13. River
Chapter Thirteen
RIVER
We’re in our sex bubble again. I can feel it before I open my eyes. Theodore is still in bed with me. I’d fallen asleep after the first time, and we’ve had lunch and showered since then, only to fall back into bed. We’re like Velcro, stuck to each other like we’re scared to awaken and find that it’s not real.
Theodore lies on his back, but the hand closest to me rests on my hip. He looks peaceful and relaxed. I still have moments where his attractiveness shocks me and the hints of gray only emphasize it. His lashes look darker like this. I didn’t get to watch him sleep last time. He was the one who’d awakened first. I’m not sure if he’s just tired or if it’s a sign of trust since sleeping is a vulnerable state. I watch the steady rise and fall of his chest before my eyes roam.
I cannot read some of his tattoos because they are in a different language. The 3D elephant tattoo on his hip is exposed because we’ve lost most of our covers. It looks so realistic, I almost expect to feel the tusks when I touch it. I feel a scar underneath the art and move my attention back up to the others.
I’m not an expert on scars, but I trace my fingers on the one along his ribs. I’d guess he was cut here. The raised one near his collarbone is round. It could be another stab or a bullet. I know his ailments have healed long ago, but I kiss the scar anyway. Theodore’s breathing changes as he wakes up. A soft smile plays on his lips with his slow exhale.
His phone rings, and he grabs one of his ear buds off the nightstand as he turns to face me. His fingers start at my shoulder, then slide down my arm like he’s never touched me before.
“Hello, Mrs. Kelly,” he says when he answers, but he’s looking me in the eyes with a smile tugging at his lips.
The mere thought of him addressing me as such makes my heart skip a beat.
He trails soft kisses down my arm as Helena talks. I know by the way he says “umhmm” that he's hardly listening. He's done that to a few overly chatty clients and employees.
"Oh, that's tonight?" He sounds genuinely surprised like he completely forgot. "An hour? Yeah, not gonna make it." Helena’s volume increases because she is not happy. "Something's come up."
He pokes my side with his erection as his fingers grip my ass.
"Dad joke," I mouth with a smile.
He smiles like he wants to laugh and pulls me on top of him.
"No," he answers Helena more firmly. "You'll be fine. You have no problem talking yourself up. No, I’m far from passive aggressive; it's a fact. You are your favorite subject." The look he gives me tells me to ride him. "Working it out doesn't mean I'm at your beck and call. You should have learned that by now. No, I’m not mad, just matching your effort.”
His hand tightens on my hip as I slide down onto him. He clenches his jaw, his eyes closing for a second as I take him all the way inside of me. I bite my lip to keep from moaning out loud. Never in a million years have I ever wanted to be the woman who’s secretly sexing a married man, especially not while he’s on the phone with his wife, but it's hard to feel like I’m doing anything wrong with Theodore. I feel so much when he touches me. It’s different from anything I’ve ever experienced. His blue eyes roam over my body, full of lust and something softer, like I’m something he’ll never get over. It’s something I want but wouldn’t dare to dream of having. I don’t know if he’ll leave Helena, and I can’t be a mistress forever. Pushing the thought aside, I focus on what I can control right now.
Theodore grunts when I roll my hips, then covers it with a cough.
“I’m hanging up now. I’m busy.” Helena says something else, but his hand is on my abdomen again as he focuses on me. Theodore sits up until we’re nose to nose, trapping me in a cerulean stare. “Thank you.” It’s barely audible as his lips graze mine, expressing his gratitude. I don’t know if it’s the hormones, but it almost makes me cry. This baby is his dream. He nips at my bottom lip with such sexual promise that I almost forget he’s on the phone. “Bye, Helena. I have work to do.”
His tone is neutral, but his words make me shudder. Theodore glances back at the phone to verify the call is disconnected, then grabs the back of my head with his fingers in my hair. He kisses me hard like he’s been denied the privilege too long. I’ve never felt like I’m being consumed, but there is no other way to describe the intensity of his attention.
Like any woman with eyes, I knew he was attractive. I had to push it out of my mind while interviewing, but seeing him being broody while running the club was a bonus job perk. I didn’t think past the eye candy factor, and now I know how he feels inside of me and the way his skin tastes. I can’t say it’s love since there is so much we don’t know about each other, but I felt like an addict going through withdrawals in Atlanta.
