Chapter 10
10
R AIN
The car is here to collect me at six o’clock sharp.
Thirty minutes later, I enter the luxury residential building, where the concierge girl shows me to a private elevator.
I thank her with a soft nod and slip in.
Later, I enter James’ place.
He takes off my cream coat, furtively observing my dark navy satin dress featuring a plunging neckline and split sleeves, complementing my art deco sapphire platinum necklace.
Gingerly fighting to keep my balance on my heels, I spin around to face him.
He sports a pair of black suit pants and a button-down fitted silver shirt that’s only highlighting his dark hair and fiery eyes.
His sleeves are neatly rolled up, revealing his muscular forearms.
He studies me as much as I examine him.
His eyes glint with a secret smile while tiny drops of cologne gleam on his clean-shaven face.
Something is different about him, and I’m sure he can say the same thing about me.
“Are you hungry?” he asks.
“No. Are we going somewhere?”
“Not tonight,” he says.
He gives me a sidelong glance before pouring drinks for us.
“Whose place is this?” I ask.
“A friend of mine owns the building, and some suites are vacant, including this penthouse.”
“I see,” I murmur. “So, what brings you to New York?”
“The final negotiations on a TV show, a couple of business events, some shopping, and leisure… I needed to get away from things.”
“What’s wrong with Colorado?”
“I could ask you the same thing,” he says, handing me a glass.
We sit on the couch next to each other.
He shifts his body to me, his gaze dipping a few times, floating over me.
Arching my back, I cross my legs, perfectly aware my hemline is up enough to partially showcase my thighs.
“You’ve never been home since you left,” he says, peeling his eyes away from my legs.
How does he know that?
“I couldn’t afford it in the beginning, and there was no point in going back after that. My family no longer lives there, and my mom is the only family member I keep in touch with, but she spends most of her time on the West Coast. On top of that, I didn’t want to run into you,” I say bluntly.
A shadow darkens his eyes.
“What were you afraid of?”
“Then? Everything.”
“And now?”
“I don’t believe in much, so probably nothing.”
“Hmm...”
He shifts his focus to his glass and drinks his liquor.
My eyes zoom in on his mouth as he licks a drop of amber liquid from his lips.
“What were your vacation plans?” he asks.
“I wanted to go someplace warm, but I’m not crazy about flying, so I decided against it. I settled for reading and perhaps writing instead.”
“Are you still into writing books?” he asks, twirling his glass slowly, his eyes trained on the ice cubes clinking at the bottom.
“Not much. And not historical books. It’s a diary of sorts. Self-discovery.”
A mysterious smile lights up his eyes.
“Interesting,” he says, tipping the glass back and drinking the last gulp.
“What about you? Aside from the negotiations… Why New York?”
“I love the weather,” he says thoughtfully, joking, of course.
I chuckle, and his eyes glint with amusement as he notices my reaction.
I swiftly recollect how funny he is if he wants to.
Within moments, his smile dies out, chased away by a solemn thought.
“So what happened with your family?” he asks before locking his jaw, anticipating a reaction from me.
I stifle my emotions, revealing nothing.
“My father moved on, and it happened rather quickly, as expected.” I smile, disheartened. “He found a younger woman who didn’t have a lot of baggage, like my mother, and they live in San Francisco. My sister shacked up with a new man and lives in Boston. And my mother... Well, my mother spends most of her time in California. She has a new life and seems happy. And that’s about it.”
He mulls over my words for a second.
“What about you? Any plans for the future? School? A different... occupation?” he asks after a moment.
The word barely makes it to his lips.
“No. Not really. I’ve saved some money and made a few investments for the future. I want to do this for a while–hopefully not that long–and find a nice place to live when I have enough savings. A small house by the ocean, if all possible, where I’ll spend my time writing.”
His smile fades, his eyes glinting as if he just had an epiphany.
“What about love?” he asks, hinting at a conversation we had in the past. “You no longer believe in that?”
A faint smile tugs at my lips.
