Chapter 7
7
J AMES
“Okay, baby... I will,” Preston says, a tender smile glowing over his face.
He ends their conversation, his smitten grin still on his lip as he sets his phone on the table, sunk in thought.
“Rain is brewing up a storm, isn’t she?” he asks, lifting his gaze to me.
“She is,” I say quietly.
He studies my face.
“She’ll understand that it’s only for a short while,” I mutter.
“I don’t want to create any trouble.”
“There’s no trouble. I knew this moment would come. I, too, stepped down and took some time off when I got married. I know how these things work. I’ve been there. The time I spent with Rain was fantastic, but now I have these business plans I need to implement before considering another sabbatical. The growth we’ve incurred is phenomenal, and that’s why I want to expand this business fast. I talked to Lex about this too. I want to push it as far as I can and have a big payday for all of us when the time is right. That’s why I wanted you here, but the company will thrive no matter what. It has to. The whole idea was to be able to step away from it if we needed to. You are in that kind of situation right now. I’d do it too if I were you. Rain will understand,” I say, trying to convince myself that that's the case as much as I want to convince him. “Besides, we’re too young to stay home,” I joke, grinning and winking at him. “She’s busy with her writing and her company.”
“Did she ever talk about kids?”
“We talked about it in the beginning, but we have nothing planned right now.”
“I didn’t plan it either.”
“I know. But I wouldn’t worry about that before getting to that point,” I say, swinging my gaze across the room as Eve and Rain return to the table.
“They’re coming?” he asks, his back turned to them.
“Yup,” I say quietly, looking at them.
Smiling, they approach our table.
“Perhaps things have gotten a little better,” I say, reading Rain’s expression.
They claim their seats.
“How’s Thea?” Rain asks, looking at Ed.
“She feels better now,” he says, glancing over his shoulder and searching for a waiter. “I promised her I'd send a picture of us.”
The hostess catches sight of him and dashes to our table.
He hands her his phone, asking her to take a few pictures.
She takes a couple of snapshots of us sitting around the table before returning his cell phone.
He gets busy with his phone, typing a message and sending the pictures to Thea. It takes a few seconds and his phone rings.
Rain’s hand is on her glass while Eve eats her chocolate mousse.
Ed shifts his eyes away from us, answering the call.
He looks at Eve.
“Yes. She is Rain’s best friend.”
Biting my lip, I push back a smile.
“No, she’s not here for me,” he says, grinning. “Yes, she is, baby. No. Yes. I do like her... Yes,” he says, flushed.
Eve’s cheeks turn red too.
“Give me the phone,” I say to him.
Without warning her, he hands me his cell phone.
“Thea?”
She stays quiet.
“Are you still there?”
“James?”
“Yeah, baby. How are you?”
A soft voice comes from the other end of the line.
“Good.”
“What are you doing?”
“Studying,” she says hesitantly.
“Do you trust me?”
It takes her a few moments.
“Do you trust me, Thea?”
Ed’s eyes stay locked with mine.
“Yes.”
“Do you trust Ed?”
Her response comes instantaneously.
“Yes, I do.”
“Then stop giving him a hard time,” I say, grinning. “He just told us the big news, and we’re all out, celebrating. My wife’s friend is on vacation with us. I invited her here. We didn’t know what this meeting was all about since Ed had kept it a secret until the last moment,” I say, winking at Preston.
“No, he didn’t.”
“Yes. He did.”
Ed breathes a chuckle.
“You’re getting me into real trouble with her now,” he says.
“He hadn’t said a thing?” she asks.
“Uh-huh. He wanted to talk to me about you and him coming home. I couldn’t make it here until today, and here we are, drinking and talking about you. Congratulations, baby. You’ve done a great job snatching up this bad boy.”
Her crystalline laugh echoes in my ear.
“That’s my girl... Now say hi to Eve. But before I let you go, I want you to know we’d love to have you here with us. Once you come back home, we’ll meet up. Take good care of yourself and your baby. All right?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
I hand Ed’s phone to Eve, who turns even more crimson once she starts talking to Thea.
