And I have no idea where to start.
Chapter Nine
The deal for the multi-million-dollar property fell through. Thankfully, it had nothing to do with me. The company decided Seattle just wasn’t a good fit for their production facility, so they backed out. They’re going to Wisconsin instead. Wisconsin. I mean, really? I’m sure it’s nice, but … Wisconsin? Oh, well. I hope it works out for them.
Once that’s come undone, I realize how much time I’d spent on it. Too much. That hits me when I realize we haven’t done anything as a couple in several weeks, and that’s not healthy. We also haven’t played at the club because I’m too damn tired and too overworked. So on Wednesday night, I do something I should’ve done a few weeks back.
“Sure. I don’t mind at all. Just three nights?”
“Yeah. Tomorrow night through Saturday night. We’ll be back Sunday afternoon. Are you sure it’s not too much of an imposition?” I ask, not wanting to dump too much on anybody.
“It’s fine. I don’t know of anything special we’ve got planned,” Clint says with a smile. “You guys could use a few days alone. Go. Have fun. I’ll open tomorrow night and if I run into anything I don’t know how to handle, I’ll call Dad.”
“Thanks, bud. I’m hoping to surprise Cirilla.” I’m sure it’ll surprise her.
Three hours later when we get home, I stop the car in the parking lot and turn to her. “I’ve got a surprise for you.”
“Yeah? Donuts?” she asks, and it strikes me how tired she looks.
“No. I’m taking you out of town tomorrow. We’ll be coming back Sunday afternoon. Does that sound good?”
There’s that smile I love so much! “Yeah! Oh, Brian, yes. I want to go. I just want to be alone with you. No distractions, just the two of us. Where are we going?”
“I tried to think of a place I was pretty sure you’d never been before, so I booked us a room at a bed and breakfast in Vancouver.” In a split second, that smile changes to an expression on the face of somebody who just lost their best friend. “You don’t like Vancouver?”
“I can’t go. I don’t have a passport.”
“You don’t have a passport?”
“No, Brian. I don’t have a passport. I can’t get a passport. If I tried, they could … I can’t get a passport. I’m sorry. I know that ruins everything.”
Why didn’t I think of that? Getting a driver’s license isn’t too hard. All you have to do is satisfy state requirements, but a passport is federal, and they look at those closely. She already told me this is connected to D.C. That means someone there might catch her request and put two and two together. A birth certificate is necessary to get a passport, and those are a lot harder to forge than a simple driver’s license or getting a Social Security number that belonged to a dead person. “You haven’t ruined anything, baby. We can change it to something here. How about Portland? Ever been there?”
“No.”
Something else passes through my mind. “How about Mount Ranier National Park?”
There’s a light in her eyes that I haven’t seen in a few weeks. “Could we? I hear it’s beautiful.”
“Of course. I’ll have to call one of the inns and see if we can get a room, but I bet we can. Let me get on that.”
An hour later, we have rooms. I say that in plural because the only way I can get a room with a private bath is to take a two-room unit, but I don’t care. This is supposed to be a getaway for us, and that’ll be a disaster if we can’t have our own bathroom. She seems excited about it, and that makes me pretty damn happy.
Tomorrow morning can’t come soon enough. I can’t wait to spend some time away from everybody and everything and concentrate on her. She deserves it. We’ll still have to answer phone calls, but we’ll let them go to voicemail, then pick and choose what we’re going to respond to. It’ll be fine. And we’ll be together.
* * *
“Got everything?” I ask as we’re piling into the Jeep.
“I think so.”
“Anything you forgot we can buy. Buckle up, babe.” She’s decided I should drive, since I know the area better, and it takes me a few minutes to get the tilt, mirrors, and seat all set. When I do, I have to admit, this thing is comfortable.
I’m glad for the drive because I’m hoping to have some time to talk without interruption, and the car is a great place for that. It’s not a long drive, just shy of two hours, but that’s plenty of time, I think. There’s a list in my shirt pocket of things I want to talk about. Before I can get it out, she says, “I’ve been wanting to talk about some stuff, if that’s okay, sir.”
