Choice Matters (Southern Heat Book 1)

by Jamie Salisbury

  “You know a couple senators and highly visible Washington businessmen have been calling me.”

  “I’ve heard you mention them from time to time. Or been in your office when they’ve called you.”

  “It seems my name keeps popping up in conversations concerning a certain political office.”

  “And you’re seriously considering it?”

  “Let’s just say, I’m open to the possibility.”

  “What’s the problem, then?”

  “Us, for one. I refuse to give you up for some senate seat. I’ve been looking for you all my life, and I won’t have anyone dictate how I do or do not live.”

  “So, we either have to stop being fuck buddies and refocus our relationship into something more or we need to stop seeing each other entirely. Am I close?”

  “I never thought of you as a fuck buddy. I want you there with me. We’ll figure us out as we go.”

  “What are you saying? How would that effect my position at Choice?”

  “Nothing changes.”

  “How long have you been thinking about this?”

  “Off and on for some time now. We’re good together, Caitlyn. The sex just makes it better, more complete. Think about it. That’s all I’m asking.”

  “Fair enough. Now, let me ask you—is this something you want to do? Get into politics?”

  “I’ve thought about it off and on for years. I really think I have a lot to offer people.”

  “Oh, you do have a lot to offer people, Apolo. I promise I’ll think about it. Just let me digest what you just told me.”

  “Fair enough.”

  * * * *

  I slept fitfully the remainder of the night. It seemed to affect Apolo the same way. Finally, I gave up, threw on a pair of shorts and a tank top, and headed to the kitchen. Coffee. I needed coffee. I found the container with whole beans next to a grinder. I pressed the start button until I was satisfied with the consistency. Once the water came to a boil, I poured it over the grounds in the French press.

  Too keyed up from the previous night’s activities and conversation, I began to cook breakfast. I was so engrossed in my thoughts, I never heard Apolo enter behind me.

  “Smells wonderful, Caitlyn.”

  I swung around to find him standing there in a pair of running shorts, nothing more. “I hope I didn’t wake you.”

  “No, I couldn’t sleep, either. Is that coffee I spy over there?” He motioned to the counter.

  I nodded, as my hands were busy with the task in front of me. “Yes, it’s fresh, too.”

  He stood beside me, rummaging through the cabinet above for a mug. Upon finding the one he wanted, he poured himself a cup, no cream, no sugar. Black and strong.

  “I thought perhaps we could do some fishing after breakfast. It’s supposed to be a prime time. That is, if you’re up to it.”

  “Yes, I’m game. It would probably be good to get our minds off other stuff.”

  “Exactly.”

  Finally, I finished cooking and plated him a helping of eggs, bacon, and toast, setting it in front of him. After making one for myself, I sat down at the small table across from him.

  “So, you want my answer, Choice?”

  “You’ve decided? Already?”

  “Yep, and my answer is yes. If you want to pursue politics, and it means making our relationship public, then yes, I support you. One hundred percent. We’ll work it out.”

  “You’re sure you want to do this, Caitlyn? Once it starts, there’s no turning back.”

  “I realize that, and I trust you’ll do the honorable thing and not kick me to the curb.”

  “I could never do that. My feelings for you are too deep now for me to ever go back.”

  “Eat your breakfast, Apolo, before it gets cold. It’s too early in the morning to hear you become all mushy.”

  A lopsided grin flicked across his angular face as he studied me for a moment. “Is that the best you’ve got?. You agree to let me turn your world upside down, forever changed, and you tell me to eat my breakfast?”

  “It is what it is, Apolo. It’s not like this won’t be the center topic of all our discussions this weekend now. Among other things…”

  “True. I simply expected something a little more dramatic.”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not much on high drama. You’ve met my mother, that’s as high as it comes in my little corner of the world.”

  “Used to, Caitlyn. Like I said, if you want to back out, now’s the time to do it.”

  “Eat your damn breakfast before the fish do whatever it is fish do, and I’m blamed for none being around for you to catch.”

