Chapter 10
Darren
Darren woke up to the bed empty beside him. He rolled over and brushed his hand down the cooled sheets, wishing like hell that she would have woken him so that he could have fixed her breakfast. He let out a low groan at the remembrance of how well she'd taken him the night before. She was made specifically for him, he had no doubt.
How many women had he taken to his bed, only to not be able to make love to them? Countless numbers, and it was not only embarrassing, but leaving him completely unfulfilled.
Mariah was the woman for him. Now to somehow convince her of the truth.
He got up and skipped breakfast, figuring a large lunch would do the trick. After a long shower and three cups of coffee, he made his way to his restaurant. He had a large private dinner party later that night, and where he'd never been too nervous before, he was a little on edge now.
It was the new recipes. He hadn't changed his winning formula in a long time, but due to falling in love with the beautiful dark-haired minx at his house, he was inspired. It was a good and bad thing. He’d built his success on the old formula. The frugal thing would have been to just stick to it, but he couldn't. He was bursting with ideas and passion once again.
He spoke with his chefs for a few minutes before walking into his large office and closing the door behind him. Slumping down in his chair, he shot off a quick text to her to see where she was, and if she'd had any movement on the situation with her wayward staff. He had wanted to dive in the night before and take care of all of it for her, but she wasn't the type of woman who needed saving. She was more than capable of taking care of anything that life threw at her. His willingness to simply support her was more than welcomed, and he would do it over and over again.
The delicious scent of her on his skin that morning was hard to let go of, and yet not taking a shower was more uncouth than he could fathom. If he'd been able to have a lazy day at home, he'd have reveled in their sex and rolled around in his sheets for a while, but a new group of food critics were headed his way, and everything had to be spot on.
He pressed his hand to his chest, once again a little surprised by how nervous he was. Having been a chef and successful entrepreneur for the last twelve years, he had absolutely no reason to be worried.
It wasn't worry as much as it was the nagging desire to be around her. She was bored from what she said, and he'd jokingly offered to bring her to the restaurant to keep her busy.
Maybe having her at the dinner would be a good thing. He put a call into her just after lunch, still not having heard back from her from his earlier texts.
"Hey," she answered in an upbeat tone.
"Hi, beautiful. I missed seeing you next to me this morning. What could have been so important to pull you from the warmth of my bed?" He smiled as he closed his eyes, imagining her against him again.
"Mediation with my ex-client. It went well though, and hopefully this shit is over." She let out a long sigh.
"That's great news." He sat up and smiled as relief flooded his system. "I wanted to see if you'd be willing to join me tonight. I have a few new dishes that I'm presenting to a few food critics and several investors in the restaurant. I want you there as my date."
"Oh." Silence.
"If you're too busy, it's no big deal at all. I just figured—"
She cut him off. "No. I'll be there. Text me the address, and let me know what the dress code is."
He smiled. "I'll send it right over. It's black tie, but I'll have something pretty delivered to the house for you. You're a size seven, right?"
"How did you know that? Have you been checking out my clothes?" She laughed and he joined her.
"No, baby. I had my hands around your perfect little waist last night. I know my way around the kitchen well, and when it's time to fatten someone up. You're perfect, hence the size seven."
She chuckled. "All right, but don't make it too revealing. I'm not that type of girl."
"Only with me?" He smiled and stood up, reaching toward the ceiling with his free hand in a much needed stretch.
"Exactly. Speaking of... I want more."
"Me too, baby. Come early, and I'll show you how we stuff things around here."
She laughed and let out a cute little snort. "Oh Lord."
"Too much?" he asked.
"Never. I'll see you tonight, handsome. You're going to be great. Something tells me you always are, no matter what you're up to."
"Until then." He moved the phone away from his ear and let out a satisfied sigh. She would be with him soon.
***
Darren was rushing around an hour before the dinner, his heart beating out of his chest. There was no good reason at all for him to be so emotional over everyone coming to try out his dishes. He was a great chef and knew it. He worked hard at it.
It had been a long twelve years of opening new places and introducing new fare. Having come to America for the first time on a business venture, he should have been concerned with his ability to reach a whole new type of people, but he wasn't. He was thrilled with the possibilities it would present, both now and in the future. Having met Mariah while he was here was the crown jewel in his cap. Then realization dawned on him.
