by Marian Tee
His fingers slipped through the sides of her thong---
Oh God.
And then he was thrusting all three fingers inside of her.
“Nathan!”
Her head started to fall back, but Nathan’s free hand had suddenly fisted her hair, yanking her head back to him. His fingers withdrew, and she started to moan in protest---
His mouth captured hers, and the sound was lost in his deep, raw kiss.
A moment later, Nathan shoved his fingers back into her pussy, and she shuddered against him, crying his name out against his mouth.
A wondrously tumultuous cycle began, their bodies rocking against each other as Nathan fucked her with his fingers while she did her best to feverishly rub herself over his cock. Inside of her, the pressure hadn’t stopped mounting, her body tightening more and more---
Just when she felt like she couldn’t bear any more, Nathan tore his mouth from hers, and he whispered harshly against her lips, “Do you really want me to be the one to take your virginity?”
Aaaaaaah.
“I won’t ask you again.”
Eyes clouded with need met Nathan’s. “Yes.”
The moment the whispered reply fell from her lips, he released her hair to reach for her clit---
She started to scream.
As he stroked her clit, he began shoving his fingers harder and harder into her.
“Nathaaaaaaan----”
And as Alyx started to come, her body arching against him, his mouth moved back to her ear. “Next time…” Nathan’s voice was rough. “It will be my cock inside of you.”
Alyx
Over a week had passed since I joined the mile-high club, and what a week it had been. “Making her fall in love with him” apparently translated to sticking to me like glue in the ex-model’s book, with Nathan accompanying me everywhere while keeping me in a sexual thrall so powerful it had me doing things I had never thought I’d be willing to do.
Monday’s café was where I came to discover why footsies were indeed erotic, with Nathan able to make me come with just his damn foot. Tuesday’s newly opened 4D cinema introduced me to the pleasures of making out in a theater, Nathan having to cover my mouth when the way he stroked my pussy became too much for me to bear in silence.
Wednesday’s airport lounge was probably one of the craziest, with Nathan managing to sneak me in and out of the men’s shower room without being detected. While I deep-throated his cock on my knees, Nathan had managed to keep a steady flow of conversation with the other guys, all of whom seemed to have been suffering from a bad case of hero worship.
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday – the same things had happened, and I’d have become suspicious that Nathan only saw me as a sexual toy than someone he was trying to help get over heartbreak---
If not for the little things, such as the way he would hang out in my apartment when I was working on a blog post and he’d make me coffee exactly the way I liked it. It was the way, when we weren’t busy making each other come, he would ask me questions incessantly, almost as if he wanted to know me better than I knew myself.
It was the way he had looked at me when I had asked him baldly why hadn’t he tried fucking me yet, and yes, it was the way he had answered me, too. “I don’t want you to keep thinking of yourself as a slut. We both know you’re not, but you’ll end up thinking that if we sleep with each other right away.” After, he had reached for a lock of my hair, bringing it to his lips as he murmured, “So let’s take our time driving each other crazy, sweetheart.”
Sunday had been rather different, with us spending most of the day in my apartment. Somehow, the ex-model had managed to convince me to cook while wearing an apron – and nothing else. While we waited for the pie to bake, he got me bending over the counter so he could fuck me with his fingers from behind.
And now, I thought gloomily, I was suffering the consequences of my actions. Like it or not, the painful throes in my heart were symptoms of separation anxiety, which had started the moment I had seen Nathan to the door that Sunday night and he had told me out of the blue that he was leaving for Hong Kong the next day.
When I had asked the reason why, he had only shaken his head with a smile that was as sexy as it was irritatingly sly. “It’s not good if we know everything there is about each other,” the ex-model had purred in response. And even as I had sputtered in rage, the stupid Greek jerk had only laughed, saying mildly, “Worrying about me possibly cheating on you should keep you from hurting.”
The answer had me wanting to strangle him, but I couldn’t since he had hauled me into his arms by then. Giving me a hard kiss, he had said huskily, “See you in a week, sweetheart.”
By the time I had recovered, he was already walking away, and I had only been able to yell after him, “Asshole!”
“I’ll miss you, too.”
And that was that.
I glared at my laptop. It was only for a few days. I had lived almost thirty years without Nathan Callis in my life. This should be nothing---
My iPhone suddenly vibrated against the table, and the speed in which I fumbled for it was like fate mocking me. Obviously, a few days of not seeing Nathan Callis were everything.
I angrily punched my screen to open the unread message, wishing it were Nathan’s too-perfect nose instead.
Nathan: Where are you right now?
Alyx: What’s it to you?
Nathan: I take it you’re still mad I haven’t told you why I went to HK.
Alyx: Hundo p.
Nathan: What?
Alyx: You’re ONE HUNDRED PERCENT I’m FUCKING MAD. Do I have to give an ELI5 for everything?
Nathan: No, you don’t have to “explain like I’m five”. I just like making you mad.
My jaw dropped. So he did understand everything I had typed!
Nathan: It’s sexy as hell.
Alyx: DICK.
Nathan: Yes, I know. You miss it. My dick misses you, too.
Alyx: Fuck off.