“Of course. I’ve actually wanted the same thing,” I answer as I check the mirrors yet again, satisfied that no one’s following us. I’m not going to mention my list. Instead, I think I’ll let her go on and see if any of them are some of the same things I was thinking about.
“You have?” I nod. “Oh. Well, okay. So, one thing is, could we cook? I mean, I like eating out, but I’d really like to cook sometimes. You know, like in a home, with family? I know I said I don’t cook, but I actually do, and I miss it.”
I know I’m smiling like a loon. “Funny you should mention that, because it’s one of the things I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Good. But there’s a problem. How are we going to do that with you going to the club every evening?”
“There’s a retired member who’s always been there to help out, and I’m sure he can use some extra spending money. Used to be a keeper at the Woodland Park Zoo.”
“Yeah? What kinds of animals?”
“Zebras and giraffes, I think he said. Anyway, I think he’d probably come in early a couple of days a week so I could stay home. But I know at some point I’m going to have to hire help, and that’s going to be hard.”
Her voice is soft when she says, “I know. I’m sorry.”
“No, babe. It’s okay. It’ll be fine. It’ll take me a while to work it out, but I will. And yes―I’d love to be home in the evening and cook a meal with you, help clean up, all that stuff.” I catch her expression from the corner of my eye and she’s wearing a beautiful, wistful smile. “What else?”
That smile fades and the inside corners of her brows drop to the wrinkle at the bridge of her nose. Uh-oh. “I’d like for you to quit snooping in my room.”
Well, fuck me. “What makes you―”
“Brian, don’t treat me like I’m stupid. That’s why you sent me on that wild goose chase for your books in the storage room.”
“They were there,” I argue.
“Not in the box you said. You did that to throw me off.”
What the hell do I say? I was wrong, so I might as well get it over with. “I’m sorry.”
“You should be. I don’t care if you are my Dominant. That’s my personal space, and you violated it.”
“Look, Cirilla―”
“No, you look, Brian. Don’t you trust me?”
“I do! But I’m also scared for you, okay? If what you wrote is real, I mean, I know it’s real, you’re not imagining things, but if they’re really doing what you think they’re doing, I’m scared.”
“You should be. You should mostly be scared for yourself,” she says, her lips set in a grimace that tells me she means business.
“I know you said that, but I can take care of myself,” I announce boldly. It’s true. I’m not some helpless little creature. I’m a grown man, for god’s sake.
“You think you can take care of yourself. These are people who’ve committed unspeakable crimes, and they wouldn’t hesitate to hurt you if you get in the way.”
“But who are they, babe?”
“I have no idea.”
I don’t understand that. “You don’t know?”
“No. But I know who they work for, and that’s all I need to know.”
Now I’m confused. “They’re not cops?”
“Hell, no, they’re not cops. They’re about as far from cops as anybody
could get. They’re trying to get to me before the cops do.”
That’s when it finally soaks in for me. These are guys who work for somebody powerful. They want to get to her before the cops do. And they’ve come all the way from D.C. to follow her and try to get to her. Then something else strikes me as odd. “If they’ve come for you and they’ve found you, what are they waiting for?”
“They’re trying to find out who I’m associating with, where I’m going, what I’m doing, so when they strike, nobody will ever know what happened. I’ll just … Let’s stop talking about this, okay? It’s making me crazy.”
“It’s making you crazy? I’m possibly in danger and you can’t, or won’t, tell me from whom or what’s going on? I’m not exactly the most settled person at this particular moment.”
“I get it. I really do. But you have to trust me, Brian. What I’m doing, I’m doing to survive. I want you to come out the other side unscathed. But if they get the slightest indication that you know what’s going on, they’ll be after you too.”
That’s scary as fuck. I don’t know what being after you means, and I don’t want to. Still, it’s hard to believe they’ve come all the way from D.C. to follow her around. The whole thing is starting to sound a little dramatic. Rather than continue to argue with her about it, I decide to go another direction. “I think we’re at a stalemate, so anything else you wanted to talk about?”
