Darius looked at his mom. “Which one?”
“He wants to lease you an office next to ours in the building in downtown San Francisco. He thinks it’ll be a good expansion for your business. So, now I think you know which one. Mister smartass.”
Jada walked out of Darius’s front door and slammed it. Why was everyone so damn upset with her about her life story? Which one? Jada was starting not to care if Darius would ever forgive her for lying to him.
CHAPTER 10
Darius listened to Ciara console Candice. Ciara had quietly moved from his bed to his sofa as though she didn’t want Candice to discover he was in the background. “Um-hmm. I see. I can’t believe you stayed awake all night. Don’t worry. Get some rest. I’ll have Mr. Brentwood and my lawyer research the legalities. Good-bye.”
Darius questioned Ciara. “So, what’s up? Must be important for Candice to call at six in the morning.” Refusing to disclose the details of her conversation with Candice, Ciara said, “I’ll handle this,” then slid under his sheets. Darius already knew Ciara’s conflict. Yesterday his mother’s attorney had Candice served with a lawsuit for specific performance not to produce the movie.
At first Darius was mad at his mother but thanks to his mother’s lawsuit, Darius’s romantic involvement with Ciara had progressed to a more intimate level for him and a more emotional level for Ciara. Ciara realized, but didn’t acknowledge, that without his help, her lucrative contract would terminate. Women.
Darius reached under his black-and-gold comforter and uncovered Ciara’s head, which was buried a few inches deep. Darius was amazed she hadn’t suffocated under the heavy wool cover.
“Good morning,” Darius said. His lips pressed in the crevice above Ciara’s collarbone.
“Good morning to you.” Ciara pranced to the bathroom and returned. “Ah, now that’s better. Give me a real kiss.”
Slowly, Darius’s tongue parted Ciara’s lips. He gently sucked her tongue, then her lips. “You are so beautiful in the morning,” he lied. Ciara’s afro was flat on both sides. Without makeup Ciara easily appeared too old for him. As he tossed back the cover, his dick sprouted long and firm. Darius watched Ciara’s juicy lips smother his head. Seductively she glided his head in and out of her mouth. Saliva trickled down his shaft as Ciara massaged the wetness into the base and his balls.
Darius whispered, “Damn, that feels good,” pushing Ciara’s head lower. “Suck that dick, girl.”
Ciara’s hands floated down to his thighs as she whispered, “Turn over and brace yourself on your knees.”
“Aw, shit.” Darius followed her instructions. Ciara knelt behind him and positioned her head between his knees, then pulled his dick backward slipping the head into her mouth.
“Ah, yeah.” Darius moaned, arching his back to give Ciara more space to take in more of his erection.
Ciara’s hand felt so good, stroking long and firm. Gripping his balls with the opposite hand, she sucked each testicle.
“Damn, woman. What are you doing down there?”
Ciara licked back and forth alternating between his nuts. Then her tongue traced from his balls to his perineal muscle below his balls, to his rectum. Darius closed then opened his eyes. Lifting onto his elbows, Darius watched Ciara until she began French kissing between his rectum and balls.
“Whooaaa. Mm. Oh. Mm,” Darius moaned.
The tip of her tongue circled the exterior of his anus. Her thick lips planted kisses on his opening while she stroked his dick and squeezed his balls.
“Mmmm. Oh, yeah. That feels real good. Do that again,” Darius requested.
Slipping his dick deep into her mouth, Ciara massaged his balls. Slowly she inserted the tip of her middle finger into his rectum. In. Out. Each time penetrating a little deeper, simultaneously stroking his shaft while sucking his dick.
Darius rotated his ass onto her finger. She’d better not tell Monica how much he loved the stimulation of her penetration. Ciara’s advanced bedroom skills satisfied Darius’s sexual appetite. She applied the right amount of pressure. Stroked him at the perfect pace. Darius hated when women pushed their finger in and didn’t pull out. No rhythm. No gradual movement. Those were the ones he’d stop. Not Ciara. Darius repeatedly squeezed his sphincter muscles around Ciara’s twirling finger. She pressed a little deeper into his anal canal, applying orgasmic pressure to his prostate gland. Ecstasy. Sheer ecstasy. Ciara definitely hit the jackpot by stimulating his G-spot!
