Office Romance at it’s Best

BOOK 1: OFFICE ROMANCE

Blurb

Belle Freedman is a wide-eyed enthusiastic small-town girl, who has just landed an internship at the biggest ad agency on the East Coast. Her new boyfriend, Jesse, has followed her to New York so that they can chase their dreams together…to make it big in the Big Apple. Belle believes she has it all, a kind boyfriend and a brand new job.

When she has a chance encounter with a stranger on the elevator, things begin to start changing in her world. Devon Rymer is not only one of the partners at the ad agency, but he is also well into his forties, single and the hottest man Belle has ever laid eyes on. Suddenly, the world she thought was perfect, doesn’t seem so perfect any more.

Belle wants Devon. He is irresistibly handsome and strong, but she has a boyfriend, and a job to keep.

Chapter 1

Belle

 

Belle stood staring at herself in the full length mirror at the corner of their studio apartment. She had spent hours laboring over the right look. First day at the new job. She had butterflies in her stomach and she drew in a deep breath to steady herself. Behind her, Jesse, her boyfriend, was flipping pancakes in the section of the apartment that they called the “kitchen”.

Through the reflection in the mirror, Belle could see Jesse at the stove. His longish blond hair was ruffled and he was still in his boxer shorts with no shirt on. Belle watched him in silence for a few moments. His slender pale frame, the concave shape of his stomach…she had always thought he was the “cutest” boy ever since she’d known him. And now he was her boyfriend!

“How do I look?” Bell asked, flipping around to face him. Jesse looked up and fixed his eyes on her with a bored expression. He was always grumpy in the mornings, that was something that Belle recently discovered about him, ever since they started living together.

“You look great. Stop fretting,” he said and started stacking the pancakes on two plates. Belle tried to be in a cheerful mood, even though the nervousness was wrecking her on the inside. She didn’t want Jesse to feel worse than he already did about his own situation.

She had been offered a position, even if that was as an intern, but it was a job nonetheless. Jesse was yet to find a job or internship of any kind. They had already been in New York for over three months and it was going to get harder and harder to pay the bills if he didn’t find some kind of employment soon. Belle’s meager internship stipend wouldn’t even cover the rent they were paying.

She walked over to the small table beside the stove where Jesse had started setting their breakfast. Belle took a chair and he took the one across from her. She could see that he hadn’t shaved in days, and she had lost track of how many times she had tried to politely suggest that he take a shower.

“What are you going to do with your day?” she asked, digging a fork into the pancakes. She heard Jesse take in a deep breath and looked up at him. He looked offended that she had asked him that.

“If you’re trying to subtly hint that I should go out there and look for a job, I’m going to do that any way. You don’t have to mother me,” he snapped at her and she fell silent.

“I was just making conversation. You don’t have to do anything,” she mumbled, already kicking herself that she had even bothered to ask.

Jesse’s mood swings were unpredictable. Some mornings he woke up feeling energetic and excited about going hunting for jobs, and on other days he was grumpy and touchy about it. Belle was hoping that he would feel inspired today so that he could uplift her mood too for her first day.

They ate their pancakes in relative silence for a few more minutes.

“Well, have a great first day,” Jesse said suddenly and stood up. Taking his half finished pancakes, he shoved the remains into the bin beside the stove.

“What’s wrong?” Belle asked, stopping her chewing.

“Nothing. I’m going back to bed for a few hours. It’s only eight,” Jesse said distractedly. Belle gulped, trying to control her heart from racing out of her chest. She wished she could do something to ease his frustration. She watched as Jesse crossed the room and fell on to the mattress on the floor and rolled over to his side.

He hadn’t even offered her a kiss goodbye or a hug. She finished her food in silence, throwing nervous glances at the man she had a crush on for so long. She wasn’t sure if she had done something to upset him, or what she could do to make him feel better. For now, she was getting late for work so she stood up from the chair.

“I’m off, Jesse. Hope you have a nice day. I love you,” Belle said as she grabbed her purse off the floor near the door. Jesse made no movement, but had his face pressed into his pillow. She heard a muffled goodbye and opened the door.

She closed the door gently behind her and took the steps two at a time as she rushed outside. This was too much to handle. Her first day at a job and also Jesse’s mood swings. She wasn’t sure what bothered her more.

Jesse had been her middle school crush, back in their hometown. They went to the same State college, and her feelings for him returned. It wasn’t until the last year, when they happened to bump into each other at a house party, that they actually started talking and went on a few official dates. When Belle told him that she was moving to New York, Jesse declared that he loved her and would move with her.

So they had officially been a couple for no more than three months, since they moved to New York. No more dates at restaurants, or going for movies or sharing milkshakes. Real life and real responsibilities had come tumbling down on them, when they were least prepared for it. While Belle had a plan for her professional life, Jesse had none and so the hunt had begun and he kept hitting a brick wall.

All the romance that should have existed in a young relationship, between two twenty-two year olds never made an appearance. He was too upset about finding a job, and every day ended with him falling into bed exhausted and uninspired. Belle gulped as she hurried down the busy New York streets towards the subway. Starkly aware that tonight wasn’t going to be the night either, when Jesse might make a move and be the first guy to make love to her.

Chapter 2

Belle

 

Bell looked up at the forty storied building and licked her lips nervously. She had only been here once before, when she came in for the interview. It was exciting for her to be working there, but at the same time she wasn’t sure what her first day was going to be like. She had been hired to intern with the marketing team at the advertising agency, and she had no prior experience in it. The only reason she had even been hired, Belle assumed, was because of her professional and cheerful personality. The interviewer seemed to like her go-getter and proactive attitude.

Belle pushed open the glass doors and stepped into the lobby. She knew that Rymer & Mills had their offices across five of the top floors, so she went straight for the elevators. Her heels clicked against the marble floors loudly as she walked, and Belle began to wonder if she was even dressed appropriately. She pressed the elevator button and stood with her hands clasped together in front of the double doors.

She caught a faint reflection of herself in the polished steel doors. She had picked out a gray professional looking pencil skirt that reached her knees and accentuated the curves of her hips. She’d tucked in a white shirt neatly on top and picked out a pair of high black stilettos to complete the look. She had spent a considerable amount of time on her hair, to achieve the perfect fishtail braid and now she was happy with the way it lay on her shoulder, just about reaching the top of her breasts. For her lips she had chosen a chocolate brown color to match her coffee brown eyes.

When she sensed someone come and stand beside her, Belle straightened her shoulders. She was self-conscious now that someone had caught her staring at herself. The elevator doors pinged open just that very second, and she stepped aside to let the people out.

When the carriage was empty, she looked to the side and noticed that a man was holding the door open, gesturing her to take a step inside.

“After you,” he said in a calm deep voice and Belle felt her cheeks flush. He was an incredibly attractive man, and she didn’t want to stare. So, she quickly stepped into the elevator and pressed her back to the cold metal wall. The man stepped in after her, and stood to the side.

He seemed older, at least in his early forties and had dark short hair with some smattering of white near the temples. He was much taller than her, and was dressed in a sharp black suit, with a white shirt and a rich red tie. His eyes were a clear sparkling blue, which he turned to her, and a soft smile grazed his lips.

“Which floor?” he asked, and Belle realized that she had indeed been staring at him.

“Thirty-five,” she replied nervously and she noticed that the man arched an eyebrow. He pressed the button, and didn’t press another one. She gulped. So, he worked at her new office! And she had just been staring at him like an ogling teenager.

Belle looked away, hanging her head towards the floor, but she could sense that he was looking at her.

“First day?” he asked, as the elevator started up. She jerked her head to look up at him, fully aware that her cheeks were burning up by now.

He had a hand thrust into the pocket of his pants, and the other one clutched a brown leather briefcase.

“Yes,” Belle replied meekly and the man only smiled.

“Nervous?” he asked, after a few seconds of silence and she shifted on her feet.

“Little bit. It’s my first job too,” she said and took in a deep breath.

He nodded his head and then looked past her towards the changing lights on the elevator.

“I’m sure you’re good at what you do if you’ve been hired at Rymer & Mills,” he added and Belle breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn’t looked at it that way before. She had got the job. Even if it was an internship. She had been handpicked out of hundreds of applicants and she knew she was ambitious and confident enough to survive the six months of internship. So, technically, he was right…she had nothing to really worry about.

Belle let out a small laugh and their eyes met. His blue eyes were kind and sharp at the same time, and she wondered what position he held at the agency. If he worked there at all.

“What do you do?” she asked him, when he hadn’t said anything for some time.

“Ah, nothing at the moment. I’m hoping I’ll find something to do today,” he said and Belle’s mouth opened slightly. She couldn’t believe that he had been so polite and encouraging towards her, when he was just on his way to a job interview.

“Oh, best of luck with that,” she said and the man smiled and nodded.

“Thank you,” he said politely, just at the doors pinged open again. He gestured to her again to lead the way, and Belle stepped out, smiling as she passed him. She felt their clothes graze gently and there were instant goosebumps on her skin. There was something magnetic about this polite stranger, and she whipped around just as he was stepping out of the elevator himself.

“I’m Belle Freedman, I hope you get the job,” she said and stuck out her hand to him. The man looked quizzically at her hand for a few moments, before lifting his head to look at her again.

“I’m Devon Rymer. Welcome to my agency,” he said and took her hand in his and gave it a strong shake. Belle’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open. She knew she had never felt more embarrassed before.

Chapter 3

Devon

 

Devon was smiling as he shook Belle’s hand. He knew he had an iron grip and an intimidatingly strong handshake, but this girl didn’t seem to be affected by it. She only looked surprised, because she hadn’t known who he was.

She was the one to draw her hand away, and Devon took note of her huge brown eyes, the way her neat braid lay delicately over her shoulder. She was sharply dressed, especially for her age. He assumed that she was in her early twenties, and he tried to remind himself not to stare.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I had no idea,” she said, taking a few steps away from him. Devon smiled and shook his head.

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. I know I’m a private person, there’s no way you could have known what the partners of the agency look like,” he replied, pushing his hand into his pocket again. He was expecting the girl to blush, or turn her eyes away from embarrassment, but she stared back at him with an unwavering gaze.

“Well, thank you for your kind words earlier,” she said, and Devon realized that she was thinking of taking her leave now. For some reason, he wanted to keep talking to her, but he couldn’t think of anything to say to her to make her stay.

“Have a nice day, Ms Freedman,” he said instead and she smiled widely. He noticed how bright her eyes were when she smiled and how her lips lifted up on the sides as she did it. He couldn’t bring himself to look away.

She nodded to that and then walked away, towards the reception area. Devon stood in front of the elevator doors for a few more seconds, watching her walking away, before he breathed out a deep sigh and started making his way towards his own office.

His secretary Lily found him soon enough, and intercepted him in the corridors.

“Mr Rymer, we have two meetings set up for you before lunch. You are supposed to meet with Pat Lynch & Sons first thing,” Lily was walking with him, keeping pace. She also had his double shot Americano in her hand, which she eventually handed to him.

Devon’s mind was occupied with thoughts of Belle instead, and he stopped abruptly in front of his office doors.

“Lily, do you know about a Belle Freedman, who has been hired as an intern? It’s her first day today,” he said and Lily looked back at him with some surprise in her eyes. She didn’t expect him to be talking about an intern that early in the morning. In fact, Devon, rarely ever spoke about interns to begin with.

“Well, I don’t know her personally. But is there something you want me to find out? I can ask Susan, she’s in charge of all the interns,” Lily said, fixing the files and papers in her hands.

Devon was thinking, and he wasn’t really looking at Lily.

“Have her come over to my office, maybe between the two morning meetings,” Devon said. Lily nodded and turned on her heels to walk away. “Oh, and also ask Susan to keep a close eye on her, and give me a report at the end of day about her work,” he added, before pushing open the door to his office and walking in.

Once inside, Devon placed his coffee on his desk and walked around to the glass wall that overlooked the Hudson River. He had his jaws clenched as he watched people walking over the bridge. From the thirty-fifth floor, they looked nothing more than just tiny dots.

He couldn’t get Belle Freedman out of his mind. Not only was she gorgeous, but there was something comforting in her voice. She seemed sweet and cheerful, and he wondered if she was from a small town. He was sure that she wasn’t from New York, and he suddenly felt worried if the city might affect her. If in a few months, Belle might turn into a completely different person.

The phone on his desk beeped and he walked over and pressed a button.

“I’ve set up a meeting between you and Ms Freedman for eleven fifteen, Sir,” Lily’s voice came through.

“Good, thanks Lily,” Devon said.

“And I’ve told Susan what you said. She said she’ll come in and have a word with you at the end of the day,” Lily added.

“Thanks Lily,” he said again.

“Also, she was wondering why you’ve taken an interest in her, and if there’s a problem. She was worried that she might have made a bad hire,” Lily continued.

“No, Not all. There’s no problem and please tell Susan that she’s made a great hire. I like Belle, she seems enterprising and bright,” Devon said and with that he ended the call and sat down on his chair.

He steepled his fingers on his desk and narrowed his eyes as he thought about it some more. He couldn’t put a finger on the exact reason why he had taken an interest in Belle. It wasn’t just her looks was it…? Because he knew he could have any number of beautiful young women he wanted, in fact he tried to keep his distance from them as much as possible, so that a relationship didn’t come between him and his work. Besides, wasn’t Belle a bit too young for him?

There had to be something else about Belle that he had noticed. Just during their five minute conversation in the elevator, he was instantly drawn to her. To her smile. To her innocent confidence.

Devon shook his head, to drive the thoughts out of his brain. He had an entire day’s worth of work to get through and he wasn’t going to allow a girl to occupy his mind.

He pressed the buzzer again and got through to Lily in an instant.

“Set up the board room for the first meeting, I’ll be there in five minutes,” he said and with that, he took two large gulps of his scalding coffee.

Chapter 4

Belle

 

She was nervous as she walked towards Devon Rymer’s office. Her team leader, Susan, had informed her that Mr Rymer wanted to personally meet with her at quarter past eleven, and Belle had no idea what for. Susan couldn’t give her the details of the meeting either, so Belle had spent most of the morning fretting over what she had done wrong.

As far as first days at work go, Belle assumed that it had been going well. She had been given the task of conducting some simple market surveys, and she had spent the morning doing that; completing her task well before the eleven fifteen meeting with Devon Rymer.

So, now she walked self consciously towards his office, as directed by Susan and found his secretary sitting at the end of the corridor behind a desk.

“You must be Belle,” the middle aged woman said, looking up at her from over her crescent shaped spectacles.

“Yes, I’m here to meet with Mr Rymer,” Belle said and stuck out a hand to the woman.

“I’m his secretary, Lily. Nice to meet you Belle. Mr Rymer will be with you shortly,” Lily said and shook Belle’s hand weakly.

“Sure,” Belle said and took in a few deep breaths. Try as she did, she couldn’t shake off the feeling that she had conducted herself wrongly in some way. That Mr Rymer wanted to talk to her to tell her off. Maybe it had something to do with the way she was staring at him!

“Don’t be nervous. He told me that he thinks you’re an enterprising young woman,” Lily interrupted her thoughts. Belle looked at her and forced a smile on her face.

“Really?” she asked, surprised to hear that. Lily shrugged her shoulders and smiled.

The phone beside her on the desk rang and she pressed a button.

“You can send Ms Freedman in, if she’s arrived,” the deep voice said and Belle instantly recognized the voice to be Devon Rymer’s.

“You can go in now,” Lily said kindly and Belle nodded.

She took small slow steps as she walked down the corridor towards the only door that was located at the end of it. Devon Rymer’s office was isolated from the rest of the floor in one corner. She couldn’t even imagine how wonderful the view had to be from that room.

She knocked softly on his door, and heard his voice asking her to come in.

Belle turned the knob and pushed open the door. Devon Rymer was sitting behind his desk, signing a sheet of paper. He looked up at her, and she was struck again by how intensely attracted she was to him. Belle gulped.

“Take a seat, Ms Freedman,” he said, straightening himself in his chair.

Belle closed the door behind her, and walked nervously towards the desk. His office was made of only glass walls, so bright sunlight flooded the room. She noticed the sleek, minimalistic decor of the office, the eggshell white leather chairs, the large oak desk, the potted plants. He had a pretty simple room, with no paintings or additional decor. It seemed like Devon Rymer was a no-fuss kind of man.

Without a word, Belle took the chair across from his desk, and realized how intimidated she was in her surroundings now. Despite what Lily had told her outside, she wasn’t feeling too confident. She couldn’t think of one good reason why he had called her into his office.

“How has your first day been going so far?” he asked, breaking the silence. His clear blue eyes were trained on her, and he was looking at her with an intensely fiery gaze. Belle could barely find the strength to keep looking at him without blushing. He seemed to be the kind of man who knew everything about everything.

“It’s been going well. I’m learning a lot. I’ve been conducting some market research for clients who sell teenage magazines,” Belle replied, shifting in her seat. Her hands were clasped together on her lap and she was pressing her fingers together.

“Good. What would you say has been your one major finding?” he asked, sitting back in his chair. Belle gulped before answering. She noticed how broad his shoulders were, he didn’t have his suit jacket on and she could see the muscles rippling under his thin white shirt.

“I would say that teenagers will only subscribe to magazines if they get free samples of products with each copy. Otherwise, they just have the internet for everything,” Belle replied, and tried to match his eyes with a confident gaze.

A soft smile was grazing Devon’s face. He looked handsome, with rugged features, in the bright light of the room. Belle wondered if she had ever seen eyes as blue as that before.

“You’re picking up fast,” he said finally, and she nearly breathed a sigh of relief. She had prepared herself for an onslaught of complaints. She smiled at that, and he smiled too. Despite how intimidated she was in her surroundings, she couldn’t help but admire how comfortable he had managed to make her feel.

“You’re not from New York, are you?” he asked and she was slightly taken aback by that question. Belle cleared her throat and lifted her chin in the air.

“I’m from Little Canada, Minnesota,” she replied and Devon Rymer’s eyes narrowed.

“Where did you go to school?” he asked.

“Minnesota State, Mankato,” Belle said and now he nodded his head.

“Are you living by yourself in New York? Ms Freedman,” he continued.

Belle shook her head and tried to force a smile on her face.

“No, I live with my boyfriend, and please Sir, call me Belle,” she replied and felt her cheeks burn up. Across from her, Devon Rymer’s features darkened and he clenched his jaw tightly. Again, she wondered what exactly he was thinking and if she had done something to displease him.

Chapter 5

Devon

 

He couldn’t control the rush of jealousy he felt the moment he heard the words escape Belle’s beautifully luscious chocolate brown lips. She had a boyfriend! What was he thinking? How could he just presume that she was single? Then the thought struck him, that she was an employee at his agency. He was her boss. There was a code of conduct he had to maintain. Devon cleared his throat and picked up a pen from the desk.

“Okay, Belle. I hope you’re setting into New York nicely,” he said and she seemed to buy what he was saying. Devon was worried that she would be able to see right through him. That somehow she would know what was on his mind. Till that instance, when she told him she had a boyfriend, Devon hadn’t officially acknowledged to himself that he was interested in her as more than just an employee.

“It’s a lovely city. I can’t say that it’s easy, but I’m having a lot of fun here,” she said cheerfully and tucked in a few loose strands of her brown hair behind her small ears.

Every movement she made filled Devon with tension. He realized that he was growing more conscious of her body, of her presence, by the second.

“New York is tough, but you seem like someone who’ll make it,” he replied and Belle nodded and smiled. She seemed like the kind of person who looked at everything in life with positivity. She could brighten up a room by just walking into it. Her boyfriend was very lucky, Devon thought to himself and stood up with a jerk.

“Well, thank you for coming in to see me, Belle,” he said and stuck out his hand to her. She looked surprised for a few seconds, like she didn’t expect the meeting to end so suddenly. Then she half stood up and reached for his hand and gave it a tight firm shake. Again, Devon was pleasantly surprised by the strength in her arms.

When she drew her hand away, she straightened herself up and was looking at him curiously.

“I was worried there for a bit, I wasn’t sure if you wanted to see me because I’d done something wrong,” she said and he laughed too, forcing himself to do so.

“No, of course you haven’t. I just wanted to check in on you because you looked quite nervous in the elevator earlier,” he replied and Belle licked her lips. She remained standing where she was, with her hands clasped together and she looked around the office.

“This is a wonderful office, you have a lovely view,” she said and he wondered if she was stalling. If like him, she too wanted to keep talking. He tried to push that thought out of his mind. She had a boyfriend, Devon had to remind himself of that again.

“Thank you, Belle. I like to keep it simple,” he said and she fixed her large brown eyes on him again. Devon could see her perfectly shaped pert breasts rising and falling under her white shirt, and he felt a movement in his pants.

“Hope you have a good first day, thank you again for coming in,” he said quickly and sat back down. He didn’t want her to remain in his office and make it any worse. Devon was certain now that it was more than just curiosity in an interesting person. He was attracted to her sexually, and he wanted to avoid feeling that way as much as possible.

Belle nodded, thanked him and then walked out of the office. At the door, before she left, she threw him a quick grateful look and then she was gone.

Devon sat back in his chair and ran his hand through his hair, and let out a huge sigh. Inviting her to a private meeting was a bad idea, he told himself. He should have just left it at that in the morning. There was no reason for him to interact personally with an intern.

He was annoyed with himself because he couldn’t believe that he hadn’t thought this through. Belle was a young, vibrant, beautiful and intelligent young woman. What were the chances that she didn’t already have a boyfriend? Besides, she didn’t seem to be the kind of person who would be interested in the things most women in New York were interested in. She wouldn’t be interested in Devon’s money or his power. And he felt like he was too old for her.

Frustrated, and at the edge of his seat, Devon picked up his personal cell phone and dialed a number. One he had been dialing less often in the past couple of months. On the third ring, she answered the phone.

“Alisha,” he said, closing his eyes.

“Devon, ah, Devon…I haven’t heard from you in a long time,” Alisha’s voice sounded groggy. He got the feeling that she had just woken up from her sleep. Devon had known Alisha for the past six years and he knew she was a late riser. A social butterfly, and with all her daddy’s money to spend, Alisha would have been up till the wee hours of the morning entertaining guests.

“I was wondering what you’re doing this evening,” he mumbled into the phone, ignoring her previous statement. Alisha laughed a cackling laugh, she was glad to hear him say that.

“I have a cocktail party to attend, but you know I would cancel that in a heartbeat for you,” she said.

“Great, I’ll pick you up at eight,” Devon said and hung up the phone.

His heart was racing, he was still too anxious to sit still. He knew he needed the distraction and Alisha would be the right kind. In the six years that he’d known Alisha, she had never pushed him to get into a serious relationship with her. If she had any stronger feelings for him, she never showed it. And he definitely needed some good old no-strings-attached sex, if he was going to get over picturing Belle Freedman naked.

Chapter 6

Belle

 

Belle came back to her studio apartment, and found Jesse sitting on the couch, still in his boxer shorts. At least he had put on a shirt at some point, and he had a big bowl of popcorn on his lap which he was eating while watching ice hockey on TV.

“How was your day?” Belle asked, as she dropped her bag on the floor by the door and walked over to him. She didn’t want to comment on his laziness or the fact that he hadn’t done any cleaning up of the dishes or the apartment.

“The usual. I dropped my CV off at a few places,” he said, and looked up at her. Belle could see it in his eyes that he was lying. He hadn’t left the house.

She came over to him and sat down beside him on the couch.

“My first day was good. Devon Rymer, one of the partners called me into his office and said that I was doing a good job,” she said and reached for Jesse’s hand. He allowed her to hold his hand, but didn’t drag his gaze away from the TV.

“Oh yeah?” he said, popping some popcorn into his mouth. Belle couldn’t help but roll her eyes at his disinterest. It was like he just didn’t care.

“Aren’t you interested at all in how my day was?” she asked him, getting a little angry now. Jesse finally turned to her, with his lips pressed together.

“Of course I am. I’m just watching the game babe. And I already know you’re good at your job,” he said, forcing a smile on his face. Belle pulled her hand away and scrunched up her face. She was excited about how the day went. She couldn’t exactly tell Jesse how thrilling it was to talk to Devon Rymer, but she at least could tell him about the rest of the work she did. But now he was only pretending to be interested.

“What do you want to eat?” she asked him, deciding to change the subject so that she didn’t lose her temper even more.

Jesse looked at her apologetically.

“I ate already. Chinese takeout. Sorry, I was really hungry,” he said and Belle rolled her eyes again.

“You couldn’t even wait for me to come home!” she said and stood up with a jerk. Jesse stood up too and started following her to the kitchen area.

“I’m sorry, babe. I really am. I wasn’t sure how long you’d be. I figured since it’s your first day, you might be delayed,” he was saying, and Belle just shook her head. The frustration was rising in her chest. This was not the kind of relationship she had imagined for them. It was supposed to be an adventure, a romantic adventure in New York.

She started rummaging in their mini fridge for leftovers, when she felt Jesse’s hands on her waist from behind. She straightened herself up and whipped around. He was smiling at her apologetically and pulled her closer to him.

Belle bit down on her lip, aware of the feelings of arousal she had in Devon Rymer’s office that morning. Perhaps sex with Jesse would help quench those needs, she thought. She decided to forgive him and brought her face closer to him now. Jesse leaned in and kissed her. The kiss was gentle and slow and Belle moaned softly.

He pulled away after a few seconds and she was blushing, looking up at him from under her heavy eyelids.

“Should we just go to bed?” she asked him and Jesse suddenly let go of her waist.

“I’m not sleepy yet, babe,” he said and the smile on Belle’s face drooped.

“No, I meant…” she began to say, but Jesse had already started walking away from her towards the couch. She couldn’t understand why they hadn’t had sex yet. Weren’t boys his age supposed to want sex more than girls? Wouldn’t he be excited that they were living together and now he had his opportunity to have sex with her as much as he wanted?

It seemed like she wanted it more than he did.

“I know what you meant, Belle,” Jesse said, sitting back down on the couch again. Belle grabbed the open door of the fridge tightly, she could feel her teeth grinding against each other. She was beginning to feel humiliated now. This constant rejection from her own boyfriend was taking its toll on her.

“What is the problem, Jesse?” she asked him, afraid of what the answer might be.

“I just think we should wait,” he said bluntly, without looking at her. He had settled the bowl of popcorn on his lap again.

“Wait for what? We’re in a relationship and we’re living together!” she said, her voice rising in anger now. Jesse looked at her, only for a second and turned his gaze to the TV screen again.

“Don’t you want to save yourself for the right moment? Like when we decide to take our relationship to the next stage? Isn’t that the right thing to do?” Jesse said and Belle whipped around from him.

She had never thought like that. Her own virginity was because she hadn’t found the right guy yet, not because she was saving herself for the right moment, or marriage. Up until now, she had no idea that was the reason why Jesse was holding out. He was a friendly, intelligent, good looking guy who dated several girls in college before herself…Belle hadn’t doubted that he was a sexually active guy.

She bit down on her lip as she tried to keep herself from looking at Jesse. She couldn’t believe what she had gotten herself into.

“I love you babe, I just think we should wait,” she heard him say and she pressed her eyes close to try and shut out his voice.

Chapter 7

Devon

 

Alisha was sprawled on his bed, when Devon woke up the next morning at seven. He looked over and found her sleeping, with her face turned away from him. The events of the previous night came flooding back into his brain and Devon ran his hands through his hair and shook it out.

The night was going smoothly. He had taken her to a cocktail bar, they had several drinks together and as per plan, he brought her to his apartment. When she started taking her clothes off however, Devon stopped her in her tracks. Alisha looked confused. Wasn’t that what he wanted? Wasn’t that why he had called her? Devon pushed her away. He insisted that he didn’t want to have sex. When Alisha asked him why, he couldn’t give her an answer.

They got into bed nevertheless, because it was too late for her to go home and they had slept together several times for it to become comfortable. Alisha tried to seduce him again, she had even managed to peel off his pants, but Devon didn’t allow her to get any further than that. He was tired, was his excuse; and Alisha didn’t look like she believed him.

She went to sleep, pissed off at him for wasting her night, and Devon remained awake almost the entire time, wondering what was wrong with him.

Having sex with Alisha, or any woman; had never been a problem for him before. But for some reason, this night, he wasn’t even turned on by her. The only thought in his mind was that he wanted to be with Belle. He had called Alisha for that very reason, to rid himself of thoughts about Belle. But she hadn’t been successful at that. He still wanted Belle. Hers was the only face that floated up in his mind every time he closed his eyes, and he had spent the whole night dreaming about her.

Alisha moved and stretched her arms, as Devon stood up and started putting his shirt on.

“Going to the gym?” she asked him, raising her head slightly.

“Yeah,” he replied and walked over to his walk-in closet.

Alisha had propped herself on her elbows and was watching him walking around the room. When Devon looked over at her, he couldn’t help but admire her chocolate brown nipples and her small perfectly shaped breasts. Breasts he had enjoyed sucking on many occasions before. Today, however, Alisha’s naked body had no effect on him.

“What happened to you last night?” she asked him, tucking in strands of her brunette hair behind her ears.

Devon took in a deep breath and picked out the gym clothes he would need. He was debating whether to tell Alisha the truth. They had been friends for so long, friends with benefits; that there was practically nothing that they didn’t know about each other.

“Oh my God, you’re in love!” Alisha screeched and a hand went up to her mouth.

Devon met her gaze and shook his head.

“No, it’s not that. I don’t even know her. We just met,” Devon said and a mischievous smile had formed on Alisha’s face. She was straightening herself up, to sit up in bed.

“So it is about a girl,” she said and Devon shrugged.

“Who is it?” she asked, as Devon took out the shoes he needed.

“I can’t tell you that,” he said and Alisha raised an eyebrow at that.

“Is she like forbidden fruit or something?” she asked and Devon remained quiet as he tied his shoelaces.

“Okay, at least tell me what the problem is,” she said and Devon took in another deep breath.

“She has a boyfriend, and she might be too young for me,” he said, standing up again. Alisha was gazing at him, with her eyebrows crossed.

“It’s so unlike you to give up so easily. What’s going on?” she asked and Devon looked back at her.

“I like her. She’s a nice girl. I don’t want to put her in a situation that could end up hurting her,” he said and Alisha stared at him wide eyed. She was finding it hard to believe that Devon Rymer, the shrewd successful advertising mogul who she knew, was softening up because of a girl he barely even knew.

“I really can’t even picture this girl, who has brought you to your knees. So much so that you won’t even fuck me. It’s crazy!” Alisha said and then she laughed.

Devon was changing into his gym clothes now, piling up his night clothes on the floor next to his feet. His housekeeper would take care of them after he was gone to the gym. He was accustomed to these daily luxuries.

“You have to do something about it, Devon. She could be the one!” Alisha said and Devon shook his head.

“Like I said, she has a boyfriend and she’s too young for me,” he said and Alisha rolled her eyes.

“So what? You have to do something, Devon!” she said and he had already started walking towards the bedroom door.

“I appreciate your advice, Alisha. And I’m sorry that I called you over last night. Have a nice day. You can see yourself out, I trust,” he said at the door and Alisha sank back into bed. It was too early in the day for her.

“You have to fuck her if you want to get her out of your head, Devon!” he heard her say as he closed the door behind him.

Devon clenched his jaw as he walked towards his front door. His housekeeper, Bertha, was already in the kitchen, cleaning.

“Morning Bertha, leave the cleaning up of my bedroom till midday please,” Devon told her as he kept walking.

“Yes, Sir,” Bertha mumbled.

He had his own personal gym on the floor below the penthouse apartment, but today Devon was feeling like an actual run outside. He needed the fresh air.

Chapter 8

 

Belle

 

Devon Rymer had called her into his office again, two days later, and Belle approached the door with some hesitation. His secretary wasn’t at her desk today, so she had no way of knowing why exactly she had been summoned. She could already feel the butterflies in her belly, just at the thought of seeing him again.

“Come in!” she heard his sharp voice when she knocked on the door. Belle opened it and stepped inside. He was sitting behind his desk, but stood up when she walked in. He was in another one of his pristine white shirts and today the tie at his neck was a deep purple, that seemed to somehow match his clear blue eyes.

He had square small reading glasses on, which he was taking off and he placed it on his desk. He looked tall and foreboding as he stood and Belle felt her hands tremble slightly. She couldn’t calm her nerves.

“You wanted to see me, Sir?” she said softly and he nodded his head.

“Yes, Belle, come in. How are you?” he asked and she walked towards his desk.

“Things have been going great. It’s a great office to work in,” she replied, realizing that her voice was beginning to sound a little shrill. She had come closer to his desk, but wasn’t sure if he wanted her to take a seat.

“I have spoken to Susan recently, and she reported that you’re a good worker. The best intern that we’ve had to date,” he was smiling at her, and Belle could feel her knees going weak. She couldn’t be sure if it was all the pent up sexual tension from Jesse holding out on her, or if it was an actual feeling…but she could feel goosebumps forming on her arms.

“Thank you, that is very kind of Susan and you. I’m trying my best,” she said and he walked around his desk. The fact that he was now coming closer to her, made her heart beat faster. She had never been this attracted to an older man before, and the fact that he was her boss and therefore in the taboo area, turned her on even more.

“The reason I’ve called you here is because, Belle, I was thinking of giving you a more client facing role. I believe you are good with people, and it might be useful if you sat in on a few client meetings,” he said and Belle blushed. She felt her lips stretch to a wide smile. She was humbled and honored and aroused, all at the same time.

“Thank you, Sir. That would be amazing,” she gushed. He had walked even closer to her now, and was leaning against his desk as he looked at her.

“You can call me Devon, Sir is too formal,” he said and Belle jerked her head up to look at him. She knew Susan called him Sir, so did his secretary. She couldn’t think of a reason why he didn’t want her to do the same. But it only excited her more. She could see that Devon Rymer had taken a special interest in her, and as much as she appreciated his professional interest, she couldn’t help but wonder if he was attracted to her too. The same way she was attracted to him.

“Okay, Devon. I really do appreciate the opportunity,” she said and took a few steps towards him now. She wasn’t sure why she was doing it, but she just wanted to get closer to him. See how he might react to their proximity. It thrilled her to find that he didn’t move away, in fact he was extremely comfortable.

“You deserve it, Belle,” he said softly and she took in a deep breath. She knew that they were already standing inappropriately close for a professional setting. But neither he nor she made a move in any direction. It was like they were allowing their bodies to do the speaking.

“Mr Rymer, Devon…” she was fumbling with her words and he took a step towards her. Their bodies were now only inches apart, and she could breathe in a whiff of his masculine cologne. It made her weaker in her knees.

“Is this awkward for you?” he asked, in a low guttural voice and she looked up from under her heavy lids to meet his fiery blue gaze.

“No,” she said and shook her head.

Devon came closer, the fabric of their clothes were grazing now and she took in a sharp breath.

“Are you sure?” he asked and she looked up at him again. She was mesmerized by his eyes, his voice and by the thought that she might actually get to touch him. All reason and common sense and reality had flown from her mind. In that moment, all she could think of was touching Devon Rymer.

“Yes, I’m sure,” she said in a softer voice and this time when their eyes met, she knew what was going to happen.

He lowered his head abruptly and took her jaw in one of his large hands. In a flash he had angled her small heart shaped face towards him and their lips met. She gasped, loudly, as their mouths pressed together. Devon’s tongue was forcing her lips open, she gave way to it and then he was exploring her mouth. His long velvety tongue inside her mouth was the most sensual thing she had ever experienced. It was like he was already making love to her.

Belle reached up to hold on to his shoulders for support, and slowly, as they continued to kiss, he moved her. She was now against his desk, her back pressing against its cold wooden surface. He was leaning towards her, kissing her with more force.

Belle could feel a wetness between her thighs, something she had never experienced just from kissing. But this was no ordinary kiss. Devon Rymer wasn’t the usual college guys she used to make out with. Just knowing the fact that he was way more experienced than her, turned her on even more.

He pulled away from her suddenly, and Belle gasped again. She stared into his deep blue eyes for a few moments, and a soft smile started forming on his face.

“I’ve wanted this from the moment I saw you,” he grunted and Belle bit down on her lip. She was watching him from under her heavy eyelids. His lips were glazed from her own mouth as he came closer to her again.

Belle thrust her hips out towards him, and his hands went to her shirt. She threw her head back as he caressed her breasts, gently at first. Then he squeezed them. She moaned.

Within seconds he was unbuttoning her maroon cotton shirt, untucking it from her skirt. She felt the coolness of the air as her breasts were exposed, only covered now by the black lace bra she was wearing.

Belle’s legs were parting, and Devon had wedged himself between her thighs. She could feel the material of her tight pencil skirt stretching, she was beginning to worry that it might tear. But then her thoughts were elsewhere, because Devon had pulled down the straps of her bra. Her breasts were completely exposed now, and he gently pinched her small pink nipples.

Belle moaned again and threw her head back. Some thoughts flitted through her brain occasionally. That she hadn’t told him how inexperienced she was, that she was a virgin. That this was all new to her. She was afraid of even touching him.

She felt his hands on her waist, and he lifted her up on the desk. Slowly he brought his head down so that he could lick her pert nipples. Belle winced as he did it. His long velvety tongue licked her nipples, one by one, like they were lollypop. He had his eyes fixed on her the whole time. She pressed her eyes close to enjoy the moment, and then she felt his hands between her legs.

Belle gasped again, and when she looked at him, Devon was smiling.

“You’re sweet,” he said in a low growl, and his hands found the zip on the side of her skirt. He slid it down, and Belle was worried that he would now be able to fully see how wet for him she was. He dragged her skirt down and threw it on the floor.

She was in matching black lace panties, and Devon didn’t waste time to touch the soft throbbing mound between her legs. Belle blushed, nobody had touched her there before, and she quickly squeezed her thighs together.

“Don’t be shy, it’s delicious,” he groaned and gently, he pried her legs open again. It was turning her on to see him even looking at her. But Devon looked like he had eyes only for her wet hot core. She was surprised to find that he slowly lowered himself, still fully dressed, to the floor. His face was now at level with her legs, her throbbing dripping center.

Their eyes met, and Belle was biting down on her lip.

Devon gently used his fingers to move her panties aside. Belle took in a deep breath as he looked at her, at the spot that was still untouched. He could see how wet she was, and she blushed. He brought his face closer and she closed her eyes. The feelings gushing through her veins were all new to her. An uncontrollable urge to grind herself to him, to feel his cock against her leg.

While her eyes were closed, she suddenly felt his tongue on her mound. He was licking her there, and Belle moaned. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do, how she was supposed to react. It was an explosive feeling she couldn’t control. Only her own fingers had ever been there before, but she was always so afraid of it. Now having Devon’s tongue there was a whole new feeling.

Slowly, he licked her again, then just like his tongue had parted her lips, he parted her again and slid his tongue into her. Belle gasped and she felt him reach out and hold her thighs tightly. She could see his head between her legs. Her thighs parted wide apart, and Devon started thrusting into her. His tongue slipped in and out of her, licking and flicking her juicy folds.

Just when Belle was beginning to give in to the sensation, Devon moved his hand. His fingers found her clit and he started stroking her there. Belle moaned loudly this time, unable to control the rush of sensations in her veins. She felt like she was going to pass out.

Devon didn’t stop. He continued to lick her, his tongue sliding in and out of her, while his fingers stroked her clit. Far from stopping he was only increasing his speed. Belle was moaning, her mouth hung open and her eyes rolled back in her head. This was the best, most freeing feeling she had ever felt. Nothing else was in her mind other than reaching that point where her body would take control. Devon was bringing her to the edge, she could feel it rising at the base of her belly. It was growing inside her, his tongue was making it happen.

His phone on his desk next to her suddenly came alive.

“Mr Rymer, your three O clock is here. I’ve put them in the board room,” his secretary’s voice wafted through.

He pulled away from Belle abruptly, letting go of her legs, and he stood up. Belle slapped her legs close and jumped off the desk, aware of her own nakedness.

“Yes, thank you, Lily,” Devon said and reached over to press a button on the phone.

Belle was already picking up her discarded clothes off the floor.

“Umm…I have a meeting right now,” she heard him say behind her. She didn’t want to look at him. She could feel her cheeks burning up from embarrassment.

“Yes, of course,” she said as she pulled her skirt up and zipped it. Then in silence she dressed herself fully, avoiding his eyes. And she was out of his office in under two minutes flat.

Chapter 9

 

Devon

 

Devon sat through the board meeting dazed, feeling more like a zombie than an actual living person. He couldn’t get the image of Belle’s naked body out of his mind. When he had called her into his office, he had no plans of stripping her off her clothes or touching her. He just wanted to see her again. But, seeing her standing there, accepting his proximity, had stirred something in him. She seemed just as excited by the prospect of being with him, as he was.

Now he wasn’t so sure. He didn’t know if she had wanted the same thing he did. Had he somehow crossed a line with her? He saw that she was enjoying herself, he had heard her moan, she encouraged him to go on…but he still couldn’t help feeling guilty. She had a boyfriend!

“Thank you, Mr Burnet, that’ll be all for today,” Devon said, standing up abruptly from his chair. The guy giving the presentation stopped what he was saying and stared at Devon blankly. Everyone seemed to walk on eggshells around him, it appeared to him. And it made him slightly angry. People were scared of him for some reason in his office, and Devon couldn’t understand why. At least Belle didn’t appear to shy away from him, not yet anyway. But after what happened, he couldn’t be sure how she might behave now.

As he walked back to his office, Devon resolved to keep his distance from her. Thankfully, it hadn’t gone farther. It stopped at the right moment.

He shut the door of his office behind him with a bang and walked hurriedly over to his chair. He needed to think.

It was easy to figure out that Belle Freedman was inexperienced. He wondered if she was a virgin. But then again, she said that she was living with her boyfriend. So wouldn’t they have had sex by now? Devon couldn’t distract himself from thinking about her. He wanted her again, at the same time as insisting to himself that he needed to stay away.

It was nearly half past four by now, and his employees were beginning to wind up to start going home. Devon decided that he was going to stay in the office longer than necessary tonight. He could go over reports, maybe even go over Belle’s reports!

He shook his head and stood up from his chair. In a moment of panic, he pulled out his personal phone and dialed Alisha’s number. She answered soon enough and sounded like she was delighted to hear his voice.

“What’s happening with you?” she asked when she answered the call.

“I nearly fucked her,” Devon said, pressing his temples.

Alisha was laughing.

“When have you nearly fucked a woman? You’ve either fucked someone or not fucked them,” she said and Devon shook his head.

“I don’t know what’s happening to me. She’s driving me crazy. I had her in my office today. I kissed her and things got a little heated up,” he said and he heard Alisha take in a deep breath.

“And who put a stop to it?” she asked.

“I did. Well, kinda…we were interrupted, but I pretty much pushed her away after that,” he replied and there was silence between them for a few seconds. Alisha wasn’t saying a word. It was as though all of this was coming as a shock to her.

“I really don’t know what to say, Devon. You’ve never behaved like this before. Is it just because she has a boyfriend? She wouldn’t have kissed you back or allowed things to escalate if she didn’t want it too,” Alisha reasoned and Devon stood up from his chair.

He walked over to the glass wall behind him and looked out to the busy Hudson River below.

“Maybe she’s just confused. I think she’s a virgin. So it could be that she doesn’t know what she wants,” he said.

Alisha was thinking again.

“A virgin girl in a relationship, who is much younger than you. This girl has clearly pulled a number on you,” she said finally, and Devon let out a deep breath.

“I know, it’s insane. I can’t stop thinking about her, and when I do I get turned on,” he replied.

“And you still can’t tell me who she is?” Alisha urged him.

“No, I don’t want to jeopardize her position. I’m putting an end to this,” he said.

“How?” Alisha asked and Devon shook his head.

“I’ll figure out a way,” he said and then ended the call.

Staring out at the dimming light outside, Devon knew he didn’t want to go back to his empty apartment. He wanted to spend some more time in his office, he could still feel Belle’s presence here. Besides, he knew that if he want back to his place, he would only end up fantasizing about her, and might masturbate to her and that wasn’t something he wanted to do. He wanted to try everything he could to push her out of his mind.

Devon licked his lips as he thought. Something needed to be done. Something substantial, to put some distance between themselves. Even if it meant that it might hurt them both for now, it would have to be done for their own long-term welfare.

For the first time in his life, Devon was beginning to feel like he needed companionship. Not the kind that Alisha provided, but something deeper. He knew that he had found that connection with Belle, but they had met under the wrong circumstances.

Devon shook his head and walked back to his desk and sat down. He would need to come up with a solution, and fast, before things got out of hand.

Chapter 10

 

Belle

 

Belle was back in her apartment by half past five. She was desperate to come back home, to find some time to think. She could still feel Devon’s mouth on her, between her legs, as she walked up to the apartment. She had felt like that the whole day, fantasizing about him. The way he had made her feel. But now, as she pushed open the door, a wave of guilt hit her.

Thankfully, Jesse wasn’t at home. She went straight for the shower. She felt like maybe if she washed herself she could also wash the guilt off. She had wanted Devon Rymer so badly, so desperately in that moment that she hadn’t thought about Jesse. But Belle had always believed that she wasn’t the type of person who would ever cheat in a committed relationship. She had committed herself to Jesse, and they might be going through a rough and rocky start, but she owed it to him and to herself to give the relationship a chance.

Besides, it didn’t even seem like Devon wanted more. It appeared that it was one moment of weakness, on both their parts and he had very quickly changed his mind. Why would a powerful, successful man like Devon Rymer want her in the first place? She thought as she scrubbed herself. When he could have any woman he wanted, what made Belle so special?

She dried herself and changed into casual home clothes, and walked out of the bathroom to find Jesse home.

“How was your day?” he asked her, as he unlaced his sneakers.

Belle gulped before pasting a smile on her face. Just facing Jesse had brought back that wave of guilt in her. She could barely look him in the eye any more.

“How was yours?” she asked him and he shrugged his shoulders.

“Unsuccessful,” he said and walked over to the kitchen area to pour himself a glass of water.

“Have you eaten already?” she asked him, drying her hair with a towel.

“Yeah, you?” he asked her and Belle clenched her jaw. What was happening to them? Weren’t couples supposed to eat together?

“No, but I’m not hungry I guess,” she said and watched as he walked over to the couch and sat down with a thump.

“Jesse,” Belle said, placing a hand on her left hip. He looked up at her, while he plugged in the controls of his playstation.

“Yeah?” he asked, and he looked away, like he wasn’t expecting her to say anything important. Now that she looked at him, she realized that she felt nothing. None of the emotions she had felt when Devon had looked at her. Even without touching her, he had managed to make her bubble with excitement. Something that Jesse had never been able to do.

“What are we going to do about next month’s rent? I won’t be able to afford the whole thing,” she said and gulped. She had so much more to say, to ask him, but his attention was drifting already.

“We’ll manage. I’ll figure something out,” he said distractedly. Belle rolled her eyes and breathed in deeply. Her cellphone on the kitchen counter beeped and she walked towards it. She was feeling mixed emotions of guilt and anger, and they were all directed at Jesse.

On her phone, she saw that she had received an email, from Devon Rymer. Quickly turning her back to Jesse, with a flush of guilt rushing to her cheeks, she opened the email.

Hello Belle,

I’m sorry about what happened in the office earlier. It was entirely my fault and I take the blame for it completely. But I don’t think we should allow for it to happen again. I’m going to ask Susan to move you to our Brooklyn office. You’ll keep your role, but just be out of my way. I wanted to warn you myself.

Devon Rymer

Belle read it again, three times over and then Jesse’s voice interrupted her thoughts. She hadn’t been able to believe what she was reading. She had expected things to get awkward between the two of them now, but this was the last thing she saw coming.

“What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” he said and she jerked her head up to look at Jesse. She could feel her nostrils flaring.

“I’m being moved to the Brooklyn office,” she said, as she stared at him with unblinking eyes. She still couldn’t believe it.

“That’s great isn’t it? Your office will be closer to us that way,” Jesse said, still tapping away at his playstation controls. He was speaking robotically, just with mild interest in what she was saying. He was more engrossed in his game.

“No, I want to keep working at the Manhattan office,” she said, suddenly snapping out of her dazed thoughts.

“So, what are you going to do about it?” Jesse asked.

“I’m going to go speak to Devon Rymer. I know he doesn’t leave his office before seven. If I go now, I can still make it,” she said and looked expectantly at Jesse. She wasn’t sure why she was staring at him. Perhaps she was hoping that he would stop her, that maybe they might sit together and discuss the situation and he could give her some support. Perhaps she was waiting for some sort of sign from the Universe that would tell her that she shouldn’t be going to see Devon.

But nothing happened. Jesse continued to play his game and Belle licked her lips. She knew that was not what Devon wanted. That would be exactly the opposite of what he wanted. But if he was going to move her from the Manhattan office, she wasn’t going to go out without a fight. She was going to face up to him. After all, he was wrong; he wasn’t entirely to blame. She was just as much at fault as he was and he needed to know that.

Chapter 11

 

Devon

 

Devon had the lights dimmed in his office. He was aware that apart from the security personal downstairs, there was no other soul in the building. It was nearly eight now, but he continued typing away at his computer. Keeping himself engrossed in work had helped him to distract his thoughts from Belle and what happened earlier that day.

He was also glad that he had found the strength to send that email to her. Once she moved to the Brooklyn office in a few days, he wouldn’t be in danger of bumping into her in the elevator or the corridors. He’d be able to take the temptation away of calling her to his office too.

The soft ping of the elevator doors opening outside alerted him, and Devon looked up from his typing. A few moments later there was a sharp rap on the door.

“Come in” he called out, thinking that it might be Lily and that she had forgotten a file or something. The door opened, and instead of Lily, Belle was on the other side.

She was panting, giving him the impression that she had been running.

“I wasn’t sure if you would still be here but I decided to take my chances,” Belle said, stepping in confidently.

She was dressed much differently than she usually was for work, and that took Devon by mild surprise. In a pair of distressed boxy jeans that just about reached her ankles, and an oversized t-shirt; Belle looked casual chic and fashionable. Her waist length bronze hair was left open and was still a little damp, and he wondered if she had just had a shower. She usually tied her hair in a bun or plaited it for work, so seeing it open like that made Devon shift in his seat.

“How can I help you, Belle?” he asked, in a curt voice.

She entered his office and shut the door behind her.

“You can help me by explaining why you want me gone from this office,” she said, striding confidently towards his desk.

Devon took the glasses off his face and placed them on the desk. He then steepled his fingers in front of him, and confronted her directly. Belle’s brown eyes were even more darker than usual and her pink glossy lips were stretched in a thin pursed line. She didn’t look amused.

“I explained in my email why, Belle. I thought I made myself quite clear,” Devon said, trying to maintain an authoritative persona.

“You didn’t explain it at all. You apologized for what happened and then said that you want me out of your way,” she said, walking up close to the desk. There was still the obstruction of a desk between them, and Devon was glad for it.

She looked sexy when she was mad, and a new side to her sweet delicate personality was revealed, which was only succeeding in turning him on more.

“That was precisely my point. Because of what happened today, I think it would be best if we kept some distance between us,” he said and moved his chair, shifting it father away from his desk.

Belle squinted, looking at him fiercely.

“It wasn’t just your fault you know. I wanted it too,” she said, after a few moments of silence. Her voice had softened a bit. Devon looked at her and then slowly nodded.

“Sure. You’re right, it takes two hands to clap. However, I believe it is my responsibility to put an end to this before it goes any further,” he said and now he slowly stood up from his chair. Belle was following him with her eyes, watching him like a hawk. It amazed him that she didn’t budge or flinch. That she wasn’t intimidated by him in the least.

“You’re talking about responsibility like you’re in some kind of guardian position. We are both adults here, Devon. I’m a grown woman and I know how to take care of myself,” she snapped. For the first time, Belle looked like she had taken offense.

Devon raised his hands, palms forward in a defensive position and breathed in deeply.

“I don’t mean to upset you, Belle. In fact, I want the exact opposite of that. Which is why, I think to avoid another conversation like this happening, and so that you don’t have to find yourself in a situation where you’re unfaithful to your boyfriend…I believe it would be best if you move to the Brooklyn office,” he said.

Belle was watching him with interest, with her eyes narrowed and no softness on her face.

“So, is that what it is? This is about the fact that I have a boyfriend? You don’t have to worry about my relationship,” she snapped at him and Devon pushed his hands into the pockets of his pants. Just when he thought this was all finally over, that he had taken the crucial step necessary for them to move on…he was in the same position again. Just watching Belle speak, looking at her delicate body and fiery brown eyes were enough. He wanted her again.

“I’m not worried about your relationship. I’m worried about ours. We effectively ruined it this afternoon, and all I want is your professional success. So in order to keep this purely professional, you have to move away,” Devon said and clenched his jaw.

He could see that she was thinking, she licked her lips and stared at him. He wasn’t sure of exactly what she was thinking, but he hoped she wasn’t thinking of coming any closer to him. One more step and it would be impossible for him to resist her. He was doing everything in his power to hold back.

