“But it’s not a problem if they’re old or ugly?”
“If you send me a picture and I agree, then perhaps.”
Imagining that scenario amused me. “Oh, yeah, I can see that. Uh, hold still. I need to take a picture of you and vet it according to rule number three with this guy I’m not yet sleeping with. Oh, good news. You’re ugly enough that you pass. Congratulations, let’s get dinner.”
He laughed. “I’m sure we will have rectified the sleeping together situation by the time you’re taking clients out.”
“All kidding aside, I can’t say no to clients for a drink or dinner. I’m sorry but it’s not reasonable and it crosses the line from personal into professional.”
He sighed heavily. “No, I guess you’re right.” He didn’t sound happy about it, but at least he understood.
I decided now might be a good time to address some concerns. “So, I was on the Internet yesterday, and I have a few things to discuss about my limitations.”
“Jesus, Sasha, you don’t go and google shit like that. It’s like typing in symptoms of a cold and the Internet tells you forty ways you could die. I haven’t finished going over everything yet.”
“I was curious, and wanted some ideas of what limitations I might need.”
“Okay, hold on, I’m getting into the cab.” The phone muffled, and he said something in the background.
“All right, I’m back. Let’s hear them,” he said, resigned.
“Okay, I don’t want any sort of muzzle or gag in my mouth.”
“That’s definitely okay,” he agreed quickly.
“No whips, canes, pain, or threesomes,” I added, thinking of a list of things that came to mind.
“That isn’t even remotely close to what I want.”
“Okay. I’m assuming I don’t need to tell you no animals.”
“Christ, woman, you are starting to tick me off.”
“Hmm, I believe that evokes rule number one.”
“Now you’re just fucking with me.”
“Maybe a little. What if I want to negotiate some dominant time with you?”
“No.”
“No?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because that is non-negotiable.”
“Are you going to tell me why?”
“Not in the fucking cab I’m not.”
His temper had me both smiling and turned on at the same time. “Did you want me to get a hotel room tonight, after all?”
“Of course not.” His voice had immediately lost all irritation.
“All right. Send me your address and have a safe flight.”
“I will, and you drive carefully. I’ll call you when I land, see how far out you are, okay?”
I agreed and concentrated on the long drive ahead of me.
***
It was well past midnight by the time I arrived at Brian’s house. After parking in his driveway, I sent a text to my parents letting them know I arrived safely, got out of the car and looked up, appreciating the enormous three-story townhouse. Boy, did I miss the space I used to have in North Carolina.
“You having some size envy?” Brian quipped, standing outside the front door. He was wearing a pair of low slung plaid pajama bottoms and a Panthers T-shirt with leather slippers. He looked sexy as hell without even trying.
“I am. I’ve had hotel rooms bigger than my condo in New York.”
“Here, I’ll get your stuff. Come on in.”
He grabbed my suitcase and led me inside. We entered a living area which was modern and spacious, running lengthwise back to a large gourmet kitchen. “You hungry?” he asked, ever the gracious host.
“Ah, no. My mom packed leftovers. Matter of fact, I have extra if you want some.”
He patted his stomach and shook his head. “I’ll pass for now. There are the stairs to the bedrooms. I’ll give you an abbreviated tour tonight.”
I followed him up to an impressive master suite. The centerpiece was the king-sized bed against the wall, which had a massive wooden and steel bedframe. Everything else was also tasteful in rich woods, sort of like Pottery Barn meets Restoration Hardware.
“Master bathroom is that door over there. Laundry is in that large closet in the hall, guest room down the hall with another bathroom. In the basement is the theater room and my office. I tend to hang out down there mostly.”
I nodded and realized we were both kind of awkward. “I can take the guest room.”
“Actually my sister is already asleep in there. She found out I was on the way to the airport and decided to fly out with me. She wanted to be on our plane for the wedding. There’s a pull-out sofa downstairs I’ll sleep on since I’m going to watch TV for a while yet anyhow. I’d like it if you took my bed. If for no other reason, I can brag that you’ve been in it.”
I smiled, and then his words hit me. “Wait, your sister is here?” I wanted to smack the amused grin off his face.
“Are you disappointed we won’t be alone?”
I let out a breath as I realized that all along he’d known there wouldn’t be a possibility of us sleeping together tonight. “You could’ve told me that in the car.”
“I didn’t know until I got to the airport and she decided to meet me there. And I wasn’t going to risk you changing your mind.”
“How was the strip club with Colby?” I decided to change the subject.
He held a finger to his lips and closed the door.
I held my breath when he came back and took my face between his hands.
His lips were at my ear, teasing me with their proximity. “It wasn’t nearly as good as having you standing here in my bedroom.” His hands roamed over my back, massaging gently.
“Mm, good answer,” I murmured, leaning into him.
“How are you doing?”
“Fine.” I practically moaned when his fingers kneaded my lower back.
He leaned back and his knowing smile made me catch my breath. “We’ll have to work on the use of that word. I meant about your sister and what she said. Did she call you?”
Right, that’s what he meant. “She did call. I didn’t answer, and she didn’t leave a voicemail.”