  Finishing our meal, I was pleasantly surprised to find Apolo alongside me, drying dishes as I washed and rinsed.

  Quietly, I followed him down the dirt trail toward the bank of the lake. Situated on it was a small, non-descript fishing boat, an older model, the type with an outboard motor. Apolo carefully maneuvered himself on board and checked the gas tanks for fuel. Satisfied, he placed the one he had carried next to the back of the vessel. He then turned to face me and take the tackle box and poles I stood holding before assisting me onto the craft.

  I gingerly sat on the center seat and awaited his instructions. He started the motor then climbed off and freed the two mooring ropes holding the boat in place. Jumping back on, he pushed us off and headed us out onto the lake. Unable to hear a word he said over the roar of the outboard, he motioned me to turn around and take in the sights of the beautiful surroundings. The place he had in mind for our fishing expedition took only minutes. A small cove, void of any human habitation. He navigated to one side and shut off the motor.

  Begging off having him take time to show me how, I sat and watched as Apolo fished and was amazed how much he seemed to enjoy the sport. This was a side of the man he allowed few, if anyone, to see. The human one.

  Having caught two good-sized bass, he released them back into the murky water, and we headed to another area. The weather, however, had other plans for us. Black, ominous clouds appeared out of nowhere.

  Apolo started the motor and pointed the boat back toward his cabin in the woods. We had no more gotten the craft situated and were entering the cabin when Mother Nature let loose with a torrential downpour.

  Chapter Five

  Mother Nature wasn’t the only thing full of fury. After removing our shoes at the doorway, we retreated to the bedroom. “Come, Caitlyn, I know the perfect way to pass a rainy afternoon.”

  As he led me by the hand, I hungrily followed him. He made me stand in front of him at the foot of the bed as he slowly and methodically took off each piece of my clothing. He started with my tank top.

  Quietly, while watching my face, he pulled the skimpy garment over my head. Bunching it in one of his massive hands, he let it fall to the ground with ease. My bra came next. He unhooked the front closure, allowing my breasts to fall from their prison. As he pushed it over my shoulders, his lips sensually captured one of my nipples and began to suckle and roll it into a hard point.

  My instinct at that moment was to grab onto his shoulders, but when I did, Apolo pushed them aside. “No touching. Keep your hands to your sides. I’ll tell you when you can touch me.”

  Our eyes locked for a second before he continued with what he had started. Grabbing one breast, he ran the peak between his teeth, sucking it before moving onto the other. My body was on fire. I caught myself moaning in pleasure at the sensations running through me.

  Then, he began kissing down, down toward my stomach, until he reached my naval. Unfastening the clasp on my shorts and unzipping them, Apolo abruptly pulled them over my hips and let them fall into a puddle around my ankles. I could feel the moisture that had seeped out of me and onto my panties.

  As if he knew this, Apolo prodded me to part my legs as he rubbed his forefinger along the crotch of my soaking wet underwear. He pushed the fabric aside and ran the digit lightly along my mound, all the way to my pussy.r />
  Glancing down at him, I noted how intense but sensual his face looked. As though he could feel my eyes on him, he abruptly yanked my panties off as well. I stood in front of him completely naked. I quivered in need, wondering what he would do next.

  “Lay on the center of the bed on your back.”

  I obliged him without hesitation. As I made myself comfortable, I noted he had moved to the dresser off to the side of the room. He opened a drawer , and after a few seconds, pulled some items out. He held whatever they were to his side so I couldn’t see them.

  “Do you trust me, Caitlyn?”

  “Yes, of course I do. Why?”

  “Because what I’m going to show you requires your total trust.”

  “What exactly—”

  “Shhhh. It’s nothing that will hurt you. I would never hurt you. Let’s just call it a lesson in becoming aware of your senses, okay?”

  “As long as it’s nothing kinky.”