For her own good, and his own sanity - Belle Freedman needed to get out of his office right now.

Chapter 12

 

Belle

 

Belle couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She couldn’t fathom how Devon was so calm and composed when she was experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions herself. Everything he had said till now had made complete sense, but she had only snapped at him in response because she didn’t want to hear him say those things.

“What if I told you that I won’t let this ruin my professional pursuits?” Belle asked, softening her voice. Devon arched his eyebrows and took in a deep breath.

“I’m one of the partners of this agency, I’m your Boss…you’re my employee. Belle, this could end disastrously for both of us,” Devon said and she took a few steps towards him. She saw that he had clenched his jaws, he was holding his ground. But the other thing that she could sense, was that his resolve was beginning to crack. She knew that the closer she got to him, the harder it would get for him to control himself.

“Why are you being so negative, Devon?” she said, slowly, maintaining eye contact with him. Now she was sure of what she wanted. She wanted him inside her. She wanted the whole thing. She knew that she wouldn’t truly be satisfied till he had taken her completely, till he finished what he started.

“I’m being realistic Belle. For your sake and mine,” he said and Belle came even closer. She could feel her fingers trembling as she took each step. She had never been this forward with anybody, especially not with someone who was this attractive or this powerful. It was thrilling to see that she had an effect on him. Devon’s eyes were glazing over, his gaze kept dropping to her heaving breasts under her t-shirt. He couldn’t look away.

“Can we worry about all that later?” she asked and stopped in her tracks, when she was directly in front of him. She had to crane her neck to look up at him, and Devon was looking down at her with weakness in his eyes. He wasn’t going to make the first move, not this time, she was sure of it.

He only clenched his jaw in response and Belle sank to the floor.

She wasn’t sure what she was doing. She had no experience in the art of seduction, but all she knew was that she wanted to see him naked. It was his turn now.

On her knees, Belle looked up at Devon. He was towering over her, and she suddenly felt an electric shock run down her spine when she realized how powerful and muscular he actually was. She looked up at him with expectant eyes, begging him to tell her what to do next.

But she wasn’t surprised when he slowly pulled the zip down on his pants. Then he unbuttoned it and the pants came tumbling down to the floor.

Next were his boxers, and for the first time, Belle saw a fully erect cock right in front of her face. It was throbbing, with a smooth tip and Devon pointed it at her. Keeping his blue eyes on Belle’s face, he proceeded to take his tie off, then his shirt and finally, he was standing completely naked in front of her.

Belle looked up at him, taking note of the chiseled muscles of his torso, his wide shoulders, the smattering of dark hair on his chest and arms. Devon Rymer was fully male, dripping with masculinity. She could feel herself growing wet because she knew exactly what he could do to her.

“Take me in your mouth, Belle,” he grunted, in a deep authoritative voice and she did what she was told. She reached for his cock, circled it with her hands and then slowly brought her face close to it.

She felt Devon’s hands in her hair, he had gripped her hair and was now gently pushing her face closer to him. Belle opened her mouth wide, welcoming his cock in. For the first few seconds she thought she was going to gag, but Devon was taking his time. She relaxed her throat muscles, allowing his length to slide in inch by inch. It was strangely exciting, having him in her mouth. She had never expected it to be this sexy, but it was like a preview of what his cock inside her wet throbbing center was going to feel like.

When Belle looked up, she saw how much Devon was enjoying himself, how good this was making him feel. It only turned her on more. She started moving her lips, sliding his cock forward and backward and slowly but surely, she knew she was getting used to it. He tasted salty, masculine and strong in her mouth and Belle could feel the throbbing between her legs grow stronger. She wanted him inside her now.

His grip on her hair increased and Devon had now begun to guide her. She was glad that she was successful in seducing him, because if he turned her away she wouldn’t have been able to survive that humiliation. He gently pushed and pulled her head and stood with his legs apart, so that she could pleasure him in the right way.

When she looked up again, his eyes were fixed on her. She saw that he was coming closer and closer to the edge, and just when she thought he was going to give in, Devon pulled himself out of her mouth.

Belle felt her heart sink. She wasn’t sure why Devon had abruptly pulled out. She was worried that he was putting an end to this. That he was going to kick her out of his office and out of her job.

“Take off your clothes,” he said as he took a step away from her.

Belle let out a sigh of relief as she stood back up. While Devon had his eyes on her, and his hands holding his cock, Belle started undressing herself.

He watched her as she slid down her jeans, then took of her t-shirt. She felt more confident undressing in front of him now, given that he had already seen her naked. She took off all her underwear and eventually she was standing in front of him, completely naked.

Devon was stroking his cock, staring at her, at her breasts.

“Touch yourself. I want you wet and ready first,” he said in a low growl and again, Belle did what she was told. Slowly, a little embarrassed, she touched herself, with one finger first. She did what he had done earlier. Stroking her clit, she stood with her legs pressed together as he watched her.

She could see that Devon’s cock was growing, if that was even possible, as he stroked himself more. His jaw was clenched together, his eyes were focused on where she was touching herself. Belle’s mouth hung open as she stroked her clit, repeatedly, with growing speed till she knew that she couldn’t take it any more.

“Slide your finger in. Just one,” he commanded and she hesitantly did it. Slowly, an inch at a time. Belle gasped when she felt her finger go into her folds, she could feel her own sticky juices. It only made her want him more. Devon was watching her, stroking his cock with his nostrils flared. She could see the force of his own arousal. He was torturing them both by keeping his distance, but she didn’t want to jump the gun. He was the expert here.

Then, when she least expected it, he stepped towards her. In one quick motion, he had grabbed her by the back of her head and was pushing her backwards. They were staring into each other’s eyes, it was like he was burning a hole into her head. Belle was growing self conscious by the minute. She wasn’t sure if she’d be good enough for him.

It was when her bare back touched the cool surface of the wall, that Devon stopped pushing her. He let go of her hair and his hands traced a line down her front, from her neck, over her breasts to the base of her belly. His finger found her wet mound and he stroked her clit again. Belle moaned. The anticipation was killing her.

“Devon, I haven’t…” she tried to say, but he placed a finger on her lips.

“Don’t say another word,” he said, looking deep into her eyes and Belle realized instantly that he knew. He knew she was a virgin. She felt her cheeks burning up again. She hadn’t realized how inexperienced she must have appeared to him, for him to know that she was a virgin already. But for some reason, he didn’t seem to have a problem with it.

His hands left her clit, just when she thought she wasn’t going to be able to bear it any longer. He grabbed her butt, with both his hands and then as easily as he would a feather; Devon lifted her up. In a single motion, instinctively, Belle knew what to do and she wrapped her legs around his hips.

Devon used his body to press her to the wall again, and Belle felt his erect cock against her wet center. It had just grazed her, and she gasped. She was already reaching the precipice. He had amped up her sensations to the level where she knew she was ready. More ready than she had ever been.

With her legs around his hips, and his hands holding her by the waist, Devon peered into her eyes. In the dim light of the office, Belle looked back at him and she saw that he was going to be gentle with her. That he understood everything. He wanted her to feel good.

Without a word, with their eyes locked; Devon drove himself into her. Slowly, he pushed his cock in. Belle felt her wet folds parting as his cock entered her. She gasped again, from the shocking feeling of having his cock inside her. She gripped him by his shoulders, tightly, and she felt her own muscles stiffening.

“You’re so tight and small,” he grumbled in a low voice. Belle bit down on her lip. Every word that came out of his mouth made her want him more. He knew exactly the things to say to her. She felt her muscles starting to relax. Devon was pushing himself in more. Inch by inch, she could feel him inside her. He was taking it slow, till he was inside her completely. Then he pulled out.

Belle screamed from the shock of it, but Devon thrust himself into her again. Holding her tightly, up against the wall, he drove into her and pulled out again. Belle’s eyes rolled in her head. She knew that some men were good at sex. But, she had never expected her first time to feel so good. For it to be so easy.

He kept his eyes on her, as he pumped into her, increasing his speed. All the discomfort of the initial few seconds of having his cock inside her had gone, Belle was enjoying herself. His cock had reached somewhere deep inside her, which she knew was going to make her come.

“Devon…” she breathed his name. He kept thrusting, in and out of her, till she couldn’t hold back any more. Her orgasm came like an explosion. She had no control over her body, as she shook and wriggled. Belle was screaming, at the shock of what she was feeling. She faintly sensed that he had released himself into her as well, but her only concern was her own orgasm.

It rocked her body, her toes curled and she knew she had a wide smile on her face. Devon didn’t stop at that, he pumped into her with quick hard thrusts till he had fully emptied himself into her. After that, Belle was ready to simply collapse to the floor.

Chapter 13

 

Devon

 

They were lying naked, beside each other, on the carpeted floor of his dimly lit office. Devon was still breathing hard, while Belle was looking up at the ceiling. Neither of them had said a word since he released her from his grip and they both sank to the floor.

It could have been a few minutes or even half an hour, Devon felt like he had lost all track of time. But he had to say something, it didn’t seem like Belle was going to say anything.

“Are you on the pill?” he asked, breaking the silence. The thought had suddenly occurred to him, because now he was certain that she was a virgin. Her hymen was already broken though, which could have been caused by masturbation; but he was sure that no man had been inside her before. Or if they had, they had done a very poor job of it. It made Devon feel good that he had been able to make Belle feel good. He had watched the intensity of her orgasm. She wasn’t going to forget it very easily.

“Yeah, ever since I moved in with Jesse,” she said, looking over at him.

“But you’ve not had sex with him yet?” Devon asked, still avoiding her gaze. They were looking up at the ceiling together, because he didn’t want to face her, or himself. This was the last thing he wanted to happen. Because just like her, Devon knew that he wasn’t going to be able to forget Belle so easily either.

“No, he wants to wait till we get married,” Belle said quietly and Devon drew in a deep breath.

“I’m sorry if this has confused things for you,” he said, after a few moments of silence. Belle was silent too, then she shook her head and turned to him. Devon couldn’t avoid looking at her any more. He turned to her, and looked into her large brown eyes. Her hair had fallen like a curtain over her side, just about covering her breasts.

“It was already a confused mess. I wanted to have sex, and he didn’t. We have a lot of things to work out,” she said and Devon nodded quietly.

“See, this is the reason why I want you to move to Brooklyn,” he said and then watched as she got up from the carpet. He couldn’t help admiring her lithe naked body as she walked over to where her clothes were strewn on the floor.

Devon felt a pang of loneliness again, as he watched her getting dressed in silence.

“Yes, you’re probably right,” she said as she slid up her jeans. Devon got up too, dragging his gaze away from looking at her. His clothes were lying near the desk, and he walked over to them.

“I’ll speak to Susan tomorrow, and organize a move by day after. You’ll be able to work better if we keep our distance,” he said, as he buttoned up his shirt and pulled up his pants. Belle had slunk her t-shirt back on now, and she flipped her long hair out of her clothes.

“Is it really this easy for you? You seem quite experienced in things like this,” she said and Devon jerked his head up to look at her with narrowed dark eyes. He clenched his jaw.

“I’m not experienced in it at all, Belle. This is the first time something like this has happened. I like to keep my work and private life as separate as possible,” he said and tucked his shirt into his pants.

Belle was standing with her arms crossed over her chest, as though she didn’t believe a word of what he said.

“And, it’s not easy. But I’m your boss, you have a boyfriend and you’re at least twenty years younger than me,” he said. Even though he had just had her, and even though Belle’s flushed face and flared nostrils told him that she was in a sour mood; Devon couldn’t help wanting her again. He wondered how many times it would take, for her to satisfy his craving. Right then it felt like it could take forever. Like he would never stop wanting her.

Belle rolled her eyes and looked away from him.

“Yeah, I have a boyfriend. Who I have to go home to. Who I have to face now,” she said, with her eyes turned to the glass wall. Devon debated whether he should walk closer to her. Eventually, he decided that she needed human contact. That all this was probably too confusing for her. So, he walked over to her and she turned to look at him.

Her watery eyes, the prideful jutting out of her chin…all contributed to how sexy she looked in that moment. Devon wished that he could keep her there, and make love to her all night. Instead, he only grabbed her face with both his hands, encasing her cheeks with his palms. He peered into her eyes and tried to smile.

“It’ll be fine once you move to Brooklyn. This was a mistake. I did something wrong, just like you did. You’re not alone in this,” he said and Belle fell into his arms. She wrapped herself into his chest and Devon had no other choice but to stroke her silky bronze hair. He got a whiff of her lemon scented shampoo and he closed his eyes in order to savor that moment.

She wasn’t crying, or sniffing…she was simply holding him.

“I want to feel guilty, I want to feel bad, but I don’t. I know this isn’t good for you, or your agency, and I’m only an intern with a complicated life, but…” her words were coming out in a jumble and Devon placed a finger on her lips.

“Don’t say another word,” he said and they couldn’t help but smile at each other.

“I should go now,” Belle said suddenly, drawing her arms away from him. Devon let her slip away, and then he stood in the center of his room and watched as she walked towards the door.

“I’ll remember this forever,” Belle said, just before she opened the door to step out.

Chapter 14

 

Belle

 

It was nearly eleven by the time Belle returned to the apartment. She had tried to delay coming home, not only because the guilt had started to set in but because she felt like she had never met another person like Devon Rymer before. He was gentle with her, caring and not the arrogant self sufficient man she expected him to be. He was not only a powerful successful man, but also someone who treated her with respect. She wished that she had met him under different circumstances. But she knew the circumstances couldn’t be changed, and she had to return home to Jesse.

She jangled the keys in the lock and pushed open the door, to find the apartment shrouded in darkness. Jesse had already gone to bed it appeared.

In the darkness of the room, Belle tried to be as quiet as possible as she went to the kitchen area to pour herself a glass of water. Next, she went to the bathroom to wash herself. She was afraid that she might smell of Devon and sex. Belle silently stripped herself off her clothes, then she dampened a towel and washed between her legs. She splashed some cold water on her face too, hoping that would soothe her nerves. But nothing helped.

Slipping into her satin night dress, she tied her hair up in a ponytail and stepped out of the bathroom.

On the mattress on the floor, she could see Jesse’s shadowy outline. He was turned towards the window, away from her side of the bed. She wondered if some other guy would have stayed up for her. Or was this the norm? She had never lived with a boy before, and the initial excitement of sharing her life with another person was quickly fading.

Belle walked over to the mattress silently, sudden guilt gripping her heart. She had done something wrong. She had slept with someone else. She had cheated on Jesse. What had he done wrong? Other than not being able to find a job and denying her sex; was there anything else that was gravely wrong with him? He didn’t treat her badly, neither was he violent or abusive; and as far as she knew, he was a faithful guy.

Belle couldn’t sleep. She tried to edge herself as far away from Jesse’s sleeping body as possible. She didn’t think she deserved to be touched, just after she had been unfaithful to him. The guilt kept her awake. She couldn’t stop thinking about how deeply it would hurt Jesse to find out that while he was saving himself for her, she had already given up her virginity to her boss. How could she possibly rectify it? How could she ever take it back?

Belle turned to face the other way and felt a fat teardrop escape her eyelid and fall on the pillow underneath. It was all her fault. She was the one who had seduced Devon. He had tried to push her away, but she came to see him, she told him that she didn’t care about what happened. She wanted to sleep with him.

While her boyfriend was by himself in their apartment, waiting for her.

When Jesse moved, Belle’s heart stopped. She didn’t want him to wake up, she didn’t want to speak to him. She felt like she was the worst human being on the planet, by cheating on a good guy.

“Hey, how did it go? Did you meet your boss?” Jesse’s voice was groggy. Belle gulped and tried to even her breathing before opening her mouth to speak.

“Yeah, but I have to move to the Brooklyn office. I don’t have a choice,” she said, still turned away from him. She felt him move again, and realized that he was turning over to her side now. She sensed his arm reach around her waist and he brought her tightly close to him.

“It’ll be fine. You’ll be closer to home and closer to me. We can meet for lunch every day,” he said, still groggy but she could sense that he was smiling. She didn’t reply for a few seconds and then heard his heavy breathing. He had fallen asleep again.

Belle didn’t move. Jesse’s arm around her waist felt like a ton of bricks on her body. It didn’t feel natural, it sent a cold shiver down her spine. But she remained in that position, laying with her eyes wide open.

She couldn’t remember anymore what had attracted her to Jesse in the first place. Was it his boyish long blond hair? The dimples on his cheeks? Or was it because all her friends thought he was cute too? She knew she was too quick to agree to move in with him. They didn’t know each other well enough. At the time however, it was comforting to know that she wouldn’t have to live in New York all alone. She should never have doubted herself. She should have known that she could make it anywhere.

Belle tried to sleep, but she couldn’t stop her mind from working on overtime. Devon and Jesse, Jesse and Devon. Not like she knew Devon either. All she knew about him, was that she felt an uncontrollable physical connection with him that she had never felt with anyone else before. She wished she could talk to him more, because she got the sense that he actually understood her and he saw something in her that most people didn’t. He definitely saw something in her that Jesse didn’t.

But that chapter was over. She was in it with Jesse, and now she would have to find a way to forget about Devon and move on with Jesse. It had only been four months that they were together, and Belle believed that she still owed it to him to give him another chance.

Chapter 15

 

Devon

 

Devon couldn’t sleep. His penthouse apartment felt empty and alone, and he wished that he could have Belle there with him. Which he knew was a ridiculous thought, because he knew nothing about her. But he also realized that he hadn’t ever felt like this about another woman before.

Devon had spent his entire twenties working hard, gaining the experience he needed working for other advertising agencies, making connections. When other people his age were out partying, Devon was working hard at his desk. He had close to no social life, other than one night stands with women whose faces he didn’t even remember any more. His thirties were spent in trying to establish his own agency. This too required a lot of hard work, and again, Devon had no time for actual relationships.

By the end of his thirties, Devon had built an empire and one of the most successful advertising agencies on the East Coast. Now in his forties, and after a string of multiple short lasting affairs and flings, Devon was tired of women. He didn’t even know where to begin to have an actual relationship. In a sense, he was a virgin too, just like Belle. He had no experience in real dating, he had no clue what it felt like to be with a woman consistently over a long period of time. The only woman he had slept with more than twice; was Alisha. And he knew for a fact that he didn’t want to be in a relationship with her.

Just when he was giving up, Belle had magically appeared in his life. There was an instant connection there. It started on the elevator, when he felt the spark, a sexual attraction that would have driven him to insanity if he hadn’t called her to his office. Ever since that, the attraction he felt towards her was more than just physical. Something unlike any other he experienced.

She wasn’t just forbidden fruit to him. He knew that was certain now, because they finally had sex. It was more than that. He wanted to keep seeing her. He wanted to share a meal with her. He wanted to sit on the couch and watch a movie together and then fall asleep in each others arms.

As he lay awake in bed, thinking about Belle and day dreaming about what a relationship with her would look like; he wondered if this was what falling in love felt like. But she was the wrong person; in the wrong circumstances. She was beautiful, charming and intelligent…but she was his employee, had a boyfriend and was way younger than appropriate.

And yet, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. He couldn’t stop thinking about how well they connected. The sex was hot, he had taken her virginity but it was more than just that. When they were lying beside each other on the carpet floor; Devon hadn’t been able to stop his mind from wandering. He wished he could simply scoop her back into his arms, kiss her on her lips and then go and get pizza somewhere.

But he knew it was impossible. He needed to maintain a professional relationship with her. There had to be some other woman who also made him feel that way. He didn’t believe in love at first sight. Hell, he didn’t even believe in love. He had spent his entire adult life sleeping with and seducing beautiful women, and not one of them had made him feel like he could spend his entire life with them.

How had this twenty something girl from Little Canada, an intern in his office, stirred these emotions in him?

Devon jumped out of bed and stared at the clock. It was only four in the morning and he hadn’t had a wink of sleep yet. He walked over to his closet, stripped down his clothes and changed into his running gear. Maybe some fresh air would clear his brain, he figured.

Belle Freedman had messed up his life, he thought now. He should be angry with her. He led a comfortable life as a confirmed bachelor, concentrating on his work and the success of his agency. He was happy that way. But now he had a taste for a different kind of happiness, and all this other stuff just seemed bland. His penthouse didn’t excite him. He had no use for his gym. He didn’t feel like going to work. He was going through all the emotions that teenagers went through, but he was forty-three years old! He should have been way past that age. He shouldn’t be feeling these feelings, for a girl he couldn’t have. For the first time, Devon felt powerless and out of control.

Devon left his apartment and took the elevators down to the lobby of his luxurious apartment building. The security guard at the door was surprised to see him that early. He smiled at the man and jogged out into the streets. The sky was still dark, the streetlights were still on and Devon began to run. He had no idea which direction he was running in, but all he wanted was to shake off that feeling.

He didn’t even want to imagine the kind of guilt that Belle was feeling. He was guilty himself, for being weak and sleeping with her. He wondered if this would ruin her peace of mind. She felt so delicate and small in his arms when he held her. He had stroked her hair and wished that he could fix everything. But he knew he couldn’t. He couldn’t even have her in his arms again.

Devon plugged in his earphones and turned the music on loud as he continued to jog. He had decided he would till he was out of breath, till his chest felt like it was about to explode; so that he wouldn’t have to think about Belle and how much he missed her.

Chapter 16

 

Belle

 

Belle was hunched over her keyboard, her fingers midway in the air. She had been trying to concentrate for some time now, but her mind was elsewhere. When she looked up at the screen, she saw the cursor blinking. She had forgotten what she was about to type.

“Hey, Belle. Do you have the report ready?” Jasmine stuck her head around the cubicle, and Belle looked up with her wide brown eyes.

“Umm…give me half an hour? Please? Sorry, I got slightly delayed,” she said and Jasmine licked her lips, before disappearing without saying anything.

Belle had been working in the Brooklyn office for a week now, and she didn’t think it was going very well. Jasmine was her mentor in this office, and she could sense that she had failed to impress her. She tried hard, she tried her best…but she couldn’t help but think about Devon all day. She hadn’t seen or spoken to him since that night in his office. It was obvious that he was keeping out of her way.

Susan had explained to her that she was needed more in the Brooklyn office and she would have more opportunity to learn there. It was true that she was closer to their apartment now, but the distance from Devon was only making her think about him more. Belle decided that she only needed to give it time. That with time the wound would heal. That she would be able to make amends with Jesse and move on, but it had been a week and she still couldn’t stop thinking about how Devon had made her feel.

Belle shook her head and tried to concentrate again. She forced herself to work on the new market survey, and completed it within half an hour.

She walked over to Jasmine’s desk, left it by her computer because Jasmine wasn’t at the table and then she walked out of the office. It was already a quarter past one and she knew Jesse would be waiting. They had planned on meeting for lunch.

Belle hurried, weaving through the crowds till she found Jesse sitting on the wall at the spot where they had decided to meet. They didn’t have the money to go to an actual cafe or restaurant, so they had planned that he would pack lunch for them and bring it along with him.

“Ham sandwiches!” he said with a grin and waved two foil wrapped sandwiches in the air as Belle hurried towards him.

“Sorry, I got caught up at work. I only have fifteen minutes,” she said and he leaned over to plant a kiss on her cheek.

“Don’t worry about it babe,” he said kindly and handed her one of the sandwiches. Belle unwrapped the foil and took one ravenous bite of the sandwich. Jesse jumped off the wall and she noticed that he had an unusual smile on his face.

“What’s up?” she asked, realizing that she wasn’t actually interested in what he had to say. She wanted to go back to the office, sit at her desk and day dream about Devon instead.

“I got a call back from the restaurant where I dropped in my CV yesterday,” Jesse said, beaming still. Belle forced a smile on her face and nodded her head.

“That’s great news, Jesse! When do you have to go back?” she asked.

“At three today. I think I’ll get the job, babe. I told you I’ll figure it out,” he said and Belle reached over to give him a kiss.

“I know, I’m happy for you,” she said and her muscles stiffened when Jesse reached for her hand.

“I’m happy for us. We can finally start living our lives,” he said and Belle agreed. She allowed him to squeeze her hand, but pulled it away instantly on the pretext of unwrapping her sandwich.

“I’m looking forward to it. They pay well. Enough to make rent anyway. But I’m sad that we’ll be seeing each other less often,” he said and Belle pursed her lips.

“That’s normal isn’t it? It’ll take some pressure off me,” she said and Jesse’s face darkened instantly.

“I didn’t realize that you felt so pressurized,” he said and Belle shook her head.

“No, I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant that we could live a more comfortable life from now on,” she said and Jesse looked away from her and concentrated on eating his sandwich instead.

“Well, yeah, whatever. I’ll not have to depend on you for subway money any more,” he said, a little bitterly and Belle reached out to touch his arm. He drew his arm away, and she took in a sharp breath.

“I didn’t mean to offend you, Jesse. I’m just glad that you finally found something, and I hope it makes you happy,” she said, trying to sound kind. Jesse said nothing and Belle remained silent too. In silence they finished their sandwiches and then Belle looked at her watch.

“I should head back. Best of luck with the interview. I know you’ll get the job,” she said and stared at him longingly. She wanted him to say something nice, to reassure her again that everything would be alright. She was anxious that she couldn’t rely on his mood.

“Bye, see you later,” he said instead and turned around and walked away from her. Belle gulped, unsure of what the future of their relationship was going to look like. She wished he could be in a good mood more often, that she wouldn’t have to walk around on eggshells all the time; afraid of upsetting him.

She shook her head as she watched him walking away from her, and when he was out of sight, she went back to the office and sat at her desk. Her only hope was that she could get past the next few weeks without having a breakdown, and then maybe, just maybe she could go on with her life without yearning to see Devon all the time.

Chapter 17

 

Devon

 

He could sense that Alisha was watching him eat. He was taking his time with his food, pushing it around with his fork on the plate. They had been sitting at the restaurant for nearly an hour and she had already finished her meal.

“You look like you’ve lost your appetite,” she said finally, and Devon looked up to find her sipping from her glass of white wine. It was only two in the afternoon and he wasn’t in the mood to have a drink yet.

“Just not hungry,” he said and Alisha leaned towards him across the table with a wry smile on her face.

“It’s about the girl isn’t it?” she said and Devon stared at her, a tomato stuck in his fork.

“I’m trying to get over that,” he said and Alisha sat back in her chair and stared at him some more.

“I’ve never seen you like this, Devon. She must be some kind of angel,” Alisha said with a disbelieving laugh and he washed down the food in his mouth with some water.

“It’s nothing. I’m just getting old and sentimental probably,” he said and wiped his mouth with a napkin.

Alisha licked her lips and looked suspiciously at him.

“So, you slept with her. What more do you want?” she asked and Devon took in a sharp breath. He regretted telling Alisha everything now. The last thing he wanted was to dwell on the subject any more.

“Nothing, Alisha. I don’t want anything more. I just want to forget about her and move on,” he said and Alisha arched her eyebrows.

“Wait a minute, are you in love with her or something? Didn’t you say that she was a young thing?” Alisha said and he glared at her. Alisha wasn’t going to back down. She wanted an answer.

“Yes, she’s young. In her early twenties and no I’m not in love. I don’t even know her that well,” he said irritably. Why couldn’t Alisha see that he just wanted to stop talking about it?

“Granted that you don’t know her well, but that doesn’t mean you can’t develop feelings for her,” she continued and Devon slapped the napkin down on the table. Alisha didn’t seem affected by it.

“I don’t have feelings for her, Alisha. I just like her. I enjoy her company. She’s smart and intelligent and the sex was good,” Devon said and sat back dejectedly in his chair. Just talking about Belle made him sad. He wasn’t used to feeling powerless, he wasn’t accustomed to not getting what he wanted. Alisha was still staring at him. Now her look was turning from curiosity to sympathy.

“You know, Devon. Not in a million years would I have imagined seeing you this broken up over a woman,” she said finally, after a minute’s silence.

“I’m not broken up over her!” he said, losing his patience now. Alisha ignored it. She was going to say what she wanted to say.

“I’m sure you know that I spent the better part of our friendship being in love with you. Till I realized that you were impossible to love, or rather you yourself were incapable of the feeling,” she said and Devon stared at her in surprise. He hadn’t expected Alisha to ever speak this way.

“Oh, don’t look so surprised. I have feelings too! I’m not made of stone. And you don’t have to feel sorry about me either, I got over you pretty quickly,” she added and Devon relaxed a little. He still didn’t know what to say to her.

“But I was satisfied in knowing that nobody could have you, it wasn’t just me. But I’m starting to believe that you are capable of feelings after all, Devon,” she said and he looked away from her. He had his jaw clenched and his eyes focused on the view outside the restaurant. This was not the kind of conversation he wanted to have. The less he acknowledged Belle’s hold on him, the better it would be, but Alisha didn’t want to let it drop.

“Don’t worry, darling,” she continued, “you won’t have to feel like this forever. I can attest for it from first hand experience.”

Devon looked back at her without a word still. He regretted inviting her to lunch with him. He hoped that she would manage to distract him, but he had forgotten that she knew him better than anyone else.

“You know what might work to cure these blues?” she asked and Devon raised an eyebrow at her.

“What, Alisha?” he said and her face broke into a wide smile.

“A good old fashioned romp in the bed with me. How many times have I managed to lift your mood?” she said and over the table she reached for his hand. Devon drew his hand away from her and stood up from the table.

“I’m sorry, Alisha. I value our friendship and your advice, but that side of our relationship is over,” he said, probably a little harshly. Alisha was laughing again, and she stared at him with mockery in her eyes. Almost like she was enjoying herself, watching him suffer over a girl.

“Why? Just because I confessed that I once had feelings for you?” she asked as Devon took out his wallet and counted the money.

“No, because I know now what the real thing feels like and I don’t want to find an easy solution to my problem,” he said and placed the money on the table.

Alisha sat back in her chair lazily and looked up at Devon, her smile had turned sour.

“Suit yourself. I’m not the one who is a lonely bachelor living up in his ivory tower without any actual friends. Best of luck getting over your heartbreak,” she said and picked up her wine glass again.

Devon said nothing but turned and walked away from her. He couldn’t believe that Alisha too, of all people, wasn’t the person he had thought she was.

Chapter 18

 

Belle

 

When Belle returned to the apartment that evening, her eyes were burning and her shoulders were aching. She had spent the whole day trying to do her job well. As an intern, she was not only required to produce well researched market surveys, but she also had coffee runs to do and errands to run for others in the office. At the end of the day, Belle was tired and feeling heartbroken. But she still remembered that Jesse had a new job and she needed to support him.

When she opened the door, she found Jesse in boxer shorts and an old t-shirt. She was surprised, but tried to hide it with a chirpy voice.

“Hey! How’d it go?” she asked, shutting the door behind her.

Jesse was on the couch, playing on the console again and he looked up at her with a bored expression in his eyes.

“How’d what go?” he asked and Belle felt her heart sinking. She walked up towards him and softened her voice. It had obviously not gone well.

“The job interview,” she said, trying to sound as neutral as possible. Jesse paused the game, placed the control on his lap and looked up at her like he detested her for asking him that question.

“How do you think it went?” he asked and Belle shrugged and looked away from him. Of all the times he had been in a bad mood, this had to be the worst.

“You said you were excited about it and they pay well, so I don’t know…” she said and met his gaze again. Jesse rolled his eyes and looked away from her, as though she had said something offensive.

“They don’t want to hire me, alright?” he said and stood up from the couch. Belle followed him into the kitchen area.

“Why not? What happened?” she asked and Jesse ignored her. He went over to the mini fridge and extracted a can of beer for himself. Belle looked at the beer in his hand quizzically. What was he turning into?

“Nothing happened. I went for the interview. They interviewed me and said that they don’t want to hire me,” he said and walked past her again towards the couch. Belle whipped around to follow him back to the couch. She had her doubts about whether he did actually go to the interview.

“What questions did they ask?” she asked, folding her arms over her breasts.

“General questions. Why are you grilling me?” he said, spreading his arms wide. Belle stared at him and realized that her nostrils were flared. She was losing her patience with him.

“What questions exactly, Jesse? I want to know what we can do to improve your interview skills,” she said, tightening her grip on her arms. Jesse was breathing hard and suddenly he dropped his arms and walked over towards Belle.

He placed his can of beer on the floor beside her and then his hands on her arms.

“Don’t worry about it, babe. I’ll find something else,” he said with a smile and leaned towards her. Belle didn’t move. She was fuming. She was doubly sure now that he hadn’t even gone for the interview. Why was he jeopardizing his career? Why did he assume that she could just provide for them both on her internship money? She didn’t even have the money to buy a coffee on her way to work. She was broke and miserable and feeling unloved and he just didn’t care.

Without saying anything, Jesse leaned towards her and tried to kiss her lips. Belle moved her face away. She felt nothing when he was close. No spark. No electricity. No attraction. And it was beginning to scare her.

“Hey,” Jesse whispered, a smile forming on his face. He kissed her cheek and then Belle sensed his hand reaching for her breasts.

Belle moved away from him with a jerk.

“What’s wrong babe? Isn’t this what you want?” Jesse asked and stepped towards her again. Belle froze as she stared at him. Jesse was beginning to disgust her. She felt like she was cheating on Devon now. Even though she was never going to see him again.

Jesse stroked her cheeks with his hands and kissed her forehead. Then the bridge of her nose and finally her lips. The kiss did nothing for her, except make her hate him a little more.

“Are you worried that I don’t know what I’m doing? Don’t worry babe, I’ve slept with girls before,” he said, looking at her with enthusiastic eyes.

Belle pushed him away and glared at him.

“You said you wanted to wait!” she screeched, now losing all control. Jesse looked surprised as he looked at her, trying to develop a look of innocence on his face.

“Yeah. I wanted to wait with you, babe. I think all those girls I slept with are sluts. I don’t want you to become like one of them,” he said and Belle’s mouth fell open.

“So why do you want to do it now?” she asked and Jesse took in a deep breath, like he was trying to explain something to a little child.

“Because I love you, babe. Because I want to do this with you. Because I know we’ll be together forever,” he replied and Belle could do nothing but stare at him in shock. Hearing those words coming from him made her sick to her stomach. She wanted to throw something at him. Punch the wall if she had to. Scream and make a run for it. Instead, she was frozen to the spot and felt like she couldn’t move a muscle. The guy she thought would make the perfect boyfriend in college had turned out to be her worst nightmare and she wasn’t sure how long she could go on like this.

Chapter 19

 

Devon

 

Devon was at his office, working late again and the next time he raised his head to look at the time, it was already nine. He pushed his file away and shut down his computer and took in a deep breath. The lunch with Alisha had affected him in a big way.

It had been a week since he last saw Belle, and now he was beginning to recognize the heartache and loneliness settling in again. He didn’t want to arouse suspicion and hence hadn’t asked Susan or Jasmine how she was doing. He could only hope that she was happy at the Brooklyn office and that her life with her boyfriend was going well. He only wanted the best for her. He didn’t want to disrupt her peace of mind.

Alisha was probably right, he figured, to assume that he was capable of actual feelings. Even though he didn’t want to discuss those feelings with anybody else, he knew that they existed. Belle had stirred them in him and he felt protective and possessive towards her. Which was why it was wise to send her away before anything else happened.

The soft ping of the elevator outside snapped him out of his thoughts. His heart began to race because he couldn’t help but wonder if it was Belle again. A far fetched daydream, but he couldn’t help his mind from wandering.

There was a sharp knock on the door and instead of saying anything, Devon stood up and walked over to it. He took in a deep breath, trying to calm his mind, and opened the door. Belle was standing on the other side. Her face looked pale, her eyes were widened and by the looks of it, she had been running again.

“Belle!” he said her name aloud and she fell into his arms immediately.

“I’m sorry, I had to come and see you,” she said and he stroked her head. She was still in her formal office clothes and her hair was braided elaborately in that fishtail plait that he remembered. She was in a slim gray dress with a wide black belt at her waist. She looked professional and beautiful.

When she finally pulled away from him, she took a step back.

“Come in,” he said in a quiet voice and he walked back towards his desk. She shut the door behind her and he could hear his heart thumping out of his chest. It was exciting to see her again. He knew very well what the possibility of her being there could lead to. He wanted to touch her again, take her into his arms…but it was still inappropriate.

“I had to come, because I had nowhere else to go,” Belle was saying and he noticed that she looked nervous. She had clasped her hands together and was pressing her fingers tightly. Devon leaned against his desk as he looked at her.

“My door is always open,” he said and she looked up at him sharply. Her brown eyes were large and looked bloodshot. She could have been crying, he thought and immediately, he had the urge to take her in his arms again.

“I know you didn’t want to see me again. You wanted us to keep our distance. But I have nobody else in New York,” she continued and Devon shook his head. Her breasts were heaving, her lips looked as pouty and luscious as usual; and even though she seemed distraught, Devon couldn’t help but recall the moment when he first saw her naked.

“Don’t worry about it, tell me what’s going on,” he said in a soft voice. Their eyes met again and Belle looked like she was beginning to relax a little.

“You know how I told you that my boyfriend said he doesn’t want to have sex right now, that he wants to wait. He just told me that he’s had sex before. With other girls before me and he didn’t want to sleep with me because he thinks they are all sluts,” the words came tumbling out of her and Devon couldn’t help but go closer to her. He wanted to take her into his arms, hug her close to his chest…but he was still afraid of touching her.

“Belle, that is a horrible thing to say and do. I don’t know what to say to you, but it’s not unnatural that you’re upset,” he said, finding himself at a loss for words.

“I don’t know if I want to be with a guy like that. Who thinks like that. Who thinks sex is dirty,” she said and Devon shook his head.

“I know, I’m glad you came here,” he said and Belle rushed into his arms again.

“And he keeps ditching his job interviews. He stays at home all day and plays on his playstation. I can’t afford the rent by myself any more,” she continued, looking up at him and he could tell that she was on the brink of a breakdown.

Devon touched her face lightly and stroked her chin.

“I can’t tell you what to do, Belle. But he doesn’t seem like a supportive boyfriend to have,” he said, choosing his words carefully. The last thing he wanted to do was break up a relationship. He would have done anything to have her, but it would have to be her choice.

Belle gulped as she stared at him.

“I don’t think we’re good together. I feel like I did it too quickly. We’ve only been together four months, and I keep thinking that he deserves another chance,” she said and Devon nodded.

“I understand, but if he doesn’t make you happy, you can’t keep giving him chances,” he said and Belle drew closer to him. She was slowly raising her hand so she could touch his face. Devon stood still, breathing in her scent.

“I want to stop feeling guilty about what we did, Devon,” she said.

Chapter 20

 

Belle

 

Devon didn’t look surprised when Belle said the words, instead he brought his face closer to her. His dark hair was neatly brushed to the side, she could see the gray at his temples, the firm set of his thin lips. He looked powerful and wise as he held her face. Their noses were almost touching now and Belle drew in a deep breath.

“I don’t want to feel guilty either,” he said in a heavy breath and Belle felt like she was going to melt away. She wasn’t sure why she came to his office again. She couldn’t even be sure if he would still be there. But she took the chance, and now she couldn’t help but be in his arms. She wanted to be close to him. He was the only one who could make her feel good.

Devon gave her a moment, to push him away if she wanted to, but when she didn’t he pressed his lips to hers. Belle opened her mouth, welcoming his tongue in. She gasped as they kissed and clung to his shoulders, her arms wound tightly around his neck. Devon’s hands went down from her face, to the back of her neck and she could sense his fingers on her back.

He was beginning to pull the zip down on her dress. Their lips were still fuzed together, and Belle reached down the front of his shirt to his belt. While the zip on her dress came slowly down, she unbuckled his belt and undid his pants. She was desperate to have him in her hands. Her dress hadn’t even fallen off her shoulders, but his throbbing growing cock was already in her hands.

Devon pulled away from the kiss, and she was panting for air. Neither of them could say a word, they could only communicate with their bodies. One week had been too long to be apart. Through his boxers, Belle stroked his cock. She could feel it growing stronger and harder in her hand. She couldn’t wait to have it inside her. She was wet between her legs for it. She felt like it was only Devon’s cock that could make everything alright.

Her dress fell from her shoulders and Devon pulled it down her torso. She had to let go of his cock and he watched as her body was revealed to him. Her red bra and panties made him stare. Her breasts were heaving from the anticipation and he stared at her with thirsty eyes.

He lunged at her again, tearing the bra off. She heard the clasp snap open and collapse to the floor, and her breasts were in Devon’s hands. He was sucking her right nipple, making loud smacking sounds with his mouth, while his other hand went down her belly.

Belle closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation of having his mouth on her. She started unbuttoning his shirt, so she could feel the smooth muscles on his chest and his abs. She pushed the shirt off him, while his hand lifted her panties and his fingers went under it to her wet burning center.

Belle gasped again. He had pushed in two fingers without warning and she nearly stumbled back from the sensation. Devon caught her in time and pulled her back towards him. He kept his mouth on her nipples, alternating between sucking each one.

She could feel his cock between her legs now. She was so close to an orgasm. His fingers slid in and out of her, while he used his thumb to play with her clit. Devon lifted his face suddenly up at her, and their gazes locked.

Without a word he quickened his pace with his fingers. He was pumping into her, making her body shake and Belle couldn’t help but moan. She wanted him to keep doing it till she came. His thumb stroked her clit while his fingers pumped into her. He was reaching her deep inside, in that spot that made her body give up. She was about to come and she clung to him, closing her eyes tightly. She could sense that he was watching her, he wanted to see her have an orgasm.

Devon pulled out his fingers abruptly and Belle gasped. She wanted more. She wanted to come but he didn’t want her to just yet. A smile was forming on his face because he could see how badly she wanted it.

“Devon, please,” she cried, pleadingly. She wanted to have that orgasm, quickly.

“Yes, Belle. I’m going to make you come,” he grunted and whipped her around. Belle was facing his desk now and he bent her over it. Her butt was thrust out towards him and she felt him come up close to her. This was new to her too, but she could feel her wetness throbbing. She wanted his cock where his fingers had been.

Belle could hear herself panting as Devon ran his hands down her bare back. When she couldn’t take the wait any more, she turned her head to look at him pleadingly again. Devon smiled, before placing his hand on her shoulder. He arched her back slightly, just a little bit towards her and then she felt him sliding in.

This time he didn’t take it slow. He drove his cock into her and Belle screamed. Keeping a steady grip on her with her shoulder, Devon pumped into her with force. Belle moaned and groaned, being pushed to the brink of orgasm as he continued to slide in and out of her. His cock felt big and tight inside her, but that was the feeling she had waiting for all week and nothing else felt as good. Within minutes, she knew she was dangerously close to coming. Devon wasn’t slowing down and she could feel her body giving way.

When she orgasmed, he came with her and they both moaned loudly as they exploded into each other. She could feel him shoot into her, his seed oozing out inside her and it made Belle smile. She kept repeating how good it felt and Devon was laughing. There was nothing to be ashamed of any more, no more guilt, they could finally release and feel good about it.

Devon started to pull out of her and Belle collapsed on the desk. When he was out of her completely, she finally turned around to look at him. He looked even more handsome naked, she thought as he stood in front of her. He was staring at her too and they both had wide smiles on their faces.

“So, what now?” she asked and jumped up on the desk, her legs dangling off the edge. Devon walked closer to her and placed his hands on her arms.

“What do you want to do about all this?” he asked, his voice growing a little serious. Belle still couldn’t stop smiling. She couldn’t believe that he still wanted her, that he wasn’t just imagining everything.

“I told you everything, do you want to tell me something as well?” she said and he grinned at her and took his hands away from her.

“The truth is, Belle. I want to be with you and if there is a chance, I want to find a way to be together,” he said and leaving her on her desk, he walked to the toilet in his office. When he returned he had a bid wad of toilet paper in his hand.

“I wasn’t sure if you were interested in me seriously,” she said, and watched him as he walked over to her.

“You’re all I’ve thought about for the past week. In fact, since we first met,” he said and delicately, he dabbed the tissues between her legs. Belle couldn’t help but smile at that. She felt her limbs melting, she wanted to bury her face in his chest. She wished they could stay like this forever.

After Devon was done wiping her, he proceeded to wipe himself and Belle bit down on her lip.

“So, you sent me to the Brooklyn office because…” she began and he looked up at her and his eyes softened.

“Because I knew this would happen if we saw each other again,” he said and they both smiled knowingly at each other. It was amazing to her that they could be so comfortable with each other, she couldn’t remember the last time she had such an easy conversation with Jesse. And while they were both naked!

“In fact, Belle,” he said, a little more seriously now and placed his hands on her knees. She looked at him with questioning eyes. Her heart was thudding in her chest.

“If you’re okay with it, I think you should still work in the Brooklyn office. If we decide to give our relationship a chance. It would be healthier if you worked in a separate office. Like I said, I don’t like to mingle my work with my personal life,” he continued and Belle shook her head.

“I don’t know what Jasmine or Susan have told you, but I haven’t been able to concentrate on work since I moved there. I haven’t performed as well as I did in this office. But that was because I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” Belle explained and Devon reached over to pinch her chin playfully.

“I understand, and don’t worry about it. I want you to do well at your job. I don’t want to do you any special favors, but I also have complete faith and trust in you. You have immense potential and I know I don’t have to worry about you,” he said and Belle blushed. Her heart was fluttering, she felt like she was on seventh heaven and that none of this was really happening. How could someone be this perfect?

“So, you do want to give our relationship a chance?” she asked him and Devon looked at her, deep into her eyes.

“I do, do you?” he asked and Belle smiled and nodded her head.

“I just want to figure things out with Jesse first, and this time I want to take it slow,” she said and he laughed.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to ask you to move in with me tomorrow,” he said and Belle laughed too.

“I want us to get to know each other first,” she said, through her laughs and Devon nodded his head.

“You should know, that I’ve never seriously dated a woman before. So, I’m probably more inexperienced than you are at this thing,” he added and Belle laughed again.

“You’ve never been in a serious relationship before?” she asked and Devon shrugged.

“What can I say, I never had the time,” he said and Belle shook her head indulgently.

“And I never found the right woman, I wanted to spend the time with,” he added and she leaned towards him so they could kiss again. Every time Devon kissed her, she felt like she was falling deeper for him. Whatever this feeling was, she had definitely never felt it before.

When they pulled away, Devon started picking their clothes off the floor. He handed hers back to her and Belle held up her torn bra and they laughed again.

He started dressing himself and Belle watched him questioningly. She didn’t want to go back to the apartment yet. She wanted to spend more time with him. She wanted to start getting to know him right away.

“Do you want to call it a night then?” she asked, her words choking in her throat. She didn’t want to have to admit to him that she wanted to spend some time with him. Devon was in the process of buttoning his shirt when he looked up at her with crossed brows.

“What? No! I thought we could go get pizza or go back to my place and watch a movie together or something,” Devon said and Belle jumped off the desk to rush to him and kiss him again.

Chapter 21

 

Belle

 

Devon dropped Belle to her apartment building the next day in his Mercedes and when Belle stepped out of the car, she looked up to their studio apartment on the third floor. The window was shut and Jesse didn’t seem to be at it, nevertheless, she didn’t care. She stood at the car door till Devon turned to her with a smile.

“I’ll see you tonight?” he asked and she nodded, before leaning in towards him and planting a kiss on his lips. They smiled at each other and she turned to walk into the building. At the door she looked at the car again, and Devon was still there. He hadn’t asked his chauffeur to drive off yet.

Belle was beaming as she climbed the stairs to her apartment. The situation needed to be dealt with calmly, she knew that, but all she really wanted to do was go in and tell Jesse everything and ask him to leave. She wasn’t quite sure what to expect, she had stormed out of the apartment the previous night, leaving him fuming after her.

Belle jiggled the key in the lock and finally pushed the door open. It was eight in the morning, which meant that he was probably still sleeping. Besides, it was a Saturday and Jesse never woke up before eleven on the weekends.

When she stepped inside, she was surprised to find that all their things had been turned over. It was like a tornado had hit their apartment. Jesse was standing on top of the mattress, still in the same clothes as the previous days and his eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he was about to scream.

“Where the Hell have you been?” he thundered.

Belle slammed the door behind her and slipped the keys into her purse.

“What happened here? Did you do this?” she asked, in an equally high pitched voice.

“Tell me where you were last night. I tried calling you like a million times,” he said and stepped off the mattress.

Belle remained standing where she was and glared at him, her own fury rising.

“I spent the night at a friend’s house because I didn’t want to see your face,” she said. The words came tumbling out of her. She had decided to be calm and gentle with Jesse when she broke the news, but she couldn’t control herself.

She had spent the night in Devon’s luxurious penthouse apartment on the forty-fifth floor of a Manhattan sky rise. But she wasn’t going to tell Jesse that.

“Which friend? You don’t have any friends in New York,” he spat out, taking long strides towards her. Belle straightened her back and glared at him. Jesse was studying her, like he was looking for clues about where she had been. Belle’s makeup was off, her hair wasn’t tied in a plait any more and she was starkly aware of not wearing a bra. She had taken a shower in Devon’s place though, so at least she looked somewhat presentable.

“How do you know if I have any friends here or not? You don’t know anything about my life, Jesse,” she said and she folded her arms over her breasts. He had come up very close to her and now he was breathing down on her face, but she only glared back at him. She wasn’t afraid of him. She wasn’t even guilty any more.

“You were with some guy, weren’t you?” he snarled and Belle arched her eyebrows.

“So what if I was?” she said and Jesse grabbed her shoulders and shook her violently.

“You cheated on me!” he yelled and the door behind her slammed open. She hadn’t locked it but neither did she expect it to swing open either. They both turned their heads to look in surprise.

Devon walked in, more calmly than he had pushed the door open but his eyes were narrowed and the features on his face had darkened to a stormy hue. His blue eyes were piercing Jesse.

“Step away from her,” he said in a controlled voice.

“Who the Hell are you?” Jesse yelled, but he dropped his hands from Belle’s shoulders.

“That is none of your concern,” Devon said and Jesse looked sharply at Belle.

“Who the Hell is he?” he repeated himself. The last thing he was probably expecting was a man in his forties in crisp tailored clothes to barge in through the door.

“Jesse, I need you to leave my apartment,” Belle said, mimicking Devon’s calm voice. Jesse was still in shock.

“Do you understand what she’s saying?” Devon said and Jesse’s jaw dropped open.

“She’s my girlfriend. Who is she to you?” he asked, in a high pitched voice.

“I am not your girlfriend any more, Jesse. You have till the end of the day to pack your bags and leave,” Belle said and stepped in Devon’s direction. A knowing look came over Jesse’s eyes.

“So, this is the friend you spent last night with? Are you his girlfriend now?” he said, forcing a laugh in his voice.

“Go back home, Jesse. New York isn’t for you. You need to get a job or move in with your folks if you can’t find one. I’m not going to waste another penny on you,” Belle said and she walked over to Devon who wrapped an arm around her.

Jesse continued to stare at them for a few more seconds in silence, before Devon cleared his throat.

“You have till this evening. Six. I’ll be here with Belle to make sure that you’re nowhere in sight and then we’re getting the locks changed,” he said and gently, he tugged Belle away.

She didn’t look back as they walked with their arms around each other. She shut the door behind her and only then realized that she was shaking slightly.

“Why didn’t you leave?” she asked him, as they took the stairs down together.

“Because I wanted to make sure you were safe. From the stuff you told me about him, I was expecting him to act out,” Devon told her and Belle placed her head on his shoulder.

“I feel bad for uprooting him like this, but he’s depended on me for too long. And I don’t love him,” she said softly, as they walked back out on the street again.

“I understand, Belle. You’re doing what is best for you. Let’s spend the day together and after that we’re going to find you a new place to live,” Devon said as he opened the car door for her.

Chapter 22

 

Belle

 

Eight months later

 

Belle was sitting at her desk with her legs crossed with a pen stuck behind her ear, as she typed away at her computer. She was engrossed in her work, and hadn’t even taken a lunch break today. When she looked at the clock on her screen, she noticed that it was seven already. The office floor was entirely empty and a lot of the lights had been dimmed down. Never before in her life, had she felt this fulfilled with a task. The Brooklyn office had a good effect on her work life balance, and she was grateful to Devon for pushing her towards it.

She suddenly remembered that she had to meet Devon at six thirty!

Belle tried to finish typing the last sentence as quickly as she could and when she was done, she sighed. Blowing a lock of her bronze hair away from her nose.

“Hello, there,” she heard Devon’s deep smooth voice and she turned in her chair to find him standing at the end of her cubicle. He looked handsome, in his black suit and crisp cream shirt. His blue tie matched his eyes, and a smile spread over Belle’s face.

“I’m so sorry, I lost track of time,” she said and got up from her chair to hurry over to him.

Devon took her into his arms and they kissed deeply. She pulled away from him when she remembered where they were. Nobody in either of the offices knew that they had been in a relationship for the past eight months.

