Billion Dollar Man

by Ali Parker

  It felt like the orgasm lasted forever, and we were caught in a perpetual cycle of bliss, connected. When I finally stopped orgasming, Ben collapsed on top of me. He rolled off after a second and slid out of me. I was raw between my legs, throbbing with the aftermath of our sex, and it was delicious. I was satiated and happy.

  “I’ll be right back,” Ben said and disappeared to my bathroom. When he came back, his dick was naked and glistening, only slightly hard now. I climbed under the sheets and Ben joined me, climbing in next to me. He pulled me against him, arm around my shoulders and I pressed the length of my naked body against him, putting my head on his chest.

  It was comfortable and warm, and I loved lying with him like this. I closed my eyes and listened to the beating of his heart in his chest and the slowing rhythm of his breathing. He was going to stay the night like he had last time, but this time there would be no one interrupting us, forcing Ben to retreat to the couch and leave without kissing me goodbye.

  The moment I thought about Jerrod, my stomach tightened, and the relaxed warmth started to fade. I pushed the thought of him away. I wasn’t going to let anything ruin this perfect moment. Not Jerrod being upset with both of us and not that Ben said he was considering going back to New York. Right now, Ben and I were caught in a bubble, and no matter what happened after this, we were together now, and it was all that mattered. I had him, and he had me, and we were pressed against each other, naked, with nothing here to divide us. Not our situation, not clothing or rules or places we needed to be.

  Right here, right now Ben had told me. It was all I was focusing on.

  Chapter 42

  Ben

  This time, when I woke up, I knew exactly where I was. And it was perfect.

  Mila still lay on my chest, her hair splayed over my shoulder and my arm as if we hadn’t moved all night. I was sure we had stayed like this, glued to each other, and it was fine by me. After the night we’d had last night, I wanted to be stuck to her for the foreseeable future.

  I closed my eyes and listened to her rhythmic breathing. Nothing was stopping us from being together, now. Everyone knew, and even though not everyone was happy about it, I could be here without worrying that someone was going to catch us. We could be together in public without hiding things or talking in some kind of code about what we really felt.

  It was a wonderful feeling after we had been sneaking around.

  My mind jumped to Jerrod, and I frowned, sadness creeping in. He hadn’t been at the dinner last night. It was only proof that he was really upset about what had happened. What if we never managed to fix it?

  Again, I thought about leaving all of this behind and going to New York for good. I would lose Mila and Jerrod in some ways, but it would solve the problem.

  More uncertainty and unease crept in that I hadn’t wanted to replace the bliss I had woken up with, and I didn’t like it. I had wanted to hold onto what we’d had a little while longer.

  Mila shifted against me, her breasts pushing against my chest, and my cock immediately hardened under the sheets. She sighed and looked up at me with sleepy eyes.

  “You’re awake,” she said.

  I nodded. I was very awake. And so was my dick. I could easily go for round two with her. But Mila sat up, the sheets clutched to her chest.

  “Do you need to be at the hospital today?” I asked.

  Mila shook her head. “No, I have the day off. I’ve been working hard so I made sure to book myself some time.”

  “Good,” I said. “You need to take care of yourself. And I wanted to spend the day with you, so now, I can.”

  Mila smiled and climbed out of bed, walking to the bathroom. I watched her naked body, her hips moving from side to side, her perfect breasts soft, the nipples relaxed. When she disappeared into the bathroom, I laid back and sighed. Fuck, I really wanted her again.

  When Mila emerged, she wore a robe. We weren’t going to fuck another time. But that was okay. I wanted to just be with her.

  “Let’s go out for breakfast,” Mila said.

  I nodded. “I like that idea.”

  “I want to hop in the shower, first. Join me?”

  She asked me with such an innocent expression, but I nodded. I wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass.

  In the shower, we didn’t fuck. Even though my dick was rock hard, and her nipples were tight. But we were close, our wet bodies pressed up against each other as I kissed her. She tasted like the hot water that ran over our faces as we kissed under the shower.

  I reached for the soap and worked it in a lather between my hands before I soaped her up, running my hands over her body. Her skin was slick under my palms. I traced her curves. She was delicious. She looked at me with those big brown eyes, and I couldn’t imagine being away from her.

  When she rinsed the soap off, she returned the favor and soaped me up, too. When she ran her hand over my cock, I groaned. I wanted so much more from her.

  As if she knew what I wanted, she looked up at me and started sliding her hand up and down my shaft. Her eyes were on mine as she pumped harder and faster, giving me a hand job. Her hands were like magic. She cupped my balls with her free hand and massaged them, coaxing the orgasm out of me. When I came, I cried out as my balls contracted and my dick spewed into the hot water. Mila rubbed her hand up and down my shaft until the orgasm was over. My legs were wobbly after I came. She smiled at me and kissed me before she squirted shampoo in her hand and started washing her hair.

  I wanted to play with her to return the favor, but she shook her head and kissed me.

  “Let’s get ready for breakfast,” she said.

  I was okay with that. “You’re something else,” I said.