Rain studies me.
“That’s how you manage a woman’s concerns, Preston,” I say, my eyes meeting his.
He slowly shakes his head, grinning.
I shift my gaze to Rain.
She gives me one of her stares, heavy with unspoken words.
I can never tell whether she wants to kiss me or kill me, but I always go for the first option.
Moments later, we finish eating and drinking and leave the restaurant.
We spend the rest of the evening in the Casino before heading back to the hotel. Eve goes to her room, and Ed walks to his suite while Rain, and I head to our place.
She walks ahead of me, rushing to our suite.
My eyes stay on her backside as she makes a beeline for the door.
She’s fuming, and I can’t help but smile.
It’s not that I like her angry with me, but sex is so damn good when she’s mad.
Surprisingly, she leaves the door open for me. I sure expected her to slam it in my face.
“What seems to be the problem?” I ask in a soft voice, closing the door behind me.
She spins around in the middle of the room, her hands clasped on her hips. They go up in the air before clutching her hips again.
“I don’t know. You tell me. You’re so damn good at reading women.”
My lips curl into a slow smile.
“This is serious, James.”
“I have no doubt.”
“What did Ed say to you when you were with him in his room?”
I set my phone down, remove my tie, and unfasten a few buttons.
“The same thing you’ve heard at the dinner table.”
She grits her teeth.
“What else did he tell you?”
“What you’ve heard at the dinner table,” I say again, emphasizing the words, arguably pissing her off even more.
“Are you talking about what you said when you were on the phone with Thea?”
“We’re talking about the same thing,” I say calmly.
I lean against a wall table and slowly fold my arms across my chest.
“Why couldn’t you tell me first?” she shoots at me, her eyes beaming with anger.
“I’d learned about it only a few hours before you. And you learned about it at the table. What’s the problem, Rain?” I ask seriously.
“If Ed comes back, someone needs to take his place, at least for a while.”
“That would be me.”
“How? Tell me how. You spend most of your time on airplanes, and I don’t see you for days or weeks sometimes.”
Her eyes spew flames, a frown creasing her brow.
“Is that what the problem is? You... missing me?”
She studies me before huffing, frustrated, her hands jerking up in the air.
“You know what... Forget about it,” she says, kicking her heels off. “If I need to explain what your absence means to me, and we have to argue about it every time it happens, there’s no point in discussing it with you.”
“It has nothing to do with us or you.”
She spins around.
“It has everything to do with me. I’m the one waiting for you, James,” she says, pointing to her chest. “We are the only ones living apart.”
“For now. It’s not going to be permanent. You know that.”
“Oh, I know. Of course, I do. You know what else I know?” she tosses at me while struggling to unzip her dress.
“You need help?” I ask, pushing off the table.
Her hands swing up again.
“Don’t touch me. I don’t need your help.”
I slump back, watching her shed her red dress, flashing her satin panties and bra at me.
“You shouldn’t do that,” I say, my gaze sliding over her spine and small waist.
“I shouldn’t do what, Sexton?”
She whips her gaze at me, catching me checking her out.
Her dress flies from her hand and lands straight on my face, imbued with the warmth of her body and the scent of her skin mixed with her perfume.
“You just said we were not spending much time together, even less in bed, and now you’re teasing me,” I toss at her.
She erases the space between us, her cheeks flushed, her tits bouncing, sleepy in their cups.
“I’m serious, James,” she says, stopping in front of me.
Her finger lands on my chest, right at the edge of my shirt, touching my skin.
Her scent enters my nostrils.
“Do you remember when you said the same thing a couple of years ago as Ed took over the Casino and Lex worked in your old office?”
She studies me for a second while I observe her through my lashes.
The silence grows.
I know where she’s going with this, so I let her vent her frustration, remaining quiet.
