His Absolute Authority: A Scandalous Billionaire Love Story (Jessika, #3) (6 page)

"I understand, Mr. Landseer," Lucent said, nodding his head in a curt bow.  "I agree with everything you've said thus far.  I am deeply apologetic for what occurred tonight, and I intend to never let anything like this happen again.  A lapse in judgment caused me to make an extreme error."

"Everyone makes mistakes," Asher said.  "I understand that, Lucent.  I really do.  It happens.  You need to apologize, though.  You really need to apologize, because I don't think things are going to get better anytime soon."

"What do you mean?" Lucent asked.

Asher didn't want to talk about this right now, but he didn't have much choice, now did he?  It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about it now, but more that he didn't want to talk about it here.  He didn't want Jessika to overhear him, because he didn't want to worry her anymore.  That part hurt.  He'd promised her over dinner that they'd be open with each other and wouldn't keep secrets, but... he just couldn't be open about this.

"The couch?" Asher asked, nodding his head towards Jessika's old couch.  "Want to sit?"

"If you wish," Lucent said.

The two of them strode into the living room area.  It was small, and not well-suited to meetings, but they'd just need to make do.  Asher didn't plan on turning this into an elaborate and extensive discussion, anyways.

Lucent sat on the far edge of the couch while Asher took the spot closer to the small circle table where he and Jessika ate dinner.  He could still smell the scent of Italian herbs and spices, with a faint starchy whiff of pasta.  The memory of their meal and their candid conversation made him smile.

"I'm sure you're aware of the sex tape and nude pictures that were leaked to the media?" Asher asked.

"I do not know the full extent of the situation, but I believe I have a decent understanding of what we might be dealing with," Lucent said.

"There's more," Asher said.  "A lot more."

He shifted on the couch, trying to find comfort in the situation he'd been put in.  It wasn't the couch's fault, but there wasn't any comfort for him here.  He could relax and rest up for now, but tomorrow was going to be a hard day.

Lucent waited patiently for Asher to continue, one finger brushing back and forth across his bottom lip, watching, thoughtful.

"Do you remember what Alice said during the meeting the other day?" Asher asked.

"Are you referring to her inane recommendation that all computers associated with Landseer Enterprises be bugged so that video and sound recordings of all employees in Landseer Tower could be monitored in the event that one of them was responsible for what happened to Mrs. Landseer?"

"Right.  Exactly that," Asher said.  He sighed deeply, then added, "Well, someone did it.  I don't know who, and I don't know why.  I'm not even sure if they've tapped into all the computers, or just a few.  Someone's been recording through some of the audio and visual built-in peripherals for at least one of the computers, though.  I heard one of them, but there wasn't any video attached.  It's not going to be good.  It hasn't been completely leaked to the media yet, but it's likely just a matter of time."

"Whose computer, if you don't mind me asking?"

"I'm guessing yours," Asher said.  "Possible Elise's."

"Oh?  And...?"  Lucent raised one brow, looking concerned and curious all at once.

"You're one of my best, Lucent.  You run circles around all of the other directors combined.  Your expertise is amazing, and you provide a service to the company that is extraordinarily valuable.  I—"

Lucent interrupted him.  "I'll tender my resignation tomorrow."

"What?  No, you can't do that."

"Mr. Landseer, if I may interject for a moment.  To begin with, I'm currently wanted by the police for attempting to burn the Landseer estate to the ground.  I have not been found as of now, which gives them reason to suspect my guilt even more.  If they do find me, and look into my affairs, it's possible they'll discover more than is acceptable.  If this occurs, it would be devastating to you and your company.  I can't let that happen."

"Oh yeah?" Asher said.  He was done with this.  He didn't want to be an asshole, but he didn't have a choice anymore.  "Fuck off, Lucent.  I refuse your resignation.  If I get a fax with anything even remotely resembling something saying you're quitting, I'm going to shove it into the paper shredder and ignore it."

"I don't understand why you don't understand that this is the most prudent course of action," Lucent said.  He looked calm enough, but there was an underlying harshness to his voice.  "I apologize for interrupting you before, but it's about Elise, isn't it?  What you heard was her and I in my office?  Am I guessing correctly?  I assume it's of an intimate and sexual nature, or else there'd be no cause for concern."

