InsaneJournal

Current location:	Dubai
Current mood:	ecstatic
Entry tags:	cody, lisa, the world

Lisa
OOC: Takes places in the future when Danny is about 70 yrs old, so around 2075-ish. RP storyline for loyal_2a_fault, futurescourge, and later (hopefully) involve other Immortals. X-posted to allmyimmortals.

Autumn. London offices of Global News Network

"This could be your big chance, Alyssa." The head of entertainment for the London bureau looked over her desk at the young woman in front of her. "We want a big exclusive on this man, everything about him. He owns three of the most popular nightclubs slash resorts in the world; he's young, rich and handsome, a playboy, but he's never given a personal interview, the security around him is airtight, and nobody knows a damned thing about him. To dig up any info on him will be huge, and if it's ours..." A ratings landslide.

The dark haired girl, in her mid twenties, gazed at the definitely handsome man on the screen hanging on the office wall. "The competition will be left wondering what hit them." She might be young, but Alyssa knew the cutthroat world of TV journalism, relished it. "So, I take it that you're after more than just an interview with this...Daniel Harrington, Helen?"

Helen smiled and nodded. "Interviews are good if you only want to hear what the subject wants you to know. That expose you did for Damien on Earth Loves Peace was excellent investigative skills. You really got in there with the group." ELP were one of the hottest new bands around, with a very environmental agenda that, given the planet's deteriorating situation, was becoming more heard. "Do the same with Daniel Harrington; see how close you can get to him. I mean, it won't exactly be unpleasant, will it?"

"No, not at all. Will I have a cover?" She paused, smiling. "Will I get credit for the story?" That was more important. Yes, her investigation into ELP was good, but her immediate boss, Damien Dyson, had been the one to break it, citing that her anonymity as well as skills could be useful again.

"Yes, of course you will. You'll be working this assignment for me, not Damien, and after, this will put you in front of the camera, where you belong." Alyssa was well aware that Helen was probably just stroking her ego in order to get her to take the assignment, but she had also already helped make the names of two now primetime commentators. "Now, we've set up a background for you, and it should be airtight. His security is known for doing extremely thorough background checks. You're a photography student who has won a chance to work with Pierre de Troyes photographing some of the world's top models at The World in Dubai. One of the islands has a resort and Harrington has just opened his latest nightclub there. All you have to do is get noticed."

She made it sound so easy! "What about a name?"

"It's best to keep it close to yours." Helen handed the younger woman a folder with all the information she would need. "I thought Lisa would suit you. Lisa Perez."

***

The Coral Island resort in the North American section of Dubai's The World was a joint venture between HSU and Jacks Corporation, with Hsu's stake being that of a sleeping partner. The deal had come out of the collapse of Las Vegas after Lake Mead finally ran dry. The Jacks' exclusive hotel, the Sottovoce, now run by Elizabeth Jacks, had essentially just moved to the Coral Island. It was just as exclusive, just for the best clientele in the world. A side venture to the hotel had just recently opened, and that was Danny's newest nightclub. Sure, he had three operating ski resorts which offered a full nightlife of his own in Switzerland, Vail, and Sochi, but this was his first venture in, quite literally, warmer waters.

And for the first time in several months, Danny was beginning to enjoy his work once again. The new nightclub gave him something to focus on. But it had been a tough few months. No, it had been a tough couple of decades. In that time, so many had died, Lars, Andy, and nearly twenty years ago, hardest of all, his brother James' death that had so rocked their world. They had all delivered home the reality of the harsh side of immortality, especially to a young Immortal, seeing those you care about and love, die and having to carry on. Then a year ago, his friend and lover, Ben, was diagnosed with a brain tumour and despite the advances in medicine and money being no object, it was so far advanced that it was deemed inoperable. For the next couple of months, Danny had stayed by his friend, watching him grow weaker until he finally died. He had known Ben for fifty years. Only the death of Cody or his father could have hit him harder.

