The Scotch Series: The Complete Series (Scotch #1-3) - Penelope Sky Page 0,214

didn’t increase.

The door opened again, and Ariel stepped inside. She was in dark jeans and a black t-shirt, casual for the first time ever. Her hair was pulled back into a rigid ponytail, and her glasses were gone. She seemed to be taking her unemployment well.

I rose to my feet and placed my hands in my pockets. “Ariel, how are you?”

“Good.” She stood in front of my desk with her hands held together at her waist. “You?”

“Good,” I lied. “What can I help you with?”

“I left a few things behind. I was wondering if someone could fetch them for me.”

I was stupid for hoping she wanted her job back. Ariel was far more stubborn than I was. I was more likely to fold than she was, and that was never going to happen. We both cared about image, about pride. “Of course. What are they?”

“I left fifteen thousand in your grand safe. I left it there for traveling expenses.”

I’d forgotten about that. “Anything else?”

“Yes. I have some sentimental jewelry in Fair Isle. I’d let Finley mail it back, but I don’t feel comfortable with that arrangement. If you can fly me out there, I can retrieve it myself. Or you could have one of your men escort it here.”

“I’ll arrange for Dimitri to fetch it for you.”

“Thank you.”

I walked around the desk, keeping my shoulders straight. “I’ll be right back with the cash. You can take a seat if you’d like.”

Ariel remained in place.

I left the office and walked upstairs to the bedroom. I had safes in various places around the castle, dispersing important items in separate locations so it would be difficult to rob me. Ariel’s cash was in this safe, along with some of my family heirlooms.

When I walked inside, London had just finished drying her hair with a towel wrapped around her waist. “What a nice surprise.” She walked up to me and kissed me, dropping the towel at the same time.

My hands slid up her back and to her shoulders as I kissed her, my body automatically reacting to hers. Her perky tits were pressed against my body, and my hands slid down to her ass and gave both cheeks a squeeze. For a second, I forgot the reason why I came up here to begin with. I pulled away and ignored the hard-on that formed in my slacks. “Ariel is waiting for me downstairs. I just came to grab something from the safe.”

“There’s a safe up here?”

“Yeah.” I walked around her and entered the private living room. The safe was behind one of the picture frames. No one knew where it was besides myself. I didn’t even share that knowledge with my employees. I was about to ask London to go into the other room so I could have some privacy, but I knew that wasn’t how I wanted our relationship to be. I trusted her, and I needed to prove it.

I pulled the picture off the wall then spun the dial left and right until I got the code right. Then I opened the door and saw the heirlooms inside. My great-great-grandfather’s crown sat on the top shelf, the material rusty and some of the gems missing. There were a few other things passed down from my ancestors, including a brush that had most of the bristles missing.

London stood beside me and peered inside. “Oh my god…are those real?”

“Yeah.” No matter how many times I looked at them, I never forgot how significant they were. These were relics that had lasted hundreds of years. There was a time when civilization didn’t rely on the internet, mass production, or even automobiles. My ancestors survived long enough to have me, and now I lived a life of luxury that my relatives never dreamed.

“That’s incredible…” She stared at them for a long time and didn’t try to touch anything.

I didn’t put my hands on any of the relics because the oils from my fingertips were damaging. They weren’t exposed to sunlight and stayed at a constant temperature at all times. I pulled out the bag of cash and left the door open. “Make sure you close it when you’re finished.”

“You’re gonna leave it open like that?” she asked incredulously.

I wanted to prove that I trusted her so we could be the way we used to be. I knew she didn’t want me for my wealth or my connections. If anything, she loved me in spite of those things. “I know you’ll take care of it.”

A slight smile