It wasn't about anyone being impressed but Mariah. Knowing that she would see him in action caused him to feel a twinge of inadequacy. What if she didn't enjoy the dishes, or found him to be too much like the ass he was when she wasn't around? She softened him, but in front of others, he was still very much a dominating, aggressive type of guy.
He turned the corner from the kitchen and walked into the dining room as she caught his eye. The pretty black dress he'd picked up for her just after lunch fit her like a glove. Her long dark legs were the center show of the outfit and the stilettos that adorned her feet were beyond sexy.
"Wow." He walked toward her, pulling her into his arms and moving down to press a kiss to her pretty red lips.
She pushed at his chest a little and broke his hold. "Hey. I just did my lipstick, you crazy man. I want to look pretty tonight."
"Fuck your lipstick. You always look pretty." He pulled her back to him, not caring about his own suit getting messed up or wrinkled in their embrace.
"Maybe not the lipstick, but I can think of something else I'd love to fuck," she murmured against his mouth as he looked down into her beautiful face.
"Watch it. We have an hour, and I'm not beyond taking you up on the offer." He turned and took her hand in his. "Let me introduce you to everyone."
He moved with her through the kitchen, showing her off as his girlfriend, and not caring much for the surprise that registered on her pretty face the first time he said it. It was probably too soon, but she needed to get used to it. He wanted her as his own, and he wasn't willing to back down until she was.
She closed the door behind them in his office and locked it as he dropped down into his chair. The look in her dark eyes said he was headed toward a world of sensual hurt, but he couldn't hope enough for that to be the outcome of her aggressive glare. Her soft red lips curled into a smile, and his stomach tightened painfully, forcing his heart to race in anticipation of whatever was headed his way.
"What are you doing, bad girl?" He reached for her, but she playfully swatted him off before closing the blinds behind her. Reaching down, she wrapped her hand around his tie and tugged a little, forcing him to his feet.
"You look stressed. I want to make you feel better." She moved to sit down in his chair and glanced up at him as she started to work on his belt.
"No, baby. We don't have time for this." He licked at his lips as his cock throbbed painfully in his slacks. He wasn't one to come quickly with oral sex, and letting her take him would only leave him needy and unable to concentrate through the dinner.
"Yes, we do." She pushed at his hands and finished unfastening his slacks. They slid down his legs, and damn if she didn't reach into the opening of his boxer briefs and pull his cock out. He watched her expression, a little worried that she would retract from him. He wasn't a monster by any means, but he was hung, which got a mixed bag of reactions, mostly bad.
"I love it," she whispered and ran her cheek up the side of his length, worshiping him in a way that so few had done, and no one had pulled off well.
"Oh fuck. Mariah, I'm serious. We only have forty minutes, and I—"
"Shut up." She glanced up at him, giving him a warning before tilting his cock toward her and lapping at the pre-cum that pooled at the edge. He groaned and pressed his hands to his own hips, not wanting to mess up her beautiful hair.
"Fuck," he growled as she took him into her mouth slowly. He was shocked by how much she got inside of her, and his balls tightened the minute she gagged and pulled back.
"Damn, you are huge." She smiled and licked at him a bit more before moving up to start her assault. Both of her hands tightened around the base of him, and she worked her mouth over him as she fucked him fast and hard.
Her groans reverberated against his tight skin and the subtle brush of her teeth over his flesh left his knees weak. He reached behind him, pressing one hand to the door as the other slid into her hair. She could fix it before everyone got there, but he needed ownership over her for a few minutes.
"Yes, take it, baby. Suck hard, Mariah." He groaned loudly as she followed his directives to a T. The woman was every fucking fantasy he'd had since being a wayward teenager. Watching her eat at his cock in the office at his restaurant was almost too much. He ran his fingers by her exotic face, but she was lost to her indulgence, her pretty eyes closed and face slack as she forced him into the warm wetness of her pretty mouth. His head fell back as his orgasm pressed forward, the force of it wickedly delicious.
"I'm gonna come, move back and let me finish it."
She growled and ran one of her hands down his sack, pressing her nails against his sensitive flesh and tugging a little.
That was all it took. He let himself go and watched in a lusty haze as she drank every bit of him down, cleaned him up and tucked him back into his slacks.
"Now... let's go impress these guys with your skills." She smiled and patted his ass.
He swallowed hard, never having been fucked so efficiently by a woman. "Yes, and don't you dare even think of showing them yours. You belong to me."