Cody.

He still loved her, still wanted her, but his pursuit of her had cooled over the last few years. Not that they still didn't care about each other, they did. Not that Hsu still didn't keep an eye on them to make sure nothing developed further, he did. But Cody was still grieving for James, more quietly now after all these years, but in those soft, brown eyes, the pain of her son's loss still weighed heavily on her. He hadn't even seen her since Ben's funeral, and then only briefly. The thought of propositioning her (or anyone) had been furthest from his mind, and he had just taken comfort from her as a friend...as the woman who had helped raise him.

Now, he concentrated on his new club. Ben had helped him with the planning before he fell ill, and Danny changed the intended name, and it was now known as Benji's in his friend’s honour. Attached to the hotel, two-thirds of it was inside and large with two levels. The upper level was split into two areas: one the VIP/Special guest area and the other even more exclusive for those who exceeded VIP and which money couldn't access to. The main floor had several areas with dance floors and stages, one area had a catwalk and all of it could be adapted to special functions. Outside, the club stretched down to the beach in terraces with dance floors on each one. The middle terrace also had an infinity pool that looked out over the beach and sea. Rightly so, Danny was proud of this club that rivalled those in his own resorts, and in the few weeks that it had been open, Benji's received rave reviews. A lot of years had passed since Cody first convinced Hsu to back his first venture with the Swiss resort, and he had proved he could make a large success of it, and even if his father had little interest in nightclubs and vacation resorts, he was proud of his son's success and obvious talent for such business – even if it was in the entertainment industry.

As his success grew, and as he had grown, Danny was more careful about his personal security, no longer chaffing against it as he once had. And while he had earned a reputation as a playboy, spending much time partying at his venues, only certain information was fed to the media. If he granted interviews, questions were vetted, and he only answered those relating to the clubs rather than personal ones, and so because of his wealth, success, playboy reputation, good looks, and the mystery about his life, the media were hungry to find out more about him.

This weekend Coral Island was hosting a major photo shoot for the most popular models, male and female, and Danny had granted them permission to use Benji's for some of their backdrops. With his physique, the photography director, the famed Pierre de Troyes, had urged him to join in, and it was a temptation, tugging on his old desire to model. He could even justify it to Hsu as promotion for the club, but he decided to leave it to the pros and instead watched with a couple of his regular posse and two of his bodyguards.

Whilst watching, Danny noticed the girl assisting the director. Her long, dark hair tied behind in a pony and wearing cargo shorts and a fairly loose tank top, she was nothing like the glamorous, made-up models being photographed, but her naturalness was what caught his eye. After watching her for a while, Danny leaned over to his senior bodyguard, Michael. "Who's the girl?"

Checks had been done on all the models and crew, and Michael quickly pulled up the details on his phone. "Lisa Perez. Student, she apparently won this chance of assisting Pierre at this photo shoot. Pretty good prize." He looked at his immediate boss, noting how he was gazing at her with interest and grinned. "Dan, there's all these stunning models, and you go for the chick in the frumpy shorts?"

"Put her in a tight dress, she'd look as good as any of them." He pushed away from the rail he'd been leaning on, intending to go down when one of his friends reminded him that he had a conference meeting in ten minutes with Elizabeth and his father. Danny sighed, taking a last look at Lisa. "Invite the crew as VIPs for tonight, as well as the models."

***

She had cursed to herself for dressing so casually at the shoot, but she hadn't expected Daniel Harrington to stop by and actually watch them. It was going to be hard enough to attract his attention with all these supermodels around without looking as plain as it was possible to look. So that evening, as they had all been invited to the VIP area of the club, Lisa had dressed to impress -- if she would ever get close enough to him -- with a mini skirt that was not too short but still flattering, matching high-heeled boots in a very classic 1960s style, and a top that was tight enough to hint at her shapely body but left to the imagination exactly what it should. Lisa knew she was pretty enough with her long, dark hair and naturally sun-kissed skin, but against these beautiful models it was tough to compete.