“Don’t worry about it. I checked, nobody’s here,” he said and drew her in again, so he could bite her bottom lip playfully.

“So, this is your desk,” Devon said, looking around. In order to maintain secrecy, he had never visited the office and didn’t maintain any contact with her, through any official channels. Belle still lived in Brooklyn because that was the only place she could afford, and she was strict about not accepting any special favors from Devon.

“My little nook,” Belle said and bit down on her lip. Even though Devon owned everything here, and he was still her boss, to Belle it felt like her boyfriend was visiting her workplace for the same time. She had started feeling giddy with excitement.

“Susan sent me an email today to say that Jasmine has offered you a permanent position here?” Devon asked, smiling at her. Belle was gushing, she couldn’t keep her cheeks from burning up. She knew Devon was proud of her, she was proud of herself. And she had done it without any of Devon’s help. She had worked hard in the past months to impress Jasmine. Make herself indispensable. And Devon had kept himself out of it.

“And I’ve accepted it,” Belle said and Devon took in a deep breath and nodded.

“Congratulations, my love,” he said and swept her into his arms again. He kissed her cheeks gently and when she pulled away, he was staring deep into her eyes.

“I’m happy for you, and I only wish the best but I was also hoping that maybe we could be less secretive about our relationship now?” he said and Belle arched her eyebrows.

“How do you mean?” she asked and Devon took his time with his answer. Belle couldn’t help but smile at how nervous he was. This was evidently a big step for him. This was the longest relationship he had ever been in and they couldn’t be happier.

“I wanted to ask you to move in with me. I know you had a bad experience with your ex boyfriend, but I was thinking that maybe we’ve spent enough time together to know what to expect now,” he said and let go of her. She could see the anxiety in his eyes. To him this was as good as asking her to marry him. Baby steps.

Belle burst into a laugh, and when he looked wounded, she leaned over to kiss him again.

“You don’t have to look so afraid, Devon. Of course I want to move in with you. My living experience with Jesse…my whole relationship with him was nothing like what we have,” she said. Devon looked pleasantly surprised. For some reason, he hadn’t been expecting her to say yes.

“So you’ll move in with me?” he asked and Belle nodded her head.

“And I want to be a little more open about our relationship too, without letting it affect my work here,” she said and Devon kissed her forehead.

“Yes, I agree. We shouldn’t let it affect your work. Maybe we can think about that, and for now just work on getting you settled into my place,” he said and started leading her away from her desk.

They were walking in and arm towards the elevators on the floor. Belle was still blushing and Devon was still beaming like a teenager. It had been eight months since they first started seeing each other, and Belle knew that it was the best decision she had ever made.

“Where are we going?” she asked him, as the elevator doors pinged open and he led her in.

“Wherever you want to go, my love,” Devon told her. Belle pressed the button for the ground floor and turned to place her hands on his broad chest.

“How about we go to my new home?” she said and they were kissing again.

 

 

 

BOOK 2: HIRED BY THE BILLIONAIRE

 

BLURB

Lena has always been a free-spirited woman. She’s traveled to every corner of the globe, searching for happiness. She managed to find it within her career as a world-renowned chef, but she’s still missing one very important thing. She’s missing love.

After nearly a decade abroad, something has called her back to the city where she first put down her roots. Now that she’s back in New York she’s ready to settle down for a little while and accepts a job at a brand new restaurant owned by a man named Jamison.

Jamison has a reputation as a playboy, but Lena is sure she can handle his swagger and charm. What she doesn’t expect, however, is the bond that builds between them and his genuine interest in her. She is the first woman to ever resist him and it only makes him want her more.

And she certainly never expected that this man, this womanizer turned gentleman, might actually come to love her and help her face the things she’s been trying so desperately to run from.

 

Chapter One: Lena

One hundred and twenty-two. What does that number mean? Well, it’s the number of countries I have visited in my lifetime and it is what I have chosen to introduce myself with. My name is Lena Patterson and I don’t think there’s a better way to impress upon people what kind of person I am than the number of countries I’ve visited. It doesn’t tell you how much I make in a year or what political party I belong to, but what it does say is that I have a deep desire to learn, explore and live life to the fullest. This wasn’t always the case, however.

I grew up in a small town in Alabama called Bellefontaine. It was the type of town where everyone knows everyone else’s business and people whisper cruel things behind their neighbors backs but smile at them on the streets. People who’ve never lived in a small town in America think of it as wholesome and some even want to raise their children in places like Bellefontaine. I understand the appeal to an outsider, but to me it was a cage.

People in Bellefontaine were born there and most of them died there. No one went college, people distrusted the ‘big cities’ and change was unwelcomed. I remember my mother talking about New York City like it was a stain that needed to be erased. It was a place to be avoided where children’s minds were corrupted. It was the Devil’s City and my mother would do anything in her power to keep me away from the sins and temptations of the world.

That’s why we never travelled. Anything outside my parent’s little bubble was terrifying to them. They didn’t want to be away from the church and the people that they’d grown up with. They wanted everything to stay the way it was when they were kids, even if that wasn’t the best thing.

I was happy to listen to them when I was young. I didn’t really have a choice. Our TV didn’t have cable and my access to the internet didn’t really begin until I was already a teenager and even then, it was limited. I knew very little of the world outside Bellefontaine.

When we were forced to go to Birmingham, my mother kept me close, keeping me from anyone who might want to compromise my morals. Birmingham is relatively small as far cities go, but to me it was a shining metropolis that was full of hope and promise. I wanted to live in a city like that. I wanted to get out of Bellefontaine.

I spent my teenage years rebelling against my parents like most teenagers. I would get rides with my friends and we would go to the city and stay with relatives or people we barely knew. It wasn’t the safest way to live, but it made us happy.

As the internet became more prevalent and smartphones put the power of information into people’s hands, I started to get more and more curious. I wanted to know more about the world and I was determined to find answers to my questions.

My mother was appalled when I was accepted to New York University. She pointed a bony finger in my face and told me that if I moved to New York, neither her nor my father would visit me. I accepted it and moved away to begin the best years of my life.

While I went to school I took full advantage of what the city had to offer. I explored every nook and cranny of the city, spending my weekends and days off crashing in people’s apartments, enjoying parties and all the things I’d missed out on growing up.

My first year was wild, and if I have to be honest, I don’t really remember much of it, but that doesn’t matter. I enjoyed being away from home, but soon realized that a college education wasn’t for me. I bounced around in several majors, but never really found my niche until I joined a study abroad program.

I spent a semester in France where I shacked up with a boyfriend who showed me my love of cooking. We would spend hours in the kitchen together, showing each other family recipes. The relationship didn’t last, but my love of cooking did.

I never went back to NYU and instead applied for a visa and started culinary school. I learned from some of the best chefs in the world and when I was done, I travelled world, taking various jobs to hone my craft. After my first three years working, I started getting recruited by five star restaurants all over the globe. I made a name for myself in the culinary world and soon everyone knew who I was. Magazines interviews me and some of the most powerful people in the world were hiring me to cater their events. I traveled the globe doing what I loved, feeding my wander lust and feeding people.

New York called me back, however. I missed the city lights and the bustle of the streets. I was ready to settle down for a while and continue my career in a more stable environment. I loved traveling, but I wanted to stay put for at least a little while.

That’s how I found myself in the apartment of my best friend, Miguel. He was from Bellefontaine as well and had moved to New York when I did, though he opted to stay in school and become a lawyer. Now he had a fancy pent house in the city and a handsome husband.

We stepped through the door and I toed my shoes off. It was a habit I’d picked up while traveling through Asia. “Thanks for picking me up at the airport.”

Miguel chuckled and nodded towards his black, patent leather couch. “Not a problem. I’m honestly just glad to see you face to face. It’s been years since we saw each other in person.”

“I know. I was just having a good time, you know? Enjoying the world.”

He poured me a glass of wine and handed it over to me, settling on the couch, sipping the pink bubbly liquid. “You were always a wild spirit. Are you sure you’re ready to stay for a while?”

“I think so. I’m an old lady now. I’ve sown my wild oats and I think I’m ready to stick around for at least a few years.”

Miguel rolled his eyes and snorted a little. “You’re an old lady, huh? At twenty-seven?”

I grinned and shrugged, took a sip of the thick, red liquid in my glass. Miguel had damn good taste in wine. He reclined back into the couch and started to undo his tie glancing at me out of the corner of his eye.

“Do you have a job lined up?”

“Mmmm!” My mouth was full of wine, but I waved my hand, showing him I had something to say. “Yeah!” I pulled my phone out of my pocket and scrolled through my messages. “So, I announced I was leaving Spain and the press got a hold of it pretty quickly and within like four hours, I had all these job offers.”

Miguel glanced at my phone, one eyebrow raised. “Impressive.”

“I know, right? I didn’t really expect to get this kind of response!”

“You are a world-famous chef.”

I beamed at him, my cheeks going a little red. I knew it was true. I knew I was good and I knew my talents were worth a lot to a lot of people, but I was raised in a humble family and sometimes I still struggled when it came to taking compliments.

“Thanks!” I sang, pulling up an email.

“I have an interview with this guy tomorrow.”

Miguel took the phone and glanced at it, crossing one leg over the other. “Oh boy. You’re gonna go work for this guy?”
“I’m going to go interview with him. Why?”

Miguel chuckled and handed the phone back. “That is Jamison Whittle.”

“Yeah?”

“New York’s biggest playboy millionaire.” He put on a ‘rich guy’ accent and turned his nose up just a little.

“You know him?”

“My firm has done work with some of his businesses. He owns properties all over the world and his toe dipped in several industries. I guess he’s looking to get into the restaurant game now.”

“He has no restaurant experience?”

Miguel shrugged a little and finished off his glass of wine, taking it to the kitchen. He started to put it in the sink but then set it back on the counter, pouring himself a second glass. “I’m not sure. I don’t know him personally, but I think this is going to be the first restaurant with his name on it.”

“Perfect!”

“Perfect?” He asked, settling beside me again. “I would think that would be bad news.”

“Not at all.” I sang, grinning brightly. “If he’s never run a restaurant before, then that means he has no idea what he’s doing, right? It’s like getting a slab of clay thrown in front of you. I’ll get to mold that restaurant into what I want it to be and I won’t have to spend months trying to fix whatever the last manager fucked up.”

Miguel glanced at me and then looked away. “Unless the guy running everything is just as hard headed as you.”

“I’m not hard headed.”

“Right, and the pope isn’t catholic.”

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest. “Anyway, if he gives me any push back, I’ll just fight him on it.”

“And he’ll fight right back.”

“You’re being very negative.”

Miguel held his hands up. “Look, I’m not trying to argue with you, I just don’t want you walking into the lion’s den uninformed.”

“Well, thanks for the warning.”

“Plus, he’s a notorious womanizer, so you might want to keep your guard up?”

That was a quick transition. I glanced at Miguel and cocked my head to the side. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’re a pretty girl and he likes pretty girls, so watch out.”

Pretty girl. I’d heard that a lot in my life. My long, jet black hair and olive skin was a gift from my grandmother who was one hundred percent native American. My emerald eyes, however, were from my dad. The stark contrast often caught people off guard. I’d never really had a problem finding lover’s and flings. Men liked my wide hips, ample ass and toned arms. I didn’t really think about my beauty often, though. I wasn’t a vain person.

“I’m pretty good about not falling into the snake pit.”

Miguel chuckled and stood. “I know. If anyone can resist Jami, it’s you. Just be aware.” He stood and offered his hand to help me stand.

Once I was off the couch, Miguel led me to the guest room. It was a light purple and blue themed room with a large bed and en suite bathroom. “Man, this is a nice place. Especially for New York.”

“I got lucky.” He said, tipping his now empty glass my way. “Get some sleep. I’m sure dealing with Jamison is going to be exhausting.”

“I think I’ll be alright.”

Miguel smiled and pushed himself off the door frame. “Well, if anyone can handle him, it’s you.”

I smiled and blew him a kiss before he disappeared down the hallway. I sighed and went to the bathroom, closing the door and turning on the hot water. I’d had a long flight and I was looking forward to finally washing all the travel grime off me.

Right before I stepped into the shower, my phone went off. I glanced at the buzzing device I’d set on the counter and sighed. It was probably an email. I reached out to pick it up, but stopped short when I realized it was my dad texting.

‘U need to come home. Mama is sick.’

I set my lips in a thin line and deleted the text just like I had all the others before it. The text had dampened what was left of my evening, but I tried to ignore it. A part of me felt cruel for never answering, but there was still a burning anger in my belly. I remembered the day I told my mother I was leaving. She’d slapped me across the face and told me to leave and never come back. She’d never visit me in New York and I’d never be allowed back home. I did exactly as she asked and stayed far, far away from Bellefontaine.

I’d seen my father a few times since leaving home, but he’d always come on his own, trying to patch things up between me and my mother, but it never worked. She and I were both stubborn women and neither of us were willing to apologize.

The texts had started coming in about three months ago, but I paid them no mind. My mother had been the one to remove herself from my life and I wasn’t going to apologize for the radio silence. Maybe I should have bit the bullet and just let it go, but there was something in me that hung onto the sadness and anger from that day.

I fell into bed and was asleep before my head hit the pillow. It had been a long day and I had a feeling the next day was going to be even longer.

Chapter Two: Lena

 

I’d expected to wake up to the urgent sound of my phone’s alarm, but instead I heard the sounds of birds singing and felt the warmth of the sun kiss my face. It wouldn’t have been a nice way to wake up, if I hadn’t had to be awake before the sun came up.

I sat straight up in bed, my long hair a tangled mess, curling around my face. I cursed as I kicked the blankets off and grabbed my phone to check the time. It was 7:30 and my meeting with Jami was at 8. I cursed to myself and jumped out of bed, running to my suitcase and pulling out the only real professional outfit I owned. I worked in a chef’s uniform and when I wasn’t working I could be found in sweaters and leggings.

I wiggled into the fitted black dress and stumbled into the bathroom, hastily applying the bare minimum amount of makeup. The dress as riding up as I ran through Miguel’s living room, grabbing my purse and waving to him as he told me good luck, seemingly confused by my rush.

By the time I got out of the house, it was 7:50 and I still had a thirty- minute train ride. I ran as quickly as I could in heels, stumbling through the crowds and brushing past people who gave me annoyed looks, but I didn’t really care. I had somewhere I needed to be.

When I finally got on the train I slumped into one of the seats and leaned my head back against the window, closing my eyes and panting as I tried to catch my breath. I had a few moments to relax, even though I knew I’d be stressed until I got to my interview. I knew this wasn’t the only job offer I had, but I just didn’t like being late.

I ran a hand through my hair, tapping my foot impatiently until the train came to a stop. I was the first one off and soon I found myself on the streets of the upper east side, looking for a restaurant called “Jamison’s Place”. The name was unoriginal, bland and said a lot about the man who owned it. How could a playboy be so boring and uncreative?

Finally, I turned the corner and laid eyes on the large, three story stone building. The sandstone was beautiful and the architecture had a touch of old New York, even though the building was brand new. The sign looked like something from an Irish pub and my curiosity was piqued. This certainly didn’t look like the postmodern monstrosity I’d been expecting.

I walked inside, checking my watch as I wandered through a tall archway that led into a dimly lit restaurant. 8:30. Shit. Was I really an hour late? I sighed and looked up, taking in the metal tables and industrial décor. This wasn’t what I was expecting, but it was nice.

“You’re late.”

I jumped and spun around when a voice spoke up from behind me. As I turned I came face to face with a tall man with sandy blonde hair and eyes the color of honey. He smirked and stared down at me as I took in his sculpted jaw, solid frame and fitted suit. He was…Perfect. At first I couldn’t speak. His full lips and well tripped beard made my knees weak and I had to clear my throat, to regain my composure. Maybe I should have been concerned with how familiar he seemed with my name, but then again, he had my full resume so it wasn’t all that alarming.

“Ah…Yes. My plane came in very late last night and I fell asleep without setting my alarm. I’m so sorry, Mr. Whittle” It was only a little lie, right?

He nodded and motioned towards one of the booths in the corner. “That’s perfectly fine. And please, call me Jami. Please, sit.”

I nodded and glanced over my shoulder before going to the booth he’d pointed at and settling in. I glanced at him, chewing my lower lip unconsciously as he slid in across from me. “I’ve read a lot about you.”

“Hopefully good things?”

“Only good things. You’re said to be the world’s best up and coming chef.” He had a light accent, though I couldn’t quite place it.

“Well, that was kind of the publication.”

“Luckily it’s a publication I trust.”

I nodded and sat still, glancing around and waiting for the questions to begin. He didn’t say anything, though. He just sat across from me, his meaty, but well-manicured hands threaded together and his eyes focused as if he were in deep thought.

“Are we going to continue with the interview?” I squirmed a little. I was afraid that if I didn’t say anything, neither would he.

“Oh, this isn’t an interview.”

“What?” I sounded more alarmed than I meant to.

“Well, I suppose it is, but I’m not going to ask you questions. Anyone who can read knows you’re a good manager and a good chef. I trust your reputation, but I wanted to taste your food for myself.”

“Oh?” I was intrigued again. I’d never had an interview where I was asked to cook. “And why have you decided to conduct this kind of interview?”

He smirked and leaned forward. “Because I want someone who can make good, southern comfort food.” His accent was stronger now, and I suddenly realized it was the same accent I’d fought so hard to get rid of.

“Comfort food?”

“Sure. This place doesn’t have anything like that. You ever try and get chicken and waffles in New York? It’s impossible.”

I was shocked at the request, but nodded. I could make comfort food. Hell, I’d been cooking it since I was a kid, but I’d never had anyone ask me to do it, especially not since I’d become a professional chef.

“Can you do that?”

“I could do it in my sleep.”

He slapped the table and grinned, standing and offering me his hand. “Let’s get crackin’ then.”

I paused but took his hand, my face heating up when he pressed a tender kiss to the back of it. What was this? Some kind of romantic comedy? I brushed the gesture off as a quirk and followed him back to the kitchen. It was one of the largest I’d ever been in and I couldn’t help but whistle as I walked through the swinging doors.

“This is swanky. You don’t see Southern food restaurants with kitchen like this.”

“If I’m going to bring Southern food to New York, I’m going to do it in a big way. Go big or go home?”

After doing some research about Jami on the train ride, I’d quickly learned that was his mantra. Everything he did big. He owned the biggest properties, the biggest stock shares and the biggest night clubs in New York. If I didn’t know better, I’d assume that he had something to prove.

“Do you have everything I need to make a full country breakfast?” I could see all the utensils, but I wasn’t sure about his food stock.

“I sure do.” He motioned towards the walk-in freezer and fridge and I grinned, ready to start.

It didn’t take much time for me to find everything I needed to make biscuits, gravy, eggs and pancakes. It was probably a bit much, but I wasn’t worried about calorie count. I wanted to show him some of my specialties. Now that I’d met him, I was suddenly very interested in working for Jami. I wondered if it had something to do with his beautiful, golden eyes.

I went to work right away, working with the same skill and finesse that I used when making French or Italian cuisine. My skill was not limited to exotic dishes and I put just as much love and effort into pancakes as I did in beef wellington.

It took me less than an hour to finish the meal from scratch, which should have been impressive since everything from the biscuits to the syrup was made from scratch. I put everything on a plate and turned to present it to Jami, who hadn’t taken his eyes off me through the entire process.

“Very good.” He hummed, taking the plate. He cut off a piece of the pancake and put it in his mouth, groaning softly. “This is heavenly.”

I grinned brightly, opening my mouth to thank him, but before words could come out, he pressed a bite of pancake to my lips. My eyes darted up to his, but I took the offered bite, my body flushing. Somehow, this seemed incredibly intimate.

“Ah…Thank you,” I murmured behind my hand as I chewed the sweet, maple covered treat.

“If all your meals are this good, I don’t see why we can’t work together.”

My heart leapt with joy and a grin pulled at my lips. “Really?!”

He chuckled and nodded, taking a bite of the biscuits. “Really.” He turned and set the plate on the table behind him, stepping forward. “But before you go, I have one last question.” He moved towards me until I was pressed up against the prep table, my hands resting on the metal surface.
I laughed nervously, looking away, unable to hold his intense gaze. “And what is that?”

His fingers rested on my jaw and he guided my gaze to his meet his. “I want to take you out.”

“Out?”

“On a date.”

I laughed and put a hand on his chest, slowly pushing him away. “I don’t think so.”

I knew my answer was a lie, but he didn’t have to know that. I could hear Miguel’s warning loud and clear in my mind. I’d just gotten home. The last thing I wanted to do was mix myself up in some kind of whirlwind romance with my boss.

Jami seemed shocked, but stepped back. “You’re saying no?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

He smirked and wrapped his arm around my waist, but I managed to sneak out of his hold. “I could show you this city in ways you’ve never dreamed.”

I snorted and rolled my eyes at the cheesy line. “You’ll have to try harder than that.” Sure, he was my future boss, but if he was going to hit on me like this, I felt like I had a reason to be a little snarky.

He smirked and tucked his hands in his pockets. “Is that a challenge?”

“I suppose it is.”

He shrugged casually and started to walk by me, heading for the doors. He paused beside me, leaning in, his warm breath tickling my ear.

“I accept.”

With that simple declaration, he left me flushed and strangely aroused, only pausing at the door to offer one last comment.

“You start work on Monday. I’ll see you at noon.”

 

Chapter Three: Jami

I couldn’t get her out of my head. Even as my daily routine went on, I couldn’t get Lena out of my head. She was a beautiful woman with a shapely body and a spark inside of her that ignited me as well. I wanted her badly, but I couldn’t seem desperate. That wasn’t how I did things. Normally, I wasn’t the type to go after women. I didn’t go after them because they flocked to me, but this time I was going to make an exception. Lena was a well-traveled woman with some world experience under her belt. She wouldn’t be as easily swayed as the women I’d courted before her.

Playboy was the word that was often used to describe me, but I didn’t really agree with that term. It sounded slimy and unappealing. I preferred to think of myself as a connoisseur of women. I loved women. I loved having them around, I just didn’t like keeping them around. I was always upfront with the women who came to my bed, but when morning comes around they always seem to forget the conversation and the request that they be gone by breakfast time.

Some are more persistent than others and some are so offended at the fact that I don’t want to give them a ride home, that they stomp off and never come back. I prefer the second type of woman, to be honest. I’m sure they told all their friends about me, but it didn’t stop the flow of women I saw in my life. My money and my charm were too much for them to resist. Hopefully, Lena wouldn’t be any different.

I placed a tooth pick between my lips as I walked through the doors of my towering office building. The marble floor clicked under the worn leather boots I wore every day. Most of my clothes got replaced when it came time to wash them, but it was hard to find a good pair of shoes. I hung onto my shoes until they were literally falling apart at the seams.

I greeted my employees in the hall way, waving and nodding my head politely. Sandy blonde hair fell into my eyes as I approached my secretary. Rachel was one of the only women who’d worked for me that I hadn’t fooled around with. Don’t get me wrong, I’d tried like hell to get her on a date, but she was the first and only woman to ever rebuke my advance completely. It was part of the reason I kept her around as my personal secretary and assistant. There wouldn’t be anything weird in the way of our working relationship.

“Rachel!”

“Mr. Whittle,” she said, tipping her head in my direction, her eyes not leaving the computer screen.

I put my hands flat on her desk and leaned over, grinning brightly. “How many times do I got to ask you to call me Jami.”

She cocked a perfectly sculpted brow and I could see her trying to resist rolling her eyes at me. “You know I prefer to keep our relationship professional.”

I grunted a little and stood back up. “To a fault.”

She shrugged her slender shoulders and went back to typing. God, I loved the way she ignored me. There was something thrilling about it. Powerful women were such a rare find. It was the reason I was so interested in Lena.

“What do I have going on today?”

“You have a meeting at 1:30 with the housing committee, but that’s about it.”

“Gotcha.” I started to walk away, heading for my office.

“Oh, and you ought to know that there’s a woman named Marie waiting for you in your office. She said she knew you, so I thought I should let her in.”

Rachel didn’t agree with my playboy ways and had a habit of retaliating by letting the women I slept with into my office. I think she got a kick out of seeing me try and confront them. She was lucky she was such a damn good secretary.

I groaned but made my way towards the elevator, taking it up to the thirteenth floor. Many people thought it was strange I put my office on such an infamous floor, but I’d done it on purpose. I didn’t believe that some number had a supernatural power over the universe. I’d made my own luck and I believed in that whole heartedly. It only seemed appropriate to flaunt my beliefs by putting my office in the thirteenth floor.

The long stretch of hallway was filled with the sound of muffled voices making deals and making money. It was music to my ears. When I finally reached my office, I could see the outline of a tall, busty woman through the frosted glass. The name Marie sounded familiar, but I couldn’t put a face to it. It was a fairly normal thing for me to not quite remember what my conquests looked like.

I stepped into the office and the woman’s face swung around. Her too-thin brows were pulled together and her bright red lips were twisted into a frown. She stood up, black dress clinging to every curve and line of her body, not leaving much to the imagination.

“Why didn’t you call?” she demanded.

God. Her voice was a little too high and her Brooklyn accent thick. It was like nails on a goddamn chalkboard. I winced and held my hands up, sighing softly. “I don’t call back, babe. We talked about that.”

“Don’t call me ‘babe’! You’re a sack of shit! My friends warned me about you! They told me about how you use women!”

I rolled my eyes and brushed past her, settling in my high back, leather chair. “Don’t start with this bullshit, Marie. You knew what this was. You knew what it was every time you came home with me. You use me just as much. Don’t pretend you don’t like the drinks and dresses I buy you.”

Marie was a returning customer. Now that I saw her face, I knew that I’d been with her at least twice. Both times we’d gone to restaurants outside of her price range and I’d treated her to clothes shopping, explaining to her that these little trysts weren’t signs of affection. They were obligations that I had accepted a long time ago. I wasn’t a total asshole, I wanted to give these women something in return for their time.

“I’m not a fucking hooker!”

“I never said you were!”

She stared at me, her hands balled into fists at her side. “You think you can pay me off with dresses and food! That’s not how relationships work!”

My eyes flashed with anger and I slammed my hands down on the table. “Look here, Marie! I was very straightforward with you! I told you what I wanted and I gave you what you wanted! It was a fucking exchange! I don’t play these dating games and you knew that from the start! You had every chance to walk away and you stayed exactly where you were!”

“I wanted you!”

I leaned back in my chair, my golden eyes narrowed, staring at her in slight disbelief. Did she really think she was going to pull the wool over my eyes? Did she think I was born yesterday? I’d been doing this for a long time and I knew exactly what women like her wanted.

“You wanted money.”

“That’s not true!” She argued, walking over to my chair. She reached out and touched my cheek, her cold fingers running along my unshaven jaw. “I want you, Jami…I want to be with you.”

“What’s my real name, then? What is Jami short for?” She looked confused and just stared at me. “Come on. I told you on our first date and all you’d have to do was a quick internet search if you forgot.”

“Well…It’s a trick question,” she murmured, her face going red. “Jami isn’t short for anything.”

I stood up and grabbed her arm, tugging her towards the door. “I could handle the fact that you’re annoying. I could even handle your disgusting begging, but what I can’t stand is fucking liars.” I opened my office door and pushed her out.

She stood there, shocked and just staring at me. I was angry now. At first, I’d just been annoyed, but now I was pissed off. “Get the fuck out of here, Marie! And don’t every come to my offices again.”

“But—“

“Don’t ‘but’ me! My fucking name is Jamison!” I snapped, slamming the doors closed.

The office was silent for a moment before the muffled dealing resumed. I fell into my chair and put my head in my hands for a moment, taking a deep breath through nose before letting it out through my mouth.

People who knew me always asked why I didn’t date. They asked me why I’d rather just sleep around. I was thirty-two now and most people assumed that I would have settled down by now, but the truth was that I didn’t want to settle down and I had no real intention to. Women like Marie were the reason I didn’t settle down. For some reason, people thought that only men were able to be knaiving assholes, but the truth was that women were just as capable. I didn’t want to end up trapped in a relationship with a woman who couldn’t care less about me.

For a long time, I just sat there, trying to relax and get over the anger rushing through me. I needed to just let it go and continue on with my day, but I was struggling a bit. Encounters like the one I’d had with Marie got under my skin more than I liked to admit.

There was a knock at the door and I lifted my head, grunting softly. “Come in.”

Rachel walked in, a stack of papers in her arms. She set them on the desk and glanced at me. “You look sour.”

“Don’t ever let that woman in this office every again.” I sounded a lot sharper than I meant to sound, but I couldn’t help it. Marie had put me in a bad mood.

“Mmmm…Did she piss you off?”

“Damn right she did. And I mean it, Rachel. If you let her in here again, you and I are going to have some words.”

She held up her hands as if to silently say she understood. That’s one thing I could always count on her for. She made me deal with my shit, even if I didn’t want to, but she always listened when I said enough was enough.

“If she tried to come back on the premises, I will make sure she’s removed.”

“Thank you,” I murmured going through the files. “What are these?”

“It’s the paper work on the cook you hired for your new restaurant.”

“Oh?” Wonderful Maybe it had her home address, not that I was going to do anything sketchy. “Perfect. Would you take down her address and have flowers sent over.”

Rachel looked at me, confused. “Flowers?”

“Yes. I want her to feel welcomed.”

“I don’t think It’s a good idea that you get mixed up with a new employee, Jami.”

I offered her a smile. “I ain’t getting tangled up with anyone. Just send her some flowers, alright?”

She rolled her eyes and took the paper. “When this comes back to bite you in the ass, I’m not cleaning up your mess,” she called as she leaved.

Once she was gone I closed the door and sat back down, glancing at the smiling face on the paper. Lena was gorgeous, and despite Rachel’s loving advice, I wasn’t going to give up until she was in my bed.

After all, it had been a long time since someone put up such a good fight.

 

Chapter Four: Lena

 

There was nothing like the smell of freshly brewed coffee in the morning. Especially when it was brewed in your own coffee maker in your own apartment. I’d finally found a place and was eager to get settled into a routine. I’d never really had one before, but I wanted to try and ground myself. I was starting to get tired of running around without any kind of plan.

I settled onto my couch, folding my legs and staring blankly at the TV. It was weird having one of those again. I’d spent a lot of time in countries where the average family didn’t have a TV. Besides, I was often too busy running around exploring to stop and watch TV. Things were going to be different now that I was back in the States.

I sipped at my coffee and picked a book up off my coffee table, thumbing through it and humming softly to myself. Soon I was so engrossed in my reading and had tuned the world out completely. It was just me and my book. So, when my phone suddenly rang I jumped, spilling my coffee all over my lap and book.

“Fuck!” I picked the book up, trying to shake the access coffee off the pages, even though I was only making it worse.

I grabbed my phone and held it to my ear, sounding more annoyed than I meant to. “Yes?”

“Bad time?” It was Miguel.

I sighed and sat the book down on the coffee table, trying to blot the liquid off the pages. “No. The phone ringing surprised me and I spilled coffee all over myself.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine. What’s up?” I asked, settling back on the couch after setting my book on the windowsill to dry.

“Well, I think I got some of your mail.”

“Some of my mail? Who the hell is sending me mail? I haven’t been here for a month yet! Are they already trying to send my credit cards? I swear, some people just—“

“It’s not credit cards. It’s flowers.”

That took me by surprise. I hummed softly and cocked a brow, leaning against the wall. “Flowers? Who the hell is sending me flowers?”

“Beats me. Just thought I’d let you know.”

“There’s no name?” I asked, brows furrowing together as I tried to think of who might send my flowers.

“There’s a note, but it just says ‘looking forward to a very long, happy working relationship’.”

“Oh God.”

“What?” he asked.

“They’re from Jami.”

“Why is he sending you flowers?”

I grunted and leaned back against the couch. “Because he’s delusional and he thinks I’m going to go on a date with him or something.”

“Ahhh…Is he trying to butter you up?”

“I guess he is, but it isn’t going to work.”

“Good for you, girl. I’ll just throw these away.”

I struggled to keep my mouth shut when he said that. I didn’t want him to throw them away, if we were being honest. I wanted to see them. No one had ever sent me flowers before. I hadn’t stayed in one place long enough for someone to want to send me flowers. Most of my relationships up until this point had been one night stands. I was over with one night stands. That’s why I was avoiding my new boss at all costs, even if he was gorgeous and just my type.

“Sure.” I said, shrugging and silently hoping it might make me sound disinterested.

“Keep fighting the good fight, Lena. He’s not going to give up until he’s bored or until you say yes.”

“I’m always up for a good fight.”

“Atta girl. I’ll see you later, yeah?”

“Absolutely.”

The line went silent and once I knew he was gone, I groaned softly and ran my hand over my face, shaking my head and sighing. This was not good. I was already starting to feel him tugging at me. I already wanted him. Now, my feelings were far from romantic, but they were physical. I wanted to feel his strong hands on my hips, tangling in my hair as his hand came down on my ass…

My cheeks went red and my eyes widened as the thoughts came into my head. What in the world was I thinking? Why was I suddenly wanting him so badly? I’d managed to push these thoughts away up to this point and now they were coming in strong.

I slammed my book closed and jumped to my feet, walking towards the bathroom. I needed a cold shower…

 

__________

 

It was finally opening night and I was ready to do what Jami had hired me to do. I was going to cook some really good food for a bunch of rich people who had no appreciation for the food I was cooking. I’d done that a million times before and it went just as well as it had all the other times. The food we put out was the best damn southern comfort food this town had ever seen, and by the time it was over, I was left feeling tired and satisfied. It was almost as good as sex.

I could have left clean up to my staff, but once the majority of it was done, I sent them home and decided to finish it myself. My fingers were sore and my ankles popped with every step, but I was used to it by now. The kitchen was still hot from all the cooking so I’d taken off my uniform, leaving me in a black tank top and the leggings I always wore underneath for situations like this.

When the door opened, I glanced over my shoulder. The rubbing scuffing sound was loud enough to hear through the entire kitchen.

“Hello? The kitchen is closed!” I called, my hand on a large butcher knife, just in case.

Jami came around the corner and smiled softly, tilting his head to the side. “If it’s closed then why are you still here?”

I put my hands on my hips and smiled, trying to be pleasant. After all, he hadn’t tried anything funny. Maybe I needed to go easier on him.

“Someone has to clean up, don’t they?”

He slid out of his blazer and my cheeks flushed when his strong, muscular arms pulled at the fabric of his shirt, showing off just how toned he was underneath. He rolled his sleeves up his powerful forearms and I cleared my throat, turning away before he could see the blush on my cheeks.

“You alright?” He asked, starting to pick up bowls and other items.

I never expected him to come in here and help me. Rich guys didn’t normally like getting their hands dirty.

“I’m fine.”

I could practically feel his smirk burning into my back as we moved around each other, picking up pans and dishes. We worked together silently, though I could feel his eyes on me. He was being completely transparent and I wasn’t sure how to deal with it, especially because I wanted him just as badly, even though I was holding it back.

When everything was finished, I wiped my hands on the apron around my waist before taking it off and tossing it aside. “I think that’s it, Jami. Thanks for your help. It really— “

As I turned around to thank him, I was silenced when his lips pressed against mine. I would have stumbled back, but I found myself trapped between Jami and the stainless-steel prep table. My fingers curled into fists as I tried to resist the warmth in those lips. He tasted like whiskey and fine cigars. He tasted like what I imagined a cowboy might taste like. He didn’t have the scent of a real estate mogul, he had the scent of a man who’d worked with his hands and dug into the earth. It was absolutely intoxicating.

I finally threw my arms around him, embracing him and scrambling to pull him closer. I couldn’t resist it. Now that it was right here in front of me, I couldn’t resist it. I wanted him so bad I couldn’t deny it anymore. Maybe this would get it out of my system and I could move on with my life. So much for resisting temptation.

He put his strong hands on my waist and lifted me off the ground, settling me on the cold steel prep table. The kiss deepened and I felt his tongue run along my lower lip, silently beckoning me to let it enter. I parted my lips and our tongues met in an eager dance, tangling and struggling for dominance. I finally let him take over, his hands wandering over my barely dressed body.

His thumbs hooked underneath my shirt and he pulled it up, exposing my small, but perky breasts. Calloused thumbs ran over my rosy nipples, eliciting a moan from me. He pulled away from the kiss and grinned up at me, his hand pressed into my lower back. He ducked his head and took one of the nubs into his mouth, suckling eagerly, teeth grazing the tender flesh. I cried out and tangled my fingers into his sandy hair, holding him in place.

Warmth washed over me and every inch of my body came awake. It was like being on fire and I loved every second of it.

“Fuck!” I threw my head back, my toes curling as he pressed his fingers into my thighs, forcing my legs apart. I wasn’t going to fight him, either.

He pushed me back and soon I was staring up at the sterile cooking light, being bathed in the warm light that radiated from it. His hands ran over my body as his lips made their way back to mine. He’d pressed one powerful thigh between my legs, rocking it so it caused the most delicious friction. I whimpered and tugged at his hair, enjoying the way he grunted when I did.

A warm coil of pleasure was forming in my belly and I found myself hoping that we went all the way tonight. I’d spent so much of my time thinking about him lately, and I wanted it to stop. Maybe if I finally got what I wanted, I could push him from my mind and move on with my life. After all, I didn’t want to get mixed up with a guy like him. He’d only break my heart.

He was rocking his thigh faster now, and I could feel the heat rising in my body. I was seconds from wriggling out of my skin-tight leggings when he pulled away, stopping completely. He grinned at me, panting softly. His own face was flushed and his hair was falling into his eyes. Oh, God. What was this? Was he going to tell me to get undressed?

“So how about that date?”

All the heat in my body turned ice cold at those words and I rolled my eyes, finally coming to my senses. I put my hands on his shoulders and gave him a solid push. He stumbled off the table and watched me, his hands tucked into his pockets.

“You’re a damn creep!”

“Huh?”

I spun around and looked at him, my lips twisted into a snarl. I pushed him again and he stumbled back. “I don’t want anything to do with you!”

“Sure, didn’t seem that way a minute ago.”

I could have screamed with frustration but instead I picked up a knife and pointed it at him. “Get out of my kitchen!”

He seemed to realize he fucked up and held his hands up, taking a step forward. “Hey. I didn’t mean to— “

“I said get out!”

He paused and sighed, rubbing the back of his neck before turning and walking out of the kitchen without another word. Once he was gone, I leaned against the prep table and put my head in my hands, letting out a muffled scream.

Now I was going to have to sterilize the damn prep table all over again.

 

Chapter Five: Jami

 

I wasn’t the type of guy to apologize often, but when I did, it was because I really fucked something up. Blindsiding Lena was not the best decision I’d ever made, but I was going to try and make it right, if she would let me.

I’d tried sending candies, stuffed animals and all manner of presents to her door, but it turned out I had the wrong address. The man who I’d been sending things to finally called my office and told me he appreciated the gifts, but that I should stop wasting my money.

Once I got off the phone with the man, I realized that it was probably better she didn’t get my gifts. I was quickly discovering that Lena wasn’t the type of woman to be swayed by material things. When I came to that conclusion I was even more eager to take her out, though for the first time in my life, the goal wasn’t to just sleep with her. I wanted to get to know her.

That’s why I showed up early to the restaurant, asking her to meet me for an executive meeting. She seemed hesitant, but agreed. I knew that she doubted me, and she had every right to. I even felt a little guilty about the lie, but I could only hope that the outcome would be good enough to out weight the lie.

I was sitting at one of the empty tables with a bottle of wine and two glasses. Lena came through the door, her white sundress fluttering in the wind, kissing her smooth thighs. She wasn’t wearing any make up and her curls were loose and wild. I was taken aback by her, shocked at the way my heart was beating so quickly.

“Lena.”

“Jami.” She gave me a curt nod and slid into the seat across from me, putting her hands on the table.

I paused and poured us both a glass of wine. “Look…I know I lied to you, but I hope you’ll hear me out.”

She sighed and rolled her eyes. “I’m not stupid, Jami. I know you were lying. I don’t know what you want to talk about, but I know it’s not work.”

I nodded and cleared my throat. “I want to ask you on a date.”

“I already told you no.”

“I know, but I wanted to try again, and this time there’s no funny business.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. “I don’t believe that for a second. I know all about you, Mr. Playboy. I’m not going to be another notch on your bedpost.”

I held up my hands and sighed. “That’s not why I’m here, alright? I know I have a reputation, but if you dug a little deeper, you’d find out that I don’t chase women.”

She cocked a brow and crossed her arms over her chest. “What are you trying to say?”

“I’m saying that I want to take you out on a date so that I can get to know you better.”

“And you’re being honest?”

“Entirely.”

She snorted a little and leaned back in the booth. “Are you trying to impress me?”

“If you’ll give me the chance,” I said with a grin.

She hummed and tapped her fingers on the table. “And there’s not going to be any funny business?”

“None at all. Everything is on your terms.”

She paused and sighed. “If I agree to go on this date with you, will you leave me alone?”

I couldn’t stop the grin that crossed my features. “Swear it.”

“Alright. We’ll go on a date then.”

“Great! I’ll pick you up later tonight? It’ll give us a chance to get ourselves in order.”

“Sure thing.” She smiled as she stood, walking by me and pausing to put her hand on her hip. “Don’t let me down, yeah?”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

I watched her ample behind as she left, grinning brightly. Nothing I’d said was a lie. I still wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to pursue a relationship with Lena. My interest would probably fade, but I knew I need to get to know her. She had wounded herself in my brain and I couldn’t get the thought of her out of my head. Every time I tried to ignore my desire for her, she was right there, forcing me to confront these strange feelings that I hadn’t had since…Well.

My lips pulled into a frown as I thought about what had brought me to this point. There’s a reason for everything and my playboy lifestyle was no different. I cleared my throat and slid out of the seat, ignoring the nagging thoughts that were scratching at the back of my mind. I just shook my head and sighed, walking out of the restaurant. I didn’t want to linger on those thoughts.

Besides, I had a date to plan.

 

Chapter Six: Lena

 

Miguel watched as I spun around, the bright red dress fluttering just above my knees. My hair was half up, small tendrils falling in my face and tickling my neck. My lips were painted the same color as my dress, offsetting the black pumps on my feet.

“You look amazing, Lena. I’m surprised you’re so dressed up. I thought this was just to get this guy off you’re back.”

His words hit a chord. I was trying awfully hard for someone I wasn’t really interested in. I waved my hand, dismissing his words. “He’s a rich guy. He’s probably going to take me to a fancy restaurant where the cooks can’t cook half as good as me. I might as well dress up for the occasion, right?”

He cocked a brow and shrugged. “It just seems like you’re setting the poor guy up.”

“Poor guy? Since when are you on his side?”

“I’m not on anyone’s side, love. I’m just pointing out the fact that you might be playing unfairly.”

I turned to face him, hands on my hips “I’m not playing a game. Just because I want to dress up nice doesn’t mean anything. Look, I haven’t been on a date in years and even if this is just a charade, I’m still going to have fun with it. In the meantime, maybe he’s telling the truth. Besides, between you and me, I kind of hope I end up going home with him.”

“What?”

I smiled a little and glanced over my shoulder. “I’m an evolved, sexual woman and I can admit when I’m attracted to a man. I don’t want to get mixed up with him, but maybe if I just sleep with him and get it out of the way, I won’t be so distracted by him.”

“So, even though you told him you aren’t interested in sex, you actually are?”

“Look, I’m a prideful woman. I’ll admit that upfront. I don’t want him thinking he’s won, you know? I just want to go on this date, go back to his place and call it a night.”

Miguel didn’t look convinced, but he also didn’t look like he was going to argue. He held his hands up and shrugged. “Do whatever you want, just don’t get yourself in a mess you can’t get out of.”

The knock at my front door ended the conversation and I grabbed my purse. “Don’t worry about me. Make sure you lock up before you leave.” I’d given him a spare key in case I needed anything.

“Sure thing. Have fun.”

I walked to the door and threw it open, beaming brightly at Jami. He wore a fitted suit without a tie, the first few buttons undone. I had to resist the sigh that was pushing at my lips. He looked amazing. He really did.

“Hey!”

Jami smiled and waved, his long, thick hair pulled back out of his face. “You look nice.”

“So do you.”

He smiled and offered his arm to me and I felt the heat rush back into my face. I put my hand in the crook of his elbow and he guided me down the steps of my apartment complex. He even opened the door of the expensive sports car.

“Aren’t you the gentleman.”

“Mama taught me right. That’s one of the many perks to dating a southern boy.”

“Mmmm. I see.” I settled in the car and waited for him to get inside as well. I glanced at him and smiled. “Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise.”

I was still fairly certain he was going to take me to a fancy restaurant. Wasn’t that the status quo for dates? He’d buy me a nice meal, order a bottle of wine and then take me back to his place. It wasn’t an exciting prospect, but I was alright with it. I just wanted to get through the night so my life could go back to normal. I just wanted to stop thinking about him.

We drove through the loud streets and I took in the multitude of people filing along on the side walk. The mix of culture and influence in New York was part of the reason I was drawn to the city. It was something different, something wild and full of hope. It was the place I’d always dreamed of being. My phone was buzzing in my purse, but I wasn’t going to answer. I already knew who it was. It was my dad and I just didn’t have it in me to deal with it tonight.

“Aren’t you going to answer that?”

“Nah. I’ll take care of it later. I’m on a date right now. Isn’t that kind of rude?”

He smiled and turned his attention back towards the road. “I think you’ll really like where we’re going.”

“Well, I trust you know what you’re doing. I’m sure you’ve taken lots of girls out on dates, hmmm?”

He smirked a little. “Well, I’m not one to brag.”

At least he wasn’t trying to lie. We made small talk until the car rolled to a stop at the opening of a small alley where people had gathered. “What is this?”

“This is little Italy. Haven’t you ever been here?”

“Not really,” I murmured, standing and closing the car door.

Jami tipped the valet and offered me his hand, which I took surprisingly quickly. He pulled me along the alley until we came out on the other side, underneath the neon lights that announced the name of the small alcove. The light radiated down onto us and when I looked around I couldn’t help but smile, watching children run through the streets with sparklers, giggling and squealing with joy.

“What is this?”

“This is the Italian light festival. It’s something a little different. I thought you might enjoy it.” He said with a soft smile.

“Wow, Jami. I didn’t think— “

“You thought I was going to take you to a fancy bar and get you drunk.”

My cheeks went hot and I nodded, smiling a little. He shrugged and squeezed my hand. “That’s alright. Given my current track record with women…I don’t blame you.”

At least he was self-aware. He gave my hand a tug and I followed him into the street. We spent the evening sampling food from various restaurants. The people who spooned pasta onto our plates were dark haired man and women who’d owned their restaurants since they immigrated from Italy. Lively music played in the streets and every hour, on the dot, a flock of paper lanterns were released into the sky. I watched them in wonder, my heart beating faster.

I hadn’t expected a date like this. I hadn’t expected something so wonderful and unique and I certainly hadn’t expected to end up in his arms at the end of the night, build close to his strong body as we swayed together to the sounds of Italian instrumentals.

The cool wind blew through my hair, tickling my shoulders and neck. I looked up at him and smiled, putting my head on his shoulder as we moved in perfect sync. “This is nice.”

“You really think so?”

“Yeah. I’d say you knocked the ball out of the park.”

He chuckled and pressed his hand into my lower back. “I didn’t think a fancy restaurant or bar was a good date for a chef. Besides, you can cook better food than any restaurant I could have taken you to.”

He spun me round and I was grinning when I faced him again. “You know how to butter a girl up, don’t you?”

“It’s one of my many talents.”

Damn this guy was charming as hell. Everything he said and did caught me off guard. I hadn’t expected myself to be so happy to be here. I had expected a lackluster date and instead I got my first taste of culture since being back home.

The veranda was filled with other couples, moving to the sound of the music and I couldn’t help but feel like we were just like them. There was just as much hope and promise in our budding relationship.

As the music ended, Jami pulled away and smiled, nodding towards the inside of the building. I followed him through the ornate structure, brushing past hand painted murals and rich, oak tables. We finally came to the other side of the veranda where a single table sat with a bottle of wine. I crossed my arms and chuckled to myself.

“Mmmm…So you did pull some strings.”

He smiled and pulled one of the chairs out so that I could sit. “Just a few.”

I rolled my eyes playfully but settled in the seat, looking up at him. “This has been really nice. It’s better than I expected.”

“I’m glad I could exceed your expectations.” He poured us both a glass of wine and sat down as well, holding a glass up.

I clinked mine against his before taking a long drink of the sweet, pungent liquid. This was good wine. “So, what is with this whole playboy persona, huh? I mean, when I told Miguel about it, the first thing he told me was to beware of the big bad wolf. He said you were going to try and seduce me and then run off.”

“He wasn’t wrong to warn you. That is my calling card around town.”

“Why?”

He glanced up at me and sighed, sipping his glass. We were both already tipsy from the drinks we’d had earlier in the night and our lips were already loose. I figured now would be the best time to really get to know him.

Jami sighed and leaned back in the wrought iron chair, inspecting the drink in his hand. “Why? That’s a good question,” he mused. He set the glass down and looked at me for a moment. “Because I never wanted to get attached. I didn’t want to end up in a situation where I’d fallen in love with someone only to realize they didn’t want anything other than my money,” he said bitterly.

The words had a whole lot of hurt behind them. I could practically feel the pain pulsing through him. He’d been hurt before and I couldn’t even blame him for keeping people at arm’s length. I’d never, and probably would never, have the kind of money he had. I’d never worried about people using me for my money.

“That makes sense.”

He turned to look at me, slightly surprised. “Really?”

“Yeah. I’ve never been in your situation, so I’ve never really thought of that scenario before, but it makes sense.”

He paused and glanced at me, sighing. “Most people lecture me and tell me that I shouldn’t be so cynical.”

“Well, you know what you’re doing. You know how to protect yourself. When someone you think is worth it comes around, you’ll make the right decision.” I offered him a smile and tapped on the rim of my glass.

He poured me more wine without question, topping off his own glass. “Since we’re getting to know each other…Why did you spend so much time abroad? Don’t you have family in the states?”

I stiffened a little and took a long drink from my glass, nearly draining half of it before setting it down, grunting softly. “Yeah. I have family in the states,” I murmured.

“It just seems hard to stay away from your family for that long.”

I sighed and closed my eyes, shaking my head slowly. “it’s not really that hard when you don’t get along with them.”

He seemed to realize the conversation had gotten tense and cleared his throat. I was happy we seemed to understand where each other’s boundaries were. I set my glass down and turned towards him, scooting my chair closer so that I could rest my head on his shoulder. My heart was beating just a little too fast, but I didn’t care. I was drunk enough to ignore all the warnings in my head. I knew I shouldn’t have opened my mouth. I shouldn’t have asked him about his past and I shouldn’t have told him about mine. Those were my first two mistakes.

I sighed a little and closed my eyes “Thanks.”

“For what?”

“For taking me out. I’ve had a really nice time.”

He hesitated, but gently wrapped his arms around my shoulders, giving them a gentle squeeze. We looked out onto the balcony together and I smiled as fireworks wound their way through the sky, exploding above our heads. It took my breath away and I leaned against him, my eyes closed. He was warm and the breeze was cool.

I looked up at him and saw the reflection of the fireworks in his eyes. I was unable to ignore it and sat up, pressing my lips to his in a long, needy kiss. He moaned and cupped my cheeks, pulling me close. It wasn’t as passionate or desperate as the kiss we’d shared in the kitchen, but it was just as electric. Goose bumps rose on my arms and when we parted, my cheeks were flushed. My lips parted and I whispered the words that had been stuck in my throat.

“Take me home?”

 

Chapter Seven: Jami

 

We stumbled through the front door of her small, but well-kept apartment, unable to keep our hands off each other. Her finger roamed my body, pausing at my waist to hastily undo my pants. Every single movement screamed of desperation. She wanted me, and I wanted her just as badly. I couldn’t ever remember wanting someone like this.

By the time, we reached the bedroom, we’d left a trail of abandoned clothes that led to the queen-sized bed pushed up against the blush colored walls. Her knees hit the back of the bedframe and we tumbled into impossibly soft sheets, our arms wrapped around each other as our lips crashed together for the hundredth time that night. We hadn’t stopped kissing since we’d left the restaurant and it still hadn’t gotten boring. I could have done this all night long, but there were things I wanted even more.

I pulled away, panting softly, the throbbing between my legs becoming damn near unbearable. “Tell me what you want.”

Her fingers threaded into my hair and she gave a solid pull. “I want you.”

That was all the invitation I needed. My lips traced the delicate curve of her neck and I couldn’t help but feel the need to bite her and nip at her neck. I wanted to see my mark on her. I wanted the world to know she was mine.

