Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
S ierra
My nails dug into the flesh of his back as he thrust in and out of me like an animal. This man—my boss. He was starting to become my everything. The feelings I had for him were unstoppable, and it scared me. I loved him and already loved his daughter. But he wasn’t the type to fall in love. My heart was going to break, and I needed to be prepared.
“God, you feel so good,” he moaned.
“So do you.” I braced myself for the second orgasm that was coming. Moaning, I dug into his back as a wave of pleasure overtook me. He halted and exploded, grunting as he poured every last drop inside me.
His body dropped on mine, and I could feel the racing of his heart. His lips pressed against the side of my neck. After he rolled onto his back, I snuggled my body against his as his arm wrapped around me.
“We need to be up early for the parade, so we better get some sleep,” he said.
“I wish I were as excited to go as Ellie is,” I softly spoke as my fingers stroked his muscular chest.
“You’ll be okay.” I felt his lips press against my head. “Goodnight, Sierra.”
“Goodnight, Jack.”
The following morning, I stirred as I heard Jack’s alarm go off. Rolling over, I placed the pillow over my head.
“Good morning. It’s time to get up,” I heard him say.
“I think I’m sick.” I coughed.
“You wish.” I felt his lips press against my shoulder and then his hand smack my ass.
He climbed out of bed, went into the bathroom, and turned on the shower.
“You’re welcome to join me in the shower before we wake up Ellie.”
A morning shower with him sounded nice. I threw back the covers and joined him.
“I bet you don’t feel sick anymore,” he whispered in my ear as he thrust in and out of me from behind.
“Not at this moment, I don’t,” I moaned.
A light chuckle erupted from him.
After our shower, he woke up his daughter while I got ready for the parade.
“We need to bundle you up,” Jack told Ellie as he pulled her hat on her head. “It’s cold out there.”
He picked her up and carried her to the Escalade, where Eric was waiting for us.
“Happy Thanksgiving, Sierra.” He smiled.
I swallowed hard. “Same to you, Eric.”
We found a spot amongst the millions of people who were there to watch the parade. Maybe I was exaggerating, but it felt like millions of people.
“My God. I can’t believe what I’m seeing.” Daniel walked over. “Jack Atlas is at the Thanksgiving Parade?”
“How did you even see us with all these people here?” Jack asked.
“You’re easy to spot.” He smirked. “Hi, Ellie. Happy Thanksgiving, sweetheart. And Happy Thanksgiving to the both of you.” A grin crossed his face.
“We wouldn’t be here if you hadn’t opened your mouth to my daughter,” Jack said.
“You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t care about her.” He patted Jack’s shoulder.
We watched as the floats passed and the marching band played its tunes. Dancers and cheer squads performed with high energy and holiday cheer. Then came Santa Claus. Looking up at Ellie, she pointed at him with a bright smile. The excitement on her face was innocent. She was having the best time of her life, like a four-year-old should. Glancing at Jack, there was no expression. Nudging his shoulder with mine, he looked at me.
“Smile,” I said.
“No.” He winked.
The corners of my mouth curved upward. If I had to be stuck in holiday hell with anyone, I was happy it was with him.
After the parade, we headed home. Ellie ran through the house with excitement. Jack scooped her up and put her down for a nap.
“Well, that was pure torture,” I said.
“It was, wasn’t it?” Jack said, pouring himself a drink. “Listen, Sierra. I know tomorrow is the dreaded Black Friday, but I need you to take Ellie and buy her some toys.”
“You want me to go shopping on Black Friday? Are you out of your damn mind?” I cocked my head.
“I really don’t need you at the office, so yeah, I want you to go shopping. Eric will drive you. Just don’t buy too much since Christmas is coming.”
“Sorry, boss. I don’t get paid enough to endure Black Friday hell. Nope.” I shook my head. “No way.”
“I’ll give you my credit card, and you can buy anything you want for yourself.”
“Anything?” I narrowed my eye.
“Anything.” He tipped the glass to his lips.