"Yes," Asher said.  "There's still no cause for concern, though.  I understand full well what kind of situation we're in."

"
We
don't need to be in any situation.  If you remove me from the equation, then you should be able to perform suitable reparation to the company's image.  There's no reason to needlessly harm Landseer Enterprise's reputation over something frivolous."

"You and Elise are anything but frivolous, Lucent.  I don't know how to make you understand that," Asher said.  "Who do you think is going to do all of these company image repairs, too?  My Director of Public Relations?  The one who's sitting next to me trying to quit on me?"

"I appreciate your concern, but there are others who can take my place.  I may guide people, and make appearances for large events, but I'm not the only one responsible for public relations, Mr. Landseer."

Asher pinched the bridge of his nose between two fingers.  This wasn't at all how he intended or expected this to go.

"Lucent," he said.  "Can you just call me Asher?  Please?  For now?"

"If you insist."

"I don't insist it.  I want to talk to you as my friend, not someone who works with me."

"Technically I work for you, Asher," Lucent said.

Asher laughed.  "Are you intentionally being difficult right now?"

Lucent smirked.  "Yes, actually."

"Because you want me to give in and let you quit.  Did I get that right?"

"Indeed."

"What do you want to do, though?  Ignore me and the company and all of that.  Just talk to me for a second.  Tell me what's going on with you.  If you could do anything right now, what would it be?"

"Anything?" Lucent asked, brow furrowed.  "In regards to anything specific, or...?"

"Nope.  Nothing specific.  Just anything at all."

Lucent paused to consider his options, but not for long.  "I wish to apologize to Miss Tanner," he said.  "She left me, and I understand why, but I want to apologize to her.  I hope I can make amends, though I completely understand if she wants nothing to do with me ever again."

"What are you going to do to apologize?" Asher asked.  "Any ideas?"

"Anything," Lucent said.  "I'd do anything for her.  I never meant to hurt her.  I never meant to lure her into this, either.  It wasn't intentionally, but she's become trapped either way, and it's my fault."  He hesitated before continuing.  "I feel it may be best if we leave the city for now and head to a quieter and safer area."

"Anywhere in mind?"

Lucent nodded.  "Yes.  Potentially the Caribbean."

"Um... what?"

"I own a small resort in Aruba.  It should be a safe place for Miss Tanner and I to stay for the foreseeable future.  Crime rates are extremely low in Aruba, as well, making it especially ideal.  If we go there in secret, there's little risk of being discovered.  We shall not be surrounded by any questionable situations.  We can remain in hiding while blending in as tourists."

"Alright, so..."  Asher was trying to wrap his head around this.  He didn't see any huge issues with going to Aruba, but... Aruba?  "You've never told me about this Aruba resort," he said.  It was the only thing he could think of.

"That's the point," Lucent said.  "I've never told anyone about the Aruba resort.  I collect money from timeshare usage, which is lucrative, as you know.  Occasionally I vacation there, as well."

"You vacation there?" Asher asked.  "When exactly was the last time you went?"  He couldn't remember Lucent ever mentioning going to Aruba.

"I fly a private plane out of the country.  It's located north of here on a small airstrip."

"And you just... land in Aruba?"  He felt like he was missing something important.

"I use falsified documents and identification, of course."

"Oh, right.  Of course."  Of course?  Really?  Well, he supposed it made sense in a roundabout sort of way.

"I should be able to attain some false ID for Miss Tanner, as well.  It shouldn't be an issue.  I don't wish to cause problems."

"No, well..."  Asher sighed.  "I guess that's good.  It's good for you and her, maybe.  I'm guessing you haven't discussed this with her yet?"

"Not as of yet, no.  I'm hoping she'll accept my deepest apologies first, and then we can discuss it in the morning."

"I understand."

That was that, he supposed.  Asher frowned, glancing towards his feet.  It seemed like this was the reason why Lucent wanted to resign, also.  Why not?  He could just live in Aruba.  Possibly, at least.  Asher had a few resorts in that area, so he knew a couple of things, and it really was a good place to hide out, he supposed.  Quiet, very relaxed, not a huge party island compared to some of the surrounding islands in the Caribbean.  The tourist area was very segmented away from the locals, as well.  It should be easy to become lost in the crowd.