The tender nips elicited a low moan and she arched against me, her perfectly round, bare breasts pressed against my warm skin. I couldn’t resist reaching up and cupping them, giving them a firm squeeze before brushing my thumb over one of her perky nipple. Another moan fell from her lips and she leaned her head back, one hand reaching for the head board

I watched her draw her bottom lip between her teeth, biting it until it turned red from the abuse. She pulled me closer for another kiss, her eyes half lidded with a desperate desire that made the heat in my belly rise. God. What was she doing to me? No one had ever done this to me before.

My lips brushed the high bones in her cheeks and soon they flushed bright red. She gripped my wrist with a surprising strength and guided my hand further south until my fingers found her womanly mound. She was already slick with nectar and I couldn’t help but moan as my fingers began to tease her delicate folds, tracing slow circles along the part I knew would bring her the most pleasure. Tonight, was about her. That’s all I wanted.

That little bit of stimulation was already making her moan and writhe beneath me. I watched as small, mousy sounds escaped her lips and her body went pink underneath my skilled fingers. I knew what she wanted and I was more than ready to give it to her. Still, a little bit of teasing was never a bad thing, right?

Once I’d decided she’d had enough, I slipped two fingers inside of her, enjoying her body’s warmth. She let out a choked sound of pleasure, her hips rocking back and forth. She moaned my name over and over again, her breath hitching between words. I wanted to hear more of those desperate moaned so I began to thrust my fingers in and out of her at a desperate pace, pleased when she began to cry out, coming completely unhinged.

“N-No more! Fuck! Please! Give me what I want!” She was pleading now, her head tossed back against the pillows and her hair a wild mess.

Her begging drove me wild and I gripped her hips, holding her down and taking control. She seemed like the type of woman who liked to control everything around her, and those were the ones who often wanted a break and wanted to hand over that control to someone else. Even if it was just for a night.

She moaned my name when I entered her and the sound made me shudder with excitement. I settled inside of her and waited, allowing her to adjust to my size, but I wasn’t able to hold back for long. Soon I was rocking my hips back and forth, whispering her name and sweet nothings in her hear as her velvet cavern engulfed me, making me want even more. She was so warm and so welcoming. I wanted this to last forever.

I moved with deliberate thrusts, wanting nothing more than for her to scream my name as she came again and again. I’d always been told I was a good lover, but my skill hadn’t been on purpose. I’d never been so focused on my lover’s pleasure before, but tonight I wanted her to feel like a queen. I wanted her to have the night of her life, because I wanted her to come back.

Fire was burning in my belly and liquid pleasure was starting to spread through my entire body. I knew I was going to finish at any second. Each thrust was more desperate than the one before it and soon I found myself holding her down, my fingers leaving angry little red marks behind. Marks didn’t usually do anything for me, but tonight, I wanted to see them on her body.

Those marks were the last thing I needed. My voice caught in my throat and I let out a low, guttural growl as I finished inside her. I felt the soft walls of her womanhood contract around my shaft, milking every last drop of my essence. She was whispering my name like a prayer, her arms wrapped around me and her fingers digging into my shoulders.

We lay in each other’s arms, panting as the soft breeze from an open window licked at the thin sheen of sweat on our skin. Lena laughed softly, looking up at me with glassy eyes.

“That was amazing…” she murmured, her eyes already closing.

I nodded and collapsed on the bed beside her, wrapping my arms around her. “It really was.”

She pressed herself against my chest, falling asleep without a second thought. As I held her, I couldn’t stop thinking about how good she felt in my arms and how I didn’t want this to be the last time we laid in bed together. As I laid beside her and stroked her beautiful midnight hair, I couldn’t help but think a terrifying thought.

I wanted her around…and not just for sex.

Chapter Eight: Lena

 

The next morning, I woke up in a bed that wasn’t mine. The space next to me was empty but still warm. I lifted my head and grunted, putting a hand to my temple to try and ease the pounding in my head. I’d worked in restaurants and bars my entire life, but I was still a lightweight. It didn’t take much for the hangover to set in.

I sighed and slipped out of the bed, walking over to the wall and picking a robe up off the hanger. It wasn’t mine, but I was sure Jami wouldn’t mind. As I walked down the stairs I could hear bacon sizzling and smell the sweet, buttery taste of homemade syrup. Looks like I wasn’t the only one who could cook.

I settled on the bar stool and smiled at Jami, my chin in my hands. I hummed softly and he glanced over his bare shoulder, grinning. “Morning.”

“You gonna make me breakfast before you kick me out?”

“I ain’t gonna kick you out,” He said sliding a fluffy pancake onto a plate.

“I didn’t know you can cook.”

“I can make a decent breakfast, but that’s about it,” he said, placing the heaping plate in front of me.

I shoveled a large bite of eggs into my mouth, groaning softly at the edible hangover cure. This was all I’d ever wanted. I sighed and shook my head slowly, giving him a thumbs up. “This is great. Just what I needed.”

He put his own plate down and sat beside me, starting to eat big bites of pancakes. His hair was down, tucked behind his ears and his arms bare. I was surprised at just how much I liked waking up next to a half-naked hunk making me breakfast. Most people found out I was a chef and just assumed I was going to cook for them all the time.

“I had a really great time last night.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed our date,” he said, smiling and giving me a peck on the cheek.

I chuckled and nudged him. “I meant the whole thing.” I paused for a moment, moving a pile of eggs around before looking at him seriously. “You know. This started as a way for me to get over you. Something about you hypnotized me and I didn’t know how to handle it. I didn’t want to get mixed up with my boss and I figured if I just slept with you…You’d be out of my head.”

“Maybe it’ll work. You haven’t been away from me yet.”

I cocked a brow and sighed. “I don’t think that’s the way it’s going to work.”

He was silent for a moment and finally glanced over at me. “Well, I ain’t disappointed about it.”

“I thought you didn’t want to get close to anyone.”

“You’re not the type of girl who’d take advantage of someone for their money.”

“How do you know?”

“It’s just a feeling I got. I ain’t saying I love you or anything. That would be a little weird, but what I am saying is that I want to give this whole thing a shot. I want to give it more than a one night stand,” he said with a nod.

I paused, tapping my fingers on the table nervously. “You mean that?”

He leaned over and kissed my cheek. “I do.”

I couldn’t stop the smile that pulled at my lips. “If you’re lying, I’m gonna knock your pretty teeth in.”

He laughed and threw back his head. “I know you would. I’m not messing with you, alright? I like the idea of having a woman around who can kick my ass, though. It’s kind of sexy.”

I chuckled and sipped the coffee he’d made me. “Until she actually kicks your ass, right?”

“I’d gladly take an ass kicking from you.”

If I rolled my eyes any harder, I was sure they would detach from my skull. “You’re such a butt kisser.”

He puckered up and I punched him playfully in the arm, more than a little grateful for the banter. When I first woke up, I was afraid this was going to be a serious morning full of conversations about what the night before meant. I was happy for the teasing and easy conversation.

We fell into a comfortable silence after that. I sipped my coffee and hummed to myself, eating my breakfast happily. It wasn’t often that someone cooked for me. I was going to enjoy it while it lasted. I wanted to just enjoy my time with Jami and not question our future.

A sudden knock on the door made me jump and drop my spoon, my eyes wide and fixed on the door. It was too early in the morning for visitors and the look on Jami’s face told me he wasn’t expecting any company. His lips pulled into a tight line and he set his plate aside, standing and going to the door. He peered into the peephole and let out an audible groan as he opened the door just enough to peek outside.

“What do you want?”

“I wanted to come by and say hi,” a female voice responded.

I frowned deeply and pushed away from the bar, moving to stand behind Jami, trying to see around his powerful frame.

“It’s not a good time, Marie. You need to leave.”

My eyes met the other woman’s and I saw red hot jealousy flash across her face. “Who is that?” She demanded, pointing right at me.

“It’s none of your business, Marie!”

“Is that one of your whores?! Is that the woman you left me for?!”

“Watch your goddamn mouth!” Jami hissed, reaching out so that he could put some distance between the woman and the door. “You need to go before I call the cops.”

“He’ll use you!” The woman piped up, her eyes wide. “He’ll get what he wants from you and then throw you to the curb like he did me! He told me he loved me and now I’m banned from his office! You’re nothing special. Don’t fall for his shit!”

“GET OUT!” Jami stepped through the door, his eyes narrowed as he marched forward, his eyes wide with anger. “Get the fuck off my property!”

The woman stumbled back, eyes wide with fear. She fell back and hit the ground, her eyes meeting mine again for a brief moment. She turned to look at Jami, tears in her big blue eyes. “I loved you, Jami. I gave you everything!”

“Cut the act, Marie. No one is buying it.”

He was wrong though. I wasn’t sure who I should believe. My heart said to believe Jami, but this wasn’t the first person I’d met who warned me about Jami. Was I being stupid? Was I playing with fire? Maybe I needed to start listening.

“I just wanted to love you, but you wouldn’t let me in.” Marie sobbed, staring up at him, holding her arms out.

Jami hoisted her to her feet, immediately releasing her. “Go!” He snapped, eyes wild with rage. “I don’t want to do something I’ll regret.”

Marie sniffled and looked at me knowingly before turning and trudging back to the elevator that would take her back to the lobby of the apartment building. As I watched her go, I couldn’t stop my heart from sinking into my stomach. Was that my fate if I stuck around? The comfortable feeling I’d been experiencing just a few moments ago disappeared completely and I was left with a cold, empty feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Jami was walking towards the apartment door, holding his hands out as if they’d been covered in mud. “I’ve been trying to get rid of that girl for months,” he murmured, walking over to the sink to wash his hands.

I watched him in silence for a long time, imagining him washing that woman from his hands and washing me away just as easily. Was this my warning? I cleared my throat, but I didn’t move closer. I stayed a safe distance away, unable to explain my fear. I wasn’t worried about him hurting my physically, but I was afraid.

“Did you tell her you loved her?”

He let out a heavy sigh, putting both his hands on the counter. “No. I took her out on a date, slept with her and never called her.” His voice was sharp and his words were cruel. “I fucked her and kicked her out the next morning. You know why?! Because I’m a bad fucking person, okay? Is that what everyone wants to hear? They want me to admit that I’m a shitty person?! That I’m always out for myself?”

There was a lump in my throat and I finally managed to swallow it, my brows drawn together. I wasn’t stupid. I knew the type of guy he was and I could guess the things he’d done, but hearing them come from him and witnessing the aftermath made it seem so much more real. In the glow of good wine and delicate paper lanterns, I’d managed to forget all the things that people had warned me about, but I couldn’t ignore it anymore.

I started back towards the stairs, glancing over my shoulder. “I…Have to go.”

“Good. Get out. Get your shit and just get out.” The playful tone from earlier was gone and all that was left was a deep seeded anger.

It only took me a few moments to gather up my clothes, get dressed and walk out the door, deciding that I’d rather wait in the lobby for my cab. I didn’t think I could stand another second of the tension that had sparked between Jami and I.

So much for keeping things simple.

 

Chapter Nine: Jami

 

I didn’t like to admit when something ate at me. I didn’t like to admit that watching Lena walk away had made my chest tighten and made my throat dry, but what I hated most was how hard it was to avoid her. At the end of the day she was still my employee and I still had a business to run. That meant I had to see her perfect face every day and pretend like nothing had happened.

Her demeanor around me had completely changed and I hated it. She always called me ‘sir’ and kept our conversations as short as possible. Without ever saying a word, she made it clear to me that she wanted nothing to do with me and I hated it. I wanted a reaction out of her and I wanted her back. Every other woman in my life had come back, why was she the one who was different?

I’d been racking my brain for ways to get her back, but I came up empty every time. Just when I thought I’d found the way back to her heart, I realized it wouldn’t work on her. She wasn’t wooed by fancy gifts and expensive jewelry.

I was at a loss and finally decided to give it one shot. I would do the most basic thing I could think of…I would just talk to her. It was the only thing I could come up with. Everything else seemed useless.

Still, I didn’t think flowers would hurt.

I was waiting in the restaurant, surrounded by hundreds of yellow roses. Even though we’d both been more than a little drunk I’d remembered the way her face lit up when she told me her favorite flower. I’d committed it to memory and in this moment, I was glad for that.

Lena walked through the door and flipped the lights on, jumping when our eyes met. The restaurant wouldn’t be open for another three hours, but I knew she’d want to come in early to get her kitchen prepped. Lena was one of the most dedicated people I’d ever met especially when it came to her job.

“W-What?” Her eyes were wide as she looked around and took in the room full of flowers. I could see that she was trying to understand what was going on. Finally, her eyes landed on mine and she held my gaze for a moment before looking away. “We can’t open the restaurant if it’s full of flowers,” she whispered.

“I know. I’m not opening the restaurant today.”

She frowned deeply and looked at me like I had two heads. “We have to open the restaurant. It’s Friday. It’s the busiest day of the week.”

She was always so damn practical. “I have something more important to take care of,” I admitted, nodding towards one of the booths. “Sit?”

She hesitated, but finally move to sit in the empty booth, her arms crossed over her chest. “What?”

I sat across from her and folded my hands on the table, my gaze fixed on her. “I’m not here to beg you or convince you to do something you don’t want to do, alright? I just want you to hear me out and whatever you decided after that…I’ll accept it and we can both move on. Is that fair?”

She cocked a brow and sighed. “Fine. Go ahead. Talk.”

“I know it got to you when you saw me and Marie. I don’t even blame you. It gets pretty nasty when it comes to me and her. If you’ve never seen her before, I can see why you might be suspicious, but…You can ask anyone. Marie has no interest in me. She’s real interested in my money, though. She thinks she can convince me she loves me if she keeps playing this game, but it isn’t going to work. I’m not going to fall into that trap again.”

“Trap? What do you mean?”

He closed his eyes and sighed. “I just…I want you to know what happened and why I’m the way I am. You asked me on our date and I never really answered.”

Her shoulders relaxed and I could tell she was actually listening now. Her face had softened and her eyes were fixed on my features. I could feel my chest tightening and the fear creeping in through every inch of my body. I hadn’t talk with anyone like this in a long time.

“Years ago, when I first moved to New York and established my business, I didn’t know how to handle the money or the fame,” I started. “I didn’t know how cruel people could be or how cunning. I fell in love with a woman named Gemma and I thought it was the real deal. We were perfect for each other. She made me laugh and she made me feel like I was the only man in the world. She treated me like a king, so I asked her to marry me.” I frowned and my shoulders slumped forward just a little. “It was all a game. We got married, then she divorced me and ran off when a musician she met around the same time we started dating. Now she gets alimony and I pay for her house in Belize.”

“Oh, God…That’s awful…”

I nodded slowly and reached out to touch her hand. “And it’s not about the money.” Her fingers curled around mine. “I have plenty of money. I really do. I have so much of it, I don’t even really know what to do with it, but she broke my heart. I loved her. I loved her with every piece of me, and after all that, I knew I didn’t want to find myself in that situation again. I never wanted to give someone that kind of power over me ever again, so I just started sleeping around. I toyed with woman, thinking it would make me feel better, but it never did.”

She was silent for a long moment, her brows furrowed. “So…What about me? What does all of this have to do with me?”

“I trust you.”

“We haven’t known—“

“I know, but I can smell a gold digger a mile away and you aren’t one of them. That’s why I wanted to get to know you. You’re the first woman who’s actually made me work for her attention, you know that?” he said with a soft laugh. “You’re the first woman I couldn’t win over with money or gifts. That made me want you even more. At first, I was even convinced it was a game, but now I know it’s not. I’m not ready to tell you I love you, but I hope that one day I can get there…If you’ll give me the chance.”

She looked around, her eyes darting between my face and the flowers. Finally, she sighed and turned to face me. “I don’t like letting people in either.”

I sat up straighter, wanting her to know that I was paying attention to every word she was saying. She smiled as I straightened and pulled her hands away, standing to move to sit beside me in the booth. “I’ve been let down by people I loved too…People who were supposed to love me unconditionally. So…It’s not going to be easy, but I think I want to give this a shot.”

A grin tugged at my lips and I couldn’t stop myself from wrapping my arms around her. “Really?”

She nodded and draped her arms around my neck, her thumb running along the fine hairs at the back of my neck. “Yeah. I’ve missed you, Jami. I missed talking to you like this. I don’t really know what to do with that feeling, but I think if you give me enough time I’ll figure it out.”

“Seems like we’re both a little emotionally stunted.”

She chuckled and nodded. “Just a little…But that makes it fun.”

I pressed my forehead to hers and closed my eyes, enjoying the way her breath tickled my lips. “So, are we okay?”

“If you keep your word.”

“I’m never going to mess with you. I told you the morning after our date, and I’ll say it again. I mean it, Lena.”

She smiled and cupped my cheek, nodding. “I know you do.”

Finally, Lena closed the space between us, our lips crashing together so hard I was sure my own lips would be bruised in the morning, but I don’t care. The desperation in that kiss showed just how hard we’d both been trying to ignore our feelings.

I’d be damned if I ignored them anymore.

 

Chapter Ten: Lena

 

I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t missed him. There was some part of him that had managed to get under my skin and I hated to admit it, but I wanted him. I wanted him pressed against me at night while I slept and I wanted him to hold me close on that beautiful veranda again. I just wanted him.

When our lips met, he wrapped his arms around me and lifted me off the seat of the booth and placed me on the edge of the sturdy oak table. He stood up, leaving me panting for air as he moved to stand at the edge of the table, spinning me around and pushing me onto my back. I gasped, staring up at the industrial styled lights, spreading my legs without thinking.

He leaned over me, tall enough to press a long, needy kiss to my lips as he pushed my dress up over my hips, making my cheeks flush. He pulled away, his lips still barely tickling mine as he ran a finger down the dip of my dress.

“I was so scared when you left. I didn’t think you were going to come back. This isn’t just sex anymore. This isn’t about the damn hunt. This is about you and me and that’s exactly how I want it.”

I nodded and pressed my palm to his cheek, taking a deep breath. “I know. Me too…Now shut up and show me how you feel about me.”

His hands roamed along the tender flesh of my inner thighs and I wasn’t sure if it was my mind playing tricks on me or not, but my body somehow felt even more amazing than it had that first night. Each touch was like a flame kissing my skin and leaving a trail of desire. Maybe it was strange to be having sex right now. Maybe it wasn’t appropriate, but I didn’t care. I just needed to feel him against him. I needed to be the one woman he came back to.

Jami pulled down the jersey neck line of my dress, exposing my bare breasts. I rarely wore a bra and I was sure he’d caught onto it by now. He teased my breasts with tender kisses before nipping at the sensitive underside of each one, leaving behind a stinging sensation that made a fire burn between my legs. I could feel the heat of his cock pressed between my legs and each time he moved it elicited a low moan from his lips.

I was wriggling desperately underneath him, my cheeks red and the rest of my body just as flushed. I heard the tell-tale sound of his belt buckle coming undone and I cried out when he hooked his fingers in the waist band of my panties, pulling them down in one swift motion. They dangled off my foot and he moaned softly, looking down at my disheveled body.

“Look at you. Fuck you’re gorgeous.”

The praise pulled a moan from me and I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him down and whispering against his lips. “Take me. God, take me.”

He was just eager to give me just what I wanted. He grabbed my hips and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he pressed his length into me deeper than he had the first time we’d made love. It felt amazing and I arched my back in a desperate attempt to take even more. I would have taken anything he was willing to give.

Given what had happened just a week before, I hadn’t expected to want him this bad. I hadn’t expected to forgive him so quickly and invite him back into my life. Jami was a dangerous man when it came to romance. I knew that he could pull my heart right from my chest and rip it up into tiny little pieces. Even with that knowledge, I trusted him even though I didn’t really have a reason to. When it came to Jami, all I could do was listen to my heart.

I pushed those thoughts away, closing my eyes and allowing myself to enjoy whatever it was he was willing to offer me. When his hips snapped against mine the sound echoed through the empty restaurant, making me want even more.

The familiar warmth of fiery pleasure was filling me up and I knew that soon I’d be lost in his arms, moaning and pleading for him to keep going. Those perfect waves of pleasure were just on the horizon.

“God, you feel good, Lena,” he moaned in my ear.

My fingers were in his hair as his hips continued to rock against mine, the rough fabric of his flannel shirt rubbing against my nipples. “Please don’t stop!”

He was more than happy to oblige to my pleads and continued to thrust into me. He stood up and grabbed my hips, tilting his head back and letting out, low, animal-like noises as his thrusts became quicker and more forceful.

His finger dug into my hips and it that subtle pain drove me over the edge. My orgasm crashed over me dragging me into a sea of pleasure. Stars exploded behind my eyes and I cried out his name, pleading him to keep going.

Jami’s hips slowed to a stop and he put his hands flat on the table, leaning over me, panting softly as he buried his face in my neck, laughing softly.

“Shit…That was...Incredible.”

I chuckled, trying to catch my breath as I held him close. “I do my best.”

He turned his head and kissed my cheek. “I missed you so bad. I missed that wit.”

“Well, you won’t have to miss it anymore.”

A long moment of silence passed between us and he wrapped his arms around me, leaning heavily against me. “You’re not going to leave, right?”

“I’m not going to leave.”

“Promise?” He asked, a nervous tension in his voice.

I leaned up just enough to press small kisses to the top of his head. “I promise.”

I’d never promised to stay anywhere for anyone, but I was willing to do it for Jami.

 

Chapter Eleven: Jami

 

After that Everything was fine again. Lena forgave me and we hardly talked about what had happened. It’s wasn’t that we were ignoring it, but rather we didn’t need to talk about it anymore because it had been settled. Neither of us were worried about it anymore. We both knew where the other stood and slowly but surely we were coming to understand one another.

We’d been together officially for the last two months and I absolutely adored having her around. Lena was a free spirit and much more independent than the girls I was used to dealing with and I loved it. I wouldn’t have it any other way, if we’re being honest. She was so different and that’s what I adored about her. There had been so many other women before her, but none could hold a candle to her strength.

We were on the balcony of my penthouse (one of her favorite spots) and the New York skyline was stretched out before us, glittering with promise. She sipped at a glass of home brewed sweet tea and sighed as the warm, spring breeze rustled the trees below.

“This is perfect. Like…Am I dead? Is this heaven?”

I chuckled and glanced over at her, finishing my glass and setting it aside. “Last I checked, we were on the upper east side, but I think that’s about as close to heaven as most people get.”

“You can say that again.”

Lena put her head on my shoulder and glanced up at me. “I’m glad I met you, you know. You were a pain in my ass at first, but I’m glad I met you.”

I put my hand on the back of her head and leaned down to kiss her hair, taking in the subtle scent of cherry blossoms. She always smelled like cherry blossoms. “Me too, Lena. Me too.” Hell, I was pretty sure I loved her, but I could tell her that, not yet. It was still too soon.

She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted when her cell phone when off. She groaned and rolled her eyes a little, picking up and turning it over to read whatever was on the screen. She became flustered and turned it back over, setting it face down on the table.

“Who was that?”

“No one.”

“You can’t tell me that,” I grunted. “Your phone goes off like once a day, you get made and then you tell me it’s no one. I’m not trying to be an asshole, but I just don’t accept that it’s ‘no one’. You wouldn’t get so upset.”

Her lips pressed into a tight line. “Why are you pushing this?”

“Because I’m worried about you.”

“Well, there’s no reason to worry. It’s just some shit that I have to deal with.”

“But why deal with it alone if you don’t have to?”

“I just…This is my business alright?” She was getting flustered but I didn’t feel like it was the right choice to stop.

“I know it’s your business, but…I want to help.”

“There’s nothing to help.”

“Stop pushing me away.” I sat up and looked at her seriously, frowning deeply. “You made me come clean about my shit. I think it’s only fair that you do the same.”

She seemed annoyed that I’d called her out, but I wasn’t really worried about that. There was clearly something going on and I was going to get to the bottom of it. I wasn’t about to start my first real relationship in almost a decade with secrets.

“It’s my dad,” she murmured.

The answer surprised me. I had half been expecting an ex-lover. “Your dad?”

“Yeah. He wants me to come home. Mom is sick,” she muttered, clearly trying to tell me as little as possible.

Up until this point she had always been very open with me. She didn’t really seem to have any secrets, but now I could tell that there was something just under the surface that she’d been hiding. “You don’t want to go back home?”

Her eyes narrowed as she stared out into the blackness of the night sky and sighed softly, dropping her head and shaking it back and forth. “No. Not for anything.”

“Bad relationship with your parents?”

“Like you wouldn’t believe.”

I sighed and leaned back a little, sipping on my tea. “You should go home.”

“What?”

“Even if you have a bad relationship with your parents, you should still go home. If something happens to your mom and you aren’t there…You’re going to regret it.”

“Don’t act like you know about my family life.” She was getting defensive now.

“I don’t know about your family life, but I know what it’s like to lose a parent and never patch things up. It fucking sucks.”

She relaxed a little and glanced over at me. “What do you mean?”

“I lost my dad when I was in my early 20’s. Me and him never got along. He wanted me to take over the family business back home in Georgia and I didn’t want any of it. We had this big falling out and that’s why I came to New York.” I finished off my tea and set it aside. “I didn’t talk to him for years. It wasn’t even that long, actually, but five years was enough. He got cancer and told mom not to tell me because I was making my way in New York. Even after all that shit, he wanted me to be successful and didn’t want to be a burden on me.” I shook my head slowly. “There’s nothing in this world I regret more than not patching things up with him, but if you would have asked me back then, I wouldn’t have ever gone back. It took him dying to make me realize all those fights were just…blips in our relationship. At the end of the day, he was still my dad and I still loved him.”

“This isn’t the same,” she whispered, looking away, her eyes fixed on the darkness in front of us.

“I’m sure it isn’t. Every situation is different, but what I’m saying is that you won’t ever forgive yourself. It doesn’t make whatever happened okay and in all honesty, you don’t even have to forgive what happened, but you do need closure. This isn’t for anyone but yourself. If you don’t settle this with yourself and with whoever you’re having issues with, you’ll never move on.”

She was silent for a long time, looking into her glass, her lips pressed into a tight line. I could tell she was thinking over what I’d just said and I didn’t want to push it. She had to come to this conclusion on her own and I knew that. I watched her carefully and when she finally sighed, she looked over at me, and intense sadness filling her beautiful eyes.

“I don’t know if I’m ready to go back there. I don’t know if I’m ready to face her. I don’t know if I’m ready to face everything,” she whispered, her voice tight and pained.

I paused before reaching over and putting my hand on her knee. I gave it a gentle squeeze and she looked up at me again. I couldn’t stand the pain on her face. I ran my hand through her head and leaned in, kissing her forehead.

“I know it’s scary. I’ve been in this position, but you don’t have to do it alone, Lena. You don’t have to do anything alone. Not anymore. I’m here for you.”

I felt a warm wetness on my hand and it took me a moment to realize she was crying. Lena was so damn strong and so brave that I never thought I’d see her crack. Crying didn’t mean she was weak, but she seemed too proud a person to let people see her cry. I hadn’t wanted to make her cry, but I knew this situation all too well and there were things I wished someone had told me. I was going to tell her all of them. I didn’t want her to live with the pain that I had lived with all these years.

She wiped at her eyes angrily and I just held her close, running my thumb over her cheeks, where the hot tears landed. She sniffled, her bottom lip trembling and her cheeks raw. She started to pull away but finally collapsed in my arms, all of her weight pressed against me. I held her up easily, stroking her hair and kissing the soft, black curls.

“Why are you doing this?” she whispered, her face buried in my chest.

My hand was resting on the back of her head, fingers tangled in her hair. The answer that came out was the truth, but it wasn’t the answer I’d been expecting.

“I’m doing it because I love you.”

She pulled away and just stared at me and I stared back at her. We were both equally shocked by the utterance and I already had a hand extended, ready to grab her wrist as she tried to bolt out of the apartment. I didn’t want her to leave. Not like this. Fuck. I needed to fix this and fast. I could see every muscle in her body poised and ready spring into action.

“Lena. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean— “

"What did you say?" Her words came out in a trembling voice.

Shit. She wasn't going to want anything to do with me now. She was standing there, staring at me wide eyed with a blank expression on her face, her fingers twitching at her side.

"Don't run, okay?" It was the first thing I could think to say. "I care about you." I was trying to back pedal, even if I knew there was no getting out of this.

"That’s not what you said."

I pressed my lips together and groaned, silently angry at my apparent inability to keep my mouth under control. "I said 'I love you', okay?" Why was she forcing this out of me? Couldn’t she tell I was embarrassed enough? Did she really need to rub it in?

Her face softened and she stepped forward, touching my hand. "Do you mean it?"

The question surprised me. My eyebrows shot up and I wrapped my hand around hers, my heart fluttering in my chest. I never wanted to let her go. "Of course I mean it. Why would I lie?"

She paused and shrugged. "It doesn’t make sense, but a lot of people lie, especially about love."

I paused and kissed the Back of her hand. "Well, I'm not lying. I was just afraid to tell you."

She pressed herself against my chest. Her warmth radiated through me and I felt the distinct sensation of being home.

"No one else had ever told me they loved me."

I kissed the top of her head and offered a gentle smile. "Glad I could be your first,” I said, trying to keep the mood light.

“This isn’t a joke,” she murmured, her face still buried in my chest.

I cleared my throat and nodded. “Right…Right. Sorry.”

Finally, after a long moment of stressful silence, she looked up at me and sighed. “I love you too.”

I could barely believe what I heard. I hadn’t expected her to return the sentiment. “What?”

“I love you too. Are you deaf?”

A stupid grin spread across my face and I scratched the back of my neck. “I just wasn’t expecting to hear it back.”

I sat on the loveseat that I’d bought after Lena started coming over more. It was the perfect size for the balcony. We eased into the soft cushions and I pulled her close as she tucked her legs underneath her body.

“Well, I do. I love you. I can’t really explain how or why, but you got under my skin and I can’t seem to get you out.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

She shook her head slowly and her fingers tangled in mine. “As long as I know you love me…I think I can do it.”

“Do what?”

She looked at me with a fierce determination. “Go home.”

I wasn’t going to argue. I wanted her to face these demons. I kissed her tenderly and said the only thing that made sense. “I’ll call my pilot and let him know we’re leaving in the morning.”

I didn’t know where we were going. All I knew was that I’d follow her to the ends of the earth.

 

Chapter Twelve

 

Bellefontaine. We came over a small hill and I could see the quaint wooden sign that welcomed you to my home town. Just under the sign was a little counter that read ‘pop. 789’. It had grown since I’d last been here.

“This place is beautiful,” Jami mused, his eyes wondering the windshield of our rental car.

“It’s pretty to look at, but the charm wears off once you’ve been here a while.”

“Really?” he asked.

“Yeah. Especially when all the old women start walking up and asking you why you aren’t married and asking if you’re sterile since you don’t have kids.”

“Ouch.”

“Small towns are great, until you have to actually live in one,” I sighed, turning to look out the window.

A cool breeze blew through the branches of the blooming trees. Green leaves formed around bright yellow and pink flowers. I’d missed the colors of spring, but not enough to come back. I wanted to handle my business and go back to New York as soon as possible.

We turned onto the dirt that my parent’s house was on and the second the soft earth crunched under the tires, I felt every muscle in my body tense up. I wasn’t ready for this. I didn’t want this. Just as I was about to beg Jami to turn around, I felt a strong hand on my knee. I looked at him, my eyes wide as he squeezed my knee.

“It’s going to be okay. We’re going to get through this as quickly as possible.”

I nodded, even though I didn’t quite believe him. Things were never easy when it came to my mother and I couldn’t help but thing that her being on her deathbed wouldn’t change much. I leaned my forehead against the window, trying to control my breathing.

Soon the family farm came into view and I was gripping Jami’s hand. A tall, southern plantation home came into view. The walls were painted a bright sunny yellow, and the shutters were stark white. A swing hung from a tall willow just in the front yard.

A heavy-set woman with a full head of white hair and strong arms swept the porch and my heart stuttered. It had been years, but I knew the woman sweeping was my mother. She wiped her hands on her apron, frowning as the car pulled into the driveway. My mind was spinning, trying to comprehend what was going on. If my mother was so sick…Why was she sweeping the massive, wrap around porch.

The car came to a stop and Jami offered me a questioning look, but I didn’t have an answer. I kicked the door open and walked up the stone pathway, staring at my mother.

“Mom?”

Her cloudy eyes widened and the broom slipped from her fingers, clattering against the wood floor. “Lena?”

For a long moment, I didn’t move. I held still as if not moving would keep her from seeing me. My chest felt tight and the lump in my throat wasn’t going anywhere any time soon. A terrified noise tried to work its way past my lips, but I swallowed it down, looking down and away. I didn’t know what to do. I hadn’t been expecting this.

“Lena? Is that you?” she whispered, picking up the hem of her modest skirt and walking down the moss covered stone pathway.

As she got closer, I took a small step away, but before I could get far, I hit the solid mass of Jami’s chest, suddenly finding myself pinned between my mother and the man I considered to be my boyfriend. It wasn’t really a place I ever wanted to find myself.

Jami’s hand wrapped around my wrist and gave it a gentle squeeze, trying to silently comfort me. My mother closed in and I felt my heart jump into my throat, closing my eyes and waiting for her hand to come down on my cheek. I was sure she’d be angry that I showed up out of the blue with a man I wasn’t married too.

Instead, her soft, warm arms wrapped around me and pulled me close, stroking my hair, a laugh bubbling up from her belly. “You’re here.”

“I…You’re happy to see me?”

She pulled away and pressed her hands to my cheeks, just looking me up and down for a long moment. “You’ve grown so much! Of-course I’m happy to see you. You’re my baby girl.”

Tears came to my eyes and I all but fell into her arms, leaning into her soft body. There was so much warmth and welcome in her embrace. “D-Daddy said you were sick.”

The floor of the porch creaked under someone’s foot and when I looked up, I saw my father standing at the top of the porch stairs, his hair grey and combed out of his face, a scruffy grey beard replacing the smooth shaved face I had in my mind’s eye.

He offered a nervous smile and shrugged a little. “Sorry, pudding.”

“What?”

He made his way down the stairs and came to stand beside me and my mother. He leaned heavily on a cane, but opened his free arm to me and I pressed myself against both my parents. They still smelled like fresh cut grass and a breeze before a rain storm. I’d missed this more than I’d realized or would have been willing to admit to anyone.

My father’s hand rested on the back of my head and I was suddenly taken back to the days I would spend in his lap while he read to me. “I’m sorry I lied, Lena, darling. I just knew it wasn’t going to be easy to get you back home. I was just so tired of our family being so fractured and so was your mother.”

I pulled back, my eyes wet and glassy with tears. “Why didn’t you say anything?” I pleaded, staring at my mother.

She cupped my cheek, her hands rough from the years she’d spent working our small farm. “I didn’t want to mess up your life. Your daddy would tell me about all the wonderful places you were going and the places you’d been. I didn’t want to tie you down. You were always such a free spirit and I kept you from that for so long…I didn’t want to keep you from what you loved.”

“You could have asked me to come home! I would have come home!”

Her smile was sad and she nodded slowly. “I know you would have. That’s why I didn’t say anything. I tried to crush that adventurous spirit of yours because I never wanted you to leave me and it took you leaving to show me that I was wrong.”

“Mama…”

“I’m sorry, Lena. I’m sorry for everything. I’m sorry for all the fighting and I’m sorry I…”

I knew she was trying to apologize for the night she’d hit me, but she didn’t need to say anything. I’d already anything. I’d already forgiven her. I threw my arms around her and held her tight. “You don’t have to apologize, mama. I’m…I’m ready to put it behind us.”

We parted and she wiped tears from her eyes, laughing softly. Once she’d dabbed the tears from her eyes, she glanced towards Jami and cleared her throat. “Well, aren’t you going to introduce us to your friend?”

I cleared my throat and took a step back, motioning towards Jami. That wasn’t good enough for him. He wrapped a strong arm around me and pulled me close, grinning. “The name is Jamison!”

“Jamison. A good strong name!” Papa said, reaching out to shake his hand.

I looked on as my boyfriend greeted each of my parents with a smile and my heart fluttered in my chest. Was this what contentedness felt like? I’d spent so much of my life being angry and bitter that I’d forgotten what it truly felt like to be happy. All that time I thought I was traveling the world and all I was doing was running away from things I didn’t want to face.

It had taken a playboy millionaire to make me happy and repair what I thought was an unfixable situation. I couldn’t have ever imagined myself being here, laughing with my parents and the man I loved. Nothing in the world could have convinced me that this was how this story would end, but I didn’t care.

This was my happily ever after.

 

BOOK 3: STEAL ME (PART 1)

Blueprints of Lust

Amanda Cochran had always been attracted to older men, but this was a secret that she was going to take to her grave. She’s never been one to fish in the company pond, but that becomes difficult when she meets August Rivers. Her designs have impressed him enough to offer her a ground floor opportunity. He wants to see what she can come up with to design a new building. It can’t be cookie cutter and has to showcase certain traits of the owner. They will have to work side by side after hours. Amanda will have to find a way to rebuff his advances without fallen victim to her own overanxious libido. August will see her as a challenge. He has never had any problem getting a woman and her disinterest will only fuel his desire even more.

 

Chapter one

I stood in front of my mirror looking at my curves. I knew that there were guys that would beg on bended knee to be with me. I was not immune to the lingering glances in my direction and I had on occasion purposely bent over to give them a thrill. I liked the attention and I wore clothing that was constricting and hard to breathe in. I wanted them to crave that one last look before disappearing from their lives forever. I didn’t consider myself a tease, but I suppose from their point of view it would appear that way.

“I would say that if you’re trying to make a good first impression that dress will do it. I just hope that you don’t need the Jaws of Life to get out of it at the end of the day. The heels are a nice touch. I’ve never been able to wear those. I feel like I’m going to fall over, but you handle it with grace.” Tina was that friend that always had something to say on everything. I could always count on her to be completely honest without sugar-coating anything. It was refreshing to know that she would not just tell me what I wanted to hear.

“I figure that it’s best to take advantage of what I have been blessed with. I used to think that it was a curse to have a little bit of extra coming and going. I see the advantages. I sometimes find that I want to run over to those skinny bitches and tell them to eat something. I eat right, but I will always have more than average. I am quite pleased that most of that extra weight landed on my breasts and my ass.” Tina was a slacker. She didn’t believe in a 9 to 5 job and always depended on those guys that were willing to pay her bills. She never promised them anything in return, but it was always an unwritten understanding.

I was 5’9, 170 pounds with a mixture of black and red in my hair. I made my own clothes. I’d always been a creative personality and that led to me sending in a couple of my building designs to a well-known architect.

August Rivers had actually taken an interest in me. To have him personally invite me to his office was unheard of. I had heard the rumors of the way that he treated the female staff under his watch. I didn’t think that I had much to worry about. Those photos of him out and about were with those girls that were airbrushed into the perfect specimens.

“If his tongue doesn’t fall to the floor, then he has to be gay. There are certain things that men have a hard time looking away from. You guarantee that you’ll have a line around the block to talk to you.” My type was an acquired taste but was becoming acceptable in this day and age. I only wished that this was the case in high school and college, but for the most part, I was that wallflower hanging back and looking in from the outside.

“I appreciate the effort to butter me up and make me feel more confident, but I’m already nervous as it is.” I grabbed my purple leather jacket and covered the black slinky dress with the accompanying white belt.

“I would wish you luck, but I don’t think that you need it.” Tina had her blond curls into pigtails giving her that innocent look. Those that knew her well enough would know that there was nothing innocent about her. She was my roommate, but she was always with a different man every week. I just couldn’t bring myself to being with a man for the fleeting chance of 5 minutes of pleasure.

“From your lips to god’s ears.” My mother had always told me that I was never going to amount to much and that really did do something to my self-esteem. It was bad enough that I was struggling with weight issues, but to have her constantly berate me made it necessary to leave her in the dust after graduation.

I hadn’t been home in over two years. My older sister Carol keeps trying to lure me back to the homestead for the holidays. I always come up with some lame excuse to get out of it. She was always that golden child that I couldn’t measure up to. There was no way that she knew how our mother treated me. I got the feeling from my mother’s disapproval that my pregnancy somehow ruined her life.

I got into my old grey and dismal Toyota and prayed that it would turn over. I waited and then I turned the ignition and heard the rumble of the engine come to life underneath me. I could smell the exhaust fumes coming through the floor. My inspection was coming up soon and I had a feeling that I was going to need a lot more than I had in my bank account to get this thing road worthy.

I put it into gear and it backfired making a young man in front of me crossing the street almost wet himself in fear that it was a drive by. Chicago did have its fair share of crime. There was no way that anybody could leave their doors open unless of course, you wanted your stuff to be pawned. I had a baseball bat by my bed and I knew had to swing for the fences.

I drove down the street at 9:00 AM on a Monday morning and I saw these people moving along like sheep and I realized that I was one of them. Bumper to bumper traffic was not uncommon for this time of day. I had to give Tina credit for being able to lounge in her pyjamas. I needed that security and I had been pounding the pavement to find my dream job for the past five years. It meant that I had to take on temporary jobs. I think that I let my mother’s words distract me and make me feel that I wasn’t worthy of anything good in my life.

I was never that adventurous in the bedroom. I had seen some things on the Internet that made me cringe to even contemplate doing them myself. Positions were relegated to the vanilla missionary on a bed. That was probably the reason why I could never keep a boyfriend for any longer than six months before he decided to pull the plug.

I arrived at the building and I was in awe. I stood there after paying for parking and looked up and marvelled at the intricate design that went into bringing something like this to life. August was known to think outside the box. It was the one thing that we had in common.

I had a black satchel over my shoulder and I reached in and pulled out the magazine with his photo on the front. He always dressed to impress wearing finely tailored suits that fit him like a glove. There was nothing that he could do to hide those muscles from bulging in all the right places. There were times when I used his image to satisfy my longings. I could only imagine what he looked like under the suit. He had the tendency to wear a power red tie.

I went into the building and it made me feel like a fish out of the water. My mouth was dry and I continually licked my lips. I signed in and I took the elevator up to the top floor. When the door opened, I was accosted by a black and white motif. It was a classic choice that had never gone out of style. The secretary behind the desk looked up with her glasses perched on the edge of her nose. She gave me that critical eye.

“I know that I’m a little early. I have a meeting with Mr. Rivers at 10:00 AM.” She didn’t say anything, but the placard on her desk referred to her as Miss Timmons. There was no first name and it gave me the impression that she was looking to be seen as professional and not some eye candy for the office. Her blond hair and store bought implants contradicted that statement.

“I’ll let him know that you are here. He’s finishing up with a client, but he shouldn’t be more than a few minutes. I’ll tell you a secret. He shared with me his thoughts and your designs have potential. That may not seem like high praise, but coming from him it is.” I sat down; demurely crossing my leg which of course made my dress ride up and give the illusion of more skin than was necessary. I had that nervous twitch and I could barely sit still. This was exactly where I wanted to be, but getting into the front door was only the first step.

“I wonder if you could tell me something about him before I go in there and make a fool out of myself. Anything at all would help. I’m sure that you’ve learned to predict what he is going to do next. You might even be on the same wavelength and finish each other’s thoughts like an old married couple.” It brought to mind my mother and this was no time to go down memory lane. I never did know my father and he abandoned us after my birth. It finally dawned on me that maybe my mother blamed me for him leaving and that was the reason why she felt it necessary to put me down.

“I would love to help you, but I’ve only been working here for the past month. I heard through the Grapevine that not many stay any longer than a few months in his employ. Women, in general, can’t stand his womanizing ways and the way that he looks at them in a less than subtle fashion.” She went back to her computer, not elaborating, but definitely giving me food for thought.

Chapter two

My patience was wearing thin. My appointment was for 10:00 AM and it was almost 10:45. I finally heard laughter coming from the open door down the hallway. I spied two men shaking hands. The man that August was meeting left the same way that I came in the elevator. When the door closed, that was when I saw the façade on August’s face change from mild amusement to outright contempt.

“I swear that man is going to be the death of me. He’s stuck in his ways and doesn’t wanna hear a differing opinion. I’ve tried for several years to design something that is going to change the way that he looks at architecture, but he doesn’t want to entertain the idea. I don’t even know why I’m telling you any of this. You do have a kind face and it’s easy to talk to you. Come with me. I know that I have been derelict in my duties. I didn’t mean to make you wait this long.” He was directing his comments towards me, but in a way, that made me feel like I was not even in the room.

I gave the secretary a noncommittal shrug off my shoulders and then I followed him like a panting puppy dog after its master.

I entered into his office and I was stunned by how he had decorated. His desk was pure white and the floors had this very colorful black tile that changed colors in the light. He was sitting there and he motioned for me to take the seat in front of him. It was obvious that he wanted to be in the dominating position. His chair was slightly higher than mine. This was a tried and true technique of intimidation.

I took my portfolio out of my bag and placed it in front of him. He didn’t seem all that interested, but he did peruse the pages until he finally sat back with his hands steepled in front of him.

His dark hair was cut short like that of the military and his gigantic frame really seemed out of place in that chair. It had that design meant to give the person sitting in it good posture. To me, it didn’t look at all comfortable, but he didn’t seem to be complaining. It was his eyes that were his best feature, but that changed when he stood up.

“I do like your designs, but they do need some polishing. I want you to help me to come up with something for him that is not of the norm. Call this a test to see if you are a good fit. I’ve been working 16 hour days and I find myself wanting to slow down a little. That’s the reason why I took interest in your designs when you sent them unsolicited. You were lucky that something caught my eye. I was this close to tossing them in the trash with the others.” I was trying to listen to him, but it was hard to do

He was on the edge of his desk with his crotch right in my face. There was no denying that this man had something that would scare little old ladies on the bus. He didn’t seem to have a shy bone in his body. That was evident by the way that he wasn’t wearing underwear. I wasn’t sure if that was for shock value or if he was just comfortable going commando. I thought that it was in poor taste, but it was not my place to say anything.

“I’m flattered that you even noticed my work. I would be glad to take a stab at helping you come up with something for the client.” I could feel that the temperature in the room had risen. His cologne was this manly musk that was hard to deny.

“I certainly didn’t bring you in here to stroke your ego. I’m still not entirely convinced that this is the right position for you. You’ll have to dedicate your time to working underneath me. I’m a bit of a slave driver and you’re going to have to learn to keep up with my stamina. I don’t see any reason why we can’t start tonight. You can come up with some preliminary drawings and I will take a look at them and see if I can salvage anything.” I felt that every word that came out of his mouth had this sexual innuendo. I wasn’t sure that it was my imagination, but I felt like he was putting me on the spot.

“Point me towards an open office and I will get to work.” I didn’t see any reason to waste either of our time. I was ready to roll up my sleeves.

“I would rather that you work here where I can keep an eye on you. I’m sure that you would be more comfortable with your own private space, but that is not how I work. I have this need that burns into my very soul. I want somebody to impress me. I’m not that easily satisfied and it can take a few times to get it right.” I wanted to call him on his use of his vocabulary. It sounded obscene, but there was nothing that I could pinpoint that I could take to human resources.

“You’re the boss. I’m only here to make you happy. I can take whatever your dish out.” I actually found myself playing his game. I saw him give me this cock of his eyebrow. I think that he purposely flexed his pectorals.

“I want you to be comfortable, but I do require that you call me Mr. Rivers. I find in the workplace that it’s better to be professional.” He had moved a little closer and he was only a few inches away from invading my personal space. His pectorals were not the only things that he was flexing. The laugh that ensued was his way of telling me that I was going to have to get used to it.

“Oh, my….is it hot in here, or is it just me?” I made a flirting gesture by fanning myself with my hand.

“Trust me…it’s just you.” He moved behind me and his hands barely touched my bare shoulders. “I’m going to have to go out for a little while. You have the office to yourself. If there is anything that you need then all you need to do is, ask. I won’t be here, but my secretary Miss Timmons will be happy to help you.” He grabbed his trench coat from the back of the door.

“The one thing that you’ll find with me is that I’m low maintenance. The only thing that I need is a caffeine fix with a pot of coffee right in front of me. If it’s possible, I would connect it right to my vein, but drinking it will have to suffice.” I was going to get up, but my legs were shaky and I was afraid that I was going to collapse right in front of him.

“Amanda, you’re certainly a woman after my own heart. I think that we will get along famously. You just need to remember that it’s my way or the highway. I like things done a certain way. You can even sit in my chair and feel what it is like to be in control. To be honest, I’m not much for pleasantries and I would rather just get to work.” He slipped out and left a lasting impression on me that had me feeling like my clothes were a little bit tighter than usual.

I hadn’t even taken off my jacket. He had moved it out of the way so that he could touch me inappropriately without making it look like any big deal. I could’ve said something and maybe I should have.

I surveyed the photos in his office. It showed a man that was into himself and liked to put on a show for the benefit of others. He was quite athletic and into various sports like tennis and soccer just to name two. I’d done my due diligence and I knew that his family life was non-existent. His father was not talking to him. Even though he was a success, his father just couldn’t get over the fact that he didn’t want to get into the family business of running a restaurant. Up close and personal, he really did look better in person than in any photo that I had seen of him thus far.

“I know that he can be a bit much to take, but he really is just a big teddy bear.” Big wasn’t the right adjective and when he walked into a room he owned it from the moment that he stepped through the threshold. “He asked me to look in on you. I brought you a pot of coffee.” Miss Timmons placed it in front of me and she was bent at an angle to give me a bird’s eye view of her heaving bosom.

I’d never been into girls, but she might’ve been the exception to that rule. I got the feeling that maybe her open sexuality was a selling point when she came to work for him. I wondered if things had moved forward into something more physical.

“He really didn’t give me that much time to talk. I do admire the man, but he really does have a big head.” I was talking about the one on his shoulders, but it was not lost on me that the helmet between his legs was in healthy proportion to the rest of the mountain of a man.

“He has never worked with anyone. This has always been a one-man show, except for those that he puts on retainer as contract players. Most find him difficult to work with. He doesn’t make it easy and his opinion is the only one that he listens to. If he gives you any praise, then I would take it in the spirit that it was given. I have to get back to my station.” Those that were on contract were brought in for a specific task and then given their walking papers after they were done.

It was an interesting way for him to do business without having to commit. It had to be his way of weeding out the undesirables. He did not have to worry about paying for a salary or benefits. These contracts would take a lump sum and a specified amount of time to get the job done. They would walk away to contend with another client.

It made me feel pretty damn good that he had singled me out. I did sit in his chair and I could smell him surrounding me like this sexual aphrodisiac that I couldn’t seem to get enough of. I had allowed things to give him the idea that I was open to something more than a collaboration of ideas. I was going to have to put a stop to that. It would only be asking for trouble to mix business with pleasure.

I went on the Internet and found out that the client’s name was Lionel Evans. He was a tycoon with billions to spend. August was also a billionaire. He had made his fortune playing the stock market. He could never get away from his true passion for designing something that was going to stand up to the test of time.

This was the kind of guy that could be on a tropical beach. There was no reason for him to work, but it was testament to his character that he still wanted to make his mark in the world.

I found inspiration from August’s designs over the years and I blended that with what I had learned about Mr. Evans. August was looking for something contemporary and Mr. Evans wanted that classical feel without the pomp and circumstance to go with it. It was quite the balancing act. I found myself literally flying by the seat of my pants.

Chapter three

I didn’t even realize how much time had elapsed until I looked up and found that the hallway outside the office was darkened. It made me feel like I was about to jump out of my skin. I thought for sure that he was going to come back, but it was well after 8:00 PM and time to clock out.

I got up, straightened up the mess that I had made and filed my drafts on top of his inbox. It was a productive first day and I was looking forward to tackling it once again tomorrow.

I had my hand on the doorknob and he came in and pushed me back out of the way. It was kind of rude and I could smell the liquor on his breath. He spun me around, making me dizzy and having the effect of making my dress swirl around me to reveal my Victoria secret panties.

“Forgive me, but I got caught up in wooing the client at a local strip club. Those girls can really put on a show. I bet you would look great flaunting your stuff and giving the guys something to think about. Show me a few moves and pretend that there is music playing.” He was obnoxious, macho and a bit sexist. I didn’t feel like playing his game and there was no way that I was going to dance for him.

“You’re drunk and you need to sleep it off before you do something that you’re going to regret.” He ruffled my dress and his fingers grazed my inner thighs which had always been my Achilles’ heel. “You need to stop this. I’m not some kind of plaything for your amusement. Other girls might enjoy this kind of sparring, but I’m not one of them. Keep it in your pants and we’ll get along just fine.” I knew that the words did not match the way that I was feeling deep down. I wanted him to take me, but to give him that satisfaction would only open that Pandora’s Box.

“You…can’t fool me. You like the way that I touch you and you want what you have been looking at from that moment that you sat down.” He palmed his privates, giving them a healthy tug with my eyes gravitating towards the outline of it.

“I don’t have to take this fresh stuff. If you can’t take this seriously, then maybe this isn’t going to work between us.” I tried to sidestep him, but he had his hands on my hips and was keeping me from leaving in a huff. “This is no way to treat a colleague.” I vainly slapped at his chest, feeling the granite surface and knowing that seeing him naked wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.

