“I know,” I nodded.
“Aww, look at this.” Emmanuel’s secretary walked right up to us with her arms folded across her chest. “Is this your boyfriend, Camilla?” She prodded, as she looked me from head to toe.
“Why?” I narrowed my eyes at her. I could just tell she had a bone to pick. The animosity was coming off of her in waves. She must have tried to fuck Emmanuel and Camilla must have gotten in her way. If I had half the control that motherfucker had Camilla would still be mine.
“Just wondering if you know what her and step daddy dearest do when she comes up here for lunch.” Her chocolate eyes twinkled at me but I knew better than to take the bait. Of course Camilla fucked him in his office. Can’t say I wouldn’t do the same as Mayor. I watched Camilla and made sure to position myself in front of her. After the shit with Jada, I wasn’t taking any chances.
“Do they really have cameras everywhere in here?” Camilla asked with the same eerie smile she had before cracking into Jada’s face.
“Yes they do. So watch yourself little girl.”
“Watch myself?” She took a step closer and I grabbed her bandaged hand in hopes of reminding her what happened the last time she lost it. She glanced at me and then at her hand and let out a breath. “Look Angela, don’t test me okay?” I guess Camilla had been in the lobby a little too long because Emmanuel opened his door and stepped out. As soon as he saw the tension building her moved to stand in front of his secretary.
“What’s the problem?” He asked.
“I was just talking to Camilla’s boyfriend.” Angela said sweetly.
“I’m not her boyfriend,” I replied nonchalantly. I didn’t want to give her conniving ass shit on Camilla.
“Sure seemed like it a few minutes ago. It’s not like Mayor Scott would have a problem with you having a boyfriend right, Camilla?” Angela looked around Emmanuel’s frame to glare at Camilla. “So, since he’s not your boyfriend does that mean I can fuck him?” Lucky for Angela I was standing right in front of Camilla because she lunged in a flash. I pushed her back against the wall and pinned her under my weight but she put up a hell of a fight.
Emmanuel moved Angela back over to her desk and I could hear him speaking to her in a low voice. A few people walked off the elevator and glanced at the scene. There’s always a scene any time Camilla is involved. I’ve learned this over the course of our relationship. No words were said between us but I could feel her energy radiating. She wanted to fuck Angela up. I searched her eyes until she finally locked onto my gaze.
“You gotta calm down,” I told her. “Fuck that bitch, don’t let her get under your skin Camilla.”
“She’s being so fucking disrespectful. I’m tired of her shit anyway.”
“You wanna get your other hand fucked up? Bash someone else’s face in? In the Mayor’s office no less?” She finally exhaled and shook her head. Deep down, I felt a glimmer of hope for us after seeing her react to Angela’s comment. I pressed a quick kiss to her forehead and she softened underneath me completely. My dick twitched from feeling her warmth up against me and I had to keep it under control. I took her into Manny’s office and sat her down on the couch. “Are you taking your pills?” I asked. She looked like she wanted to slap the fuck out of me.
“Yes, Xavier,” she scowled. I liked hearing my name roll off her tongue. I wanted to hear her moan it.
“Good.” I pushed back the urge to grab her hair and kiss her neck. I saw a flicker of lust in her green eyes but I knew Emmanuel would be walking through the door any minute. Camilla licked her lips pushing me closer to the edge. I wanted to feel those soft lips against mine so bad. “Have you missed me?” I asked quietly. She nodded reluctantly. “I can see it in your eyes…” I told her, still zeroed in on her gaze. I knew a girl like Camilla wasn’t satisfied with just one man. So even though she probably was fucking Manny. She still craved me.
“Xavier, don’t do anything stupid. Emmanuel is literally right outside of the door,” she whispered. She was closer to me than she needed to be though, and that let me know she wanted me to do something stupid. So I did.
