by Sonja Gunter
“I’m not sure if we should do this. You don’t know me very well, and I don’t know you that well. Maybe, we should give ourselves a couple more weeks before we go out with each other.”
He closed his briefcase, picked it up, and went to her. When he was within arm’s length of her, he stopped and set his briefcase down against the doorframe next to hers.
Placing one hand in her hair and gently moving it to the side around her ear, he said, “Rane, that is what dates are all about, getting to know each other better. I feel that I’ve known you forever. You’ll have your own car and can leave at any time. Please don’t back out now.”
She nodded. “But after the movie I have to leave. I need to work, at least make some attempt to complete that report for Richard,” she said.
Her comment sounded weak and lame, even to her own ears.
“I’ll agree to those terms,” Mark said with a grin. ”Philip is waiting for us by your car. Shall we go?”
Rane nodded, relieved that Mark didn’t expect her to stay the night. She’d be able to see how things were going before she committed herself to the next step. Neither spoke much on the way down to the parking garage. The sexual tension in the elevator felt electrifying. Again, images of them pressed up against the mirrors made her swallow hard and clear throat. Rane was grateful when the doors opened and she was able to breathe without smelling Drakkar.
As Mark had indicated, Philip and the limo waited next to her car. Philip stood by the limo, with his hand poised on the door handle. Instead of going to the limo, Mark followed her to her car and opened the driver side door. She sat down and put her foot on the clutch and her hand on the stick shift.
“A four-on-the-floor. Nice,” Mark commented.
“Oh yea, I like the way it slides into gear.” She felt her cheeks burn.” I mean—”
“No worries. I can tell you’re nervous. Philip will keep you in sight at all times. If a light stops you, we’ll pull over to wait. It should take about thirty minutes to get to my house.”
“Okay, I’ll be right behind you.”
“Here’s my cell phone number if you need anything.”
He handed her his business card with the number handwritten on the backside and closed the door. From her side mirror, Rane watched Mark get into the limo and smile.
She studied her passion-filled eyes in the visor mirror.
She’d indicated she wouldn’t stay the night. But could she possibly deny Mark what her body so clearly wanted?
Chapter 27
Rane followed the limo’s red taillights. They brightened and signaled a right turn unto Calhoun Parkway.
Oh my God, Mark lived by the lakes.
The huge old mansions around Lake Calhoun and Lake Harriet had always fascinated her. She and Val would cruise the parkway and gaze at the homes, making up stories about the people who lived in them. These homes were part of an era long gone by. She’d read that the yuppies had snatched up the old homes several years ago when they went up for sale.
The brake lights went on again, then the blinker, and the limo turned into a driveway protected by two enormous stone dragon sculptures sitting on each side of the gate. With a gasp, Rane recognized this driveway. It had held her interest over the years. The winged creatures at the front gate had intrigued her. She’d never understood why someone would use dragons instead of the typical lions. The pair gave you the impression they were ready to take flight to kill anything that tried to get past them. They’d often made her wonder what or whom they were protecting.
With curiosity, she watched as a man advanced from a hidden guardhouse and approached the limo. The man nodded and with a hand signal, opened the gate. Rane followed the limo past the gates and the guard. As her car cleared the gate, the ornate metal doors closed behind her, sealing off any escape on her behalf. There was no turning back now but that didn’t stop her second thoughts.
You’re nothing. You never sexually pleased me. I never loved you. You were just an easy fuck.
Those words had been David’s parting gift to her the day he’d abandoned her and their marriage.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
Could that be why her past lovers always left her after a couple nights of lovemaking? Had they, too, found her sexually lacking? What if Mark found her to be inadequate in bed?
No! Mark was somehow different. She was just having the pre-sex jitters. Everything was going to be fine. Besides, this was just a date. She was not going to end up in bed with him.
The circular driveway led them up to the front door. The limo stopped. Rane pushed the park button and stared apprehensively at the house she’d never been able to see from the road. Sometimes in the winter when the tall hedges were bare, she’d gotten glimpses of the edge of the house but it had always been mostly well hidden from any passing cars or persons. Now she could see why it had been so well protected.
It was a damn mansion. About four stories high and a football field long.
On my god, I don’t belong here. Leave! This was a mistake. Forget about your feelings for him. He isn’t the man for you.
She had to tell Mark she had to leave. She couldn’t stay. Her car door opened and there he stood.
“Rane, welcome to my home.”
“I can’t. This is wrong, Mark.”
“Turn your car off, Rane. Please come inside.”
“You’re my boss. I should leave. I can’t—”
“Take my hand, Rane. It’s okay. I don’t bite. I’m at your service, Madame,” Mark said.
She hesitated for only a second more, then turned her car off and gave him her hand.
“Sometimes I do, when the mood strikes me,” he said.
To her shock and delight, he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the inside of her wrist.