Darius groaned. Grunted. “Fuck. Yes.” Darius was ready to fire off the most powerful orgasm when suddenly he heard Ciara say, “Turn over. I wanna get on top.”
“Whooaaa.” Darius’s energy level deflated. “Don’t,” he exhaled then said, “do that again. I was so ready to cum.” Darius exhaled again. “I know, baby but mama wants to get there with you.” It took a few minutes to push the pillows out of the way, retrieve a condom from his top drawer, then roll the rubber to the base of his penis.
Darius watched Ciara straddle him, then she rocked her amazingly hot pussy onto his dick. Balancing herself on her feet instead of her knees, Ciara guided his hard-on on the inside like she was giving him a tour. Controlling the depth of his entry, Ciara probed three inches into her vagina then pressed his head against her G-spot. “Aw, yes. Right there daddy. That’s my spot.”
Darius coached her on. “Get your dick, girl. Ride that shit.” He had to feel his head hit the bottom of her pussy so Darius held Ciara’s hip into his.
Ciara’s ass swayed back and forth like she was practicing for the swing back at his home in Oakland. “I want you to cum with me, daddy.” She raked her clit along his pubic hairs. “Aw, baby. Give me my dick. I can feel the head pressing against my belly button. I love this big, strong, chocolate dick inside me, baby. Oh, Darius. Here she cums. Mama’s cumming. Cum with me, daddy.” Ciara rode faster.
What the fuck?! Ciara squeezed Darius’s nipples harder and harder and harder. “Hell, yeah!” she screamed. Ciara was deep in the zone.
Darius held Ciara’s hands. “Get that dick, girl. Get it. It’s yours. You earned this cum, woman. You ready? You ready?”
“Oh, my, God. Oh, my, God.” Ciara kept repeating the same three words.
“Here it comes. Catch it.” Darius thrust harder. To his surprise Ciara kept pace. Her hips bucked so fast he held them. For an older woman, Ciara had great stamina.
Opening her mouth wide, Ciara shouted, “Yes! Yes!” as loud as she could. Her breaths—quick, short—raced long after she’d lay beside him.
“You’re incredible,” Darius said. “But it must almost be that time of the month woman because you were doing the damn thing,” Darius slapped Ciara’s ass as she collapsed face down onto the sweaty sheet.
“Yeah, kind of.” Ciara inhaled deeper.
Darius commanded, “Lay on your back. Bend your knees and spread ’em.”
Ciara smiled.
Darius inserted the tip of his middle finger. “Squeeze my finger,” he said, wiggling the tip. “Harder. Squeeze tighter.”
“That’s as tight as she gets, okay. What are you doing?”
“I thought so. It’s okay. Relax. I’m going to teach you what you need to do to please me more. And trust me, you’ll get more pleasure than me.”
Ciara closed her thighs. “You didn’t complain a few minutes ago.”
“Don’t go gettin’ an attitude. You know you got skills. I truly enjoyed you.” Regardless, if Ciara was going to keep him satisfied, Ciara had to learn how to work her vaginal muscles like Kimberly. Parting Ciara’s legs, Darius inserted his finger deeper.
“Squeeze. No. Just this middle muscle.” Darius’s long finger pushed deep inside Ciara. “Now, isolate and tighten this top muscle.”
“The other ones keep moving too.”
“That’s okay. Just squeeze as hard as you can from the bottom to the top. Okay. Push my finger out.” Darius pushed against Ciara’s movement. “Push harder.”
Pulling his finger out, Da
rius lay beside Ciara. “When you’re sitting at your desk or in a meeting, squeeze my pussy. I want you to isolate each muscle as tight as you can for ten seconds. Do that at least one hundred times a day, every day. Bottom. One hundred times. Middle and lower the same.”
“Is that all, Mr. Kegel cardio instructor?”
“No. It’s not. Then, I want you to squeeze as fast as you can as many times as you can within twenty seconds. Then, I want you to roll my pussy all the way up. Push her all the way down. One hundred times. Every day. Next time we’re together, you don’t have to move your waist, I want you to handle this dick with this.” Darius slid his finger inside Ciara then kissed her lips. “I’m gonna dig in that ass too. So I want you to start sticking your finger in your ass like you do mine.”