“You said you only wanted to work out some of the bigger deals, the Livingston business merging, another line of financing, and overseas expansion. You used almost the exact same words. You didn’t have an office back then, but you started to pop into the firm and attend business dinners and meetings. Once in a while, you went to Silver to wine and dine those people and cut a deal or two.”
I purse my lips.
“And where are you now?” she continues.
I remain silent.
“You’re back in your Casino office. Not only that. You are full-on at the helm of the company. You’ve expanded the firm into new markets. You have two, if not three, expansion points here in Europe. Plus, the Asian branch. This is not only ambitious––it’s suicidal. From a business point of view, it’s an enormous risk. If anything happens, like something major shaking the markets, affecting the economy, and creating social turmoil and unrest, this whole thing could implode. Your lines of credit could go bust, and you’d have to absorb the loss. It would put everything on the line––the company, our lives, and everybody’s money.”
“Nothing will happen,” I say calmly.
“How can you possibly know?”
“I don’t. But I won’t lose sleep over it unless it happens.”
“It’s a risk you can’t manage, let alone control.”
“Nothing will happen. Besides, the payout for this type of risk is huge.”
“But you don’t need it, James. Why would you push it any further?”
“Because I can. And because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And I’m the best man to do it. I can’t delegate it to someone else and expect them to build it how I want it. You know me better than that,” I say, irritated, looking away for a moment.
“Do you ever think about the personal risk you’re taking?”
“All the time,” I say, swinging my gaze back to her. “That’s why I’m not wasting any time, and I’m doing it as fast as I can before anything bad happens. I’m aware many things are in play, but I can’t back away, nor do I want to. I’ve never walked away from a disaster, let alone something promising like this. Ed’s story was only one variable. I had no idea it would happen so soon, but I had it in the back of my mind. We all want the same thing, Rain... To have our own place, find someone that matters to us, and raise children someday. I'd be lying if I said I’m not happy for him. I am. He was alone for too long before he ran into Thea Porter.”
“I’m happy for him too, but that’s not what I was talking about.”
A few moments of silence pass before I continue.
“I’ve taken into account all the good and bad things that could happen. Honestly, I’d rather have Lex announce Dahlia is pregnant and he wants to pull back from managing the company than dread this kind of news. I won’t hold it against Ed or Lex,” I say firmly.
Her eyes soften.
“That’s not what I want,” she murmurs.
“I know what you want.”
“Do you?”
“Yes, I do. And that day will come. Things change anyway, whether we want it or not. There’s no point in fucking with fate. Ed is building a life for himself and his family right now while I’m doing what I need to do. You have to see it for what it is. I’m not staying away from you on purpose. I’m not enjoying living on planes or adjusting to the time difference several times a month because I like it. I find satisfaction in my work but hardly in doing that. I thought you knew me better than that.”
* * *
RAIN
My eyes stay on him for a little longer, my mind spinning thoughts uselessly.
How can I argue with that?
I’m still standing, firmly rooted to the floor, everything softening inside.
“I wish you had told me first,” I say despondently.
“He summoned me to his suite to talk to me first and warned me about it. He knew it wouldn’t sit well with you. We know these things take a toll on the women in our lives. Do you think it doesn’t affect us?”
He pauses while I read his eyes.
“Does Ed look like he doesn’t care?” he asks.
“No.”
“Do I?”
I sigh.
“You made your point,” I say, defeated.
I look down for a moment before dragging my gaze up.
“I don’t want to sound as if I’m permanently whining. I’m not that kind of woman.”
“I know,” he says.
“I’ll try not to bring this up again.”
He doesn’t say a word.
“I mean it.”
“Okay,” he murmurs.
“But next time...” I say, playing with the buttons of his shirt. “You might need to meet me in New York,” I add seriously.
“Why New York?”
“Eve has this great idea. I told her I was spending time alone, and she suggested I should spend time in New York with her instead of waiting for you at home. This way, I could work in the mornings and meet her in the evenings. She’d come to our place, and it could be fun,” I say, warming up to the idea.
“Okay.”
“You sound skeptical.”
“No, I don’t.”
