Chasing Perfection: Vol. II Read online

  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chasing Perfection

  Vol. 2

  By M.S. Parker

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2014 Belmonte Publishing

  Published by Belmonte Publishing.

  Connect with me on Facebook: http://Facebook.com/MsParkerAuthor

  Newsletter: – Click here to get an email as soon as the next book in the series is available.

  Book Description

  I’m sick and tired of my boss, DeVon Ricci, screwing with me. He signed the guy I was seeing just so I couldn't date him, and now he fired an employee who’d insulted me.

  If he wasn't expecting me to flirt with every top Hollywood executive to help him close deals, I might have thought he felt something for me.

  The problem is, as angry as he makes me, I can't stop thinking about him. There is only one way I know to get him out of my mind. I have to f**k him.

  The CEO of Mirage Talent, DeVon Ricci needs to be in control, but ever since Krissy Jensen walked into his company, he's found his control slipping. He knows what he needs to do to get it back again, but the more time he spends with her, the less he's sure he'll be able to follow through.

  When two passionate, headstrong people finally crash together, they can't help but ignite. The question is, will either of them be able to walk away unburned?

  Chapter 1

  KRISSY

  DeVon fucking Ricci. I ground my teeth together and pushed the gas pedal closer to the floor. He’d gotten the upper hand again, and used my personal life to do it. Why the hell was he so interested in who I was dating? Control freak. At least it wasn’t like I’d been in love with Taylor or anything. He’d been fun, a distraction like all the men I’d been with in New York had been. And I knew I was the same for him. After all, he never would’ve signed with Mirage if he’d been looking for something serious. Like DeVon had said, Taylor knew the rules about not dating clients.

  If Taylor had come himself and said Mirage was going to sign him, I wouldn’t have even been mad. I would’ve been happy for him. The fact that DeVon had felt like he needed to come tell me himself only proved what a sadistic prick he was.

  A flash of red and blue in my rearview mirror caught my eye a second before I heard the brief wail of a siren.

  Fuck.

  Could this day get any worse? I thought as I pulled over. I got my license out as well as the car’s registration. I really hoped I wasn’t going to get in trouble at work because I’d gotten pulled over in the company car.

  “Good evening, Miss.”

  I looked up to see a handsome face looking down at me. He had dark hair and eyes, but any resemblance to DeVon stopped there. That was good. The cop was good-looking in a different way. Not that it made any difference as he told me how fast I’d been going and wrote out a citation. I was polite and smiled at him, but what I really wanted to do was curse. Not at him. It wasn’t his fault I’d been speeding. No, that blame belonged to someone else.

  DeVon fucking Ricci.

  I made it back to the hotel without further incident and dropped into bed without bothering to change. I just wanted to sleep and forget about the entire day.

  The problem was, every time I closed my eyes, all I kept seeing was DeVon. Those wild dark waves and deep brown eyes. His strong jawline and firm chest. Those broad shoulders and kissable lips.

  “Fuck!” I shouted into my pillow.

  Why, of all the people in the world, did I have to keep thinking about my asshole of a boss? Sure, he’d made an impression, but I hadn’t thought it was a good one. Then, last night, while Taylor had been going down on me, I’d had a flash of DeVon between my legs. It had been DeVon I’d pictured beneath me while I’d been riding Taylor, and it had been the thought of him that had made me come.

  I sighed and rolled over onto my back. Did he feel the same way about me? Was that the real reason he’d signed Taylor? Because he liked me? I shook my head, almost laughing at the idea. DeVon wasn’t like that. He was just playing games. That’s the kind of person he was, after all. The kind of man who’d show up in a hotel room with two naked women and make an offer of an orgy just to test to see if I’d do it. That kind of man always made sure he was in control. He made the rules of the game but none of those rules seemed to apply to him. What a hypocrite.

  I squeezed my eyes closed. What was I doing here? Why had I even taken this job? Had I made a mistake?

  “No.” I said it out loud.

  I’d come to Hollywood to make a career for myself. A career that I wanted and deserved. I hadn’t let my mother guilt me into going home and I wasn’t going to let anyone else stand in my way. I was a grown woman, strong and confident. I’d made my way without anyone’s help and I could do this. I wasn’t going to let DeVon take me down.

  I slowly exhaled, letting all of the negative energy out with the air. My mom’s sixth girlfriend, Felicity, had been a yoga instructor. Most of my sophomore year of high school had been spent in the lotus position.

  I let my mind go blank and waited to fall asleep.

