One Week to Claim It All

by Adriana Herrera

  “I want to be right here.” His voice was gravel as he cupped her heat. She writhed against him, gasping from his touch, but he wanted to see her undone. “I’m going to be so deep inside you,” he told her as he nipped her earlobe, coaxing a delicious little moan from her. “But first I’m going to make you scream for me.” He brought one hand to her breast, and tweaked a taut nipple, just like he remembered drove her wild. Her chest was heaving, and he could feel her need in the way she moved against him. “Once I’ve made you come on my tongue.”

  “Rodrigo.” She sounded needy and the urge to give her whatever she asked for was almost overpowering. But he wanted to take this slow, savor it and do all the things he’d yearned for and could not have for so long. With agonizing gentleness he took her face in his hands, brought their faces closer, so their lips brushed against each other. He flicked out his tongue for a taste.

  “Don’t tease me, dammit,” she protested, making him smile.

  “So impatient, Joya,” he teased, before going in for a rough kiss. He ate at her mouth. Their tongues tangled together in a frantic dance. He felt greedy and he already knew he would never get enough of Esmeralda. He’d been starving, taking scraps when this was the only thing that could fill him. He felt the oxygen like fizz in his lungs, every cell replenished from finally getting what he’d needed.

  Her. Only her.

  His hands drifted down to undo the zipper at her back, then made quick work of her bra while he grazed her throat with his teeth. “Tell me what you want,” he demanded, cupping her naked breasts, his cock getting impossibly harder just from feeling the heft of them. He couldn’t resist grazing the flat of his tongue against one nipple and then the other one. He could devour her and still it would not be enough.

  “You,” she whispered before taking his hand and placing it against her hot sex.

  “Is this where you want me?” he asked while sliding his hand under her skirts, looking for her wet heat. He felt the silkiness of her skin as his palms moved over her thighs. He sucked in a breath when he reached her core and discovered what was waiting for him. “Where are your panties, Esmeralda?” He could not sound mad if he tried.

  She pressed a smile to his neck and nodded. “I showered before the reception and didn’t exactly have a change of clothes here.” Her tone was casual, but he could hear that she was very pleased with herself for undoing him. Roughly, he picked her up again until her feet hit the floor and helped her step out of her dress. He was about to toss it to the side, but she stopped him before he balled up the fabric.

  “Oh no you don’t. That’s Siriano. Place it on the armchair, gently.” It was extremely hard to focus with her completely naked in front of him. But he did as she asked, then took her by the hand and led her to the bed.

  “So beautiful,” he said, once she was on her back, laid out for him like an offering. He used his hands to spread her legs and admired her for a moment. He’d missed this. Ten years of making do when he knew this bounty was out there. All that flawless brown skin, for him to touch, to lick, to suck, to claim. With two fingers he parted her folds and placed his lips right at her core, tongue darting out to taste her.

  “Don’t stop.” He’d always loved how demanding she was. That her self-consciousness flew out the window whenever he had his mouth and hands on her. That he could make her lose herself in pleasure. She groaned and fisted his hair in her hands—moving against him as he worked to pleasure her, and the little moans and gasps she made set his blood on fire. The taste of her was intoxicating, filling all his senses until she was all he could hear, taste, see and smell. Soon she was bucking against his mouth, cries of ecstasy piercing the silence of the room.

  “I’ve missed your mouth,” she whispered breathlessly, as she ran her hands over his shoulders and back, pointy nails softly grazing his sensitized skin. He shivered from the onslaught of emotions.

  “I missed everything,” he confessed, losing himself to her touch, mouth pressing kisses to her warm skin as he made his way up her body. He’d had relationships since her. He’d had lovers. So why did it feel like he’d gone a decade without human touch? Why did it feel like these were the first hands he’d had on him in years? His skin was parched, dry earth, and her hands were rain.

  “I need you. Please, Rodrigo.” Her words seemed so loud in the quiet room. He felt a tightening at his waist as she unbuttoned his trousers and unzipped them, and when he opened his eyes she was looking up at him, unrestrained hunger flashing in her eyes. Within seconds he was on her, his larger body covering hers. Skin on skin, fused together. There was nothing that could stop him from what they were about to do.