“I think that you might be protesting a little bit too much and it’s getting on my last nerve. Let your hair down and enjoy yourself. We only have this one life to live and we can’t just be all about the business.” His words were slurred and the liquor of choice was something that I was quite familiar with. My mother was happy all the time, but it was with a bit of help from several glasses of wine. It would appear that August and my mother would have made great drinking buddies.

“I don’t need liquor to have a good time. I hope that you remember this in the morning. Overindulging is only going to leave you with a headache to beat the band. I’m going to give you something, but it’s against my better judgment. This is my own remedy. After you drink it, you’ll feel like hell, but then that will pass quickly enough. Take my word or not and I really don’t care.” I wrote it down with him behind me breathing on my neck. I turned quickly to see that his hands were poised to cup my ample posterior.

I grabbed his hand and I placed the piece of paper in between his fingers. He could’ve easily had his way with me and those hands really did dwarf my tiny little digits. I had always been the bigger of my dates, but that was not the case with August. He had to weigh in at over 200 plus pounds of solid muscle. I didn’t think that there was an ounce of fat on his body. Whatever regiment that he had put himself through had the desired results.

“I want you and I’m going to have you. It would be better that you just give in now. If you leave here without doing something about this heat between us, then you’re going to end up having one very restless night. You’ll toss and turn and you’ll have only yourself to blame. Grab onto a little bit of happiness.” The happiness that he was referring to was the stick of dynamite that was quite pronounced and looking ready to burst through his pants.

I still had his hand in mine and then he lowered it and placed it against the lump of his arousal. I gasped thinking that this was unbecoming of a professional relationship, but not able to tear myself away from the thumping presence. It had a life of its own and a pulsing rhythm that had me squeezing it.

“I… I…can’t do this. It will ruin what we already have. I’ve seen too many people go down this road and the awkwardness after it all falls apart leads to one of them having to quit. I won’t risk… I won’t… I have to leave and you haven’t heard the last of this.” I used whatever resolve that I had left to push him back away from me. He looked a little stunned by my behavior and tried to pursue but got the slam of the door in his face.

I saw through the window that he had gone to his desk and had gotten a bit of the hair of the dog. I didn’t know that he had liquid refreshment in his desk. The way that he slugged the bottle back made him look like a caveman. I could almost imagine the way that he would rip off my clothes, strip me of my defences and leave me vulnerable to his manly persuasion.

I breathed deeply, feeling my heart beating in my chest and knowing that I was one move from turning and going headlong into a disaster of a decision. It took all of my willpower to press that elevator button.

I heard the clanging of the bottle and I turned to see that he was standing there swaying on his 2 feet and looking me up and down like I was a delectable dessert.

“You have one chance to make it right. Come back here and let me put my hands on that beautiful big body of yours. I don’t think that I’ve ever had someone like you and that is a cherry that I want to break. Your lips say no, but your body is screaming yes. You’re thinking about it too much and that’s precisely the reason why you are alone.” His words stung and there was some truth behind them.

I found my anger rising and I walked with defiance over to him before I started to point and poke at his chest. “How dare you say something like that to me without knowing me at all? I’ll have you know that I’m a warm and wonderful person. You would be lucky to be with me. I have a passion that cannot be measured, but you’re never going to find out.” I could still smell the combination of liquor and his cologne. I wanted to kiss those lips and let him manhandle me into submission, but that would only be feeding into his ego.

“I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m usually a pretty good judge of character.” He looked like I had slapped him across the face and metaphorically speaking; I suppose that was exactly what I did with my verbal abuse.

“I have a lot to give to the right man and you’re not him. You’re callous and you don’t care about anybody else’s feelings but your own. It’s no wonder that you like to work alone because nobody else can satisfy your high expectations. I’m going to forget that this even happened and I suggest that you do the same. Tomorrow, we start over with a clean slate and none of this ugliness to get between us. I still think that we can make something spectacular. Don’t mention this and you can bet that I’m not going to.” I had said my piece with my clothes sticking to me like a second skin.

“I might have gone a little overboard, but you can’t blame me. You come in looking like that, wearing a dress that leaves little to the imagination and you expect me not to do anything about it. You are either delusional, or you really don’t know the kind of power that you have over a man. I think that it might be time to teach you a lesson. Teasing and showing what you have is only going to get you into trouble. I don’t think that you have truly lived a moment in your life and that’s a crying shame. I want to rectify that. I wonder how long you’re going to last before you realize that you are on the losing end of this battle.” He had unbuttoned the first couple of buttons on his white starched shirt.

“I think that you’ll find that this attraction that you feel is one-sided. I could never be with anybody that thought that they were god’s gift to women. It would be in your best interest not to push this any further.” I was afraid and intoxicated by the very idea of being taken control of. No man had ever been able to handle me like that, but this guy might be able to do what others couldn’t do.

“This game of playing hard to get is going to get old quickly. You’re fighting me when we should be going at it like wild dogs.” He stumbled and fell to his knees still holding onto the bottle like it was a lifeline. It could mean that he had a problem. The signs were all there including the bottle in his desk.

“That is no way to talk to me. I’m tired and I don’t need this. Don’t even think that I’m going to be party to sexual harassment.” I had to get some distance. I was showing that I would not take this kind of behavior from anyone. I wanted him to believe that, but deep down I wanted him to put his hands on me.

It had been almost a year since I’d been intimate with anyone. That relationship fizzled from my lack of interest. He wanted to introduce toys and even another woman, but I wasn’t ready to jump in feet first. I was happy to dip my toe in by changing positions, but his constant demands had made me run for the hills.

“I don’t see a lady. I see a sexually available woman that is letting an opportunity slip through her fingers. It’s a mistake and one that you’re going to realize sooner than later.” He slumped back against the wall with his head falling forward and his eyes closing. He was soon breathing heavy with his chest rising and falling with each labored breath.

I could have made him an example. The very thought of stripping him naked and taking his clothes did put a smile on my face. This was no way to start our business partnership. I’m sure that he thought that I was just hired help, but I wanted to become the Ying to his Yang.

I breathed a sigh of relief as the door to the elevator closed. I had to lean back against the glass wall. I felt the cool surface through my clothes and it brought down the fire that had become more than a blaze. I didn’t need this hassle. This was not what I considered a healthy work environment. The only thing that I could hope was that this was a momentary lack of judgment on his part. I would find out in the morning one way or the other.

I wasn’t sure how much more that I could take. It was only lucky that he didn’t see any crack in my demeanor. He was not the type of man that was ready for a commitment. He would have his way and then he would toss me to the curb like yesterday’s garbage. I’m sure that other girls had already felt his abuse of power. Those that had any self-respect would have walked away, but there would have been some that felt that the only way to get ahead was to climb the ladder of success by using their bodies.

Chapter four

I’d spent all night thinking about what had happened and it wasn’t fair. Just because he was the boss, he thought that he could have any woman wrapped around his little finger. He was going to learn the hard way that my affections were not easy to come by. I wanted a man to treat me right, give me his undivided attention and not just want one thing.

I had my heart in my throat, thinking that I was going to get my walking papers by the time that I stepped out of the elevator. He didn’t get what he wanted and that was more than enough grounds to end this probationary period.

I found Miss Timmons wringing her hands and looking a little dishevelled. “I haven’t seen him like this. He’s on a tirade and he’s looking for somebody to fight with. Tread carefully. He’s lucky that I have a thick skin.” I walked down the hallway, careful not to make too much noise and knowing that what he was going through was something that I’d only experienced once.

Tina managed to drag me to a frat party and I ended up lying on the grass wearing no panties. It was not like me. To this day, I still didn’t know which of the frat boys had my panties as a souvenir. I knew that nothing happened, but losing them was degrading. It made me feel like people were looking at me differently in the morning.

That was the one and only time that I had taken things too far. I was conscious of every drink that I had in a bar from that moment on. I could still get that buzz, but there was no way that I was going to become that fall down drunk that didn’t know what they did.

I opened the door slowly, gritting my teeth together to give the illusion that I was trying to be as quiet as a mouse.

He was sitting behind his desk with his hand on his forehead. “I don’t want to hear it. I can’t even remember how I got here. I woke up sleeping outside my office. The last thing I do remember is some scantily clad stripper giving me a private lap dance. I don’t even know if I should call the client and apologize for my behavior. You would think that I would know better.” He was kicking himself, but I did notice that he had not mentioned the way that he had acted with me.

“You might want to consider staying off the hard stuff for a while. It’s one thing to indulge on the weekend where you can live with that pain the next day, but it’s another when you have to come into the office. I doubt that you’ve had time to go over the drafts that I made. They are not the finished product, but they will give you a basic idea of where I’m going with it.” He hadn’t even looked at me. His hand was covering his face. There was a glass of water on his desk with what looked like two aspirins.

“I always do this to make the client more comfortable. One drink turns into two and then we are acting like teenagers by throwing cash on the stage. I’m getting too old for this. Do you know that back in the day I could drink anybody under the table and still make the deal? I might be getting a little older, but I thought that I was a bit wiser. Last night was a misstep and I can only hope that I didn’t say or do anything that is going to come back and haunt me.” Come to think of it, I could have thrown this back in his face by recording what he said to me on my phone.

In this age of technology, it was a wonder that anybody was able to get away with anything without having it show up on the Internet. Robbing banks and doing insane things like putting a pool ball into your mouth could be caught for posterity.

“The way that you are doing things is not healthy. You want your client to change his way of thinking, but you still do the same things to seal the deal. Do you not see how hypocritical that is?” I had no interest in mentioning the way that he had treated me like I was a piece of meat. I’d given it a lot of thought and I was quite glad to see that his recollection was spotty at best.

“I get the feeling that we saw each other last night. Did you step over me on the way out of the office? This is mortifying. I feel so embarrassed. I want to crawl into a hole and die.” I could’ve told him the truth, but he already felt bad enough as it is.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You must have stumbled in after I left.” I stood at the desk, looking down at him and seeing that he had a piece of paper clutched in his fist. It brought to mind the remedy for a hangover that I had scribbled down quickly to alleviate him of the pain that he was going to feel this morning.

“I guess that is a saving grace. I just want to go on the record to say that I’m not like this. I do have a tendency to run my mouth when I get drinking. Some have mentioned that what I say during those drunken moments is the hidden truth. I don’t know if I see it that way. I barely remember my name after going on a binge like this.” His hand opened up and the crumpled piece of paper fell to the floor at his feet.

“Everybody does stupid things once or twice in their lives. I’m sure that there are people that you’re going to need to apologize to. You’ll recognize them by the way that they shake their head in disbelief that you could say something so disparaging.” I was hoping that I wasn’t the only one that had found themselves on the receiving end of his forked tongue.

“I had one such conversation with a female officer this morning. She said that I was trying to paw her last night. I apologized profusely and she agreed not to press charges. I do believe that I just dodged a bullet. It would do very little for my reputation for it to get around that I was sleeping one off in the tank. It would be worse yet if I were to be charged with some kind of misdemeanor.” The police officer should have thrown the book at him. The only way that he was going to learn was to hit rock bottom.

“Let this be a lesson.” He looked up and there was that sort of hazy recognition that made me afraid that he was going to remember the way that he told me that I needed to learn a lesson. “You’re not in your twenties anymore.” It was harsh and being in my twenties, I really had no reference, except for that one drunken moment that I wanted to forget about.

“Are you sure that we didn’t see each other last night. I get the feeling like I should be apologizing for something that I don’t know anything about. You can be straight with me and maybe a cold dose of reality is exactly what I need to kick me in the pants.” I thought that maybe that was giving me the opening to show him that his actions had consequences.

“I… I’m sure that I would remember something like that.” I was this close to throwing it in his face, but I didn’t feel that I would’ve been doing him any favors. He already knew that his actions were deplorable.

“The only thing that I ask is that you keep it down to a dull roar. I’m not even sure how I’m going to concentrate. I only wish that there was some kind of remedy.” I could’ve easily picked up the paper and gave him some peace. I didn’t do that because I thought that he deserved to feel miserable for as long as possible.

It served him right for making me look at myself in the mirror differently in the morning. He wasn’t wrong and I did somewhat regret not taking him up on his offer. I was just lucky that he didn’t remember. I wasn’t going to have to play the innocent victim.

“I’m sure that I can keep things quiet.” I purposely moved the chair across the floor making it squeak like fingernails down a chalkboard. His fingernails gripped the edge of his desk and he snapped his head forward with a look of shock on his face. “I’m sorry about that. What was I thinking?” I was laughing inside, knowing that I was causing him pain and feeling that I was justified from the way that he tried to make be one of his conquests.

“This whole thing could have been avoided had I just met the client here at the office. I always tend to think that getting them away from the stuffy day to day stress is a good idea. I don’t know how many times that I’ve gotten a call in the morning from some irate wife ready to take a switch off of me. I don’t play nice and sometimes playing dirty is the better way to go. I don’t use vinegar. The honey trap of those girls’ obvious attributes gets them more in the mood to talk about business.” I could see that men would feel almost at home around naked women. That was what I considered a man’s club. A woman could not break that glass ceiling the same way.

“You might be starting to realize that there is a better way. I don’t want to beat this to death. I would like to know your opinion of my work. Not to be modest, but I do find that it’s some of my best stuff.” I was putting that bug in his ear and maybe that would manipulate him psychologically to like it before he even saw it.

“I’ve been meaning to get to it, but you can imagine that it has been a slow morning. I might even take the afternoon off. You and Miss Timmons can look after things without me.” He looked around and then I helped him by placing the file in front of him.

This morning, I was not wearing the same dress. I had on a pair of dark slacks and a heavy blue sweater to keep him from getting ideas. It didn’t exactly hide my endowment. I didn’t think anything could. I was all natural with no sag and looking like a wet dream come true.

August was not as polished, his sleeves rolled up with his eyes bloodshot. His hair was out of place. It made me look at him as more human and not that unattainable fruit at the top of the tree. I liked the way that he could show his vulnerable side.

“I can leave and give you some time to go over it in private.” I did make a move to leave, but I was only going to do so at his request. There was no way that I was going to make this easier on him by vacating the premises.

I took my place in the chair in front of the desk. I picked up my pen and I began to tap it ever so slightly against the surface of his desk. Each time that I made that impact, his eyes would shoot wide open and his back would straighten like somebody was screaming in his ear.

He dropped the papers unceremoniously and placed his hands-on top of one another. He gave me the look that a principal gives a student after they are brought to their office.

“I’m sure that it’s not intentional, but could you stop doing that.” I feigned surprise by dropping it and making him put his hands up to his face. “I need absolute silence.” I put my finger and my thumb together and used it to indicate that I was going to zip my lip.

I was having fun at his expense. I did on some level hate the idea that he didn’t remember. He had made me feel desirable. All the way home, I felt this newfound confidence. I was always self-conscious about my big thighs, but he had made me feel good about myself.

Chapter five

We very carefully went through my drawings. He had some good points to make. It was a little surprising considering that he wasn’t working on all cylinders. I found his insight to be an eye-opening experience.

“For a first draft, I would say that you more than lived up to your previous creations. We really do work well together and maybe we can get a drink after work.” I wasn’t sure what to say, but it seemed rude not to give him the benefit of the doubt.

“Are you sure that it’s a good idea to drink after what you have been through? It would be better that we have dinner together. I know of a nice Italian place down the street that has the best ravioli that money can buy.” If I didn’t know any better, I would have sworn that he had tricked me into asking him out and not the other way around. “I think that we can get a lot more work done on a full stomach. We might even come up with some kind of brainstorm at the table.” I had turned the tables and made it into a work thing.

“You do know how to get to a man’s heart through his stomach. I love Italian and I make my own spaghetti sauce. Don’t let this get around, but I like to dabble from time to time in the kitchen. I get back to my Italian roots. My grandfather gave me the benefit of his expertise. He told me that a man wasn’t a man unless he could cook for his woman. I have used his recipes to get any woman that I fancied to drop their guard.” I did see the reason why some women would find his cooking to be the catalyst to them dropping their underwear on his floor.

“Let’s make that our reward for all the hard work that we are putting into this. I know that you not feeling well, but I really do need your input. I can’t possibly do this alone. I would like to say that I would be able to take on that kind of responsibility, but I don’t know if I have the confidence.” I found the way that he was looking at me a little like I was being put under the microscope. It was almost like he had something on the tip of his tongue.

“That is a wonderful idea, Amanda. I’m already salivating. I know exactly what you’re talking about when you mentioned their ravioli. I admit that it’s one of my guilty pleasures. I don’t know how we haven’t run into each other. I would have remembered you. You are a hard woman to forget.” He sounded sincere, but his body was telling an entirely different tale. Even in his condition, he was still able to rise to the occasion like an unfurled flag inside his pants.

“I only go there for takeout. I’m not that comfortable with eating alone in a restaurant with everybody staring at me. It’s not much better when I sit in front of my television. The only thing that makes it bearable is that I don’t have to contend with the looks of pity.” He was going over the details and this time I was the one that was looking over his shoulder.

We were deep into it and not even the thoughts of impropriety were keeping me from coming up with some ingenious designs. I felt like we really did play off of each other well. If he wasn’t such an ass, then maybe I would have considered a long-term engagement with him.

It was almost quitting time and I did see that he was still dealing with the remnants of the hangover that he had gotten last night. I found myself showing him some mercy by using my thumbs and my fingers to massage some of that tension out of his shoulders. It was not meant to be sexual.

“I’ve no idea when was the last time that somebody gave me a massage. You do have magic fingers. I really don’t know what came over me last night.”

I felt like I was living in two pairs of shoes. The one that I was wearing currently was that of a professional young woman on the cusp of finding her passion. The one that I was afraid of falling into was those 4-inch pumps that accentuated my legs and made me feel ready to give him more than lip service.

“I thought that you needed this.” I actually enjoyed touching him.

My nipples were rubbing up against him. I wanted to give them the attention that they deserved, but I that would only be sending up the smoke signals from between my thighs.

“We have done more than enough. Amanda. Let’s treat ourselves to an Italian dinner on me. I can always claim it as a business supper. We can always come back and pick up where we left off.” His hands were touching mine and I didn’t know what to do. I played it off, going to get my coat and then opening up the door in a reversal of the gentleman role.

“I’m famished and I took the liberty of calling ahead to have our order placed. It should be ready by the time that we arrive. As you know, it is in walking distance and they have a table set up for us in the back.” He followed from behind and my attention to detail wasn’t necessarily limited to what was on my drawings.

“I don’t know what I did to deserve you.” There was nothing that I could say to that.

There was a chill in the air and I pulled my coat closer to my chest. He walked at a good clip, this time opening the door to the restaurant for me and then guiding me to the table in the back. We barely sat down when he ordered a bottle of champagne and had it chilled in a bucket.

“I thought that we decided that we weren’t going to have anything to drink.” I didn’t want a repeat performance of last night, although I really couldn’t get the feel of his hands off of my mind.

“I don’t see any harm in a little bit of the bubbly.” He popped the cork with a flourish, and then poured me half a glass with the foam reaching the top.

“I don’t mind, but I really don’t think that you want to go down that road again. I’m not your mother. I’m not going to tell you what to do. It’s your life.” I took a sip, feeling that it was tickling my nose and then I set it back down to watch for his reaction. I saw the hesitation in his eyes and he overcame that by downing that one glass in one swallow.

“I have heard that some people think that I have a problem, but I only drink during social occasions. It’s not like I have a trash bag full of empty bottles back home. I don’t mean to raise my voice, but I’m getting a little sick and tired of people trying to police my life.” I could understand where he was coming from and maybe we could build on those things that we had in common.

I had no interest in getting into a relationship. It was a dangerous play and one that was ripe with the kind of sexual tension that you could cut with a knife. He was not fooling me. There was that evil twinkle in his eye. It didn’t hurt that he proved my point by moving his sock covered foot up along my leg. It would have had more impact had I been wearing a skirt.

“I don’t think that it’s right for us to consider something more than a professional working relationship. It might be fun for a moment, but then things are ultimately going to turn awkward in the workplace. I enjoy working with you and I don’t want to do anything to upset that delicate balance.” I was letting him down gently. I was close to screaming and grabbing him by the collar, but I refrained myself from doing that.

“I speak from personal experience when I say that it would be a whole lot of fun. I don’t mean to brag, but I am pretty damn good. You can believe me or not. The only way that you’re going to find out is to put me to the test. We can start simple enough.” His leg had not stopped that constant movement of rubbing like a cricket against my own. He was getting very close to rubbing me in a way that was going to have me moaning in the kind of pleasure that I hadn’t had in quite some time.

I grabbed his foot and I twisted it in such a way that he grimaced in the kind of pain that I was hoping for. It would’ve been so much more gratifying to kick him between the uprights. That was the only language that a man understood when they were getting too hot to handle.

“I get the message. You can’t blame a guy for trying. It would’ve been interesting to mix a little bit of business with pleasure. I would have loved to chase you around the office barely dressed.” The food arrived and the aroma drew me to it like a moth to a flame. One bite and I was transported back to Italy.

I had gone there on a summer vacation courtesy of my mother meeting an Italian stallion that wanted to give her little girls a reason to like him. He was the only one of my mother’s suitors that took any interest in either me or Carol. I had a small crush on Antonio. He looked damn good out of his shirt. I was pretty impressionable at the ripe age of 16 with my hormones out of control. I’d actually spied my mother and him in a not so innocent embrace. It sickened me to my very core.

“I can see the appeal, but I’m really not in a good place. I just got out of a very long-term engagement. It left me broken into a million pieces and my heart can’t take anything more. I only wish that I was the type of girl that was willing to have sex just for the pleasure. I could seriously see myself doing unspeakable things to you. I could leave you spent, unable to say anything and have you wanting to come back for more. I really am insatiable and that can be pretty daunting to any man. You should count yourself lucky that you’re not one of my hit and run victims.” I was playing a part, completely lying through my teeth, but loving the way that he was on the edge of his seat.

“That makes me more than curious. You really do paint a vivid picture. Are you sure that there’s nothing that I can do to convince you to change your mind?” It was nice of him to ask than to assume that he could put his hands where they didn’t belong. It was a nice change of pace from the way that he acted last night.

“I’m afraid that you’re going to have to use your imagination. I can’t stop you from doing that, but I can put a stop to any idea that we can be more than work colleagues. I know that I’m probably going to regret this. You certainly do have everything going for you. I’m just not ready and I hope that you will respect my decision. I have a tendency to fall easily. I would probably become a vindictive stalker that would never leave you alone. Trust me; I’m doing you a favor by not subjecting you to that.” The lies were piling on top of one another. It was getting easier with each word that came out of my mouth.

“I appreciate the candor, but that doesn’t stop me from wondering. You might find me a little distracted at the office. I would give anything to be that sweater that you’re wearing. To feel the cushiony softness of your breasts would make me die a happy man.” His words conveyed his lust. I brought that on myself.

“You know what they say about curiosity killing the cat. If you were to spend 1 hour with me underneath the sheets, you would find out for yourself. You can’t handle a woman like me and why you insist on thinking that you can is only making you look foolish.” I had pulled out all the stops. He was staring at me, most likely thinking with the head on his shoulders and not the one between his legs.

“I’m glad that we talked about this beforehand. Giving it a little bit more thought, I don’t think that it would be a good idea to change the dynamic of our relationship. I want us to be able to work together without feeling that there has to be more to it than that.” As a man of his word, he did pay the bill and then we separated at the door with him walking back to the office and me taking a taxi back home.

Chapter six

It was another one of those nights where I had nobody on that cold side of the bed. It was made even worse because the heat had gone out in the building. I had no idea where Tina was, but I had a feeling that she wasn’t lacking male companionship.

I woke up several times shivering like mad and going to the closet to grab yet another blanket. By the time that the sun had risen, I had five blankets on top of me and feeling like a bear that was ready to hibernate for the winter.

I got up, running in a mad dash for the shower to take that chill out of my bones. The hot water only lasted for about 20 minutes, but without Tina being in the apartment with me, I was able to squeeze every little bit out of it.

As I threw my clothes on the bed, I thought about being that same chaste young woman, but I didn’t want him to have that kind of power over me. I decided on a peasant blouse and a snug black leather skirt with that zipper down the back. I wore something special underneath, just on the off chance that I could catch his wandering eye. I didn’t want to push the envelope, but I found it necessary to entice him without giving away the milk for free.

The purple leather jacket really was the only thing in my closet that was made just for me. Everything else had to be altered in some way. I’d made my own clothes because I liked it, but it was also out of necessity. There was one place that catered to women of my considerable size, but I didn’t feel right about stepping into those doors.

I went back into the office and this time it was nothing but business. He wasn’t putting me in a difficult position by making me feel uncomfortable in the very least. To be honest, I was feeling a little neglected. I might have done something that I couldn’t take back.

“I hope you know that you have real talent. I’m not just saying that and I mean every word from the bottom of my heart. I’m thinking about bringing on somebody full time and you might be the one that can fill the position. We’ll have to come to terms, but I don’t see that being difficult under the circumstances. I can be very accommodating, but you haven’t even expressed interest in staying here. Is this something that you would be ready to take on? I know that some freelancers like their independence and I can perfectly understand that. It’s just that I don’t think that I’ve ever had anybody working with me like a well-oiled machine. I’m reluctant to give that up. The one sticking point is if the client is going to like what we came up with.” He wasn’t trying to look down my blouse and I found that bending over didn’t make him that drooling dog.

“I sent you my designs because I wanted your honest opinion. I was not fishing for a job, but now that you have broached the topic, I might be convinced. I do like working with you, August. I don’t think that I told you that you were my inspiration for getting into this profession. Everybody has their heroes and the one that shapes them into who they are today. You were that for me.” I didn’t want to give him a swelled head to go with the one that was never going to take no for an answer.

The only way that I was going to dissuade that part of him was to dump a glass of chilled water into his lap. It was a known fact that shrinkage was something that a man deals with when they go swimming. I could’ve done that, but I took it as a compliment.

“I’ll be happy to draw up some papers, but not until after we meet with the client.” August was hedging his bets and hoping that I was the golden ticket. I wasn’t sure how he could put that much faith in me. I wanted him to be proud and for some reason, his admiration of my work was something that I coveted.

“I understand. I think that we have hit this one out of the park, but we really won’t know until we hear it from the client. I just want to go on the record to say that I appreciate that you have refrained from putting the moves on me. I think that it was for the best and that is not a road that I’m willing to travel. I didn’t mean to scare you, but I wanted you to know what you were getting yourself into,” My lie had worked way too well and his interest in me had waned a little bit too much.

“I have to say that I was a little taken back. I don’t usually have any problems getting a girl to sleep with me. Rejection is for other guys and maybe I did need a cold dose of reality. I can’t always assume that every woman wants to sleep with me. That makes me sound a little egocentric. You were the first that ever-said no. It sometimes comes down to timing. You did say that you were interested, but you just got out of a long-term relationship. I’m not sure that I believe you and it really doesn’t matter. I find our working relationship not worth losing.” August had a way with words.

At the end of the day, we left to prepare separately for the meeting with the client in the morning. I came to him for that experience that I was lacking. Sending those blueprints was my way of self-destructing. I really didn’t expect him to answer back, let alone invite me to work alongside him. I thought that his rejection would be the final straw to make me forsake my dream from coming true. It had turned out better than expected and the way that he looked over my curves had me wishing that I didn’t throw cold water on his parade.

“I’m going to go home, put on some soft jazz and have a bubble bath. I would offer for you to come join me, but I think that we have already beaten that horse to death. I’m sure that you have your own ritual before a big meeting.” I was trying to open that window, but I was not willing to open up the door wide enough for him to think that he had a chance.

“Trust me, I’ve learned my lesson and you won’t have to worry about me putting the moves on you ever again. I look back at all those times that I treated women with disrespect and I want to call each and every one of them and tell them how sorry I am. Tonight is the first night that I’m going to go home and sleep alone. I don’t know what I was so afraid of and maybe the idea of growing old alone makes me reach out for any kind of cold comfort in the middle of the night.” I didn’t know that he had those kinds of insecurities. I’d always taken him for somebody that was strong and confident not having any idea that he was suffering some of the same things that I did.

“There’s no reason for you to be alone. Change your ways and let the women in your life see the chink in your armor. I’m going to tell you a secret about women. We do want strength, but we also want our man to have the ability to cry. We want them to show their softer side. Try being honest and you’ll be surprised by the results.” I had no idea why I was telling him any of this, except to say that I was feeling sorry for him.

“It’s a novel idea, Amanda and I might just take your unsolicited advice like I did with your designs. Look at how good that turned out. I’m usually an army of one, but having you to back me up has allowed me to live a little. Now that you mention it, there is something that I should do while it’s still fresh in my mind.” He moved the hair away from my eyes. I thought for sure that he was going to kiss me. He did, but it was more of a peck on the cheek. He didn’t need to know that I almost moved to intercept him with my mouth.

“The one thing that you need to know about women is that they don’t like playing games. Say it like it is, tell them what you really want and let them decide if what you are offering is good enough. Women want a man that is going to be there for them. It’s that cold spot on the bed that draws a woman to the bar at odd hours of the night. They find that unsuspecting victim and they think that they have to settle.” I was giving him way too much insight into the female mind, but I felt that he could benefit from my lessons.

“It is nice to hear the other side for a change. A man’s point of view only gets me so far. You’ve given me a lot to think about, Amanda and I really don’t know how to thank you. Let’s get some sleep and we’ll meet in the office at 7:00 AM to go over the details of those designs. Lionel is not going to know what hit him. I just hope that he’s open to new ideas. He already told me what he wants and it’s the same thing every time. If he wasn’t paying an exorbitant amount of cash, I wouldn’t even consider debasing myself like that.” He walked towards his Lexus, a silver extension of his anatomy and it gave me the impression that he was making up for some kind of shortcoming.

I knew that it wasn’t what most women would think it was. He was not lacking in that department. I had no first-hand knowledge other than the way that he put it out there for everyone to see. That was not a rolled-up pair of socks. That was the real thing and I had pushed him away because he was too forceful in his approach.

I felt like kicking myself. I wanted to believe that leopards could change their spots, but my personal experience told me otherwise. Men would say that they wanted to change, but they would always fall back on old habits. I didn’t want to nag him into being something that he wasn’t. It was better that we cut things off before it got any messier.

Chapter seven

I was up all night going over those designs and putting the finishing touches on them. I tried to call him excited and wanting to share it with him, but the only thing that I got in response was his voice message service. I told him that it was no big deal and that I would see him in the morning. I was kinda hoping that he would reach out even if I was snuggled tight into my bed.

I finally got to sleep around 4:00 AM and that left me with 3 hours to dream about the possibilities. I woke up thinking that he was there with me. I lifted the sheet off of my naked body half expecting to see his smiling face nestled between my thighs, but there was nobody there. It felt so real that I could almost reach out and touch him.

I kept drifting in and out of that fantasy. I finally gave up around 5:30 AM. I had a sheen of sweat glistening on my skin. I looked at myself in the mirror and knew deep down that what I did was the right thing for everybody concerned. Office romances didn’t work and I couldn’t in good conscience drive a wedge between us because we couldn’t keep it in our pants.

I was pretty much a zombie in desperate need of caffeine which I found in his office waiting for me. The steam from the cup had me grabbing it and bringing it up to my lips without thinking about the scalding contents. I managed to avoid burning myself.

“I’m glad to see you. I don’t know about you, but I had a very productive evening. I want to show you what I came up with. It would not surprise me in the very least that you came up with your own additions. Let’s see if we are truly on the same wavelength. It could’ve been just one of those things and this way we can prove to one another that we can work together. It doesn’t have to be anything physical, no matter how much a certain party wants there to be something like that. There I go again making assumptions. I really do have a one-track mind.” August had reined himself in, but I did feel that there was more to what he had to say.

“I’ll show you mine…if you show me yours.” I was playing a dangerous game with that comment, but he took it in stride. He motioned for me to go first and I was tempted to start undressing to see that shocked look on his face, but I didn’t take it that far.

I opened up my portfolio and I put them alongside his and amazingly, they matched up almost perfectly. It was as if we were thinking the same thoughts. I wanted to believe that we could see each other out of the office, but I didn’t trust him to keep things friendly.

“I wouldn’t have believed it if I didn’t see it for myself. It’s as if we were both standing in front of each other, as we made these designs. I thought that you would make the perfect addition to my little family, but I didn’t think that we would be this much in sync. I was only playing last night when I said that Lionel was not going to know what hit him. I didn’t know how truthful that statement was until I saw this.” He gathered all of it up and we left there together about to go to war. There was no way to know how this was going to end.

Lionel was already in the conference room waiting for us to enter to give him what he wanted. He probably didn’t understand why he had to come in to personally oversee the designs. It probably made him nervous and leaving him to wait was a good way to keep him on edge.

“Lionel, it’s good to see you again and I do hope that everything has been well. I want you to meet my soon to be partner, Amanda Cochran. I know your feelings about women in general. I want to assure you that Amanda has some interesting ideas. There’s no reason to squirm. Take a look at what we have for you. If we can’t change your mind, then we will go back to the old favorite.” August was an artist just like me, but it didn’t matter how much he wanted this to happen. We thought that we had come up with something that he would be a damn fool to resist. The only way that we were going to know for sure was to see his reaction up close and personal.

“You’ve taken a real risk by bringing me something that I have no interest in seeing. I’m this close to awarding you the contract for three more buildings. I hope for your sake that you know what you’re doing, August. I’ve been married five times and you’d think after the third that I would know better than to stick my head in the Lions’ den again. The only thing that a woman is good for is to…” August put his hand up to stop Lionel from saying something that was going to make me want to punch him square in the face.

“I would ask respectively that you don’t finish that statement. Just take a look and see if this is something that makes you want to change your mind. I want the contract for the next three buildings, but I still feel that we can do better than what was acceptable back in the day. Judge it on the design itself and not who came up with it.” August was trying to wean him into it, but Lionel was fighting him every step of the way.

The worst thing of all was the silence. The clock was ticking and the tension that was in the air was making both I and August anxious. They say that no news is good news, but in this case, that wasn’t going to cut it.

After ten long minutes, Lionel stood up and kicked his chair back. He stood there staring at these designs and I half expected him to tear it up in front of our faces.

“How many years have we been working together, August?” His tone was indicative of somebody that was not happy.

“It has to be over 10 years. You know that I would never ask you to even consider this unless I thought it was a good idea. You of all people know that being stuck in the old ways is never going to make that statement anymore. You said emphatically that you wanted something that was going to showcase your company in the best possible light. You wanted a conversation starter and I think that we have done that.” August was playing the consummate salesman while at the same time appealing to his ego.

“I’m not foolish or senile. I know that eventually, I’m going to have to stand out of the way for the younger generation to take over. My son has been trying to convince me that there is a different way. I’ve been reluctant to listen to him, but maybe he does make some sense. I’m not sure how to say this… I like it. In fact, I think that if you could come up with various versions of the same theme that would give my company the facelift that I’m looking for.” Lionel had admitted that he was wrong to doubt August and his ability to see things from a different perspective.

“I’m kind of stunned. I thought for sure that you were going to reject it out of hand. I was going to try to fight you, but it doesn’t look like I’m going to have to. Are there any changes that you want to make, or are you finally going to give me freedom to do what I do best?” I wasn’t sure that August should have shined a light on Lionel’s ability to make those changes. It’s said that the client is always right and this was the motto that August lived by.

“I’m not sure. I’m going to have to give that some thought, but offhand I don’t see anything. Let me have until the end of the week and I’ll decide one way or the other. I think that we are on the same page. I apologize for my sexist attitude.” Lionel picked up his briefcase and took one last look at the plans. I saw the makings of a smile on his face.

“Don’t take too long. You want to break ground as soon as possible. I can have the construction crew at the site within 24 hours. All I need from you is the go ahead and for you to come up with the budget. Be generous, especially if you want this done post-haste with no delays. You know as well as I do that greasing the wheels takes money.” August went to him and gave him a warm handshake and a tap on the shoulder.

“There’s no reason why they can’t get started on the foundation. Get them started immediately. I want some preliminary drawings of the other three buildings by the time that I come back at the end of the week. I know that’s a little short notice, but I can make it worth your while with a sizable bonus for the both of you. They have to remain similar but with a unique signature all of its own. I’ll let the both of you iron out the details. It’s going to mean working long hours, but the payoff is going to be quite substantial.” He turned and went over with a very expensive looking pen gleaming in gold in his hand. He scribbled something down and then he passed it to August who deemed it necessary not to look at it, as a sign of respect, until Lionel left the office.

I thought that August showed remarkable restraint, but that all ended when the elevator had disappeared for over 30 seconds.

He screamed and I thought for sure that I was going to faint from his unexpected outburst.

“I think that we have a reason to celebrate. I have a bottle for such an occasion that I want you to share with me.” His face was lit up like the 4th of July. He hadn’t even looked at the paper that Lionel had scribbled down his offer on.

He opened up the paper in front of me and those were the kind of zeroes that could send my grandchildren to the best private schools’ money could buy. I didn’t even have one child and I was already thinking about the future like I was going to be part of this.

“Three more buildings from the same person is quite the coup. He must really think that you are able to get into his head. You make it look simple, but we both know that it’s not. It took me almost 5 hours just to figure out what he might find acceptable. I took those basic blueprints and I grafted something that was unique to him. Mind you, I didn’t do it alone and we play off of each other well.” I jumped back, as the cork to the champagne bottle that he had found went flying across the room.

“I know that it’s a little early in the day to drink, but I feel that we have more than earned it. I’m going to offer you 25% of what he proposed. I think that is being more than generous and that’s on top of the salary that I plan to give you annually with bonuses and stock options. This deal is only good until you leave this room. I hate to be ‘that’ guy, but I don’t have time to haggle. You’re not going to get anything better anyplace else. Besides, you’ll have to learn all over again those quirks of your boss.” He did make an interesting argument and I had already decided that I wanted to make this a long-term commitment.

“You mentioned this deal, but I haven’t seen anything on paper.” He put his finger up to his nose and reached into his suit jacket to pull out a proposal.

“I went on the assumption that things were going to work out and I had this made. It’s a lot of legalese, but the main point that you should be looking at is the figure at the bottom of the page. I have plans to take my genius and yours international. There is a Chinese delegation that has expressed interest. I’ve been reluctant, but having you there would help me to navigate the cultural differences between them and us.” August was basically saying that he wanted me to join him for an indefinite amount of time in China. I think on some level my post graduate work in cultural studies played into his decision.

“I have always wanted to see the world. I just never had the time and maybe this is that idea of having my cake and eating it too. I’m going to take your offer, but I will need some time to think about China. I have some obligations here, but I don’t think it’s anything that I can’t handle by e-mail or phone call.” With each new sip of the champagne, I began to feel more at ease and willing to take a risk for the sake of my career.

“I have been all over the world. It would be my honor to introduce you to some of the hot spots that are not known to the general public. There are tourist traps, but I have learned to listen to the advice of taxi drivers and bellboys. They know where the best places to go are, but for a price.” Weeks on end underneath him was only asking for something to happen. I had made it quite clear that my body was off limits.

“I am curious and it would be interesting to see how the other half lives. I’m assuming that we will have separate rooms. I don’t want you to get the impression that I’m cheap or easy.” I was only kidding, but I saw that he had taken my statement seriously.

“There’s nothing to worry about. We’ll have adjoining rooms, but there will be a lock on the other side. You’ve made your feelings crystal clear. I respect you for the work that you do. Having you around will help to loosen a few lips. I’m suggesting that you use your considerable womanly charms. Chinese men find American women fascinating.” I didn’t mind flirting. I was glad that he didn’t say that I was going to have to sleep with anybody. That would have been a deal breaker.

“I think that I can handle myself. I know what a man wants to hear regardless of nationality. They are all a sucker for a nice face and the curves that go along with it. I’m that forbidden fruit. I can dangle the bait without following through. I think that it would be interesting to have some late-night dinners together.” Without him trying to chase me around the office, I was finding that August was not the skirt chasing letch that I had thought him to be.

“I’m sure that we can fit that in, but I will be quite busy with my girlfriend.” That word was like a foreign invader to my personal space. He had said it nonchalantly and I didn’t even know that he was seeing someone. “I took your advice and I decided to grow up. I’ve been acting like such a little boy. I’ve always been interested in this one girl, but she never did give me the time of day. Last night, I caught her after she was done her shift at the diner and I expressed interest in getting to know her better. There was no sleazy come on and we just talked for hours. I’m going to invite her to come with us. I’m not sure that she will be receptive, but I need to make the effort.” I had no words and I felt this green streak of jealousy running down my back.

“Oh, my…would you look at the time. I have an appointment that I can’t miss. I won’t be gone long.” He didn’t try to tell me that I couldn’t go and it was a good thing that he didn’t. I needed some space and I really couldn’t breathe like some kind of anvil was lying on my chest.

“I want to get started on those three other buildings tomorrow morning. Take the rest of the day off and you deserve it for all the hard work that you’ve put in.” I was glad that he had said that and I had to have time to digest this new information about him having a girlfriend. I didn’t know why it bothered me so much, but it might have had something to do with the fact that he had transformed into the perfect man.

I had no interest in the man that treated me like a piece of meat, but this man was different and was giving me food for thought. I had no idea how I was going to handle seeing them together intimately and showing affection. It was looking like I was going to have to bite the bullet and find out.

 

 

BOOK 3: STEAL ME (PART 2)

Blueprints of Seduction

Amanda Cochran had thought that August was just like all the rest. The sleazy come-ons and the way that he looked at her made it impossible for her to even think that they could have something together. She rebuffed his advances, claimed that she had just gotten out of a long-term engagement and that wasn’t even close to the truth. Amanda wanted to work with August and his reputation for making something lasting and memorable was a legacy that she wanted to be a part of. Without the constant threat of him trying to put his hands on her, she began to see that August wasn’t the man that she thought he was. There was a caring and compassionate side that was lost on her because of his lecherous ways. It was due to her rejecting him that he changed his ways. Amanda was now seeing August as more than just a partner in business. The obstacle of Julia Ames was threatening a happiness that she didn’t think was possible.

Chapter one

I paced back and forth in my bedroom, trying to figure out what I was going to do. Could I live with knowing that I had thrown August into another woman’s arms? I’d made it pretty clear that his interest in me was not going to be returned. There was no way that I could deny that he had a body that just wouldn’t quit. The charming dimples and the way that he spoke with refinement had made me putty in his hands. I tried so hard to push him away that I didn’t realize that there was more to him than the crass comments and the way that he tried to touch me inappropriately.

“What do you see in him? I only ask because you stated emphatically that he can’t keep it in his pants. He’s constantly coming onto you and making you feel like your skin is crawling. Don’t you see what’s going on here? Now that he’s with somebody else, you want what you can’t have. That’s not fair to either one of you.” Gemini was a friend that I had not seen in almost a decade. She just showed up out of the blue with her long hair colored in a blue and red dye. She certainly didn’t look like the same woman that I knew back when we met in school.

“I basically told him that he should shape up, but I neglected to tell him that I needed a real man to sweep me off my feet. I’ve never been one to shy away from the unknown, but guys like him are a dime a dozen. You can find somebody like him in any bar wearing their intentions in the way that they have their shirt open and that god-awful gold chain swinging back and forth against their chest. August might not be that transparent, but I thought that I had his number. I had no idea how hard it was going to be to hear him say that he was with another woman.” I was only wearing a pair of men’s boxers. I found that they were very comfortable when I wanted to sleep but not necessarily in the buff. The one thing that Gemini and I had in common was the size of our bodies. She liked to say that we were identical twins, but I couldn’t exactly say that with the way that she was dressed and wearing her individuality on your sleeve.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but I really didn’t think that you had a chance with him anyway. Guys like him tend to gravitate towards those of the supermodel variety. You and I have a bit more going on for us than a stick thin figure. I don’t know about you, but I’ve learned to embrace my curves. It’s that confidence that has made it unnecessary for me to go to bed without the companion of a man. I see that same confidence in you, but it’s not as strong as I would like it to be.” Gemini was exactly like me and maybe that was the reason why she left town. I thought that it was something that I did, but I didn’t know at the time that she didn’t have any choice.

Her father was an army brat and staying in one place for too long wasn’t an option. I had kept in touch with Gemini, but this was the first time that we had seen each other without the necessary technological advancements. It was one thing to see her transformation while talking to her on a chat site, but it was another altogether when she was standing right in front of me flaunting her body. She made me feel inferior like I was doing myself an injustice.

“Don’t get me wrong, I want him to be happy, but I was never convinced that he would be able to find a woman. I thought that I had time. You have no idea how close I came to letting him do unspeakable things to me. I’ve thought about nothing else since the moment that he told me about Julia. I think that it’s a good idea for me to know my enemy before I go into battle. I’ve decided against my better judgment that I’m going to fight for him. I can’t do it up front and I’m going to need to rely on certain aspects of my personality that have remained dormant.” I was referring to my sexuality. I was never very comfortable with that kind of wanton desire, but I’d learned a long time ago that I didn’t have to be afraid of that part of me.

“I know exactly what you’re going through. I felt the same way, but traveling due to my father’s job really did open up my eyes. There was no reason for me to be some kind of a wallflower. My weight was my issue. I didn’t allow it to weigh me down and no man stood a chance. I hope that you know what you’re doing. I’m not in any position to tell you what to do. The only thing that I can suggest is that you take things slowly. Give him the idea that there could be something more, but don’t make any grand gestures. Be discreet. The one thing that you can’t do is allow Julia to know what your intentions are.” She sat on my bed with her feet curled in underneath her and her back straight.

I knew that this was some kind of yoga pose and that she was always into this new age health craze. I found it useful at times to delve into pharmaceutical aids that were more natural than big company medicine. I liked the idea that nature could cure anything. I took vitamin C every morning, including garlic pills to prevent me from having to get the flu shot. I lived my life the naturopathic way. I had no interest in taking any drugs for any reason whatsoever.

“I’m going to have to be subtle without throwing myself at him. It’s been a few weeks since he told me about Julia. He talks about her all the time. I have to bite my lip to keep myself from screaming. I want him. I just have to find a way to make him see me. You have this knack of finding clothing that makes our figure that much more appealing. That’s the reason why I asked you to go shopping with me.” We’d spent all afternoon and come back with some interesting things that made me scratch my head.

“I hope that you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of letting you have the benefit of my experience. You look at these clothing and you make this face like there’s no way that you could possibly wear something like that. When you can get that out of your head, then you’ll be the woman that you’ve always wanted to be. Trust me; these are not issues that I haven’t lived with myself.” Gemini was staying with me for however long it took her to move on with another chapter of her life.

I looked at the dresses that we had gotten at that shop and I shivered with the way that it was going to put my otherwise endowed assets on display.

“I’m not sure that I’m comfortable showing that much skin. I do wear tight clothing, but nothing that comes even close to this.” I referred to one dress that was pure white and lifting it into the light made it see through. “This is not me, but I suppose it’s going to have to be. I need him to take a second look. I thought that he was unredeemable, but I’ve noticed in the last little while that he has changed those leopard spots. I do wonder how long that’s going to last before he once again has that wandering eye.” What I failed to mention was that I wanted his wandering eye to see me in a compromising position.

“You can’t fool me and you have never been able to. Amanda, if you want this man so badly that you can taste him, then you need to show him. I’m not suggesting that you attack him in his office, but I’m sure that he wouldn’t be opposed to that. Guys are pretty much oblivious when it comes to a woman’s intentions. There are times that it’s necessary to slap them across the face metaphorically speaking. It wouldn’t hurt you to wear a little bit of makeup. I know that you go in for that natural look, but accenting your cheekbones is a good way to get him to see you. I can help you with that.” I wasn’t sure that I wanted to put myself in her hands, but if anybody was aware of what I was going through, then it would have to be her.

“Right before your eyes, I will transform into a desirable creature of the night. I want August to know that he’s powerless to resist me. I haven’t met Julia yet. I have been anxious to see what my competition looks like. From everything that he has said about her, she won’t be easy to get rid of. They apparently knew each other for quite some time and had talked on occasion. I’m going to wear this red dress. It’s a little bit more risqué than I’m used to, but I think that I need to put it out there.” We spent the rest of the night reminiscing and watching old movies on television until she passed out on the couch.

I went back to my room and did myself the courtesy of looking at myself in the mirror at the red dress that was molded to my frame. It stretched and the fabric was made to accommodate any size woman within reason.

Chapter two

I had been worried from the moment that I heard about Julia. She was guarded and August told me that she was weary of getting involved with him. She thought like most women would that he was only after one thing, but then she began to see that he had become a one-woman kind of man.

I woke up early and I found Gemini still sleeping one off. I put a blanket over top of her. She was a bit of a bohemian and lived day to day with no real direction in her life. She found that it was freeing to be independent and able to pick up and leave at a moment’s notice. I could see how she would have that nomadic spirit. I don’t think that I could’ve stepped into her shoes.

I arrived at the office, breathing deeply and looking at my reflection to see that my breasts were not exactly shy. I wasn’t wearing a bra and those naughty pointed buds could be easily seen with the naked eye. I could always claim that it was the air conditioning, but I knew better. This was my excitement getting out of hand. I actually felt like I was going to pass out, but I managed to stay standing and looking at his door.

It was still early and then I heard something that made me stop with my hand on the doorknob to his office. I thought that it was a man moaning and I got a vision of him putting into practice an old remedy for his arousal. I wanted to see it, but I didn’t want to interrupt his fascination with his own body.

I was about to go in, but then I stopped short with a female voice joining his. “Oh, god…you have to stop this. It doesn’t seem to matter where we are and I need to put my foot down. Some things are better left unsaid. Jesus…don’t do that and you know that I get weak at the knees when you do that.” The woman had to be Julia. I could hope that it wasn’t. That she was coming here as we speak to catch him in the act of being with somebody else. It was only wishful thinking.

“I don’t know what your problem is and it’s not like anybody’s going to be here for at least another hour. I say that we take full advantage of the time that we have together and not waste it. I’m trying to make up for lost time. I’ve always had this crush on you, Julia. You probably thought that I was clumsy when I dropped my fork every time that you were near, but that was by design. I wanted to see you bend over and that short skirt that you wear at the diner leaves little to the imagination. I may not be that same man anymore, but that doesn’t stop me from panting after you.” August was pressuring her into doing something in a semi-public forum.

“I don’t know why I even bother to wear panties. You get one look at them and you take them off. You say that I look a whole lot better without them. I do find that a compliment, but it also makes it so that I’m very self-conscious about my body when I’m at the diner. Every time that I bend over, my skirt rides up, but I have learned to bend at the knees.” The guys that were her clients must’ve got a cheap thrill out of seeing her like that.

“You know that I love to live vicariously through those men that try to make you feel like a piece of meat. I won’t do that, but I would love to show up when they are getting a little frisky.” August might have changed, but there was still a part of him that was lingering underneath that drastic transformation.

“I hope that you never lose the way that you look at me. I like the way that you make me feel like the only woman in the room. I’ve never felt so alive. I need you to be with me and to stay with me through thick and thin. I’m glad that you are willing to contemplate a commitment. I know that you had a crush on me, but what you didn’t know is that I had a crush on you. I don’t know how many times I wondered what it would be like to find you in the diner after hours and christen each and every booth.” Julia sounded like a woman with a sexual appetite that was unsurpassed.

“The skirt that you’re wearing is making me too hot to handle. There’s no reason for you to fight me. It’s not like you don’t want this. I can see the way that your legs are shaking at the very idea of doing something in my office. It makes you desperate to throw caution to the wind” I was tempted to interrupt, but I was more curious to know how far they were going to go.

“I don’t have time for this. I know that’s disappointing, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t do something. I could conceivably give you some pleasure. I know how you get when I’m performing a certain sexual act. The way that you squirm and look down at me is priceless. It’s something that I want to repeat over and over again.” Julia was suggesting giving him the benefit of her mouth. I didn’t know what compelled me, but I needed to see this for myself.

Julia was on her knees. You wouldn’t know it from looking at her that she was a slut, but the whore underneath the fancy clothing was now emerging to consume him. I should’ve cleared my throat and brought this to an end, but I was essentially frozen to the spot like my feet couldn’t move.

He was holding onto her hair and shifting gears by moving his hips to supply her with the heavyweight of his manhood on her tongue. I could see her head bobbing up and down with her hair flying everywhere. I wanted to say something.

“I’m glad… I’m so fucking glad that you are a woman that likes to do this. You’re not just going through the motions and there is real joy in your technique. If you’re not careful, this is going to end prematurely. I don’t think either one of us wants that to happen.” I knew that from the sound of it that he was a hair trigger. They could’ve been teasing each other for hours until they had to finally do something about it.

I wanted to see what god had blessed him with. I had this fascination and image in my head that I wanted to compare to the original. Unfortunately, the angle was making it difficult to see anything of substance.

That jealousy that I had felt when he had first told me about her had come back in waves. It was making me nauseous and I wanted to be sick to my stomach.