  Chapter 2

  DEVON

  My hand was aching as I set down the receiver and my joints protested as I let go. I was actually surprised that I hadn’t managed to crack the plastic while I’d yelled at the number one casting agent for Universal Studios.

  “What the fuck is wrong with me?” I muttered as I leaned back in my chair. My entire body was tense, my heart racing. Sure, the guy hadn’t exactly been polite, but I’d never lost my temper with him before. No one yelled at Theodore Kahn, not if they wanted to stay in the business.

  Fuck. I ran my hand through my hair and tried to regain my composure. I had to fix this before it got out of hand.

  I reached for the phone again. In this business, you didn’t say an apology with a phone call, you said it with something sickeningly expensive. My assistant was out running errands. I’d just add another to her list and it’d be taken care of.

  I didn’t bother with a greeting. “Send a bottle of Glenfiddich single malt whisky to the casting agent for Universal, Theodore Kahn.”

  She didn’t ask why or even sound surprised as she told me she’d take care of it. I made a mental note to make sure she got a bigger Christmas bonus this year.

  After I put down the phone, I leaned forward, placing my elbows on my desk and pressing my fingertips together. I really needed to pull my shit together. This wasn’t like me at all. I was always in control. I lived it. Breathed it. I had control over my life, over my business, my finances, my employees, my women. But for the last couple days, I’d been off balance. I’d come without expecting it when one of the women I fucked had been giving me a blow-job. And then I’d actually come before the woman I was fucking. Unless I was trying to teach a lesso
n, I always made sure my partner came first. Being able to control myself was part of who I was, and I was losing it.

  The bigger problem was that I knew why.

  Krissy fucking Jensen.

  I was always thinking about her. I’d been picturing her with her mouth stretched around my cock when I’d come that first time. Then, when I’d been with the blonde, I’d been seeing and hearing Krissy. And it wasn’t just during sex. She’d pop into my mind at the worst moments, making me lose my train of thought.

  Why’d I hire her? I shook my head. I knew why. I wanted to fuck her and dump her, just like the others.

  But I couldn’t.

  I’d been right when I’d said she was talented and would be a huge asset to Mirage. She was shaping up to be the most promising new agent I’d signed in a long time – hell, basically in forever. She was too valuable for me to fuck and dump.

  I felt a familiar pain in my heart telling me that I was lying to myself and I scowled. No. I wasn’t going to go there. It was always painful and never resolved anything.

  I needed something to get me out of my own head, something that promised a release of all this tension. Fortunately, that was one thing I still could control. I opened the top drawer to my right and pulled out a little black book. I started to flip through the pages, skimming over the names.

  Eliza. Maryann. Tisha. Kendra. Roni. Angelica.

  “That’s the one,” I muttered as I picked up my cell phone. These kinds of calls didn’t go on the company phone. I dialed the number.

  “Hello?” Her voice was sugary sweet.

  “Angelica, I want to fuck tonight.” One of the things I liked about her was I didn’t need to try to seduce her.

  She chuckled, a low, throaty sound that promised all sorts of decadent things.

  “Is that so?” she asked. “Are you hard for me?”

  “Depends.” I gave her the usual answer. “Are you wet for me?”

  “Babe, I’m always wet for you,” she said with a purr.

  “Such a little slut,” I said. “Make sure you’re completely prepared. It’s going to be a long night.”

  “Promise?”

  I hung up without answering, knowing that she’d spend the rest of the day making sure everything was perfect when I arrived, her entire body ready for me to use it however I wanted.

  I adjusted my tie and smiled. I was feeling better already, and I had something enjoyable to look forward to tonight. The day was looking up.

  Chapter 3

  KRISSY

  JASON reaches for LISA and they kiss. It’s hard and hungry, bruising. This is one of those “we’re all going to die” kisses. The clothes come off, tearing and ripping. It’s almost frantic, like they’re afraid if they don’t hurry, they’ll die before they get to the good stuff.

  A tapping sound interrupted the visual I was working on for the screenplay I was reading. I sighed as I looked up. The story was really good and I was hoping to get at least one of my two clients to read for it. In fact, I could almost see Taylor playing the lead, Jason, and was debating if I wanted to find out who was representing Taylor to suggest it.

  Tracy was tapping her pencil on the glass wall that separated us. When she saw that she had my attention, she gestured to the right. Movement caught my eye, but I couldn’t see well enough to tell exactly what was going on. I put the screenplay down and stood. Men, dressed in matching work clothes with a company logo, were moving furniture out of an office. It was George Hamilton’s office.

