by Kelley, HD
I pushed him off me until he was flat on his back, then straddled him as I ran my hands over his chest, teasing him as he’d done to me. I kissed my way down his chest as my hands busily worked to undo his jeans. His erection strained the bounds of the fabric of his boxer briefs as I rubbed him through the thin fabric. I pulled the waist band down freeing his hardened length, the sight of which beckoned an involuntary gasp.
A moan escaped me as my tongue circled the head of his penis, the musky scent of his arousal sending waves of pleasure through my body again. I brought him all the way into my mouth, sucking and circling as my hands greedily roamed his torso.
His cock twitched on my tongue and he quickly sat up, pulling me into his arms. “If you keep doing that I’m going to come before I even get inside you,” he said, grasping at the edges of restraint.
Without another word he flipped me onto my back and was once again between my legs, kneeling as he rolled a condom over his erection. Ever so slowly he pushed past my opening until his erection was deep inside me, filling me completely. I wiggled beneath him as I adjusted to the exquisite sensation. When I finally stilled he slowly began to move.
“Jesus, Isabella, you’re so tight,” he moaned as he thrust deeper inside me. I raised my hips to meet his; in, out, in a tantalizing rhythm. It had been so long since I’d had a man inside me that the feeling was almost too much to take.
My insides began to quicken as another orgasm started to build. I dug my nails into the flesh of his toned back. “Oh…Alec…feels...so good...”
He tilted my hips and pushed himself deeper inside me. “I’m close, Isabella. Come for me again,” he whispered breathlessly in my ear. His words were my undoing and I exploded around him. My insides continued to spasm as my orgasm ripped through me for a second time. That’s when he really started to move, not stopping until he found his own release. Once his body relaxed, he kissed me softly on the lips then collapsed on top of me, both of us spent.
Chapter Nine
Sun flooded the room through the floor-to-ceiling glass wall. I sat up and looked around the room. “Alec’s room,” I said out loud, regaining my bearings. Only Alec wasn’t anywhere to be found so I climbed out of bed to find him.
My suitcase was as the foot of the bed. I fished around the bag until I found my toothbrush and a hair tie then went into the bathroom to clean up. I slipped on the shirt Alec was wearing last night, his scent still covering the fabric. Burying my face in the collar, I breathed him in. The events from last night replayed in my mind and I wrapped myself in a hug, but it was his arms I wanted around me. I hurried downstairs to find him.
Alec was pacing back and forth in front of the glass wall in the great room when I found him. “How’d they get in? Damn it, Marcus. Figure it out,” he shouted into the Bluetooth earpiece he wore before ripping it out of his ear and throwing it against the wall.
Startled by his angry outburst, I gasped involuntarily. Alec looked up when he heard. Pulling his hands through his hair, he paced toward me. “Isabella,” he said, quickly closing the gap between us. His brows were furrowed and there was no sign of humor on his face now. He reached up and touched my cheek softly. “Get dressed, baby. We need to go.”
Just like that, he pulled his hand away and disappeared into the kitchen. Not exactly the good morning I was hoping for.
I headed up the stairs, wasting no time getting ready. I wasn’t sure what was bothering Alec but I definitely wasn’t a fan of his mood.
Alec was waiting by the front door when I made my way back down, my bags in tow.
“Are you ready to go?” he asked. I nodded but didn’t say a word, letting him take my bags as he led me to the elevator.
We rode in silence all the way to the airport. Alec hadn’t offered any clues to what was bothering him, and I hadn’t pushed for answers. His earlier outburst and subsequent cold reception still had me a little shaken. Alec may have been used to one-night stands, but I sure wasn’t, and I refused to let him see how much his silence was bothering me.
“What’s wrong, Isabella?” Alec asked when we were safely in the air.
I whipped my head around, a stunned look on my face. “Me? I could ask you the same thing.”
He opened his mouth then closed it again. I continued to stare, waiting him out. “It’s nothing,” he finally said.
