UNASSUMED: Zara Zee and the Unassuming Case of the Billionaire Heir Read online

  Laughing, Errol waved off the words of gratitude. “After what you did in Paris to help me out, it’s the least I could do. Besides I want Oyster House to do well. We’re partners, and when it does well, everyone’s happy. Now get some sleep. You're supposed to be at Lee Holdings first thing tomorrow morning.”

  Through hooded eyes, Leo looked around him and let out a satisfied sigh. The night had gone off without a hitch and he was relaxing in the lounge he’d had built for this precise reason; to relax. With the walls painted a dark charcoal and the lighting dim and relaxing, it was the perfect place to sit down and think when the whirlwind of the kitchen became too much… at least that’d been the plan when he’d designed it.

  Now, as he fought to stay awake, he was happy he’d decided to go with such a soothing décor. Even the couch, with its soft leather and cushiony comfort already proved to be a good investment. It took barely a minute for him to lose his fight to stay awake.

  Chapter 2

  The large, brightly lit corner office at Lee Holdings, the billion dollar conglomerate his father built up was too much for Leo’s aching head and he had to close the blinds on the beautiful view of Victoria Harbor. Gazing out the other wall of windows that offered a view of some of the most beautiful buildings in Hong Kong, he decided to leave the blinds partially open until the morning sun rounded the corner. On any other day he would have appreciated the morning sun that accompanied his first cup of coffee, but the headache Errol had promised him maintained a stronghold.

  Sitting behind the large red ivory topped desk, he fingered the soft black leather of the chair that had belonged to his father, a reminder of the responsibility he’d inherited. He sipped his gold rimmed cup of rich gourmet coffee and sighed as he thought of the day ahead. He had time to ponder; despite the hangover that plagued him he’d arrived at his office bright and early, as he had every morning since taking over Lee Holdings Group, a couple of weeks ago.

  His father’s shoes were big ones, and the pile of folders on his desk reminded him that he had another long day ahead of him. He would have liked nothing more than a day of easy meetings with plenty of time for a nap in between, but that wasn’t to be.

  After a brief, sharp knock at the door, a pretty brunette with long wavy hair, bright eyes, and a sweet smile walked in wearing a clingy red dress that made him stopped whatever he was doing midway. “Good morning, Mr. Lee.”

  She had a cute little body with delectable curves, but Leo had no idea who she was. “Where’s Mrs. Huang?”

  The cute brunette came up to his desk and dumped a stack of files atop the already high pile. “Mrs. Huang had to go to Shanwei. Her niece is having her first baby and she wanted to be there to help her.”

  “Why wasn’t I informed of this?”

  “The baby wasn’t due for another month yet and Mrs. Huang didn’t have time to discuss it with you.”

  “So you're going to be my new assistant until she gets back?”

  “Do you have an objection?”

  “No. No, of course not.”

  “Good.” She turned to leave and Leo couldn’t take his eyes off her tone backside. Swathed in the clingy fabric of her dress, the perfectly round mounds demanded to be spanked, and he longed to submit himself to that demand. She left the office and returned moments later with another armful of files.

  “Miss?”

  “Yes,” she said as she dumped the files on his desk.

  “What do I call you?”

  “Zara . Zara Zee.”

  “Zara . What’s all this?”

  “The first three are lawsuits. Apparently someone found a piece of metal wiring in a bottle of hand lotion. Cut themselves pretty bad. A few others jumped in on that one claiming to have found wiring in their bottles of lotion as well. Then you have a pile of security clients who aren’t satisfied with the way things have been handled since the death of your father. And finally, these…” She ran her fingers along the rest of the pile. “These are suppliers who want payment… now.”

  Rubbing his eyes with both hands, he groaned then looked up at her. “Why didn’t you bring those to the accounting department?”

  “Copies have been sent, but I thought it important you know about each of them. They’re hefty sums.”

  “Great.”

  “I also got a call yesterday from someone who’d like to meet with you to discuss a few investment opportunities.”

  Annoyed with the amount of work she brought him, he said, “Are you aware that I had a big opening last night?”