“People want to believe love is real,” I say. “Unfortunately, it’s only some short-lived need for someone else. That’s the only reason people ‘fall in love.’ When that need goes away, ‘love’ disappears, and they look for someone new ‘to love.’ People give you their love as long as they need you. I learned that from you too. You liked me but didn’t need me, so you couldn’t fall in love with me.”
His stare is fire and ice, but it’s true, so I look at him, unfazed.
“That’s why love hurts so much,” I continue. “I used to think that love was pure, selfless, and unconditional, a unique feeling someone had for someone else. And then I learned that it’s always conditioned upon something. That’s why it doesn’t stand the test of time. It’s fragile and unsustainable. It’s not real. You were right,” I say, neither of us smiling. “I was a fool. And you taught me well. I should’ve listened to you.”
I sigh.
“But it wasn’t all bad,” I continue. “In time, I realized that people who hurt me were my teachers, and they taught me what I needed to know about life. You were one of the greatest teachers of all.”
He lowers his eyes as if suddenly grieving before he speaks.
“So you have everything planned out...” he murmurs.
“Yes, I do,” I say resolutely.
He flicks his eyes back to me.
“What about a family of your own?”
“I don’t think it’s for me. Seeing my family fall apart put me through hell and only shed light on our misery. I don’t know what was worse. My dad’s indifference, my mom’s aloofness, or my sister’s jealousy?”
“So you’re strongly against marriage...” he tosses at me casually.
“You’re against it too.”
“Aren’t you too young to have your mind made up already?”
I shake my head.
“It’s better to know now than find out later. Marriage is not in my future, and there is nothing to convince me otherwise. Besides, I was too young for many things, and there was nothing I could do about it,” I say, and the light dies out in his eyes.
* * *
JAMES
She rises to her feet, steps to the side table, and turns up the volume, a slow tune drifting through the air.
A different expression slides over her face, the sultry smile tugging at her lips, suggesting that the time for talk is over.
And yet… Her words still echo in my head.
I can’t believe she’s changed so much.
I still remember that girl who used to wear shorts and cropped tops, believed in idealistic crap, and worshiped me as if I were a god.
And now, I have a stunning woman in front of me who’s lost her faith and heart and doesn’t even blame me for it.
Flashing a naughty smile, she walks to me.
I drink her in from the mane of blonde hair tumbling down her back to the skintight dress and sexy heels highlighting her presence.
She’s every hot-blooded man’s dream.
Elegant, sophisticated, wise beyond her years, and with a firestorm between her legs.
Any man could easily get lost in her.
And any man would change the world for her.
She gives me another seductive grin, indicating that the game is on while I lean back against the couch, ready to enjoy it.
Swaying her hips, she inches even closer, oozing raw sexuality, her eyes locked with mine, her smile igniting a fire in my groin.
Reaching the back of her dress, she grabs the zipper before peeling her outfit off. Rolling her hips, she moves sensually, her gaze sparkling with a mysterious smile.
She drops the garment on a chair and pivots to me.
Tilting her head back, she charms me with a dazzling smile before sliding her knees onto the sofa on either side of me.
The smell of flowers in bloom lifts off her skin every time she moves.
Round and heavy, her breasts push against her lacy bra, almost spilling out.
My gaze trails down to where her garters frame the sensitive spot between her legs.
A lace band barely covers her slit.
Hot for her, I run my hands up her thighs.
Playfully, she swats them down and pushes herself up on her knees, bringing her pussy closer to my face.
Slowly, she rolls her hips, taking her time to unclasp her bra.
I glance up just as she drops her underwear on my face, and the warmth of her breasts and her enticing scent rolls over my lips.
I hold it against my face, soaking in the heat of her body.
Drifting my gaze up, I take in every inch of her skin, getting drunk on the scent of her arousal.
Still propped on her knees, she shimmies her hips, enticing me with her pussy, bringing it next to my lips.
She taunts me with a come-hither look, broadening her grin, high on her power.
An urgent need to pound her soars through me, hardening my dick. Aware of the effect she has on me, she runs her palm across my chest and down over my hard abs.
