8. SOFIA
8
SOFIA
T he hotel was incredible. The contrast between the town falling apart when we drove through it and the luxury and opulence of this place was insane.
My room wasn’t just a room. It was an entire suite, and it was amazing. Modern and sleek and everything was so comfortable it looked like I’d stepped right into one of those home magazines where they showed the biggest mansions.
The full-length windows let in loads of natural light, and when I slid open the doors, stepped out onto the balcony, the sea breeze tasted like the ocean, and it was cool and welcoming on my skin.
Ben was a pain in my ass, and being here on the project with him might be harder than I’d thought at first. Not because we’d slept together but because he was a total grump.
Despite that, I was going to make sure I brought my best to the table.
And staying in a place like this made the deal a little sweeter.
The bedroom was larger than my whole apartment, with an enormous bed in the middle, a walk-in closet as if I was going to stay here for weeks, and the kind of bathroom that I’d only read about in books.
The deep soaking tub was going to be my first stop tonight. The glass-enclosed shower had a waterfall shower head and everything had marble finishes. The vanity was stocked with all kinds of skincare products, even though I’d packed the few things I usually used.
This trip was going to be fun.
I dialed Elena’s number.
“You’re not going to believe what this place is like,” I said when she answered. “Seriously, it’s like I died and went to five-star heaven or something.”
“You have to show me,” she said.
I put my phone on video call and gave her a quick tour of the suite.
“You’re so lucky,” Elena said after she’d gushed about every individual thing I’d shown her. “I can’t believe the perks you’re getting with this job!”
“The perks come at a cost,” I grumbled. “Ben is a pain in the ass, and I’m putting it politely.”
“Really? He seemed so nice the night we met him, and you were worried about working with him because he’s nice and might be a problem in that way?”
“Well, that won’t be a problem anymore. I’ve heard rumors about Ben, but when I spent that first night with him, he was so different from what I’d heard. Now I realize the rumors were true.”
“They usually start because of something real, even if they tend to grow into something a little more embellished,” Elena said.
“I guess that’s true. I’m going to unpack. Keep me company?”
“Sure,” Elena said, and I put her on speaker phone.
I unpacked my things into the walk-in closet. I didn’t mind living out of a suitcase for the duration of the time we were here, but the walk-in closet was something I dreamed about having one day, and I was going to make full use of this luxurious trip.
If this was what traveling with the Blackwoods was like, I would capitalize while I could. Even though my income was decent, I would never be able to afford something like this.
“So, tell me about this pain in the ass,” Elena said while I arranged my shoes.
“He’s just so grumpy,” I said. “Nothing seems to make him happy. He takes all the great stuff for granted and he doesn’t even care about the people that work their asses off to make it happen for him.”
“I think it might be different when he hasn’t known anything else his entire life. I mean, you don’t know any different from what you’re taught, right?”
“I guess so,” I said. “But I still think he’s a bit snooty. He doesn’t really care about any of the people around him. How can he spearhead a project that helps people when he doesn’t care about people?”
Elena couldn’t argue with me about that.
“Maybe it will be different when you work with him and get to know him a little better.”
“You’re totally taking his side.”
“I’m not. I’m just trying to look at both sides. You know there are always different sides to a story.”
Elena always looked at the glass half-full, and she always tried to see the different sides of things. She played devil’s advocate because she liked to see the humanity in everything.
And it was a very humble thing to do.
I just didn’t like that when Ben was rude to me she wanted to tell me he had some kind of good reason for it. Because after the way our first night together had gone, the rudeness hadn’t been expected. It was like snuggling in a warm bed, only for someone to dump a bucket of ice-cold water on my head.
Someone knocked on my door.
“I have to go,” I said to Elena. “I’ll let you know how things go.”
“I’m anxiously waiting by my phone,” she said, and I could hear the laughter in her voice.
We ended the call, and I walked to the door.
Ben stood in front of me. He was six foot four, maybe more, and as broad as he was tall, with muscles for days.
Don’t focus on his body.
“Hi,” he said evenly, his face an expressionless mask.
“Hey.” I wasn’t sure what he wanted.
“Is your room fine?”
“Yeah,” I said. “It’s really great, actually.” I was gushing.
Stop gushing. Act like this is normal.
“How about yours?”
“Oh,” he said and frowned. “Yeah, I guess it’s fine.”
I nodded, and an awkward silence stretched between us. His eyes slid down my body, slowly, and I almost felt his gaze like a physical touch. A sudden rush of heat washed over me.
Ben’s eyes locked on mine again—they weren’t the warm, melted chocolate they usually were—they’d become darker, filled with desire.
“We have a meeting with the investor tomorrow at lunch.”
