by Cherry Kay
“You didn’t even like her and you were going to marry her?” Ari asked, shocked and disappointed with Mark.
“Yes, like I said, I was a stupid, stupid man. I’ve come to my senses, I promise, Ari. You’re the one I want, I want to be with you… forever,” Mark said sincerely, and Ari’s eyes widened again. Forever? He wanted to be with Ari forever? Like married and buried together forever?
“I cried a lot, Mark,” Ari said plainly and Mark’s expression crumbled as he fought with his thoughts. Ari watched, dumbfounded, as Mark actually lowered to his knees in front of her.
“I promise to never make you cry again, Ari. I’ll try my absolute hardest to make you happy… please just… I need you. I’m sorry I left, I’m sorry I screwed up that badly, but you’re all I want Ari. I won’t fight it anymore. Please just be with me Ari.” Ari’s chest filled up with so much held back emotion she couldn’t help the tears that fell onto her cheeks. Mark looked up at her, horrified that he could have already broken his promise.
“No… it’s okay… these are good tears, I’m just… I’m overwhelmed… you’re on your knees!” Ari laughed through her tears and Mark laughed with her.
“I know… I’m groveling. Am I doing it right?” Mark asked and Ari laughed again before she nodded and wiped her eyes.
Mark hugged Ari around her waist and Ari took a deep breath while softly pushing her fingers through his hair. Ari thought that if he were anyone else she’d give him a hard time, she’d tell 100him to get out and see how far he was willing to grovel. But it was Mark; she fell in love with him so quickly and he completely dropped his life in New York to come and tell her he loved her.
“I’m moving my offices here, if you need time then I can give you some, but I’m here now and I’m not going to let you go. I’ll fight for you Ari,” Mark said, his face buried in her chest. Ari smiled and shook her head. He knew exactly what to say.
“You’re moving your offices to Florida?” Ari asked, surprised he was actually going to such lengths for her.
“Of course, here is where you are… I’ll have to buy a condo for my parents to visit, but other than that I’m ready to be with you now.” Ari wanted to cry again, he was making it extremely difficult for her to say no to him.
“I… I do need some time to think Mark. You just blew into my life like a tornado, played with my emotions and then blew right out,” Ari said truthfully. Mark’s arms tightened around her waist for a moment before he let her go.
“Fine… I can give you that,” Mark said optimistically before he stood up and sighed, moving toward the door. “I had hoped to sleep with you tonight, but I suppose this is my punishment…” Mark said, knowing full well what he was doing.
“You don’t want me to punish you Mark,” Ari said with a smirk and Mark smiled, hope alive in his eyes.
“I’ll take anything you give me Ari, I’m a desperate man. Desperate for you,” Mark said, his hand on the door handle. “I’ll see you soon Ari, you have my number if you need me,” Mark said and she nodded even though he didn’t phrase it as a question. Mark left then and Ari was alone with her thoughts. She didn’t know what to do or what to think.
Ari needed to talk to someone but it was so late… she didn’t think she’d be able to lie down; she definitely wouldn’t be able to fall asleep. Ari decided to call Brooklyn; he had worked tonight so maybe he was still awake.
“Girl, you should be asleep, I was just about to drift off into happy dream land and you should be there already.” Brooklyn was obviously just falling asleep when Ari called; he wasn’t making much sense like he usually did when he was tired.
“I’m sorry, I just had to talk to someone… something happened,” Ari said while pacing back and forth in front of her couch.
“What happened? Did Darrel show up?” Brooklyn sounded more awake now, and alarmed.
“No, no, no… though I thought it was him when the knocking at my door woke me up…” Ari said, Brooklyn sighed in relief and Ari continued to pace.
“Well? Who was it then?” Brooklyn asked. Ari said it was Mark and Brooklyn paused before answering her. “Who was it?” Brooklyn asked again; fully awake now.
“It was Mark! Mark showed up at my door, he told me he loves me, he got on his knees asking for me to forgive him.” Ari could’ve practically seen the stunned silence that came from the other end of the line.
“Girl, you sure you didn’t dream him up?” Brooklyn asked finally and Ari sighed. She wasn’t sure if she should be offended that Brooklyn didn’t believe Mark would come back for her, then again she thought she was dreaming for a brief moment, also.