I could hear her submitting to his will. It was a sound better heard in the privacy of a bedroom than here at the office. I wasn’t sure if I could ever look at that desk again. He was leaning back against it, his pants down around his ankles and his hips moving with the insistence of her oral consumption.

I finally had enough and I closed the door quietly. I didn’t need to see this come to its inevitable end. I had to do something. I went back to the elevator and I made enough noise that they would have to stop what they were doing. I felt bad that I was taking that away from him, but I also felt elated that I was stopping them from showing that kind of affection.

“I know that you are going to be so happy with what I have come up with. I just couldn’t wait to come in to tell you all about it. I came up with a design for those three buildings that is going to knock your socks off. I know that we only have a couple weeks. This design will go on the front of each of those buildings.” I breathed deeply, hoping that they could hear my raised voice and get themselves presentable before I walked in on something that was going to make me go blind.

I had seen more than enough, but not near as much as I was hoping for. I just needed her to move out of the way for a second, but she was glued to the spot.

I opened the door and Julia was sitting there with her long black hair fanning out down her back. I could see from the way the other hand was moving that she was reapplying her lipstick. I could almost guess where that lipstick went. She had marked her territory down the length of him.

"I wasn’t expecting you so early. I don’t see that there’s any reason for us to put off the inevitable. I’ve been meaning to get the two of you together, but our schedules really didn’t match up.” As if to beat him to the punch, Julia stood and faced me in a designer blue and black outfit. I couldn’t understand why she was wearing something like this when she worked at a diner.

“Amanda, I have heard nothing but good things about you from August. He seems to think that we will get along famously. I do admit that I have had some problems dealing with you both working long hours. He promised me that there was nothing untoward going on. I think that it is high time that we meet.” She had her hand outstretched and I wanted to slap it away and tell her that he was mine. I couldn’t do that without laying all of my cards on the table.

One way or the other, I was going to have to put on a brave face and make nice for the sake of appearances. I could see the way that she was looking at me, drawing her eyes down over my body, until she smiled with that telling sneer that had me wondering if she knew what I was up to.

“August has spoken about you often. I don’t know if he knows of any other subject than some quirky little thing that you do that makes him smile. He seems happy and you have to know that he’s not the same man that he used to be. He still looks. You must have noticed those errant glances toward other women.” She looked confused and this was my way to seed some doubt in her mind about their relationship. “I don’t know what it is about men. They can’t settle for what they have without thinking that they can do better.” I didn’t want to lay it on too thick, or I would alienate both of them and make it impossible for us to work together.

“I’ve had my fair share of men that can’t seem to take no for an answer. August comes into the diner once a week and has the same pecan pie. I’m not foolish and I know the reason why he comes in. I turned him down several times, but a few weeks ago there was something different in the way that he approached me. I got this feeling that you might have had something to do with his change of attitude towards women. It sometimes takes a strong and confident woman to put a man in his place. If I have you to thank for that, then I should really show you my appreciation in some way. I know and I could have you over for dinner one on one.” I could tell that she was baiting me and hoping that I was going to grab onto the line like a jerking fish out of the water.

“I think that is a great idea. My two best girls getting along is my fondest wish. I would love to be a fly on the wall, but I have other business that I need to take care of tonight. I have an old friend that’s coming into pitch an idea for an investment that I would be a damn fool to turn down. While we are drinking in his hotel room, I would feel so much better that both of you are looking after each other. I don’t know how long it’s going to take me to finish my business. It could be all night, or I could show up in time for the pillow fight.” I wasn’t stupid, but I could tell that August was oblivious to the way that we were sizing each other up.

“Since you have asked so nicely, I don’t see that there’s any reason for me to reject your offer out of hand.” She smiled, but it was not the smile of someone that trusted me beyond reproach. This was the smile of someone that wanted to put me on notice and the best way to do that was to catch me in a trap of her making.

“I’m not going to tell you what we’re going to have. I’m going to surprise you with something that I have been dabbling in the kitchen with. Don’t worry, if it is not to your liking, there will still be that pecan pie that August raves about. I make it from scratch and the diner put it on their menu because one taste and everybody was hooked. I won’t take up any more of your time. I know that the both of you have a lot of work to do and I would hate to interfere in any way. I have to get to class.” Julia had me at a loss for words and I felt a little nervous to be in her presence.

“Class? What are you taking if you don’t mind me asking?” I thought that she was just this diner girl that had aspirations to be something that she wasn’t.

“I’m surprised that he hasn’t told you. I’m in my last year of medical school. I’m only working at the diner to help my Aunt and make a few dollars on the side. Next year, I won’t be able to lend her hand, because I will be too busy putting in long hours at the hospital on rotation. It’s a lot of hard work, but the payoff is worth it in the end. It’s what I do and I think that you can agree that once you find something that you want it’s hard to let that go.” I wasn’t sure if she was referring to our careers or the man that was standing there having no idea that we were talking in code.

“I know exactly what you’re talking about. Once you find something that you’re good at it’s not that easy to walk away. Sometimes you don’t know what you have until it’s taken away. Sometimes you don’t know how good you have it until it’s too late.” I could play that game as well as she could.

She walked out of the office and my first perception of her was not exactly what I thought it was. This was going to be a tough nut to crack.

Chapter three

There was that elephant in the room that neither one of us was willing to speak of. Julia had laid down the gauntlet and was daring me to cross the line. I was sure that I had given her food for thought. It was possible that she was no longer seeing me as a colleague of August’s. I did like that she saw me as a threat, even though our body types were not exactly the same. She was the kind that was influenced by the airbrushed models in magazines growing up. My body type was different than others. I had to contend with a big boned statue. It wasn’t something that I could do anything about. I’d learned to live with some of my insecurities, but with her being in August’s life made it difficult for me to feel like I could measure up.

“I have to say that your designs put my preliminary drawings to shame. Working together, we’ve come up with something that will give our client a reason to give his approval. I’ll send this off to him at the end of the day. I’ve been meaning to tell you how much it means to me that you have taken an interest in Julia. I really want to make this work. I’ve never been in love and I’ve tried to stop myself from saying those three words with any woman. In the last few weeks, I’ve come close to saying them to her, but I have been reluctant to do so. If you have any advice, I would love to hear from a woman’s point of view.” August was asking me for love advice and how was I supposed to turn down an opportunity to throw a monkey wrench into their relationship.

“It’s been my personal opinion and experience that men say those three words too quickly. They rarely mean it. They only say it because they feel obligated. I don’t want you to do that, especially if you don’t feel it deep down. It’s not fair for you to say something that you don’t feel. Take my advice and you’ll know when it’s right.” He was nodding his head like I was saying something that made sense.

“I just don’t want to lose her because I wasn’t upfront with my intentions. The one thing that I don’t want is to be is alone.” He was finding that committing to one woman was making him break out in hives. I could see him scratching his neck every so often and those three words were really weighing heavily on his mind.

“Anything that is worth doing is worth doing the right way. It takes a lot of hard work and compromises to make a relationship stand up to the test of time. I don’t think that I’m telling you anything that you don’t already know. Women wear their emotions on their sleeve and men seem to shelter themselves from showing any kind of feelings whatsoever. It makes for a different kind of dance. Don’t do anything too rash and risk chasing her away. Besides, you never know and maybe she’s not the one for you.” With that in mind, I bent over and I could see that he was taking notice of the swell of my breasts right in his face.

“I hope that you didn’t feel that I was putting you on the spot by agreeing to her suggestion about the both of you having dinner together. I would never want to put you in a position that you didn’t feel comfortable. I’ve learned that…Oh, Jesus…the hard way.” He stumbled over his words and I could see that bead of sweat trickling down the edge of his nose. It was obvious that I was getting to him and I was surprised that he was able to keep his hands off of me. How could I let him leave and disappear without a trace? He was the only one that knew me at all. I couldn’t watch him leave and not do something about it.

I didn’t want to shed a tear over a relationship that had never amounted to anything more than flirting. I wanted him to take a look at me and not see the empty space of my heart looking back at him. The memory of his face every night haunted me and mocked me into thinking that I had done the wrong thing by pushing him away. I had to find a way to make him turn around in my direction. I had so much that I needed to say to him that it was hard to sit here and do nothing about the heat between us.

“It’s a good idea for me to have dinner with Julia. I can be your eyes and ears. Not many men get the opportunity have a member of the opposite sex play defense. I can learn how she truly feels by getting her to loosen her lips over a bottle of wine that I’m going to bring with me for the occasion.” I could see that the tent in his pants had not gone down from the moment that I had arrived at the office. I was sure that it had something to do with her servicing him, but that would not explain the fact that he was still sporting something that would scare little old ladies on a bus.

“I never thought of it that way. Having a best friend that is of the opposite sex has its advantages.” The sun had dipped below the horizon and the glow of the different colors gave the office this romantic atmosphere that was hard to deny

“Just call me your secret weapon. I want you to find the one that is going to make you wake up in the morning with a smile on your face. If she does that for you, then I think that it would be in your best interest to use me. Some girls are only after one thing and I’m not talking about what is in between your legs. Some girls like to find a man that is going to help them live without the necessity of working a day in their lives. I don’t see that from Julia. I am worried that she might be equating you with her father. That’s not very healthy.” This little bug in his ear would cause him to wonder and that was exactly what I was hoping for.

“I’m meeting my friend in about an hour and I really do need to go home and freshen up. You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here.” That was a statement that was used when a bartender was closing up at that 2:00 AM hour. “I’m not lying when I say that I would love to be a fly on the wall. You are going to be my Cyrano. I feel good about this. I hope that you don’t feel that I’m putting too much pressure on you.” I was bent over with that dress riding up and showing the plumpness of my two round peaches in a thong.

I could hear him gasp and I had no choice but to smile at his discomfort. I was really making it hard on him metaphorical and figuratively speaking. He couldn’t hide the uniform of his arousal. The outline was quite something. I wanted to see it. I was hungry to see it and to show it the kind of appreciation that it deserved.

“I don’t feel any pressure whatsoever. It will be my honor to gauge her and find out if marriage is something that she is even considering. I get this feeling that you haven’t talked about that subject or even kids for that matter. It might be good to know where she stands on certain subjects before you go any further. I’m guessing that the sex is good.” I turned and saw him looking away. It had me wondering if they had even gotten out of the gate.

“I don’t know if we should be talking about my love life like this, but I need to talk to someone. We haven’t gone all the way. It’s not from lack of trying that’s for sure. She’s still worried that I’m that same little boy acting like a hormonal teenager. I tried to convince her otherwise, but she says that if I truly care for her that I will be happy to wait.” This was music to my ears. I thought that I was in a losing battle, but if they hadn’t even done anything other than some oral then I still had a chance to turn his head.

I pretended to stumble on my heels and I landed in his arms with his hands grabbing onto the first thing that he could to break my fall. Those hands were squeezing my melons. I tried to feign surprise, but he was doing very little to stop himself from touching me. I was sure that he could feel my nipples poking into his hand. Without a bra, I was putting it all out there.

“I’m usually not this clumsy. I’m glad that you were here, or that could’ve been disastrous.” I didn’t stop him from holding me like that. I liked the way that his palm brushed across my nipples and caused them to break out in tiny Goosebumps around the edges. “You are my hero.” His mouth was parted and I could see his eyes grow wide like saucers. He stared at my breasts where his hands were currently connected to

I was hoping that he was going to find himself powerless to my advances. I thought for a moment that he was going to trash this office by making a permanent imprint of my ass on his desk.

He shook his head and looked at his watch. That was when I knew that the spell had been broken. “Well…Um… I have to go.” I thought for sure that his pants were on fire. He rushed out of the office and practically tripped over his own 2 feet. “I’ll see you…in the morning and you can give me a blow by blow of what happened. I’ll be talking to her tonight. There’s no doubt that she’s going to tell me everything that was said. I’m going to count on you to give me the unbiased truth.” He slammed the door and I put my two hands on the desk to steady my nerves and prevent myself from rushing out and jumping him like a tiger after its prey.

I didn’t know how hard it was to be around him. The origin of my lust came from him putting the moves on me. I could still feel his hands on my breasts. I sat down in his chair, feeling the warmth of his body where he had just vacated. I basked in the heady scent of his cologne. It made me feel like I was becoming obsessed to the point of being unhealthy.

I put my feet up on his desk with my legs spread and my hand touching on the inside of my thighs. I could’ve easily done something to relieve that tension, but there was no time. I had to go home and find something casual. I couldn’t show up to dinner with Julia looking like this. It would’ve been like waving a red flag at a raging bull that was ready to charge. I needed to change her opinion about me so that there was no doubt that I was a confidant and not someone sniffing around her man.

Chapter four

I stood there at her door, carrying the bottle of wine and feeling ready to play this game. I was dressed to give her the idea that I was at home in a pair of jeans. They were one of my prize possessions. I really did look good in them. You could see me coming and going. I was wearing a bulky white sweater to tone down my obvious assets that were a bit more than she could even wish to have.

I wasn’t comfortable with this kind of deceit. I almost canceled, but I knew that this was my way to break them up from the inside. I didn’t feel good about it, but I would do practically anything to get my man. I never thought that I had this instinctual need to fight for what I wanted. I didn’t know until I was put into the position where I had to find out.

I looked around at the neighborhood and it had that suburban feel where kids were inevitable. I could tell a lot from where she lived. It was clear that she wanted that white picket fence with a man and the children to go along with that happy picture. Several kids played soccer in the street. I could smell the sweetness of the flowers blooming by her doorstep.

I knocked on the door with my heart in my throat. I thought for sure that I was going to chicken out and run at the last second. I heard her footsteps approaching and then the door opened to reveal that she was playing the same part that I was. She had let her hair down by putting it into pigtails to give off that innocent quality. I wasn’t stupid. I knew that she was only doing that to make me feel at home so that I would let my guard down.

“I was wondering when you were going to get here. Dinner is almost ready, but we have a few minutes before we sit down. I see that great minds think alike.” She showed me what she was talking about by moving her hand that was out of sight behind her back so that I could see that she was also holding a bottle of wine. “I know that I could use a drink. Make yourself comfortable and I’ll be right back with a couple of glasses. I never did take into consideration that you might be allergic to something.” She was already moving and it was obvious that she wanted to get as much distance from me as she could to ready herself for the sparring match that was going to take place.

I went into the living room and her style was quite eclectic. There wasn’t really anything that went together. If I looked at it as a whole, there was some method to her madness. I sat down on a red couch.

I looked at the photos of her and her family. I saw that she was the youngest of all of them. They looked like a happy bunch and I felt sort of guilty for trying to undermine her relationship with August. It wasn’t going to stop me from grilling her mercilessly but in a very subtle way.

“I do hope that you enjoy chicken parmesan as much as I do. I put my own spin on it and there is a bit more spice to tickle the palate. I like to take normal everyday food and turn it into something extraordinary. I’ve always been under the adage that the best way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” She passed me the glass of wine and I took a sip, even though I wanted to down the contents to numb my senses. “Let me get right to the point before dinner. I don’t trust you. I see the way that you look at him and it’s a lot more than admiration.” It appeared that she was going to be blunt. I was going to have to play this just right or risk her getting her ire up.

“There’s nothing for you to worry about. Just because I like the view doesn’t mean that I’m going to buy the land. You can’t possibly believe that he’s a one-woman kind of man. He has admitted to having the flaw of wanting to experience new things. I can’t be with a man like that, no matter if he does look like a GQ model right out of the magazine. Besides, do I really look like his type? I don’t mean to put myself down, but look at you and then look at me.” I once again gave her more to think about without coming out and saying that she was going to get her hair pulled out if she tried anything with August.

I thought that my heart was frozen, but when I heard him say my name it was enough to make me smile. He had this tendency to drive me wild by just being in the same room. I kinda missed the way that he flirted and tried to make me blush.

“I see what you’re saying. I’ve seen all the signals and I’m not sure that he can get away from his past. I’m trying hard to understand the man. It does break my heart to even think about him stepping out on me. I’ve tried to keep him at an arm’s length, but it’s difficult when the only thing that I can think about is putting him to the test in the bedroom to see if we are compatible.” I could see that she was using that sisterly bond to make me a confidant.

“I don’t mean to be a poison pill. I’m not suggesting that he doesn’t have some redeeming qualities. If you are putting off sleeping with him, then that might be best. We both know that once we go that far that there’s more than an emotional connection. I would be lying to myself if I didn’t say that I did want him. I fantasize about what it would be like to be with him, but I can’t take that risk. I’ve had my heart broken too many times to go down that road again.” I was purposely being truthful and giving her the idea that procrastinating was best until she was able to figure out if he was the kind of guy that could be trusted not to stray.

“I admire your candor and you could have told me that you were not even interested. I wouldn’t have believed you for a second, but saying it up front makes me feel better. I fantasize about that moment myself too many times to count. It has left me with sleepless nights and this desperate need to cling to him. I don’t want to be the kind of woman that will always wonder if his late nights are more than they are supposed to be. I don’t want to be waiting up for him and smell somebody’s perfume or see that lipstick on his collar.” She had all but convinced herself that he wasn’t the kind of man that was made for suburban life.

I’d just fed into her doubts about his character. I wasn’t putting him down, but I wasn’t putting him in a good light either. I gave her reason to take a step back.

“I know that some people think that life is too short, but we need to protect ourselves. There are too many men that say one thing and do another. They might mean well, but that wandering eye is something that has been ingrained into them. It could be the influence of their father or maybe lack of a parental figure. I really can’t say for sure. I think that you noticed that August keeps his personal life close to the vest.” I got the feeling that she thought that this was going to be her way of telling me to stop thinking about him at all. I had turned the tables and we were now talking like old friends.

“I would like to use you as a conduit between him and myself. I know that I’m asking you to spy on him for me. Being women, we have to stand by one another. I think that we can table this conversation until after dinner. I have been slaving over the stove for the past couple of hours and I would really like to hear your opinion of my creation.” She had on a long blue shirt that covered her jeans almost down to the knees.

I followed her despite my misgivings until I was sitting down and waiting for her to fuel my appetite. She put the food in front of me and the aroma hit me like a ton of bricks. She really did like to play with spices. I was afraid that I was going to burn the roof of my mouth off. I took one bite and it had subtle overtones of heat, but not enough to make me go running for the water.

“I would say that if medical school didn’t work out that you have a real gift for cooking. I don’t see any reason why culinary school has to be out of the question. The Cordon Bleu is an accredited school and one that you could learn a lot from.” I really did mean what I was saying, but on the other hand, it seemed like I was pushing her in a different direction. “Are you sure that medicine is your true calling? You don’t just dabble in the kitchen; you create masterpieces with your bare hands. This is something that you should share with the rest of the world. I see the way that you smile at my comments and you love the praise for your food.” This was a good way to lead her by the hand into another vocation.

“All of my brothers are doctors and I thought that it was my purpose in life to follow in their footsteps. My mother is a Physician and my father is a professor of medical studies. To be honest, I never really did think that I had what it took to be a doctor. I only did it to appease them. I do love cooking, but I never thought that I could make it my career. Do you really think that I have the talent to make it my life?” There was no point in lying to her. I was sure that she was waiting for someone to tell her that it was okay to live for herself and not for her family.

“You’ve thought about this before. You can’t sit there and tell me that I’m the only one that has raved about your food. Anybody that sits down to something that you make with your love of cooking would have to tell you. Doesn’t August find your food to die for?” I waited for her response, but it didn’t stop me from eating everything on my plate and having this desperate need to lick it afterward.

“August is not exactly an unbiased audience. You have been a breath of fresh air. I don’t feel like I have to be something that I’m not around you. I think under other circumstances that we could’ve been fast friends. I’m just not sure that we can be friends with the both of us having eyes on the same man. I know that you would never do anything about your attraction and that does help me to sleep at night. You shouldn’t put yourself down. You say that you are not his type, but I think any man that finds himself close to you will feel differently. I don’t want to ever hear you make disparaging comments about your appearance. You deserve that man that is going to put you on a pedestal.” I thought for sure that I was going to hate her, but I found myself liking her despite the fact that she was with August.

“It’s not my place to say, but if you are truly thinking about changing direction in your life then maybe keeping things cool in the bedroom is a good idea. You must know that there’s no place that he wants to be than here. I’m not suggesting that you break it off with him and far from it. I’m just saying that it would be better to air on the side of caution.” I came over here precisely to sabotage any chance of them getting into the bedroom. She had all but done that for me.

“You do make sense on paper, but have you seen him? It’s a wonder that I haven’t lost my mind and done something already. I want to and you have no idea how much it hurts me every time that he leaves with a deep and longing kiss. I don’t know if I’m strong enough to resist him. I feel like I’m falling apart. I don’t want any man to have that kind of power over me, but I can’t help the way that I feel. I don’t know if this is love, but there is definitely an infatuation that needs to be dealt with sooner than later.” I had tried everything that I could to chill the air of her excitement.

“Don’t you think that we all do foolish things because of a pretty face and a body to match? That is the danger of dating. You never know when one date will turn into a one night stand or if it’s going to be something more lasting. I see that you come from a big family. It gives me the idea that maybe you want a big family of your own. Your parents are still together, but are they truly happy or are they just staying with each other for the kids?” I wanted to know if marriage and children were something that she saw in her future.

“I’m the only girl in the family. I sometimes wonder if my parents are happy. They don’t see each other that much. It’s almost like they want it that way. I don’t think that my brothers have any idea that there might be trouble in paradise. I want my parents to show some affection, but I don’t think that they have the capacity for that kind of public display of affection. I do want marriage and kids, but only when it feels right. Everything has to fall into place in exactly the right way and at exactly the right time. I don’t see that there’s anything wrong with having a bit of fun. August might not be walking down the aisle anytime soon, but there is chemistry that needs to be taken out of the laboratory.” I could see that fire. It wasn’t the same way that I felt for August, but it certainly would leave him no other choice but to drop his pants.

“Men might not seem incapable of showing emotion, but we both know that they feel deeply. I don’t want you to use him and then to toss him aside when you’re done with him. Remember, I still have to work with him and having him moping around the office is not going to be good for anybody.” I left it at that, feeling like I had done what I had come over here to do, but in an entirely different way.

Chapter five

“I know that you wanted me to get the skinny on her and I think that I did that. I’m just not sure if I should share with you something that she told me in confidence. It would be wrong. I think that I’m going to need some convincing to betray her trust.” I’d found him lamenting over what Julia had done when he came over after getting knock down drunk with his friend.

“I acted like an idiot last night. I fell into the same habits. I shouldn’t have gone over to see her in that state. I was feeling horny. That’s no excuse, but it is an explanation. Let’s just say that she wasn’t very receptive to a booty call at midnight. I didn’t want to make her feel dirty. She probably thought of herself as nothing but a piece of meat. The slam of the door in my face sobered me up very quickly. I don’t know what I was thinking. I just need to know from you if I’m wasting my time. I need to make amends, but I don’t want to grovel unless I think that this is going someplace.” I had him by the short hairs and I could twist her words in my favor.

“You should’ve treated me like a sponsor last night. If you had called me and told me what you were planning, I would’ve cut you off at the pass. We all do stupid things in the name of so-called love. I’m guessing that you didn’t feel very good about how you felt after seeing your friend. You wanted to make yourself feel better by going to her and getting some of that tender loving care. You should’ve gone home and slept it off. By making an ass of yourself, you took away all the hard work that you’ve accomplished up to this point. I have some good news and some bad news.” I was going to be straight up with him and not sugarcoat it in any way.

“By all means, tell me the good news first and then you can drop the bombshell of the bad news.” I had him as a captive audience and there was no way that he was going to leave that spot before I told him what I needed to say.

“The good news is that she does want kids and marriage. The bad news is that she’s not sure that you’re capable of that kind of commitment. I’m not even sure that it matters, considering that she’s thinking about walking away from her medical studies for something more her passion. I don’t want to go into detail, but she has confessed to me that she’s only going to be a doctor because she thinks that she’s obligated to do so.” I found it easy to tell him what she had told me in confidence. I had nothing invested in her future, but mine was an entirely different matter altogether.

“I knew that coming from a big family that was a possibility. She has told me several times about growing up with overachievers. I should’ve seen that she wasn’t happy with her current direction in life. I don’t think that you have to tell me what she really wants to do. Cooking is something that she excels that. I would be damn fool to stand in her way and maybe it’s best that I let her go before things go too far.” I didn’t have to say anything. He had come to that conclusion on his own. I was just afraid that he was the kind that was going to pull the Band-Aid off slowly instead of quickly.

“I wouldn’t blame you for following her. If you really think that you have a future with her, then you need to tell her that whatever she decides that you will stand by her.” I was being a good friend and squeezing his shoulders while he was sitting there at the desk. It was a good way to remind him that I wasn’t going anywhere.

“That’s just it. I don’t know if we do have a future. I can’t ask her to wait for me when her passion is calling her. I have no interest in leaving, especially if we are only dating. I will say that the last few weeks have been fun and that’s without the sex.” I still couldn’t believe that in the few weeks that they had been seeing each other that they didn’t consummate. What I had seen was something for them to relieve any expectation. I doubt that he was the only one that was on the receiving end of oral foreplay.

“To be devil’s advocate, you still don’t know where she stands. The only way that you’re going to find out is to sit her down and have a frank discussion. This is no time to shy away from ‘the talk’. It’s better that you know now than to think that you have something and then learn that it wasn’t as strong as you thought it was. I would never try to tell you that she wasn’t right for you. That’s something that you’re going to have to decide for yourself. I just think that it would be better for the both of you to either step back or take things to the next level. I don’t know Julia that well, but what I do know is that she is an honest person. If you ask her out right, I’m sure that she will tell you what you might not want to hear. Be sure that you want to know the truth. It’s one thing to think that you do, but another when you are given a dose of reality.” I had tried to manipulate his feelings, but I was feeling that guilt for turning their words against them.

I actually found myself liking Julia, but my feelings for August were deeper than anything that I could feel as a sisterly bond with Julia. The only thing that concerned me was that possible aftershock after those inevitable words were spoken. Once the dust settled, would he even be open to the notion of being with me? It was a cross that I was willing to bear.

“I know that you’re right. I do have to talk to her. It’s funny, but it’s usually not me saying the words. I’ve never had to tell somebody that it was over. It was always the girl that came to the end of her rope and couldn’t take me playing the field. I’ve had many conversations where they said that it wasn’t me. I know that it’s me. I don’t make it easy for any woman to get close to me. I’m not looking forward to this. If I didn’t think that it was a coward’s way out, I would send her a text message.” I couldn’t let him do that and that kind of act would only diminish my feelings for him.

“I really hope that you don’t mean that. It’s not a comfortable situation. To end things abruptly by sending a text message will only give her a reason to seek you out. You may not know this about women, but we can be quite vindictive when we want to be. I don’t want to give out all our trade secrets, but I think that you need to know that we respect men more for doing it in person. You can mitigate her reaction by doing it someplace public. It might prevent her from making a scene, but I don’t know her well enough to say that.” I could’ve easily left it alone and let the chips fall where they may. This could’ve been over with a few keystrokes on his phone. I just couldn’t do that to either one of them.

“I wasn’t kidding. I can’t stand to see a woman cry. You can call that my Achilles’ heel. I just don’t know if I can go through with it. The way that I see it is that this is best for the both of us. She won’t have anything holding her to this place. It’s time for her to stretch her wings. I’m not going to be the one to ruin her one chance at happiness. I could be selfish and tell her that I don’t want her to go, but I’m not going to do that.” I was falling for him all over again and there was really nothing that I could do about it.

I could tease him and push his buttons, but I had a feeling that losing her was going to send him into a tailspin. Eventually, maybe a couple of days or even weeks down the road, I could be that shoulder to lean on. He might see me as somebody that he could talk to and that would lead to some intimate moments. It wouldn’t necessarily be sexual, but it had that possibility of turning a late night get together into something more.

“I know from personal experience that she’s going to hate you. It’s going to be that healthy hate that is going to drive her to become the best chef that she can be. I guess it would be nice if you could end things amicably, but that's usually not how these things go. There’s no reason for you to think twice about this. If you don’t know it, I want you to know that I think that you’re doing the right thing. I wouldn’t want to be in her shoes.” To take his mind off of the impending disaster of his love life, I turned his attention towards business matters.

“I really don’t know what I would do without you. Having you here as a sounding board has given me the courage to see what was right in front of me all along. I sometimes think that I’m blind to the suffering of others. I have the kind of money that can build an empire, but I tend to step on the little guy to do it. With you in my life, Amanda, I see things a little differently than I did before. I actually find myself thinking about other people’s feelings. I would’ve never thought twice had you not been able to resist my charms.” What he didn’t know was that I was trapped by every word that was coming out of his sweet looking lips. That I wanted nothing more than to climb into his lap and see what I couldn’t do it to make him smile.

“It wouldn’t have worked out between us anyway. If Julia is the type of woman that you are attracted to then I didn’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell of being with you.” I heard his voice when I was dreaming and I woke up sweaty and clinging to the sheets for dear life. I was trying to figure out if his interest in me was more than physical. Did he really want me, or was it more that he couldn’t have me?

“I’m a little bit different from other men. My tastes don’t necessarily revolve around women of a certain size. If I see something I like, I tend to jump feet first without thinking about it. With you, I saw that I wanted to find a way to seal the deal between us. You carry yourself with confidence and yet I feel sometimes that you’re struggling with your identity. It’s that vulnerability and strength combined that is hard for me to ignore.” My hands were kneading his muscles and massaging away the pain that he was going to feel from the breakup.

“I can honestly say that I didn’t know that you felt that way. If we could go back to when we first met, I might’ve been able to see through your callous ways. You must have been hiding the real August underneath the way that you chased after me.” I was giving him the idea that I was open to the possibility of something more. I wasn’t exactly coming out and saying it, but the underlying meaning was there.

“There are many paths that we take in life and sometimes we veer off to come back to that same one over again. I don’t want to give you any false promises. I’ve never been able to get you out of my head. There are times that Julia’s talking to me and the only thing that I can think about is you. I know that it’s not right and I should be with her body and soul. I know that I have to finish this with Julia, but do you think that we can talk about us after. I can come over and we can have a cup of coffee and see where things go.” My plan had worked better than I had envisioned.

“The one thing that I don’t want to be for you is that rebound girl. You need to decide if you really want this to work between us. If you can honestly say to yourself that you don’t just want to have sex with me then come over and we can build on that.” We had opened the lines of communication and it was possible that I was going to have him knocking on my door.

He turned quickly, knocking me off balance by swiveling his chair and making me fall in his lap. I squirmed for a moment, but then I settled in with my legs over the arms of the chair. I put both hands on his face, gliding my fingertips over the bristles of his stubble and loving the rough look.

“I really thought the idea of the both of us being together was a dead issue. I feel you on top of me and the heat of your body is causing me to react. You can tell that I’m happy to have you right here in this position. I would love to do more, but I don’t think that I can.” I thought for a moment that he was suffering from some sort of erectile dysfunction. “I mean… I can, but it’s not fair to Julia. I haven’t even told her that it’s time for us to see other people.” This was the kind of man that I could see myself with for more than the fleeting chance of pleasure between the sheets.

“It would be better that you go before I decide to take that decision out of your hands.” I got up reluctantly, brushing my fingertips over his lips and then standing awkwardly like I was going to fall on the cushion of my ass.

“I promise that I will be there tonight. I don’t know what time it will be, but keep a light on for me.” I was giddy with anticipation as the door closed like that one chapter of my life.

I thought that I was dreaming. The conversation seemed so surreal that it was almost like I had manifested it in my head. I looked around and I knew where I was that. I pinched myself and still I didn’t bolt straight up in bed disappointed.

Chapter six

I wasn’t sure how to prepare for his arrival. I didn’t know when he was going to show up, but that anticipation of what was to come was in the air. There was no denying that if he were to make a pass that I would fall into his arms and show him that I was agiler than I looked. That I could still bend myself certain ways that would make me look like a pretzel.

“I’m guessing that you want me to make myself scarce tonight. I’m glad to see that you were finally able to talk to him. I know that your intention was to manipulate him and on some level, you did, but for the most part, this decision was his own. He needed you to remind him of a few certain details that he wasn’t aware of.” Gemini was in a downward dog position on the floor. I had followed her into that same position and I think that we both surprised ourselves that we could still do this.

“I used my position in his life to find out some things that changed his perspective. I helped Julia to realize that her dream was not to be a doctor. I know that without me that they would still be together, but I doubt that they would have been very happy. Surviving the dating world is not easy for anyone. There are times that we become complacent and end up with someone that is not truly compatible with us. You and I both know that jumping back into something that is familiar is like putting on an old pair of socks.” I thought about my past and the few men that were supposed to be the one.

“Amanda, life is not worth living if you’re not doing something that you love. Julia was stuck on the notion that her family was right. She didn’t have any say in her own future. You helped her to see that she was only pleasing them and not herself. You may have played armchair therapist to the both of them, but in the long run, they will be better off for it. Trust me; I’ve been in relationships where nobody wanted to cut that cord because it was going to be too painful. It’s better to do it as soon as possible or those things that drive you crazy about that person are only going to get on your last nerve. There will be that final straw.” Gemini was wearing blue spandex pants and a sports bra that really didn’t hide what she was given an abundance of.

“I know that this is best for the both of them. It doesn’t make me feel very good about my role in it. I never thought for one moment that I would be some kind of home wrecker. If it was meant to be, I don’t think that there would be anything that I could say that would tear them apart. I let them see the writing on the wall. She’s been determined to make him wait on principle alone. I think that she kept him from going too far because she wasn’t sure that he was the right man for her.” I wanted to convince myself that what I had done was right, but that growing pang of guilt in my stomach was telling me differently.

“I told you that you were only going after him because of your need to have him when you knew that you couldn’t. I’m going to rephrase that. I think that you have always wanted him, but like Julia you were hesitant to see past his bad boy ways. We all want that bad boy, but we are foolish to think that we can really change them. Maybe in this one instance, the man that you claim to be a skirt chaser has found somebody worthy enough to drop the pretense of going after anything with two legs.” Gemini had made her point very clear. I just didn’t know that he was a good man.

“I still can’t believe that this is happening. I keep thinking that it’s an April fool’s joke, but it’s not April. It’s my dream come true. I just feel that somebody’s going to come around to bust my bubble of excitement. You know that I actually went out and bought something scandalous to blow his mind. I don’t even know that I should show you. It really does send a very descriptive message about what I want.” I held the pose, breathing through my nose and out of my mouth. I contracted my core and really felt the burn.

“You have definitely got me curious and there’s no way that I’m leaving until I see it on you. I need you to go into your bedroom and then come out and give me a preview. I want to see just how far you’re willing to go to get your man. There’s no time like the present.” I wanted her to see it and give me her opinion. It was a red and black widow outfit with the garters and bustier to match the ensemble. I even had a pair of sheer stockings that gave my legs that smooth look like he would want to climb with his fingertips up to the heaven awaiting him.

I went into my bedroom and put it on. I looked in the mirror and I really didn’t recognize the eyes looking back at me. There was that desire for August and wearing this was giving me a license to play the naughty card. If this didn’t make him willingly follow me to the bedroom, then I had no idea what would.

I opened the door and I went back into the room feeling a little exposed. I had ruffled my hair giving it that fuck me look.

“I know that it’s a bit much, but it seemed to beg me to buy it from the window. It’s not even a shop that I would frequent. I would be embarrassed if anybody saw me going in and coming back out.” She gave me an appreciative whistle and then she circled me while I stood there wondering what she was going to say.

“If I hadn’t have seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. You look like you are ready to give this man the time of his life. Those panties do very little to hide anything. I would keep this wrapped up. Make him wait for it and then spring it on him when he least expects it. Use the ruse of going to freshen up and then come out wearing only this. Start off with something more casual like a pair of old sweats that will give him the illusion that nothing’s going to happen. See the disappointment in his eyes and then change all of that with the way that you open the door and give him a reason to crawl to you on his hands and knees.” I just thought that I would open the door when he knocked wearing this outfit and let him decide what he was going to do about it.

Gemini’s suggestion was mulling around in my head and it seemed too delicious to pass up. “I like that idea and I might just steal that for my own purposes. I don’t want to keep you from anything that you need to do. What I mean by that is that I don’t think that it’s a good idea that you’re here when he stops by. I’m sure that you can find something to do or somebody to do.” She smiled at my comment and took out this little black book that had these names of former conquests with the ratings of up to four stars by each name.

“I have a couple of ideas. It’s funny, but the idea of a booty call is something that is a double standard. We can show up at any hour of the day or night and they would gladly open their arms to us. If they do the same thing, we think that they have lost their mind and slam the door in their faces. It’s only in that rare instance that we are as horny as they are when they come looking for some.” I watched as she got ready, putting on her war makeup and looking like a dish best served piping hot.

“I would say that you can come back tonight, but I think that it might be better that you find someplace else to sleep. I’m liable to make some noise that will keep you up. You may not know this about me, but I can be quite vocal when a man knows what he’s doing. You’d be surprised at how many times that I have to direct them to get me there. I don’t think that I’m going to have that same problem with August.” I put on my sweats and you wouldn’t know it from looking at me that there was something lurking underneath the surface.

“Trust me, I’ll find somebody to spend my time with. I think that I’ll start by going to a late supper and see if I can’t get somebody’s eye from across the room. If that doesn’t work, I still have two guys in this little black book that is available for a one night stand. They both know that I’m not looking for any commitment and they are perfectly fine with that. I really did think that emotions were going to play into it, but so far we’ve been able to keep it strictly physical. Hmm…it might be time to introduce the both of them. Can you say Ménage a Trois?” She gave me a hug, telling me that I was a lucky girl and that I shouldn’t take August for granted.

I escorted her to the door and I closed it behind her with my whole-body vibrating. There was no way that I was going to take care of that myself not when it was a possibility that I would have somebody else to do that for me.

Chapter seven

I perused several old magazines; channel surfed and found absolutely nothing that was going to keep my attention for any longer than a few minutes. I kept looking at the clock and the sound of the ticking was driving me insane. Every time that I thought that I heard a noise, I would rush to the window and see if my paramour had come calling. I was turning into a basket case, running through the scenarios that might happen and knowing that I would never be able to come close to reality.

I heard what sounded like a car door slamming. I thought that it might be my neighbor Jensen coming home from a late-night shift at the call center. I heard the footsteps approaching and then the light and unassuming knock on the door. My heart stopped for one moment. I wasn’t sure that I was going to be able to get up to answer him.

I decided not to put on any perfume and I didn’t want him to have the idea that I was ready for more than a conversation. I stepped over to where the only thing that was separating the both of us was the door.

I opened it and was accosted with a dozen long stem roses. I wasn’t much into flowers as a sign of a romantic gesture, but it seemed to work for the occasion.

“I know that this is a bit cheesy, but I saw them and I thought of you.” I made the motion for him to pass through the threshold wondering if one day that he was going to carry me over it as a sign of our matrimonial bliss. I was getting ahead of myself and I hadn’t even mentioned the elephant in the room.

“I have coffee brewing and I thought that you could use it.” I was alluding to the fact that he had just done something painful and the caffeine would give him the jolt of energy that he would need to stand strong

“I arranged for us to meet at the restaurant that we first had dinner together. I didn’t get a chance to say anything and she went into a speech about needing to find herself. I didn’t interrupt and I let her continue until there was only one thing left to do. It was a mutual decision and we promised to still be friends. She told me that she didn’t feel that it was right for me to wait for her or to follow her if my heart wasn’t into it. She wants me to find somebody that is worthy of the changed man that I have become. She actually told me that you were a nice girl and that I should give you a chance.” I was stunned into silence by how Julia had talked me up.

I heard the whistle of the pot and I turned and strolled back to the kitchen. He followed while taking off his jacket and showing the heavy burden that had been lifted from his shoulders. Those were the kind of manly shoulders that could easily be used to carry me into the boudoir.

“It sounds to me like you both had the same idea. I’m assuming from the way that you came here that you are interested in seeing if we have something. I don’t mind telling you that I was jealous of Julia.” I poured him a cup and he took it and placed it up against his lips. There was nothing to say or do. I sat there and let him drink and stare at me with wanderlust in his eyes.

“There hasn’t been a day that has gone by since we’ve met that I haven’t thought about you. It doesn’t matter if it’s dreaming or in the shower or even when we are working so close together that I can smell your natural scent hitting me like a sledgehammer between the eyes. You’ve already expressed some interest in pursuing this. Is that still true, or should I go before we do something that is going to hurt our working relationship?” There was really only one way to answer and it came in the form of me putting down my cup and taking his hand.

“I have thought of nothing else. Let me freshen up and I just finished working out with my friend. I’m not exactly ready for company.” I didn’t make it sound like I was dressing for a night of passion. I wanted him to be totally floored by the vision that was going to step from the bedroom. “Finish your coffee and I won’t be more than a couple of minutes.” I passed by him and I stopped long enough to give him a light and noncommittal kiss on the lips. It was just a taste. Like a drug dealer, the first one was free, but the rest was going to have to come with more of a long-term promise.

I could literally feel him watching me as I walked away. I purposely put an extra swing to my hips to give him ideas.

I went into my bedroom, closed the door and pushed back against it with my heart thumping so hard that I thought it was going to leap from my chest. My hands were shaking as I peeled off the sweater to reveal the red and black bustier. I pulled down my sweat pants revealing the garter and the sheer hose not to mention the panties that I would love to see him pull off with his teeth.

I found my favorite lipstick and painted my lips with a color that was going to draw him to me like a moth to a flame. I felt ready. I didn’t feel like he was just here to plant his flag. He wanted something more substantial than one night where we would throw our bodies at one another for hours on end.

Taking a deep breath, I steeled myself for the moment where he would find it useless to fight me. I opened the door and I stepped out looking towards the kitchen and then I found him with his eyes glued to me.

He said nothing, as he put down his cup and walked over to me. I nuzzled my cheek against his hand. I looked at him and I saw that the man that I wanted was ready to commit to one woman.

“I… I… I was expecting this. I have to say that I’m pleasantly surprised. I hope that I don’t disappoint you. I never want to hurt you purposely. I don’t want you to wake up in the morning wondering what we have done. This will be the first time that I stayed the night and didn’t try to sneak out after the woman went to sleep. I want to stay for breakfast.” This was a bold claim to make and one that I was going to hold him to.

“I’m a little nervous. No… I’m a lot nervous. These last few weeks have made me want you even more. If it took you that long to become the man that I know you can be then I have no regrets. I want to touch you and explore your body from the top of your head down to your toes. I want to take my time to find all of those hidden areas on your body that you didn’t even know about.” I saw that hunger in his eyes and I wanted him to devour me and make me feel like I was the only woman in the world.

“You’re not the only one that’s nervous. For the first time in my life, I’m with a woman that challenges me and I don’t know what to do.” He held my heated gaze and then he put his hands on my hips making me gasp. I was waiting for that inevitable moment where I was going to scream for my neighbors to hear.

I could smell his cologne and the scent of him underneath it. I reached for his belt and I undid it with my hands trembling with the need to see him. I snapped the button open and was about to pull down the zipper when there was an insistent knocking at the door.

“Ignore it and they will go away.” He smiled at my comment and put his hand on my bare shoulder. That touch only elicited a moan of arousal from my lips.

The knocking continued and got louder by the second. Somebody wasn’t taking no for an answer and I was going to give them a piece of my mind. If it was Gemini, I would be so cross that I don’t know that I would be able to let her stay with me. If it was anybody else, then they were going to be lucky that I didn’t become like a feral cat.

“Get rid of them and I’ll meet you in the bedroom.” August disappeared down the hallway and I heard the running water and I knew that he was most likely splashing cold water on his face.

I stood there wanting to join him. I wanted to take him by the hand and drag him by bodily force into the bedroom. I would throw him on that mattress and show him that I was demanding. I wasn’t going to settle for second best. He was going to satisfy me and we were both going to wake up spent and looking at each other with that fire still in our eyes.

I walked toward the door and I stumbled on the high heels that I had forgotten about. They were stilettos. I thought about taking one off and using it as a weapon to admonish whoever was stupid enough to interfere in this moment.

“Come on, Amanda. I know that you’re home. I can see the light on.” The voice had me flashing back to my high school years. Jones Adams was an athlete and girls were throwing themselves at him all the time. He had only eyes for me. I actually lost my virginity on the football field with him and the feeling of a phantom crowd cheering us on. “I’ve been a damn fool and I didn’t know how good I had it. Give me a chance to make it up to you.” I looked towards the door and then back towards the bathroom. My world was colliding in a way that I wasn’t expecting.

This was too much for one woman to handle. I had no voice and when I tried to answer Jones it was more of a squeak that I didn’t recognize. My future was behind door number one and my past was behind door number two. My head was swimming and what I thought was going to happen tonight had taken a dramatic turn.

I didn’t even realize that I wasn’t breathing. I had a decision to make and one way or the other it was going to hurt somebody. I found myself curious enough to walk almost like in a trance towards the front door. I thought about what this could do to my budding relationship with August and it became a moot point. I opened the door still wearing that outfit and not really caring what kind of impression that I was making.

I saw his face and the way that he ran his eyes up and down my body like he always did. It brought back old feelings that I thought were dead and buried. It was late, but I had a feeling that I wasn’t going to get any sleep tonight. The drama that I was trying to prevent in my life was about to happen with two men that were vying for my affection.

BOOK 3: STEAL ME (PART 3)

Blueprints of the Past

Amanda Cochran had found the man of her dreams in August. He was what she considered a work in progress. She never did really believe that he could change his ways. Her jealousy had gotten the best of her when she found out that he was seeing another woman. They found themselves confessing their feelings for one another and was about to embark on what could possibly be the best relationship of their lives. That fairy tale was shattered by a voice from the past. She still has feelings for the one that got away. Amanda has no idea what she’s going to do. She’ll have to figure out which man is right for her before going off to China. What happens when August finds out about the man that she never was able to get over?

Chapter one

“I don’t know what you think you are doing here. I can’t have this conversation with you. You made your feelings abundantly clear on the last day of high school. Do you have any idea how bad I felt when you decided that I wasn’t marriage material? I didn’t fit into that image of the trophy wife that you wanted for your football career.” I couldn’t believe that he was standing there and he hadn’t changed. He still had that cocksure grin. If I didn’t know any better, I would have sworn that he had more muscles than he did back in the day.

“I know that this comes as a bit of a shock, but I never was able to get over you. I have to say that you look better than ever. There has always been something exceptional about you. You have a real quality that shines through like no other girl that I have ever been with.” He was wearing this very expensive black leather jacket. The motorcycle that he drove back when he was seducing anything with two legs was sitting out on the road.

“You can’t come here after all this time and expect me to jump at the opportunity to be with you again. You can’t be that fool of yourself that you believe that I didn’t move on. Didn’t you think that I could find somebody else after you left me to mend my broken heart? Don’t I deserve happiness after what you put me through?” I was wired tight and I knew that August wasn’t going to wait in that room forever.

I was trying to keep my voice down and still consciously aware of looking down the hallway to see if August was going to announce his presence.

“I probably shouldn’t have come over at this time of night, but I just couldn’t help myself. I’ve been involved with a woman for quite some time and I finally told her to hit the bricks. She always had her hand in my pocket. There wasn’t a day that went by that she didn’t have my credit card. I’m through living without you. I can’t think of anything else. Why is it that we are whispering? Do you have a child?” It had been years and the possibility of me having children was likely. I just didn’t find anybody that was ready to be father of the year.

“If you must know, we’re whispering because I have a man down the hall in my bedroom. I would really like for you to leave. It would be better that we discuss this in the morning when we both can be rational human beings.” He looked slightly stunned by my revelation.

“Oh, my god… I’m so sorry and I didn’t mean to ruin anything. I would like to know if it’s serious and if I even stand a chance to win you back after all this time. Tell me to leave and never return and I will do that for you. If you can do that with a straight face and mean it then you’ll never see me again.” The words were in my mouth, but when I tried to say them there was nothing there. “I’m going to take your silence as hope that I do have a chance.”

“Amanda, what is taking you so long? I want to use my teeth and tear that thing off of you. Don’t make me pull rank and use my clout as your boss to get you to follow orders.” I heard the door to the bedroom opening and I panicked.

I didn’t even think about it. I opened the closet door and pushed him inside with my finger to his lips to indicate that I wanted him to stay quiet. From the expression on his face, I doubted seriously that this was the first time that he had been caught in the act and had to make a strategic exit.

I leaned back against it, slightly out of breath and turned to see that August was looking at me.

“I know that this is a big step. If you are having second thoughts, I really need to know about them. I don’t want there to be any doubts. I have so many fantasies and you have no idea how hard it has been to be around you without making some sort of move. I think for the most part that I have respected your wishes in regards to a workplace romance. I wasn’t worthy of a woman like you, but I am now.” He was saying all the right things and my heart had filled with the kind of joy that I had never experienced before.

I had no interest in making him leave, but that was not the words that I strung together “I’m not sure about this and I need some time to think about it without you breathing down my neck. I know that’s not fair, but I can’t just jump into bed with you without knowing that your heart is in this. I was foolish to put this on and try to seduce you. You just got out of a relationship. It’s still a fresh wound and I’m taking advantage of that. I think that it would be best that you go before I do something that is not very ladylike. We have time and you know what they say about abstinence making the heart grow fonder.” I didn’t believe a single word of what I said. It sounded like excuses, but I was grateful that he didn’t take it that way.

“I would never want to do anything to make you feel like I’m pressuring you into anything. It was never my intention and I apologize if this is a little bit too quick. You might be right. I haven’t fully grieved for the relationship that I just ended. At least one of us is thinking straight. I’ll go, but I’m not through discussing this.” He gave me a kiss with his hand on the small of my back lingering on that spot that was extra sensitive and the perfect way to make me melt.

“I hope that you don’t hate me.” I was worried that this was going to mess things up. I was going to give Jones a piece of my mind and his walking papers in that order.

“The one thing that I can never do is stay mad at you. I’m a little disappointed. I’m going to have to go up the mango tree with my five little friends tonight.” He indicated his five fingers and the need to take matters into his own hands. It was kind of a waste and I could’ve thought of a lot better things to do with what he had in his possession.

“I’m glad to hear you say that. I’m just confused and I need time to sort things out in my own head. I do care for you deeply and probably more than you know. I just need to be sure that this is forever and not some fling. We owe it to ourselves to make sure that we are that soul mate that we have been searching for. I know that I probably sound like some hallmark card, but I can’t help to want that happily ever after.” I helped him on with his jacket and opened the door. I breathed a sigh of relief to see that the motorcycle that Jones had arrived on was out of sight. It was on the road, but it was underneath the shadow of a tree masking its existence.

“I know that I have no right to ask this. Is there something that you need to tell me? You obviously have doubts, but I sense that there’s something more going on here than meets the eye. I’m not going to push, but my door is always open. Tomorrow is a big day and we meet with Lionel in the morning to go over any changes that he might want to make with the designs that we made for his other three buildings. I really do want you to go with me to China. That is something that you’re going to have to decide for yourself. It could be the beginning of something.” He touched my cheek and I almost grabbed his hand and pulled him down the hallway to the bedroom.

“We have a few days before we leave the city. I still plan on going with you. You need to find some perspective and to really feel the loss of Julia. I know that you said that you ended things amicably, but there has to be a piece of you that is only going to be meant for her.” I closed the door, peeking through the curtains until he was driving away and then I felt a pair of hands on my hips from behind.

“I kinda find it naughty that you are playing the field. It makes me that much more anxious to win you over. Damn, I forgot about these curves and the way that your body screams for the satisfaction that it deserves. You know that we have been intimate. I do have a road map of your body in my mind that I play over and over again. I will never forget the day that we consummated our relationship on the football field. The next day when I took to the field, I couldn’t stop smiling or bringing to life the moment that you cried out in orgasmic joy. I wasn’t exactly pure as the driven snow, but I knew that you were. You took a chance on a man that really didn’t give you any reason to think that I was a one-woman kind of guy. For the rest of that year, we were inseparable and I don’t mean to brag, but I think that I gave you some of the best orgasms of your life.” I wanted to refute his claim, but there was no way that I could without lying through my teeth.

“I can’t do this right now. I need you to leave and to give me space. I will leave you with one thought. You made me feel like I wasn’t worth it to stand beside you in your career. I don’t know how I’m supposed to ever get over something like that. I’ve always struggled with my weight and you didn’t make it any easier by making me think that you were embarrassed to have me in your life.” I’d wanted to say this to him the last day of high school, but I was too naïve and hurt by his betrayal to do much of anything. I could only stare at him as he walked out of my life.

“I apologize for making you feel that way. It wasn’t right and I was stupid to think that I could do better.” I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. I closed the door with my heart beating and my palms sweating. I had this need to jump either guy and have my way with them. I was actually thinking that maybe I could have my cake and eat it too, but that would’ve been asking for way too much.