She was looking over the balcony, sipping her wine and wondering just how she could approach Daniel. Helen had described him as handsome and the photo back in the office hadn't done him justice. He was gorgeous, and Lisa could see how people flocked to him and how he had no trouble in finding sexual partners of both genders. One of the first things she had learned about him was that he was openly bisexual, which while exciting, made her task that bit more difficult in her mind. Noise, different from the loud bass beat that pounded through the nightclub, broke through her thoughts, and she turned around. There was Daniel Harrington, with a few friends...or were they bodyguards? It was hard to tell as they are all muscular and well built, but none had that usual telltale air of security, all dressed nearly as casually as Daniel. He was speaking with a few of the models, and one of the male models he appeared to know quite well, greeted him with a kiss and a laugh. Everybody seemed to be crowding around him, wanting his attention, but Lisa stayed in her seat. It was a gamble, and if it didn't work she would have to try something more direct, but it might be more refreshing for him not appear wanting something. It was her plan, and she hoped it worked because she couldn't compete with some of these... Oh God! He had just looked in her direction and his eyes seemed to meet hers for a split second. Her heart pounded, and she silently berated herself for suddenly feeling like a giddy schoolgirl. She rethought her view, he wasn't just handsome or even gorgeous, but he was a word she rarely used for muscular, macho types, beautiful. And just that glimpse of those hazel eyes, friendly, fun and intelligent. If this wasn't an assignment, she would be dying to meet him anyway.

"Enjoying yourself?" A voice near her ear drew her out of her thoughts, and Lisa looked up at him with a gasp. How he managed to get so close...she had to concentrate more.

"Great, thank you, Mr. Harrington." To hide her embarrassment at being caught out, she looked down...at his chest, which glistened with a light sheen of sweat and so perfectly tanned and sculptured. She suddenly imagined running her tongue over it. Luckily, he probably didn't hear how she cleared her throat.

"Danny, please. And you're Lisa, right?" She nodded, her initial surprise subsiding when she remembered background checks were done on the entire crew. "Having fun assisting the great Pierre de Troyes?"

She thought she caught joking in his soft voice, and a small thrill of pleasure (or was it triumph that he would share a private joke with her?) ran through her. “He is a bit pretentious isn’t he? But I am learning a lot from him. ” So not to lose Daniel’s attention, Lisa sought for a way to continue their little conversation. “I’m hoping that tomorrow, I’ll get to do a bit more than just carry…”

“Daniel!” The great photographer forced himself into Dan’s company, slapping a hand on his back – causing his two bodyguards, lurking unobtrusively nearby, step casually forward – which although he tried to hide, some of his annoyance showed. “I was hoping to get to see you again and try to convince you to do that shoot.” He was a small, wiry man in his late forties but still trying to look twenty-five. It was a wonder he wasn’t wearing a gold medallion over his exposed chest. As Lisa looked between the two men, feeling that she would quickly be shunted aside as Pierre made himself the centre of Daniel’s attention, she could be pretty much certain that she saw that very brief look of annoyance cross the handsome nightclub owner’s face, but the friendly, charming appearance was soon back.

“Well, I’ve thought about it, Pierre, and you’re right that a few shots will be good publicity for Benji’s and the resort as a whole.” Pierre beamed, and Lisa could tell he was about to gush with all his ideas on what they could, but Daniel was continuing. “As it won’t be official, and you won’t have license to sell these, I thought it would be a good opportunity for your assistant here to practice her skills. She must be talented to have won a prize to work with someone as professional and good as yourself; you should give her a chance to show case. I mean, like myself, you must value the chance of promoting the talents of those that follow.”