“I already do, thank you very much.”
“Well, then you should know when you shower use soap to make that opening slippery and clean yourself out. You do that. And I’ll handle the rest.”
“You are crazy if you think I’m letting you put that,” Ciara pointed to his dick, “in my ass.”
“I’ll be gentle. And I promise you. It won’t hurt as long as you learn to relax your muscles. I know how to take it slow around the rectal curves. I’mma prepare you proper with a day of pampering at the finest spa.” Darius smiled. “Wait and see, you gon’ beg me to do you again. Cause you ain’t never had an orgasm like to one you’re going to have when I’m tapping inside that ass hitting that G-spot from the back. Trust me.”
Ciara sighed heavily then said, “So can you convince your mother to drop the lawsuit or not?”
“Talking about business after sex must be like smoking a cigarette to you, woman.”
“I’ve never smoked but I know talking about business any time is better than poisoning my lungs.”
“Well, I’m confident I can convince my mom to drop the lawsuit but only if I have a vested interest. Meaning, if you want this deal, be true to your word and make me more than your bed partner. And my mom will have no choice.”
“I don’t know. At first it sounded like a good idea but your mom can ruin this deal. Let’s explore other options to forming a partnership. Like subcontracting.”
“Fair exchange is no robbery. I can provide what you need. But if you refuse to partner, then I guess we’ll all lose out. I thought you were brighter than that to throw away a multi-million deal. I see I was wrong.”
Ciara exhaled. “I’m bright enough to know I should follow my instincts. And my instincts say no partnership. I never should’ve mentioned it in the first place.”
Darius refused to give up. “If it’ll make you feel better, your attorney can draw up the contract. My lawyer can review, respond, and finalize. Your company will partner with my company. I control fifty-one percent. You control forty-nine. We both end up rich.”
Ciara laughed hysterically. “Okay, that’s a deal but only if I control everything. One-hundred percent.”
Darius wanted to hear Ciara laugh at his next statement. “Well, let’s see. I already know I can convince my mother to drop the lawsuit. If you don’t agree fifty-one forty-nine then I can convince desperate-ass Terrell to persuade Candice to give me the entire contract or he’ll never be a millionaire. I need your experience and you need my contacts. But realistically you need me more than I need you.”
Shifting her eyes to the corners away from Darius, Ciara said, “Let me think about this.”
“What’s there to think about? Either we have a deal or we don’t.”
Ciara twirled Darius’s lock and said, “Okay, deal. I’m going to trust you on this one.”
Like she had a choice. Darius handed Ciara the phone. “I don’t like wasting time or money. Call your attorney. Then I’ll call my mother. Come next Friday, we gon’ sign the contract and to celebrate I’mma tap in that asshole.” Darius looked down at Slugger and smiled. “Everybody’s gonna be happy.”
CHAPTER 11
“So what’s up with you spending nights out lately?” Solomon asked Ciara. “You’re never home. When I call you at work, you’re unavailable.”
“I told you, I’m busy working on this contract. Why? Is that a problem? I’m stressed enough, baby. All I need right now is your love and support.” Ciara wiped her side of Solomon’s double vanity and proceeded to brush her teeth.
“I’ve got plenty of backed-up love for you,” Solomon said standing behind her. His strong naked body pressed against her back and butt. Solomon wrapped his arms around Ciara’s waist.
Staring at Solomon through the bathroom mirror, Ciara continued brushing her teeth. Either Solomon looked better or her working until midnight in her office and working Darius overtime in the bedroom was wearing on her appearance. The puffy bags underneath her hazel eyes were beginning to darken. Not that Solomon or anyone else could notice, but Ciara’s hair had recently started shedding.
Ciara removed Solomon’s hands from her waist and went into the bedroom. “I need a few more minutes of sleep.” She crawled onto Solomon’s bed and pulled the cover up to her neck.
“What you need is a few more strokes of this,” Solomon said, standing at the side of his bed and holding his dick in Ciara’s face.
“Solomon, please. Not now. I’m tired.”
Solomon protested. “Too tired to take care of me? Well, don’t blame me if I have to find another woman to handle your business.”