  He reached for the side table where he’d left his shaving kit and plucked out a condom and rolled it on as she undulated on the bed, pleasuring herself. Her lusty moans resounded through the room and if he didn’t get inside her he would combust. As soon as he was ready, he went in for another kiss, their tongues sliding together.

  “More,” she demanded as he placed himself right at her entrance. “Now, Rodrigo.” He could not deny her or himself any longer and entered her.

  “God,” he gasped, heart pounding in his chest as pleasure coiled around his spine like a vise. “You’re perfect. I want to be inside you forever.” With one hand he moved them until her hips were canted just right and he could be seated to the hilt.

  “Ah. I love this!” she cried as he pounded into her and she met him stroke for stroke. He placed a hand in between them and rubbed circles over her clit, desperate to feel her walls tighten around him. “I’m coming,” she gasped, pulsing around him. And soon his orgasm was crashing over him as they shared hard, hungry kisses.

  Yes, this was what he’d been missing. And as ill-advised and possibly disastrous as this was, with this woman warm and sated in his arms, he could not find it in him to regret it.

  Eleven

  “Hey, Mami,” Esme answered the phone, her jaw cracking from a yawn.

  “Mija, I never heard you get home last night, and this morning you left before I woke up!”

  “I got in really late. I didn’t want to wake you.” Heat flooded her face as she thought of the reason why she’d gotten home at almost 2:00 a.m. “I ended up coming back to the office after the reception to um...” She cleared her throat as an image of Rodrigo with his head between her legs flashed through her mind. She closed her eyes, hoping to shut it down, but more moments from the night before came to her in a flurry of very not-safe-for-work images.

  It had been supremely unwise to sleep with Rodrigo, but she could still feel the delicious aches from last night in her muscles. Yeah, that had been dumb, and so damn good. He was so strong. The way he’d taken her...his massive chest covering her as he surged into her. Over the years she’d convinced herself that being with Rodrigo had not been as earth-shattering as she’d remembered. That she’d embellished their time together because he’d been her first and she’d been in love with him for so long she created a fantasy in her head. She’d convinced herself that no one could be that good. Well, she’d been lying to herself, because the memory didn’t hold a candle to the real thing.

  The twenty-six-year-old gentle and attentive lover she’d been with at twenty-one was still there, but this Rodrigo was more skilled. Self-possessed like he was in every other aspect of his life. Although the restraint he carried himself with had evaporated the moment he put his hands on her. And his body, mercy. The man’s chest was like sculpted, bronzed marble. Her very own flesh-and-bone lustful god who’d made her tremble in his hands.

  “Esmeralda Luisa Sambrano Peña.” Her mother’s recitation of her full name made her jump in her seat. Her face heated again as she realized she’d been having sex daydreams while she had her mother on the phone.

  “Sorry, Mami.” What was she doing? “I just have a lot to do. I need like eight weeks and have four days, so I’m feeling the pressure to be here as much
as possible.”

  “I hear you, but Esme, amor, don’t start doubting yourself. You’ve been working hard for years for an opportunity like this. And you know what to do. Did that woman bother you again?”

  “No. I haven’t seen Carmelina.” She sighed, feeling unsteady. She’d texted her mom about her father’s widow showing up in Rodrigo’s office. Esme wasn’t planning on letting her know about the scene Onyx had made at the reception. That would only worry her. But Ivelisse’s question was also a good reminder that she was on her own here. No matter how nice it had been to feel like Rodrigo was on her side, she was still trying to take his job. They were not on the same team.

  She needed to get her head in the game or she would blow her chance to finally make her professional dreams come true. She had a moment with Rodrigo, and the mind-blowing sex was a way to blow off steam. A onetime thing that could not happen again and that was that. Closure. That’s what it was, one last goodbye. And she hoped if she kept repeating that to herself she would eventually believe it.

