Una: I’m watching this movie about a man and a woman trapped on an island. And you?
Will took a deep and looked around. Suddenly, his exchange of texts with Una felt more important than the meeting.
Me: Texting you…thinking about you…
He let the last words hang and waited.
And waited…
Five minutes had passed, and still, his phone did no longer buzz in his hand. When another five more minutes passed, he slid his phone back in his pocket and finally listened to one of the Hanswell brothers go through some business continuity plan that Will had no idea why they’re already discussing it.
He was very much aware of how meetings with the company executives would usually drag on forever, and he was usually not bothered about it. Although it was often Sinclair who spoke most of the time for the team, he had always been interested in it. It was, after all, for a new project for them to take on. But after his text exchanges with Una, he wasn’t in the least bit engaged with the latest possible project.
A few minutes more had passed. He finally straightened in his chair and grabbed a piece of paper on the table in front of him when he felt a familiar buzz in his pocket. Slouching in his chair, he felt a flutter in his stomach as he opened Una’s message.
Una: Me too. I’m sorry for the late reply, by the way. I just got out of the shower.
Shower. Will stared at the word on his mobile screen. Taken aback by the reply, he gave himself a moment before he came up with something.
Me: That’s okay. And were you thinking of me while in the shower?
It was already a second too late when he sent the hit button and realized what he just typed. Looking around the room, he tugged at his collar and slightly loosened the tie around his neck. He was glad Glen had occupied the chair in front of him and couldn’t see him looking somewhat sweaty in his seat.
A minute later, he got his answer.
Una: Yes.
It wasn’t the answer he was expecting. He expected Una to tell him off. Will’s head was buzzing, and his mind was racing with graphic and detailed images of him and Una in the shower, the inside of his pants twitching and growing while everything around him became hazy.
Looking down at the phone in his hand, he unlocked it, but before his thumb could press on a letter, one of the Hanswell brothers droned on, snapping his full attention back to the meeting.
“Great! Everything’s settled then,” the taller brother said. “I’ll have my assistant coordinate with Ms. Blanco regarding the service agreements.”
Sinclair nodded. “I’ll have Ms. Blanco do that, Paul.” He turned to the man who was standing up from his chair in his right.
Paul, who looked a few years younger than his brother, smiled at him. “I spoke with Igor last night. The bastard’s excited to talk about business later. It’s still on, right?”
“Ms. Blanco,” Sinclair called, and Liezel hurried toward them. “Meeting with Paul later…”
“4:00 PM at The Humphrey’s,” Liezel confirmed.
Paul smiled at both of them. “Good. See you then.”
And with that, everyone in the room stood up while Eric and Paul smiled at the team as they made their quick exit.
When everyone left the conference room except for Will, he let out a long, heavy breath before he walked back to his desk.
Una was thinking of him while she was in the shower? But what was it about?
He sat there for the rest of the afternoon, fighting the urge to ask Una and strategically drowning himself with work and engaging Glen in some random conversation from time to time. But even Glen was suddenly no help as he was already too distracted by the filthy images running around in his mind.
Kate had once sent him provocative images at work, but his reaction was never this intense. It was always different with Una, he reckoned. And he couldn’t be too carefree with his thoughts of her.
Una didn’t seem like she had changed much, but then again, her reaction toward him and what he felt for her was something he didn’t expect. She may have opened up to him, and he may be the first man she had ever been with, but it didn’t change the fact that she may still change her mind about him—about them—whenever she felt he was already coming on too strong.
And Will couldn’t have that. He had become fond of Una. Too fond, in fact. And unlike Kate, he couldn’t have enough of her. He wanted her all the time.
***
It had been a long day, and after their meeting, Liezel spent most of it either in front of her computer, managing a ton of emails or in a call arranging Sinclair’s appointments for the next month. Sinclair called her on her extension once and asked her about the progress on the financial reports from accounting. And then nothing after that.
When she had informed him of her short-notice, two-week leave, all he told her was to update his calendar and to keep her line open for any urgent matter. But Sinclair hadn’t made a single attempt to contact her. He never even greeted her on New Year’s Eve. Nothing.
During her vacation, Liezel did a little research on Rose and found nothing. Except for her Facebook account where Rose shared three different videos of dog rescues, and pictures of herself when she changed her profile pictures three times.
Her first profile picture was of her younger self, frowning, and both of her hands tugging at her long, blue hair. Two years later, she changed her profile picture again with another selfie where she was on a beach—still not smiling—a hand resting on her purple pixie hair. And her current profile pic, which she had on three years after her second picture was uploaded, where she looked very much different. Liezel at first thought it was probably because of her long, brown hair that complemented her soft hazel eyes, but as she stared for a moment longer, she realized it wasn’t her new hair at all. It was Rose’s smile. She was finally smiling in her picture, and it was easy to understand that she wasn’t smiling at the camera, but at the person who was taking the picture. Sitting on what looked like a bench and wearing a white statement shirt and skinny jeans. Rose looked happy.
