Free Serving HIM Vol. 6: Alpha Billionaire Romance by M. S. Parker, Cassie Wild Page B

pounding.” She rubbed at her temple while the boy gazed at her adoringly.
    Cynical amusement welled inside me. I wondered if she was fucking him yet.
    She slanted a look at me. “Would you care for some coffee, Dominic? Andre is a wonder with it.”
    “No. I’m fine.” I gave the boy a smile, but he didn’t notice, eager to do his mistress' bidding. “How old is he, Penelope? Eighteen?”
    “Nineteen, I think.” She shrugged. “What does it matter?”
    “Since you’re fucking him, I’d hope he’s at least legal.”
    The look on her face answered my unspoken question. “You’re so crude. But of course he’s legal .” She fussed with the cuffs on her robe. “I never imagined you’d be concerned about my personal life, Dominic.”
    “I’m not.” Giving her a hard look, I leaned forward. “But concerned about a boy who looks like he just might be a boy? Yes. That does bother me. Perhaps you can imagine why.”
    She straightened, swinging her legs around to the settee and giving me a cold look. “I don’t bring children into my bed. You’re the perverse one in the room, if you’d recall.”
    She sniffed just as Andre came back, a heavy tray laden with a pot, a cup, cream, sugar and a small selection of pastries. His eyes lit up when Penelope smiled and even her casual dismissal didn’t dim that pleasure. I almost felt sorry for him.
    Once we were alone, I leaned forward. She sipped at the coffee Andre had prepared for her and studied me. “I assume you’re here because your…Aleena…mentioned we’d bumped into each other,” she said.
    The smugness in her tone rubbed me raw, but I didn’t let it show.
    “Yes. It came up.”
    Her smile faded, bit by bit and I waited for it to fade altogether before I spoke again.
    “We need to discuss a few things.” I checked my watch, deliberately, before looking back at her. “First, I don’t believe Trouver L’Amour is a good fit for you. Personally.”
    As her eyes narrowed and her mouth fell open, I continued to speak. “We will, of course, help you with finding a match for any engagements you’ve already prearranged, provided it’s documented in your file, but beyond that, I think it’s best that you find another company, should you still be searching for…true love.”
    “You arrogant—”
    I cut her off. “Additionally, you need to be aware of some…personal matters.”
    Her jaw snapped shut and she crossed her arms, her expression childishly petulant.
    “This cat and mouse game you're playing is going to stop. You will leave Aleena alone. If you don’t…” I let my voice trail away. Up until that point, I had been smiling. Now the smile was gone and I showed her what lay behind the mask I wore for the world. “Let's just say that you don't want to find out what I'm capable of.”
    The nervous titter she gave raked down my back like nails across a chalkboard. “Really. Dominic, is all of this because your precious little secretary—”
    “You damn well know her name is Aleena,” I interrupted. I held up a hand when she opened her mouth. “Now listen to me, because you need to understand something. I’m in love with her. Got it? I love her. She’s mine. And perhaps you haven’t heard about how protective I am when it comes to what, and who, I consider mine.”
    Her scathing sneer twisted her face into something ugly. “In love? With that little bitch? She’s only usingyou.”
    “Bitch? Really, Penelope?” I said, tossing her phrase back at her. “As to using me, that’s more your speed than hers.”
    She came up from the settee, glaring at me. Her face was pale, two splotches of color riding high on her cheeks. Her eyes were wild.
    “You are choosing that ni–that womanover me?!”
    “There was never a choice.” I shrugged, choosing to ignore the word I knew she'd intended to say. “I wanted Aleena from the first minute I saw her. You and I might come from the same world, but that never meant that I wanted