31. Sara
31
SARA
F rom the moment I learned about Jack’s shiny, new life in New York, and his new J Vandenberg guise, I wasn’t sure what to make of it. I didn’t know if he was like so many others I meet, trying to be someone they’re not, just to be desired and admired. Then I wondered if he was so deeply bathed in self-loathing, that he didn’t think he was good enough to run a successful empire and gain the respect of others, unless he was J Vandenberg.
But as I sat next to him on his sofa and listened to his plans for Midas and the foundation he’d set up to honor his late mother, I’d never been more sure of a person’s character so much in my life. I watched a man I once thought had no conscience or compassion, get vulnerable in front of me, and show me a side I’m pretty sure very few people have ever witnessed. Which meant I had to be careful with how I reacted to seeing him so exposed.
I noticed the way his throat worked when I told him he wasn’t anything like his father. I saw he had wounds just like I did, things he buried and never quite got over. The fact he was so willing to share them with me counted for a lot. It’s the whole reason I dropped his hand so quickly and pretended to be more interested in my sushi than further unpacking everything he’d told me.
If I’d let him continue, he might have ended up regretted sharing anything with me in the first place. And I didn’t want that, because having him confide in me felt more intimate than anything we’d done that night, and honestly, I loved that.
I made sure I acted like it was okay to talk about his past and his new foundation and his mom, and then I’d quickly moved things along. We could get into the heavier stuff another time. When he was ready again, we’d get there. And there, on his sofa, with a mouth full of sushi, was where I realized that ‘getting there’ was something I wanted to do with him. That’s the real reason behind the no more games promise I plan on keeping to him.
Now I’m back at my apartment, where I spent the night, because as much as I wanted to stay at Jack’s and let him generously send me over the edge again and again, I had to be up early for work, and I also wasn’t prepared to sleep in my makeup and ruin my skincare routine for a second time this month.
So here I am, back in my apartment, fresh faced, wonderfully over caffeinated, and cursing the absolute shit out of the orgasm high from last night.
Why?
Because it’s the reason I left without getting the damn paperwork. And now I’m running late.
S: I can’t believe you let me leave without the contracts!!!
S: Morning xx
J: I can’t believe you left before round three…
J: Morning xxx
S: Jack! I can’t go into the office without the paperwork
S: Walter will chop me into little pieces
J: Little ‘glittering’ pieces
S: Jack…
J: Don’t worry, I’m nearly at your apartment
S: You are??
J: Of course. Come down in five
J: I’ll give you the paperwork, then I’ll give you round three x
I grin into my phone, biting my lip and shaking my head. Round three . Yeah right, I barely had time to pick out a cute outfit for work, never mind about setting more time aside for round three .
I slip into a flimsy satin dress that brushes my thighs, pairing it with a long trench coat and cream knee-high boots, which feel around five or so inches.
I’ve barely finished my last stroke of mascara when Jack sends another message to let me know he’s outside. Which means I have less than thirty minutes to grab the contracts, get to work, and finish the rest of my makeup.
I groan, grab my bag, set it at the edge of my dressing table and drag the entire contents of the surface into the depths of my purse.
When I get downstairs, Jack is waiting beside the Maybach. His fluffy hair is gone, the sweatpants a thing of fiction. Now it’s a terrifying black power suit, no movement hair gel and that devastatingly handsome, serious expression that drives me wild. One hand is in his pocket, the gold Rolex glinting on his wrist. Everything about the Jack standing in front of me, is painfully and gorgeously one hundred percent business.
“Hi,” he says, the side of his mouth quirking up. And suddenly I’m no longer flustered from getting ready at lightning speed and forgetting the contracts, because everything has slowed down, and now it’s just the two of us in our own private universe.
Until a pair of horns blare from across the street, the drivers appearing from the windows a moment later, both cursing out the other as they accelerate in opposite directions.
“Hi,” I say, as I’m shaken from my staring trance. I step forward to greet him, without knowing how to actually greet him. Do we hug, kiss, shake hands… ew, no . I don’t know what the protocol is the morning after receiving two separate life altering orgasms from a man I couldn’t stand only a few weeks ago.
And then warmth is coiling around my waist, and my hips are brushing against his, because his arm has found its way around my lower back and he’s pulling me in close. My head falls back as he bends to brush his lips over mine, the gentle nudge of his tongue against mine sending jolts of thrill through my body.
So, this is the protocol for greeting each other now. Got it .
“Come on, I’ll give you a ride to work.” He grins, guiding me into the back of the Maybach.
I say good morning to Burke, who flashes me a grin in the rear-view mirror. I settle into the backseat while Jack closes the door behind me, then gets in from the other side.
I place my bag on the divider between us, but as the car moves, it slides off, dumping the contents into my lap. “I swear, I’m losing my mind this morning. I hate being late, and I hate not having enough time to get ready,” I whine as I retrieve a lipstick case.
“Someone keep you awake last night?” Jack asks smirking. I grin back before he casts his eyes ahead. “I’m going to make a quick business call,” he says to Burke before hitting a button, triggering the customized privacy screen to rise, and separating us from the front cabin.
I cross one leg over the other as I return to collecting the fallen items from my lap while I wait for Jack to make his phone call.
Only, the phone call doesn’t happen.
Because Jack is holding an item in front of him, his eyes full of wicked intrigue as he says, “Want to talk me through this?”
I glance up from my bag, only to do a double take, which leaves me gasping and collecting my jaw from my lap. “ Ohmygod! ”
Jack is holding a mini vibrator. Shaped like a little pink rose. The one I must have left on my dressing table before I swiped everything into my bag.
“That’s…my…”
“I know what it is.” He smirks. “I mean, talk me through how I’m going to get you off with this right now?”
