Chapter 11
Mariah
The investors who had attended dinner wanted to take Darren out for drinks afterward, and though the invitation was extended to Mariah as well, she just wasn't feeling it. Several of the comments made during the night left her questioning her decisions as of late.
She gave him a quick kiss and told him that she would see him in the morning. Her story was that her mother needed her to come by the house, and she would just stay there for the night. He wasn't happy about it, but she didn't care. With everything running through her head, she needed time to think.
Using her mother as a quick escape wasn't the most honorable thing to do, but she was headed down a slippery slope anyway. It wasn't about falling in love with Darren, or making love to him in several places and different ways. That all sat well with her, but the part where she was looking down her nose at one of her maids for doing the same thing she was doing? Disgusting.
Even worse was the fact that no one knew but her. It was like hiding a part of herself, which felt icky. Wrong. Horrible.
One of the investors had brought up the idea of the perfect staff member, and they'd all gone on and on about wanting someone with integrity. Darren himself had spent more than ten minutes talking about the fact that he could never truly trust someone who wasn't the same in the dark as they were in the light. Pretending to be something they weren't just showed a lack of ethics, which was incredibly disturbing.
"Like me," she mumbled and pulled up to her small trailer house. It was quaint and ugly, but it was hers. She got out and unlocked the door quickly before locking up and tugging her heels from her feet.
What was she thinking? Not only should she have sent over another maid by now, but she should have pushed Darren away. Yes, he was everything she wanted in her life where a man was concerned, but he was leaving. Getting involved with him was the stupidest thing she could have done.
Pulling her phone from her pocket, she texted Karen before she lost her nerve to do it.
Mariah: Send someone else over to Mr. Botelli's in the morning. I need a break, and you were right. I have too much to do to play maid anymore.
Karen: You sure? Something happen?
Mariah: No. Just tired, and with all the new client work coming in, I should be at the office. I guess I just miss the simply life sometimes.
Karen: We can switch! I'll clean houses for sexy billionaires.
Mariah: Be my guest, sister. Thanks for the support.
She tossed the phone on the couch and worked to get out of her dress. She would return it to him and get back to life. She'd been playing Cinderella long enough. She had a company to run and having put all of herself into it over the last nine years since dreaming it up was a big damn deal. The situation with Mr. Kinsley was a wake-up call. If Darren still wanted to see her, then she would consider going on another date or so with him, but working for him wasn't going to work.
Hell, she wasn't even sure it was a good idea to have him as a client. If anyone ever got a hold of the fact that she'd entered into a sexual relationship with one of her clients, it would leave her looking as unethical as she felt, as she was.
Hating herself for how much she needed him, she got into a hot bath and let herself soak as thoughts of him swam by her vision. Tears burned her eyes, and even though on some level she realized how ridiculous she was being, she knew their time was soon to end. Why she kept pretending like it wasn't going to sneak up on them was immature and silly. It left her exactly where she was headed—toward heartbreak.
He was too important to want to spend his life flying back and forth for a simple girl like herself. Sure, she owned the maid service now, but she was still just a maid herself. She enjoyed simplicity and the common things in life. Living in Italy and trying to fit in with a horde of beautiful and wealthy people wasn't at all on her list of things to do.
And in all actuality, the mature thing to do would be to let him go. If she wasn't going to push their relationship forward, then it needed to end.
Her phone rang in the other room, and she ignored it, not interested in talking to anyone, least of all him. He would say a few sweet things, make her feel better about her shitty decisions and then she'd be in his arms.
She finished up and got in the bed, stretching out and enjoying the cool press of her sheets against her body. Her mind dove right into a fantasy that involved the man who would most likely hold her mind and heart for a while.
Too bad it was to be so short lived.
***
A loud knocking at her front door pulled her from a rather lusty dream the next morning. She scrambled around the bedroom and decided on an over-sized T-shirt she'd stolen from her brother a few years before. She was a hot mess, but it didn't matter. Someone was in for a long ass-chewing for beating on her door at seven in the morning.
She pulled it open and leaned around it, not wanting to show whoever it was that she was without pants and panties. "What?"
Darren lifted his eyebrow and crossed his thick arms over his chest. "Why the fuck is there some random woman at my house, trying to scrub my baseboards?"
"Because. I heard what you guys said about integrity last night, Darren, and you're right." She moved out from behind the door and reached up to brush her hair down with one hand while wrapping the other around her chest. Her breasts were far too large to leave them unattended while he looked at her like he was.
His eyes moved across her, leaving heat in their wake.
"I'm not interested in you having doubts about us, Mariah. You're the first woman I've wanted with an insatiable desire my whole life. Your integrity is perfectly in place." He moved into the house and slammed the door shut behind him. "And I'm not at least worthy of you calling or coming by to talk with me?"
"Yes." She glanced around. "Let me get dressed and we'll go talk. I don't want you to see this place."
"I'm fine with this place. It smells like heaven and looks like home." His expression softened a little. "I'm not leaving here until we figure this out. I don't want you to clean my house or do anything for me that makes you feel like your ethics are in question, but I'm falling in love with you. I'm not letting this go that easily. It's not happening."
