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2024-10-29 19:42:56When Natalie stepped out, Kerrigan whirred to face… she wanted to face Abraxas but found herself staring at her office wall. She turned her attention inward, frustration bubbling over, “What the hell was that?” she demanded aloud.
The gentle brush against her mental walls attempted to sooth her, ‘Peace, Priya.’
“Don’t call me that. Right now I am not anyone’s beloved, you long dead lizard.”
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Rejected Billionaire 86: Car designs
Natalie returned with a steaming cup of apple cider with cinnamon. “The kitchen was out of tea, but I thought you might like some of this. The cook said it was fresh in from the orchards.” “Bless you, Natalie,” Kerrigan cuddled the mug and let the warmth revive her spirit. “Natalie, we have out work cut out for us. How is that report coming on Bayan Rail line and on all of the Jinstain businesses?” Natalie looked surprised at Kerrigan’s renewed vigor but responded quickly, “I will have it ready this afte
Rejected Billionaire 87: Jinstain report
When Kerrigan got back to Dragon Corporation, Natalie was waiting in her office with a thick packet of papers. “I have the Jinstain report ready, ma’am.” Kerrigan reached for the folder absently but paused when she noticed the nervous look on Natalie’s face. “What is it, Natalie?” “Miss, I am getting reports that the Benedict group has started making moves to counter some of our latest projects. Things they should not even be aware of yet.”
Rejected Billionaire 88: Happy reunions
Conor felt that business was going well this winter. The new year had dawned in Jinstain with Cara and Peter surprising him at his new place. They had burst through the door, with Parker following slowly behind. Cara had rushed at him and jumped into his arms, wrapping him in a huge hug. “Conor! Happy New Year! We missed you!” “I can tell!” he said, giving Cara a spin before setting her down. “How were your travels?”
Rejected Billionaire 89: Orders from Dovajun
Later that week, Mr. Nuri called Conor, “Sir are you in the office?” “Yes, what’s up?” “If you don’t mind, I will be over shortly.” “Sure, door is open.”
Rejected Billionaire 90: Forced Meetings
Targu Province – Kerrigan Kerrigan Lokir finished up the last of her day and was heading to the door with Natalie. It had been a long week and she was ready for the break the weekend would provide. She just had one last dinner meeting tonight and a short schedule tomorrow to survive and then she could relax some. Two of her sales VP’s were waiting to take them to dinner tonight to discuss the spring marketing plans, when Kelan Benedict stepped off the elevator with a bouquet of flowers. Kerrigan groaned
Rejected Billionaire 91: Future Business Opportunities
Kerrigan was pleased that Kelan had the good sense to take her to Velyki’s finest diner and her favorite place for steak, the Emerald Bison. She had earned her reputation as the dragoness not only at the negotiation table but also before a steak. “I see you did your homework” “Katie was treated well to several meals, outings, and fine jewelry before she even considered giving up such a trade secret. You should be proud you have such loyal staff.” Kelan said seriously.<
Rejected Billionaire 92: Clean up
Kelan wiped the red droplets off his face. “That was a very expensive suit,” he muttered to himself.He glanced around at the stunned faces of the other guests, his eyes narrowing. “What are you looking at? Get back to eating!” he barked, his voice laced with venom.“And if I see this in a single news article or online, I’ll make sure to track each and every one of you down! Don’t cross the Benedict family, or you’ll be at the bottom of our mines by tomorrow!”The guests quickly averted their gazes, the sound of cutlery awkwardly resuming as they tried to pretend they hadn’t just witnessed the scene. One of Kelan’s cronies rushed over with a towel, nervously dabbing at the red stains on Kelan’s suit.Kelan smacked him across the face. “Off, man. Can’t you see it’s ruined? Just have the tailor send me a new one. No point wasting energy on this one.”The crony hesitated, still holding the towel, unsure whether to continue or retreat. “And what of the girl?” he ventured cautiously. “Shall
Rejected Billionaire 93: Corporate Espionage
The next morning, Kerrigan sat fuming in her office, thinking about Kelan and his audacity. How could he just propose like that? It was worse than the last time when she was just 18. At least then she thought it was all a big joke and even the Prima had shot it down as bad timing. Kerrigan wondered what the Prima thought of all of this. For years he had talked as if he would marry Kerrigan himself, a thought that made he want to gouge her own eyes out. Her desk vibrated, and she quickly looked around to see if anyone was in her office. Natalie had slipped out to get them both some apple cider from the breakroom, so she unlocked a hidden drawer in her desk. Inside was a phone that was silently vibrating.