“Are you okay?” His eyes searched mine, concern reflected in them.
Brian was aware that I didn’t have the closest of relationships with my sister and that at one point I’d questioned whether it had to do with my being adopted. “I’ll get over it.” I shrugged to emphasize it wasn’t a big deal.
He held my eyes with an uncanny ability to read me. “If you need to talk about it, you know that I’m a good listener.”
I swallowed hard. “Thanks.”
He pulled away and moved toward the door. “I’ll be up a while. Help yourself to anything, take a bath if you want, get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”
I nodded and stood there alone in the room for a moment before making my way into his bathroom.
It was a dream, with dual sinks, soaking tub and a large glass shower that included jets on the sides. I wasn’t planning to wash my hair, but I couldn’t pass up all of those streams of water.
After finishing with my amazing shower, I took my time getting ready for bed. I was too wired up to sleep, and the urge to touch myself was tempting. I should’ve felt relieved his sister was in the house to keep me from rushing into things, but instead I was disappointed. After throwing on my pajamas, I walked downstairs, wanting to discuss more about the rules. I was in the middle of the theater room in the darkness. When I listened there was no sound.
“Sasha.”
“God, you scared me.” I put my hand to my chest.
He flipped on the light and tossed me that boyish grin of his, and then his eyes ran down the length of me in my shorts and tank top PJ set. “Did you need something?”
“I wanted to talk more about the rules.” I folded my arms over my breasts lest he see that my nipples were hard merely thinking about the subject.
; He looked hesitant. “Hold on, let me shut the basement door.”
I took a seat in the corner of a sectional sofa with my feet tucked up underneath of me. I liked the setup with the plushness of the sofa and the large screen television against the wall.
“What’s on your mind?” he asked, sitting close and turning toward me.
“Explain what this would be. It wouldn’t be a relationship, right? I mean you don’t do relationships, and I certainly don’t.”
“I don’t do girlfriends. It would be a sex between friends I guess.”
“What about the whole boss thing?”
“I could have Mark draw up a nondisclosure agreement if that would make you feel more comfortable about keeping professional and personal totally separate. But I’d like to think that with our friendship we wouldn’t need one. Unless you’re afraid you can’t keep them independent.”
“Don’t patronize me.” I was instantly annoyed.
“My apologies. I didn’t mean to.” The amusement was back on his face.
“See, that right there. You’re polite and charming, and everyone who meets you loves you. You’re the perfect gentleman. That’s why this other side of you is throwing me.”
As if to prove a point, he leaned into me and cupped my chin, meeting my lips. They were soft; however his kiss was anything but. His hands moved to the back of my neck, holding me in place while he ravaged my mouth and inflamed my senses. His demanding tongue met mine, and I moved closer toward him. He slid his hands under my backside, moving me so that I straddled his lap.
In an effort to relieve the pulsing ache between my thighs, I ground my center against his hard length, whimpering at the friction.
“Fuck.” He pulled his mouth away, looking as turned on as I was.
My hips rolled shamelessly into him, and I was rewarded with his groan.
His hands gripped my hips, pushing them back and pinning them in place. “Enough,” he croaked out. His face looked pained, but I could tell by the look in his eyes he was serious.
I started to move off of his lap only to have him hold me in place.
“No, you don’t. Don’t get pissed off because I’m saying no.”
It irritated the hell out of me that he knew what I was thinking before I did. “I’m not. You don’t want to, and I get it—”
A second scorching kiss was the way he shut me up. His hands gripped my ass and rocked me into his erection, back and forth. “Does it feel like I don’t want to?” he asked, tearing his lips away.
“But you need rules?” I clarified, breathing heavy.
He nodded and gently lifted me off of him and back into the corner, swinging my legs over his lap so that I couldn’t get up. “We both do, and even then, it won’t be tonight.”
My body rebelled at the thought, and I tried not to be petty. “I need to ask you something.”
He exhaled, most likely knowing the direction this was heading. “Ask me, then.”
“Did Jamie have these rules?”
His face told me the answer before his mouth did.
Unbelievable. I tried to get up, but he wouldn’t let go of my legs.
“Sasha, wait—” He pulled me back down and leaned over me. “Look, I’ve known Jamie since college. I didn’t have any rules with her because she wasn’t someone I wanted to be monogamous with or who merited taking the time and effort to ensure we had everything agreed upon first. Also Jamie and I know a lot of the same people from school, and although it may not seem like it, I’d like to keep my personal shit, from being reunion gossip. Up until five months ago, she had a serious boyfriend. Before that, it had been six years since we, ah, were together. And although she may have implied I see her every trip to New York, the truth is that I didn’t tell her every time I was in town.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because I didn’t want anything serious with her. I could tell she had started to want more and was jealous of you.”
I swallowed at his admission. “That’s why she showed up at the bar?”
He nodded. “I think she believed she’d mark her territory, but instead, you know the outcome.”
No, I didn’t, and it was on the tip of my tongue to ask what was actually said to her to end things. But considering this was my first real affliction with possessiveness, and he’d made it clear we were monogamous; I decided not to push it. “Thanks for telling me that.”