  She smiled and turned off the water. We stepped out of the shower and dressed. I wore the same clothes I’d had on last night – I had nothing else with me.

  We left the apartment and went to a restaurant where we ordered croissants and coffee.

  Halfway through breakfast, my phone rang.

  “I have to take this,” I said when I saw who was calling. “Excuse me.”

  I left the table to answer the call from David Thomas.

  “Is this a good time?” David asked.

  “Yeah, I can talk,” I said. “What news do you have for me?”

  “I’ve been keeping tabs on the Mafia guys, and I have bad news.”

  “What is it?”

  “While I’m keeping tabs on them, they’re keeping tabs on you.”

  “On me?” I asked, shocked even though I shouldn’t have been. “So, you reckon I am a target, then? I was wondering about that.”

  “I can’t see why else they would be watching you,” David said. “They’re serious about their money.”

  Yeah, it seemed like it. If this was where we were at, I was in trouble.

  “Have you found out how much money we’re talking about, here?” I asked. If I could pay them the money they were owed, I could make all of this go away. I was sure I could cover whatever amount they needed.

  “Not yet,” David said. “I’m working on it.”

  “Work harder,” I said. “I want to take care of this.”

  David assured me that he was doing what he could before we ended the call. I took a deep breath before heading back to the table where Mila waited for me. I was suddenly panicked about my safety. They had killed two people over this, already. But I didn’t want Mila to know that something was wrong. I forced my face to be neutral, and when I returned to the table and sat down, I smiled at Mila.

  “What was that?” she asked.

  “Just a business call,” I said.

  “Is everything okay?”

  I nodded. “Nothing serious.” I sounded a lot more relaxed about it than I felt, and I had managed that lie without difficulty. Point for me. Or was it, if I was lying to her? I was doing that a lot, lately to the people in my life. But I wasn’t going to tell her what it was about. She didn’t need to know the danger I was in, and I di
dn’t want her to be in any danger, at all. I didn’t want her involved.

  This was my personal business, something my father had done. He had fucked up, and others had paid the price for that. Like Uncle Dean, and I was paying the price in a way, too. So, it wasn’t necessary to involve innocent people in this business when it had nothing to do with them

  “Tell me about the company,” Mila said.

  “What?”

  She pulled up her shoulders and sipped her coffee. “Tell me about your job. You’re always busy with it, taking calls and whatever. I know you care about the company, even though you sold it once. So, tell me about it.”

  She was interested in my life. It should have been a good thing that she was interested. But I didn’t want to talk about it, not really.

  “What is there to say?” I asked. “I mean, my dad left me the company, hoping I would follow in his footsteps. But it wasn’t my cup of tea.”

  “But it is, now?” She took a bite of her croissant and chewed, looking at me.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Well, you’re giving up a lot for this company. You could have let it go to someone else when they left it to you. Even if it happened twice. Instead, you gave up your dream as a fireman.”

  I sighed. She was right. But it wasn’t that simple.

  “It’s my dad’s legacy. And it’s Uncle Dean’s, too. I owe it to them to do what needs to be done.” I was thinking about the money again.

  “What about you?” Mila asked.

  “What about me?”

  “Don’t you owe it to yourself to be happy?”

  “I am happy,” I said.

  Mila looked at me for long enough without talking that I wondered if she believed me. “As long as you do what makes you happy,” she finally said.

  The sentence sounded weighted like there was more to it than just that, but I didn’t ask or push for more. I had a lot on my mind after what David had said. I knew Mila was trying to make conversation and look out for me, but I wasn’t concentrating on my happiness right now. In the grand scheme of things, staying alive and keeping my loved ones safe was higher up on my priority list than simply being happy.

  The conversation eventually changed to other things, thank God, and we carried on as normal. I didn’t mention to Mila again that I had to go back to New York sooner, rather than later. The last time I had mentioned it to her she had gotten pissed off at me and left.

  I guess, she’d had every right to. But after the amazing night we’d had together, I didn’t want to ruin the good thing we had going. Seeing that it was probably going to end soon, I wanted to ride this high for as long as I was able.

  After breakfast, Mila and I climbed in my car, and I drove her back to her apartment. I could tell she was exhausted. Not just because we’d had a long night last night between the sheets, but because when she was on duty, she worked herself half to death. I understood what it was like to push yourself to the limit to save people’s lives – I had been there once, too – but I wished she would take better care of herself and put herself first.

  Although, her selflessness was one of the things I found so endearing about her.

  “Thank you for a wonderful time,” Mila said when I parked in front of her apartment. She leaned over the gearstick and kissed me. The kiss was deep and sensual, and it made me think about going upstairs with her again.

  When we broke the kiss, she said, “I’ll see you around?” It was a question this time.

  I nodded and smile. “Soon, sweetheart.”

  She blushed at the pet name and climbed out of the car. When she reached the door of her building, she turned and blew me a kiss before she disappeared inside. I smiled and drove home.

  When I was in my room in a fresh change of clothes, I stared at my phone and finally decided to call Jerrod again. I dialed his number, rehearsing what I was going to say to him. I was an idiot. I fucked up. I’m sorry.