I don’t even have time to feel mortified because he’s already distracting me with his hand which grazes my knee, then slowly slides up my thigh.
“Now? As in, here?” I gulp. “No way.” My head snaps to the privacy screen. To Burke.
“He can’t see us. Or hear us,” Jack says with amusement, his fingers going beneath the hem of the dress. “I was going to put you on my lap and stroke you until you come, but you came with a better idea.”
“But what about…” My eyes flash out the window, to the traffic and pedestrians.
“Can’t see us either, tinted glass,” he says gripping my thigh and uncrossing my legs with one firm swipe. “How does this thing work?” He eyes the rose, brushing the silicone edges with his thumb.
Tinted glass or not, there’s no way I’m letting Jack use a sex toy on me in the back of his car, right before I head into work.
The rose begins to vibrate as Jack finds the switch. “Oh, that’s how.”
He is the portrait of calm and collected as he removes his hand from my thigh, then lightly grips my chin with his fingers to draw me into a kiss.
“You don’t bring a vibrator into my car and expect me not to use it on you,” he whispers into my mouth. Then he hits another button, and my seat begins to recline.
“Oh my god, you’re nuts,” I say, grinning as I lie back in the most comfortable seat my butt has ever experienced.
Then, I feel the rose vibrate against my inner thigh. My eyes pop as I look down to see Jack grazing it over my flesh, working it higher and higher until it reaches the apex of my thigh.
“Jack…” I gasp as I feel tingling already begin to grow deep in my lower belly. “We’re almost there, you can’t just… ”
He dips the rose beneath my dress, pressing it against my panties.
“Holy…” I breathe, as my head thrusts back against the seat as he massages up and down my pussy.
“You’re right, we’re almost there…” he says in a low voice. “So, before you go, I have something to ask you while I watch you come for me.”
“What…” I gasp, clutching onto the handle beside me.
“You don’t want to date, that’s fine,” he says nonchalantly. “But I’d be honored if you’d accompany me to an event…” He presses the rose over my clit, and even though material prevents it from touching my bare skin, the friction could send me over the edge any second. “As my colleague ,” he says with a touch of humor.
“Where?” I breathe, not really listening since I’m five seconds from forgetting my own name.
His casual tone continues while my nails bite into his leather seats. “It’s just, there’s this ball in a couple weeks. Hemmingvale…” he says thoughtfully while paying my pussy every bit of sensual attention. My eyes widen and I attempt to sit up, but Jack uses his large hand to keep me on my back. “Have you heard of it?”
“Heard of it?!” I shriek. The The Hemmingvale Annual Charity Ball isn’t just a ball. It’s the ball. “Yes,” I cry. “Yes, I’ve fucking heard of it…” More gasping.
“I remember you said you used to like partying.” He presses the rose into my clit with more pressure and I can’t help but squeal a little as my back arches out of the seat. “Well, there’s no party like this one.” I can hear the smirk in his voice.
If I possessed the ability to form sentences at this moment, I’d tell him I know all about Hemmingvale. Or as much as a regular person can know about an event so exclusive it requires nothing short of sorcery to get onto the guestlist. I can’t tell him any of that however, because the vibrations are too much, and there’s a deep ache swelling inside of me that has me moaning and begging for release.
“So, you’ll come with me?” Jack says from the seat next to me, looking down at me while I writhe around on my seat.
“Only…if…” I whisper, closing my eyes. “You touch me. I don’t want the stupid toy. I want you.”
I hear low chuckling, and then he’s sliding my panties to the side, his thick fingers finding my wet pussy that’s aching for his contact. “You’re so ready for me, baby,” he groans as he slides his middle and ring finger inside me in one deep push, sinking in and out while the heel of his palm presses down hard on my clit.
“Oh my god, yes,” I moan, biting my lower lip. “Yes, I’ll go with you.” My head thrusts back against the reclined seat as my feet come onto the footrest, my legs parting, my dress sliding up to my hips as everything begins to tingle.
“Good,” he says, voice low and gravel like. “God, I can’t wait to fuck you right in this spot, do you know how perfect you look right now?”
And that’s enough to make me come apart.
My legs tremble as Jack works his fingers deep inside me and I allow my inner walls to clench around him. When I feel a cry rise up my throat, I slap my hands over my mouth just in time to stifle my moans before heat floods my body and I’m riding out another incredible orgasm.
My chest rises and falls, and I focus on steadying my breath as I slide my panties back in place and tug down my dress. The seat begins to return to a neutral position and I’m level with Jack again.
“An orgasm and an invitation to a ball,” I say, waiting for my breathing to return to normal as I lazily look at my watch. “All before eight thirty.”
Jack smirks, taking my hand and squeezing it. “Just colleagues, and only if you don’t feel like it’s too much pressure?—”
“Pressure?” I squeal. “This is amazing.” Then I’m leaning over the divider, inhaling his delicious scent, and letting it pull me in deeper as I hold his face between my hands so I can kiss him. I feel him grin against my lips as he begins to work his mouth against mine. “Oh my god, I have to plan my outfit. This is going to be the hardest choice.” I pull away, deep in thought as Jack attempts to pull me back to him.
I kiss him again. “Maybe…we could be colleagues to everyone else, but…” I brush my fingertips lightly over his bottom lip as I look into his eyes which are soft and inviting despite his terrifying suit appearance. “Maybe it could be a bit of a date. Like, a secret date. But we’re the only ones who know.”
He chuckles. “Okay, I can work with that.” The car comes to a stop. “I’m in meetings all day, but I can drop the official invitation tonight?”
I nod, still stroking his face. “Inviting yourself to my apartment? Very smooth.”
He smirks, sliding his hand up my leg and gripping tight when he gets to my inner thigh. “I wasn’t trying to be subtle.”