  He laughed a lower, deep-throated sound. “I will show you how to feel things you’ve never felt before.” He approached, taking one of my hands. Wrapping a silk scarf around my wrist, he extended my arm toward the headboard. I must have looked panicked because he flicked a sensual grin before continuing. “Trust me Caitlyn. I’m not going to tie you. I’m merely going to wrap the scarf around the post. You can pull yourself free at any time, should you feel the need to.”

  I nodded and allowed him to do the same with my other arm. He spread my legs apart, but never restrained them. Instead, he stood there for what seemed like an eternity as he looked hungrily at that spot between my thighs.

  Producing another scarf, he lifted my head, placing the fabric around my eyes and gently tying it behind me. “What’s this for?”

  “Trust me, Caitlyn. You will learn to see through touch.”

  I heard clothes rustling. He was undressing, but neatly placing his on a chair in the room. I made out the sound of him at the dresser again and wondered what it was he was getting this time.

  The next thing I felt was Apolo’s breath slowly tickling my clit. He had raised my knees and spread my legs to his liking. It moved my already-spiraling-out-of-control desire to a few notches from orgasm. Then, I felt his fingers as they parted the folds of skin so he could blow more cool air on the normally unexposed skin.

  “Oh fuck, Apolo.”

  He chuckled. “What?”

  “I feel like I’m going to come if you do that about one more time.”

  “You can’t come, Caitlyn. Not until I tell you you can.”

  “I don’t know how much longer I can hold it.”

  A quick swipe of his tongue over my swollen clit sent me pushing my hips toward his mouth. Again, he let out a low laugh. With his fingers still holding my flesh apart, he lightly began running his tongue around and down but never touching the most sensitive spot. My final undoing was when he took the hardened nub between his lips and sucked.

  My body shook and rocked as I went over the edge in pleasure I had never felt before. His hands were now under my buttocks, as his mouth did things to me I’d only read in books. Wave after wave of orgasms exploded through my body.

  Straddling me, Apolo bent over and covered my mouth in an all-passionate kiss. I could taste myself on his tongue as he probed its depths. “Did that feel good? It must have, angel. You soaked the sheets when you came. But we need to discuss your inability to follow my instructions. When I say you can’t come until I say, you must show more restraint. Understood?”

  “Fuck me. I need to feel you inside me.”

  “And you shall have me. But first, I want to watch you gush again.” He thrust two fingers inside my pussy and quickly found what he was looking for. I felt his thumb as it rubbed my aching clit. It took mere seconds until my body bucked.

  I wanted to see him. I wanted to touch him. But he kept me restrained, even though I could have broken the bond. Instead, I felt the tip of his engorged cock at my entrance as he teased me with it. Then, he thrust himself deep and began to pump hard and furious. His hands held my buttocks close to his groin as he pounded in and out.

  “I can’t hold on any longer. I want you to feel my cock. I want you to let yourself come with me. You know you can do it. Feel my cock.”

  “I need to…”

  “Tell me, angel. Tell me what you need. Anything but touch me with your hands. Not yet.”

  “Fuck me hard.”

  I felt his body begin to quiver as I ground my hips against him, my orgasm releasing just behind his. He groaned, saying something I didn’t understand. He lay on top of me as we finished and began to quiet.

  “That was fucking fantastic, Apolo.”

  He burst out laughing in my ear. “I’m glad you approve. Do you understand what I was trying to show you?”

  “Oh, yes.”

  He reached up and let the scarves loose He looked so damn seductive as his mouth covered mine. I threw my arms around his muscular back, feeling every sweaty inch of him.

  We lay there in each other’s arms, listening to the sound of the rain beating down on the old, tin roof. The storm seemed to have settled in for the day. Awakened by the crack of thunder, Apolo pulled me closer. Outside of the morning’s fishing expedition in his small boat, the day had rendered nothing but one sexual encounter after another.

  “I don’t know about you, but I’m getting rather hungry. That fine breakfast you cooked left me hours ago, Ms. White.”

  “Hmmm. I was just thinking the same thing. What do you suggest? You released the fish you caught.”