The thought of Black Friday sickened me. But even worse, taking a child out in that chaos. If he were making me do it, I’d have to compensate myself. He did say to buy anything I wanted, and I’d always wanted a Louis Vuitton handbag.
“Fine. I’ll take Ellie shopping tomorrow.”
“Good girl.” He walked over and kissed my forehead. “I’m going into my office to do some work.”
I pulled my phone from my purse and saw a missed call from Becca. Dialing her number, she answered on the first ring.
“Where were you?” she asked.
“At that damn parade.”
A roar of laughter escaped her. “You, Sierra Knight, went to the Thanksgiving Parade?”
“Be quiet. I never want to discuss it again.”
“What the hell is going on with you?” She continued to laugh.
“Jack made me go.”
“Jack can’t make you do anything you don’t want to do, Sierra.”
“He can when he signs my paycheck.” I sighed.
“I’m off tomorrow. Are you?” she asked.
“Yes. Jack has ordered me to take Ellie shopping and get her some toys.”
Another roar of laughter escaped her. “On Black Friday? Is he crazy?”
“Yes, he is crazy.”
“Let’s meet for lunch. I’ll text you a place and time,” she said.
“I’ll have Ellie with me.”
“So what? It’ll be fun. She’s a cute kid. I have to run and check on the turkey. Happy Thanksgiving, friend.”
“Same, Becca. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Care to explain how I’m crazy?” Jack said as he stood in the kitchen, leaning up against the island with his arms folded.
Turning around, I stared at him. “Are you listening in on my phone conversations now?”
“No.” He walked over to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water. “I was coming in here for water, and I heard you. I assume you were talking about me.”
“As a matter of fact, I was. You’re crazy for making me go shopping on Black Friday.”
“As I said, buy yourself something nice to compensate for the hell you’ll go through tomorrow.” He winked and left the kitchen.
“Don’t you worry about that, Mr. Atlas,” I whispered.
“Did you say something?” He popped his head back in.
“No. I didn’t say anything.” I smiled.
We had a nice dinner at The Ellington, along with others who opted to dine out instead of cooking for Thanksgiving. Ellie’s eyes scanned the restaurant, taking in the Christmas décor —the elegant garland with twinkling lights and the flickering of the red and gold candles that sat on each table.
“I feel like I’m in a damn Hallmark movie,” I said, sipping my wine.
“I know. Me too. And there’s nothing worse than those cheesy, unrealistic Christmas movies.” Jack tipped his drink to his lips.
After we finished eating and stepped out the restaurant door, snowflakes steadily fell. Ellie held the palms of her hands up and giggled as the snow fell onto them.
“I am so sick of this snow already,” Jack said, picking Ellie up. “Where is Eric?”
The Escalade pulled up. Jack opened the door and put Ellie inside.
“I’m sorry, Jack. There was an accident, and the street I needed to turn down was blocked. I had to go a different way.”
“It’s fine, Eric. Take us home.”
While Jack put Ellie to bed, I poured him a bourbon and myself a glass of wine. When he walked into the living room, I handed him his glass.
“Here’s to surviving this treacherous day.” I held my glass up.
“You mean barely surviving.” He sighed, tipping his glass to mine.
We took our drinks and sat on the couch. Jack stretched his legs and placed his feet on the coffee table while I tucked mine under me, sitting sideways and facing him.
“What were Thanksgivings like for you growing up?” I asked him.
“Same shit. Different holiday,” he said. “I do remember a couple of Thanksgivings as a family before my mother passed away.”
“I know today was hard on both of us since we hate the holidays, but it’s a memory that Ellie will have for the rest of her life. You did good, Jack.” I smiled.
“You mean the memory of her spending Thanksgiving without her mother?” His brow arched.
“I wasn’t talking about that. I was talking about the first Thanksgiving she spent with her father.”
His phone rang, and his eyes narrowed when he pulled it from his pocket.
“Who is it?” I asked.
“It’s a restricted number. Jack Atlas here.”