I held her face in my hands firmly and slipped my tongue in her mouth. She tasted so good and the way she sighed against my lips made my dick harder than it’s ever been. Her hands eagerly roamed over my chest until her fingers curled around the back of my neck. She still wanted me. She pressed her weight against my hard dick and I pulled back. I was getting too carried away and as soon as I felt her press into me I knew it. If I didn’t stop shit right then we were both going to end up dead in the Mayor’s office because I was going to fuck her right against the wall, Emmanuel or not.
Camilla whimpered when I broke the kiss but if I wasn’t thinking with a clear head then I’d end up screwing things up even more between us. “I think I miss you more than I realized.” She said more to the air than to me. She ran her good hand through her hair and looked at me. “So you’re still doing the celibacy thing right?” She smiled.
“Yeah, that’s why we can’t do shit like that.” I growled.
“You two lovebirds not in here having makeup sex in my office are you?” Emmanuel’s voice pushed through the door and he stood there eyeing us both. He was laughing but nothing about his eyes was funny.
“Oh god no.” Camilla played it off and moved over to the food on the table.
“Good, good. It’s hard to get brains out of upholstery. I’d hate to have to throw the couch away.” He patted me on my back and I felt a chill pass from him to me. I shrugged his hand off of me and looked through him to Camilla.
“I’ll see you in a little while,” I told her before leaving. She looked at me apologetically and waved before I left. Her eyes said so much but instead of delving into a deep conversation I just let myself have hope that one day we’d be back together.
**
Chapter Twenty
Alexander
Not hearing from Camilla for days made me miss her. No, it was more than missing her I craved her. Hearing her laugh, watching her roll her eyes at our stupid horror movies, feeling her petite body curled up against me on the couch. Shit, I even missed little Chloe following me around and tugging on my hand when she wanted me to pick her up.
It was Thursday though so I knew in a matter of minutes she would be walking through my office door. Initially her appointment was this morning but she had to push it back to after work and she would have to drop Chloe off with Xavier. My hands were damp from anticipating seeing her face. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think she was fucking beautiful. Her eyes made it hard to keep that line between friend and more than a friend visible.
The entire time we were at Disney World she laced her fingers through mine and rested her body on mine whenever we waited in lines. I knew that she was trouble for me right then. I never kissed her but I thought my lips would combust if I didn’t. Maybe her being away for a few days was for the best.
Camilla was ten minutes early for our session but I wasn’t complaining. When she walked in she had a grimace on her face that made me mirror her expression. “What’s wrong?” I asked her.
“You are,” she said, pointing at me. I scanned my mind to figure out what I’d done to make her upset.
“Wanna explain yourself?” I stood and looked down at her pretty face.
“Tell me about your family, Alexander.” She said with her arms folded. It took me no time to realize that she knew about Emmanuel. I opened and closed my mouth but no words came out. “Not much to say?” She tapped her foot on the floor and tilted her head at an angle to watch me.
“So, did he tell you or did you figure it out? I’m guessing he told you,” I said. She stared at me for a while, like she was studying my face.
“He told me. You two have nearly the same eyes,” she smirked. “Why didn’t you tell me Alexander? You know you don’t have to be scared of Emmanuel. You’re his brother for Christ’s sake if anyone is safe from him it’s you.” I swear my office was silent before
Camilla blew through it like a green-eyed tornado. “Did he threaten you if you told me or something?” She asked. “You know what, I’m not even that mad at you. I was more pissed at him because once again he was keeping shit from me. I just wished you hadn’t been in on it.” She finally locked eyes with me and held my gaze.
“You’re such a fucking asshole. First you lied about being married and now about being brothers with Emmanuel. What else?” I wanted to shut her up for just a moment. I wasn’t on the clock as her therapist yet so I pulled her to me and did what I’d been dying to do. I kissed her.
I expected her to pull away from me, to fuss and tell me that I was crazy for kissing her when I’m sure she just came from seeing my brother. She didn’t do any of that though. She was urgent against me like I’d taken too long to kiss her. I slipped my hand behind her neck and ran my fingers through her hair. She felt better than I’d imagined she was intense and fiery and I wanted all of her. It had been too damn long since I felt like this.