Lisa quickly recovered her shock at Daniel’s unbelievable suggestion and struggled not to laugh at Pierre’s indignation that he was hurrying to smother. There was definitely more to Daniel Harrington than met the eyes. He was more than just a well-moneyed playboy because although he had been friendly and pleasant enough in letting down the photographer, he had subtly turned it so that Pierre would find it almost impossible not to permit it. It could do him a lot of damage publicly, and she felt more than heard an edge in Daniel’s tone that he could do just that to him.

Forcing a polite smile, Pierre nodded. “Of course, Daniel. A good mentor must give his protégé a chance to spread her wings.” What a load of bullshit, Lisa thought, he had used her as nothing more than a pack animal for all his equipment.

“Good.” Daniel turned back to Lisa at last. “You do want to, right?” Laughing out loud at last, Lisa nodded. This was better than she could have ever planned. Not only had she made contact with her subject, but he was making it so easy for her. “Okay, so I’ll meet you by the pool at eleven? Michael will issue you a pass. I’m looking forward to it.” He leaned forward, kissing her lightly on the cheek.

“So am I, Mr….er, I mean, Daniel.” Lisa couldn’t believe she actually blushed.

Dan smiled. “Danny, please. My dad calls me Daniel.” She laughed lightly as he made a face. “I have to go schmooze some more before having some fun on the dance floor, but if I don’t see you there, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

***

She was surprised, the following morning, that Daniel -- Danny – was only a few minutes late. Usually, she found these rich playboys not to keep a schedule at all and show up hours late, especially after partying the whole night before, if they even remembered. But Danny looked quite refreshed and awake as he walked up to where she had set up her equipment by the side of the pool. Dressed in a pale blue silk shirt that all but the top two buttons were fastened and dark steel blue dress pants, he looked the businessman rather than the playboy of last night. He was flanked by two of his friends, or were they bodyguards? It really was impossible to tell as, again, they were dressed similarly to him and they all chatted as friends would.

“Hi there!” Lisa smiled at him, even if her stomach was tying itself into knots with excited anticipation.

“Hi! I missed you on the dance floor last night.” Danny rested his gaze on her as he went to a table of refreshments and poured himself an orange juice.

Looking suitably embarrassed, she apologized. “I just wanted to get an early night, so I’d be prepared for the shoot. I don’t want to disappoint you after all you said to Pierre last night.” The truth one of the male models, the one who had kissed Danny, had whispered to her that she would have had a wild night, implying directly that it would have ended with her in Danny’s bed, if she had joined him on the dance floor. He hadn’t even said it maliciously, in fact he seemed quite excited that she had the chance, but Lisa decided that, hopefully, Danny would think more of her if he wasn’t one of his typical conquests. The hard-to-get game was a dangerous one to play with a man who had so many ready to throw themselves at him, but that difference might work. It had so far. He had noticed her amongst all those gorgeous models.

“So, where do you want me?”

***

The shoot had gone great, better than Lisa ever expected, and she really enjoyed it. It was relaxed and casual. Danny had happily posed by the pool, even getting in it fully dressed, and she knew those photos would be very, very hot when they were printed. They had chatted about everyday things, which seemed strange given the smoldering intensity he was showing the camera. Another thing Lisa had noticed about him, although it had taken her nearly the whole shoot to realize it, whenever she had asked him a question about his family, he had swiftly deflected it or turned it back onto her. That she found herself answering his questions (with the background she had been provided) while she had learned pretty much nothing new about him amazed her. He was good, but so very pleasant and sweet with it that she couldn’t even be offended.

Danny’s bodyguard/friend handed him a towel, and he pulled his shirt off and roughly dried off. There was a sudden urge, deep inside her to touch that golden, glistening skin, to kiss it, and to kiss him, and it was only when Danny spoke that she blinked with a start before covering up her obvious thoughts. “Er, lunch? I don’t know. I mean Pierre might…”

“Do you really care what Pierre wants? You won a competition and if I hadn’t stepped in, you would have done nothing but carry his stuff around. Plus, it’s my place, and you can hardly refuse that, can you?” His smile was utterly boyish and charming, with a side helping of puppy eyes.