“It was him, Brooklyn, Mark is back and he said he’s moving his offices here, he said he was going to be here for me, because he wants me and he said he loved me like three times. He was serious; he meant every word. So I told him I needed time and now I don’t know what to do!” Ari said, taking a deep breath after her rant.
“Well, I don’t know what you should do, Ari… you should… well, he’s already—oh I don’t know, it’s late,” Brooklyn said with a huff.
Ari threw her hands in the air, if only the answer would fall from the sky.
“Okay, do you love him?” Brooklyn asked, Ari nodded and then told him she did. “Did you miss him?” Brooklyn asked her.
“Of course I missed him, I wanted him to do just this, come back and tell me he loves me and now he has… it just seems too good to be true. It was too good to be true in the beginning and look where that ended—heartbreak,” Ari said, Brooklyn sighed and she could hear sheets rustling on his end.
“Well, that’s the thing about loving someone, isn’t it? You have to trust them with your heart. He’s moving his entire life here for you in hopes that you accept him, he’s made the leap to make up for hurting you, now you have to forgive him and take him back. You guys are in love. Of course you have to take him back, don’t torture the poor man or yourself.”
Ari laughed, Mark certainly wasn’t poor… but Brooklyn was right, she loved Mark and Mark loved her, as crazy as that seemed. And he was moving to Florida for her! Mark was uprooting his business, something that was the center of his world for so long and now… now he was ready to make Ari the center of his world.
“You’re right. Thanks, Brooklyn, you can go back to sleep now. Love you,” Ari said. Brooklyn snorted and told her that she was better off telling Mark that. They ended the call and Ari made herself some tea. Well, now that her mind was made up, she wanted to torture Mark just a little for hurting her in the first place. Ari wondered what she could do; she didn’t think she would be able to be away from him for long, especially seeing as he was in the same city as her. That would truly be torturing them both.
Ari decided that she would let him stew, just not for too long. Ari wanted him to “sleep with her soon” and she didn’t want to sleep at all. Ari finished her tea and went to bed, relaxed enough to fall asleep. She fell asleep happier than she had been for the past week.
***
Ari woke around ten in the morning to the smell of coffee and maybe pancakes or waffles being made. Confused, she wondered if one of her sisters was there. They were the only ones with emergency keys to Ari’s place. Ari got up and padded out to the kitchen in her tank top and boy shorts that she usually slept in.
Ari was greeted with the delicious sight of Mark in nothing but work out pants, his chest bare and glistening as if he just came in from a jog. There was no one else at Ari’s place but she and Mark. He was busy making pancakes while the coffee pot brewed away merrily, as if it was as pleased to have a sexy glistening man in its kitchen as Ari was.
“H—how did you get in here?” Ari asked, her gaze completely distracted by a bead of sweat making it’s way down Mark’s spine. Mark turned around and smiled, making things worse because now Ari had clear view of his delicious torso, ridged with defined muscle and slightly tanned from being out in the bright Florida sun.
“I asked your sister Sandy if she h
ad a copy of your key, she did and happily made a copy for me, I hope you don’t mind too much.”
Ari blinked at him, perplexed, meanwhile he just smiled as if all was right with the world.
“When did you see Sandy?” Ari asked, wondering if she even told mark about Sandy.
“Well, I have my ways, but I gave her a call and then stopped by her house before she left for work,” Mark explained as if it was that simple.
Ari simply blinked at him. He was driven, that much was obvious.
“So now… you’re here shirtless and making me pancakes?” Ari asked to clarify what she was witnessing.
“Got that right, baby. I said I’d give you time, but I didn’t say I’d make it easy.” Mark grinned mischievously at Ari while flexing his pecks. He turned around to flip the pancake cooking and then got out two mugs to pour them some coffee.
Ari took a deep breath, damn him for making her sweat while she was trying to make him sweat! But damn if he didn’t look delicious under a sheen of sweat.
“I’m going to go and shower,” Ari said with emphasis; two could play this game. Mark chuckled and walked over to her with a devilish grin.