Ciara tossed the cover aside and said, “It won’t be your first time. I can’t sleep with you constantly talking. I might as well get dressed and go to work.” Ciara selected her coral blue two-piece pantsuit, cream lace crew-neck blouse and caramel-colored low-cut boots from her side of Solomon’s closet.
“Maybe we should take a break from each other for a while. You’re busy. And I’m tired of trying to make time for you.”
Ciara looked up at Solomon. Tired? One week of her not being available and he’s tired? “Okay, Solomon. Whatever you want. Call first before you come by my house.”
“If that’s the way you want it, take all of your things with you.” Solomon snatched a handful of Ciara’s clothes that were on hangers and flung them onto his bed.
How had their conversation gotten to this point? All Ciara wanted was a few minutes of rest and now Solomon was losing his damn mind. Whatever was bothering Solomon wasn’t related to her not wanting to have sex—but Solomon, as usual, acted out instead of talking out his problems. Several of her designer suits slid from the comforter to the floor.
Ciara clenched her tan purse under her armpit and calmly said, “I’ll send a mover to box my things and deliver them to my house.” As long as Solomon was controlling the relationship, he was happy. Fortunately for Solomon, Ciara didn’t have the energy to debate or match his energy level. Normally Ciara’s temperature would’ve exploded. Her words or her actions could easily dehumanize a strong man like Solomon by significantly deflating his self-esteem.
“Don’t bother. I’m off today. I’ll drop your stuff off tonight.”
Tonight? Ciara had plans for Darius to stay the night. “Solomon, I’ll call you later. Bye.”
Ciara exited the hallway into Solomon’s garage and drove away in her SUV. Placing her headset over her ear, Ciara voice dialed her office.
“CMCA,” Megan answered on the first ring.
“Hey, Megan. How’s everything going?”
Megan, her best office assistant and an aspiring actress, was incredibly efficient. Megan understood the business. She was competitive but not cutthroat like some of Ciara’s former staff who’d do underhanded things to get parts—like lie and claim that certain parts were turned down by actors who’d never seen the script.
“Quiet. I was just reading the screenplay for Soul Mates Dissipate and I’d like to audition for Candice’s role.”
“We can discuss that when I get into the office. Has Darius called?”
“Once. To see if he can get on your calendar for a late lunch at two.”
“Confirm him at tw
o.”
“But you have a one o’clock with First Call, Inc. to renegotiate salaries for Kimberly Stokes and K’Nine beverage commercials.”
“See if we can move that meeting up a half hour,” Ciara said, exiting off I-5. “If we can, then confirm Darius at two. If not, see if Darius can reschedule for two-thirty. I’m pulling into the garage so the call will probably drop. I’ll be up in a minute. Bye.”
Ciara parked in one of her five reserved spaces marked CMCA. One space was for Megan and the other three were for her clients and visitors.
Ciara flattened her key card against the security box and entered the office.
Megan looked up. “Everything worked out. Your meeting with First Call is confirmed for twelve-thirty and Mr. Jones is confirmed for two. He said he’ll pick you up. And Candice just called.”
“Megan, girl you’re fast. How are you this morning?”
“Fine. Can you believe my husband called already because the baby was out of diapers? Men. I told him to pack the kids in the car, go to the store and buy some diapers.”
Megan was barely twenty-one with a husband and two kids, a baby girl and two-year-old toddler boy who smiled all the time. Megan had asked Ciara to be their godmother but Ciara declined because she wanted her own children and feared she’d become too attached to Megan’s kids. And if there were ever any personnel-related issues with Megan, Ciara didn’t want to have an emotional commitment that would hinder her from conducting business. But holidays and birthdays, Ciara spoiled Megan’s kids with clothes and gift certificates.
Ciara said, “Well, you guys have been together since the ninth grade, seven plus years. So I know you weren’t surprised.”
“No, you’re right.” Megan laughed. “Here’s your revised schedule.”
“Thanks,” Ciara said glancing at the card. Holding a different key card against the box outside her office, Ciara unlocked the door. The confidentiality of her files required protection from Megan, janitors, clients, and other staff members. Ciara conducted all meetings in the conference room. Ciara learned from experience that aspiring actors were desperate and would steal clients’ files, filmographies, press releases, and especially her contact information.
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