“Yeah. I want a raise. If I’m going to work for you and fuck you too, I should be getting paid more.” What the hell? I guess she sees the shocked look on my face, a look I’m sure is there with that pronouncement, and she starts to laugh. “I’m just kidding, baby! It’s a joke.”
“I dunno. The budget’s still kinda up in the air. Maybe you can just keep working for me without the fucking,” I throw back, trying hard not to laugh.
“Oh, no you don’t, buster. And it should be retroactive.”
“Wow. Demanding much?”
There’s a haughtiness in her voice when she answers, “Nope. I’m a good lay. That should get me a good raise.”
“Oh. I see. Sounds like something we need to negotiate.”
She reaches across the console and takes my hand. “I love you, Brian.”
“I love you too. And I don’t ever want to be without you.”
“I don’t ever want you to be without me. I’m trying to make sure that doesn’t happen. So can you just let me?”
I don’t know what she means by that―I don’t see her doing a damn thing that’s proactive―but I don’t see that I have a choice. Whatever this is that’s going on, she holds the keys to the kingdom. I’m on the other side of the moat, waiting for the drawbridge to come down and hoping I’m standing in the right spot when it does so it doesn’t squash me.
We drive along for a little while, silent, holding hands, before she says, “You had some things you wanted to talk about.”
“One of them was the cooking thing. Actually, I should say domestic thing. We’re getting busier all the time. I wanted to know what you would think about me hiring somebody to clean. We already have the confusion of home being the office and vice versa. I think when we’re not in the office, we should be able to relax. I’ve even thought about renting us some office space.”
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
I thought she’d jump on that. “Really? Why not?”
“Because I feel safe there.”
When I turn to glance at her, the sadness in her eyes takes my breath away. “Okay. Not renting office space. Not until such time as you can feel comfortable about it.”
“Thank you, sir,” she whispers, and I squeeze her hand.
Except for the occasional comment about something along the road, we ride in companionable silence the rest of the way. When we pull up in front of the inn, I’m surprised. It doesn’t look as big as it did when I was a kid and my parents brought me here. “Well, whaddya think?” I ask as I park the Jeep in front of the entry.
“It’s beautiful. So rustic and simple, and yet so inviting. I can’t wait to see the inside!” She’s out and on her feet before I can come around and open her door. “Oh, wow! Smell that air! This is amazing! Sir, this was such a great idea.”
“Thanks. I hope our room is nice. Come on. You can take the key and go on to the room while I grab our bags and park.”
Minutes later, I step through the door of the room and look around. “Well? Do you like it?” she asks me as she presses upward on the window sash and opens the window to let fresh air in.
Well, look at this. It hasn’t changed at all since I was a child. Sure, new linens, drapes, carpet, and upholstery, but it’s just as quaint and charming as it was back then. “Feels like home, huh?”
“It does! It’s like going to a grandparent’s house or something. Notice anything?” she asks, twirling around. I look around but nothing stands out, and I shrug. “No TV! I don’t think there’s even wifi here.”
What? Shit! No wifi? What if I have something that I just have to do, like sending an email or something like that? Dear god, I hope I don’t lose a deal because I can’t respond in a timely fashion. And then it hits me.
It’s three days. Not really even three days. Not even a full seventy-two hours. If the world can’t let me concentrate on her for seventy-two hours, there’s a problem. “I think we’ll survive,” I say bravely, trying to convince myself it’ll be okay.
“I think we will. So are we having dinner now? Or later?”
My arms slip around her waist as I smile down at her. “Whatever you’d like.”
Rising up on her tiptoes, she gives me a soft little kiss. “I want to go eat now, then buy some snacks, and come back here for the rest of the evening. How does that sound?”
“Sounds like heaven. So let’s go.” Being here for the rest of the evening?
It’s exactly what I had in mind.