  “Good. If she bothers you again tell Rodrigo. He’s a good boy and he’ll help you.” Esme rolled her eyes, because despite everything her mom still had a soft spot for him. She’d been the only one who’d known about their relationship back then, and even when Esmeralda called her mother to tell her how Rodrigo ended things, her mother had not disparaged him. She’d comforted Esmeralda and sat through many pity parties over the phone. But her mother had not spoken ill of him, not once.

  “I’m trying to take his job, Mami. He’s not exactly an ally. And let’s not talk about how he ghosted me ten years ago.”

  Her mother clicked her tongue, a definite sign she did not approve of Esme’s opinion of the man. “You should give him more credit. He’s not a bad man. He’s just loyal to a fault.”

  At least on that they agreed. “Yeah, and his loyalties are not with me. So, I need to keep my guard up. That means Rodrigo Almanzar is the enemy until I have the CEO position secured.”

  “Good morning to you, too, Ms. Sambrano-Peña.”

  Shit.

  “Oh, hey.” Yeah, there was no masking the “just got caught disparaging your name” guilt in her voice. From the look on his face he must’ve heard her fighting words. Dammit. Her and her big mouth. This was not the way to keep things civil. Sure, she didn’t want to keep going down the path they started on last night, but she didn’t want him mad at her, either. First she’d slept with him and now he’d found her talking smack about him behind his back. This was not a good development. She pointed at her earbuds. “It’s Mami. Let me just end the call.”

  His face was back to that stony expression she could not read at all, the heat she’d seen in his eyes the night before replaced by a flinty stare. “I’m not here to chitchat, just wanted to remind you we’re meeting with the CFO in ten minutes.”

  A hole opened in her chest at the detached way he spoke to her. Like she was nothing to him. As if last night had never happened. But wasn’t this exactly what she wanted? Some distance. She’d told herself a dozen times since they’d parted ways last night she couldn’t get caught up in her old baggage about Rodrigo. That she had to keep pushing to get her presentation ready. And it seemed they were on the same page. So this was great. Exactly what needed to happen. Then why did she feel like a ball of lead had settled in the pit of her stomach?

  Because Rodrigo always did this to her. He made her weak and careless then he left her alone and discarded. Was she really going to set herself up to have her heart stomped like the last time? How could she forget how it had felt when he’d dumped her? God, and she’d slept with him. Not even 48 hours of having the man back in her life, and she had already broken every rule she’d set for herself with Rodrigo Almanzar. And she wanted to be angry, she wanted to be furious. But the way he’d touched her last night, the way he’d whispered in her ear that he’d ached for her, what those words had done to her—that would not be so easy to forget.

  “Your office?” she asked as her mind raced.

  He frowned at whatever he saw in her face, and for a moment she thought he’d say something about last night. That he’d mention the dozens of kisses they’d shared before they said goodbye. But instead, he uttered a clipped “Yes,” and walked out.

  * * *

  The meeting was brutal and not for the reasons Esme had anticipated. Magdalena Polanco, their CFO, was great, and gave Esmeralda the rundown on all operating costs for the studio like she’d requested. Numbers people always intimidated her. Esmeralda’s forte was more the big picture, the overarching vision, and not so much the intricacies of how to make that all work. But Magdalena seemed easy to work with, and Esme thought it would be nice to have someone like that on her team. A strong Latina who had gotten to the top of her field by working hard. At any other time she would’ve loved to pick her brain for an hour, ask Magdalena about her career trajectory, but Rodrigo’s whole vibe was driving Esme nuts.

  He’d barely acknowledged her during the meeting. And whenever she directed a question at him, he either answered with a monosyllable or he politely deferred to Magdalena. It was irritating as hell.

  Was he going to ice her out for the next four days because she was trying to keep things professional? What the hell was his problem? They were grown adults who’d gotten a bit carried away after a stressful day—surely they could be cordial. Granted, it would be so much easier if he didn’t look so damn good. He’d shaved this morning, but she could still feel every spot where his scruff had scraped the sensitive skin of her thigh when he was...