“Yeah, what was that you were saying about half-truths?”
Pulling his hand through his hair, he exhaled. “There was an emergency at my office, but it’s nothing for you to worry about.” He leaned over to my seat and kissed me on the mouth. “Plus, I’m not looking forward to being away from you.”
A smile crossed my face for only the second time that day. “Really? Because I was starting to wonder.”
“Wonder what?”
Shit. Why had I opened my mouth? The last thing I wanted was to sound needy.
“Wonder what, Isabella?”
“You were so cold this morning,” I blurted out. “I thought maybe you’d gotten what you wanted and were done with me now.”
Alec squeezed my hand. “All or nothing, remember?” His words from last night rolled around in my mind now, and I couldn’t help but wonder what I’d gotten myself into.
• • • • •
Alec excused himself to the rear of the plane to take a phone call some time ago and had yet to return. I stared out the window, wondering who he was talking to and what the emergency at his office was all about.
“Are you going to the office today?”
Surprised by Alec’s voice I jerked my head toward him. “And risk an interrogation from Tim? Not a chance.” The mere thought of having to explain to Tim why I hadn’t flown back yesterday gave me chills. “Actually, I think I’ll skip the office altogether this week.”
He tilted his head to one side. “Is that something you do often, Ms. James?”
“Maybe I do. Is that a problem for you, Mr. Payne?”
Rubbing his chin between his thumb and forefinger as if seriously considering my question, Alec said, “It sounds more like an advantage than a problem to me.” I bit the nail on my index finger as I considered a few advantages of my own. “Come with me to New York. You can skip work there.”
“I’m skipping the office, Alec, not work.”
He leaned over and bit my lip. “You can skip the office in New York then.”
I wanted to go with him, to spend another night wrapped in his arms, but no matter how much I wanted to I knew I couldn’t. Not when Drew and Anna were at home, probably still mad at me over that picture. “I can’t. I have to go home.”
He pulled his hands through his hair, something I noticed he did a lot when things weren’t going the way he wanted them to. “Will Spencer be there?”
Pausing to search my memory for the answer, I came up empty. “I don’t know.”
“How can you not know, Isabella?”
I laughed nervously, his reaction from earlier this morning still fresh in my mind. “Don’t get your panties in a bunch. I haven’t exactly been thinking about Spencer these last few days.”
“I’m not thinking about Spencer either,” he snapped. “I’m thinking about you.”
Shit. My distraction failed and now he was mad again. Seriously? my inner voice snapped, and I couldn’t help the eye roll that followed.
Reaching over me, Alec unbuckled my seatbelt and pulled me into his lap surprising me once more. “If you have something to say, Isabella, then say it, but stop rolling your eyes at me.”
My heart beat faster, adrenalin coursing through my veins. “Control freak!” I teased, not sure what to make of this sudden attitude he’d developed.
Alec leaned forward until his mouth was next to my ear. “All of me,” he whispered. I laid my head on his chest, half excited the other half afraid of what I’d started with this man.
• • • • •
“Thank you for everything, Alec. I had a great time.”
“Anything for you,
Isabella.” He kissed me on the lips. “Don’t forget to call me when you get home so I’m not worried.”
I waved goodbye. “I won’t forget, but don’t worry anyway.” He closed the car door and walked back to the plane. Watching his retreating form, I leaned back against the seat and while the car service Alec hired to drive me home pulled away from the jet.
Traffic out of the airport was heavy so I took the time to get caught up on emails. The tiny envelope on the home screen of my Windows phone indicated several new messages, the majority of which were from Jonathan. I read through them all, mostly updates on what I’d missed while I was gone and the reports I’d asked for before I left.
One message grabbed my attention though. Jonathan scheduled a new client meeting in New York on Friday but hadn’t said who the client was. Payne Enterprises is in New York, but surely that couldn’t be it. I’d just spent the last four days with Alec and he didn’t mention anything about giving Dimarco that contract. I made a mental note to ask Jonathan about it later then opened the last message, the only one from Tim.