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- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Chapter 22: Train rides
Monday morning broke with a cool spring breeze showing the last vestiges of winter before summer’s heat. Conor tossed his suitcase into the back of the SUV and hopped into the passenger seat.Parker drove them to Kerrigan’s house, pausing briefly to acknowledge the gate guard. Conor recognized him as one of Colonel Eli’s men he had seen around Vokrizin.“Jamison is a good man. He will make sure nothing happens to Miss Lokir’s house while you all are away,” Parker said.Conor just nodded.They pulled up to Kerrigan’s house and Parker honked twice.Conor jumped out when he saw the four ladies exit with several bags each. He and Parker quickly moved to help and filled the back of the SUV with bags, nearly completely blocking any hope of looking out the back window.“Guess you are moving out. No plans to return?” Conor asked.Kerrigan replied smoothly, “I am sure I will be back. This isn’t a fraction of what is in that house.”Parker closed the trunk and addressed everyone, “The Colonel do
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Chapter 21: Kelan
Targu Province. Saturday night “A toast! To our good brother Kelan, for without him, many of us would still be scrapping the bottom of the barrel here in Velyki!” declared Darren Krellis. “Here, here!” chorused the room. "My family thanks you for letting us take over this place and turn it into the exclusive club Velykie can be proud of!" Darren declared. Kelan Benedict stood and saluted the room with his wine glass and took a swig. “Brothers and lovely guests,” he began, eyeing the ladies around the room dressed in tight-fitting evening gowns. “Tonight, I thank you for this gracious meal. Hopefully, the future will bring mutual benefit as the Benedict family begins its absorption of Velyki and then Targu!” There was a round of cheers and Kelan slumped back into his seat, wrapping his arm around Clarise, a tall attractive blonde dressed in a red dress that did wonders for her figure. “Brother Kelan,” came a grading voice beside him as someone sat down on the couch. Kelan took h
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Chapter 20 : Visiting the Spice Emporium
“That was crazy,” Conor said as they headed across the street. Kerrigan slipped up beside him, slipping her hand into his, “I get the feeling that our lives will always attract crazy.” Conor sighed, “It does seem that way. Let’s see how Mr. Arroz is doing.” Conor gave Kerrigan’s hand a gentle squeeze as they crossed the street and stepped into the spice shop. A small bell sounded as they walked in. “Be right up!” came the bellow from the back room. Conor pointed to the glass case that protected the world from the hottest spice known, Abrasax’s wrath. “Now, any idea how we can get Kelan and perhaps Nyman to swallow that whole jar?” Kerrigan giggled, “I have a few I would like to feed it to. Think Mr. Arroz will part with the whole jar?” “Depends if he thinks he can replace it,” Conor said as Faolon brushed past him. “Hey, Faolan! Sit! PRALL!” Faolan came back and sat at his feet. Kerrigan looked up at him, “She just wants to sniff. This whole place is full of new smells.” “I k
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Ch19: Entitlement
Conor and Kerrigan rode in companionable silence for most of the trip back to town, content to rest from the day’s climbing. They sat, each leaning against opposing car windows, but their legs met, touching from knee to heel. Conor felt their fingers brush and gently laced his with hers, enjoying how her hand fit so perfectly with his.It was near dinner time when they finally turned onto the street near the Spice Emporium. As Parker pulled into a parking space at the far end of the street, Conor noticed the Grizlehut. It had been a long time since he had thought about his old job. While his condominium home was at the far end of the street, he never come down this way anymore. Too often, Parker would be waiting for him, and they would simply drive the other direction to get to Vokrizin.Conor reached for the door and realized Kerrigan was completely passed out against her window. He leaned over and gently shook her shoulder. As she came awake, Conor saw a flash of panic cross her face
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Ch 18: Trust building