Liezel had wondered what could have really happened between Rose and Sinclair. Did he really love her? Did she really die from a tragic death? What was Sinclair like way back then?
She tried to look for more answers and wanted to dig into Sinclair’s past love life, but she only found one old article online that told about Rose’s tragic death from a drug overdose. And there was no mention of Sinclair or his family in the entire article, except for the one-time mention of the word ex-boyfriend.
…her ex-boyfriend was devastated after hearing the news, was the only line that had somehow connected Rose to Sinclair.
When she couldn’t find anything else on Rose, Liezel thought it was time to move on and start her year right. Maybe Sinclair really did love Rose. And maybe it was her death that broke him and made him the man that he was now. And Liezel thought perhaps she just wasn’t the woman who could fix him.
Liezel finally decided to let go. And when she came back to work that day from her two-week vacation in the Philippines, Sinclair acted as if she was never gone. She did her best not to think about it and managed to avoid him for the rest of the day. She slipped out of her desk once for lunch with Will and Glen, but otherwise, she kept to her desk. Although she was seated across Sinclair’s private office, meaning they would still see each other no matter how much they’d try to avoid each other, she had stayed buried in her work desk with paperwork and had not seen Sinclair after the meeting in the morning. Not that she was looking for him, of course.
It was an hour before 4 pm when Sinclair came over to her desk, and she had to keep herself looking busy by flipping through papers so she wouldn’t have to look him in the eye. With Sinclair standing close, Liezel felt her heart could explode any minute, her mind was racing and, all of a sudden, she wanted to talk to him about them.
The first day was always the hardest, that’s what she heard most people said. I just need to get past today, and everythi
ng else would feel like a routine after, she told herself firmly.
“I need you to call Paul and tell him to meet me at five PM instead,” Sinclair told her. The tone in his voice suggested that he was a bit in a hurry.
“Move the meeting with Mr. Igor and Mr. Hanswell?” Liezel asked, she had to be sure if she was getting his order right. “May I know why? Just in case Mr. Hanswell would ask.”
This time, their eyes met.
“I doubt that he would.” Then Sinclair left.
Liezel stared at his retreating back, confused and utterly intrigued. What could be more important than a meeting with a client? Sinclair had never canceled on one before.
She looked at the clock and then at the list of tasks on her computer screen and thought she could do some of those at home. Sudden intrigue had consumed her, and she stood up from her desk. Mumbling her goodbye to Will on her way out, Will gave her a strange look and continued with his work.
She walked out of the office and into her car in the parking lot, where she waited for Sinclair. She leaned forward when a Buick pulled into view from the underground parking lot. Whether it was a family matter or a secret agenda, she wasn’t sure, but she decided to follow her boss and find out for herself.
The engine let out a dull roar as soon as Liezel put the key in the ignition. She followed Sinclair’s car from a safe distance. When Sinclair turned into a driveway off the main, his car driving further away from the city, this had intensified her curiosity.
Her heart pounded wildly in her chest the entire time. And when trailing her boss led her to a deserted park, she knew something was definitely up. She found a nice spot across and stayed hidden, waiting to see what would happen next.
Sinclair got out and stood by the car.
What happens now? Liezel asked herself
As if someone had heard her, a man in denim jeans and a black shirt, who was already sitting on the bench facing the beach when they arrived, stood up and approached Sinclair. Liezel couldn’t tell if she had seen that man before. The two briefly talked before she saw her boss grabbed a manila folder from his car and hand it over to the man.
Then Sinclair walked back to his car and quickly drove off.
Liezel waited in her car for a few minutes, not sure what had just transpired before her eyes. After another few minutes, she figured it was time to leave too.
Chapter 20
The Discovery
Una sighed long and deep as she walked into her house that Friday afternoon. While all she did was sat in her class and hoped for it to be over soon, she felt worn out after a long day. Her quick visit to Professor Cullum’s office earlier that day also added to the stress she felt. Although she knew her professor was right, she needed to sort her major soon and start learning something that really mattered to her.
And when her last class for the day ended, she desired nothing but a long shower to relax. She took the towel off her body and toss it in the rack before stepping into the hot water. Her body was soaked in seconds. With the warm water running down her body, Una closed her eyes and let out a satisfied groan, relishing the feeling. She could feel her tense muscles relaxing as the heat seeped through her skin, the water clearly working its magic on her tired body.
While washing her body, Una thought about what she wanted to do with her life. Her decision to let a man into her life was something she could never have guessed she would do. Will just happened to unexpectedly roll into her life. Without her asking for it. Without her looking for it. She wasn’t looking for someone. She was happy with how her life was going.
But why couldn’t the other aspects of her life be as smooth as her situation with Will? Why couldn’t they just leave her alone until she finally realized what she wanted to do? She didn’t really care about school that much, but sometimes the stress can be a little bit too much.
She reached for a bar of soap and started washing her body. She suddenly flushed when the memory of their first time flashed in her mind. Will was very considerate of her and was thoroughly attentive of her body, which, thinking about it now, was a bit surprising since he didn’t seem like the guy who’d been with too many women to know a lot. She felt herself getting warm all of a sudden. Will made sure she knew he would never get enough of her, and somehow this made her feel special.
