Sinful Pleasures

Chapter Eighteen

"I am so sorry Blaire. I didn't realize what those pictures were when I hung them up. Amanda just handed the stack to me and said they needed to be hung in the room we were meeting in."

I watched as tears started to form in her eyes. There was no way I was going to pity her. She was a grown adult for f**k's sake. She should have easily known that what she was doing was wrong. Plus, who the hell doesn't look at something that you are asked to hang up?

"Derek, find Amanda and bring her here. As for you Haley, you will no longer be working here. You will never be allowed back in this hotel. I will also make damn sure you never work in the Upper East Side again."

Chuck called for back up to get Haley as we waited for Derek to bring Amanda in. Haley sat on the couch and quietly started to sob. A few minutes later, Derek returned with Amanda. She glanced at Haley on the couch and quickly looked at me.

"What's going on here Blaire? Why did Derek have to pull me away from the work I was doing on the private party in the bar next week?"

Amanda crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me. She was really going to act like nothing was happening up until the end. Well, I was going to wipe that glare right off her face. I was done with her s**t.

"Cut the crap Amanda. We already know that you are the one who gave Haley the pictures to put in the conference room. I also saw you talking to Jason and pointing me out the day he attacked me. So why don't you tell us the truth. Why the hell did you target me when I have done nothing to you?"

All of a sudden, Amanda turned towards Haley and lunged for her. Thankfully Chuck had some quick reflexes and grabbed Amanda around the waist. He stood her straight and cuffed her behind her back.

"What the f**k Haley! You are supposed to be my sister! How could you rat me out like that? I will never forgive you for this."

She struggled in Chuck's grip until she was facing me. If looks could kill, I would certainly be dead right now. There was so much anger in her eyes. I had no idea what I ever did to deserve this anger. All of a sudden, she lunged towards me. Chuck thankfully pulled her back away from me.

"And you. You just had to come waltzing in here like you were better than everyone. I never had to listen to anyone until you came along. The old owner just let me do my own thing because he knew I was the best at what I do."

"Well Amanda, that is what happens when you get a boss that actually wants to be a boss. You might have been good at what you do, but now you will never be able to do it again. Like your sister over there, I will make sure you never work in the Upper East Side again. But then, who would want to hire someone who has a record of harassing their boss anyways?"

Chuck turned her towards the door as another officer walked in. The new officer took hold of her arm and started to read her rights to her. I was so glad to finally be able to put this all behind me. I could now finally focus on the important things happening with the hotel. Chuck escorted Haley out of the office, as she was an accessory.

I looked at the time on my phone and saw that it was just after noon. I was starving so I decided to go downstairs. I stood up and told Lexi and Derek that they could go back to what they were doing. I was going to go down for lunch and then continue working for a little longer. We all went to the lobby together, but I quickly broke off towards the bar.

I walked in and saw Brad behind the bar, reading a piece of paper. I walked up to the bar and sat in front of him. He slowly looked up at me with a smile. He leaned over the counter and gave me a deep kiss. I lifted my hand to his cheek and sighed when he pulled away.

"I take it from the fact that I saw the cops escort two chicks out that they were able to figure everything out?"

"Yes. Now I can finally focus on the hotel again. How are things looking for the private party coming up?"

I noticed that the paper he was reading was a list of requests by the friend throwing the party. If I remembered correctly, there really wasn't much on that list. She requested some basic liquor and simple decorations. I made a mental note to call the remaining three event coordinators in to go over that list.

"Everything looks good. I believe we should have enough liquor to hold them all over, but I think I am going to order another bottle of the Vodka and Gin, just to be on the safe side. Especially since we still have two weeks until this thing."

"Go ahead and order them. I was just going to go next door and get some lunch. Want to join me?"

He smiled and nodded his head. He yelled into the back room, telling Christine that he was going on break. He came around the bar and grabbed my hand. After the hostess greeted us, she led us to a private booth, away from all of the other guests. We placed our order and the waitress returned a few moments later with our drinks. I decided to try their green juice while Brad opted for just a water.