He regarded me for the longest time. “Come here, give me those lips.”
Aroused by the command, I did a very un-Sasha like thing and leaned over without protest. I could tell from the flash of pleasure in his eyes that I’d pleased him by doing so.
He kissed me one last time and then sighed regrettably. “We’ll talk more tomorrow. Did you want to go into the office or stay here?”
“Office.” It was the one place where I was in control and could compartmentalize the holidays, my sister, and Brian into a nice neat box while I got some work done.
***
The next morning I showered and dressed quickly for work. The nice part about the Charlotte office was that I could dress more casually than I did in New York. There was also the fact that it was Christmas week, which meant hardly anyone would be in. The owner, Josh, had given the week off to all employees. He was a lot more generous with time off since he’d met his wife-to-be, that’s for sure.
When I entered the kitchen, I spotted Brian’s younger sister sitting at the small table eating cereal.
“Hey, McKenzie,” I greeted, not knowing if she would remember me. It had probably been five years or more since I’d last seen her.
She looked shocked and then grinned. “Hey, Sasha. I didn’t know you were here.”
Getting up, she gave me a hug which I hadn’t expected. Luckily, she didn’t notice my awkwardness, but instead looked excited to have me here. She was tall like her brother and had turned into a natural beauty.
“I got in late last night. I was telling your brother only a few days ago that the last time I saw you, there were braces on your teeth. Now you’re all grown up and beautiful.” I meant the compliment sincerely.
She blushed prettily and resumed her seat. “I don’t know about beautiful, but I am almost twenty-two.”
Her self-deprecation reminded me of myself in my early twenties: in college, away from home, and feeling weird in my own skin.
“I didn’t know you and my brother had gotten together. I think it’s great, though. I always wondered if you would.”
Oh, shit. I realized she was under the wrong impression. Or maybe the correct one, but considering nothing had happened yet, I amended her assumption. “Uh, we’re only friends. I drove in last minute, and Brian slept downstairs.”
As if on cue, he opened the basement door on the far side of the kitchen. He was adorable, all rumpled from sleep.
“Hey, Kenzie. Hey, Sasha. Help yourself to coffee. I’m going to grab a shower, and then we can go into work.”
Kenzie’s face fell with Brian’s words.
Oh hell. I hadn’t meant to leave his sister alone today by insisting on going into the office. “Brian, you don’t need to come in with me. I’m probably only doing a half day, and you should hang out with Kenzie.”
He looked between the two of us and stretched his arms up, affording me a glimpse of his abs. “How about we go in for a few hours, and then Kenzie can meet us for lunch? You wanted to go to the mall for a dress or something, right Kenzie?”
My eyes inadvertently remained glued to his stomach. By the time they journeyed back up to his face, he was smirking at me.
“Yeah, I’d like to get a dress for the wedding and maybe some shoes. I don’t suppose I could convince you to come with me, Sasha, maybe after lunch?”
“Uh, sure.” I didn’t know how I could say no.
“Kenzie, she may not want to—”
I gave Brian a pointed look. “No, I do, really. I love fashion, and I’d be happy to go with you.” I might not know Kenzie ver
y well, but I did love shopping. And it would be an opportunity to get to know her better.
She smiled. “Cool. Does that mean I get to drive your car today, big brother?”
He walked by and mussed her hair on his way to the stairs. “Sure. No problem.”
I was thankful for the Keurig machine and made myself a cup of coffee. Meanwhile, I thought about how many guys would’ve freaked at the thought of their baby sister driving their brand new Lexus. But he hadn’t batted an eye. He was laid-back that way. So how could he be dominant in the bedroom? Maybe he only thought he was. It could be that nice, easy-going Brian merely didn’t say please or thank you during sex.
Kenzie’s voice brought me out of my thoughts. “I suck at clothes big time. I brought a dress that I wore in high school, but it’s kind of juvenile. I’d like something, I don’t know, a little more grown-up.”
I was still thinking about Brian’s defined stomach. “Of course. It’ll be fun.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
After spending the first couple hours in the office wading through email and catching up on some correspondence, I felt back to normal. Work is where I found my equilibrium and sense of purpose. It’s where I was in control and could feel confident, but by mid-morning I’d run out of things to do. Most of my clients were on vacation, and I was supposed to have spent the day in a Disney marathon with my nieces and nephews. I wondered if Brian was busy. Aside from a couple other people, we were the only ones in the office today.
I headed toward his side of the building where I heard the unmistakable voice of Juliette and the sounds of a toddler before I saw them outside of Brian’s office. Smiling, I walked toward them. She’d had this week off, and I’d been afraid I would miss seeing her.
Juliette Walker had started in the Charlotte office over eight years ago as the receptionist, then began working for Brian directly. She was now officially the office manager, but she continued to perform multiple tasks specifically for Brian on a daily basis. She was the glue that held the corporate office together and had endless energy as well as sass. She was the type of person who talked enough for the both of us. In time, she’d eased me into a friendship whether I’d wanted it or not. You pretty much didn’t have a choice but to like her. She’d wear you down otherwise.
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