The millisecond his lips touched her skin, every inch of her body felt the kiss as it burned its way up her arm, down to the pit of her stomach, and lower.
“What other services do you perform?” Rane asked innocently when she was able to speak.
“What other services do you desire?” Mark whispered.
She felt it again, the deep burning need and glanced at Mark to see if he’d been affected by the same electrifying feeling. Rane eyed him, but his expression was well guarded, she couldn’t tell anything. She looked away first, not wanting him to see how his touch had aroused her.
Mark cleared his throat to cover up his laughter, and saw Rane’s face turn a lovely shade of pink. He could think of a lot of services he’d love to perform for her. He would start with stripping her naked, then covering her with kisses, starting at her toes and ending with a soul-searching kiss on her lips. Or after making love to her, taking a long shower. He’d so enjoy running a bar of soap over her body. On the other hand, feeding her grapes, and drinking champagne while they floated naked in his pool . . .
All of those ideas were going to have to wait he knew. Slow and easy was his plan, not fast and furious. As they approached the massive double-wood doors, he placed his right hand lightly in the small of her back.
“Shall we go inside?” he asked.
He was poised with his hand on the handle ready to push the door open, and told himself to get ahold of his emotions. He’d caught Rane staring at him from the corner of his eye and saw the desire on her face. At first he’d been stunned by his own body’s reaction. All he’d done was touch her and every nerve in his body came alive. He wanted her so bad he felt as if he didn’t take her now he’d explode.
But he wasn’t a sex-crazed teenager going through puberty and forced his carnal craving to a controllable level.
“I suppose so,” Rane said, nodded and then stepped inside.
Mark immediately smelled freshly popped popcorn when he opened the door.
“Would you like a tour first before the movie?” he asked, noting her wide eyes.
“That would be great. Uh, you have a very lovely house.”
“Thank you. Let’s begin here to the right.”
He chuckled and was about to touch her again but dropped his hand. He didn’t know if he could handle another round of sexual tension without acting on it. Instead of risking the contact, he moved to the left and held his hand out, offering her entrance into the first room.
“This is my ballroom.” With a flick of his hand, light flooded into the room.
Open-mouthed, she stood in the doorway. “You have a ballroom?”
“The ever straightforward Ms. Schoen, maybe I should start hosting parties.”
Mark’s heart swelled with pride as her face reflected the beauty of the room he’d designed.
Rane couldn’t contain her excitement. It was the most magnificent room she’d seen in her life.
“Oh my gosh! It’s just like in the old days, like in Gone with the Wind.”
He smirked but said nothing.
She counted one, two, three, four, five chandeliers on the ceiling that had been raised to give the room more height. Turning her head she saw that the left and right side walls were entirely mirrored from the ceiling to the floor.
Straight ahead at the far end of the room, floor-to-ceiling glass doors led to the patio. Half spinning, Rane faced back to the front of the room again, and saw that the left corner had a raised stage set up with all the equipment needed for a band, no, make that an orchestra.
As she took everything in, the room became magically alive in her mind. She saw images of tables laden with food, people dancing, and heard the music and laughter. It made her wonder what it would be like to waltz around the room in Mark’s arms.
“Oh my. Wow,” Rane exclaimed as the chandeliers came on one by one.
With all of them lit, the room was even more elegant than before. The lights illuminated the ceiling to reveal paintings of dragons adorning the ceiling. Each dragon was elaborately painted and had either a man or woman nearby. They seemed to be alive with their wings and long, curved tails, their claw-like feet and diamond-shaped eyes.
One particular dragon caught her attention. It appeared to stare at her. The creature was so mesmerizing she couldn’t look away. Her trance, however, was shattered with the sound of Mark’s voice.
“I don’t use this room very often,” he stated quietly.
“What a shame!” Rane exclaimed without thinking and tore her gaze away from the alluring dragon to Mark.
His expression remained the same and he simply snickered.
”Would you like to go inside?”
She gave him an enormous smile and stepped into the magnificent room. It was right out of a storybook. Rane timidly examined the room from left to right until she reached the middle. She felt like a princess. Impishly, she twirled and twirled, then stopped suddenly. Dizzy, she found Mark standing in the doorway watching her with a bemused grin on his face. Feeling her cheeks heat, she went toward the glass doors.
“What’s outside?”
“You can take a look.”
As she peered through the glass, she thought she could make out a garden with rose bushes and more large hedges. She was about to turn away when the darkness started to reveal its secrets. A circular fountain suddenly lit up in red lights. In the center of the fountain stood a large stone dragon with water flowing from its mouth into a pond below. The red lights added to the illusion that the dragon was spitting fire from its mouth.
Turning her attention away from the fountain, Rane spotted benches lining a walkway lined with bushes and flowers to give privacy to whomever wanted or needed it.
“Oh, is that Lover’s Lane?” she asked.
