She looked up at me. “What if Simone wakes up? She sometimes sleepwalk.”
“I’m sure she won’t tonight,” I whispered.
She stood on her tip-toes to kiss me. I held her, enjoying the moment then grabbed her legs to wrap around me. She continued kissing me as we made our way into her room. I gently closed the door and lay her down on the bed.
We looked at each other as my hand moved across her thighs. I wondered if she’d let me touch her. I still didn’t think it was the right time to sleep together, but I needed to pleasure her.
My lips began a trail of kisses from her neck to her chest. I pulled her tank off, taking a moment to admire her body before softly kissing her stomach. She moaned softly as my hand moved to her shorts. When my finger gently massaged her center, her eyes slowly closed. She reached for my lips as I went in and out, stroking her with my finger. She spread her legs wider, and I moved my lips to one of her breasts. I held onto her nipple, sucking it while continuing to pleasure her. The look on her face and the movement of her hips made me want to do more. Her moans had my manhood hard. Before I knew it, her hand was moving to my pants. She looked at me with hooded eyes, knowing I needed a release. Her sexy smirk let me know she wanted more; I did, too, and she grabbed my shaft. But even if we wanted to, we couldn’t since I didn’t have any protection.
I slipped another finger into her when her hand started moving faster. Our eyes met, and I could tell she wanted me to cum, but I couldn’t let that happen. Not yet; I had to wait on her.
She hesitated for a second, but as soon as I started sucking on her neck, her body tightened. She held onto me as her lips turned into a sexy smile. She reached for me again, but I pulled back.
“I think I can finish this in the bathroom,” I said, getting up. She followed me inside and helped me handle my business. Once I finished, we cleaned each other off and started another round of pleasuring each other. After this, I don’t think I'll be able to keep my hands off of her.
Now, we were in her room, cuddling with her head on my chest. I kissed her forehead, and she looked up at me.
“You know I wanted more,” she whispered.
I smiled. “I know; I did, too, but we’re trying to take things slowly, remember?”
“What we just did is not taking things slow.”
“It sort of is.”
She gave me a side eye, and I laughed.
“Okay, so we went to third base, but it should end there. We should take some more time to get to know each other before we start exploring each other’s body parts, even though I loved what I saw. And touched and sucked.”
“I bet you did.”
“You liked what you saw, too. Admit it.”
“I certainly did. And I want to see it again. And again. And again,” she announced between kisses to my chest. “How will you explain leaving my room if Simone sees you?” she asked, changing the subject.
“Simple; I was spending time with my woman.”
Vanessa sighed and looked away. I cupped her chin and turned her face towards me. “I’m not going to hide our relationship from your friend. At some point, I won't be hiding it at Suds, either. If she has a problem with it, that’s on her. She shouldn’t affect what we have going on.”
“You don’t understand – ”
“I do understand. And I know that was your ex, Vanessa.”
I leaned back on the bed as her eyes widened.
“What? How?”
“It was obvious, V, especially what he said to you. Why did you and Simone lie?”
Vanessa looked away. “We lied because I didn’t know how you would react. Simone just went along with it.”
“And you saw how I handled it. I wasn’t going to let him disrespect you or Simone.”
“But how did you even – ”
“I came back because I saw you confronting him after you thought I left. I guess you didn’t wait long enough .”
Vanessa closed her eyes and exhaled. “I really didn’t want you to see that.”
“I’m glad I did. Has he been bothering you or did this start recently?”
“He’s been stalking me for a while now.”
“That’s going to end. He doesn’t need to be around you.”
“Mark, I can handle it.”
“I know, but if he sees me around more, maybe he’ll take the hint and go away.”
“Please, Hamilton will not back down, no matter who he encounters.”
“Maybe this time, he's finally met his match.”
I’m not going to stand around and let some jerk disrespect Vanessa. If our relationship happened to be revealed, then so be it.
Vanessa
Ever since Mark declared that he wanted to protect me from Hamilton, I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I didn’t need his protection from Hamilton. Yes, he was a jerk, but I know how to handle him. I’ve been doing it for three years. Besides, he’s only been popping up more since he sold the company, so I assumed he doesn’t have anything better to do with his time.
We talked a bit more before falling asleep in each other’s arms. It felt good to be snuggled up with him. I really hope we can continue this way.
I suddenly felt something vibrate; The alarm from my fitness tracker woke me up. I looked down at Mark’s arm, which was still draped around me. I thought he would've left my room before Simone woke up, and I’m sure she has by now.
