The Brothers

2

Gabe made his way to the office. He hoped that his manager had ironed out all the legal and contractural details and that by the time he joined the meeting, the tedious stuff would be completed. His business manager Luc was a very accomplished lawyer and the fact that he was his older brother, meant Gabe trusted his judgment.

He entered the marble lobby and was ushered through reception to the VIP waiting area. He had been told that someone would be right down to escort him to the meeting and that he should take a seat. He glanced at his watch and winced at the time. He decided to check his emails and once he’s checked his pockets, realised he must have left his phone somewhere. The restroom door opened, and Gabe glanced up. A tall well-dressed man appeared. He was silver haired, but very handsome. Gabe shook his head as the man approached him.

“Gabriel, nice to see you made an effort for the meeting”.

Gabe laughed, knowing his jeans and t-shirt were casual, and not considered appropriate meeting attire by his brother.

“Lucian, I assume you’re running late too?” There were very few reasons his brother would be late to a business meeting and as if on cue, the waitress from the the coffee shop, sauntered out of the restroom looking dishevelled but satisfied. She finger waved at Luc as she glided past. Gabe shook his head in resignation.

Luc watched the waitress leave and turned back to Gabe, his brothers phone in his hand. “You left this last night” Gabe smiled and gratefully slid it into his pocket.

But before Luc could continue the conversation, the lift door opened and their escort appeared.

Tania was the new intern. It was her second official day. In her excitement to be the one to greet the hot Burford brothers, she had neglected to inform Shelly that their guests had arrived. She was so flustered that she got to meet the famous Gabe Burford, that all her training had gone from her mind. If it hadn’t been for the sheer look of surprise and then panic on Shelly’s face as they approached her desk, Tania would never have realised her mistake.

Shelly glanced up at the approaching footsteps and rose from her seat to greet them. In her hurry to to do so, she knocked over her fancy coffee which flooded her desk. Cream, ice and coffee surged over her desk, and she squealed as it seeped towards her brand new iPad. Immediately the photographer leapt to her assistance and started to pull tissues from the box on her now wet desk.

Tania in her panic, stumbled and pushed open the door to Amara’s office , virtually falling into the room. A dismayed Luc followed, trying to avoid stepping on the intern.

Amara rose from her seat, hand outstretched to the handsome tall man in the beautiful suit. He took her hand and a strange sensation rippled through him at her touch. Behind him the commotion continued so Luc shrugged off the odd feeling and introduced himself, while Gabe, forever the gentleman, helped the damsel in distress contain the mess.

“Firstly, I must apologise for our late arrival. Unfortunately, we had a business breakfast that ran later than expected. I’m

Luc Burford. I hope we haven’t caught you at a bad time?”

Luc glanced down at Amara’s feet, which were bare. In her hurry to greet them, she had totally forgotten to slip her heels back on. He took in her messy bun and wrinkled shirt and felt that this was the true version of her. He smiled at her discomfort as she realised her faux pas.

A polite cough sounded from behind him, and he stepped aside to introduce his brother.

Amara, turned to greet him and jolted as she locked eyes with Gabe. A strange intense feeling washed over her and for a moment, she felt like she knew him. She felt her heart quicken and her face flush. Pushing the feelings away, she extended her hand to him, which he shook, an equally odd expression on his face. Luc stared at his brother, an eyebrow raised.

“Pardon my question, but have we already met? “ asked Gabe.

Amara shook her head but remained silent. Words had escaped her, which was a rarity.

Shelly appeared, apparently recovered from the coffee tusami. As Amara still seemed incapable of speech, Shelly moved them to the comfortable seating area and began the meeting to finalise their plans.

Amara’s day seemed to pass in a blur of meetings, details and appointments. Having collected her keys for the new apartment, she headed home. Sitting in the back of her car, watching the city flash past, her thoughts wandered back to Gabe Burford. She had seen pictures of him, and knew of his work, but she was certain that she had never met him in person. She still couldn’t shake the feeling that she knew him and it puzzled her. The meeting had gone very smoothly and the contracts were having the last review before signing. Burfords lawyer said he’d contact her with the revisions in the next few days.

She drew up outside her Aunts home and sighed. She would miss living with her aunt. More like a Mother, her aunt had raised her after the death of her parents. Their vast inheritance had passed to her aunt and her trust had matured at 21. Although she had her own apartment now, her aunt insisted that they still meet for Brunch on a Sunday. It wasn’t going to be a problem as her new home was the penthouse above. Amara was financially very comfortable, and now she would live in the penthouse where her parents spent their time when in the city.

.

After a long soak in the bath, Amara fell into bed. She always reviewed her schedule before she retired for the night. After closing down her calender, she couldn’t help herself and typed “Gabe Burford” into google.

She spent some time cyber stalking him, reading about his photography and of course, wading through all the paparazzi pictures of him. An hour later, smug with her findings, she turned off her laptop. Exhausted, she fell into a deep sleep, thinking about the sexy photographer.

She awoke and found herself in a large bedroom. The room was luxurious, but simple, dominated by a huge bed. She looked down to discover she was wearing a deep red satin slip. Confused she turned around to find Gabe sat in an armchair with a large glass of red in his hand. If he was surprised to see her, he didn’t show it. He rose from the chair, placing his wine down. Shirtless, his torso was muscular and toned. His jeans were slung low on his hips, his feet bare. He was breathtakingly beautiful.

Approaching her slowly, he moved around her taking her in from every angle. Amara could not help but feel intimidated under his intense stare and felt herself flush with embarrassment. Gabe stopped in front of her and said nothing. She gazed at his face, his dark eyes, strong nose and strong jaw. She looked at his full lips and thought about what it might be like to kiss him. She couldn’t pull her eyes away from them and the desire to touch them was strong. He stepped close to her and pushed her hair away from face. He trailed his hand along her collar bone and then slid his hand up her neck seductively. He pushed her chin upwards and took in her beauty.

He ran his thumb over her lower lip and she opened her mouth in response. He smiled, a lazy sexy smile.

“Can I kiss you?” His voice low and husky. He looked at her lips while running his tongue over his own, as if to tempt her to agree. His face was so close, and still she couldn’t rip her eyes from his full now moist lips.

She nodded slowly.

He moved in closer, with his mouth next to her ear and whispered

“Tell me you want me to kiss you Amara”

She felt his breath on her neck as he took in her scent. She felt her stomach hitch with desire and felt her pulse quicken. She felt herself throb and realised she was already wet.

“Say it” he demanded.. his mouth so close to hers.

“ Kiss me” she blurted and she crushed her lips to his.