a reason for coming here?" I asked as I leaned back in my chair, looking coolly over at him.
Caleb chuckled. "You definitely had her because you haven't ripped me to shreds yet, so what's the problem? She didn't satisfy you?"
I scowled. "I'm not discussing this."
Caleb's mouth dropped open. "Since when do you keep your excursions from me? Man, you know I live vicariously through you."
I shifted. "We both know you live an abundant life of your own. You don't need my sexual encounters laid out on a platter for your indulgence."
"That's true, but it doesn't mean I don't enjoy hearing about them." He winked. "So, what did you do to this one?"
I eyed him coolly. I didn't know if I should tell him. Caleb was just as fucked up as me. We tended to swap stories and, often, women. We had a good arrangement...but, I didn't want to share anything regarding Olivia with Caleb. "I took her home, Caleb."
His brows rose. "You what?"
I didn't let my eyes waver from his. "I took her home and I had her in my bed."
"You took her to your condo?" Caleb sputtered and his eyes bulged. He was obviously shocked.
"Yes. I did." I nodded.
"You went vanilla? And, you took her to the one place you keep for yourself?"
I scowled. "You've gone vanilla plenty of times."
Caleb dropped his feet from the desk. "I am not you, Jace."
I narrowed my eyes. "I'm not going to pretend I know what you're talking about."
Caleb scoffed. "You use women, Jace. As a matter of fact, you don't even treat them like they have feelings. You are not gentle and, you are most fucking, certainly, not vanilla!" He stood and planted both hands on my desk. "Who the hell is this girl and what did she do you to?"
"She didn't do anything to me, Caleb." I growled. He was testing me. "She's just...different."
Caleb eyed me as though I was a fucking math problem and I glared up at him. "You care about her, don't you?"
"No." I replied coldly. I didn't let myself care about any woman. There was no point. They were all cold and heartless. Just like Lexie.
Caleb nodded. "Don't forget about Paris. We leave on Monday."
I watched in silence as Caleb walked out of my office, leaving me frustrated and pissed off.
***
I grabbed the list of coffee the men had ordered before flinging my purse over my shoulder. I stepped out on the bustling street and a man caught my elbow. My chest tightened and I looked around wildly, ready to scream. I was jumpy after receiving the letter. Someone had obviously been watching me...and Jace.
"Olivia LeRoux?" The man asked. His dancing, green eyes stared straight into mine. He was beautiful. Anyone would say that his beauty rivaled Jace, but not me. Nope, Jace had me hooked! Jeez, if someone this stunning couldn't even spark a flame of desire within me, then I was hopeless. Jace had ruined me. I would be good for no one.
"Miss LeRoux?" The man asked again, raising his brows with a look of crafted amusement on his sculpted face.
I flushed, swallowing my earlier panic. "Yes, that's me." I held out my hand for the man to shake. "And, you are?"
"My name is Caleb Cage."
I frowned. He sounded just as dangerous as Jace. "It's nice to meet you...but, may I ask how you knew my name?"
"You seem to have sparked the interest of a friend of mine and I just had to meet you for myself." He grinned. I suddenly felt as though I was standing in the line-of-sight of the world's most dangerous predator. If this man had been the one to write the letter...then, I was in so much more danger than I first suspected. A female, I thought I could handle...but, this man...oh, hell no.
"A friend of yours?" I tried to play it coolly. The last thing I wanted him thinking was Jace had been the first 'friend' I had thought of.
"Yes." His smirk never faltered. He was not going to tell me who this elusive friend was.
"All right, then." I smiled politely. "I should be on my way. I'm expected to bring coffee."
He cocked his head to the side. "Do they not work for you?"
I paused. "Pardon me?"