01. WATCH YOUR BACK, GRAYSON

After his phone pinged for the fourth time in a row, Aiden sighed in annoyance and yanked the device from out of his pocket to respond to the texts.

Kyle: Where the hell are you?? We're all waiting...

Kyle: This is so unprofessional, Aiden. Honestly.

Kyle: You're making the company look bad!

Aiden: Oh my Godddd STOP WHINING

Aiden: I'm literally walking your way now.

It was a miracle that Aiden came to work this morning, considering how wild his weekend had been. From sunrise to sunset, he partied and consumed more alcohol than what he should have. Aiden liked to go big or go home when it came to having fun, so it wasn't much of a surprise when he woke up this morning with a massive hangover and an aching body.

Regardless of how chaotic the weekend had been, there was always business to handle. Had it not been for Kyle's incessant calls and texts about the meeting that was taking place today, Aiden would still be fast asleep in his California King lying next to what's-her-face.

"I need good news." On his way to the boardroom, Aiden stopped to speak to the pretty secretary that worked the floor. "Please tell me the meeting has already begun."

"I'm afraid it hasn't, Mr. Grayson. They're all still waiting on you," Davina replied. "Shall I ping them to let them know you've arrived?"

"I guess," Aiden grumbled. "Fuck. Now I'll have to sit through the whole damn thing."

Being the owner of the building, Aiden didn't bother to knock after reaching the boardroom. He instead barged inside like he was the police, lazily acknowledging his guests with a simple nod before taking a seat at the head of the long conference table.

"Let's get this party started." Aiden plastered on a fake smile while straightening his sunglasses. His sensitive eyes couldn't handle how bright it'd been outside, and the blinding lights in the building were an even bigger pain to deal with. "I'd like to get through this as quickly as possible," Aiden said to Kyle, his brother and business partner. "I have other places to be this morning."

Like back in his bed recuperating.

Kyle briefly hung his head in embarrassment. The three visitors sat motionless in their seats, all of them silently judging the notorious Aiden Grayson – the somewhat savvy, incredibly reckless, and short-tempered CEO of Grayson Enterprise. The company is one of the most booming technology-based businesses in the country, specializing in consumer electronics.

The trio was here to make a deal, one that would hopefully be lucrative, and yet as the seconds passed, they wondered if coming here had been a mistake. They all knew of Aiden's unstable personality, how he'd often jump from being hot to cold; however, to be here and witness the insolence firsthand, it put things in a different perspective for the three outsiders.

"Aiden, joining us today is Mr. Pryor, Mr. Wong, and Mrs. Scotts from Hope World, Inc. I spoke with you about them the other day, remember?" Kyle paused, and when it took too long for Aiden to respond, he kicked his brother in the shin from underneath the table.

Aiden had nearly dozed off, but the pain radiating in his shin immediately brought him back to life. He cleared his throat and sat up straight in his seat. "Yeah, yeah. I know who they are, but what about them? Why are we here today, Kyle? Get to the point already."

Such a fucking prick, Kyle thought. "I called this meeting today because I believe in Hope World and what they stand for. I viewed some rough sketches of an upcoming project that they're working on, and I think it'd be wise of us to invest in it. Did you see the email that I sent to you last week?" Kyle asked Aiden. "Have you read over it yet?"

Aiden could barely remember what he did last night, let alone what he read last week.

"Briefly, yes."

Kyle knew that was a lie, but he maintained his composure anyway. "With the two of us working together, we'll easily dominate the industry and–"

"Woah, woah, woah. Let's pause for a minute," Aiden interrupted, finally getting serious. "We don't need to collaborate with anyone to dominate the tech space. Grayson Ent. is already doing that and, based on the numbers I saw before coming here, we're doing it extremely well."

Kyle was talking about collaborations and investing, and for these types of deals, the investments were usually made to be in the millions. Although Aiden lived a luxurious and reckless lifestyle outside of work, he did everything in his power to keep Grayson Ent. safe and away from greedy leeches. Making one bad deal could easily ruin everything that his father, Thomas Grayson, had worked so damn hard to build. Despite their differences, Aiden couldn't risk letting the family business go up in flames.

"How you vouch for these people makes me a little nervous, Kyle." Aiden removed his ridiculously expensive shades to give a proper look around the room at his guests. "You see potential in them that I don't. And, if they're really as good as you say they are, then they could easily turn into competition for me one day, given that our collaboration will only be for this one specific project." Aiden dragged his eyes back over to Kyle. "Why would I lend a hand to help my future competitors, Kyle? How do I know that they won't turn around to stab me in the back to take my spot at the top?"

"Aiden, I..." Kyle started.

"Stop. I don't actually care about your answer." Aiden raised a hand to Kyle, silencing him. "But you know what else makes me nervous? The fact that you seem to have already forgotten about the very unsettling scandal that Mr. Pryor was in last year." Aiden smirked after the older man's mouth fell open from shock. "Oh, yes. I heard all the disturbing whispers about your thievery and scam tactics with some of the other companies that you partnered with in the past. I also remember when you tried to do everything in your power to brush it under the rug because the negative press was destroying you left and right, tanking your stock. I may be an alcoholic, but my memory is still sharp as a tick for this business shit."

Kyle was at a loss for words. Everyone sitting at the table was at a loss for words.