"So Blaire, any plans for the weekend?"

"I think I just want to relax for some of it. I was planning to just stay in tonight and tomorrow since it is supposed to rain. You are welcome to join me. That is, if you don't have other plans."

I realized I shouldn't just assume he doesn't have anything better to do. Even if the thought of him not spending the weekend with me left me feeling sad. Thinking of us staying in the penthouse all weekend started getting me hot. I kept thinking of us in bed. And the shower. And on the couch. Needless to say, I was making myself rather wet. I pulled myself out of my thoughts and saw that Brad was watching me with a smirk.

"What's the matter Blaire? You are a little flushed and breathing a little harder than necessary. What's gotten you so worked up over there?"

I quickly took a drink of my juice to try and calm myself down. I heard him chuckle and knew that he had figured out where my mind had went. I rolled my eyes and was thankful when the waitress brought our food. I was starving and the first bite tasted amazing. I didn't realize I was eating so fast until I noticed that Brad was staring at me. I quickly swallowed the bite in my mouth and cleared my throat.

"Sorry. I guess I was a little hungrier than I thought."

I couldn't help but laugh as he broke into a huge grin. After a few minutes, we fell into a comfortable silence while we finished eating. We talked for a little while after the food was gone. He agreed to stay the weekend with me. He said he would just run to his place to get some clothes after work and would come back with pizza. We walked to the entrance of the bar where he kissed me before I made my way to the elevator.

Once I sat down at my desk, I sent a quick text to Danielle, Rose and Ciara asking them to come to my office when they were free. While I waited for them, I opened my email. There were a few that mentioned possible events coming in the next few months. I quickly jotted them down so I could go ahead and talk to the event coordinators about them. About twenty minutes later, I heard a knock at the door and the three girls made their way inside.

"Hey guys! I just wanted to get you caught up on a few things we have coming up. Mainly a private party in the bar in two weeks. It's for a group of college kids celebrating a friend's birthday. The only requirements are that the decorations be black and gold. This will be your chance to show me your creative side. You don't have a spending limit per se, but I would prefer you keep it under $1,000. There will be roughly 60 or so guests."

I watched as they all took notes. I could see as they were picturing ideas in their minds, and I truly couldn't wait to see what they came up with. I told them about the engagement party that was next on the calendar, even though I didn't have the exact day yet. I also gave them the list of events I just looked over. I asked them all to write up how they would pitch ideas to the clients on how to decorate, what space to use, and so on. They all smiled and walked out.

I looked at the time and saw that it was finally four. I sent Damon a quick email with the new events I had written down then closed down my computer. Brad text and said he was heading home then picking up the pizza. I made my way upstairs so that I could change before he got back. I decided to turn the fireplace on and throw on some short shorts with an even smaller tank top. I grabbed a comfy jacket until the fireplace warmed it up a bit more. I grabbed a simple wine from the fridge along with 2 glasses.

I made myself comfy on the couch and poured a glass of wine to enjoy while I waited. I grabbed the remote and turned on the live action Beauty and the Beast. It didn't matter how many times I watched it, I still loved it. I was just getting to the part where Belle rejects Gaston when Brad came walking in. He sat the pizza box on the coffee table then proceeded to my room to throw his bag.

When he rejoined me in the living room, I noticed that he had changed. He was now in tight black jogger sweats and a form fitting blue long sleeve. The blue shirt really made his eyes stand out. As he walked towards me, I poured him a glass of wine then opened the pizza box. I was surprised to see that it had all of my favorite toppings: pepperoni, onions, green peppers and mushrooms. I looked at him with a questioning stare.

"I may have ran into Lexi as I was heading out and asked her what your favorite toppings were."

I watched as a blush started to appear on his cheeks. I leaned towards him as he sat beside me and kissed him softly. He wrapped his arm around me and I decided to snuggle into his warmth before digging into the pizza.