And, besides that, they'd be able to stay for six months without issue.  That was according to Aruban law, at least.  Non-citizens were allowed to remain on the island for six months out of every twelve.  Six months was likely long enough to figure something else out.

He just really didn't want to be without his Director of Public Relations for six months, though.

"Asher?" Lucent said.

"Yes?"

"I don't suggest this, but if you don't mind the risk, I'm certain I can work from the island with little issue.  I have a secure system set up for transferring information outside of the Landseer cloud network.  You'll need to access this from the safety of your home, as opposed to easily accessing it at Landseer Tower, but if you're willing to accept that, I'd be happy to continue my business with Landseer Enterprises, albeit covertly.  You may say you've hired an outside, temporary public relations assistant.  Outsourced, if you will."

"Are you really going to Aruba?" Asher asked.

"I don't know.  I thought Miss Tanner would enjoy it.  It will keep us safe, but free in a lot of ways that are impossible here.  There are worse ways to hide out, at any rate.  Being trapped on an exotic island seems more pleasurable than being holed up somewhere else.  It's infinitely better than my previous idea."

"Which was?"  Asher still wasn't entirely sure what happened, but as long as Lucent was willing to accept fault and ask Elise's forgiveness, that seemed best.

"I brought Miss Tanner to one of my previous submissive's apartment.  Laura and I haven't been involved in years, yet apparently she still holds feelings for me.  I was unaware of this, and once Miss Tanner and I arrived, Laura began attempting to act as my submissive again."

Asher honestly didn't know what to say to that.  For all of Lucent's intelligence and thoughtfulness, that sounded like one of the stupidest things anyone could ever do.  He stared at the man, one brow quirked up slightly.

"I fully realize I'm an idiot," Lucent said.

Asher shrugged.  "As long as you realize it, I'm fine with it.  I wouldn't suggest doing that again."

"I agree."

And that was that.  Maybe this was good?  Asher had no idea.  He wanted to think it might be, but... there was a lot more, too.

"We'll talk about this in the morning," he said to Lucent.  "I think everyone's had a rough day.  I'm going to go see how Jessika and Elise are doing.  I don't know if she'll want to talk to you yet, but if she does, remember everything you told me, alright?  Don't forget.  I know that's hard to comprehend; forgetting.  Every time I look at Jessika, I feel like I'm falling more in love with her, and I think you and Elise might be the same way, but even then, it's hard sometimes.  It's hard to understand just how much you can love someone, and it's hard to realize just how much you can hurt them because of that.  The ones that love us are the ones that we can hurt the most.  I know you don't want to hurt Elise, but tonight you did.  You can't make mistakes like that again."

Lucent nodded, solemn.  Asher held out his hand, offering it to his Director of Public Relations.  Lucent took it in his own, and the two men shook.

"Everything's going to be fine," he said.  "We'll figure this out.  There's got to be some way to placate the police, prove you and Elise are innocent, and then deal with the media leaks and tapped computers.  It's probably not as bad as it sounds."

Lucent laughed slightly, despite his serious expression.  "Oh, yes, of course.  None of that sounds terrible at all."

***

E
lise and I continued to talk about this and that.  It was simple fun chatting, nothing really important, but it felt important in a lot of ways.  This was us and it was who we were.  We weren't talking about anything in particular, but we were being real and honest with one another.

Eventually Asher came in, though.  He tried to be unobtrusive, but as soon as it was the three of us, Elise grew quieter than before.  Asher and I talked with each other, but Elise kind of just sat there, listening, and nodding now and again.

After a few minutes of that, she said, "I'll leave you two alone.  I'll just go sit in the living room.  I don't want to be a bother or anything.  Thank you for inviting me here, though.  I really appreciate it."

"You don't have to," I said.  "Asher and I are just glad you're alright."

I didn't want her to feel like she needed to go.  She could stay in here with us if she wanted?  I didn't really know how to say that, though.  Did it sound weird?  I kind of understood how she must feel, too.  I didn't want her to feel left out or like the third wheel, but it wasn't always the easiest thing to perfectly mix together a conversation between three people.