Chapter 1 Chris Donovan vs. Shane Lewis: There's no love like the first...The meeting!

***

'Fucking pull yourself together.' Shane Lewis screamed at himself silently. He couldn't believe his hands were actually shaking. As if that wasn't enough, his palms felt sweaty, he had a queasy feeling in his stomach, and he'd started breathing hard. Was he having a panic attack or something, Shane wondered, getting really scared. He was Shane Lewis for fuck's fake. The Shane Lewis! Just his name put the fear of God into others. He didn't get scared...he just didn't.

Shane Lewis was the owner of one of the most powerful and successful business empires in America - SL Group of Companies. And he was only thirty-two years of age. Shane, an engineer by profession, was always described in the media as the man with the Midas' Touch. He was so smart and lucky that whatever business he ventured into became a success. When he was just twenty–two years old, Shane had been able to convince a bank manager to grant him a loan. With that money, he had successfully purchased, tore down, and rebuilt his first office complex. Shane had never looked back since.

He'd been a smart young man, who had been determined to make it. He'd probably wanted to make a point...even if not to anyone but himself, that he wasn't worthless or a nobody. And as an African American, that hadn't been a walk in the park. But with determination and hard work, Shane had achieved his goal and even more. It was therefore not surprising that his name made it to Forbes' top fifty richest men under thirty-five.

Shane was into a lot of businesses, ranging from real estate to oil. According to Forbes, his net worth was six billion dollars. Shane's all-time principle, which guided him at all times, however, was to ensure that whatever business he ventured into, was clean. Every business must be legal. That was something he would never compromise on. Thanks to his mother, Shane never forgot the saying that 'a good name is better than riches'. To him, a good reputation was worth more than all the money in the world.

Shane Lewis was a strikingly handsome black man. With a height of six' one, a sexily muscular physique, a nice close-cropped haircut, and his smart and confident personality, Shane would have passed for a movie star any day. With that kind of body, it was not a surprise that Shane was very athletic. He played football, ran track, and boxed. He'd been a late bloomer...was bullied a lot too, so when he started shooting up, he'd been so thrilled he'd thrown himself into athletics...as a hobby and also as a way to stay fit. Not only did Shane never miss a day at the gym, he actually had an ultramodern gym that had all the hi-tech equipment, in his beautiful mansion. It was therefore not surprising that his hot, yummy, ripped muscles remained as it was.

Add that devilishly good looks to his humble and charming personality, and what came out was an exceptionally likable and easy to love young man. As if that wasn't enough, his passion to achieve greatness in the business world...and success thereof, actually made him the total package. Women, who didn't even know just how wealthy he was, fell over themselves just to gain his attention. Shane Lewis was super-hot.

Shane was somehow borderline shy about his accomplishments, yet certain and fiercely focused on his goals. One distinctive thing about Shane that surprised the business world was that he never wanted to be seen. He always made it a point to stay out of the public eye. Very few people even knew what he looked like. When he made his very first business kill, Shane had changed his name from Nicolas Shane Lewis to just Shane Lewis. Since most people hadn't known his middle name was Shane, he had succeeded in hiding who he was not only from the public but also from those who knew him before. When his mother had asked him curiously why he'd done that, Shane had shrugged and responded in a hoarse voice,

"Much as I want to make it in life Ma, the thought of him even knowing I exist, gives me the shivers."

"Oh, honey..." Sylvia Lewis had whispered with pain in her voice.

"It's been years but the very thought of ever seeing him...and sometimes just the mere thought of him makes me shake with dread. I become that kid again, Ma. I hate the feeling." Shane had whispered, reaching out to wipe the tear that shuddered on his mother's eyelash. "It's okay Ma. For as long as I remain...hidden, I'm fine."

"But that's just it, baby. You don't have to hide. You did nothing wrong. You were just a kid, honey." Sylvia Lewis said with so much anguish in her voice.

"I knew what I was doing, Ma." Shane had whispered.

Sylvia shook her head sadly, her heartbreaking for her son. "You need to see someone, hon." She had said softly. "We couldn't afford it before but you can now. You have to see someone."

"I'm okay, Ma." Shane smiled at his mum. "Besides, no shrink can understand exactly how I feel. I'll be fine."

"What do you mean, they can't understand? It's their job to understand exactly how their patients feel, Nick." Sylvia Lewis had countered, sounding upset.

"Calm down, Ma." Shane had said, grabbing both of his mother's fists in his large hands. He hated it when his mum got upset. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me okay? Seeing you happy is all that matters to me in this world. Don't worry. Okay?"

"Okay." Sylvia had whispered and let it go.

"Now give us a smile..." Shane chuckled. Though he hated it when his mother got worried, he somehow felt good inside that someone loved and cared about him that much. But hey...that was his mum and she did what mothers did best...worry about their kids.

That conversation between him and his mum had taken place ten years ago. Shane never thought the day would come when he would see someone and just want to kneel over and die. He looked around the faces in the conference room and gave a sigh of relief when he noticed that no one seemed to be paying attention to him. He'd decided to personally attend the meeting because the business he was entering into with Damon Thomas-Reid was a very huge and important one. They'd both brought their lawyers and advisors to the meeting. What Shane hadn't known was who Damon was bringing to the meeting as his banker and advisor. When Shane saw just who it was, his heart had nearly jumped out of his fucking chest. Chris Donovan!

When he'd woken up that morning, the last person Shane Lewis thought he would come face to face with was Chris Donovan. He'd blinked and looked again...And there was no mistaking who it was. He would never forget that face. Shane's initial instinct had been to leave...just turn around and hightail it out of there. But what would the people he was there to meet think of him, Shane wondered. Besides, why the fuck should he run because of Chris Donovan? He said a quick prayer to whoever was listening in the heavens, to give him the strength to finish the meeting without attracting unnecessary attention to himself. He made a conscious effort to concentrate on what was being said but try as he did, Shane couldn't stop his mind from wandering down a painful memory lane...