"You're leaving in a week, Darren. This isn't like you live down the fucking street." Tears filled her eyes, and she hated herself for the flood of emotion coming. "I can't do this. Just leave, okay?"
"Have you lost your fucking mind? I've been looking for you all my life. I'm not letting you go. I'll pay off every mother fucker or company in the world to make sure you're beside me. You're mine, woman. I don't care what anyone else thinks, nor am I concerned with our businesses. Things and money pass away, Mariah, but this... this thing between us? It's what people search for all day, every day."
She pressed her hands to her face and let out a painful sob. "I can't fall for you to have you leave. It's not fair."
"Baby, you already have." He wrapped his arms around her and pushed at her with his weight.
She snuggled into him and walked backward until her legs bumped into the bed behind her. "I'm scared to lose again."
"I am, too." He reached down and pulled at her T-shirt, leaving her naked in front of him. Wrapping her up tightly, he pushed a little more, forcing her to lay down with him. "But we don't have to be, Mariah. We can make this work. I'm willing to try anything."
She wiped at her tears and tugged at his shirt. "Make love to me, now."
"What? No fucking? Damn." He kissed the tip of her nose and moved back, his eyes never leaving her for a minute. "Just so you know, I'm not happy with you."
"I know. I'm sorry... I just didn't know what else to do. I'm a fucking hypocrite, and I realized it in the middle of that dinner last night. I don't want to lose everything. You have to go home, of course, but I still need my business to survive, Darren. If someone found out that I—"
He cut her off. "That you fell for a man you were working for? That's not as bad as you might think it sounds. We found each other, baby. Who gives a shit how it happened? I don't."
She reached up and pulled him down to lay on top of her after he finished stripping. His deliciously large body pressed against her, and she opened her thighs before reaching up and touching the side of his face.
"I want to make it work," she said softly, her voice lost to the strong emotions that raced through her.
He smirked and moved down, licking at her ear. "It's going to work, baby. Let's just concentrate over the next few hours on making it fit."
She groaned loudly as he pressed into her, his body so wickedly delicious.
"We know it fits, so shut up and use it." She slid her hands down his strong back and cupped his perfect rear, squeezing softly to encourage him to work her like only he could.
"Such a dirty girl." He nipped at her ear. "I want you on top. I want to watch you work me."
She nodded and rolled with him before sitting up and pressing herself down to consume him. They both cried out just before his hands locked onto her hips.
He set the pace for their sex, and she kept to it until fire spread from the inside of her body toward her fingers and toes. Leaning forward, she pressed her hands to his tight abs and lifted up, working herself against him as her hair cascaded over her shoulders and her breasts bounced.
"Damn, you're beautiful, woman. Promise me forever." He slid his hand up between her breasts and latched onto the base of her throat, forcing her to look up as she pressed against his hold. "Promise me."
"Yes, Forever. Whatever you want, Darren." She cried out as he lifted his hips and plunged into her from below, working her fast and hard as he joined her. The fact that he'd forgotten to wear a condom was a little upsetting, but she was too lost in their ecstasy to think too much on it.
He pulled her down and pressed his lips to the side of her throat, licking at her wet flesh and murmuring how good she was. Rolling them back over, he shifted up a little and pressed his elbows to either side of her face as he stared down at her with intensity.
"Come with me to Italy, Mariah. Come visit my home, my land and meet my parents." He rocked against her, his body still very much filling hers up.
She pushed at his chest as if trying to get him off of her, which wasn't at all what she wanted, but surely he was done. "I have a business to keep up with, Darren. I can't."
"Yes, you can. Just come for a week and see everything. We can spend that time away from everyone and talk about how we're going to make us work." He leaned down and kissed her several times softly. "Wrap your legs around me. I'm just getting started."
"What?" She did as he asked, but was left filled with confusion. "You just came."
"I'm aware of that, but I'm just warming up." He chuckled. "You've never been with a man who can come multiple times?"
"Um... no. I didn't know they existed." She smirked and ran her fingers through his dark hair. "You're incredible."
"No, you are, baby." He kissed her again. "I'll show you my unicorn after this."
She laughed and lifted her hips, wanting to meet him stroke for stroke. "Is it here or in Italy?"
"It's there, and you'll see it when you come." He licked at her chest and pressed into her in hard thrusts that shook her to her core.
"Darren... I don't..."
He cut her off. "Shut up. You're coming to visit me within the next month. You can choose the week, but I'm indulging in you as much as possible until I leave, then you're coming to me. We'll take turns until one of us gives. I'm not doing this without you, Mariah. I can't."
"Doing what?" She groaned, having trouble keeping the conversation up. Her panting was getting worse as he started to fuck her harder. So much pleasure. So damn deep.
"Living life without you."
"What are you saying?" She wrapped her arms around his neck tightly and pulled him down to lay flush against her as he undulated his sexy hips.
"That I love you. I know it's too soon, but I don't give a fuck. I'm a risk taker, and I get what I want. Period." He pressed his teeth into the side of her neck softly as he slid his hands down between her and the bed, cupping her ass and holding on tightly as he continued to take her expertly.
"And what do you want?" she asked breathlessly.
"You, baby. Only you."