  I never had the chance to say it. He didn’t even answer his phone. Jerrod hardly ever missed a call, and I knew from experience that this time of day wasn’t a busy one for him. He was avoiding me, I was sure of it.

  And it stung. Jerrod and I had been friends for over twenty years. Have we reached the end of our line? Over a girl?

  Chapter 43

  Mila

  Since I had seen Ben on Monday, I had been so busy at the hospital I’d barely had time to breathe, let alone fantasize about the night we’d had together. I’d settled for warmth spreading through my body when I flashed on an image of his naked body, or the way he’d touched me, or the way he’d looked at me.

  It had been enough to get me through.

  I had been upset with him for suggesting we throw it all away when he’d told me he considered moving back to New York. But it seemed like that was a thing of the past. Ben and I were better than ever, and I couldn’t be happier.

  “You were right,” I said to Skylar at dinner after my shift that night. “I just had to give him time to sort his shit out.” I had told her about the family dinner and how amazing everything had been. I had told her about my night with Ben afterward.

  “See, you should listen to me more often,” Skylar said with a wink.

  I laughed, but the laughter drained away, quickly.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “It was just a rough day at work.”

  “What happened?”

  I shook my head. “We had a seizure patient come in a short while ago. She was seizing on and off a couple of times, and the doctors couldn’t figure out was wrong with her. She has three kids, and she’s divorced so they stay with her all the time. She passed away today. I was with her.”

  “I’m sorry,” Skylar said. She understood how involved I got with my patients and how much their deaths got to me. “Shit happens sometimes.”

  “I know that,” I said. A lump was rising in my throat, and it was getting harder to breathe. “I mean, in my job, it’s often fifty-fifty. Especially in the ICU. But some patients get to me. More than others. And this one is really hard to deal with.”

  Skylar nodded without saying anything. We both knew there was nothing that could be said that would make any of this better. It wouldn’t bring her back, and it wouldn’t change that we hadn’t been able to do anything to save her. It was great that Skylar was there for me, and it was all she could do.

  “Logically, I know that it would have happened regardless. No one knew what was wrong. They got the Diagnostic Department involved and everything. But we still lost her. They’ll probably figure it out in the autopsy. But it will be too late then.” I hesitated. “And I feel like it's my fault.”

  “How can it be your fault?” Skylar asked.

  I pulled up my shoulders. I knew it was silly.

  “You’re just a nurse. You weren’t responsible for curing her. Did you make her as comfortable as you could?” I nodded. “And you alerted the doctor when it was important?” I nodded again. “Then you did everything you had to do as a nurse. You couldn’t have stopped this any more than the doctor could have.”

  I knew Skylar was right.

  “I told you, I know all the facts. But I still feel like shit about what happened.”

  Skylar reached across the table and squeezed my hand. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s not your fault.”

  “I’m sorry you’re hurting,” Skylar said. “Sometimes I wish you would get a different job when I see how this tears you apart.”

  I looked up at her. “I love what I do.”

  “I know that,” Skylar said with a smile. “It’s who you are. I don’t like it when you’re not okay, but your compassion is what makes you such a wonderful nurse. You’re right where you should be. I just get worried.”

  I nodded. “Thank you for that. It’s a lot going on at the same time, and I’m struggling to keep my head above water. When there’s not shit at the hospital, there’s shit at home. At least things are okay with Ben so it’s one less thing
to worry about.”

  “When you say ‘at home’ do you mean with Jerrod?”

  I nodded. I still referred to issues with my family as “at home” even though I hadn’t lived at home for years now.

  “He’s still not talking to either of us. I don’t know how to get him to a point where I can just talk to him, apologize for what’s happened.”

  “Doesn’t he even want to see you?” Skylar asked.

  I shook my head.

  “Maybe you should give him time.”

  I laughed. “Is that your advice for everything?”

  Skylar chuckled, too. “It happens to be what both situations need, okay?”

  “I don’t know if this is going to work out,” I said, serious again. “Jerrod has never looked so hurt in his life. I don’t know what to do.”

  Skylar shook her head. “It will take a while for him to get used to it, but he can’t hold a grudge forever. Not about something like this.”

  “You don’t know Jerrod the way I do. When he decides he’s done with someone, there’s very little that can make him change his mind.”

  “Very little is not nothing,” Skylar pointed out.

  I pulled up my shoulders. “Yeah, I guess so. I just don’t know what to do.”

  Skylar couldn’t give me advice with my brother, and I didn’t blame her. Jerrod was full of shit on a good day. At least both my parents and Ben’s parents were happy with us being together. Maybe my parents could talk some sense into Jerrod about this. If they were okay with us, they could convince him that it wasn’t such a big deal that I was dating Ben. I wasn’t even sure exactly what Jerrod was so pissed off about. That we lied to him? Yeah, sure. I could understand that. But that I was with someone? He couldn’t protect me for the rest of his life. I was an adult, and I wanted to live my life. And if this was about the bro code, about Jerrod not wanting his best friend to date his sister, well, I couldn’t exactly change that.