Aiden typically isn't vocal during business meetings. Kyle had expected him to show up, smile, sign a few documents and then leave. He hadn't expected that Aiden would actively take part when he normally never does. Above all, Kyle felt mortified for getting about Pryor's past scandals. And of all people to call someone out about damaging scandals, Aiden had been the one to do just that. The irony wasn't lost on anyone in the room.

"Mr. Grayson, you will always be the top dog in town. There is nothing that you have to worry about when it comes to doing business with us, I assure you." Pryor was being a kiss-ass while his partners remained quiet, too nervous to speak up.

"Cut the shit, Pryor. I know you're only telling me what I want to hear because you need my money," Aiden replied. "Personally, I don't care about whatever project you're working on. My company has been doing fine before you got here today, and it will continue to do so without this deal that'll probably benefit you more than it ever would me." Aiden rose from his seat. "I'm going home now."

The guests didn't like that at all. Yelling ensued, forcing Kyle to work overtime to keep the trio calm. Meanwhile, Aiden was already halfway to the elevator.

"Mr. Grayson! A package came up for you a few moments ago," Davina called before Aiden could step onto the elevator. "I placed it on your desk."

"It'd better be food or something to help make me richer," Aiden muttered under his breath while stomping towards his office at the opposite end of the hall.

Once inside, he saw a small white bag sitting on his desk. Attached to it were balloons, and the inside of the bag was filled with colored tissue paper. Aiden had to think about it for a second, but he was certain that today wasn't his birthday. He turned the bag over and dumped the contents out onto his desk. An envelope and a black rectangular box fell out of it.

Aiden opened the box to be greeted by a positive pregnancy test.

"Davina! Get in here now!"

With trembling hands, Aiden tossed the stick back into the bag before opening the envelope to read the handwritten letter inside.

It read:

To Mr. Aiden Grayson,

How did you like my surprise?

I wish I could've been there to see your reaction. Unfortunately, it's much too soon for you to discover who I am. A playboy such as yourself is always with a new girl every day of the week, so even if I were to tell you my name, you probably wouldn't remember me. You'll never guess my identity and that makes this all the more fun! I have big plans for you, Aiden. And in the end, you'll crash and burn because of them... but that won't have to happen if you give me what I want. $5 MILL. You're CEO of a billion-dollar business, so I know you can afford it. If you give me the money, I promise that you'll never hear from me again, and I'll even make sure that there won't be a baby coming within the next nine months. But, Aiden, if you don't give me the money, I'll be forced to expose you for the lousy, selfish, good for nothing asshole that you are. And after I'm done with that, I'll hunt you down to finish what I started. Things will get bloody, and people that you love might even get hurt, but not if you comply like a good boy.

I'll give you some time to process all of this, okay? Do continue to keep an eye out for another letter to await further instructions from me.

In the meantime, watch your back, Grayson.

"Mr. Grayson, what's wrong?" Davina rushed into the office just as Aiden went around his desk to vomit into the wastebasket. "Oh, God. Are you alright?"

"Who sent this up here?" Aiden ignored the question and instead pointed at the bag on his desk. "And don't tell me it was the fucking delivery man."

"But it was the delivery man," Davina slowly replied. "Who else could it have been?"

The sharp look in Aiden's green eyes sent chills down Davina's spine. Her answer wasn't the one that Aiden had wanted to hear, and now he was about to explode on her for something that she had no control over. She's abruptly reminded about why she hated working here. The pay is great, but the management sucks.

"I don't fucking know, Davina. That's why I'm asking you!" Aiden snapped. "Forget it. Just get out of here."

"What on earth is happening in here? I can hear you yelling all the way from the other side of the damn building." Kyle entered the room at the same time that Davina had run out of it, tears streaming down her face. Kyle shut the door before walking towards Aiden. "What is your problem, man? Why do you always have to be such an asshole to people? And thanks for earlier, by the way. You handled that just like I thought you would. Poorly. If you had just—"

"Read this."

Kyle's words went in one ear and out the other as Aiden came from around his desk and shoved the letter towards him. Kyle stared at his brother in confusion, and for a split second, he couldn't tell who was looking back at him.

"Jesus Christ, what's the matter with you today?"

"Just shut up and read the damn letter, Kyle."

"Fine, whatever." Kyle unfolded the letter to read it, and Aiden anxiously paced the floor of his office. Minutes later, Kyle chuckled. "Wow. This is... uh, congratulations?"

"Fuck you, Kyle. Do I seriously look like I'm ready to become someone's father? Stop joking around and tell me what I'm supposed to do about this."

"How the hell should I know?"

"Because you always get me out of crazy shit like this, so go on and use that big brain of yours to help me out one last time, yeah?"

"Aiden, please try to calm down and—"

"I am fucking calm."

"And think logically about this," Kyle finishes. "Maybe... this is just a sick prank from some girl that you pissed off. This could be her way of getting back at you. She's trying to scare you. A positive pregnancy test is a surefire way to make any single guy lose his shit."

Aiden wouldn't admit it out loud, but he was scared shitless.

Of all the scandals that he has been involved in for being promiscuous and messy, this was his first ever pregnancy scare. Then again, Kyle could be right. Perhaps this is someone playing a bad joke on him. Or, Kyle could be wrong, and the pregnancy test is very, very real.

Kyle sighed, already knowing what was coming next.

"And you, my dear brother, will be helping me whether you want to or not."

• • •

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