  George had been one of the first people I’d met at Mirage and it hadn’t been a pleasant experience. He’d actually come out and asked me what I’d done to get the job. My response had been less than polite, and since then he’d basically ignored me. I hadn’t reported him to HR or even spoken about it, but I’d overheard enough people to know that someone had talked. I just didn’t know how many of those people were on my side or his.

  I opened the door. “What’s going on?” I asked Tracy.

  “I don’t know,” she answered. “It looks like Mr. Hamilton is being relocated.”

  I gave her a look. “Relocated, my ass. That looks more like an ‘escorting out of here’ move.”

  Tracy grinned and I was just about to smile back when I saw George storming towards me, his face beet red, hands clenched into fists.

  “And here he comes,” I said as I went back into my office and took a seat behind my desk again. I wanted something between us if this went down like I thought it was going to.

  George didn’t even pause by Tracy’s desk. He threw open the door and stormed over to my desk. He put his fists on it and leaned across. “You did this, you fucking whore.”

  I stood up because I didn’t like him looking down at me. At least with my heels I was closer to his height. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said in my most sugar-sweet voice. “But if you play nice, I’ll attend your farewell party. And I’ll even smile.” I could see him getting even angrier the more I talked. “Or should I be sad? After all, you are leaving us.”

  “You fucking bitch.” He practically spat the words at me before spinning around and walking out of my office. As the door started to close behind him, I saw something fall from one of the boxes. I couldn’t see too clearly, but it looked like some sort of baseball collector’s item.

  “You fucking assholes! Watch what you’re doing or I’ll sue you for more than you make in a year. Your grandkids’ grandkids will be paying it off!”

  As George stalked away, I glanced at Tracy, who grinned at me and gave me a thumb’s up. When she turned her attention back to her computer, I put my elbows on the desk and rested my face in my hands. I let out a breath. I was a lawyer, so I liked to argue, but I didn’t like confrontations like that.

  This was so fucked up. Was George right? Had word of what had happened gotten back to DeVon?

  I stood up. I needed to find out what was going on. I didn’t look at Tracy as I walked out of my office and headed towards the elevator. My annoyance grew on the short ride and by the time the doors opened, I was tapping my fingers against my leg. DeVon’s secretary said something as I walked past, but I ignored her.

  DeVon looked up as I barged in, a flash of surprise going across his eyes. I didn’t give him a chance to speak.

  “Why the fuck did you fire George?”

  A smile spread across DeVon’s face and he leaned back in his chair, folding his hands in front of him.

  He didn’t answer my question, so I continued, “Is this another one of your fucking tests? Is George an actor you hired to insult me just so you could fire him and make yourself look like less of an asshole?” I had a moment to wonder if someday I’d go too far and he’d fire me, but I pushed the thought aside, letting my temper continue to carry me. “Was that your plan all along? What’s the–”

  “Stop.”

  The word was quiet but it did what DeVon wanted. My mouth snapped shut.

  “I have a perfectly good reason to fire George. You might not have known this, but he’s been a pretty naughty boy.”

  I scowled. “No surprise there. I know a few naughty boys around here.”

  DeVon chuckled and I tried to ignore the way that sound made heat bloom in my stomach.

  “Last year, we had a sexual harassment suit against George brought against us by his former assistant. It cost us a hundred and fifty thousand to fight it. But, he was acquitted, so I didn’t fire him...then. However, it looks like he’s been up to his old tricks again. I don’t care to finance another lawsuit, particularly if he’s guilty, so I fired him. Does that answer your question?”

  My anger had boiled down, but I still wasn’t sure I believed what DeVon was saying. “Yeah, I suppose so...except why did he say I was the cause if all this was because he was harassing his assistant?”

  “I never said he was harassing Amanda,” DeVon said mildly. “Now, don’t you have work to attend to?” He leaned forward and buzzed his secretary. “Get me Pete Marrow on th
e phone.”

  He looked up at me and I realized I was standing there with my mouth hanging open like an idiot.

  “Was there anything else?”

  Heat flooded my face. “No.” I left, giving DeVon’s secretary an apologetic smile that she didn’t appear to care for. My head was spinning as I got on the elevator.

  I didn’t understand DeVon at all. Had Hamilton been right? Had the story about our encounter on my first day made it up to DeVon and he’d fired George because of it? I didn’t have any proof, but I knew it was the truth. DeVon also would’ve known that I didn’t go to HR and if anyone deserved a harassment lawsuit, it was him. The fact that he’d still fired George meant it was about more than wanting to avoid legal action. It meant that I meant something to him. What that was, I wasn’t sure, and I didn’t know if DeVon’s actions meant I should feel flattered or horrified. Both were legitimate options.