He changed his hand position and reached, finding the quickdraw dangling from its anchor. He clipped the rope in and began his attempt to crest the bulge in the rock. As he pivoted, he realized the angle he was moving to would erase any grip he had on that hold. As he thought this, he felt a weightless sensation as he began to fall away from the rock. The rope went taught and jerked him mid-air as Kerrigan was pulled off her feet, flying fifteen feet in the air. She managed to hold the rope in its breaking position but her head was dangerously close to his feet. When he had caught his breath, Conor looked down into Kerrigan’s terrified green eyes. “Fancy meeting you up here. Think we could meet up again, once we are safely on the ground?” Kerrigan gawked at him for a second before smiling, “I suppose I could let you down, but You are at my mercy. I might just have to leave you up here like a pinata.” Conor chuckled as he watched her slowly release tension, lowering herself back dow
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Ch 17: Rock climbing
“OK, now it's time for you to try. Who is up first?” Conor volunteered. “Fine, Kerrigan, you are on belay. I will back you up and walk you through each step. I want you both to understand, Lead climbing like this places your life in the hands of your partner. If you don’t trust each other and learn not only to communicate but to anticipate each other’s needs, you will fail and likely hurt each other.” Kerrigan looked dubiously at Parker. “Conor is easily 50 pounds heavier than me!” Parker eyed Conor’s muscular but toned form, “You are what? 200 or 210 pounds these days?” “Last I checked, yea, right at 205.” “Should be fine. Kerrigan, you just have to learn to brace yourself correctly. You could go for a ride but if you use the skills I taught you earlier you could even belay me, and I am 230 pounds these days. Climbing is about technique as much as it is about skill. Now, let's get Conor tied in.” Parker tied the end of the climbing rope to Conor’s harness and showed Kerrigan.
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Ch16:
Conor leaned against the SUV with Parker standing across from him checking through a few bags of gear. “We have three ropes, harnesses for everyone, belay devices, and four full sets of quickdraws. I am also bringing a few crash pads. I don’t plan on you needing to use them but we will put them along the base just in case. Here, try these on.” Parker tossed a pair of strange shoes to him. Conor looked at the shoes that had a sharp curve to the toe and the sole was a flat rubber that followed the arch curve. The tan material seemed to be some sort of soft doeskin or very supple leather. Conor tried to pull the shoe on but his toes cramped and they were shoved into the tight shoes. “Umm, I think these are too small.” Parker walked over and check them. “your heal fits right?” “Yea, but my toes are all curled” “Painfully curled or just uncomfortably curled?” Conor considered before finally replying, “just uncomfortable. My shoes are normally a bit loose.” “Then they fit perfectly.
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Ch 15: Issues at home
Kerrigan spent the next day walking around the property at her house with Faolan. It had been a while since they had been able to just play, and she took this opportunity to play fetch. Thankfully her right arm still functioned, though being it was her off-hand, it was a bit awkward to throw. She figured this was good training for anything that might injure her dominant arm. Mercifully she had awoken almost entirely pain-free. The pills the Colonel had given her had truly worked wonders overnight and she had to admit, she was looking forward to being able to learn to climb the sheer rock faces near the waterfall tomorrow. The day passed rather uneventfully, and as the sun set Kerrigan found herself curled up on the back porch on one of their outdoor couches, with Faolan warming her feet with her furry mass. Reilynn stepped out a few minutes later with two glasses of wine and handed one to Kerrigan as Gabriella come out behind her. the girls each sank into chairs and leaned back, look
- Rejected Billionaire
S3 Ch 14: Kerrigan's Family revelations
The next morning Kerrigan arrived on the roof of Vokrizin for their daily training session. Colonel Eli strode over to her but before he could start setting her to drills she decided to interject, “I actually wanted to talk to you.” “Oh?” “two things really. First, do you think tomorrow I could take the girls climbing? Perhaps Conor will join us?” The Colonel glanced to where Parker was sparing with Conor, “I don’t see why that should be a problem.” He looked to Reilynn, “You feel confident in training them?” “Yes, sis.” “Fine, I will requisition the gear. What size shoe do you were, Miss Lokir?” “Umm about 23.5 cm.” “Hmm ok. I will make sure to get you and Conor some. Be warned, they will be tight. These are not meant for walking, they are designed for grip. Don’t be surprised if they feel a size or two smaller than is comfortable. What was the other thing?” “I am returning to Dragon Corporation at the end of the week.” “Ah, I see. I will begin redeploying a detail. We still