She lowers herself and grinds her crotch against my throbbing hard-on, her breasts in my face.
Just as I’m about to end her performance, she slides off, spins around, and bends at the waist away from me, giving me a full view of her tight butt.
I dip my gaze low enough to get a glimpse of her lace-encased folds, and just when I want to grab her, the tune shifts and she begins to dance.
I watch her, fascinated, for a few good moments before she kneels in front of me, tucks herself between my legs, runs her hands up my thighs, and fucks me with her eyes.
I flash a smile.
She’s fucking good. I’ll give her that. And now I know why men pay so much to spend time with her.
Crawling up, she traces my thighs with her chest, brings her lips to my dick, and works my bulge, a wanton smile beaming on her face.
Her nipples harden, a rush of blood painting her cheeks.
She straddles me again and pushes herself up.
Propped on her knees, she hooks her fingers inside her panties and slowly slides them down, yet not all the way, driving me crazy.
Dangling her pussy in front of me, she lifts her arms above her head and grinds her crotch against my mouth.
And this must be the end of it.
She swings closer one more time before I snag her panties, pull them to her knees, grab her ass, and bring her slit to my mouth.
“James... Fuck, James....” she squeals as I break her rhythm and have her sit on my face.
She’s got me hungry, and judging by the wetness rolling on my tongue, she’s famished too.
I run my tongue between her folds and kiss her hard, sucking on her juicy clit.
She grabs my hair, swiftly draping a leg over my shoulder, moaning, gasping, and grinding her pussy against my lips.
“James...” she breathes, lost.
The game is over.
Moaning, she presses her pussy against my mouth, feeding me.
The huntress is now hunted, and her walls begin to crumble. Her mask peels off, the wild woman surfacing in all her glory.
She cries out my name as the pleasure soars through her.
It makes my flesh melt.
She comes fast––her hips shaking, her wetness trickling into my mouth. The moment she scales down, I pull her back onto my lap.
She stares at me with unfocused eyes––her chest flushed and sweaty.
I’m so hard and hot I’m about to combust.
Eyes glued to my lips, she goes swiftly through my buttons.
I shed my shirt while she quickly grabs a condom from the side table.
Tilting an eyebrow at her, I smile.
She reads my eyes for a second before tossing it to the side.
“I’m making an exception.”
“Me too, sweetheart,” I say, grabbing her hips and sliding her down my cock.
Satisfaction grows on her face as I fill her up.
She closes her eyes and catches her breath, and I soak her in for a moment.
I can’t believe how beautiful she is. Her hips roll, her eyes half-open.
Observing me with hooded eyes, she rides me with passion, her expression going from delight to in-trance stare and pure ecstasy.
She grinds against me, feeding the fire in her body.
Soon, she picks up the pace and starts clenching around me while I grab her butt and pound into her until she experiences an orgasm.
Her eyes go blank for a few good moments, her body shuddering around my shaft.
Panting, she slides off before I push up to my feet and step behind her.
Planting her hands on the wall, she opens her legs, curves her spine, and sticks her butt out for me.
I wrap my arm around her waist and drive my hard length into her.
Filled up, she arches even more.
My hands go down her sides while she jerks against my thrusts.
The air rolls fast into my lungs as I keep plunging into her, relishing that sweet sensation of having her hot and wet around my cock.
Crying moans peel off her lips.
“Fuck, James…” she murmurs, sounding broken. “You could finish what you started yesterday,” she adds, making me smile.
“Fucking harlot,” I say, laughing softly.
I slip two fingers between her folds while stroking her butt hole.
“Is it good?” I ask, slowly sliding my fingers into her.
She moves against my touch, softly moaning.
Her center clamps on my erection.
“I guess it is,” I murmur to myself.
Moaning, she stiffens, and that’s my cue.
Locking her against my body, I drag her pleasure up, shattering the built-up tension, both experiencing the peak.
“Oh, yes...” she mumbles, incoherent, swept away by the sensation.
I lose myself in her and hammer her hard, making her come with me.