Mariah started to see what all the excitement was about. Her friends had talked about kinky things they did in the bedroom with their boyfriends. It seemed rather outrageous to Mariah most of the time. But as she teased River, she was starting to see just how appealing some of the kinky things her friends talked about could be.
Certainly, Mariah wasn’t going to suddenly like the world of S&M. But she was starting to feel much more open about all the sexual pleasures that were possible when you were with a person you felt comfortable with. For the first time in her life, Mariah felt like she would be willing to try almost anything, as long as she was trying it with River.
As she tortured him more, Mariah felt the fingers of River as they moved along her legs and found their way up to her center. She was positioned perpendicular to him, and he quickly pulled her up on top of him and spread her legs onto either side of his face.
She was surprised by the position. It wasn’t something she would have ever thought to try. Mariah was basically sitting on River’s face. She would have felt self-conscious if it hadn’t felt so damn good. If there ever was a time to just go with it, that was the moment. Mariah decided she wasn’t going to worry about her insecurities, and instead, she was going to ride his face like a porn star would in a raunchy movie.
Mariah responded to his quick movements by pulling his body deep into her mouth and holding onto him firmly. She moved up and down in a quick motion and in an effort to show him that she was still in charge. She was on top of him, certainly that meant she was still in charge. Mariah controlled how deep her mouth took him in, and she could lift her body away from his tongue anytime she wanted to. Mariah reveled in the control she had over the moment.
But River had plans of his own. He wrapped his arms around Mariah’s legs and held her center up to his mouth so she couldn’t move away. Rapidly, he pulsed his tongue on her as she moved her mouth up and down him. The harder she thrust on his body, the more River thrust his tongue onto her body. Mariah felt like they were in the midst of a contest to see who really was in control of their lovemaking that night.
Although Mariah had initiated things, River was sure trying his best to maintain control. Mariah suspected that River wasn’t very used to letting others be in control. Not in the bedroom and certainly not in any other aspect of his life. River was the kind of guy who always maintained control over the situations around him.
The give and take, back and forth of their oral skills would certainly have to culminate in an explosion sooner or later. The question was: which one would win? Would Mariah get River to release before her or would River deliver the ultimate release to Mariah first. Their little game went on for much longer than Mariah had expected.
She felt her body start to shake from exhaustion and from the sheer pleasure of having River’s tongue all over her body like that. If this had been an Olympic sport, Mariah would have requested a water break by then. She could feel the sweat forming on her brow, and she was certain that she couldn’t last much longer.
They both moved feverishly together in an effort to win the battle. Harder and faster, deeper and longer, each of them intent on winning their little battle. It was a battle to the ultimate finish, and Mariah wasn’t about to be declared the loser. Or at least she wasn’t going to willingly be declared the loser. Mariah was going to do everything in her power to make River release before she did.
She wrapped her delicate fingers around his delicate parts as she tugged on them gently and worked to bring his pleasure level up. It caught River off guard enough that he paused to see just where Mariah was planning on taking her move next. With all the kinky things he had done in his past, Mariah could only imagine where he thought she was going to put her fingers. But she stuck to holding his manhood in her fingers and playing with his two lovely balls. She could hear his breath getting deeper the more she played, and she couldn’t wait to win their little battle.
“Oh, we are playing dirty are we?” River said.
Mariah felt his grip tighten on her thighs as he pulled her closer to his body. She couldn’t help smiling at how feverishly River also wanted her to give in to him pleasuring her. He was just as competitive as she was. Certainly, she could hold out for longer than he could. Mariah was a woman who knew her body very well; she couldn’t be so weak as to let him win their little battle.
Then it started. She tried to concentrate on the job she had in front of her and not on what her body was feeling. But the earth around her kept shaking, and she couldn’t stop it. Soon, Mariah felt her body tightening and the sweet release of orgasm that she just couldn’t hold back another second.
The release started much deeper than usual, and Mariah felt her legs shaking as her body twitched with pleasure. Over and over again, she felt the waves of delight as they washed over her. The feeling was so overwhelming that Mariah stopped moving her mouth altogether and concentrated on the delicious pleasure that was shooting through her body.
As she gave in to the pleasure that River delivered her, Mariah found him quickly flipping her onto the bed and climbing on top of her. Boy, oh boy, did she love it when he climbed on top of her. Her hands pressed up against his hard body as he perched over her, and she prepared for him to deliver more pleasure.
“I like it when you shake,” River whispered as he let his hand slide from her thigh all the way up to her breast. “It tells me I’m doing something right.”
Mariah felt her body shiver as he spread her open and prepared to slide inside of her. Slowly, she moved and pressed her hips up against him as she wanted more and more from him. The anticipation overwhelmed her as she waited for River.
