This is the third chapter of an eight chapter story. I recommend starting with chapter one.
While the first few chapters could easily be categorised differently - erotic couplings - I put them into Romance because of the over-all theme. It will become more romantic in later chapters.
My thanks go to Joffa for providing his spelling and grammar expertise. His help is highly appreciated. If any errors remain, I'm sure they happened after his editing.
Please vote and/or leave comments. It is your feedback which fuels my motivation.
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Ch. 03: It gets ugly with Mia
The following work week went by faster than I liked. A while ago I had ordered a head-hunter to find me a head of human resources as my current employees in the department were not up for the management job. I had discussed this with both and neither was interested in the added responsibility. With the company continuing to grow fast, Helen had convinced me a few weeks ago that I needed to delegate more of the administrative tasks to be able to focus on the customers. A few years ago I had brought in an accountant, Charles, who by now worked as my CFO and was responsible for the accounting and the controlling and I had hired a lawyer, Paula, to handle the legal stuff. Now it was time to find somebody to take the implementation of the HR strategy out of my hands. Most of the week was spent conducting the interviews together with Helen. By Friday afternoon we had jointly decided on a rather young woman, Sandra, with little experience but loads of energy. While I had some reservations about her, Helen convinced me that she was right for the job. I only made sure that it was not an attempt to set me up with 'dating-material' what Helen swore was not the case. She shared my recently enforced views that private and business should never be mixed.
On Saturday I was invited for a lunch by Andrea, my sister-in-law, at her place.
After the four of us had eaten our lunch in the yard by the pool, Diana had three of her friends coming over to hang out. They donned their bikinis and moved to the other side of the pool to be as far from us boring adults as possible.
While I was updating Andrea in the business, she had inherited my brother's twenty-five percent stake but didn't actively take part in it, Pat had gone upstairs to his room. After an hour he came back down and spoke to his mother.
"Mum, I'm heading over to Ted. Is that ok?"
"Yes, Pat. Sure. Are you back for dinner?"
"I don't know yet. Can I call you later?"
"Don't forget it. Have fun and say hi from me to his Mum."
Andrea and I continued to chat when, surprisingly, Pat came back out with a pitcher of Iced Tea and four glasses. He walked straight past us and over to the girls.
"Pat, what are you doing here? Get lost!" Diana complained.
"Take it easy, Sis. I saw that you had nothing to drink and thought I'd bring you something. But I can take it back to the kitchen if you don't want it," he replied calmly yet friendly while feinting a turn to carry the beverages back.
"No, I'm sorry. Thanks."
He put the tray down and turned to leave while the girls looked at each other and giggled. I saw how he concentrated on not ogling the girls. For an eighteen year old that was quite a feat, because even though the girls were just sixteen, their bodies were developing rapidly and nicely.
I smiled at the situation while Andrea next to me looked totally surprised.
"He has been behaving strangely in the last few days."
"Strange? In which ways?"
"You just saw that? He was actually nice and friendly and even remained calm when Diana was nasty."
"He's growing up. Maybe he's matured a bit?"
"What do you know?"
"About what?" I feigned ignorance.
"Don't bullshit me. I've known you for almost twenty years and I can read you almost as well as I could read your brother. You are withholding something," she insisted, obviously having connected some of the dots already.
"You know I'm simultaneously his confidant, his bro and kind of his surrogate father. He asks me about the things he needs to know which he cannot discuss with his mother. I will never infringe the implied bro-code, therefore my reply remains unchanged: I have no idea what you are talking about."
"What have you promised him if he behaves?"
"I have no idea what you are talking about. I have not promised him anything for anything."
"You either spill it now or I will send every unattached woman I know in your direction," she threatened half-heartedly. We both knew she'd never do that but it was her way to tell me she really wanted to know, it was her 'all-in' to use a poker expression.
"But you must promise to not tell anybody: Not your friends, not your parents, not Diana and not anybody else. And you will not take advantage of the knowledge."
She reflected on my conditions, "How could I promise something like this?"
"No promise, no info."
"Ok. I promise. But now spill it," she demanded with an eager expression on her face.
I then proceeded to tell her the story of the Saturday afternoon even mentioning Claire on a side-note.
"So you're using sex to manipulate your nephew?"
"You make it sound dirty. I'm just applying scientifically tested and proven methods. Come on! He's eighteen, he's testosterone with feet, a walking hormone. At that age, boys, or rather young men, care about two things. Food and getting laid. Just wait until Diana gains another year or two. Remember when you were eighteen?"
"I'd rather forget. If she becomes anything like I was..."
She didn't finish the sentence. I had heard the stories and hadn't forgotten that Pat was conceived unplanned.