I clutched at her body and squeezed her bottom lip between my teeth. It seemed to flip a switch in her that drove her insane. In one motion she wrapped her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck. It felt like she would devour me whole and I wasn’t complaining at all. It was passionate but she was too urgent, letting me know that I should have acted on my feelings a long time ago. I had to slow her down as much as I was enjoying her urgency. I backed her against the wall and pulled her hair breaking our kiss. Her eyes flashed with shock and desire as I held her in place with my body and her hair in my fist.
“Calm down.” I spoke in her ear in a low growl that made her whimper. My dick was so hard it was painful and hearing her make that noise, that pleading noise nearly made me lose it. I wanted to be inside of her more than I wanted my next breath, and that was evident because I knew Manny liked to lurk around my office during her sessions. I was playing Russian roulette.
My eyes glanced at the clock above Camilla’s head and I realized our session was supposed to be starting. I set her down and let her hair go. It fell down her back in a mess of waves. She set her cat eyes on me and chewed the side of her lip.
“We’re starting our session,” I told her. I had to compose myself or I would do something I knew I’d regret. It was bad enough kissing her like that. Granted, I didn’t expect she would try to maul me but it was still risky. Camilla looked at me like I was the one that needed therapy.
“Alexander, you can’t just do that. What about what just happened?” She was practically whining as she inched closer to me.
“We’ll talk about that when we eat tonight.” I told her with a pointed finger. “Right now, you need to cool down.”
“And you don’t?” She quizzed.
“I’m fine. That kiss was…” I paused and skimmed my mental thesaurus. “I don’t think there are words for it but we have to start our session.”
“You’re fucking torturing me!” She groaned and flopped on the couch. “Do you know how long,” I held my hand up and made her stop talking.
“Don’t,” I warned. I saw that same flicker of desire in her eyes and I realized that each time I pushed her or tried to control her she got excited. I’d be lying through my damn teeth if I said it didn’t excite me too. I wanted to control her but only when my dick was inside of her. I would never do it any other time but seeing her nearly claw at me and wrap herself around my body made me want to pin her down and fuck her.
She made my docile thoughts turn vulgar and demand to be set free. Feelings that I’d locked away for seven years. I was in trouble because I knew my needs wouldn’t settle until I’d had her and something inside of me yearned to conquer her.
“Now, how have you been?” I asked, trying to let the lust in my voice dissipate.
“I’ve been absolutely fucking great until a few minutes ago. Now I’m gonna die from the flood between my legs.” She rolled her eyes and crossed her legs and I tried to concentrate on anything but how wet she probably was.
“So what has things going so great for you?” I asked, illuminating my tablet.
“My dad is getting out.” She beamed and the sexual tension began to fade, thank god.
“Okay, so was Manny able to pull strings for him?” She nodded her head happily and kicked her foot back and forth. “Camilla, did that make you abnormally happy?” I frowned as I tapped notes into her file. I needed to know if she’d had an upswing.
“Abnormally happy? Can you be abnormally happy?” She frowned.
“Yes,” I said sternly. “You can make promises, do things that you normally wouldn’t, feel like you’re high almost,” I explained. “It’s different for everyone.”
“I guess,” she shrugged. “I did feel high. I felt so fucking happy.” She looked like she was relishing the thought. I didn’t want to imagine the advantage Manny took of her upswing.
“Camilla, have you been taking your pills every day?”
“I take them every fucking day Alexander. Shit, it’s like you and Xavier had a meeting today or something. He asked me the same thing,” she grumbled.
“He sounds like he cares about you then.” I made a note of that for her file but also for my mental notes. “It’s absolutely possible to still have swings on your medication but they should become less and less apparent. Just promise me you’ll keep taking them.”