Chapter two

“I’ve never known you to play two guys against each other. I told you that Jones was going to realize the mistake that he made. I’ve heard all about him and that twinkle in your eye is hard to ignore.” It was 5:00 AM in the morning and I had barged in on Gemini sleeping to get her two cents worth.

“I just don’t know what to do. I thought that I had Jones out of my system, but all those feelings resurfaced when I saw him standing at my door. His voice was like a whisper in the wind. I’m powerless when I’m around him. I thought that I was never going to see him again. August is my future and Jones is my past.” I wanted to believe that, but those memories never did fade over time. Jones had always been the measuring stick that I used when I found myself even remotely in a relationship.

“You say that, but I’m not sure that you really believe that. You have every right to the way that you feel. There was no closure to end your relationship with Jones. This might be your one opportunity to finally tell him that it’s over. I’m a little concerned that you weren’t able to do that last night. It made him believe that you’re not over him. I can’t tell you what to do, but I can give you some of my sage advice. You can’t have both of them no matter what fantasy might manifest in that naughty little mind of yours. It would never work which means that you’re going to have to decide on one or the other. They both have that same attitude toward women. They both think that they are god’s gift. It appears that you have a type. Do you think that the reason why you have been keeping August from getting close is because he reminded you too much of Jones?” I hadn’t thought of that, but now that she had broached the topic it did ring with a bit of truth.

“I’m glad that you’re being the voice of reason. I’m not sure that I could even think straight with the both of them running around in my mind. I really did have the intention of rocking his world last night. I would be right now basking in the afterglow. There’s a part of me that wants to go to Jones and tell him that he needs to leave me alone. I tried last night, but I instead put him off like I was weighing my options.” They both had the capacity to love with all of their heart. It was a no-win situation. Someone was going to get hurt and it was going to be because of me. I wasn’t ready for that kind of responsibility.

“Until you figure out what you’re going to do then they both should remain off limits. If it were me, I would test drive both to see which stick feels better. I know that’s not how you do things. You let your feelings take control of you. I think that it’s kinda cute, but also leaves you with a decision to make. Do you take a chance on someone that hurt you like that or do you run off to the orient with August? It all comes down to what you feel right here.” She reached out and touched my heart. I knew that she was right.

“I sometimes find myself turning my back on love completely. I need to break down those walls that I have put up because of Jones. August has done his best to chip through to the other side. I thought last night was finally going to make it crumble for good. I need to find out if the love that I had for Jones is still there. The only way to find out is to spend some time with him alone and in private. You gave me a lot to think about and I appreciate that.” We had been talking for almost 2 hours and it was time for me to get ready for work. It wasn’t going to be easy to get my head in the game.

“Jones is not going to be a part of your past until you are able to finally say that you don’t need him. Don’t get lost in the feelings that you have for him before. You may find out that he’s the same man that you remember. He may look different on the surface, but men don’t change. There’s no way that you could possibly say that you’re the same person that you were when you first met him.” She was sitting there on the couch with that one lone blanket over top of her naked frame. I didn’t ask her to cover up and it felt perfectly natural to speak about my feelings with her wearing only a smile.

“I understand what you’re trying to say. I need to find out if he is a man that I can trust with my heart again. I was a basket case when he left me. It hardened my heart and made me suspect of anyone that wanted to get close. I’m not sure what I’m going to say to August. He deserves the truth and for me to be completely honest for this to work. I want to be that kind of girl and we never did say that this was exclusive. It’s a small distinction and one that I feel horrible to make. I need to get a cold shower and I think you know the reason why. If I don’t do something about this pent up sexual frustration, then I’m not going to be worth much of anything negotiating with Lionel.” She grabbed my hand and it was that strength that I needed to feel like I was breathing normally again.

“Trust in your heart and it will always lead you to the one that you’re supposed to be with. I only wish that I could take that same advice. I would love to have that one that completes me. I’m just not sure that I could settle for one when there is a smorgasbord of different men out there for me to try. I find that life offers wonders that you couldn’t possibly understand unless you lived in my shoes. Going to China is going to allow you to stretch your wings. I am a little jealous of you. I know how it feels to take that leap of faith for the first time. It’s exhilarating and terrifying beyond words.” She did have a unique insight and one that I would be a damn fool not to take advantage of.

“I’m finally going to find out what it is like to live. I do feel that it’s time for me to broaden my horizons. I have to stop living in this little box that I have made for myself. I want that freedom to live for the moment and not just because I have to.” I wanted to go to China, but how could I win this Damocles sword over my head. It was swinging back and forth threatening to destroy everything that I had built with August for something more familiar. Just how familiar that was had never been fully investigated.

I went to the bathroom turning on the water and I stepped under the cool spray to feel that heat that I had for both men diminishing slightly. There was still that lingering ember when I finally emerged. That was never going to go away and being close to either man was going to turn it back up a notch.

I was going to drive myself crazy with all of these what ifs. I left Gemini sleeping yet again. I really did believe that she was contributing in a small way. There were no money exchanging hands, but I wouldn’t have taken her money even if she offered it. She was one of my dearest friends and if she needed something, I was damn well going to be there to give it to her.

Sitting in my car after driving 20 minutes to the office was keeping me immobile with my hands still clasping the steering wheel. The engine was off and I was looking at the front door to the building and trying to will myself to leave the comfort and security of the car.

I heard the knocking on my window and I turned abruptly to see that August had somehow seen me arrive. “I hope that you’re not going to sit in there all day. It was only by luck that I saw you out of my window. I’m sure that you’re feeling nervous, but we need to put that aside for business. Lionel is here and I didn’t want to get into it with him without you standing by my side. You’re the one that’s going to have to decide if you can still work with me. I feel like there is still a lot that we need to say to one another. I took the liberty of making reservations at a small bistro that I think that you’ll like. I want this to work out. I’ve never fought for any woman in my life, but I’m willing to do that for you. I’m just not sure what I’m fighting against.” I took a deep breath, steeled myself for the heat that was generated by us. I opened the door and I stood up in front of him feeling like my legs had turned to jelly.

“I was afraid that you were going to think that I wasn’t worth it.” Jones had given me that feeling in the past. I thought that it was going to be a repeat performance all over again with August. He had said repeatedly that I was his type. It wasn’t my weight that was in contention. It was my reluctance to let him in. I had allowed someone like Julia to step in to show him that it didn’t have to be this hard.

“There is nothing that would make me think that.” August took my hand and led me into the building. I thought that people were weak when they couldn’t say what was on their mind, but now I understood exactly where they were coming from.

“I don’t know how you can say that after everything that I’ve done. I haven’t made it easy for you. I find that time is fleeting. You never know what’s going to happen next. It’s that uncertainty that drives people to do some of the most insane things. That’s where the bucket list comes into play. That’s why people feel that it’s necessary to do things before that final judgment day.” I had purposely worn something that showed very little skin with the button of my blouse all the way up to the neck. I looked more like a librarian that had too many cats and no love life to speak of.

“It sounds very Biblical and I’ve never been much for religion. I want you to know that you can say anything to me.” He had already given me the impression that he knew that something was going on. He wasn’t trying to fix things and he just wanted to be somebody that I could talk to. It wasn’t sure how that was going to work.

“I have enough friends and I don’t need one more. I don’t mean to be harsh, but I want something that is going to keep me guessing until the day that I die. I want a man that continually surprises me and pushes me creatively in and out of the bedroom. You do that for me on one front and I don’t think that I could feel any luckier even if I wanted to.” We went up in the elevator and I was tempted to push him up against the wall like he had done to me. I felt that it might be time to turn the tables.

“Lionel looks happy, but you can never know with his poker face. I told him that I didn’t want to know his insights until you were able to be there to hear them for yourself. I don’t think that he appreciates the value that you bring to this business. He’s accepting of it, but I’m not sure that he fully has it in him to give you the kind of respect that you deserve.” I didn’t need his assurances. I was a big girl and I could take any kind of criticism with a grain of salt. Everybody had their opinions. It didn’t necessarily mean that one or the other was right.

Chapter three

Lionel was quite receptive to the changes that we had made for his other three buildings. He didn’t have any other projects and that was good considering that we were going to be leaving the country very shortly. I was still worried that I wasn’t going be able to follow him to this wonderful new adventure on the horizon.

I sat here picking at my food and not having much of an appetite. Everything smelled delicious and what I did sample made me a believer. I kept looking up at him bashful and shy about what was going to come out of my mouth next.

“Is this too much? It is a bit silly of me to think that romance is the answer to all of our problems.” I didn’t know what to say and I could tell from the glaring expression of the chef peeking through the door that he wasn’t very happy that I was doing him a disservice by not eating his food.

It was very romantic with checkered tablecloths and a lone candle to light the way to my heart. I could see other couples in the dim light of their candles showing affection by touching hands and looking longingly into each other’s eyes. Every time that I tried to stare into August’s eyes it made me feel guilty and I had to turn away.

“I hope that you don’t take any offense, but I’m really not that hungry.” I pushed the plate aside and then I took a deep breath and willed myself to walk from the shadows into the light. “There’s somebody else. He showed up unexpectedly. God help me… I have feelings for two men. I feel like I should just let both of you go for your own sake. I should be alone and you certainly don’t need this drama. I thought that it best that I tell you so that you know what you’re up against. This is not a new relationship. This is the one that got away. I sound like a storyline from one of those daytime soap operas.” He looked like I had just told him that his pet had died.

He put his fork down with a piece of Angus beef still clinging to the tines. He picked up his wine and took a sip. That sip turned into one swallow after another until he had drained it down to the last drop. I could see that he was trying to remain calm. He did not look very happy and that awkward silence was killing me.

“I’m glad that you told me. It says a lot for our relationship that you are willing, to be honest. I can’t tell you how to feel. Working with you has been easy. Being with you has been hard, but I thought that we were on the right track. Can you at least tell me how you are leaning in one direction or another? I shouldn’t even ask and putting you on the spot is not going to help matters any. If I thought that it would do any good, I would call him out to a duel with the last man standing to get the lady.” It was nice of him to think in that antiquated way, but it also reminding me that I was dealing with more than enough testosterone. Putting them together would only cause a fight that might end up with the both of them in the emergency room.

“I do feel better for getting that off my chest, August. Jones is the one that I thought I was going to end up with. I had our wedding planned down to the tiniest detail. I’m sure that a lot of girls in their teenage years had that fantasy. He told me that he loved me and I believed him. It was after graduation that he finally admitted that he thought that he could do better. He didn’t come out and say that it was because of my size, but I knew that was the underlying reason.” Thinking back on that day was the hardest thing that I had ever done in my life. I thought that he was better than those guys that laughed behind my back or said things underneath their breath that was a little disparaging.

“I would really like to have a word with him in private. Give me 5 minutes alone with him and I promise that he will apologize for his actions. I can’t be responsible for his safety, but I will beat an apology out of him for you.” I felt like he was my knight in shining armor ready to ride to my rescue on his white steed.

“It would do no good for either one of you to be in the same room together. This has nothing to do with the two of you. This has everything to do with the way that he made me feel and the way that you make me feel. He is that blast from the past that stopped us from showing our feelings last night. I was stupid to throw him into the closet, but I can assure you that he did not stay after you left. I told him that I needed time.” I wanted him to know everything, so there weren’t any surprises that were going to make him see me as some kind of a conniving bitch.

“There comes a time in everybody’s life that we reevaluate. It could be that Jones lost his way and he thinks that you might be the path to redemption. There’s just one thing that I need to know. If this is love between us, then why does it scare me out of my mind? I’m still trying to figure how I ever won your love. What did I do and what did I possibly say that made you think that I can be trusted? You make me want to be a better man. I want to be someone worthy of the kind of love that you can give me every day. I don’t like this feeling of not knowing.” I was worried that he was going to put an end to this before it began.

“I haven’t made any decisions. I promise that you will be the first to know. I’m going to go out on a limb and tell you that I’m going to see him again. I think that I need to know if what I felt for him was real or something that was more of a crush. You don’t have to like it, but you need to give me that time to find out. I’m going to do everything in my power to give you the answer that you need before we leave. I wouldn’t even dream of putting you in a position to work with me if things didn’t work out. If that were to happen, I will gladly give you my resignation, so that we don’t have to see each other ever again. It’s obvious to me that you can do this alone, but I will say that working with you has been a learning experience in more ways than one. We do seem to bring the best out of each other and sometimes the worst. It all goes hand in hand.” Now that I had unburdened my soul, I was getting my appetite back. I devoured everything on my plate and found the sauce to be something that I wanted to bring home to cook with.

I turned with one eye to see that the chef was elated that I had finally given his food a raving recommendation. I thought that he was going to rush over to the table and say something. It probably took all of his willpower not to do that, but he left us to finish our meal.

I saw a side of August that I thought that I would never see again. He had polished off that bottle of wine. I was quite impressed that he was able to handle his liquor in that way.

“I know that look and I don’t appreciate it. I need something to keep me from getting down on my hands and knees and grabbing your ankle to never let you go. I won’t stoop to that level for any woman. If you don’t like what you’ve got, then you have every right to change it. I thought that we had something special. I still want to believe that with all of my heart. I don’t want to go back to who I was before. Don’t get me wrong, that man could get any woman to see him as some kind of Lothario. I can put on that face like I’m putting on a pair of pants, but it doesn’t fit right anymore.” I felt bad that I was hurting him. I wanted to soothe away his pain with soft kisses and a moonlight walk, but that would’ve been screwing with his head.

“I never want to make anybody feel that they are in a losing battle. You have more than a chance. I feel deep down that Jones is only here to make me appreciate what I already have. I think that somebody up there wants me to find the closure to put an end to that chapter of my life.” I knew that it sounded like I was purposely giving him false hope. I had this need to tell Jones to step off, but I wasn’t sure what I was going to do when we came face to face. I’d already shown myself to be unreliable by letting him think that he even had a chance.

“We all have to do what we have to do. I will wait for you. I won’t be able to wait for you forever. Going to China was supposed to be that big adventure to strengthen our relationship. I will hold out that will still happen until the very day that you tell me that I’m not the one for you. I can’t see that happening, but I need to prepare myself for the worst-case scenario.” He ordered another bottle of wine and then we left there with him holding it like some sort of rummy.

“The only thing that is missing is the brown paper bag.” I was only teasing, but it was way too early to poke fun.

“I’m going to go home and cry in my beer. I’m not literally going to cry, but I get this feeling that I’m not going to feel much of anything in the morning. You might find that I’m a little late to the office. I’m sure that you can handle things on your own until I come in later in the afternoon. It’s a little too hard to be around you when I feel you slipping away. You don’t show me the same fire in your eyes. There’s still something there, but it’s not as strong or undeniable as it was.” He flagged down a taxi and there was no way that he was going to be able to drive in his condition.

I looked down at my watch and I knew that Jones was most likely waiting for me. I had arranged for both of us to sit down in a quiet setting where nobody was going to interrupt. I needed to grill him mercilessly on his intentions and why after all this time that he decided to come here. There had to be a reason and I didn’t buy for a second that it was because a relationship had gone sour.

“I’m not even going to ask you what you are going to do with the rest of your evening. I get the feeling that I already know and that’s the reason why I’m probably going to have this bottle of wine half done before I even get back to my building.” I felt like I had to reach out to him but for the time being, I had to let him go.

I put my hand on the window to the taxi and he placed one finger against mine through the glass. He was shaking his head back and forth in obvious disbelief that he had gotten involved with a woman that had another to fall back on.

I needed this time to clear my head and to come up with the right words that I was going to say to Jones. That man had always had the ability to make me feel like I was somebody else. He could lift me out of any depression with a whisper in my ear. There were a lot of other things that he could get me to do.

I stood in front of the coffee shop and he was right there nursing a cappuccino. I got a little closer to the window and I was appalled by what he was looking at on his phone. Those were photos that he had said that he had deleted. We got a little silly one night and I showed a bit more skin than I was meaning to at such an impressionable age. He was playing photographer for some high-priced magazine and I was his subject. I was aghast to learn that he was keeping them for posterity.

I had my hand up to my mouth in shock. They were very intimate poses that were not unlike what you would see in penthouse. I should’ve known that he was never going to delete the last and final reminder of our time together. It did make me feel a little better. It was sick, but keeping those photos showed that I wasn’t out of his heart or his life.

I didn’t know if I should confront him about the photos. I didn’t like the idea that he could show them to anybody and that was precisely the reason why I had asked him to delete them. He was reluctant and told me that he was only going to use them for inspiration. I knew exactly what he meant by that and it was kind of gratifying to know that I was the fuel for the fire. It seemed unlikely that he wouldn’t share that bit of history with some of his so-called friends.

Chapter four

I had to take a few minutes to compose myself and make myself less angry by this latest betrayal. He was always saying one thing and doing another. I thought that little boy mentality was erased, but it was raising its ugly head yet again.

I stepped into the coffee shop and he immediately shut things down with this guilty expression on his face. He never was able to hide things from me, but that didn’t stop me from loving him. I’m not even sure that I knew what love was back then. He did say those three little words. There was no real conviction behind them to indicate that he truly believed that he was in the presence of the one that was going to make him happy for the rest of his life. I was dreaming to think that I had him wrapped around my little finger.

“I could have thought of something better for us to do than sit here and drink coffee all night. Do you remember the massage that I gave you out of the blue? I can see from the way that you are looking at me and the way that your face has flushed with embarrassment that you do remember. I remember vividly the way that my hands felt on your skin as I glided them over with that warm oil between my fingertips. I remember the way that you made that sound that always got to me.” I had the tendency to giggle like a schoolgirl when I got overly excited. I had tried to suppress that when I was with August, but I knew that deep down that it was going to come out eventually.

I went to retrieve a cup of coffee that was black with no sweeteners or cream. I needed that jolt of caffeine to keep me alert. I had to prevent myself from falling for his bull shit.

“I remember a lot of things about back then. I seem to recall that you had eyes for another before I even met you. I knew all about you, but I never thought that you would give me the time of day. It was only when I found that note in my locker that I found out that you were harboring a crush on me. I thought that you were joking and that it was some way to make me look like a fool in front of all of your classmates.” I remembered the old truck and the way that we had steamed up the windows to keep warm.

“What can I tell you, I know what I like and that body is a sinful work of art that needs to be appreciated by the right man. I could certainly use that body as a canvas for some of my unique paintings. I never did think that I had an artistic side. I needed some way to get out of my head before a big game and my coach turned me on to painting. I’m a bit more impressionist and I like certain colors that go together. Your skin tone is perfect for my breast…brush stroke. Would you consider posing for me?” I wasn’t sure that he was saying this to get me naked or if he was being genuine and sincere with his offer. I’d always wondered what it would be like to be with someone with an artistic flair. I could tell even back then that there were hidden layers to the man.

“You know my answer. I only came here to set things straight. I gave you the impression last night that you had a chance. I’m just not sure that it’s true. I don’t mean to be flippant about your feelings, but I’m not sure that you really came here to see me for the right reason. I don’t want to go pulling at that thread, but I think that I have to for my own sanity.” He tried to reach for me and that was always his way of making me lose my train of thought.

“I don’t know why it’s so hard for you to believe that I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I even have the photos to remind me. Before you say anything, I couldn’t delete them not when you made such a pretty picture. I can’t say that I haven’t shown them to others. I will say that their comments were favorable. I wanted them to see you as I did. I wanted them to see you like none of my friends could. Men are ready to accept women with your unique body type. I thought that I was the minority, but I think that you found out guys like a little bit more meat on the bone.” I was stunned that he even told me about the photos. I thought that I was going to have to pry that bit of information out of him the hard way.

“I don’t like that you have shown them to anybody. It embarrasses me that those photos are even out there. If you were any man at all, you would do me the honor of deleting them in front of me. I don’t think that you can…” I didn’t get a chance to finish the thought as he turned the phone and began to delete one photo after the other.

“I don’t need them when I have the real thing right in front of me. They were a pale comparison to the real thing. They were a reminder of something that I left behind and should’ve gone back for to retrieve a long time ago. I don’t know how many times I actually picked up the phone and was ready to call you. They were mostly during drunken binges, but they say that true feelings emerge when you let your inhibitions fall away. I did call you one time. I heard you talking on the other end of the line, but I couldn’t say anything.” I remembered a call that was anonymous with somebody heavy breathing a couple of years ago. I knew that there was something oddly familiar about the heavy breathing.

“I thought that was some teenage prank or maybe somebody that was stalking me. You scared me and I don’t think that somebody that claims to love me would do that.” We finished our coffee and we took a long walk with the lights of the city lulling me into a false sense of security.

“I didn’t even know that I was going to find you. I had to call around to make sure that you didn’t slip through my fingers again. I was never the romantic type guy. I didn’t go into candlelight and long walks on the beach. I showed you my affection with actions instead of words. I don’t think that your parents’ bed is ever going to be the same again. We really did work out those springs. I’ve never met a woman that enjoyed it as much as you did. You know what I have. There’s no reason why we can’t revisit the past. I can show you what you have been missing with no strings attached.” It was tempting and I did see the snake trying to escape its cage.

“I don’t think that’s appropriate under the circumstances. I do find myself curious to know if my recollection is exactly as I remember it.” He turned suddenly and pushed me up against an alley wall. He moved in with his lips very near to touching mine. I could smell the scent of the man and it brought me back to a time that I thought that I was the happiest that I could ever be.

“It’s not like I’m going to tell anybody. Go ahead and see if you can resist once you get a load of me. Are you that afraid to find out?” He was making a valid point and one that I was desperate to disprove.

“You are incorrigible and you have always been someone that took chances. You have always been able to push me into doing things that were against my better judgment. I’m not complaining. I do look back on those times fondly, but also with a bit of surprise to know that I was even capable of such a thing.” I had reached out and touched that part of him. One hand grabbed onto the bulge. I felt it and I wanted to see it. There was no way that anybody was going to stop me. I frantically undid the belt on his pants and pulled down his zipper.

My breath was short with that anticipation that came from knowing that I was going to see him in all his glory. I put my hand through the opening in the zipper and found the heat of his loins most appreciative of my attention. I used the other hand to undo the button of his pants. I pulled his shirt out of his pants and run my hands underneath to strike a fire by grazing his nipples with my fingernails.

“I knew that she was in there somewhere. You can’t hide that woman from me. More importantly, you can’t hide it from yourself.” I was biting my bottom lip, making him moan by pinching those hardened buds. I only had to glance down to see that his enlargement was pumping with a life of its own. “You know that you want to and there’s nothing stopping you. I’m certainly not going to put up any kind of resistance. You owe it to yourself to find out one way or the other.” He was using psychology against me and the closure that I was looking for was close at hand.

Holding my breath, I moved one hand along the waistband of his underwear. My tongue was sticking out of my mouth. I stuck my hand down and found myself holding onto this scorching piece of pipe.

“I can’t believe that I’m doing this. You are such a bad influence. I have a good mind to spank you. Something tells me that you would enjoy that too much.” I had a hold of him and the slippery surface at the top of the head was leaving behind a profound reminder of our time together. It was sticking to me and I licked my lips with that need to give him the benefit of my oral expertise.

“I am a bad influence and don’t you forget it. The power is in your hands literally and figuratively. What you do with it is up to you. I do love the way that you touch me and it always drives me wild to the point of not been able to sit still. I recall the way that you gave me a hand job in the bleachers underneath the jacket that I was using to conceal what we were doing. It didn’t take much to get you to be more adventurous. I saw that same adventurous spirit when you opened up the door wearing that outfit.” I was stroking the length of him, feeling how solid he was and what I could do with it.

“There isn’t a man alive that has been able to make me do something like this. I would not look that smug. It’s very unattractive to see you think that you have that kind of hold over me.” He did have the ability to make my motor run. The motorcycle was a good way to get me ready to throw caution to the wind. The vibration underneath me ignited that passion and he knew exactly what he was doing.

“I’m a patient man, Amanda. My cock, on the other hand, is a little bit impatient. It sometimes has ideas of its own.” He proved that by flexing that piece of hardware. The vein in the back was throbbing against my palm.

It wasn’t hard to recognize that his excitement was boiling over. A few more strokes and I would be leaving him with something more to remember me by than just a kiss. I was ready to see his climactic end. I think that I would’ve gone through it had it not been for the flash of those headlights that brought me back to reality.

I was caught in those lights like a deer in the headlights. I stared at those lights and then I looked back at what I was doing and I knew that I had gone completely overboard. I took my hand away with the look of his love muscle ready to explode. The color was a purple hue of excitement that was hard to deny.

He grabbed my wrist and wouldn’t let go. I had forgotten that he could be quite forceful when he didn’t get what he wanted. It wasn’t like he had done anything to make me feel like I was threatened in any way

“There’s no way that you can possibly leave me like this. That’s cruel and I thought that you were better than that. I taught you how to be the woman that I wanted. There was no guesswork.” I thought back on that time and he was right. I had no mind of my own and I let him guide me by the nose.

“You make that sound like it’s a good thing. I forgot what kind of man you are. I still feel that I can easily fall into the past. Your body is not exactly easy to walk away from. I’m just not sure if I’m that girl anymore. I want something better. What we had was one-sided and I don’t see that changing. I don’t see you changing and that’s the problem.” I’d found out what Gemini was trying to impart on me. Jones had the chiseled good looks and that smile that could send me into hysterical fits of insane laughter. He also was a man that had to have it his way or no way at all.

“I’m not done. I will not give up without a fight. The last thing that my father told me was to never let a moment go by that you didn’t cherish the one that you loved. He was the reason why I had to set my sights on you. He made me remember the girl that had only eyes for me. That type of devotion is something that I have been missing.” It was all starting to make sense. His father was a big influence in his life and losing him quite unexpectedly had sent him into a tailspin.

“I’m sorry for your loss. I think that I understand the motivation for you coming here now. I can’t be your lifeline. I can barely take care of myself let alone somebody else. I don’t even own a cat or plant because I know that they would die under my care. I can’t mend what is broken inside you.” I wanted to in the worst way possible, but that was something that he was going to have to do himself.

“I’ve always wanted to make my father proud. The only two things in my life that made sense were him and you. Everything else was window dressing including any woman that was unfortunate enough to find themselves in my bed. I need to give you a reason to believe that I have changed.” He left me standing there, as he zipped up and walked back to his motorcycle with helmet in hand.

He still had the flowing dark locks that gave him the appearance of some rebel without a cause. He revved the motor and I automatically could feel my legs quake with the memory of how it felt to have that beast underneath me.

Chapter five

“I have to give you credit for being able to pull yourself away from that. I don’t know if I could have walked away in your shoes. I’m not a woman, but I have had a couple of girlfriends that could be that bad influence.” I found August in the office and I told him about my impromptu meeting with Jones.

“I shouldn’t drop this in your lap. I could’ve easily told Gemini all of this, but I think that she would have told me that I should have taken one for the team. She has always stressed that the only way that I’m going to find closure is by getting underneath him or on top of him or having him come up from behind.” I thought for sure that he would run from the room, but August had shown this strength of character that I wasn’t expecting.

“I don’t like that you put your hand on another man, but I wasn’t there. You tell me how you felt. You told me the details, but you never did go into specifics about what it is that you felt when you were touching him like that. That will tell you everything that you need to know. It will also tell me if I even stand a chance at taking you out of his hands.” He sat there with his eyes glazed and still feeling the effects of the bottle of wine that he had consumed.

“At the time, I thought that my feelings had gotten the best of me. The trouble with Jones is that he thinks that any woman is powerless to resist him. I was like that, but I don’t fall for the pretty packaging anymore. There has to be more than physical attraction. It would be nice to have one last time with him to say goodbye, but I don’t think that I need it.” I wasn’t sure what would have happened if those lights hadn’t caught me in the act. I didn’t tell him that part. He would read too much into it.

“It sounds like you have made a decision. Do I take it that I should make the arrangements for two instead of one to go to China? They were very impressed with our preliminary drawings. They are setting us up in a private suite for the duration of our stay. They want us to be comfortable. They told us if we needed anything that we only had to ask. This project is going to be an undertaking. It was only supposed to be a couple of months, but they have expressed interest in a more long-term commitment. It could be that we will never come back here again. Are you sure that you are ready for this? We never did discuss how leaving everything behind was going to make you feel.” I wasn’t sure how to process this. Two months sounded like a vacation. The rest of my life sounded like I was running away from something.

“I am glad that you were willing to listen without going off the handle. I know that Jones wouldn’t have been able to do the same thing. He would have found it necessary to do something about this attraction that I have for you. He knows about you, but I don’t think that he feels threatened. I think that he’s taking you lightly. I’m not taking you lightly and the way that my heart jumpstarts every time that I see you is a clear indication that I’m where I’m supposed to be.” Seeing him sitting there made it easy to envision draping my legs over the arms of that chair and giving him a very dirty lap dance.

“I just want to remind you that I’m not your girlfriend. I’m willing to hear what you have to say, but it still hurts me to think of you with him. I’m just going on the record. It doesn’t come as any big surprise to you that I’m a bit jealous of the connection that you have with him” He was being honest and that was what I had asked of him. That didn’t mean that I had to like what he had to say.

“I’m not going to lie and say that having you both fight for me hasn’t been a dream come true. It does stroke my ego to think that I have two guys that like me that much that they are willing to do practically anything. I would say that you are a front runner. I don’t see how he could ever hold a candle to you.” The only thing that could make any difference was some kind of grand gesture that was going to catch me by surprise. I didn’t have any worry about that with Jones. He was not the type to go outside of his comfort zone. He could never do anything to embarrass himself or the image that he had built over the years in the NFL.

“Oh goody… I’m a frontrunner…that makes me feel all good inside. I think I’ll hold off on making those arrangements until you can convince me that I’m the only one that’s going to turn your head. You can look all you want and I’ve been guilty of that myself. I just need to know that you will be coming home to me and not shacking up with Jones in his love nest.” He looked damn good in that suit, but I had a feeling that he would look even better out of it.

“I would go ahead and make the arrangements. Jones doesn’t know how to step out on a limb. He’s stuck in his ways and there’s no way that he will ever want to tarnish his reputation for being a ladies’ man. That kind of arrogance is not going to win him the kind of woman that is going to be with him for more than his money. He only came here in a knee-jerk reaction to his father’s death. In my opinion, that’s no way to rekindle an old romance that fizzled a long time ago.” I held his gaze. August looked at me and I could almost see what he was thinking.

“I want to believe that, but I’m not entirely convinced. I won’t be until we are far away from here where I can have you all to myself. I don’t know much about the Chinese culture, but you do. I look forward to putting myself into your capable hands. I was a little apprehensive about this, but I think that I’m feeling more excited than anything else. It’s time to shake things up and living in the past doesn’t do anybody any good.” He was talking about himself, but I had a feeling that his comments had a double-edged sword.

“I do think that we should refrain from being together. However, if you were to permit me, I think that you and Jones should be on a level playing field. Besides, I knew what I was getting when I put my hand down his pants. I don’t know that about you. I would really like to find out. You have no idea how much I want to find out.” He thought that I was putting him on. He found out differently when I stood up and went around to his side of the desk.

“I really wish that you stop. I’m not sure that I can be trusted once you get your hands on me.” It was a risk that I was willing to take and one that was destined to happen sooner than later.

“If I were in your position, I would keep my mouth shut in case you say something to ruin the moment.” I draped my legs over the top of him and I sat down with my panties rubbing up against his formidable appendage. “There comes a time that you need to say nothing at all.” I unbuttoned his shirt, feeling this sensation down below that was making it very hard to hide my arousal.

“I wasn’t expecting this. I want to stop you, but I don’t think that I can.” He had his hands to his side as if he didn’t know what to do with them. It was nice to have him ensnared in my web of depravity. I felt this liberation from the way that I was acting. It certainly wasn’t in my character to be this brazen and bold.

I pulled the shirt out from his pants and I peeled back that Egyptian silk to reveal his hardened exterior. I ran my finger down along his pectorals, circling his navel and then I traced the outline of his six-pack like they were a roadmap to his pleasure zone.

“I don’t want to get too carried away. I’m going to depend on your discretion. You’re going to have to tell me when it’s enough without going too far.” I wasn’t sure if he could make that distinction.

“If you are expecting me to put a stop to this, then you’re going to be waiting a very long time. This is where you show me what you want me to do. If you want to walk away there is nothing that I can do about that. I have been waking up in cold sheets for too long.” I moved back slightly. I was able to reach his belt and had it come undone underneath my agile fingers.

“I’m going by feel and trusting my senses.” I undid his button and I pulled down his zipper very slowly with him staring at me the entire time. It was that animal inside that was forcing me to take this to the next level.

“There’s no point in me saying anything. You’ve made up your mind and I see that wild horses aren’t going to keep you from doing what you want to do. Looking at you makes me believe in miracles.” I could see and I could feel the product of his desire for me. His underwear was the only obstacle in my way. I wasn’t going to let that be a deterrent.

His black briefs were quite snug and left very little imagination to what he was sporting. I traced it down the length on either side without touching it. I finally had enough and I pulled down those shorts to reveal the magnificence of the man. It was quite daunting and thicker than I imagined. It really was a work of art that was worthy of my admiration. I was almost afraid to touch it thinking that it was some sort of optical illusion.

“This is a little unusual, but I’m going to allow it.” He sounded like he was a judge ruling over the court that he was presiding over.

“I can’t believe I have allowed you to sit in dry dock all this time. It seems unnecessary for you to use your own hands when I have two of my own. I’m going to try to control myself, but I’m not promising anything.” I thought that I was shy, but given enough rope, I could run with it.

I hadn’t touched it and I moved closer until I could literally feel the heat from his over exaggerated state. That thing was immense, but I was not going to shy away from it. I grabbed it and I heard him gasp. That was only making it that much harder to let go. I had my hand wrapped around him and my fingers didn’t meet. It was quite an impressive piece. I was sure that it had given a lot of ladies more than enough satisfaction to last them a lifetime.

“Be…careful and I might be just a... a…hair trigger ready to go off. I’ve been thinking of this moment and this is not how…how…I thought things were going to go. This goes well and beyond anything that I could come up with. You have shown yourself on several occasions to think outside the box, but not in this way.” his voice was strangled and he was struggling to keep still.

I moved my hand slowly up to the top and then I used my thumb to make him grunt his approval. I circled around the head and then I moved back down to the very bottom. I did this a few times with him trying to thrust out of his seat.

“If you can’t sit still then maybe I should just stop altogether.” It was that threat and promise that made him settle down and be a good boy. There was really nothing good about him and it was his bad boy image that had me fighting this every step of the way.

My resolve had collapsed and I wasn’t sure what it was going to take for me to leave him to finish this off. I felt like I had to see this through to the end. I finally felt him shudder and I could’ve given him exactly what he wanted, but I had enough strength to let go.

“Now I know what Jones felt and it doesn’t feel very good. You might have gotten interesting thrill out of playing with the both of us, but I can’t say the same thing. It was nice, but it was a reminder that I still might not have you. You say differently, but there’s always that possibility that something will turn you in his direction. I don’t know what that is going to be. I hope that he never finds that special spot that belongs to me.” I was still sitting on his lap and that hungry looking serpent was ready to lash out and strike against any warm body that came into his path.

I walked away backward, keeping my eye on him as he sat there with his member now out of sight. I closed the door and I knew that teasing him would only be a stall tactic. I was looking forward to taking things past the teasing stage. I had to make sure that the past wasn’t going to interfere.

Chapter six

I couldn’t bring myself to go back into the office and I sent him a text message to tell him that I would be there at the Airport in two days. I wanted to make him wait on pins and needles to see if I was going to show up or not.

I’d made the preparations by putting my condominium up for grabs in the market. The for-sale sign was out on the lawn and I was going to miss this place more than I could ever say. Gemini wasn’t very happy that I was letting it go. I’m sure that she would’ve paid for it, but she didn’t have that kind of money.

“It looks like you made up your mind, but I think that something might change it.” She didn’t have to tell me. I heard the rumble of the motorcycle and the way that the engine turned off. It sent a thrill through my bones and I shivered at the very thought of how I had used that piece of machinery to drive me out of my mind.

“I don’t know what he thinks that he’s proving. I know who he is and I have no interest in playing that game.” He was still wearing the black leather jacket, but no longer was he holding onto that casual image with blue jeans. He was wearing a suit of all things and looked ready to proclaim that this was his Independence Day.

“You have to admit that he does have a bit of class. He probably felt that you poured cold water in his lap and yet here he is ready to valiantly try again. I don’t know how you got so lucky to have both of these guys looking at you with hunger in their eyes. I don’t even have one and you have two. It’s not like you can hide from this. You’re going to have to hear him out.” I could easily hide, but that would only be sending the wrong message. I had to face this and be strong enough to let him say his peace. I was hoping that I would get that chance myself.

“I don’t want you to leave. Stay in my bedroom and only come out when I call for reinforcements. He has this funny way of leaving me speechless. I think about some of those things that we did and I find myself lazily touching myself in the middle of the night. I wouldn’t even be thinking about him at all if I saw fit to take August for a test drive.” I heard that knock on the door and wearing the face of conviction, I went to answer it with my jeans already quite moist from the sound of that engine revving.

I opened the door and I didn’t even let him get a word in edgewise. I lambasted him for being callous enough to think that he could come back here and win me. “You can see that I’m leaving. You would think that would be some kind of hint. What is it that I can do for you, Jones?” He tried to get around me, but my foot was in his way leaving him to profess his love with the whole neighborhood watching. They weren’t really watching, but it did feel that way.

“I thought that I would make one last effort. I can’t leave without doing this.” He grabbed me and I gave out this startled gasp that was followed by his tongue stabbing into my mouth. I vainly slapped at his chest hoping that would be enough to get him to let me go, but it wasn’t.

The fight that I had was draining significantly with the way that he was touching the top of my palate and sending signals down below. My legs gave out by the sheer pleasure of him kissing me and running his hands down my spine. If it wasn’t for him, I probably would have crashed landed on the floor.

I heard clapping and he finally let me go with two of my neighbors giving what I considered a standing ovation. They were the gossip of the neighborhood and there was no way that this wasn’t going to get around like wildfire.

My lipstick was smeared across his mouth and he was licking that strawberry gloss and smiling like he had done something to change my opinion of him. I immediately grabbed him by the collar of his starched shirt and pulled him into the entrance.

I turned away from him pretending that I was disgusted by his behavior and secretly wanting that kiss to last longer than it did. “I don’t know what you are doing, but that was uncalled for. You know that I have feelings for another man. Just because I don’t have a ring on my finger doesn’t mean that you can manhandle me like some sort of brute.” My voice was a little raised and I was hoping that Gemini was going to interject her thoughts. Unfortunately, I got the impression that she wanted me to handle this on my own. I had to do that or I wouldn’t be able to look at myself in the mirror the same way again.

“You can’t tell me that you didn’t feel anything. That is not the kind of passion that you can fake. I know that you have another man that you are interested in, but I don’t care. Like you’ve already said, you don’t have a ring on your finger and even if you did, I doubt that would even stop me. I know what I want. You showed last night that you were ready for more. Again, you can’t fake the eagerness in your eyes when you had me in your hand.” He was throwing that back in my face and I didn’t think that was fair. It was appropriate considering that I was the one that was doing all of that under my own free will.

“You have always been a good kisser and there has never been any reason to deny that. It doesn’t mean that I’m ready to go backward. Being with you is a mistake. I should’ve seen it a long time ago, but you really did throw me for a loop by coming back into my life.” I looked at my watch and I knew that I was going to be late to the airport.

“I wasn’t the only one kissing. That wasn’t one-sided even though you profess differently. You fought me, but then you sank into it and enjoyed every moment. Even your neighbors saw that you were into it.” He was beating a dead horse. If I didn’t do something radical and extreme, then he was just going to think that this kind of behavior was going to be tolerated.

“It gives you no right to touch me like that without my permission. You need to grow up and stop acting like the same teenage heartthrob that you were in high school. Those days are over and you can’t go back no matter how much you want to. I understand that your father dying made you willing to commit. It’s just not going to be with me.” I could still see him naked and it did very little for the temperature in the room.

“My father was one small part of the reason why I came to see you. His words echoed in my ears. I know that I have been wasting my life on those girls that are only with me for my money. I never felt like I was shortchanged when I was with you. There was something real about what we had. I’m not sure that I will ever find that again.” He was afraid of being alone. It made me feel for him.

I took him by his two hands and made him sit down with me sitting on my knees. “I think that it’s a good thing that you know that you can’t stay the same. You need to find somebody that is going to be more than eye candy. I wish that I could be that for you. I’m sure that if things were reversed that you would be telling me the same thing. There’s no point in grasping onto a piece of the past. I’m lucky that I found a man that was accepting of my flaws and vice versa.” His last-ditch effort to win me back had failed.

“I really do feel stupid for coming here. This was supposed to be a gesture. A reminder of what we had and could have again. I see now that it’s not what you want. It can’t be what I want no matter how much I want to cling to the old times. I want a family and I swear that I’m not going to rest until I find the woman that is going to make me feel the same way that I feel about you.” He stood up, gave me a hug that was more friendly than the kind of embrace that I would have expected from him.

“I want you to be happy. Another time and place, we might’ve been able to make it work, but that’s not going to happen. I found one that I want to pursue. You and that damn motorcycle will always hold a special spot in my heart. It’s a relic of a time long ago and maybe it’s time that you finally put her to rest. It’s time for you to get that clean slate.” I was only telling him what I felt. It was going to be up to him to make that commitment to clean up his act.

“If it’s all the same to you, I’m going to keep black beauty, but maybe it is time to put her away in storage. Family has always meant a lot to me. I never knew how much until my father died. I have to find a way to carry on the family name.” That was the closure that the both of us needed. It didn’t have to come from us twisting in the sheets together. It would’ve been satisfying and a memory that I would have loved to repeat, but that would have been only asking for more trouble than it was worth.

The door closed and I had my hand on top of it with a silent goodbye in my heart. It was fitting to see him drive off into the sunset alone. I had no doubt that he would find somebody to fill that void that his father left behind.

“That was very touching, but I think that you have forgotten one thing.” I turned to look at Gemini and she was tapping her wrist and making me look with my eyes wide open at the clock and the seconds ticking by. “You’re never going to make it. It’s too bad that you sent him away. You might have had a chance with that motorcycle.” I slapped my forehead, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me.

I tried to send a text message, but the service was down for maintenance. I was cursing myself. We had left things in good terms and Jones would’ve been able to get me to the Airport. I heard the motorcycle and it wasn’t like it was in the distance.

I sprang into action, throwing the one bag that consisted of all of my worldly belongings over my shoulder. It was a green army bag that had been passed down from my grandfather. It had a sentimental connection that made me look like a hobo ready to ride the rails. I didn’t care.

I opened the door. He reached out and I thought that he was going to kiss me again, but this time he grabbed his gloves that he had left behind.

“I wonder if I could ask you for a favor. It’s a bit of an imposition, but I think that we can remain friends.” I told him that I needed a ride to the airport and he was happy to help.

He handed me the helmet and I managed to keep the green army bag in front of me. I told Gemini that she could stay for as long as it took for them to sell the property. She most likely was going to take me up on my offer and disappear once more when the sale was completed.

Chapter seven

The vibration between my legs was the painful reminder that having my arms wrapped around his waist was like that same blast from the past.

“I hate to admit this, but I think that I’m going to have to invest in buying one of these. I don’t think that I have to tell you the reason why. You already know better than others what riding on one of these things does to me.” I was rubbing incessantly and it was a good thing that I was wearing jeans and not a skirt. I probably would have collapsed altogether and become a roadside hazard.

“I know and that’s the reason why I came to see you on it. I’m glad that it still has that effect on you. It’s nice that I can put that smile on your face. Unfortunately, I’m going to send you hot and bothered into another man’s arms. I do have one regret that we didn’t find a way to get that closure by the cries of ecstasy that I could have made you scream in the dark of the night.” I was such a dirty girl for thinking the same thing.

“It seems kind of fitting that you would be the one to come to my rescue. I know that this is not how you wanted to end our story, but our flame could only burn for so long. I think you know that deep down. We’re not right for one another. What we had was not healthy. We both have very strong opinions.” Any more of this and I was going to slide from first base all the way to home.

“There is one girl that I have been reluctant to speak about. I wanted more, but I got caught up in the old habit of sneaking out after the deed was done. I think that I might look her up and see if I can’t convince her to give me a second chance. She’s the only one excluding you that I ever thought that I could have more than a physical relationship with.” This was my time to give him some advice that would hopefully help him in his love life.

The wind was blowing through the hair that was sticking out from underneath the helmet. The vibration was keeping me occupied and making me wonder about how I was going to be able to stand steady when I finally arrived at my final destination.

“You need to learn to be yourself and not what you think that you need to be. Women like a man that is honest and will show some vulnerability. Don’t be so quick to think that you are right all the time. A girl wants to feel protected, but they also need to know that you are willing to listen to reason. That romance that you have fought against is something that you should really think about. Gestures like flowers and candy might seem juvenile, but there are those little things that count the most. Drying a dish or putting away the laundry will leave her wondering what she ever did without you.” He was breezing through traffic and I thought for sure by the way that we were leaning that we were going to come to a fiery end.

We came to the Airport and I was 15 minutes late to the party. I got off, but I had to hold myself against the bike to stop my legs from shaking. One more minute on that thing and I would’ve been done for. I was already breathing heavy and I closed my eyes to try to get back whatever dignity I had left.

“I want you to take a few deep breaths. I do find it funny that you still get that extra jolt every time that you get on black beauty. Both of us have missed you, but I think that I’m going to take your advice to heart and see what I can’t do about finding my own happiness.” My knees were knocking and I did breathe deeply until I finally was able to stand shakily on my own.

“I would really like to find out how things work out for you, Jones. You have my contact information. Let’s keep in touch and be the friends that we should be. Don’t be a stranger. At least now, I can say that I don’t feel terrified of you coming around anymore. Don’t worry, I’m still attracted to you and that’s never going to change. It’s just not enough anymore.” I was wasting time and I watched him wave to me. I ran with moments of having to stop and hold myself up against anything that I could find.

I got to the gate with my lungs burning, but it was too late. “I’m sorry, but the plane has already taken off. I can put you on the next available one. It’s not until tomorrow morning at 5:00 AM. I have two available seats, but I’m afraid that they are in first class.” I didn’t have the kind of money to fork out for that kind of extravagance.

"I can afford that.” I felt my heart fall and I hated myself for making him think that I wasn’t going to be there with him for this new and exciting chapter. “We’ll take both seats in first class.” I heard his voice, but I had to see it for myself to believe it. I turned and I didn’t know what to say. “I was on the plane, but I couldn’t leave without you. There will always be other planes, but there will be nobody quite like you.” His face was like seeing the clouds part with the sun shining through.

“I’m sorry…I’m sorry for being late. I had some unfinished business to do. I think that you’ll be glad to know that Jones will not be bothering me anymore. We are going to keep in touch, but only as friends and nothing more.” He took my hand and brought it up to his lips. It was that extra spark that I needed to clench my legs closed.

“I’m not that insecure that I’m going to worry about a friendship with a past love. That would be petty and I’m through giving you the impression that I feel threatened. The next flight is not for 12 hours. I would like to take that time to learn more about you. I think that I have enough in our budget to splurge on a dinner and maybe two rooms with connecting doors. I would never want to assume anything.” I took his hand and placed it against my chest so that he could feel the thumping presence of my heart giving him the only answer that he would ever need.

“I do want to be close to you, but after everything we’ve both been through, it would be better to start at the beginning. I don’t think that we’re going to need the adjoining room unless of course, you think that you can’t handle being close to me. I would think that we have reached the phase in our relationship that we can trust one another.” I could say that, but I wasn’t sure that I could live up to that promise. The motorcycle, his lips on my hand and being close to him in the same bed was a recipe for disaster.

“I think I can handle that.” I had to stretch on my toes to reach his lips. I showed him that there was a promise for more. The orient was a land of mysteries, but the one mystery that I didn’t have was how I felt about him. It was a lot in the last few days. My mind was still going a million miles an hour. I was going to use the anticipation to keep me on the edge. I was looking forward to the Chinese hospitality. I felt that we needed something that was just for us. I wanted this to be the start of something that would last forever. This trip was meant to give us that freedom to be more intimate. One thing was for certain and there were no past loves or present ones that were going to stand in the way.

I was going to have to trust in the both of us that we could keep it in our pants. I wasn’t sure that being in the same room together was a good idea. I couldn’t say anything or that would have led him to believe that I was lost to my own passion. I was hoping to show him in due time. It was going to be interesting when we finally took off the training wheels. We had waited this long, so what was a little while longer. I was just going to have to keep one eye open and contain that passion with cold showers. China was waiting for us with open arms.

BOOK 3: STEAL ME (PART 4)

 

Blueprints of Love

Amanda never thought that it was possible to have anything close to love at first sight, but there she was about to embark on a journey that had been ripe with sexual tension from the moment that they met. August Rivers was not an easy man to get to know, but underneath the suave and sophisticated ladies man was a kind and gentle soul waiting for somebody to come around to open him up to real love. They have been through their own form of trials and tribulations to get to where they are today. They thought that it was going to be easier away from any distractions including ex-girlfriends and boyfriends that seem to show up at the most awkward time. They were wrong and what they face now is something that will shock the both of them. Will they be able to keep the spark alive?

 

Chapter one

Being in a strange and interesting culture was not an easy thing for either one of us to do. I had read a lot about the Chinese way, but it still didn’t prepare me for what I was about to face. They were stuck in their ways and that old tradition had never been stronger than in the business world. If I thought that I had problems with those from the western side of the world, then I was in for a shock on how close-minded these people could be.

Our first meeting with the Chinese didn’t go exactly as planned. I was shunned and ignored from the moment that I entered the room. They didn’t even acknowledge my existence. They referred all questions to August who seemed a little awkward and kept looking at me to understand what was going on. I thought that they had gotten past their antiquated thinking about where women were supposed to be in the business world. It became painfully obvious that the only reason why they brought me along was because August had made it a part of the deal.

“I understand that you have a lot of ideas, but we would really like you to reconsider your position. Mr. Nakamura has always been about traditional values and morals when it comes to creating something that is going to leave a lasting impression. I don’t want to tell him something that he’s going to refuse to even look at. I was hoping that you would be reasonable and maybe a couple of days thinking on it will help you to come to the right decision.” Michael was the son of a prominent businessman and he was tasked to keep things cordial and moving along at a steady pace.

“I don’t understand any of this. You called us here specifically to give you something that nobody else has. Yet you still want to hold onto the old ways with an iron fist. You haven’t even given my partner the respect that she deserves. I am this close to cutting ties and going back to America. I don’t see any reason why we have to contend with being made into puppets for this administration.” I could see that August was getting hot under the collar and he had a tendency to show it without even meaning to.

“It galls me that you think that you have a choice. The contract that you signed is ironclad. There is no way around it. You can have your lawyers look it over, but I think that they’ll agree that you are now our property. Whatever you do for the next five years is considered the intellectual property of the Nakamura industry. Like I said, I think that you need some time to think about it before you make any rash decisions. My father and I have to go out of the country for a couple of days, but when we return, we would really like to get started as soon as possible. Follow the rules and there will be no problems.” Michael was only following his father’s orders. I could tell that he did not want to get on the bad side of a man that could make his life miserable.

“This is not the last that you’re going to hear about this. I was given some assurances that we were going to have a license to create. We are artists and what we do is something that not many people can. We work well together and you haven’t even made the effort to look her in the eye. Amanda is an integral part of all of this and for you to dismiss her out of hand isn’t something that I’ll tolerate.” It was nice that he was sticking up for me, but I wasn’t sure that this was the place or the time for something like that.

The chairs were supposed to be comfortable, but my back was hurting something fierce. They were designed to be ergonomic and made for a productive workforce. I shifted in my seat continuously trying to find a comfortable position. I was aware of the way that he was looking at my body. I felt self-conscious around this man.

“I am very disappointed that this meeting didn’t go the way that I had hoped it was going to. My father is not going to be very pleased when he hears about how stubborn you can be. I thought mistakenly when we had our in-depth discussions that you were on board. Be careful what kind of waves you want to make. I can tell you from personal experience that those that go against my father don’t last very long in whatever business we are conducting with them. He has a long reach and a power base that exceeds even yours Mr. Rivers.” Michael was being formal, but this was the way that they were raised to show respect to those that they worked for. That is if they were men. Women were pretty much left to sit on the sidelines.

August went over to him wearing his emotion on his sleeve and grabbed him by the collar of his starched shirt. He rumpled the blue fabric and the tie was askew on Michael’s frame. It didn’t look like Michael was at all concerned about the way that August was behaving. He never lost his composure and very gently removed August’s fingers from around his metaphorical throat.