“I used to touch myself to the memory of the night we shared,” I confess against his lips like a dumbass.
He hums like my confession is music to his ears. “I’d love to watch that.” I drop my hand between us and rub my sensitive nub, moaning at the added sensation.
Theodore leans back on his hands to watch. “That’s right, River. Fuck yourself for me. Use my dick like a sex toy.”
The huskiness in his tone is enough for me to do almost anything for him. I find my rhythm between riding him and stimulating my clit. Each pass delivers a small shock of pleasure that I feel in my nipples. I close my eyes, getting lost in the sensation while taking in the sounds coming from Theodore. It’s so hot doing it this way.
“Open your eyes,” he grits out, showing just how much he’s enjoying it. “I love knowing that I’m the only thing on your mind when you come.”
“You are the only thing that makes me come,” I tell him right before I fall over the edge.
My head drops back as I ride out my orgasm; Theodore takes advantage of my position by placing open-mouthed kisses on my throat. He sighs my name as I calm down. I haven’t lied to stroke his ego. I wasn’t known to come easily, but he gets me there far more often than most. It must be our connection. I don’t know all his deep, dark secrets, but he’s opened up to me in other ways that I don’t think most people see.
Theodore takes over from underneath, now using my body to get him there. It feels like his dick swells inside of me before he comes. He sinks his teeth into my chin as he fills me. That sensation will never get old.
I push away my other concerns. While this may not be a sustainable arrangement, it’s all I have of him for now. The rest will still be there tomorrow. Tonight, I’ll just enjoy him like he’s enjoying me and pray that the morning will not find us in an awkward space like we were the last time.
Theodore’s lawyer called me the morning after Theodore left to schedule my interview with the Kellys. Per Mr. Kelly’s request, I am to interview like I’m a potential surrogate and not as someone who’s already pregnant. At least that’s how the lawyer said it. Now I sit in a room with two other blackish women. I say blackish, because one looks like she could be black, but I’m not completely sure and am not about to ask her to break down a damn thing. Not because I see her as competition, but because her racial makeup is her business to share if she wants.
The other woman gets called first. I try not to fidget. I’m not scared of Helena, but I’m not interested in the headache. Knowing Theodore, he didn’t tell her I was one of the potentials and I know she’s going to act like an idiot. I don’t want Helena to raise my child any more than I want her to still be married to Theodore, but I’m not here for her. I’m just going through the motions because I don’t know if she has any hold over him, but the baby could expedite their end since I’m almost one hundred percent sure he’d pick his child over his nightmare.
It takes about an hour until I’m walking into the lion’s den. It’s a simple room within the lawyer’s firm. They sit side by side in two chairs while one chair faces them. A small table sits between them.
Helena sees me first and grabs Theodores hand and kisses his knuckles. I shouldn’t feel territorial, as he is her husband, but part of me hopes she chips her tooth on his elephant ring. Theodore takes his hand back and sits back in his chair, crossing one leg over the other. He clasps his hands together and rests them in his lap.
Their looks are polar opposites. Helena glares at me so hard she fails to notice how her husband bites his bottom lip between his teeth while his gaze rakes over my bare legs. I catch his wink just before his wife starts her interrogation.
“What the hell are you doing here? Why would you think I’d allow you into our lives this way? If you think-”
“That’s enough, Helena. Be quiet unless you’re asking an actual interview question.”
She snaps her head in Theodores direction. “Why would you allow this, knowing I wouldn’t like it?”
He shrugs and looks her in the eyes. “I didn’t care about your opinion. I have to spend more time with the surrogate than you do. She had to walk away from her job because of a lie; surrogacy is a job. Plus, she meets all the criteria set by you.”
Helena huffs, although her cheeks tint in embarrassment. “I doubt that,” she mutters.
Theodore starts the interview, and I answer questions about my health and eating habits. Helena reads the questions but doesn’t listen to my answers or take notes on anything I’ve said. I’m not surprised because I’d be the same if I had to interview her for something. I know it’s not the last of her jabs. The next one comes towards the end of the interview.
Theodore is trailing his fingers across his bottom lip while he makes dirty promises with his eyes. I shift my weight by recrossing my legs. I’m stuck between being turned on by him and being pissed off with Helena.