“Oh,” I said. “Okay. I’ll be ready.”
“I’ll send you the details.”
He could have just called or sent me the details without coming to talk to me in person. His eyes were filled with need, echoing the need that had settled in my bones after that languid stare all over my body, but Ben’s voice was as cold and controlled as always.
“I’ll see you tomorrow. If you need something, anything, you can call the front desk. I’ll cover whatever, so don’t hold back.”
The way he said it sounded sexy.
“Thank you.”
He nodded curtly, but he hesitated for a second, lingering, before he turned and walked away.
I watched him walk to his own door. His shirt stretched across his broad back, and his torso was like an inverted triangle, that muscular body narrowing to delicious hips in those pants that would look so much better on the floor.
Stop it!
God, what was I doing? Ben was a grump. He was rude and he didn’t care about people. There was no reason to be drawn to him. Nothing about him was attractive.
Except… that was a lie.
Everything about him was attractive.
Even the way he was grumpy with me, and still suggested that I enjoy myself.
Well, if he wanted me to enjoy myself, that was exactly what I was going to do.
I walked to the phone and ordered a bottle of wine. The concierge was nice enough to suggest a bottle of Ch?teau Margaux. He’d explained to me that it was an exquisite Bordeaux with a smooth texture. And since I was used to the cheap kinds of wine that came with a screw top, this was the epitome of pampering.
While I waited for room service, I ran a bath. The bath had jets, and I added bubble bath from the well-stocked vanity.
The wine arrived, and I poured myself a glass before stripping. The bathroom had a dimmer—a dimmer —and I turned the lighting down low. I wished I had some candles to add to the mood, but this was incredible.
I sank into the bubbles with my wine and sighed as every bit of tension bled out of my muscles.
It was impossible to be tense in a bubble bath with the kind of wine that made me feel like I was floating.
After two glasses, my head was sufficiently light, and I felt like my blood had fizzy bubbles in it. I leaned back in the bath, letting the bubbles and the jets caress my body.
I flashed on Ben and his muscular back. God, he was so incredibly attractive. And I knew what that back looked like without the shirt, too.
The way he’d looked at me when he’d come to tell me about the meeting, in person, had been so hot. It had been the same kind of look he’d given me the night we’d met at Jester.
He’d been so off with me since we learned we had to work together, but there was no denying the heat in his stare earlier.
What was going on in his head? Why was he giving me such mixed signals?
Or maybe it was all in my head.
Still, thinking about the way he’d looked at me turned me on, and the way the water massaged my skin like a physical touch and the warmth…
I put my wineglass down and slid my hands over my body. I closed my eyes, and I let the memories and the water play over my skin.
The water made everything slick and wet, and I massaged my breasts.
I thought about the way his hands had felt on me, his skin rough and his hands large and strong, but he’d been so gentle. His lips had been hot and delicious, tasting me, his body hard against mine as he’d grinded against me. My skin tingled and my body ached for a release. I imagined him pushing into me, filling me up, stretching me, and I slid my hands down, pushing my fingers between my folds. I moaned when I touched my clit, already throbbing and sensitive with need. I stroked the little bud and my hips jerked. My legs fell apart and the water splashed as I stroked myself faster. The memories played through my head and I gasped and moaned.
In my mind’s eye, Ben’s large body covered mine, his arms planted on either side of my head, and his cock stroked in and out of me. It wasn’t just his size—it was his girth that stretched me out and made me shiver.
I pushed my fingers into my entrance, pumping them a few times, but it wasn’t the same as Ben’s fingers—long and strong and able to reach all the right spots when he pumped his hand into me.
I returned to my clit and flashed on Ben again, his muscles bulging as he bucked his hips and thrust into me, harder and faster.
I mimicked the imagined thrusts, matching the speed and intensity as I stroked myself and the heat of the water and my orgasm coiled together until my whole body tensed, and I came, crying out and shuddering.
My orgasm rippled through me, sending wave after wave of pleasure. I arched my back and twisted to the side, curling in the water, closing my legs around my hand as the orgasm took my breath away.
When the waves receded and my breathing slowed, I opened my eyes.
I was back in the bathroom, in my own tub, alone.
I gasped, trying to bring my breathing and my heart rate under control as I reached for my wineglass.
This wasn’t a good idea. I couldn’t make myself want him this much.
But it had just been in my mind, right? Ben wasn’t here and I hadn’t done anything wrong.
Who said I couldn’t fantasize about him?
Although I desperately wanted it to be real. But that couldn’t happen again, and with what a grump he was now, I was determined to not let him get to me in any way.
If he did, I could just do this again.
And pretend that it was enough.