“Well, enjoy your shower,” he said before leaning down to her, his lips lightly brushing over hers, leaving her tingling and wanting more of him. Dammit, she was losing. She was losing fast.
Chapter9
Clarissa
Mark was a constant presence with Ari all day. After they had breakfast, Mark asked to use her shower and Ari found soon after that he had unpacked some things in her bathroom and her bedroom. Apparently, Mark was now staying with her.
They talked about everything but what was on the forefront of their minds. Mark went with Ari to her hair and nail appointments, he even went shopping with her as Ari had to pick up some things at the mall for her sister Lisa’s birthday.
“I can’t believe you actually stuck with me all day, doing all of these girly things,” Ari said to Mark as he held open the door for Ari to walk into her condo.
“I didn’t mind it, I love being with you. I love you remember?” Mark reminded Ari, as if she could forget.
“Yes, I remember, Mark…”
Mark looked at her expectantly as he closed the front door and stalked towards her. Ari backed up slowly until her back was pressed against her bedroom door in the short hallway that hid her room and the bathroom.
“Good, I’m glad you know. Soon we’ll move into my house on the isle. First, you just have to admit that you love me, too,” Mark said confidently, his smirk knowing as he pressed Ari against the door.
Ari took a slow deep breath and pressed her hands against Mark’s chest. His firm, warm, defined chest. She felt his heart beating under her palm and Mark bent his head down to nuzzle her neck. Ari shivered and Mark hummed in pleasure as he inhaled her scent.
“I love the way you smell, baby, please you’re driving me crazy, just tell me you forgive me, tell me you love me… that you want me,” Mark begged into her skin and Ari held onto his arms as he sucked on her neck and pushed his leg in between hers, rubbing her core in just the right way.
“I am?” Ari asked, smiling, that meant she was winning… but then again, he had managed to move into her apartment and had her pinned against her bedroom door at the moment.
“You have to ask, baby? Clearly, I’m still not doing things right.” Mark lifted her and wrapped her legs around his hips so he could push his hardness against her core. Mark opened Ari’s bedroom door and walked with her to the bed where he laid her down. Ari watched as Mark pulled his shirt over his head and revealed his beautiful torso.
“You’ll give in by the time we’re done here, baby,” Mark promised her with a devilish grin and he unbuttoned his pants slowly, her eyes were rapt on his every movement. Ari wanted nothing more than for him to get them both naked, already. Ari sat up and helped Mark unbutton his pants—he was taking too long. Mark grinned at her and finally pulled his pants off. He pushed Ari’s shirt over her head and peeled off her tights, taking off her sandals along the way. Mark gently pushed Ari back onto the bed and then his mouth was on her skin. Mark trailed a path of fire from her jaw to her collar and across her breasts. When Mark pulled her bra down and his lips closed around her nipple, Ari arched into his hot mouth with a moan.
Sensation speared through Ari and coiled low and insistent in her belly, causing delicate muscles to clench impatiently. Ari wanted Mark inside her now more than ever. They had both been starved of each other for too long, in Ari’s opinion. Mark sucked on Ari’s nipple while rolling her other in between his thumb and forefinger with just the right amount of pressure. Ari felt every ripple of pleasure in her core and she swore that she would orgasm before Mark got anywhere near her sex.
Ari arched into Mark, wanting more of his skin on hers, wanting more of him period. Mark pushed Ari to the brink of climax with his mouth devouring her breasts, but he stopped at the last moment, his mouth traveling lower to her navel.
“Mark, please…” Ari said breathlessly, her back arching as his hands gripped her waist. Mark pressed his hips into Ari’s and his lips descended on hers, moving against her mouth feverishly. Mark broke the kiss and pulled away from her only to pull his boxers off and divest Ari of her bra and panties.
Mark pressed against Ari and she hooked her legs around his so that his hardness was pressed against her sensitive folds. Mark swiveled his hips so that the head of his thick cock was pressed directly against Ari’s throbbing clitoris. Ari cried out when Mark started to massage the small bundle of nerves.
“Say it, baby…” Mark said hoarsely as he kissed Ari along her jaw and neck.
“What? Say what?” Ari asked breathlessly, her mind completely caught up in how Mark was making her feel at the moment.