“Depends on who you’re asking me as. Alexander my therapist or Alexander my friend who I almost raped today?” She drummed her perfectly manicured nails on the couch. “You two are nearly identical but the latter was much sexier.” Her tone was almost a purr. I fought my own mind to stay focused on our session.
“How have you been handling not having Xavier in the house?” I asked, clearing my throat. Camilla’s face saddened a bit as she thought it over. Clearly she loved him very deeply.
“I miss him, a lot. He kissed me today.” She averted her gaze from mine, but when I was her therapist I wasn’t bothered by it. I knew very well what her history was before I kissed her and I did so knowing that she had two men she was in love with and a history of sexually charged encounters. Did it stop me from adding my name to the list of men she’d surely leave in her wake? No.
“How did that make you feel?” I asked. My mind reverted to therapist mode as if it were a self defense mechanism.
“Conflicted as hell. I wanted him to kiss me because I missed him so much. But then I felt fucked up because I know he’s trying to be celibate in order to correct things with us and here I am pushing up on him. I felt like I was sending him mixed signals,” she admitted.
“It sounds like you did send him mixed signals. You have to figure out where you want to place him in your life and then stick to it. Wavering isn’t going to benefit anyone.”
“I know.” She groaned and tossed her head back. “We really do need this break. It’s just so hard. I’ve become so accustomed to him and Emmanuel that having just Emmanuel seems weird.”
“Weird how, Camilla? Don’t you love him as well?” I asked, tapping notes on my screen. When I dedicated myself to my work, nothing really penetrated me on a personal level. I suppose it’s a gift and a curse.
“Yes, I do. It just makes me wonder if I could ever just be with him. No Xavier, nobody else. Just us.” She almost sounded dreamy talking about it. I sucked in a breath and helped her explore her dream.
“Let’s say you two decide to be together. Then what’s in your future? Do you think you’ll have more children?” I asked her.
“Yes,” her answer was automatic.
“So that will make the child Chloe’s sibling. Then what will the child be to Christina?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. Camilla’s mouth opened and closed with no sound.
“Oh god. It would be her half sibling and her niece or nephew.” I nodded my head slowly. I was silent in order to let her mull it over in her mind.
“Would you and Manny get married?” Her eyes met mine and she shrugged hesitantly.
“Eventually,�
�� she replied.
“What would the public say or is that something you’re concerned about at all?”
“Yeah, I’m concerned about it. I know he is too.” Her tone was quiet and even a little sad. She was becoming increasingly uncomfortable with my line of questioning but I pressed a little further.
“Well, what would happen if you no longer were with Xavier? Would you seriously consider marrying and having children with the same man your mother married and had children with?” My tone was even but my words upset her and tears sprang to her eyes.
“He’s different with me,” she said angrily. I nodded my head and looked into her glassy green eyes. “He actually loves me.”
“I believe you Camilla. I just don’t think it’s very healthy for you or Chloe.”
“I know it’s not. I love him though.”
“At what point does your love for him become selfish now that you’re a mother?” I set my tablet down and leaned forward. “You now have another life that’s dependent on your life choices. If you’re not making healthy choices for yourself then you’re not making healthy choices for your daughter either.” Camilla was bawling now, and she wouldn’t look at me.
“Alexander, I’m done. Okay? I don’t wanna talk about this anymore.” She sniffled. When she stood up, I walked over to her. “I just need some time to think.”
“Did I push you too far?” I frowned.
“I don’t know. Maybe?” She wrapped her arms around herself and I sighed.
“I want the best for you as my patient. I want you to make clear headed and healthy decisions.” She looked up at me with those eyes.
“What do you want as Alexander, my friend?”
“I can’t really tell you that right now. I’m your therapist.” She let out a frustrated breath at my response.
“Well I just ended my session. Now tell me what you want,” she demanded. She was so damn bossy. I rubbed my hands over my face and sat on the arm of my chair. She was pushing my carefully constructed boundaries and I didn’t like it but at the same time it turned me on.
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