  “The Oyster House. Yeah, I heard about that. Did everything go well?”

  He nodded. “Did you hear that it ran pretty late?”

  “Would you rather I come back with these later?”

  He flicked open the first file. “No.”

  “Maybe I could bring you more coffee.”

  “That’d be nice.”

  She brought his cup to the elegant recess that housed not only the coffee machine, but also a mini wine cellar with some of the best wine money could buy. Placing a coffee tab in the machine, she pressed the button and waited as the rich brew filled the cup.

  It gave Leo another chance to admire her beautiful curves, reminding him how long it’d been since he’d been with a woman. With all the turmoil in his life these past months, hooking up with a girl hadn’t really been on his list of priorities, and his body was now taking revenge for that negligence.

  His groin stiffened uncomfortably, and he was thankful for the desk that kept that information from her.

  “I forgot to mention,” she said as she turned to bring him his coffee.

  Leo caught her gaze for a second and knew he’d been caught eyeing her. The hint of a pleased smile touched her lips, but she remained otherwise professional.

  “You have a meeting with the head of LLG, Mrs. Fong, just before lunch.”

  “Damn. Who scheduled that?” He wasn’t in the habit of giving his assistant a hard time, but he found himself longing to dominate her.

  She kept her eyes to the floor, like the good little subservient she was. Maybe losing Mrs. Huang wouldn’t be so bad after all.

  “If you’ll permit me to say, Mr. Lee, this is a very important meeting and…” She cleared her throat. “Perhaps you should consider…”

  “Please, Miss Zee. Could you just spit it out?”

  “My apologies. “Your suit, sir. It’s looking a little… frumpy.”

  Surprised by her comment, he looked down at his attire and tiredly closed his eyes just as quickly. “Damn it.” In his haste, or brain fog, he’d kept his tuxedo slacks he’d slept in and had topped it with a dark blue blazer that had seen better days. To top it off, his beautiful Hermes tie had a neat stain just under the knot.

  “I’m sorry, sir.”

  His eyes angry, he stood and looked down at her. “Start the shower for me.”

  Nodding, she retreated to the large private bathroom. In the best of times, a meeting with Mrs. Fong wasn’t pleasant. If he’d arrived at the meeting looking as he did, it would not have boded well with the strict matriarch.

  Squinting, he staggered into the bathroom to find Zara setting up the toiletries he’d need.

  “No offense, Mr. Lee, but you don’t look very good.”

  “I might have had one glass of champagne too many.”

  “Here,” she said when he fumbled with his tie. “Let me help you with that.”

  The erection he’d managed to subdue returned the moment she put her hand to his tie. The motion of her fingers captivated him, and when she pulled the tie over his head and proceeded to unbutton his shirt, every brush of her fingers against his skin burned him.

  “I bet you didn’t think helping me out of my clothes would be part of the job.”

  Zara pressed a tight grin and pulled his shirt over his shoulders. “My job is to assist you in whatever capacity I can.”

  “Good to know. I have a few capacities I’d like to discuss with you later,” he said with a
deep, hungry tone.

  His torso bare, he fixed his gaze on hers as she discreetly scanned his chest. With the quick trip to Paris and the opening night of The Oyster House, he hadn’t had time to work out as he usually did and he wondered if his muscles showed signs of neglect.

  The quick, shy lick of her lips told him she was pleased with what she saw, and her admiration for him further ignited the fire burning through his pants.

  My God, he thought. What is she going to think if she helps me out of my pants and comes face to face with my hard-on?

  He held his breath as she unbuckled his belt, unfastened his pants and pulled them down to his ankles. She didn’t bat an eye when faced with the dense bulge in his tight red boxer briefs. Heady from the effect of her proximity, the sweet, heavenly scent of her perfume and the remains of his hangover, he staggered back and reached out to the counter for support.

  “Hold onto me,” Zara offered as she slipped his arm around her neck and led him to the steamy shower.

  Just when he thought she might slip in and join him, she pulled his arm off her and turned him to the shower. “I think you can handle it from here.”

  He straightened up and forced himself to remain steady, though he wanted to argue his need for her.