“Tell me you love me, Ari, I need to hear it,” Mark said, his hips still rocking against hers, driving Ari crazy as he massaged her aching clit. Ari’s hands gripped the small of Mark’s back, urging him to keep going. Ari was so close to climax her back arched and her legs stiffened. Mark chose that very moment to stop, lifting himself off of her a fraction.
“Mark! Please…” Ari begged for him to let her come, but Mark was playing dirty, he needed to hear Ari tell him that she loved him and Ari needed to orgasm. Mark reached in between them to push the head of his own throbbing sex down to Ari’s entrance. Ari moaned, half-crazed with need and pleasure. Mark moved his hips in shallow thrusts, entering Ari just enough to drive her crazy. Ari cried out his name and tried to meet his thrusts so that he could sink deeper into her, but Mark held her waist firmly so she couldn’t.
“Ari, you’re hindering us both at this point. Just say it, baby,” Mark said, his voice low and too sexy for his own good. Mark was a sex god and he was punishing Ari at this point. Mark’s lips went back to Ari’s neck as he sucked and licked his way to the base of her throat. Then his lips were on hers, his tongue licking into her mouth and caressing her tongue in heated strokes.
Ari was nearly wild underneath him and she could do little to take her pleasure from him as he had a tight hold on her. Mark chuckled and broke the kiss to nuzzle her neck once more.
“You’re so damn stubborn, Ari,” Mark said and just as Ari’s sex started to tighten and spasm around Mark he pulled out of her and Ari screamed in protest.
“I love you, Mark, I love you… please, please let me come,” Ari begged and Mark looked at her, a triumphant expression on his face.
“You mean it?” he asked eagerly and Ari nodded, her eyes never breaking from his gaze.
“Of course, I love you, now please, Mark, you’re driving me crazy,” Ari said, her tone pleading. Mark didn’t need to be asked anymore, he plunged deep into Ari and she cried out, a tear falling from the corner of her eye. Mark thrust into Ari hard and fast, driving both of them to the very edge of heaven just so they could fall off in the beautiful dance of ecstasy.
Ari took longer recovering from her orgasm, as it was earth shattering with
how high Mark pushed her. Mark was nestled against her, murmuring how much he loved her when Ari’s cell phone rang, loud and insistent from the floor somewhere.
“Are you expecting any important calls, baby?” Mark asked, not wanting to let Ari move at all.
“Well, I do own a business,” Ari said with a laugh in her voice. Mark sighed and pulled out of Ari’s warmth so he could get her phone. He stopped mid-motion as he was getting back onto the bed, because he saw who was calling Ari and answered her phone for her. Ari watched him curiously, wondering why he answered her phone.
“Why are you calling this number?” Mark said into the phone angrily. Ari’s confusion mounted and she sat up, but Mark stepped out of the room, closing the door behind him as he spoke angrily to whoever had called Ari’s phone. Ari took a minute to realize it was Darrel calling her. That would be the only person Mark yelled at in Ari’s contacts.
A moment later, Mark huffed back into the bedroom with no sign of Ari’s cell phone. Instead, he had a bowl of fruit in his hands and he set it down on Ari’s nightstand before climbing into bed with her. Mark didn’t say anything about the call; instead, he fed Ari a slice of pineapple and licked up the juice that trickled down her chin when she bit into it. Mark kissed Ari softly on the lips before offering her the rest of the pineapple slice.
“So… who was that?” Ari asked when she could. Mark shrugged and Ari sighed.
“It was that man, Darrel. Why is he still calling you, Ari?” Mark asked her, Ari sighed and shrugged helplessly.
“I don’t know what his issue is. He… he cornered me in the parking garage and told me he wanted me back, that he wanted to prove that he changed…” Ari trailed off she glanced at Mark, unable to ignore the irony there.
“He cornered you how? Did he put his hands on you, Ari?” Mark asked, aggression rolling off of him. Ari was touched that he wanted to protect her so badly.
“No, he didn’t touch me. He showed up at the parking garage here and I tried to tell him that things were over between him and me. He said I’d regret it… so after he left, I called the cops and filed for a restraining order.”