Nathan: So damn horny for you now, I may need to eat your pussy before I can even say hello.
Alyx: @$%#&!
Nathan: I’m horny, too! #ftfy
A reluctant laugh escaped me as I read the hashtag.
Ever since I had started working as a freelance blogger, I had realized almost immediately that the majority of my target readers didn’t speak old-school English. Instead, Reddit seemed to have made up an entirely new language that everyone who spent more than six hours on the Internet was fluent in. After a bit of deliberating on marketing strategies, I had decided to use the same language and tone in my posts, hoping it would attract more readers to my blog. It had, and I had never looked back.
Alyx: You’re the only person above 25 that I know who gets me.
Nathan: I did use to be a model, sweetheart.
Alyx: What does that mean?
Nathan: I see something cool, it’s snatched.
Another laugh escaped me.
Alyx: It doesn’t suit you.
Nathan: I know that, too. I just wanted to make you laugh because you need more of it in your life. I hate it when you look sad, sweetheart.
My heart skipped a beat at the unexpected response, and I quickly switched my phone off without replying. Yes, I had asked Nathan Callis to make me fall for him---
But wasn’t this going too fast?
One alarming question after another struck my mind, but I determinedly shoved all of them away. I looked determinedly at my laptop. Too much time had already been wasted on Nathan Callis. It was time to work.
I nodded vehemently to myself.
So let’s focus on work, Alyx Marshall.
Pulling out a folder, I clicked on the photos of the latest café I had been asked to review, wanting to study them side by side. It seemed like shabby chic was the hottest trend in the café business, with Macy’s showcasing the same interior style.
I began typing.
More often than not, if you’ve seen one shabby chic rest
aurant, you’ve seen them all. But if you do it right, you can still make your place stand out, and thankfully Macy’s managed to do just that. The place had a dollhouse-like feel to it, with a little bit of a Stepford vibe, but not in a creepy way.
I went on to describe the place in detail, highlighting in particular the lovely pink SMEG refrigerator in one corner and the cozy feels the checkered tablecloths evoked. Pulling out another photo, I found myself staring at a table centerpiece: sunflowers gathered in one upcycled bottle---
And before I realized what was happening, it was already too late, and the bottle had transformed into something else.
The bottle with its upcycled design was now a symbol for love.
You know that part of your body that has to beat and pump blood? It starts off as nothing but a human organ, a component making up the circulatory system.
But once that beating organ finds a deeper purpose and gets upcycled---
That’s when it becomes a heart, one capable of things that are beyond what it was originally created for---
I froze when I realized my thoughts had gone off the deep end. Shit. I gave my laptop’s keyboard a few furious jabs as I pulled up another batch of photos. Focus on work, Alyx!
In one photo was a close-up shot of an oversized polka-dot mug, filled to the brim with colorful marshmallows, caramel popcorn, and strawberry pretzels. Another photo showed Macy’s play area, which came complete with picket fences, artificial turf, miniature chairs, and tables. There was also a vintage mailbox---
I stilled.
Don’t go there, Alyx.
Don’t go there---
But my mind still went there!
Have you ever thought how a mailbox might feel when it receives a letter?
I covered my ears in a futile attempt to keep myself from hearing my thoughts, but the words…just…kept…coming.
It doesn’t really have a choice on which letters would come inside it, just like how the heart can’t choose which person’s love it would receive---
I squeezed my eyes shut in crippling shame, but it still didn’t stop the disgustingly emotional words from flowing out.
But what if a mailbox has a sudden, inexplicable desire to return one of the letters? What if your heart falls for another---
I slammed my laptop shut and without letting myself think, I reached for my phone and sent a text to a number I had memorized without intending to.
A reply came a moment later.
I’ll be waiting.
Alyx And Nathan
Nik Alexandropoulos led Alyx into his private office, tall, handsome, and unsmiling in a dark gray suit. “Please have a seat.” He gestured towards the couch, asking, “Would you like something to drink?”
She shook her head, watching him all the while, and waiting. There were so many things this man shared with Nathan Callis, and it wasn’t just because they were both Greek billionaires and as such, powerful and arrogant to a fault.
And yet---
“Do you mind if I drink?”
“Not at all.” Alyx’s voice was faint. Her head was reeling, and she wondered if she was suffering from shock. Her trembling hand went to her chest, and she felt her heart thudding harder than ever against it.
But that was the thing.
It wasn’t racing madly in excitement, but instead it was beating hard and fast…out of relief.
Across her, Nik settled himself on the armchair, a shot of whiskey in his hand, which he downed swiftly in one gulp. Tension was etched on his face, and she quickly looked away, suddenly feeling like a voyeur.
Once, seeing him in pain would have meant the world to her because it meant he knew she existed.
But it was different now. She looked around his office, which she had been to a few times in the past years. It hadn’t changed at all. It was still vast and luxurious, still decorated in his favorite colors – but now the fact that she knew what those shades were only gave her discomfort.
“So…” Nik’s polite drawl had Alyx looking back at him, and she saw the Greek billionaire leaning forward, his elbows settling on his knees as he clasped his hands together.