I tried to wake Mark up, but it wasn't working. He kept going back to sleep, and it was pissing me off.
“Mark, wake up!”
“What? Is it six already?” he asked groggily and looked at his watch.
“Yes. I thought you would have gone to the guest room by now.”
“V, are you still worried about Simone?”
“You don’t understand.”
“Enlighten me then? What's going on?”
“Hold that thought, okay?” I told him. I went to the door and opened it to see Simone standing in the hallway. She was already in her work uniform, glaring at me.
“I know Mark’s in there, so show your face, Fernandez!”
“Is this really necessary, Simone?” I asked.
“What did I tell you about hooking up with him? It’s only going to cause trouble.”
When Mark walked to the doorway, Simone took in a sharp breath. She looked him over then shook her head.
“Why are you so upset, Simone? You've seen plenty of relationships at work, so why is this one so different?” he asked.
I sighed, and she frowned. “I guess Vanessa hasn't told you, has she?”
“Told me what?”
“I really think we should discuss this at another time. Please,” I begged.
Mark looked between us, wondering what was going on. I glanced at Mark, hoping this white lie I was about to tell won’t bite me in the ass one day.
“Simone is upset because of my relationship with Hamilton. We used to work together.”
Mark raised his eyebrow, and I looked away.
Simone sighed. “Listen, I’m not upset that you two hooked up; it's just that I don’t want to see you hurt again, V. Besides, you need this job right now, so if anyone finds out – ”
“No one will, Simone. We’ll be careful,” Mark assured her, looking at me.
“I just don’t want you to make another mistake, V, like what happened with Hamilton – ”
“What are you trying to say, Simone? That I’ll hurt V? That’s not my intention, and it never will be,” Mark insisted.
“I've seen you with a lot of women, Mark. You treated them all horribly, even Maya, and I don’t even like the girl.”
“Simone, you know you’re my girl and I appreciate what you've done for me, but I’m a big girl. I can handle myself,” I said.
Simone scoffed. “Okay, fine; I just hope you know what you’re doing. A lot is at stake if you two decide to pursue this.”
“I guess it will be, but it’ll be worth it,” Mark said, looking at
me.
“I just didn’t want to know about it,” she mumbled, shaking her head and looking down at the floor.
Mark kissed me on the cheek and glanced at Simone before grabbing his things and going into the bathroom.
Once the door was closed, I looked at Simone. I was disappointed in her behavior. Even I was wondering if something else was going on.
“What’s really going on?” I asked. “I understand you being protective of me because of what happened with Hamilton, but this could be different with Mark. You told me to take a risk, and I am.”
“But with the owner’s son?! It’s one thing to get involved with a co-worker, but there’s a lot more at risk with the owner’s son.”
“Like Mark said, we’re willing to take that risk. Besides, I’m trying to find another job in my field, and Mark is about to open his business. Once that happens, we can date freely .”
“Maybe so, but all your problems won’t be erased. You didn’t even tell him that Hamilton was your boss. How do you think he’s going to react when he finds out ?”
“So I left that part out. At least I admitted it was a co-worker.”
Simone sighed. “If that what help you sleep at night, but you might as well came clean about everything, V. There's no point in half assing it.”
She picked up her tote bag from the floor and smiled slightly. “I’ll see you at work. Don’t be late.”
She was heading to the front door and opened it right when Mark came out of the bathroom, wearing his Suds uniform. I looked at him, wondering where it came from.
“I usually carry a bag with extra clothes in my truck,” he explained to my unasked question. You never know when something will come up.”
I nodded.“That’s true. I’m sure you heard Simone and me talking.” I was really hoping he hadn’t because I would have to think of another lie to tell.
“Nope; I was taking a shower. Why?”
I shook my head. “Nothing important.”
“I still don’t get why she’s so upset. Yes, you were with a co-worker, but she acts like it’s a crime that you’re doing it again.”
“So, you’re not upset or worried?”
“Why would I be? We’re not perfect, V. Besides, I've had my share of complicated relationships, so I can’t judge.”
He came over and gently kissed me. “Now that she knows, we have two places where we can freely be together.”
I wrapped my arms around him, then he gave me a long, passionate kiss. He pulled away and caressed my cheek.
“Now I hate that we’re going out tonight. I would rather spend my time with only you.”
“We’ll have plenty of time for that. And I’m actually looking forward to it. I’ve never been to a Latin club, so it’ll be fun.”
“Oh, you’ll love it. I always have a lot of fun there. Now that I think about it, I’m definitely looking forward to seeing you dance.”
“I’m sure you are.”