After Tim missed the cruise he’d been so excited to take I hadn’t expected good news, but I hadn’t expected this either. He was demanding we revisit my working arrangement, again. And just like that I was back to the real world, thoughts of the weekend slipping away, only to be replaced by the stresses in my life.
The house was quiet when I walked through the door. I did a quick check of the garage, looking for Spencer’s car, and was relieved to find it wasn’t there. I carried my suitcase upstairs to unpack before starting my work day. The Oscar da la Renta gown Alec bought me had already been cleaned, courtesy of Preston sometime last night or early this morning. I tucked it in the back of my closet, knowing the kids would never believe nothing was going on between me and Alec if they saw that dress.
I listened to my voice messages as I unpacked. Spencer’s voicemail from last Thursday played first. “Great picture, Bella. Couldn’t even wait until the ink was dry?” he’d said. I hit delete without listening to the rest of the message. He had no room to talk. After all he was the reason we’d gotten divorced in the first place.
Tim’s message played next. “Call me,” he said simply. No welcome back, no how was your trip, no thanks for giving up your entire weekend, just “call me.” Exhaling loudly, I deleted his message too.
I walked downstairs to my office, unpacked my laptop, and decided to call Tim back while I waited for it to boot. I said a silent prayer he’d forgotten about his email from Friday, and his list of demands.
“Mr. Howard’s office. Haley speaking.”
“Hi, Haley, it’s Izzy. Is Tim available?”
“Yes, he’s waiting for your call, Mrs. James.” The hold music began to play.
The hold music ended abruptly and Tim’s voice filled the air. “Izzy, great job, I’ve been trying to close that account for months.”
“Um, thanks,” I said, clueless to what he was talking about.
“Of course, you’ll be running point.”
I may not have known what account he was talking about but I did know my schedule wouldn’t allow me to run point on any more projects, especially for a new client. “I was thinking we’d let Steve handle this one.”
“Very funny, considering how well that suggestion went last time. Plus, Mr. Payne insisted.”
Annoyed by this new development, I exhaled loudly. “I’m already spread pretty thin. Payne Enterprises will need a full time IR Manager and I just don’t have that kind of time right now.”
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about, Izzy. I know how devoted you are to your clients, but the Payne Enterprises contract is contingent on you running point. We’ll need to divide your current projects among your team to clear your schedule.”
“But—”
“No buts Izzy. This contract will bring in more revenue than all our other contracts combined. We need you on this.” Tim’s tone said it all. There was no getting out of this.
“When do we start?” I asked finally.
“You have a meeting Friday at Payne Enterprises. I’ll leave it up to you to work out the details from there.”
My head started to spin. Jonathan emailed my itinerary for Friday before I made it home from the airport. When did Alec send over the contract? And more importantly, why hadn’t he told me about it?
“I better get busy then,” I said, doing my best to hide my mounting frustration. Ending the call, I tossed my phone on the desk. I couldn’t believe this was happening. It was bad enough that I had to give up the clients I’d worked so hard to win over, but knowing Alec did this without so much as even a hint had me ready to scream.
I went upstairs and changed into my running clothes. I was too mad now to even think about work. I’d call Alec to yell at him for screwing with my job, but it wouldn’t do any good. Plus, I’d had just about all of Mr. Control Freak I could handle for one day. I laced up my shoes, grabbed my iPod off the dresser, and set off for a run.
“All or nothing,” Alec had said last night before taking me upstairs. If I’d known that meant he’d be interfering with my job I might have made a different choice. Although it was hard to imagine turning him down after the unbelievable sex we had. I was still sore from having him inside me, his large cock stretching me farther than I’d ever been stretched. When I closed my eyes I could still feel him, even smell him. But none of that was helping with the frustration I felt over him messing with the job I loved.