After letting her mind recall their first night in the garden, she finally decided to finish her shower to start preparing for dinner. She rinsed her body and squirted some conditioner onto her head. While massaging her scalp, she heard a knock on the bathroom door.
“I’m taking a shower,” she yelled over the running water.
“I know. Can I come in?” she heard Will asked.
She quickly rinsed off the conditioner and wiping the water out of her eyes, she pulled back the shower curtain and grabbed the towel from the rack. She scurried out of the shower stall and opened the door.
Will greeted her with his usual warm smile. “Hey,” he said, staring deep into her eyes. “I thought you might be lonely there all by yourself.”
“Um…” Una looked down at the floor. She blushed, her hands desperately trying to keep the grip on her towel around her body.
“Can I join you?” he asked in his deep, sexy voice.
When she still had not said a word, it was then that he entered the shower.
Una stood there watching him as he took off his shirt, pulled down his pants, and tossed the items in the sink. “Why are you home early?” she asked, her cheeks getting warmer.
“I wasn’t feeling very productive today. So, I thought I might as well just call it a day.”
She frowned. “Why aren’t you feeling productive?”
Will smirked. “Cause all I could think about was you.”
She flushed and sucked in a nervous breath.
“Am I making you uncomfortable?” Will asked.
“I don’t know,” she answered. It was true. She wasn’t sure whether she should leave or share the shower with him.
He smirked. “You shouldn’t feel uncomfortable, Una. I’m your boyfriend,” he said, stepping in the stall. “It’s okay, Una. This is okay.” He grinned, caressing her wet cheek with his warm thumb.
Una kept her eyes on the floor, which instantly became an obviously bad mistake on her part because, by doing so, she inadvertently had a glimpse of Will’s erect manhood slapping against his stomach since he was standing so close in front of her. Utterly embarrassed, she quickly looked up and instantly met her boyfriend’s dark blue eyes.
Will found this reaction adorable, and as her blush deepened, he couldn’t help but laugh softly. “Come here.” He pulled her into a hug, nuzzling her neck. A broad smile replaced his laughter.
Though the fact remained that they had already been intimate with each other, Una still shivered, her core clenching at the thought of them being this naked and this close. But like any introvert teenager who just had sex for the first time—discovering pleasure for the first time—her reactions were all too refreshing…and cute.
And even when she had decided to be a little spontaneous with Will, she was still contented with the fact that she could tell him to stop and he would until she was ready for it. It was safe to say that he had no intention of doing anything she wouldn’t want him to.
“What do you have in mind?” Una replied in a shy voice.
Will grinned. “I just want to take a shower with my girlfriend, like normal couples do.”
“Okay.”
“I have been thinking about this since yesterday,” he whispered.
As he slowly pulled the towel, unwrapping Una’s body, his jaw fell slack at the sight of her nakedness. Feeling vulnerable, Una covered her private areas. A blush covered her cheeks.
Will’s fingers gently traced the lines of her neck, slick with small beads of water and trailed lower to her breasts. He leaned closer and grazed his lips across her neck.
Una gasped, tilting her head back.
“Taking a shower with me?�
�� she asked, her voice wavering a little. She inhaled and tried to keep everything under control.
“Yes, now, why don’t you open your mouth for me and let me kiss you,” Will said. He slipped his tongue inside Una’s warm mouth while drawing patterns on the wet skin of her back. Una softly moaned into the kiss.
He pressed her against the moist shower wall. His hand grabbed a handful of her wet hair, tilting her head back slightly and kissing her harder. Biting her lip to address his hunger for its lusciousness. He heard her whimper and that’s when he trailed his lips down to the column of her throat. “You drive me crazy, Una. You are mine. All mine.”
He heard her moan again, this time a little louder.
“Fuck…”
“Will, no swearing and...” Una moaned.
“I’m sorry,” he apologized and met her mouth with his again. “Una, if I continue kissing you and you continue kissing me back like that, I’m afraid I’m—I’m not going to be able to stop myself. “
Una just stared at him, not knowing what the appropriate response should be.
“Do you want me to stop now, or do you want me to continue?” Will asked. Although Una had been the center of his wildest fantasies, his respect for her was greater.
“Um—”
“Yes?” He teasingly bit his girlfriend’s lower lip. “You want to stop now? Tell me.”
“What will happen if I’ll tell you to stop?”
He frowned. “Well, I’ll leave and let you finish, and we will have dinner then go to sleep.”
“And if I let you continue?”
He smiled broadly. “Then, I’m going to continue kissing you, and then we’ll make love.”
Una’s eyes widened at the thought. She’d never shared a shower with someone else, let alone make love in one.
Will put his hands around her bare waist and pulled her to his chest. “I honestly have trouble keeping my hands off you.”
Una licked her lips, her eyes shyly running her fingers up and down Will’s body.
Considerably Wicked: A Dark Romance Page 20