  “I’ll be back to help you into a fresh suit in fifteen minutes.”

  “Five minutes should be more than enough.”

  “You're looking a little green around the gills. I suggest you take your time. Mrs. Fong won’t be amused if you arrive at this meeting with your faculties less than optimum.” She left him in the shower stall and headed back to his office.

  Of all the days to be hung over. As the water flowed over his shoulders and down his back, he tapped his forehead to the shower wall and promised himself never to make that mistake again. Regardless of what was happening in his life, he had to keep his head. The next time champagne, or any alcohol was served, he’d limit himself to his usual one or two drinks.

  Zara had been right he realized as he slowly washed his hair then lathered up to completely wash away the ill effects of the night before. But as the warm water revitalized him, he found himself thinking more and more of Zara and her wickedly sexy body.

  Mrs. Huang was an efficient and hard working woman in her early fifties. While he’d quickly come to appreciate her competence and loyalty in the short time he started working as head of Lee Holdings, there was something invigorating about having this fresh young face who brought the sensual scent of a woman to his office and offered him an eyeful of powerful sexuality.

  It was easy to imagine her in his bed, to imagine his hands filled with her breasts, and her mouth filled with his…

  “All done?” Zara called out as she popped back in the bathroom.

  Leo cleared his throat and let go of his stiff, aching cock. Without even realizing it, he’d begun to stroke the hungry member. “Yeah.” He punched the faucet shut and Zara flicked a warm towel over the shower door.

  “I’ve hung a fresh suit on the back of the bathroom door,” she said.

  “Thank you.” He stepped out with the large towel wrapped around his waist only to find she’d already left the bathroom. So much for his big, romantic plans with his new assistant.

  He dried off and quickly walked back to his office when he heard his phone ring.

  “I’m sorry,” Zara said into the phone. “Mr. Lee just stepped out of the office for a moment. Would you like to leave a message?” As she jotted down the caller’s name and number, she glanced up at Leo a few times, her smile a little hungrier every time. “I’ll make sure he gets the message.”

  She hung up and came up to Leo with the message in hand. Blushing, she swallowed deeply and hesitated before speaking. “Do you need help getting dressed?” The message fluttered out of her hand and she fumbled to catch it in mid air. Failing, she stooped down to pick it up, but her jittery fingers seemed unable to accomplish the simple task.

  “I’ve got it,” Leo said as he quickly bent down and picked up the message. Reaching out for her hand, he helped her up. He was still wet from the shower, his chest dripped with droplets of water, and a towel slung low on his hips, exposing a V-line to one of the best-looking male bodies Zara had ever seen.

  Zara stared at his tanned muscular chest and when she tripped over her three inch heels, she fell into his arms and brushed her fingers along his pecs. Blushing profusely, she bit her lip and looked up at him.

  Realizing what an embarrassing situation it might be for her, Leo said, “Maybe this’ll be a little easier if you turn around for a minute.” He spun her around and quickly pulled on his pants and shirt. No underwear. He went commando most of the time. “I think we’re good now. I’m pretty decent.” Heading to his desk, he flicked open the third drawer, pulled out a small blue box and extracted the diamond studded cufflinks he’d recently purchased.

  In his periphery, he was aware of Zara’s eyes on him, or maybe they were on the enormous diamonds that glittered in the rays of sun that now blazed through the other wall of windows.

  “Now, I’m ready to face the day.” He headed to the window to take in the spectacular view. “Thanks for your help, Zara .”

  He barely had time to turn around when she threw herself on him and pushed him into the wall unit beside the window. As a rising star in action films, it wasn’t the first time a female had thrown herself on him. Usually he kept his cool and would gently push them off before smiling and offering them an autograph, but with Zara, his body instantly reacted. Damn she smelled good, and felt good against him. Zara’s body was firm and sumptuous, and his hands immediately found their way around her tiny little waist. Where had this gorgeous hot creature been hiding? It wasn’t what he’d had in mind for that morning, but he was in no mood to fight it. He hadn’t been with a woman since he first got back to Hong Kong.

