Chapter Sixteen
Jamie
My party organizer, Jeff, had done a great job handling the preparation for tonight’s little event. Something had been switched up in translation—I’d gotten a note at lunch that the Kokomoro investors were actually expecting to stay over at my house. As in, stay the night. Having never dealt with foreign investors before, I didn’t know if this was a common thing or not, but I’d texted Jeff with the information and instructed him to ready three of the guest bedrooms upstairs.
Dinner had gone really well, with all three of them complimenting the food and my home. Now all four of us sat comfortably in the living room, exchanging small talk. I’d learned a few words in Japanese in preparation for their visit, but their English was flawless, so that was how we spoke to each other.
“Would you like a whiskey?” I asked Ichida, the man on my right.
“Yes, thank you,” he said.
I poured whiskeys all around, and we sat back again. This was how I’d envisioned the evening—four business people relaxing and talking about I Seek U, coming together over the common goal of creating something helpful and valuable—something that would make us all some money.
“Please tell me more about your app,” Ichida said. “Why, specifically, do you think it would do well in Japan?”
I liked Ichida. He had warmed up to me immediately and wasn’t afraid to ask hard questions. I took a sip of my whiskey before setting down my glass. I wouldn’t have much more because I wanted to keep my wits about me. We looked casual, of course, but this meeting was anything but casual.
“The app is a new idea,” I said. “Nobody else has done something of this scope. All the other apps want to help you find someone but this app helps you evaluate the relationship you’re in.”
“And if the relationship gets a failing grade?” Kazutoshi asked, his voice sharp.
“Then you don’t need to worry about a thing,” I said. “There are suggestions for improvement. Date nights. Activities. Questions to work out with each other.”
Kazutoshi nodded. “I see.”
“And there will be a free version offered here?” Ichida asked.
“With in-app purchases,” I said. “The free version is really just the bare minimum possible, a risk-free way for people to try out the app and see what it has to offer.”
We talked more about the app’s potential, how it would be launched and monitored, and where we hoped to take it next.
By the end of this “casual” conversation, all three of them looked impressed, which was what I’d hoped for.
After we finished our drinks, the men excused themselves. “Big day tomorrow,” Kazutoshi said, nodding to the others.
They followed his lead, likely because he was highest up in Kokomoro Industries. I led them to their rooms upstairs and made sure they had everything they needed to be comfortable, although really, Jeff had taken care of all that earlier today.
Jeff was getting a big fucking bonus, that was for sure.
There was so much to think about with the future of I Seek U. I couldn’t settle down to sleep yet, so I returned to the parlor and what was left of my drink.
Out the window, I could see Liz’s house next door. It was eleven, but her lights were on, and I wondered what she was still doing awake at this hour. I missed her so much, I could barely stand it.
I had to get over there. I just had to see her, hold her in my arms, just for a moment.
Taking out a piece of paper from the roll-top desk in the corner, I wrote a note explaining to Kazutoshi and the others that I’d had to go back to the office for something I’d left behind and not to worry if they came down and didn’t see me here. Hopefully, none of them would come down, but if they did, I wouldn’t have any awkward questions.
Then I threw back the last sip of my whiskey and sneaked across the driveway to Liz’s house. I knocked quietly on her door.
She answered the door in a pair of pink sleep shorts and an oversized sweater. Her strawberry-blond hair was up in a messy bun. “Jamie? Is everything all right?”
I looked deeply into her eyes and stepped forward, pulling her into an embrace. “It is now.”
She tilted her face toward mine, and I gave her the kiss I’d been dreaming about for days, plunging my tongue into her mouth, tasting her, invading her, teasing her. She moaned softly against my mouth and gripped my arms, trying to pull me closer.
I never wanted to let her go. I came the rest of the way into her foyer and fumbled behind me for the door, pulling it closed. Liz reached behind me, and I heard the click of the lock.
I continued kissing her hungrily as we made our way upstairs, to fall in bed together.
“Jamie, I’ve missed you so much,” she whispered.
I tugged her sweatshirt over her head. She was braless, and now bared for me, her breasts luminescent in the moonlight. I dipped my head and swirled my tongue around the nipple, listening to her breathy moans and gasps. She arched her back, pressing more of herself against my mouth.
Smiling to myself, I replaced my mouth with my fingers and pinched her slightly, then I moved my lips over to her other breast. She squirmed and writhed, moving her legs back and forth together, then hooking one around me to pull me closer.
“Jamie,” she whimpered, “don’t make me wait.”
Normally, I would tease her longer. I might even make her beg. But it had been too long for me since we were last together, and I needed her now.
Tonight, we would pour all of our longing and love into each other. Quickly, I unfastened my pants. Liz lifted her hips up and slid her shorts down to her ankles, then kicked them off and out of the way. I worked my pants off, then my shirt.
She was lying prone on the bed, looking up at me with a small smile on her face.
“You’re so fucking gorgeous,” I said.
“Come here.”
I did as she asked, joining her on the bed, lining my cock up at her entrance and filling her with all the love and frustration and longing I’d been feeling the past week. She arched forward to meet me with each thrust. “Jamie,” she panted.
“This right here,” I said. “You and me. Together. This is what I need.”
She closed her eyes and I kissed her throat, touching her body everywhere my hands could reach, memorizing the feel of her skin. I could feel when she was getting close, because she gripped my arms tighter and wrapped her legs around my waist, squeezing me with everything she had. Then she shuddered and pulled my head down for a kiss.
Seconds later, I felt my own orgasm building, a wondrous feeling of pleasure shooting through and out of me, into her tight warmth. I’d never felt so grateful, lucky, and in love in my entire life.
This woman. She didn’t know it yet, but this woman owned me.