  “Miss Sambrano-Peña?”

  Dammit, she’d done it again. “I’m sorry.” She tried to smile, but it would not quite take, so she just gave up. “What were you saying?”

  “Just wondering if you had any other questions for me?”

  She shook her head and resisted placing her palms on her flaming cheeks. “Nope. Thank you so much. I have everything I need for now. If I have a question I can give you a call, right?”

  Magdalena gave her a warm smile as she stuffed papers back into her binder. “Absolutely. You have all my contact information and Rodrigo knows how to find me if it’s something urgent.” The older woman smiled affectionately at the object of Esmeralda’s fevered musings.

  “Tell Guille I’ll call him this week. We said we’d go shoot some hoops.” Magdalena beamed at Rodrigo.

  “My youngest son was a teammate of Rodrigo’s in college.” Magdalena informed Esmeralda. “He’s the one who recommended me for this job, you know?” Esme wondered if Magdalena was letting her know that as a way to tell her whose side she was on. But the way she looked at Rodrigo told her that wasn’t it at all. She just genuinely liked him.

  As much as Esmeralda wanted to act like a jerk right now, she only smiled. “He made a smart move then, I can tell you’re great at your job.”

  “He’s fought for a lot people in his time here,” she told Esme, before walking out of the office.

  “You certainly have a lot of admirers amongst the corporate team.”

  Rodrigo lifted his gaze from whatever he was doing on his phone and stared at her for so long she wondered if he’d heard her. Irrational possessiveness was truly not her friend. And yet here she was, acting like he was her man, never mind that Magdalena had to be pushing seventy.

  “You’re jealous of Magdalena now? She has grandkids your age.”

  “Jealous? Please, you’re so conceited.” Now she sounded like a brat. His mouth twitched, but before it could turn into a smile he bit his bottom lip, and God, she wanted to lean over and suck on it. To sit astride his lap and kiss him senseless.

  “You sound jealous, Esmeralda. I thought I was the enemy.” Okay, so he had heard her.

  She lifted a shoulder, trying very hard to feign an indifference she was not at all feeling. “You kind of are. We’re at odds right now and it would do us both good not to for
get that.”

  He arched an eyebrow at her words, and he looked so composed and controlled in that moment. Every hair in its place. His bespoke suit a perfect fit. He looked every inch the CEO. He looked like the man who should be sitting in this office. And that insidious insecurity flooded her. She wanted to lead this company. To prove—to the board, to her father’s widow, to her siblings—that her father’s wishes hadn’t been born out of misguided guilt, but because she was the right person to run the studio.

  But she wondered if she really had what it took to take the job from Rodrigo.

  As she digested this fresh dose of conflicting feelings his phone buzzed, and after looking at it he stood purposefully, then waved a hand toward the door. “Go to your office and grab what you need for the rest of the day. We’re going somewhere.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked, irritated at his attempt to order her around.

  As usual he didn’t give her anything. He just walked over to his desk and picked up a leather messenger bag. “I want you to see something.”

  She was annoyed at how vague he was being and a little hurt he hadn’t brought up the night before. But she wasn’t going to be a hypocrite and get mad. She had no intention of mentioning it, either.

  She tried her best to give him a sincere smile when she glanced up at him. “Aren’t you going to at least give me a hint? You know I hate surprises.”

  He stepped up to her, close enough that she could feel the heat of his body. He bent down so that his lips were almost grazing her ears. “You’re just going to have to trust me, Joya.”

  Damn the man for being so infuriatingly enticing, and for the husky laugh he let out as she stood there shivering. She should’ve told him to cut it out. To stop playing games with her. But when she looked closely, she saw that he was far from unbothered. His shoulders were tense, and his eyes wary. He was holding himself as if he expected her to say she could never trust him—but that would be a lie. She thought of his easy friendship with Jimena, and Magdalena’s clear affection and respect for him as evidence of the way that he carried himself personally and professionally. Yeah, despite everything, she still trusted Rodrigo Almanzar. And there was a simple reason for that: her mother was right; he was a good man.