She tugged on him and urged him forward as he teased her, but River seemed to relish the teasing. He moved in closer to her and then pulled away. He did that over and over again as she pulled on him and tried to get what she wanted. River was certainly in charge at that moment. There was no doubt in Mariah’s mind. River had control, and he was going to use all of it until he had Mariah exactly where he wanted her.
“You’re killing me,” Mariah whispered.
River stopped moving altogether and just looked down at her with a smile. He seemed to relish the torture he was giving to Mariah. The smile on his face wasn’t that of a man who was ready to stop torturing her yet, though; instead, he continued more and more. His teasing was like nothing that she thought she could endure. She wanted to feel him inside of her. Mariah needed to feel him inside of her.
Mariah tucked her head into the small of River’s neck as she gently kissed him. She couldn’t take the anticipation any longer; he needed to move forward. He needed to give her what she wanted so desperately. Mariah wasn’t above begging, and she was close to actually doing it when she looked up at River and bit her lower lip. It was like an instant trigger to him, and River started to move into her slowly.
As she let her fingernails glide down his back, Mariah pressed them in firmly in an effort to force him to give in to her desires. Finally, he did as she wanted, and the pressure of the moment filled her with excitement. His body and hers fit together nicely like they were made for each other. Mariah knew that it was hard to find someone who she fit so well with, both inside and outside the bedroom. She felt lucky that she had found River.
Slowly, she adjusted to having him there with her, and she felt his body deep inside of her. Harder and faster they moved together until the final moment of ultimate pleasure that they both experienced at the same time.
Mariah continued to shake with pleasure while River fell next to her in exhaustion. It had been an incredible couple of days. Really, the entire last few months had been more than Mariah thought she would ever have to deal with. Meeting River and dealing with him going to jail, and then his crazy behavior when he got out of jail; Mariah was looking forward to the day when her life seemed normal again.
Hopefully, when all the press was finished, she and River would get to spend more time together again. She really did love spending time
with him.
“You exhaust me,” Mariah said as she tucked herself in close to River.
“Me? You’re the one who wanted to take a break.”
Mariah couldn’t help laughing. It was totally true; she was the one who wanted to take the break first. It had all been her idea, and somehow River had hijacked her plans, and he had taken over the lovemaking. But that was just one of the things that Mariah liked so much about River. He was the kind of guy who liked to be in charge. Even when he pretended to let Mariah be in charge for a little bit, she always knew that eventually, he wouldn’t be able to help himself.
River Anders just wasn’t the kind of man who could sit on the sidelines. He was always going to push to the front. He was always going to rise to the top. River might fall back occasionally like he did when he let his anger get the best of him with the governor, but eventually River was always going to win.
Chapter 26
RIVER
When River finally made his way back to his house, it was the weekend. He and Mariah had finished the bulk of his work, and it was time to bring Edward into the mix and see what he could do with Wholesome Foods.
River had been leery of telling Edward what was going on but only because his friend was so worried about the company. Certainly, Edward and River had been friends for a long time, and River felt a bond with his friend more so than anyone else that worked at the company. But Edward was also a businessman, and River had paid close attention to how Edward behaved in the board members meeting.
Edward appeared to have been a very important part in setting up the meeting as River had noticed several of the board members looking to him for guidance once things started to go poorly. But River couldn’t risk not bringing Edward in on the decisions that were being made with Mariah and Elizabeth. Edward was his right-hand man; Edward was the one person that River needed on his side if he was going to keep Wholesome Foods working with them.
“Hey,” River said as he called his friend. “Do you want to come watch the game?”
Edward paused for a long time before he answered. River knew that it was unusual for him to invite Edward over to his house for any television watching. Typically, if they were going to watch a sports game, they always went to a bar. The atmosphere was just what they were looking for so they could be loud, drink beer, and eat wings. So when River invited Edward over to his house, it definitely set off a red flag for Edward.
“What’s up? Is there something going on?”
“I just think we need to talk. Why don’t you come over?”
“Sure, I’ll come over. But talking to me isn’t going to help you with the board. They are set in their ways, and it's going to be pretty hard to change their minds.”
“That’s alright. Just come over; we can chat about everything.”
River hung up the phone and got himself ready. He could tell that he was going to have to sell the new plan to Edward just like he would have to sell the plan to the board members. Edward was a businessman, though, and as a businessman, River knew he would be able to sell Edward on the new plan when he saw the projected numbers that River had worked up.
His estimates were very much under what River was expecting, but he would rather estimate low than to estimate high and not be able to reach the goals. River went through all the charts, advertising, and other paperwork that he had on his kitchen table ready to show Edward.
When the doorbell rang, River was quick to answer it. His excitement over what Edward was going to think of the project was almost too much for River to handle.
“Hey man,” River said as he opened his door. “Good to see you.”
“You too,” Edward said as he shook River’s hand.
It was clear that Edward didn’t feel very comfortable around River at that moment. But River was going to have to just push through the uncomfortable feelings. He was on a mission, and there wasn’t anything that was going to get in his way. Plus, Edward was his friend, and he was going to see the new plan, and River just knew he was going to be as excited as he was.