“Any more toxic relationships that have you hiding from dangerous men? You can't be pregnant and on the run,” she adds, like it’s a normal situation to be in often.
“No,” I respond firmly, trying to hold in my temper.
“Think about this, Theo, I’ve read that babies get their intelligence from their mother.” Helena looks at me with judgment shining in her eyes, and I’ve had enough.
“Then it’s good that you’re seeking surrogates.”
Theodore keeps a blank face, but his lips twitch slightly with amusement. I didn’t come here to battle with Helena or amuse Theodore, but this is part of the process.
“You don’t know anything about me, you street rat.”
Of course she’d go to insults. “No. Your bio is online. One of the perks of being famous. You don’t know anything about me, and it shows. I received my undergrad in Engineering from Princeton, then went on to get my MBA at Berkeley.” I wave the folder filled with my accomplishments. “With Distinction,” I add. “I have the bills to prove it. Corporate life is soul sucking and draining. I chose to leave to follow my passion. I moved here specifically to work for Mr. Kelly since it’d be excellent real-world training. In case you don’t know anything about your in-laws, the Kelly family is one of the most successful winemakers in the United States. Who better than the son of that empire to test my wine knowledge before taking my master sommelier certification test?”
This is not news to Theodore, as we covered it in my bartender interview. That’s why he allows me to make wine suggestions all the time. He only steps in if he disagrees, then we discuss it later. If Helena showed more interest in her husband’s business, she’d know my employment was practically a paid internship. He and I had only talked about work and my wine classes until the day I hid under his desk.
Done with the interview, I stand and drop my folder on the table between them. Theodore still looks like he’s ready to pounce.
“Unless you can solve complicated mathematical equations, I suggest you never question my intelligence again, ballerina.”
I’m not saying ballerinas are stupid, I’m not even saying Helena is stupid. She must have had some level of intelligence to have strung Theodore along so long, but what she needs to understand is that she didn’t take the path of a scholar and shouldn’t act like she’s smarter than everyone.
I don’t stick around for her rebuttal. The process is stupid anyway. I can hear the arguing from the other side of the door, but I don’t attempt to listen. I’m halfway down the hall, when the door slams and Helena storms off in the opposite direction.
"River."
I turn to see Theodore standing outside of the room. His sexy body is covered in a navy suit with a matching vest. I tried not to focus on how good the suit looks with the contrasting white tie, but now I can’t help but stare openly. He crooks his finger in a ‘come here’ motion, then disappears back in the room. I shouldn’t feel excitement shooting up my spine. I should turn and walk away from the drama, but part of me feels it’ll make it worse. I try to run possibilities through my head to keep from being disappointed if I’ve read the situation wrong.
Fully believing that he’s going to lecture me on keeping my cool with Helena, I push open the door.
“Lock it,” he orders me without looking my way.
I do what he says. He’s still looking out of the window, watching Helena speed off in her Supernova Red Aston Martin Vantage. Theodore’s jacket is gone, and he’s rolling his shirt sleeves up to his elbows.
Satisfied, he turns to me and is in my face in two strides. I’m pressed against the door with his hand gripping my thigh to pull my leg up to his hip before I can take my next breath. My senses are assaulted with everything Theodore; the feel of him, his warmth, and his scent.
“You’re such a tease,” he growls.
“All I did was come to the interview you scheduled,” I protest, loving the way his lips feel on my neck.
“In stilettos and a dress that screams fuck me ?”
I don’t get the chance to tell him that this is the closest to an interview outfit I had since I packed light because his lips cover mine, taking a hungry kiss. He rips my panties, and I’m under his spell again, willing to have him any way I can. Breaking the kiss, he stares at me while he opens his pants. Some of his hair has fallen into his face, breaking his outward appearance of perfection. I brush the hair away as he enters me, taking me back to our night in the hotel three days prior. It’s the best kind of intrusion.
“Damn, Kelly,” I moan.
“Say it again.”
“What?”
“My last name.”
“Kelly. Mr. Kelly.”
He drops his head to the side and inhales deeply, as if hearing me say his last name is an aphrodisiac.
Theodore’s eyes are darker than I’ve ever seen when he speaks again. “It’s time to learn what happens when you tease me.”