Yes, he does.
“I would be writing and enjoying her company. And then, when you come home, I could fly back with you.”
He ponders.
I wait.
“Okay. You do what you think is best for you,” he says, a bit tense.
“It’s the same as if I lived in Colorado. Why are you reserved about it?”
“I’m not,” he says, pushing off the table and heading to the shower.
He sheds his shirt, no longer looking at me.
“James?”
The door slams over my question.
His answer couldn’t be more evident.
Shit.
I crash into a chair, a long sigh falling from my lips.
“This thing only gets worse,” I murmur to myself before I scoop out my phone from my purse and start typing.
Me: Are you asleep?
The answer comes immediately.
Eve: No. Aren’t you two catching up?
A few winking emojis follow her message.
Me: We just had a fight.
Eve: You couldn’t help yourself, could you?
Me: I didn’t plan to.
Eve: You were fuming the entire evening.
Me: Well... It was the wrong move. I told him about your idea of living in New York when he is gone, and it ticked him off.
Eve: That’s not good. Where is he?
Me: In the bathroom. He’s taking a shower. I shouldn’t have brought it up, and my idea only gnawed at our already crumbling trust.
Eve: Fix it.
Me: How?
Eve: You told me I needed to do stuff when I had no idea what I was doing. Wing it, for fuck’s sake. It’s better than nothing. Did you tell him before or after having sex?
Me: There was no sex.
Eve: Ahh... Therein lies the problem. Have you forgotten the basics?
Me: Rolling my eyes. Missy. Thanks for the reminder. The man is colder than ice now.
Eve: Do something. Blow on him to warm him up. And by that, I mean literally that. Anything to thaw him. If I remember correctly, he flies back to Asia tomorrow night. Do I need to remind you how skillful the ladies are in that part of the world?
Me: They are skillful everywhere.
I toss a smiling face emoji at the end of my message.
Eve: And yet, the man is in your shower. Grab the opportunity with both hands and do your thing.
Me: You’ve become quite an expert, haven’t you?
Eve: Desperation is a good teacher.
A smirking face emoji trails her words.
Me: Okay. I’ll get busy.
Eve: Bye.
I put the phone down.
The sound of running water drifts to me.
Smoothly, I pull out of the chair and remove my bra and panties before walking into the shower.
The glass walls are foggy, and his silhouette is barely visible.
Slowly, I glide the door open and enter the shower booth.
His back is turned to me, his arms lifted in the air, flexing as he runs his hands through his hair.
He must’ve heard me, yet he doesn’t turn around. I sneak my hand behind his back and turn off the shower.
He glances over his shoulder, his eyebrow lifted.
“I’m sorry,” I say, stepping to the side and pivoting in front of him.
His eyes dive into mine.
He stays silent for a moment, the lack of words killing me.
Finally, he speaks.
“When you have that set of expectations, Rain... And you lodge a complaint like that, what you’re telling me, in fact, is that you forgot who I am and what I do. Or that you didn’t forget, but it’s no longer good enough for you,” he says in a raspy, cold voice.
“I know. I regret the words I said.”
“You can’t have it both ways.”
“I’m aware of that as well.”
He studies me for a moment, my heart filling with hope.
“Are you jealous of Thea?” he asks, a faint grin flickering through his gaze.
“Yes,” I say in a breath.
If I want to pull out of the hole I dug myself into, I need to be upfront with him.
“Because of me or Preston?”
“Both.”
“Explain.”
He must know the answer. He wouldn’t have asked me otherwise, but he likes to see me squirm.
I carefully weigh my words.
“I am jealous of them because Ed opted to dedicate his time to her.”
“She’s expecting a baby.”
“I know,” I say softly, my gaze dropping to the wet tiles as I find myself unable to hold his eyes.
His hand comes to my chin, gently nudging it up. My gaze swings up.
“Are you jealous of her because she’s having a baby?”
“I don’t know,” I say, quietly uttering the truth.
His eyes fall deep into mine, so deep, my heart hurts, filled with panic.