“Okay, now I need to go. I’ll see you later.”
He grabbed my hips and kissed me again. I wouldn’t let him go, so he started sucking on my neck. It felt so good, but I knew I’d have a mark later.
He smiled, grabbed his bag, and left. I went to the dresser mirror and noticed that he did leave a mark. A huge one.
“Damn it!” I exclaimed, wondering how in the hell I would cover it. I shook my head and smiled. I can see now there'll be a lot of surprises with Mark Fernandez, and I can’t wait to discover them all.
***
When I arrived at work, it was already busy; there was a line was wrapped around the building and down street. I looked at the clock on my dash, seeing it was only 7:30. I hopped out of the car, went inside, and saw that it was completely packed. Simone was at the register ringing up customers when she glanced at me. She motioned for me to hurry and clock in.
“I told you not to be late,” Simone hissed when I came to the register. “While you were sexing Mark, I had a line of customers at seven!” She gave a receipt to a waiting customer who looked between us before leaving.
“It’s only 7:30! Technically, I’m not late.”
“With Avery, you’re on time at seven; 7:15 is partly on time, and at 7:30 you’re late. We open as soon as a customer drives up, no matter what time it is.”
I sighed, and looked outside and saw two employees almost about to fight. I looked at Simone, who took a deep breath.
“Don’t pay them any mind; its just Louis and Terry. Those two always trying to fight each other over tips. Probably either to get drunk, high, or buy a hooker.”
I was still staring, curious to see if they would actually fight, when a customer approached the counter. I glanced at Simone as she continued to ring up hers.
“And I wasn’t sexing Mark. We haven’t gotten to that stage yet,” I finally said.
“Well, you two were doing something. I heard your loud asses last night; I had to put my earphones on.”
“Excuse me, but do you think you should be talking about your personal business at work?” my customer asked, glaring at us.
“Sorry, ma’am,” I apologized and began her transaction. I already knew today was going to be a strange one.
And as the day went on, my theory rang true: Every customer I encountered was either crazy, angry, or just plain cranky. I received complaints ranging from the soap not being sprayed on their cars to the vacuuming to even one of the employees not saying ‘have a nice day.’ Even though I'd run the store by myself the other day, I was glad Simone was working with me, even though she’s not speaking to me.
Mark came into the lobby a few times, and each time, he was greeted with a nasty stare from Simone. I really had to find out what the hell her problem was after our shift.
When I began ringing up another customer, she tapped her fingers on the counter. I glanced at her and saw her wearing me an impatient expression.
“You know, I’ve been standing in line for the past five minutes, and you have been extremely slow. I have an important meeting to get to in 20 minutes, so I don’t have time for it right now.”
I was completely shocked by her attitude and glanced at Simone. She shrugged then turned back to work.
“I’m sorry if I’m moving too slowly, but I’m new and – ”
“Figures! Why would they schedule a new person on one of the store’s busiest days?! Where is Maya or the other girl that usually be here?”
“I wouldn’t know, ma’am. But in the time you’ve complained about me and my work ethic, I could have been done processing your transaction,” I retorted.
“V?!” Simone whispered loudly.
“Where is Avery?!” the customer yelled. “I’ve been coming to this store for too long to be talked to like this from some uneducated cashier!”
My blood pressure began rising, so I took several deep breaths. I wanted to reach over the counter and snatch that blonde hair of hers. Instead, I called the next customer. If she thought I was just some uneducated cashier, then someone else finish her transaction.
“Excuse me?! What are you doing?” she asked.
“I refuse to service you. It's my right as an employee to do so, especially when the customer is bullying the cashier.”
“Says who?! Simone, get Avery in here, now!”
“Yes, Ms. Windsor,” Simone agreed and paged him.
“I hope he fires you,” she snarled .
“Have a nice day, ma’am. And please come back to Suds soon,” I replied with a smile.
I wasn’t going to let some rich bitch steal my joy. I already didn’t want to be here, but at the moment, I didn’t have a choice. I just had to find another job soon.
Vanessa
After Simone got Avery inside, he apologized to Ms. Windsor for my behavior and gave her a free car wash. Guess whose check it was coming out of?
Now I was in his office to discuss what had just happened. I looked at the cameras, upset that I was in there, leaving Simone by herself.
; “You do know that if Rosario was here, she would have told you to clock out, right? But I’m not going to do that. Instead, you'll learn from this incident and try not to be snarly with any other customer again, especially someone like Ms. Windsor. She has been coming here for years and knows Enrique personally. If he knew about this, he would be upset.”
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