Even if it hadn’t been in her plans to ultimately accept, she thought she would never have resisted that look, and she even laughed. “I guess I can’t, if you put it like that. I’d love to.”

***

Lunch was wonderful and it turned into an even better afternoon when Danny took her out on his speed boat for a tour of ‘the world’. As the day wore on, and she wasn’t quite sure how this happened, they had become closer. Physically that was. A brush of skin against skin, and then his arm around her, laughing together, whispering in each other’s ears. It was all still innocent, but there was no mistaking their intimacy. When he finally guided the boat back to the jetty, he helped her out and held her in his arms as he gave her a small kiss. When she didn’t object, the kiss deepened.

Lisa knew, as she got dressed for dinner that night, that this wasn’t just a matter of an assignment. For a start, her worries about how she could possibly seduce such a playboy were clearly unfounded and, this time, without guile. And yes, she liked him; he was fun, charming, considerate – which was an increasing rare attribute – and nothing like the playboy image that was shown to the world.

Dinner was wonderful, as was the dancing that followed, and as the model had predicted the night before, the dancing had led to Danny’s bed. So much for playing hard-to-get, but it had just happened. He had been so charged and energized, and it had been such a very natural progression at the time. Besides, she couldn’t get enough of him. That night with him was, well, incredible. Lisa was no prude and had always enjoyed a varied, active and healthy sex life, but Danny had taught her a few new things.

***

Over the next few days, they were barely apart, with Danny always being the one doing the asking and chasing. He had taken her to the ruins of the Al-Burj Hotel. They had lounged at the beach, enjoying some light petting, and at night some very strenuous sex.

Three days later, Danny called Orestes to do a deeper investigation into Lisa, a sure sign that this bit of fun was potentially becoming something more serious in his eyes. This vetting should leave nothing out and was far more thorough than the one conducted for the photo shoot. Several hours later, the complete report on Lisa Perez was sent to him. Everything about her was on there, from her family (English mother, Costa Rican father) and siblings (a brother and sister of which she was the youngest), through her schooling, including her grades and exam results to her coursework for her degree, in which she was pursuing her MA in Fashion Photography at the University of the Arts in London.

Everything checked out with what Lisa had told him, even down to past boyfriends, of which only one had been semi-serious during her fresher year at university and police records. Danny was amused to discover that Lisa clearly had a habit of being photographed herself, only by speed cameras. In all, he was content that Lisa’s background posed no issues for his security, and more importantly, Orestes had no problem with it either and he could rely on the security chief to see the relationship got his father’s approval as well.

***

The next evening, Danny and Lisa were lying in each other’s arms on the beach and enjoying the sunset over the water and various islands. Next to them was a basket for a late night picnic and wine in a chiller. Danny only had on a pair of multi-coloured swim shorts, and Lisa’s lilac bikini was covered by a similarly coloured sarong giving some warmth once the sun was down. Privacy wasn’t and issued as two of Dan’s security kept a discreet watch to make sure the lovers weren’t disturbed.

“Dan, these last several days have probably been the best I’ve ever had.” Lisa laid her head on his shoulder, her finger casually drawing abstract patterns over his broad chest and muscled abs. She sighed deeply. “And I’ve had a lovely time here with you, but I have to get back to uni. I should have flown back three days ago anyway.” Not that she wanted to leave him, or even had to, but if she cooled this affair a little and allowed a brief absence to make the heart grow fonder perhaps Danny would open up. Despite the last wonderful few days, he had revealed only a few details about his life and family, but much of it was general: his mother had died when he was small; his wealth came thanks to his father who he didn’t always get along with, but little more. And he still, very skillfully, deflected personal questions back to her, asking about her family and life instead. Of course, she would be running the risk that he would just forget her or move onto someone else, but it would be worth taking. If he didn’t care that much for her, then getting anything more from him would probably be impossible anyway. Not that she would stay away too long, just in case.