Her heart used to jump at seeing him like that, Alyx thought, and that it no longer did now only made her feel more lightheaded.
At the back of her mind, the meaning behind such changes lingered, waiting to be acknowledged---
Not yet, Alyx thought vaguely. Not just yet.
Forcing herself to meet Nik’s gaze, she said quietly, “I’m sorry.” Nik was a really smart man, and she knew she didn’t have to say anything else for the Greek billionaire to understand what the apology was for.
“You’re forgiven.” And without missing a beat, the Greek billionaire deadpanned, “I’ve always known I’m irresistible, so things like this tend to happen.”
Alyx fought against the urge to gnash her teeth. For all the trouble she had caused him – something they both knew he didn’t deserve in any way – she owed it to Nik Alexandropoulos to just let that one go.
His lips twitched. “No need to control yourself, Alyx.”
She gave him a strained smile. “It’s my penance.”
He laughed, and the sound was---
It wasn’t anything special.
Her head fell down, and she heard herself ask, “Will you tell Daria?”
A pause, and then Nik asked levelly, “Do you believe I’ll have a reason to?”
Ah. She could read between the lines easily enough, and she knew he was asking if she believed there was a chance for her feelings to come back. And slowly, she shook her head. “No.” Her voice caught as she suddenly found herself overwhelmed by emotions.
Relief, gratitude, joy, love---
“I thought,” she choked out, “my whole world ended when I didn’t see you as just another Greek jerk.”
“I see.”
She choked back a laugh at Nik’s polite murmur, and lifting her head, she told him feelingly, “I’m just so glad…so damn glad I look at you now, and all I see is this chauvinistic, obnoxious, power-tripping---”
“I get the picture,” Nik said dryly.
But he was smiling, and a tremulous smile formed on her lips in response.
“I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m glad it’s over.”
She nodded jerkily. “Me, too.”
“And because things usually work this way, I’m supposing you’ve met someone?” The Greek billionaire paused before asking slyly, “By the name of Nathan Callis perhaps?”
Alyx scowled. “So you’re not only a jerk now, but you’ve added gossiping to your long list of vices?’
Nik smirked. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
She jumped to her feet, muttering, “I think I need a drink.” She stalked to the billionaire’s mini-bar, but changed her mind last minute and reached for a can of soda instead of the wine she had her eye on. Things happened the one time she had drunk an entire glass of wine, and she definitely didn’t need a repeat of it now.
As she pulled the tab from the can, she heard herself ask, “Can you tell me…” Alyx swallowed. “Can you tell me how do I know if he’s the one?” She took a gulp of soda, but the silence only stretched between them.
And then she heard Nik say, “If your feelings for him scare you so much it’s making you ask me that – I think you already have your answer.”
Oh God, she really hated it when Nik Alexandropoulos sounded so much wiser than her.
As she stalked out of his office, Nik called out, “Anytime you need love advice about keeping a man, just give me or Daria a call.”
Aaaargh!
She slammed the door shut as hard as she could, but it was too late. Everyone outside his office had heard him, and she could feel his executive staff gawking at her as she hurried to the elevator. Knowing how fast news traveled, she knew she had no choice but to tell Nathan about this visit.
Just as Alyx reached to press the down button, she heard a familiar voice call her name out,
and she stiffened.
When she turned around, it was just in time to see Daria flying towards her.
Daria caughther in a bear hug, saying tearfully, “I missed you so much, Alyx.”
She could only stand stiffly in her best friend’s arms, not knowing what she deserved to say or do.
“And for all your bitchy words,” Daria whispered, “I always knew we had the same taste in jerks.”
Oh.
And she realized then that Nik had lied. Daria had always known about her. He hadn’t kept anything from her – as he shouldn’t have. When Daria pulled away, she pulled her back, not wanting her friend to see her fighting back tears.
“I’m sorry,” she choked out. “I’m so damn sorry, Daria. I never wanted it to happen.”
“You don’t have to be,” Daria said softly just as she pulled away. “You needed to meet your fair share of frogs, too, and it just so happened that my prince was your frog.”
The words were more than she deserved, but that was the way Daria had always been. She loved selflessly, even those who didn’t deserve her love.
By the time she stepped into the elevator and the doors started to close, the last glimpse she caught was of Nik walking towards Daria, and the smile she sent his way.
Victoria Harbour sparkled like a jewel in the night, its still waters reflecting the brilliant cityscape of the two islands that bordered it – Kowloon on one side, and Hong Kong on the other. Unfortunately, the breathtaking view, made even more stunning by the light-and-music show that took place every evening, was wasted on a certain pair of occupants inside a luxurious hotel suite.
One of them was Rima Callis, who at thirty-three looked a decade younger than her age, with her silky blonde hair and a figure that remained as svelte as it had been when she left her modeling days for good to marry her prominent doctor husband.
That man was Aetes Callis, twenty years Rima’s senior, who also happened to be Nathan’s father.
As she let the curtains fall from her fingers, Rima turned away from the prized balcony view of her suite, its beauty leaving her cold. It was hard to appreciate such things when the man she loved was too busy to keep her company. Such was the story of her life ever since she had married less than a decade ago.