Suddenly Mark was at her side, his deep laugh music to her ears.
“I guess you could call it that,” he said. “I’ve heard many stories of relationships starting and ending out there.”
He swooped into a bow, as they did in the royal courts, and asked, “Shall we continue with the tour?”
“Yes, Sir.”
She held out her arm as an invitation for him to escort her out. He took her arm in his and they sauntered out together. When they reached the doorway, she couldn’t help but take one last look before he turned out the lights.
“The living room,” he announced.
Rane gazed into the room. It, too, reminded her of an old nostalgic time, a room called a parlor. The room featured a huge brick fireplace with an exquisite antique wood mantel, two couches, and seven oversized chairs.
He only allowed her a peek before moving to the next room. This turned out to be the library. Again, he only permitted a quick view before closing the etched-glass French doors. They moved to the next room where he held open the door and tapped the light switch.
“This is my office. You are welcome to enter,” Mark said with a wave of his hand.
The room was decorated in very heavy and large mahogany furniture. One piece stood out, a beautiful wood desk, which was set off to the right side. A wall of books lined the opposite side of the room. Shelves covered the wall behind the desk. They held numerous dragon figurines that varied in size, shape, and texture made from glass, crystal, wood, and porcelain.
This office was very different from his work one, Rane observed. Here, his desk had papers, files scattered all over the top, and she was sure the ever efficient Mrs. Weber had never been allowed in.
“So am I to understand that I’m seeing a part of you not too many people know about?” Rane asked, throwing her hand out over the mess.
“Only my true friends are allowed in here and that’s not many. Mrs. Weber has threatened on occasions to come over whenever I complain I can’t find a certain document.”
“I thought so,” she said with laughter.
“When I do entertain, this room is locked with a special alarm separate from all the other alarms. I can’t have my secret coffee blends fall into the wrong hands.”
“No, that would be very bad for the company. What’s with the all the dragons? You have a very extensive collection. I noticed them at the front gate and in the ballroom. Aren’t they supposed to be vicious and cruel? How long have you collected them? Did you know that some dragons are supposed to—? Oh, sorry, of course you know all about dragons. I have collections of dolphins.” She realized she was rambling and stopped. Being in such close confines had her thinking what it would be like to make love among the beautiful creatures. They had an aura of sexuality about them.
“So many questions. Yes, I enjoy dragons. They’ve interested me since I was boy. Don’t you like my stone dragons out front?”
“I do. I do. They are a bit scary but . . . weird and wonderful at the same time.”
“I like that. Thank you. I’ve read all the books I can find about dragons. Most people don’t understand them. They think of them as fairytale creatures but scientists have found some bones that could be from a dragon.” Mark paused, reached over, and took one down from the shelf.
“If you were to study them,” he continued, “you would see they are powerful yet gentle beings. Some are funny looking, some are cute, and some are scary. The main reason I enjoy them is they’re amazingly mysterious. They remind me of you.” He turned to look at her. “Shall we carry on?”
Mark didn’t wait for her reply. He simply took ahold of her hand.
“This is the way to my private quarters,” he said casually as he led her down yet another hallway.
“Private in as . . . ?”
“As in most of the house is for show,” Mark said.
“That’s a shame. Every room is beautiful. Is this your family home?”
“Yes, I added on the back section a few years after my father
passed away. My mom and I didn’t get along. She doesn’t live here anymore. I guess it was too much for her.”
As they came to the end of the hallway a pair of closed doors greeted them. He kept his grip tight on her hand and with his other he punched in a code on the security pad. A loud click sounded as the lock released and the doors opened on their own.
“My home,” Mark said.
Rane saw a room that any teen would die to have. Two couches, a pool table, a foosball table, three pinball machines, and three rows of theater-style chairs. These ones were oversized and leather and all faced an immense flat screen television.
His own mini movie theater.
“What is the going rate for your movie tickets?” Rane asked, feeling somewhat overwhelmed.
“A six pack.”
“Oh, do you take IOU’s? I don’t have any beer with me.”
“I guess I could, for a cost. Just so you know I do charge interest.”
“I think I can handle anything you might request.” Laughing, Rane moved into the room. Straight ahead was a pair of double-glass doors leading out to what appeared to be another patio, and to the right stood a staircase.
“This is where I live and spend my time when I’m not at my office apartment. The stairs lead up to the master bedroom. As you can see, I have all I need right here.”
She still held Mark’s hand when he took ahold of her with his free hand so she faced him.
“Mark—”
“I’m glad you’re here. I want you to know that I haven’t allowed many people into this section of the house.”
Rane took a breath and inhaled.
Drakkar! Damn that cologne.
She waited in anticipation for him to kiss her as his breath mingled with hers and made her lips tingle. She felt his hand caress her arm slowly and she shifted her eyes upward to meet his. Desire lingered in the blue depths.