  The night before he left his house in Malibu, California in the U.S. for Hong Kong, he was enjoying the sensuous company of the coldly beautiful and very blonde Nicole Erikson, his co-star in his last film. Like the string of beautiful but detached models and actresses he would fuck hard and pleasured harder, Nicole was just one in many women who wanted only his body and some fun. He was a bad boy, a rebel against his family’s expectations…he chose to be an actor, didn’t he? He went away to the U.S. to get his college education at USC and then went into acting instead of returning home to Hong Kong. And he defied his father’s choices of suitable potential wives for him from the “best” families in Hong Kong, although he was in his late 20s, and should be ready to settle down with a wife and family.

  Instead, he chose to live his own life, instead of a life of a billionaire’s son, and the path chosen for him. As he was thrusting into Nicole, clearly a woman his father wouldn’t approve of with her piercings, tattoos, and penchant for kink; he was enjoying every minute of his chosen life until his phone started ringing. He was in the middle of climaxing with her when his phone first rang and kept ringing.

  Without glancing at who was calling, as Nicole’s head bobbed between his thighs, he grabbed his phone and tossed it into the next room.

  It was only after his hot and sweaty sex-filled evening with Nicole, who left his house, looking bored and haughty, while smoking a cigarette, he checked his messages. That was when he found out his father had died. Worse, his father had tried to reach him by phone a few hours before, before he had taken his own life.

  Guilt-ridden and in a mild depression following the news of his father’s death, Leo threw himself into his new role as head of Lee Holdings, without any desire to date any woman or have sex with anyone for a long while. Until now. It had been a month after his father’s death and tension had been building up in his body for too long.

  “Hey,” he whispered into her ear as she kept him pinned to the wall unit with her body. “How d’you know I liked it a little rough?” He wondered if Nicole had leaked about his sexual encounters with her, violating her confidentiality agreement with him. Being a p
ublic figure, he often had his encounters sign one.

  “Huh?” She quickly turned around, pressing her ass into him as she glanced out the window.

  His crotch heated up. “Oh, yeah. You definitely know what I like.”

  She was a bold little minx. The type of girl he could totally get into.

  With her arms spread out, she prevented him from moving, but he still managed to thrust his pelvis forward, pressing his hardness into her cushy ass.

  “Get down.” Reaching back to grab his tie, she pulled him down and partially straddled him.

  “You know, I’m used to playing the boss, but…”

  “Shut up and stay still.”

  She was a domineering one. That was hot, and he wanted to play her game. “Baby, you’ve got to leave me some leeway.” He reached around to grab her breast.

  “Stop it,” she hissed as she slapped his hand away. “I told you to stay still. They can sense motion and sound.”

  “Who’s they? Is somebody watching us? I’m into that, babe. I’ve got an exhibitionist side.”

  “Hush.” Zara silently crawled off him and, keeping her body pressed to the floor, passed beneath the windows and reached up to flick off the light switch.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Leo whispered when she returned. “You like doing it in the dark?”

  Ignoring him, she reached up to close the blinds.

  “Will you tell me what the fuck is going on?”

  “We’ve got to get out of here.” She grabbed his hand. “Follow me.”

  He wasn’t sure if it was all part of some wild game, and for a second he wanted to argue, but she tugged so hard on his arm that he relented and followed her into the small closet that housed his spare suits. Breathing hard, they stood face to face.

  Now what, he thought as his hard-on made a comeback. He was eager to get into her pants and all she wanted to do was play silly games. With a mind of their own, his hands brushed up her arms and trickled down her back as he slowly pulled her to him.

  “What do you think you're doing?” she spat.

  “Hey, babe, I’m more confused than I’ve been in a long while. I haven’t the faintest idea what I’m doing or what I’m supposed to be doing. You show up here this morning to tell me my assistant is no longer here, I don’t know who the hell hired you, but damn, you’re hot and I don’t really care who made the decision. Then you undress me, and while I’m usually pretty good about remaining professional, it’s hard to focus on business when a pretty girl is pulling my pants down. And now, all of a sudden, you go all weird and wacky on me.”