“I believe that you need to keep control of your anger, Mr. Rivers. It will do us no good to be at cross purposes. You can fight it all you want, but I think that you’ll find that it will be futile. My father is a man of honor, but he knows how to conduct business with a forceful and demanding way. He does not speak your language and he considers westerners to be a waste of skin. It took a lot for me to even get him to agree to work with you. He was the one that made the contract. That is the very same contract that you signed and sent back to me digitally.” Michael with his coifed black hair and almond colored eyes momentarily looked in my direction and gave me a sideways glance that made me feel like he was trying to make me burst into flames.

“This is a lot to process. I apologize for grabbing you like that, but you have to admit that you laid a bomb in our lap. We had no idea that you were going to be so strict that you wouldn’t allow us the freedom to show you what we can do. I’m going to have to give this some thought and weigh my options.” August was trying to remain calm, but it was difficult with this man trying to run roughshod over us.

“I will forgive this trespass one time and one time only. Don’t presume that you can put your hands on me for any reason. I know that emotions are running high, but that’s no excuse for this kind of unprofessionalism. Ignorance is not an excuse and one that is not going to be tolerated. Your day begins at 8:00 AM our time and ends 5:00 PM unless otherwise stated. You have two days to make peace with your situation or we will see you in court. I think that you’ll agree that you want to avoid that at all costs.” Michael was wearing a red power tie and the glasses were mostly for show.

I was terrified of saying anything in case that it would be subjected to scrutiny. I thought that I was independent and had a mind of my own, but here it felt like I was a second-class citizen. There were women in business, but they really didn’t raise the bar for the rest of them. They followed along with the owners’ wishes. It was only if they were able to break free and become their own boss that they were given a bit more than a casual glance.

Michael closed the door gently like he was trying to make a point. August immediately slammed down his hands on the table so hard that it actually made me jump to my feet. I was shivering in place.

“I don’t even know what to say. I have more than enough money to fight them, but it would be a never-ending battle for years to come. I would lose my reputation. You haven’t said much. I know that he can be intimidating, but you have to stand up for yourself in order to be recognized. I didn’t like doing all the talking for us. We are a team and I would hope that you would act like one.” His anger towards Michael and his father was now spilling over. He saw me as a target and he was using me to get rid of some of that pent-up frustration that he felt.

“Honestly, I didn’t know what to say and everything that Michael said was in the face of what we believed. He came in here shaking your hand and I knew that something was wrong when he didn’t even look at me. I didn’t feel that it was necessary to say anything. He had a script before coming in here and he was following it to the letter. Nothing was going to make him deviate from what he was going to say.” I was just as angry and I wanted to scream, but to do so would only feed into their perception of us.

“I came here in good faith and they slapped that in my face. I thought that I had a good standing with Michael over the phone, but I see now that he was only putting on a face. Telling me what I wanted to hear and then slipping a contract through the cracks. I did take him lightly and he made me feel like we were on the same page.” August had turned a crimson red and I thought for sure that steam was going to come out of the top of his head.

I placed my hands on his shoulders in a gesture of good faith. I could feel the tension in his muscles and there had to be a way to relieve him of what he was feeling. I could think of one way, but to use my body in that fashion would be the wrong way to start this relationship.

“We have two days to think about what we’re going to do. It’s really not a long time, but we don’t have to think about it right now. Let’s get out of our head and do something fun. We’re here in a city that we don’t really know. I say that we embrace it.” I turned his head towards me and I saw the look of defeat in his eyes.

Chapter two

I could smell the Chinese Food cooking on the industrial sized Wok in the back of the restaurant. There was nothing like authentic Chinese Food. There was one place back home that had taken their recipe from their homeland and brought it to my table.

August looked anxious, but at least he had discarded that tie for a more casual approach. He had the first couple of buttons undone as if those buttons were choking off the air supply. He kept looking around and drumming his fingers on the table with that excess energy running through his veins.

“I know that it’s going to be difficult, but you need to calm down. There’s very little that we can do at this time of night. You’ve already put in calls to your lawyers and they said that they would get back to you in the morning. I heard their sigh of exasperation when you told them that you signed on the dotted line without them present. It almost seemed like they were laughing in your face. I’ve taken the liberty of ordering some of their favorites and I do hope that you will find it to your liking.” It felt like a lifetime ago when I had to deal with my ex-boyfriend that had come calling when I was just about to admit my feelings for August physically.

All those problems were thousands of miles away and there was something liberating about being here where nobody knew us. We could show affection but still got some strange looks from those that didn’t feel that it was appropriate.

“I just feel like such a fool for getting you involved. It was supposed to be an adventure and not some kind of purgatory where we are sentenced to five years of hard labor.” He had nothing to apologize for. He had always been straight with me. The only thing that we seemed to dance around was our feelings for one another. We were both to blame for that.

“It’s not your fault and they tricked you into thinking one thing and doing another. There’s always going to be those that believe that they are the only voice that matters. I should have said something in my own defense with Michael. There was this tension in the air that you could cut with a knife.” The girl that waited on us was mild. She never said much of anything and went back to the kitchen after she had taken our order.

“I should know better than to negotiate in good faith. I’ve been known in the past to play these same games. I should have known that it was going to come back and bite me in some way. They say that karma is a bitch and that has never been more evident than the way that Michael has treated us. I have never been spoken to like that before and I don’t ever want to be subjected to that again.” August had power, but it appeared that Mr. Nakamura had a lot more clout in a city that had his hand prints all over it.

“This falls on my shoulders as well. I should’ve been more diligent and done a detailed search on the Internet about their business practices. I went on the premise that everything was taken care of. I allowed you to take the lead on this one and I never even questioned how this was going to work. I know from my research of their culture that they can be stickler for details. Their laws are not up for interpretation. You do something wrong and you pay for it. Do you know that when they kill somebody here for a crime that they actually send the bill for the bullet to their loved ones? Like in business ignorance is not tolerated or accepted as an excuse or defense in a court of law.” I had already polished off the rice wine that they had brought over to the table for dinner.

“I was actually looking forward to learning about this city through your eyes. I’ve been here a time or two, but I never really took the time to look around. It was always about business. Being an architect is not the only thing that I have my hand into. I have the kind of money that allows me to invest in various ventures. I have lost my shirt, but that is par for the course.” August was ashamed of himself for letting his guard down. I imagined in some small way that he would blame me for that and rightfully so. I did take him off his game and made him vulnerable to the manipulation of others.

“This is not a good way to start a new business partnership. I feel that if it wasn’t for me coming into your life that you would’ve seen this coming. I hope that you don’t have any regrets coming here with me. I probably shouldn’t pull at that thread, but I need to know if what you feel is still as strong as it was before we left the states.” I waited for an answer and I thought that he would have given it to me quicker than he did.

It felt like forever, but it was only about a minute before he finally said what was on his mind. “I’m not going to lie and say that you didn’t affect the way that I do business. I can’t say for sure that things would be different if you were not in my life. I don’t mean that to sound like I regret anything. I don’t and I think that I can find a way out of this for the both of us and still save face with Michael and his father. I just don’t see it right now, but there’s always a solution. I’m sure that if we put our heads together that we will come up with some way that will benefit both parties.” I could see that his mind was whirling and that mumbling underneath his breath was his way of figuring things out.

“I’m sorry that you feel that way and maybe being together is not the answer to anything. I’ve never wanted to change you. I’m sorry to say that I did change you and it appears not for the better when it concerns seeing what is most likely obvious.” The food came, but I was in no mood to eat anything. I was not only mad at myself, but I was furious that he would even consider that I was at fault.

“You did ask and I thought that it was a good idea to be open and honest. We need to show each other the courtesy of being upfront at all times. There can be no secrets between us. I still feel deeply for you and the love that we share will overcome any obstacle. I know how that sounds. I heard it coming out of my mouth and I almost began laughing despite my best intentions. We have been through a lot and this is just another thing in our way that we’re going to have to make sense of." August was at least referring to me as an equal and not just a partner in business.

I felt like I had put him in this position. He was doing nothing to discourage that belief. I could tell that he was having second thoughts. It was a woman’s prerogative to change their mind like a man changes his pants. I couldn’t decide what to do, but standing by him seemed to be the right thing.

I wasn’t at all ready for the taste sensation that touched my lips. The food and the egg rolls that were made by hand and not commercial in some kind of factory were something that you would have to experience to enjoy. The fortune cookies were lying there after we had finished our meal and we were both hesitant to open it up to see what our fortunes would read.

“I feel that I need to apologize. This can’t be easy on you. You came here because I gave you every reason to think that this was a fresh start for the both of us. It hasn’t turned out the way that I had envisioned. I’ve always believed that we make our own luck. We can turn this around and we just need to find a way.” He took my hand and held it lovingly with his thumb moving across the back to ignite old feelings that had never gone away.

“Fighting amongst ourselves is not going to accomplish anything. I dressed in this beautiful red dress with a plunging neckline and skintight against my frame to get your attention. I thought that when I came out of the bedroom to get ready for dinner that you would have said something or at least had your mouth wide open and your tongue hanging to the floor.” I could tell that some of the patrons were looking my way. It was only when their wives were otherwise indisposed in the bathroom that they gave me that unwanted attention.

“I haven’t done anything right since the moment that we arrived in this god forsaken country. I was foolish to think that this was going to make us happy. My father always said that if it looks too good to be true then it probably is. He would be so upset with me that I didn’t see this coming. I’m just glad that he’s not around to see it.” His connection to his father was very deep and his approval even now was paramount on his mind.

“We can both agree that the food is exemplary. I don’t know if I could eat another bite. There’s an old wives’ tale that says that if you eat Chinese that you’ll be hungry an hour later. I’ve never witnessed that for myself. That was a filling meal and one that makes me want to come back here again.” This place was close to where we were living. They had put us up at a very nice penthouse suite. They did that to keep us happy and not ready to make any waves. They thought that if they gave us luxury that we would roll over like a dog.

“Let’s forget about all of this ugliness and get back to the romance. I’m not much for the sappy things in a relationship, but I think that I could be convinced under the circumstances. I do love the way that you touch my hand. It shows that you are able to show intimacy. I don’t want either one of us to shy away from this.” I was trying to let him know that there was a way that we could make the best out of a bad situation. We didn’t have to let them have the power over us.

“I know you’re right, but it’s hard to think of anything else. I can’t get over the way that he spoke to me like I was beneath him. He probably feels that way every time that his father talks to him. It’s a vicious cycle and one that I regret making you a part of.” This wasn’t the first time that things had gone astray. His words did cut deeply like a cleaver that a butcher would use to make short work of a slab of beef.

“You can only account for your actions, August. What he does shouldn’t concern either one of us.”

“You’re being very understanding. I’m not sure that I would feel the same way if I were in your shoes. I do have to let this go. I’m thankful that you are around to ground me. Without you, I think that I might go mad and actually do something that would get me into a lot of trouble. You don’t know how close I was to smashing his face in. I could see it already happening and when I grabbed him, I felt like I could throw him through the window.” Those windows were probably reinforced for that specific reason. The building was a fortress with enough security measures to give it the appearance of a prison that was in lockdown.

We took a walk and we did stick out from those that were going about their daily business. There was a disturbance approaching and I had a feeling that Michael was not going to be any kind of pushover. His father had already ingrained in him the way to do things and getting away from that was going to take a drastic change in his attitude.

I felt like he was miles away and this was not the time to take things to the next level. I thought that after our meeting with Michael that we would be in the mood to celebrate. I had even packed the very outfit that I was going to use to seduce him before my ex-boyfriend came into the picture. My body might have been an acquired taste, but the stares that I was getting from the local men had me feeling like I was a steak ready to be devoured.

Chapter three

There wasn’t much that could be said about what we were facing. He was definitely in no mood for bedroom activities. He had the weight of the world on his shoulders and I was right there with him to carry my fair share of that load.

“I’m always apologizing to you. It’s not just for my behavior. I want to give you a reason to stay, but I don’t feel in the mood. I don’t have a headache, but I don’t think that my mind would be into it. I want our first time together to be special and something that we can build on. I don’t want to be like some dead fish lying there as you use me for your amusement. I’m sure that it would be good for you and I would most definitely get there, but it wouldn’t be the same as having my undivided attention.” August had me curious and there was no way that I was going to ruin our first time by jumping his bones.

The penthouse suite had a spiral staircase that went up to the second floor. There was a master bedroom and the master bathroom was something that was even more spectacular. It had a sunken tub and a shower that could fit at least four people comfortably. The view of the city from the panoramic windows gave an atmosphere of love. It was just too bad that neither one of us were in any frame of mind to strip our defenses and do what came naturally.

We did sleep together, but that was all that we did. I didn’t notice before, but he breathed heavy when he gets into that deep slumber. There’s a whistle that comes from his nose that is quite unnerving. There was a moment there that I wanted to use my two fingers to cut off that distraction. I managed to put a pillow over my head and drown out any stimuli that were going to keep me from getting a full night’s rest.

I woke with a start and I didn’t know what had caused me that much concern, but it was like I was tapping into a woman’s instinct about their baby being in trouble. I snapped forward and had to cover the sheet over my pendulum breasts. Standing at the foot of the bed was Michael with his arms crossed and shaking his head in disbelief that we would even entertain the idea of going back on our word.

I turned to August and I shook him until he fluttered his eyelids. He saw the angst on my face. We both looked to where Michael had been at the foot of the bed and there was nothing there. I was just my paranoia and a manifestation of my fears playing a deadly game. He was not there. He had already told us that he was going to be out of the country for the next couple of days.

“You look worried. I was up earlier talking to my lawyers and they had some distressing news. They had an army of lawyers go over the fine print. There is no wiggle room. They say that we can fight it, but it would do us no good. They would have been tied up in court, costing thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars to put up the necessary defense. They basically told me that I made my bed and now I had to lie in it. Of course, I fired them in a knee-jerk reaction. After calming down a little, I said that I didn’t want to fire them and keeping them on retainer was the best for everybody. They will take my money because they know that I am always good for business.” August was wearing nothing and we had reached a point in our relationship that being naked around each other was commonplace.

“I don’t like having no idea what is going on around me. I’m with you all the way to the end. Whatever you decide to do is something that the both of us should discuss beforehand. I do have my own opinion and I just hope that we don’t find ourselves arguing. Five years is a long time and yet it can be gone in the blink of an eye. We could fold and just do what they ask us.” This was my test to see if he was willing to compromise and bend a little.

The black silk sheets molded around my body, but there was no denying that my breasts were a focal point for his excitement. The tent in the sheet underneath him was quite pronounced. I wanted to reach out and touch it. I didn’t feel that it was a good time to lay hands on the man that I loved.

“I’ve caught an Angel of mercy and there are moments that I see this very bright light behind you. I have corrupted a young mind and you would think that I would feel guilty about something like that. For a culture that doesn’t take women seriously in business, it surprises me that they even mentioned you in the contract. In fact, they made it abundantly clear that you were a part of the package. They must see some value in having you working with me. It could be that I have praised your work. You could take it as a compliment that they would want you to stick around, but it’s a backhanded one that probably stings a little.” He was standing with that fine ass within reaching distance.

I had both hands in the air mimicking squeezing those cheeks, but not actually going through with it. I let the sheet fall from my bosom with the nipples standing strong and hard as ever. My body was ready to receive him in kind.

“I can’t think of anything other than your body. We did promise each other that this was going to be fun.” It seemed like a dream what happened with Michael. “I liked the way that you felt in my hand. I want to take things further, but I don’t want to do anything that you’re not comfortable with. What is your next move concerning Michael and his father? You must have something up your sleeve. I’ve come to learn that you never take chances without having a backup plan.”

“I was thinking about threatening them with legal action and actually putting things into place to let them believe that I was true to my word. It’s a bluff and one that I hope that they won’t see through. Michael might be convinced, but his father who has seen and done it all will see through my ruse. He will call my bluff and I will be left with egg on my face.” August was pacing back and forth and I was watching his love stick swinging and bobbing with a life of its own.

“You must be preoccupied not to notice that I’m sitting here completely naked and waiting for you to do something.” This seemed to break him from whatever thought was running around in his head. He actually licked his lips like he was contemplating giving me more than a good morning kiss.

“I’ve been blind, but now I can see. I’m not going to give up and there has to be some kind of loophole that we can use for our own purposes. My lawyers said that they will continue to comb through every word with meticulous detail. Their research department is better than anything that I have seen. Whoever is in charge of going through legal precedent has a mind like a steel trap.” August was hopeful and I could tell that his demeanor had changed slightly from the angst that I had seen on his face last night.

“I’ve been hot for your form for as long as I can remember. When I came to work with you it was like a dream come true. It was unfortunate that you couldn’t stop ogling me and making me feel like I had to call human resources. I see now that you only needed me to break you free from the monotony. You were at a point in your life that you weren’t looking for any kind of commitment. Imagine your surprise when I gave you a reason to think that commitment was the answer to your happiness.” I used my fingers to turn myself on. Watching him naked so near and yet so far away was more than any woman could bear.

“I was afraid to say the words and I actually needed to change my ways. Women have come and gone from my life like my bedroom was a revolving door. You rebuffed my advances. I saw you as a challenge. It was only after I pursued you and worked with you that I started to realize that there was more here than a one night stand.” He had broken up with Julia because he knew that love wasn’t in their cards.

“I want you and I thought that you wanted me, August.”

“If you haven’t guessed it by now, I want you and I should’ve introduced us both to the mile-high club. I’m just not sure that is the way that I want to start my relationship with you. We can do better and this bed looks like it can take a pounding. Don’t think that I haven’t noticed the scent of you. That new perfume that you bought has been driving me insane.” He was still naked and standing at the window. This place had wall to wall windows and gave the impression that you could see everything for miles.

“If you’re not careful, you’re going to put on a show for the neighbors. I’m sure that these eastern girls have never seen anything quite like you. Most of the Chinese men are smaller.” I had nothing left to say. He was still the same man that I remembered. “We have a chance and I don’t think that it’s a good idea for us to squander it. Tonight, is the night and I’m not taking no for an answer. I’m willing to leave it up to you. You can plan every detail. Let’s hope that your lawyer gets back to you with something that you can use to hold over Michael and his father’s head.”

“Amanda, you have been amazingly patient. I have a few ideas that involve a deep tissue massage and a day at the spa to get you ready for a night of love. We have to stop taking this too seriously and it’s only going to cause us to act before thinking. I promise that tonight will be something that you won’t be able to forget. I’m going to pull out all the stops. I want the surprises to make you that child about to open a present in the morning on Christmas Day.” August was painting a pretty picture and one that I hoped that he wasn’t going to renege on.

“There’s no reason to go overboard. The only thing that I really want is you in this bed completely naked and a smile on your face. I’m not just a pretty face and body to match. I have more going for me than the curves that you wake up to every day. I can be a little bit shy, but you don’t let me get away with it.”

“You deserve so much better than me. There are many men with money that don’t have the baggage that I do. Don’t you think that you would be happier with one of them? They can give you the world and I wouldn’t hold it against you to leave me holding the bag.” He was playing the martyr and willing to fall on his sword to protect me from five years of never ending hell.

“If I was any other woman, I would probably take your offer and run with it. I feel that loyalty is a cornerstone of any partnership in business. We need to be vigilant and we can’t expect them to be honest with us. If they can be sneaky, then we can be twice as sneaky. I don’t like stooping to this level, but sometimes it’s necessary. This will be just between you and me.” I was looking forward to being pampered and then treated like a princess. I knew that my argument about him not going overboard was going to fall on deaf ears.

Chapter four

“You are one very lucky girl to have a man like August in your life. How you haven’t taken it to the bedroom yet is beyond me. I might seem old-fashioned, but I’m more progressive than some of my sisters.” Lily was my masseuse with the magic fingers that had me in a relaxed state before I knew it. “I saw him out in the lobby when he dropped you off. I would be all over that in a New York second. I didn’t always live here. I was born in New York and one day I will find my way back to the big apple.”

I was making noises that were equated to those that you would find behind closed doors. I couldn’t help myself. She was touching my body with warm oils that were stimulating my sex drive. I told her my plan for August and what he was going to do to seduce me and she smiled like she had an idea of how to make things move in that direction.

“I never realized that I needed this. I’ve never had a real massage from a professional and there is a difference. August is the love of my life. I’ve tried to deny it, but it has been right there in front of my face. He was a two-timing bastard when I first met him, but having me around changed him.” Her hands were moving down along the inside of my calves from behind. She almost touched something that would be considered taboo and inappropriate. It was that closeness that was making me squirm. I moaned with that hard swat on my behind.

“I’m going to get you so riled up and then I’m going to set you lose on August. He won’t know what hit him until it’s too late. For god’s sake let him come to you and not the other way around. Let him get close and then pounce on him like a tiger after its prey.” Lily was wearing a geisha type outfit that was more conducive to Japanese culture than Chinese. There were those of the male persuasion that didn’t make that distinction. They wanted that prim and proper young lady of virtue acting naughty and doing something entirely out of character.

‘I’m not going to be able to keep my hands off of him after this treatment.” The heat from the oil was doing its job. My body was highly tuned sexually speaking and ready to have those training wheels taken off. We had already been intimate with each other, but not in the way that I was ready for.

“I have something that will help you tap into that part of you. If you would permit me, I think that I can help to keep you from letting thoughts of business get in the way.” She had me turn over on my back and I was presented with a sight that shocked and made me curious to know more.

“I know what that is called, but I’ve never actually gone through with having acupuncture. I want to try it. Do it before I change my mind.” It wasn’t long before a multitude of needles were sticking out of my body. She tapped them every so often and it elicited a response that I wasn’t expecting.

“This will open the pathway to certain pleasures that have been unknown to westerners. This will leave your mind uncluttered and you’ll be forced to live in the moment. You don’t have to thank me and the smile on your face is thanks enough. If she wasn’t careful, I was going to take flight into the stratosphere of my own orgasm. She was a master at this technique and could elicit a response from me that was more animalistic than anything else.

“I haven’t even thought about business from the moment that you started to puncture my skin with these needles. I’m not much for watching somebody get a needle and I have to turn away. This is different and it’s like you are connecting my body and soul as one. I don’t know where you learned this from, but you are a testament to your profession. I’m in good hands. You know what you’re doing. The only thing that I ask is that you don’t go too far. I want that build up until I can’t take it.” She continued to manipulate those needles.

I jumped several times in a spastic fit with my whole body shaking and trembling underneath her touch. She finally extracted those needles one at a time. I felt more in touch with nature and with my sexual self. There was a sense of anticipation in the air. The euphoria of having those needles penetrate my body was not even near enough. I wanted something quite imposing. He had that something that I wanted and this time I was not going to allow anybody to get in the way.

“If I thought that I had a chance with August, I would take it. He has only eyes for you and I don’t think that he even gave me the once over or undressed me with his eyes. I know that you did and maybe that’s something that you should explore with August. Being with him has opened up a whole new you. You’ve broken free of the only obstacle that was in your way the entire time. You have been your own worst enemy. What I did here today is a temporary fix. I request that you come back once a week for a repeat treatment. Couples break up because they can’t communicate or show the kind of affection that will keep them coming back for more.” Lily got my body humming a different tune.

“This has been very enlightening. It would probably be a good idea that August return here with me. He needs this more than I do. I don’t really know what we’re going to do about Michael and his father. I probably shouldn’t have said anything and I don’t want it to get out by some kind of gossip between you and your friends and colleagues. I’m asking for your discretion and I hope that you will abide by my wishes. There’s a big tip in it for you for your silence.” I showed her $100 bill and her eyes went wide like she hadn’t seen that kind of cash before.

“Behind these doors is a safe haven for you to talk openly without judgment or condemnation. What happens here stays here. You’re not the first one to ask for my silence and you won’t be the last. August would make a great candidate for acupuncture. I think that you’ll find that he’ll be more receptive if you were to mention it beforehand.” I got up feeling a little lightheaded, but that was to be expected from having my inner being aligned. I felt like I was connected to everything. Sex was going to take on a whole new meaning.

I hadn’t even thought that the Chinese had special techniques when it came to sexual pleasure. This trip was interesting and getting more so by the minute. Westerners didn’t have a patent on sexual discovery.

“I’m glad that you said that. I made some interesting noises and I doubt that it was anything that you haven’t heard before. I had to let it out. There was no way that I could keep something like that to myself. You hijacked my body. I’m surprised that I was able to let things go so easily. I think that is the influence of having August as a role model and mentor. He’s more than that. He’s my friend, partner in business and soon to be wild lover in bed.” Lily had to be there for me with a cold glass of water after feeling dehydrated.

I had the fortune to sit in a sauna that was infra-red and it made me sweat through my pores. It left me docile and her suggestion about acupuncture didn’t make me afraid like it should have. I was feeling ready to charge ahead and do what was needed to make this work. August said that he had gotten a very odd message from the researcher in his law firm. I had to hope that it was good news.

“You came in here as tight as a drum and you are leaving relaxed and sexually open. I learned my English from television shows and movies. This thing that you have with August is something that you need to do something about. You know exactly what I’m talking about. Everything else will fall into place one way or the other. It’s a matter of timing and there are no words that can express the way that you feel. Words are empty without actions. Do yourself a favor and take the bull by the horns. He might treat you like a fragile doll that is going to break, but you are stronger than that. Don’t let him handle you with kid gloves. Throw your misconceptions into the fireplace with those broken glasses and do what they do on the discovery channel. We don’t get that here, but I’ve heard others speak of it from your neck of the woods.” She was kneeling in front of me, holding the glass and letting me drink from the cup.

“I sometimes get the impression that we’re going against the natural order of things. Every time that we are close to being together something comes around to tear us apart. Old boyfriends and girlfriends aside, there has to be a payoff after everything that we have been through. I just hope that we are not stuck between a rock and a hard place. I’m going to tell everybody that you are the best and that they should come here before they go anywhere else. Word of mouth is what is good for business.” I felt that hunger for my man and it came from those open pathways that she had amazingly worked wonders with.

“Everything happens in its own time. You may veer from your path from time to time, but you always find a way to get back on track. It’s obvious that you were meant to be together. You can’t let business be the focus for the reason why you’re here in China. The payoff that you are looking for is in your hands. It has been there this whole time. You already know that, but you have decided to hide from it” Lily held my hand and I could feel tingles of excitement running up and down my lower extremities.

“We should’ve done something about this attraction between the two of us a long time ago. We let our fears dictate our lives. I’m through doing that.” I held her hand and there was real strength coming from those little fingers. It was as if she was touched by an angel and given a profound gift to give pleasure to others. I’m sure that if I had asked for it that a happy ending might’ve been negotiated. I could see myself experimenting. I couldn’t say that before I met August. He was letting me play in the sandbox. I didn’t have to believe that sex was one sided in the male’s favor. I deserved more than that and I wasn’t going to settle for anything less.

“Our culture was born from marriages of convenience. Our fathers were the ones that made the decision on which family to marry us into. I broke from that and they have never looked at me the same way again. I send them money and they send it back without even a note. We can’t live for others. The only person that we have to be better than is ourselves.” Lily helped me to get dressed. She was very caring and compassionate and she made me feel at ease in your presence. It was a spiritual awakening.

“It is a beautiful city with riches and wonders that have yet to be discovered by myself or August. If you could suggest a couple of places that we should visit, then that would go a long way to helping him to realize that he made the right decision by coming here.” She put up a finger. She grabbed a pen and paper and began to scribble madly like a woman possessed.

“I wrote down a few places that most tourists will never see. I also mentioned in that same note a few supplements. They will give you a virility that you didn’t know that you had. Get him to take it at the same time and the physical connection that you have together will be stronger than ever. The one that I would suggest and worked wonders for me is the deer antler.” The supplements that she was talking about was those things that you could find in nature.

I found myself hugging her and then rushing back to the penthouse with only one thing on my mind. It had nothing to do with business and everything to do with getting him out of his pants and his underwear at the same time. I was going to kick this into high gear and it didn’t matter what he did to prevent me from attacking him.

Chapter five

I waited for 2 hours and then I heard the door open and the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs. I got up and I lay back against the bed in a compromising position with legs spread and my intention quite obvious from the way that I was dressed in that same lingerie.

The door opened and I saw him staring at me and then dropping whatever papers he had in his hands. “I think that you might be a little underdressed. Dinner is served downstairs.” I tried to reach for a robe by the door, but he snatched it from my hands and made me stand there. “On second thought, there’s no reason for you to get dressed up. What you’re wearing will suffice nicely. I also have some potentially good news, but I think that can wait until later.” August took my hand and made me walk ahead of him. I could feel him staring at me and the way that my panties were wedged up into the crack of my ass.

He wanted to enjoy the view from the back. There was definitely a new skip in his step. The weight on his shoulders was gone and in place was the man that I had professed my love for.

“I took the liberty of ordering off menu.” The glint in his eye told me that he was up to something. “Please, take a seat and you’ll find that most of these dishes incorporate a certain magic mushroom that is known to the locals. I don’t know the pronunciation, but it’s said to be a very potent part of their sex life.” I put the deer antler in jerky form in front of him. I told him of the significance of it. We were both thinking the same thing.

“The one thing that we don’t need any help with is getting in the mood. I can already see that you are happy about something.” He looked down and the bulge that was trying to escape his trousers was not average by any means.

The food was delicious and the mushrooms and deer antler did complement the dish precisely as advertised. I was a little nervous and being this vulnerable and exposed left me with chills running up and down my spine. He dropped his napkin and then he disappeared under the table. I knew exactly what he was up to and I didn’t dare look. I continued to eat when I felt a pair of hands spreading my legs. Those fingers crept up along the garters, snapping them once to garner a yelp of surprise from my mouth.

I could feel his hot breath on the thin fabric of my blood red panties. I felt the touch of his wet and agile tongue. It wasn’t direct contact, but it was certainly a tease for better things to come. His hands were lightly touching the inside of my thighs igniting that ember into a full-blown blaze.

“I hope that you know what you are…DOING.” I lost my speech as his fingers delicately moved away the only obstacle that was preventing him from seeing me. I felt his one finger draw a straight line down until he penetrated. I pushed against him to see how far that finger would go until it was past the second knuckle. The grip in which I held him in my embrace must’ve given him an idea of what he was in for.

“Put yourself into my hands and I promise that you won’t regret it.” The tip of his tongue moved ever slowly from my knee all the way up to the inside of my thighs. I didn’t need to see what he was doing to know what roadmap he was using to get there. I had this feeling that he had a very profound conversation with Lily before he left. “You taste delicious and I haven’t even sampled the best part. I just hope that you don’t suffocate me.” That was a promise that I couldn’t make because I didn’t know that I would be able to keep it.

“Oh, my…that does leave me a little heated and it has nothing to do with the temperature in the room.” I held the table, willing myself to be in the moment and feeling like the acupuncture had lessened the control that Michael had over what was going to happen.

That tongue came in direct contact with my clit for a brief moment before taking it away. I made an audible gasp that I was sure was music to his ears. He drove the point of his tongue like a spear until I was slamming my hands down on the table with more than an encouraging word. The explicit language would’ve made a grown sailor blush.

He was darting his tongue in and out of my body with a precision that had me feeling like he was some kind of serpent. He was showing that he was in control. This was a man that had a lot to offer. His experience was doing wonders for my libido.

I had to push away from the table, panting like an animal in heat and placing my foot in those high heels up on his forehead to prevent him from touching me like that anymore. He looked a little disappointed, but I didn’t want to reach the end of my rope that quickly.

“Your patience will be rewarded. There’s no point in getting too hot to handle. I want this night to live in infamy in both of our minds. Our first time will be a long drawn out affair with the both of us having the chance to explore each other’s bodies. I believe that you are in a position to carry me up those stairs and into the bedroom where the action will take place.” Most men wouldn’t be up to that task and my weight was a major issue back in the day. Those guys that had come before were toxins that had to be excised from my body like demons. He was the answer to all of my dreams coming true. I wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“I think that I can handle that.” He lifted me easily into his arms with my legs kicking in an overanxious way. “I can’t wait to get you out of this thing. It looks good on you, but I think that it would look even better on the floor. I don’t know why, but I would like you to keep on the stockings and high heels. There’s just something about them that makes my motor run even higher than it already is.” He walked with ease up those stairs, not sweating one bit or making me feel like I was a burden.

He laid me down on the bed after uncovering the sheet. The cool and crisp feeling against my skin was only making me hungry for more. I grabbed him by his belt and pulled him into me with his tongue stabbing into my mouth. I was doing two things at the same time. It was awkward with the way that he was kissing me. I did manage to undo his belt and then unzip his pants to feel the heat of his loins striking against my fingertips.

I made a conscious effort to go fishing and I found that the bait of my cock hungry body was enough to draw him out. He was quite advanced in his development. It was saluting like a good soldier with the large helmet already showing a sheen of his excitement. I used my thumb and I got better acquainted with what was going to be plunging deep within the scorching lust between my thighs.

I took a hold of his shaft, hearing him moan in response as I began to draw the skin up over the head. I did this several times and I was quite happy to see the results dripping down the sides. I was on my knees and I had to break the contact of his lips. He had my lipstick smeared across his mouth and I was going to do the very same thing for another part of his anatomy.

“I’ve been thinking about this for a long time. For weeks, I fantasized about what it would be like to be with you. It seems so surreal that we are here together. I thought that you saw me as a lost cause. I didn’t like the way that you made me feel, but it was for the best.” My mouth was near the object of my desire. I stuck out my tongue and tasted the byproduct of his desire for me. It was sticky and sweet. I wanted more where that came from.

“I was wondering how you were going to taste and I have to say that I’m pleasantly surprised.” I sealed my lips over top of him and drew him into the back of my mouth. I eased him into my throat with his balls touching my chin in a very erotic way.

“I don’t think that I could ever dream something like this. I can feel the heat from your mouth and the way that your tongue curls around me. I want to hold off, but I’m not sure how long I can under this kind of torture.” I wasn’t about to let him prematurely end the party before it began. I knew when he was going to be ready and that was when I was going to take a page out of the oldest profession in the book.

If they wanted repeat customers, then they had to do something spectacular that would have them coming back each and every time. I slowed down the pace in which my lips were gliding up and down the length of him. The salty taste of his seed only compelled me to take what I wanted.

I could feel his hand running through my hair and holding the back of my head. I gave him about 5-minutes of my oral expertise and then I took it away with no explanations. He was soaking wet and he wasn’t the only one. The panties that I was wearing had a stain in them. He pushed me backward and lifted my legs in the air while grabbing my panties with his teeth.

He pulled them ever slowly up along my large and silky legs. He growled like an animal and then twisted his head to the side with the panties flying until they were flung over the lampshade. I don’t think that he could’ve done that again in much the same way.

“You have brought out the animal in me and you have only yourself to blame. You can see what you do to me. This is what happens every time that I’m near you. Let this be a reminder that you have more power than you think you do over a man. Take a stance against Michael and I think that you’ll find the respect that you’re due.” He had that mushroom tip against my sex and I had to get up on my elbows to watch as every inch sank into the deep confines of my sweetness.

I locked my legs around him with my ankles cinched to keep him as close as possible. He had stuffed me full and I was enjoying the feeling more with every stroke that he gave me. The rhythm was slow and agonizing, but it didn’t remain like that for long.

“If I brought the animal out of you, then you have brought the woman out of me. Believe me; it’s not something that I say lightly. Please, take me and let me feel the fire that burns out of control between us. Taste my skin and know that everything that I am is because of you.” The way that he was making love to me was gentle but firm. There was a need that surpassed all others in his eyes. They crackled with electricity. I was the one that was responsible for that.

“I was worried that we were only fooling ourselves. I see now that I didn’t need to worry at all. We are compatible in ways that exceed my expectations. I can feel the way that you hang onto me and it’s very hard to pull out. That bead of sweat running down between your breasts is what I’m using to keep myself in check.” I thrust my body in the air, wrapped my hands around him and felt the jerk of his hips as he continued to supply me with the kind of pleasure that women everywhere would be jealous of. The mattress was moving against the wall and soon the headboard was cracking against the plaster and making it rain.

“Yes… God damn it…this is what I want and I never thought that I could…HAVEEEEEEEE.” My climax was legendary with this earthquake between my legs that had me seeing stars dancing before my vision. Those inner muscles worked him over into a frenzy. They were massaging that stick of dynamite that had already been lit before we had entered the room.

His movements became more erratic, but he never slowed down until he got that telltale look on his face. The floodgates opened. This continued almost a full minute before he finally slumped forward on top of me. I could hear his heart beating and I thought for sure that this was the end of our time together. I reached down and felt that his semi-erect state told a different story. We had only begun and I had a feeling that there wasn’t going to be a whole lot of sleep had tonight.

Chapter six

By morning, we were exhausted and spent with the sheets curled around us and lying on the floor. I was lying against him with my head on his shoulder. He had his arms wrapped around me and was whispering sweet nothings in my ear.

“I’ve never been more satisfied in my life, Amanda. I think that you have ruined me for other women. I don’t think that I’ll be able to look at one without thinking that they can’t hold a candle to you. The way that you moved was like an alley cat. You purr like a kitten, but you growl like a lion. I think that I might have bitten off more than I can chew. I might die, but I will die with a happy smile on my face.” They were the sweetest words that any man had ever said to me.

“I don’t even know where to begin. I have nothing left to give. We really did have some time to make up for. That had to be the best that I’ve ever had it. You were so responsive to my needs that it felt like we were connected more spiritually.” I didn’t want to break the spell that we were under. This was our own little world and we had captured a memory for posterity.

“I wasn’t the only one that was responsive. You were definitely not shy about telling me what you needed. For the most part, I already knew what to do, but it was nice to know that you weren’t afraid to speak your mind. I lost count after the fifth time how many times you came. I had three climaxes myself and that’s an all-time record. I’ve never actually gone all night before without some sort of pharmaceutical aid. The little blue pill really does come in handy from time to time. I can assure you that I didn’t need it this time. I just needed the right woman to push my buttons in just the right way.” I knew that there was something that I was forgetting and then it dawned on me that he had mentioned the potentially good news.

“You made all the blood from my head rush to another part of my body. Now that I’m thinking straight, I would like to know what you meant when you said that you had potentially good news. There is definitely a change in your attitude. I know that some of that is courtesy of what I was wearing, but I don’t think that was the extent of it.” I touched his depleted member and the head was extra sensitive after going off that many times.

“The research advisor that I was telling you about came up with something that we might be able to use in our favor. Intellectual property is not the same as patents pending. I had the foresight before I went into this business to patent all of my designs. They can have us, but they can’t have our designs without both of us signing off on it. I know that they’re not going to like that, but that’s hard cheese.” He was smug, but if he had thought about this, then it was likely that their lawyers had already found a way to circumvent that very thing.

“We have one more day and then we will have to meet with Michael and his father to discuss things further. We can’t go off half-cocked. It does us no good to show how desperate we are. I’m glad that we waited and it made it that much more special. I don’t have any frame of mind, but I think that we might have broken the sound barrier. I know that I screamed until I was hoarse and you couldn’t stop moaning my name over and over again. I don’t think that there’s a better sound than hearing my name coming from your lips.” I moved my fingers over his sweaty skin and I knew that we were in major need of a shower for two.

“I’m ready for them this time and they won’t catch me with my pants down again. Fool me once shame on them, fool me twice and shame on me. The one thing that I do know from all of this is that we both need each other. I listened to you breathing last night and I could almost hear the things that you were dreaming about. When you opened up your eyes the truth came out about how much you love me. You tell me that you want me and that you need me more than the air that you breathe and I believe you.” August held me tightly and I think that he had the same sentiment that there was no better place than being in each other’s arms.

“When I hold you in my arms like this it’s like I’m home. You put me in the spotlight and made me perform for an audience of one. You can’t hide your emotions from me. You can from others, but I can see through the bravado.” I was quite content to lie in his arms forever, but that was only a pipe dream. Sooner or later, we were going to have to face our problems head on. We were together and nothing was going to conquer us.

“I’ve never felt more connected to anyone in my life. The dreams that I had were the most satisfying. They had to be about you. When I wake up with a smile, I know that it’s because you are with me, Amanda. There’s something about you that keeps me wide awake. I had a resurgence of energy last night that came over me like nothing that I have felt before. Usually, I’m good for one or maybe two, but last night I went beyond my wildest imagination.” Whenever I looked at him, I believed that I could do just about anything.

“August, you say the sweetest things and yet I don’t believe that they are lines. Men might say the damnedest things to get a woman into bed, but you are not like that. You might have been in the past, but you learned that there is a give and take to any relationship. That we need to continually work to better ourselves. We will have arguments and fight like cats and dogs, but we will never go to bed angry.” That was a promise that I was intending to keep.

“I am a little older than you, but I certainly didn’t expect you to be able to bend like that. Only contortionists can do some of those maneuvers. You’re very flexible and you always keep me guessing. Every time that I look at you, I feel like my heart is going to explode.” We finally had to go and take a shower and that was making it very hard on us not to have a repeat performance. It wouldn’t be long until we were throwing caution to the wind and there was still a whole lot of this penthouse suite that we had not taken advantage of.

He helped me to towel dry and I could feel his fingers lingering a little longer than necessary. When he bit one of my cheeks, I jumped out of my skin, but also laughed at the way that he couldn’t help himself. We were not conventional and the love that we shared was something that was written in the stars.

“You keep doing that and you know what’s going to happen. We haven’t even had a moment to step outside of his room for over 12-hours. We need to nourish our body. We need to get dressed and go someplace to have breakfast. Don’t worry; I plan to take full advantage of that body of yours. I don’t think last night was a fluke, but there’s only one way to find out. We need to practice and I’m not opposed to pushing the envelope.” I’d always wanted some man to use my breasts for their pleasure. Seeing him thrusting that last time straddling my chest was an awe-inspiring moment. The heat of his discharge was still on my skin.

“I keep thinking that what I have against them is not enough. That somehow they will turn the tables and have us looking like fools all over again. I’ve gone over what that researcher found and it is very well hidden. They would need somebody that is meticulous and won’t just gloss over the details. They think they have us over a barrel and they won’t even entertain the idea that we could be in the driver’s seat.” I saw him putting on his pants and I wanted to reach out and pull it back down to where he was accessible to my eager and hungry eyes.

“August, the one thing that we can’t do is accept everything on face value. We go in there armed to the teeth and ready to blow their world apart. We don’t let them get a word in edgewise and we hit them with this from the moment that we enter into the office. That will draw them into an offensive position. Be ready for them to play dirty. We’ve already witnessed that for ourselves and it’s not like they were very subtle about it. Michael got us here under false pretenses and they can’t be allowed to play with people’s lives like that. They need to know that there are consequences to their actions.” I put on a pair of jeans feeling like today was a day to go casual. I slipped a sweater over my head, but it didn’t exactly hide my otherwise endowment.

“I agree with you. We need to make sure that we have all of our bases covered. After breakfast, I suggest that we go into the office using our newly acquired key cards and do a little bit of reconnaissance. We can poke around and do some digging on our own. Let’s see if there are any skeletons in their closet that we can use against them. The kind of business that they do must’ve made them a fair supply of enemies. What I have is damning enough, but we want them to be in a position where they will have to work with us than against us. The only way that we’re going to be able to do that is to fight fire with fire.” It was a good idea, but Michael and his father didn’t get to where they were by being careless.

“Gossip might be normal for other offices, but I doubt that there are going to be any loose lips to be found. We will be lucky if we find anybody that is even remotely talkative.” I had my back towards him and then he was behind me with the abundance between his legs pressed up against me. I could feel it nestled between my cheeks and I was this close to unbuttoning and bending over for the occasion.

“We are both as bad as each other. Let’s get out of here and find someplace that is out of the way. I’m sure that the driver waiting to take us to wherever we want to go will have some ideas. I even have this place that is not known to the tourists.” I told him about my adventure with Lily. He was apprehensive, but he was at least willing to come with me the next time.

“I do like the way that you think. You make me feel like I’m a fish out of water. I don’t necessary like that feeling, but having a woman like you makes it palatable.” We closed the door and went downstairs to retrieve our jackets by the front door.

I looked at him and I still couldn’t believe that I had landed a big fish like him. He seemed so unattainable. Girls were flocking to him. He had found a reason to be close to me instead of pushing me away. Even when I didn’t respond to his overtures, he still kept me around because he knew that I was a value to his company.

“The way that you are thinking has rubbed off on me. I look at things differently than I did before. Guys like you were a dime a dozen, but you were that hidden gem that I had to uncover. I think in some small way that you were hiding from your feelings. Rejection is never easy and you never let anybody close enough to break your heart. I’m glad that you were willing to open up to me. It wasn’t easy and it was like pulling teeth.” I opened the door and Michael was standing there with a tray and a smile on his face. It appeared that their business trip had been cut short and he decided to stop in on his newest acquisition.

Chapter seven

“My father is downstairs and he will be up here shortly. I know that this is shorter notice that I had given you previously, but I can’t help that. I can only hope that you have come to your senses. Fall in line and you’ll be fed like fat pigs. Don’t and you’ll find yourself under litigation for breach of contract.” It was obvious that Michael had been sent ahead to smooth the troubled waters.

I was about to say something, but August interjected before I could get a word out. I was about to tell him that we were willing to work with him under certain conditions. It was his smug attitude that made me want to wipe that look off of his face.

“I think that it might be a little premature for us to talk about these things without your father present. I see that you brought us breakfast. We are famished and we appreciate the way that you have bent over backward to please us.” August was playing the game, but I could see the suspicion in Michael’s eyes like he was afraid that he was not seeing something that he should.

“Why is it that I get this feeling in the pit of my stomach? You are being way too kind and I expected more resistance than this. Tell me what has changed from the time that I saw you the other day to now. You must feel pretty damn cocky to stand in front of me not shaking in your boots. I don’t like being blindsided. My father’s not going to be very happy and you really don’t want to see his bad side.” August looked at Michael and didn’t give him the courtesy of saying anything more.

“I would say that you have gone above and beyond. This all looks very delicious. If I don’t miss my guess, I believe that you got this from the place across the street. I can never remember its name, but the owner is very rigid and his wife caters to those that enter.” Michael was fuming and August was enjoying playing with that Damocles sword over his head.

“I don’t like being ignored. I hope that you don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Trust me; my father is not one to be made a fool of.” Michael was pacing, wringing his hands and looking like a bit of the bluster had been blown out of him.

“You’re right, August and everything looks absolutely sumptuous.” I sat down and we both talked to each other leaving him out of the conversation altogether.

“I do like the way that they treat us. I’m not sure that I enjoy the way that they think that they have the upper hand. It’s interesting about what happens when you push an animal too far. They don’t just sit in the corner and lick their wounds. They find a way to fight back and use whatever is at their disposal to give their enemy something to think about. You would think that somebody with that kind of business acumen would know that there are several ways to skin a cat.” He was alluding to the information that we had that was going to change everything.

“I don’t know what you’re getting at. Stop this before it goes any further. I’m pleading with you not to get into this with my father.” It was too late for that and Michael was now backpedaling like his life depended on it.

“That is more than enough groveling, Michael.” We were under the impression that his father didn’t speak English, but that was just another one of his lies. “Let these people eat their breakfast in peace. We can always discuss business afterward. It’s not like they’re going anywhere.” He had this self-important attitude that really did grate on my last nerve.

He grabbed a chair from nearby and sat down with a smirk on his face. He was looking back and forth between me and August. It was a very uncomfortable silence. He was waiting for us to say something.

We continued to talk about the weather or anything else that came to mind. It was our way of sticking it to him. It was a dangerous game and could easily blow up in our faces. I could see that Michael’s father was a time bomb ready to go off.

“I have to give my compliments to the chef. I think that we will be making that place a regular haunt for some time to come. That is if we can get past this pesky business of you wanting things your way. Your son was very forthright, but I believe that the words that he spoke come from you. He was just a puppet and you didn’t want to dirty your hands with this kind of business. I’m sure that you weren’t very happy when he came back and told you of the way that we reacted.” The plates were pushed aside and now they were both facing off like adversaries.

“I will not allow you to talk to my…” Michael was cut off by a hand gesture that had him cowering and bowing his head in servitude to his father.

“I don’t know why we are arguing about this. You either do what we say, or all of this will disappear and you can expect a battle that will stretch years in court. We take breach of contract very seriously in my culture.” He was laying down the law like he was the sheriff and we were lonely peasants.

“I have something to show you. It gives me great pleasure to do so.” He retrieved the portion of the contract that was going to leave him speechless and stunned. “If you would look at section five, paragraph seven, I think that you’ll find that everything is in order. This contract supersedes the one that I signed to come here to work. You really should know your enemy before you go casting stones at glass houses.” His facial expression changed from mild amusement to outright contempt.

“I see that we have come to an impasse. How do you suppose that we get past this? I’m open to ideas, but don’t think that you have me where you want me. I could easily just rip up the contract. I don’t want to and that is going to be my last resort.” Michael’s father was dressed impeccably with not a hair out of place. His fingers were manicured and I had no doubt that the rest of his body was summarily taken care of.

“You think that it’s a threat that you can tear up the contract but it’s not. You came to us and not the other way around. With that being said, you and your son have not even mentioned my partner’s name. That stops now. I don’t care how you feel about women in general and I won’t have you treating her like she’s nothing. I have more than enough money. Losing this contract would be unfortunate, but not life changing” It was time that I said something or they would just continue to use me as a doormat.

“August isn’t the only one in this room that has something to say. You can either agree to our terms to get the best from us or you can turn your attention to somebody else that you can have your thumb on. The one thing that I do know is that you will never have a design for a building that will have people in awe of the Nakamura enterprise. We’ve already proven ourselves time and time again. One client, in particular, is the measuring stick that you should be using.” I felt his glaring eyes, but I stood strong and did not cower like his son did.

“I know that things are changing. I won’t be conducting day to day business with you. That role will fall on my son. I will instruct him to make every allowance. I won’t dignify what you say with a response. As long as you both stay out of my way then maybe we can work together. I do find myself curious to find out what you will come up with. I doubt that I’m going to like it and that’s just a risk that the three of us are going to have to take.” He got up with a refined gesture and then he stepped towards the front door like he was still the master of all things.

“I almost forgot to mention an old friend of yours that wanted to say hello. Tanner Young is a name that I know that you know all too well. He was very talkative about certain things. If they were to come to light, then I don’t think that I have to tell you what would happen.” August had found out that there was a skeleton in the Nakamura closet. Tanner only alluded to something that would be a black eye to the Nakamura image. He didn’t say anything concrete, but the only thing that August needed was something to keep these people from breaking their word.

Michael’s father turned swiftly and he pointed at the both of us like he was chastising a little child after he had broken something of great value to his family. “Well played. I won’t forget about this. I’m just glad that I don’t have to see either one of you ever again. Any conversation will go through my son first. I might have underestimated you and I don’t think that I’ll be doing that again. You can tell Tanner from me that I won’t be causing any more problems. That’s not to say that I will automatically agree with any design that you come up with.” He walked out with Michael standing there not believing what he was seeing with his own eyes.

“I don’t know what that was about, but you actually scared him. Let me shake your hand. I’ve been trying to get his respect all of my life. I’m sorry that I gave you a hard time. I was just following orders like a good soldier. You don’t know how much I want this to work out. Working with the both of you is going to be my pleasure. Anybody that can take my father down a peg is OK in my books.” He bowed politely and then followed his father like a dutiful son.

“You know that bluffing at cards only leads to trouble. We don’t know anything about that skeleton in his closet. It’s a good thing that he thinks that we do. I think that we have a reason to celebrate. We’re going to have a good time tonight. You said all of that with a straight face. I’m not sure that I should be impressed or scared that you can lie through your teeth so easily.” I did enjoy the way that they had no choice but acknowledge my existence. I could see that it was easier for Michael than it was for his father. That was a man that had a certain way about him. He was used to using intimidation tactics like fine print in a contract.

“I’ve never been so turned on in my life. That was great, but what fueled my sexual appetite, even more, was putting that old man in his place. There was a crack in his stoic façade that I couldn’t stop smiling about.” He lifted me from the chair and placed my ample posterior on the table. He sat down and placed his head in my lap with my fingers moving through his short hair.

“It was interesting to see that switch turn on and off. This is not going to be easy, but in life, anything that is worth doing is worth doing the right way. I can only speak for myself, but I have this hunger that needs to be fed. Breakfast was good, but I’m sure that there is something that you can give me to wet my appetite.” I was alluding to the long and packed sausage in his pants. “We don’t have to be to work until tomorrow. We have all day and I think that we can make good use of that time in a constructive way.” He raised his head and lifted me once again into his arms.

“I think that you are a dirty girl in need of a good scrubbing. Let’s go see what we can do about using that sunken tub.” I had a feeling that there was going to be water everywhere.

I found out later that I was pregnant with his child. I was going to keep that to myself until there was a more advantageous time to spring this on him. We had spoken about children in the past and I knew that he wanted a big family. That was one thing that we had in common amongst others.

As he bounded up the stairs two steps at a time, I knew that the fire that we had for one another was never going to be contained. It didn’t matter what country we were in or what kind of workload we had. We would always have special moments just for us. I was looking forward to a bright future with the man that I loved.