  “As I always do. This rain has put a damper on any ideas I may have had.” He chuckled. “I was going to grill us a couple of steaks, but the weather seems to have ruined that.”

  “You could always cook them indoors, you know.”

  “True, but the oven is broken, and I hate pan-fried steaks. Ruins a good cut of meat, don’t you think?”

  “I suppose. What other options do we have?”

  “There’s a barbeque place on the outskirts of town. They serve great ribs and barbeque along with some of the coldest beer around. If you’re game…”

  “Sounds good to me. But we need to shower. You want to flip for who goes first, Choice? Because I know that shower won’t hold the two of us, and even if it did, we’d never get out of this cabin.”

  “Point taken, Caitlyn. You go. I’m not sure I can walk that far just yet.”

  “You wish.” I snorted as I threw my legs off the side of the bed and headed towards the bathroom.

  * * * *

  A short time later, we were inside his SUV headed through the mud and rain toward the tiny town. I closed my eyes as I sat back, inhaling the essence of his maleness and his cologne. Whatever doubts or anxieties I may have had regarding getting close to Apolo Choice had blown out the window hours ago. The man was becoming an addiction, a sex drug my body craved.

  The touch of his hand on my forearm brought me out of my daydreaming. I flicked a grin his way and patted the top. “Where were you?”

  “I’m sorry, I was mesmerized by the rain and the scenery. I can see why you like to come here,” I lied. I wasn’t sure if he bought it, and frankly, I didn’t care. The man was doing things to me, to my body, that sent me over the edge. Just as he had promised just a few months prior. Mr. gray-eyed sex god.

  I caught a smug look cross his angular face as he refocused his eyes on the pavement in front of him. We were heading down a country two-lane, in the opposite direction we had arrived. Toward a small rural, town with some of the best barbeque I would ever taste.

  We were seated in the old gas-station-turned-restaurant, a huge plate of ribs stacked in front of us, another piled high with steaming French fries, and two bottles of cold beer. Dinner in rural Georgia at its finest.

  I placed my drink down on the vinyl tablecloth and reached for another meaty rib. As I did, a question left my lips. Apolo had spoken little of his family. Yes, there was his brother, and I knew his parents were both fr
om old Atlanta money, but that was about it. “You mentioned once that our mothers would get along famously. Do your parents still live in the Atlanta area?”

  He licked his fingers of the sticky barbeque sauce, a seductive expression on his face. I knew that look well by now. The man was incorrigible when it came to sex. He grinned and picked up another rib, holding it in his hand.

  “They still own their home on Blackburn, but they’ve been spending the past couple of years traveling extensively. Something they didn’t get to do a lot of until my father retired. Now, they revel in going to new places. And Caitlyn, if you think I got my start from my family, think again. Every penny, I earned on my own. I’m no trust fund baby, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

  “Never crossed my mind, Choice. As a matter of fact, I believe I’ve read that somewhere in all the thousands of pages that have been written about you. I take it your parents are off on an adventure right now?” God the man could make your head spin once he got to talking. I often wondered if it was a habit he’d developed to confuse his prey.

  “Yes, New Zealand, I believe. Then Australia, I’m sure. My father wants to go to Fiji and some of the small islands that dot the Pacific.”

  “Sounds exotic. Do they know of your intended plans?”

  “My father is aware of some of the talk. If things develop as I expect, they’ll be back at just the proper time.”

  “Can I ask one more thing?” I was getting the distinct feeling he didn’t want to be taking up valuable time with me discussing his family.

  “Ask away.”

  “Outside of Anthony, any other siblings? I’ve only read about Tony, but I suppose that’s because of his restaurants and catering.”

  “No, it’s just the two of us. Thank goodness.” He picked up his beer and drained what was left. “From what I know on the matter, Tony’s birth was a difficult one, and mother was never able to have any more children. I suppose his birth, in some small way, is a reflection on him—difficult.” He flashed a lopsided grin at his own joke.

  “Or intense, but I suppose you are the more intense one of the two?”