“Would you like us to have a baby, Rain?”
My heart turns into a mad bird flapping her wings inside my chest. I can hear the throbbing pulse in my ears.
My brain doesn't know the answer to his question, but something inside me does, so my eyes fill with misty tears in response.
“I don’t know.”
His expression changes, his eyes softening.
“You want a baby, Rain...” he says, stroking my face tenderly.
“But it’s not possible...” I murmur, not denying what he just said.
He brings his other hand to my face.
“Not now, but soon...” he says, his lips tinged with a smile. “When the time is right.”
He searches my eyes.
“How did I make you jealous?”
“The attention that you gave her...”
He flashes a soft grin.
“The woman is an emotional mess.”
“I’m a mess, too,” I say stubbornly.
Another smile tilts his lips.
“Do you expect me to argue with you?” he asks, humor lining his voice.
I grin.
“I’m not always like that.”
He brushes strands of hair away from my face.
“No, you’re not. You’re a strong woman,” he says, his words killing my smile. “And you have to stay strong by my side,” he adds, stroking my jawline with his knuckles. “Don’t let your emotions get in the way, all right? We will have the life that we want, just not now. Okay?”
I nod mechanically, his words pulling me into a trance.
Mesmerized, I look at him, realizing that he could ask me to postpone this thing forever, and I would do it for him without the slightest hesitation, and that’s a scary thought.
He takes me in, aware I’m in his power, before leaning closer and kissing my lips.
“Okay, baby?” he asks again.
“Yes,” I breathe.
He tips his gaze down, dragging it over my body, his hand descending too, cuffing the root of my neck, sweeping over my collarbones and chest before cupping my breasts, one by one.
I push up on my toes, loop my arms around his neck, and breathe against his lips.
“Let me do to you what I wanted to do the entire evening.”
A smile sits on his lips when I break away and read his eyes.
He props his shoulders against the glass, his eyes taunting me.
I grin at him.
Tenderly, I slowly slide my palms across his shoulders and his chest.
I plant the first kiss between his pecs. And then the second one. And the third one. Gently, I begin to knead his muscles while covering him with kisses.
One hand pulls away from his chest, moving down again, trailing his abs, heading to his groin.
I wrap my hand around him, relishing the feel of his hard flesh against my touch.
I look down, filling my sight with him––his perfectly chiseled hardness, his skin soft like silk, his veins plumped, coiling around his girth.
I look up this time, getting drunk on his features, hooded eyes, slightly curved lips, and the absolute power breathing through his pores.
He has me wrapped around his finger, even now, after all this time. He’s still my King, my drug, and I can’t have enough of him.
Warmth surges through me as I hang onto that thought.
Smiling, I slide my fist up and down his length, kissing his chest and kneading his pecs.
Hardening even more, he brings his hand to the back of my head and fills his fist with my hair.
I start to slide down to my knees, but he has a different plan for me.
Forget about what I wanted to do to him the entire evening.
He rides his free hand up my thigh, lifting it to his hip, leaving me no choice but crashing into him.
My lips go to his lips, my breasts to his chest, and my legs open for his hard-on.
He slides into me smoothly, entering me before thrusting repeatedly.
Slowly at first and then faster.
One hand holds my hair while the other clutches my backside as he pulls my hips against his thrusts.
There is no slow time.
His back hits the booth wall, making the whole chamber shake.
“James...” I murmur through soft gasps.
Eyes linked with mine, he rails me hard.
His expression hardens as he picks up the pace, using more force.
“James...” I push out, my fingers clawing at his neck. “Don’t stop,” I say, my voice faint, my eyes heavy, holding his.
An earthquake falls through me.
He thrusts harder and harder until a quiet growl crawls up my throat, his chest vibrating with a grunt.
A rapid surge of pleasure sweeps through me as I sense the intense heat and the warm sensation inside me, the wetness and the bliss followed by relief and the thought that doesn’t let me be at peace.
I don’t know how I can stay away from him for long.