Pleasure Extraordinaire 2 (PURSUIT) Read Online Free Page A

won’t
     be able to stay for the rest of the party, but such a way is impossible to find unless
     I tell him the truth. “I’ll be right back,” I say to Taylor and Adam and walk to an
     isolated corner with Edric.
    Edric glances around, his eyebrows pulled together, and then turns to me. “You’re
     making me worried. Is it Zane? I saw you two chatting. What’d he say?”
    “What didn’t he say?” I face him with frustration, biting my lower lip with anger.
    “Will you finally tell me what’s going on?”
    “Lots of things, but it all boils down to what a liar Michael is, that he’s just a
     show, doesn’t actually care about Chloe or his other kids.”
    Edric’s expression softens visibly as he glances at me. “You should take Zane’s words
     about his father with grain of salt, because he’s mad at him for not retiring this
     year and leaving the control of all his companies to Zane as he’d promised. Michael
     might be a workaholic, but he loves his children just like any other father and would
     do anything to protect them and give them the lives that only a few can afford. He
     came from poverty. Because of that, I guess, he fears he or his family will go back
     to those difficult days in his past. He sleeps only four hours daily. The rest of
     the time is dedicated to work so his family is well off. I’ve worked for Michael for
     fifteen years, and if I’d come across any misbehavior or unethical conduct from his
     side, I’d resign without blinking an eye. He’s just a driven man with fantastic instincts
     about money and investment. Nothing else.”
    “I don’t know.” I shrug my irritation away. “You might be right. I haven’t observed
     anything unusual or malicious from Michael. He has been nothing but sweet and supportive
     since the day I met him.”
    On the other hand, Zane took advantage of me sexually the minute he figured out I
     was a client at Pleasure Extraordinaire. He’s the real poison here, not Michael. And
     if it’s true that he was planning to take over Michael’s companies, he must be mightily
     pissed off for having to wait longer to hold the reins of one of the most profitable
     enterprises of the nation. I shouldn’t let people get into me so easily, especially
     people with ulterior motives, like Zane. I’ll be better off keeping my contact with
     him and his brother to a bare minimum if I want to stay sane.
    “Exactly. Michael is an old soul,” Edric continues. “He has seen the world at its
     worst. However, Zane grew up having everything he could think of and not having to
     worry about a damn thing in his life. He can be very manipulative when he doesn’t
     get what he wants. Just be very careful around him, don’t let him fill your mind with
     lies, and you’ll be fine.”
    “Thanks, Edric. I was feeling really down. I guess I’ll have to improve my people
     skills to weed out liars.”
    “It’s not an easy task, but you’ll get there eventually.”
    Even though talking with Edric calms my agitated nerves, I still don’t want to stay
     at the party for the rest of the evening. But I guess, in the eyes of other guests,
     if I disappear before the party officially starts, that won’t look good for me as
     Michael’s date, and I did promise him I’ll be his date for tonight.
    When I try and explain to Taylor that I changed my mind about leaving, she looks up
     at Adam, and just like that, they walk back to our table with me. It feels good to
     have people who won’t complain about my ups and downs.
    A few minutes after we settle back into our chairs, the servers begin bustling around
     to serve our plates and drinks. The sight of the exquisite food makes me feel glad
     to have changed my mind about staying.
    Michael remains at the table with his children and Dylan’s parents, while an elderly
     couple accompanies us at our table. I nearly come to crying when I see Taylor’s face
     beam with hope as the lady with bright white hair talks