“So stay with me. You could always do it online?” Dan was playing with her hair, but she had come to recognize that tone in his voice already.

Lisa looked up at him, knowing she would see a pair of hazel pleading, puppy eyes. God, he was hard to resist, and she had figured one thing about him that he didn’t need to tell her. His father’s wealth had spoiled him, and he was definitely used to getting his way. Not that he was mean about it, just persuasive. “I don’t know, Danny, I’ve done this much I don’t want to chance messing it up now.”

He grinned at her. “Well, if those photos you took of me are anything to go by, they should just hand you that diploma now. That’s not a bad idea. I could have a word with your professor or the dean, see if they’ll let you graduate early. Then you can work promoting my clubs and resorts, if you don’t mind travelling around with me.” Before she could give an answer to his offer, Danny was kissing her, deep and passionately. “I want you to be with me, Lisa.”

It was a very tempting offer, especially so because there was no actual degree she was pursuing, and she could make their connection even stronger, make him trust her enough to open up, if she was with him. But make him sure of wanting her first, that he wasn’t just saying those things. “I don’t know. I’d love to, Danny. It would be a dream come true landing a job like that...with you. Especially with you.” Here, lying in his arms, she surprised herself at how strongly she felt those words. “But I do need to go back, see what I can arrange, check in with family.”

“I understand, especially the family part. I could come with you.”

It wasn’t much, but it was one of the few times he had even mentioned his family without her asking first. “I don’t think I’m ready for doing the whole meet and greet with my family yet.” She paused, kissing him gently and stroking his warm skin. “It’ll just take me a couple of days, three tops, and then we can pick up here.”

Dan sighed but smiled at the same time. “I guess it’s the right thing to do. You’ll call me a lot, though, won’t you?” Lisa laughed and nodded. “And don’t worry, you can use my jet, on me.” She was just a student, and although her return flight was paid for through the photo shoot competition, flying out to reunite with him wouldn’t be so easy. “Just let me know when, and I’ll have my pilot waiting. In fact, how do you like Switzerland? It’ll be ramping up for the winter season, so I need to be there. The Engelberg resort is my flagship resort, so I like to be there for opening. Do you snowboard or ski?”

“I’ve skied a few times a few years ago.”

“Great! Can’t wait to hit the slopes.” He was bouncy and happy again. “Say, are you hungry, because I’m feeling a little peckish?” Lisa wasn’t certain if he was meaning their picnic as his eyes were on her and his hand really seemed more interested in satisfying a different appetite.

***

Three days later, Danny got a message that Lisa had cleared everything with her professor and was ready to come to Switzerland. If she had any doubts that he wouldn’t stay interested in her and quickly find another, more beautiful person to catch his attention, they were unfounded. He had called her several times a day.

When she was gone, he just couldn’t stop thinking about her. Not since Ben had he felt so connected with someone, and that was different, both young and in college when they met. He didn’t even think of that as love, just a deep, binding and lasting friendship. This was different, something about Lisa had just clicked something in his brain, and he couldn’t get enough of her. She was sexy, fun, down to earth...normal. Of course, he still loved Cody, but not with the intensity he once had, their lives had probably changed too much for that over the last few years, both learning to live with pain and grief. Perhaps Hsu had been right and it had just been infatuation.

Not that he was yet seeing himself as in love with Lisa...not quite.

Even so, Cody would always be a friend, always be family, so when she called the morning of being reunited with Lisa to discuss some business relating to his father’s expanding interests, he was bursting to tell her about the new woman in his life. At least he could tell someone; Orestes would have informed Hsu, but that would lack any of the emotion Danny felt. Hopefully, word would not have yet reached Cody.

So after, they talked business, Dan thought he should tell her what had happened in Dubai. “I met someone in Dubai. I really like her.”



***

Any comments to here at allmyimmortals. Thank you!

OOC: Word count=5,097