“Okay, so I know you guys want to kick me out of my company, but hear me out,” River started the conversation.
“No. River, we don’t want to kick you out. We just want to ensure the financial well-being of the company.”
River felt like Edward was lying right to his face, but he wasn’t going to call him on it. Instead, River was going to show Edward everything that Elizabeth, Mariah, and he had been working on. The business plan for the upcoming project was insane, and River knew that once Edward saw everything, he would be able to go back to the board and tell them to back off from their plans. Or, at least, that was what he hoped Edward would do.
“Okay, so here is the deal. Mariah and I have been working on a plan to roll out the new Family Meal option with a one-week free trial for anyone that signs up.”
“Wait, that’s going to cost millions of dollars. That’s not going to work.”
River had expected that Edward wasn’t going to like the idea of the free week. That was why they had pulled research from other companies regarding their sales and how giving away a freebie had helped them.
“Here is a projected sales sheet that includes a low estimate of total sales if we offer a free week. It also includes my upfront capital to fund the free weeks and to ensure that Wholesome Foods does not lose money from the new marketing strategy.”
Edward grabbed the paper from River and seemed very interested in what it had to say. He analyzed the numbers while River sat back and waited to see what Edward had to say.
River had never been very good at waiting for things, and he certainly wasn’t going to start at that moment. He anxiously waited for Edward and soon found himself getting up and pacing around the dining room while he tried to give his friend time to look over the numbers. But it was simple enough; River was the only one that would be risking anything. It would be his money that supported the free week of deliveries. It would only be River who had to worry about things not turning out if they tried his plan.
“I like these numbers, River. I do; so please don’t take anything I’m going to say the wrong way. But how do you expect to get sales like this?”
“Those are normal sales number for a big rollout with a special offer like this.”
“No, I mean with your current public relations disaster. How do you expect to get sales like these? People aren’t going to buy from you like they used to. Why don’t you consider stepping down and just take a payout from the company? Then you’ll get the money without having to do any of the work?”
River felt his anger growing at the idea he would ever give up his company and just take a paycheck. There was no way in hell River was going to hand over his hard-earned company to someone else to run. No one would ever run the company as well as he did.
“Edward, I love you. I hope you know that I do. I couldn’t have invited you here to show you my plan if I didn’t care about you. But we need to get one thing straight right now,” River said as he took in a long breath. “I will not be handing my company over to you or anyone else. And if you can’t get over that, then you better just leave right now.”
“I’m sorry, River. I know that sounded harsh, but I really do want what’s best for the company.”
River was pacing again as he thought about the best way he could sell Edward on the idea. He needed Edward’s help, and he couldn’t let himself get wrapped up in the anger like he had been the last few months. River had to think straight and ensure he delivered his message as clear and accurately as he could.
“Here’s the deal, Edward. I’m going to give you this packet of information. It contains my whole marketing strategy and all the data we could pull up. I’m moving forward with this plan next week, and I need to know that Wholesome Foods is on board. You currently work for me, and as my employee, I need you to go to Wholesome Foods and convince them to get on board with this plan.”
River paused while he gathered up the paperwo
rk for Edward and handed him the file. It was going to be up to Edward if he decided to do as River asked him. Certainly, Edward could show up at Wholesome Foods and not tell them a single thing about River’s plan. He could simply come back and tell River that it wasn’t going to work. But River hoped that Edward would at least give it a shot.
“What if they say no?”
“If you go in there and share that enthusiasm I know you can have—if you show them the numbers and tell them I’m footing the initial free weeks, I can’t imagine that they would ever say no.”
Edward seemed very uncomfortable with the conversation, but River wasn’t about to give him an out. There could be no excuses for why Edward didn’t make the deal happen. River couldn’t afford Wholesome Foods to say no, so he wasn’t going to even give it as an option for Edward.
“Man, I don’t know. There are a lot of people who want to take you out of leadership and go an entirely different route.”
“It’s my company, Edward. I need you to help me here. I need you to see my vision and help me reach the goals that I have. If you don’t help me with this, I know our company will go under.”
River purposely said the word ‘our’ as he talked to Edward in an effort to make him feel like they were on one team. Edward had to see where River was coming from, and he had to help him.
“I’ll give it a try, but I can’t guarantee they are going to say yes. Even if you ignore the fact that your board members are trying to get you out, Wholesome Foods might not want to work with you at all. Have you considered that option?”
Edward was right. Wholesome Foods might not want to deal with River at all. Even a fabulous business plan wasn’t always enough to convince someone to go into business with River. Wholesome Foods was a business, though, and they were interested in money and sales. If Edward could just explain that side of the project to them, Wholesome Foods would certainly be on his side.
Breaking the Rules: A Billionaire Romance Page 22