An hour later I walked through the back door, sweat dripping down my face, a sure sign of a good workout. I could hear my phone ringing but I decided to ignore it until after I cleaned up.
Considering I was in no hurry to start the process of transitioning my clients, I took my time in the shower. They’d be in good hands with my team, but that was hardly the point. They were my clients. Contracts I’d closed. Relationships I’d fostered. Plus, the mere thought of working for Alec full time had me beyond worried. Would I be able to handle dealing with him day in and day out?
By the time I made it back to my office I had four missed calls: one from Steve, one from Kari, and two from Alec. Surprisingly, there was only one voicemail. “I thought you were going to call me when you got home,” Alec’s message said. Still irritated about being pulled from my other projects thanks to him, I deleted it without listening to the rest.
“Oh, you’re lucky I haven’t called you,” I said out loud, certain he wouldn’t like anything I had to say to him at the moment.
I printed the summary report Jonathan created and ran through each client, one by one, trying to figure out just who to hand each one over to. It was a long, tedious process as I considered personalities, client issues, and their past histories, all while weighing in the current stage of each project and the timelines too. By six o’clock I was satisfied with the choices I’d made, or was forced to make anyway.
Anna’s laugh echoed past my office door. I pushed my notes aside and followed the laughter into the kitchen just in time to hear Sara telling Anna about a mishap at the grocery store that sent a display of cereal boxes crashing down on top of her. Anna was laughing so hard she was struggling to catch her breath. Until she saw me, that is.
“Mom,” she said softly. I smiled, relieved she wasn’t still mad. “What are you doing here?” No, I was wrong, she was still mad.
I pulled my hands through my hair, a habit I seemed to have picked up from Alec this past weekend. “Anna, please.”
“Please what, Mom. You should have told us.”
“Anna, I did tell you. It was only a picture.”
She jumped to her feet, the stool she was sitting on falling to the floor. “Don’t play dumb with me! Dad told us everything. Did you honestly think you could get a divorce without telling us?” She stormed out of the kitchen before I could say anything, all evidence of her good mood long gone. I couldn’t believe Spencer told them about the divorce. We’d agreed to wait until after graduation. If he’d wanted
to tell them sooner he could have at least waited for me to get home so we could do it together.
That asshole! my inner voice snapped. He’d managed to make this my fault too. Nothing I said to Anna would matter now. Spencer screwed this up and he was going to have to make it right.
Sara stood at the stove, her back turned, undoubtedly uncomfortable after another episode of the James’ family drama. “Do you know where Spencer is?” I asked.
“He flew to Atlanta this morning. He’ll be back on Wednesday.” I exhaled slowly. On one hand I was happy to have a couple more days to figure out what to say to Spencer, but on the other I was irritated I’d have to wait until Wednesday for him to fix the mess he created.
I poured myself a glass of wine and headed back into my office to drink, alone. After clearing the papers from my desk I made a to-do list for the following day, anything to keep my mind off of everything that had happened since I got home.
That familiar tone chimed alerting me to a new email. Reluctantly I opened it.
Date: April 20, 2015 06:27 PM
To: Isabella James
From: Alec Payne
Subject: Waiting for your call
Isabella,
Should I be worried or mad? Call me.
Alec Payne
CEO, Payne Enterprises
I closed my email program without responding. “Let him worry, or be mad, or whatever he wants to be,” I shouted. He was on my shit list too for forcing me to hand over my clients. After powering down my laptop I headed back to the kitchen for another glass of wine but froze when I saw Drew.
“Welcome home,” he said when he saw me.
Cautiously I smiled, trying to gauge his mood. “Thanks.”
Drew moved closer, pulling me into a hug, and I hoped I was forgiven. “Drew, I’m really sorry we didn’t tell you guys sooner.”
“Look, this sucks, but knowing sooner wouldn’t make it suck any less. Plus, I kinda see why you wanted to wait.”