We eat at the restaurant in the lodge, then pick up some snacks and drinks at the little general store next door before we head back to the rooms. We flirted all the way through dinner, and I have to admit, it’s nice to feel desired by the woman I desire. For the first time in a long time, sex isn’t the primary thing on my mind. Okay, wait―that’s not accurate. It is the primary thing on my mind, but it’s because I love her, not because I just want to use her body. I haven’t been in this position in a long, long time, and it’s welcome and long overdue.
“What now?” she asks as soon as we step into the room.
I’m about to speak when I think of something. “Hang on. I’ll be right back.” Before she has a chance to stop me, I dart out the door and hear her calling my name as I go.
Sliding to a stop in front of the desk, I ask the clerk, “Isn’t there a little pond down a trail somewhere right here at the lodge?”
“Yeah. Out the front door and at the back of the parking lot,” he answers, startled.
“Do you have trouble with bears around here?”
“Not so much. There’s not much forage for them. They spend their time deeper in the woods where there are more small animals.”
“If I go down the trail in the dark, am I going to get lost?”
“Nope. Matter of fact, you should be able to see some of the lights from the parking lot even at the pond. But you might want to take a flashlight. We don’t do a very good job of keeping the trail cleaned up.” Before I can ask, he hands me a huge flashlight.
“Thanks. I’ll bring it back when I’m finished with it.” There’s no chance for him to answer before I barrel back down the hallway. When I throw the door open, Cirilla looks genuinely alarmed. “Grab a blanket from the closet,” I order, and she looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “Come on! Move!”
“Yes, sir.” I watch as she pulls down a large poly fleece blanket and in seconds, we’re out the door.
“I remember the way down there. Well, I sorta remember the way,” I tell her as I take her hand with my free one and flash the flashlight around. “Yeah. There it is. Come o
n.”
We walk for what can’t be more than half a mile. Sure enough, I can still see the lights from the parking lot. Her voice is quiet, almost reverent, beside me when she asks, “Where are we?”
“I remember this place from when I was a little kid. Dad and I walked back in here while Mom packed our clothes.” She wasn’t my mom; she was my stepmother. But Darlene was the only mother I knew. My mother was … gone. And I’ll leave it at that.
“Cool! Oh, this is pretty, Brian. Look at the moon on the water!” she coos, turning and looking here and there. The moonlight is bright, and I have an idea.
“Come on. Spread the blanket out and sit down.” When it’s all spread out, she sits first and I join her. “Now don’t panic. Give it a minute.” And I flip the flashlight off.
It’s dark―really, really dark, at least for about thirty seconds. As my eyes adjust, I can see things around me start to brighten in the moonlight and before I know it, it feels like broad daylight. “Oh, wow. This is gorgeous,” I hear her murmur.
It takes me a split second to sweep her down onto her back on the blanket and brace myself above her. “It’s not as gorgeous as the woman here with me. You’re beautiful, babe. Exquisite.”
“Why, thank you, sir,” she whispers up to me and lifts her head ever so slightly. I don’t wait―I trap her lips with mine and kiss her, a deep, passionate thing that has its own heartbeat.
For once, that damn baggy, shapeless dress comes in handy, and I slide it up and work her panties down with one hand. She’s breathless when she says, “Oh, sir …”
“Yeah. Right here in the great outdoors. We’re going to do what comes naturally.”
“Oh, god, the feel of the air on my skin … Brian, please, I need you.”
“You’re going to get me, baby. Right now.” I don’t wait, just plunge into her and start to stroke. I manage to catch one nipple and then the other, nipping and tugging as I take her, those creamy thighs gripping my ribs, and I feel her ankles cross behind my ass. Oh, fuck, yeah. Warm, wet, wild, and out in the woods. Amazing. I remember her telling me how she liked to be videotaped and I find myself wishing there were a camera here. How I’d love to watch this later! It’s bound to be beautiful, the two of us together. My heart belongs to this woman, and I know it’s never been safer. “Cirilla, do you believe that I love you?”
Completely Mine: Bliss Series, Book Four Page 17