"That was sweet and thoughtful of you. I can't tell you how long it has been since I had a pizza with all of these toppings."

He laughed as I leaned forward and grabbed a piece. I took a bite and involuntarily moaned at the flavor. This pizza was exactly what I needed. I finished the slice and downed my glass of wine. I didn't realize Brad had watched me the entire time until I looked up at him and saw him staring at me impressively.

"Wow. You just killed that slice and your wine. I don't know if I'll be able to keep up with you tonight."

I rolled my eyes and filled my glass back up. I started on a second slice while he finished off his first one. I sat back and put my focus back on the movie. I had been distracted and now they were at the part where Belle goes to rescue her father from the Beast's castle.

We managed to kill the whole box of pizza and the bottle of wine by the time the movie was over. We ended up casually flowing into small talk while the credits played. He was telling me about how the hotel was a little different right before I took over. He had already noticed a difference with the guests in just the two short weeks that I had been in charge. Especially the difference with staff, good and bad. I decided that I should tell him about my history with Damon, in case this turned into anything serious, and the fact that Damon was part owner.

"Brad, I think I need to tell you about mine and Damon's history. I know that we have only been together for a night, but I don't want you to be blindsided by anything."

"You don't have to explain anything. I won't lie and say I'm not curious about that. I mean, I saw the way you guys always looked at each other. But I won't force you to tell me about your past."

I finished off my last glass of wine and positioned myself on the couch so that I was facing Brad.

"Damon, Lexi, Chuck and our financial advisor, Henry, all grew up together. Literally. We were all basically best friends in the womb. Our parents were best friends before we came along. My parents were always closest to Damon and Lexi's parents. Damon and I started dating in junior high and all throughout high school. He broke up with me right before I left for Brown. I was a mess for the week leading up to having to move into my room. I stayed with Lexi the whole week because my Mother was out of the country. When I came back two weeks ago, we all had dinner at my Mother's. Everything between us just came flooding back and we just went to how things were before we broke up."

I hadn't looked at Brad the whole time I spewed that out. I didn't want to see whatever emotion was going across his face. I pulled my knees up to my chest and rested my chin on them. I slowly looked up at Brad, but I couldn't determine the look in his eyes. They were basically emotionless. I wasn't really sure how to interpret it.

"Well, I am not sure that I can compete with your first love. Especially when you have six years of history with that person. Are you completely sure that I am the one you want to be with right now? Because believe it or not, I'm not one for just one night stands or weekend flings. I have had my eye on you since I first saw you in the bar. I only kept my distance because I saw you guys together. I just didn't want to believe you were a couple."

I don't know why, but I felt tears stinging my eyes. His words reminded me just how confused I was with what I wanted. I had no idea what I wanted right now. Or better yet, I don't know who I want. I was trying to figure that out though.

"Honestly, ever since our time at the bar yesterday, I have felt this pull to you. Besides Damon, I have never felt that pull to anyone else. Damon and I love each other, but we also knew that we were really just falling back into old habits. He was already basically living up here. We agreed that we both need time apart to figure out what we truly want."

I could feel the tears running down my cheeks now. Brad slid closer to me on the couch and cupped my cheek. He ran his thumb over the trails left by the tears and quickly dried them. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close. I instantly nuzzled my face into the crook of his neck. He pulled away from me enough to look in my eyes.

"Blaire, I will be here until you get tired of me. Or decide that I'm not the one you want. So let's just forget about the problems you have had this week, and your confusing feelings. Let's just enjoy the weekend because I can tell that we are going to get so busy soon that we won't get much free time together."

I smiled and nodded as I pulled his lips to mine. He pulled me back against him, but I easily pushed him back so that I was straddling him. I slid my hands under his shirt so I could feel his toned body. His hands firmly gripped my hips. I vaguely heard my phone vibrating on the coffee table, indicating that I was getting a phone call. I turned my head a little to see the name flashing on my screen. It took a minute to register who was calling me.

Damon....