by Alexa Riley
I turn back to Oz, and he looks down at me, but there’s something in his eyes. I can’t tell what it is. It’s almost like he’s hesitant. The happy beaming face from before is gone, replaced by worry.
“Hey. Do you know her?”
“No,” he says quickly, and then his eyes clear of whatever it was that was bothering him. Letting out a quick sigh, he smiles at me and reaches out, pulling me into his arms. “How was your sandwich?”
When he leans in and places a soft kiss on my neck, all thoughts of Skyler vanish from my brain. The feel of his warm lips on my skin makes everything wonderful and perfect. I want to wrap around his body and soak in his size and strength, but he pulls back, taking my hand and helping me into the back of the limo.
Once we’re in, he takes my hand in his and brings it to his mouth. He places a soft kiss on the inside of my wrist, and the heat warms my cheeks. Even the simplest things he does to me are sexual. I love that he can’t seem to stop himself from touching me.
“Dinner?” he asks, moving his lips back and forth across my wrist.
“Hmm?” I’m not sure I understand what he’s asking because I’m so focused on what he’s doing.
The car pulls away from the curb, and he smiles, bringing my hand to his face. He holds my palm there, looking at me, and it’s the most intimate thing in the world.
“I missed you,” he whispers. I don’t know why, although it’s only been a few hours since we were together it somehow seems longer. The way he says it makes it sound like it’s been years since he’s been with me.
After a second of looking at me, he reaches over with both hands, pulling me onto his lap. I laugh, thinking that he can’t stand even the smallest distance between us.
“I love that sound,” he says, burying his face against my exposed neck.
The heady smell of amber and honey hits me again, and the familiar rush of excitement pools in my lower belly. Being this close to him is dangerous, but I can’t seem to find it in me to stop him. His big hands come around my back, holding me to him, and I reach up, running my fingers through his dark waves.
“How was your day, dear?” I joke, holding him to me. It’s as if we’ve done this every day for our whole lives, falling into a well-known embrace.
“It was miserable. You were in it far too little.”
I laugh again, and he squeezes me tighter.
“What did you really do? I was deep in reports all day,” I ask, wanting to know. I have no idea what he does on a day-to-day basis.
He lets out a deep sigh, like his day was long. “I mainly had to wrap up some deals and close some things out.”
I look up at him. His answer is very vague and I’m sure he can tell what I’m thinking by the look on my face.
“I buy businesses and either dismantle them and sell off the parts or I turn them into something more. I spent a lot of my day looking at numbers.”
It makes me smile that we have something in common. “You like the numbers, too?”
“Everything comes down to numbers.” He moves in a little closer, like he is going to kiss me. “Except you. You’re one formula I can’t seem to crack or predict. It’s different and I rather enjoy it.”
I like that because I’m the same way. Numbers are safe and easy. There’s always an answer and the rules don’t change. There’s no questioning them. They are what they are. It’s nice to have someone like Oz. Something that’s not an equation.
“Where are you taking me to feed me?”
He pulls back looking up at me excitedly. “It’s a surprise,” he says, wiggling his eyebrows.
After a moment, the limo stops. “Are we here already?” I ask, trying to look out of the limo windows. They’re beyond blacked out, so even seeing what street we’re on is nearly impossible.
“Would you like to ride around the block a few more times?”
Oz gives me a wicked grin and I know exactly what he means by that. But I’ve told myself that tonight I’m getting to know this gorgeous man who’s taken hold of me. I want to get some answers about him and see where he thinks things are headed. I may be new at this, but I want to be honest about what I want and what I expect. I don’t want to get a few months in and find out we aren’t on the same page.
Setting me off his lap, he opens the car door and steps out. He offers his hand and I take it as he helps me out of the back. When he closes the door behind me, I look around and see we’re outside the New York Aquarium.
“Are we in the right place?” I ask, looking for a restaurant on either side of it.
Oz holds out his arm, and I slip mine though it as he leads me to the entrance. He looks down at me, smiling as he leads us up to the door, but doesn’t say a word. A short bald man on the other side of the door unlocks it for us and holds it open as we enter. Once we walk through, he closes it behind us, and I hear the lock click back into place.
An older gentleman approaches us and reaches out his hand to Oz. “Welcome, Miles. Good to see you again.”
“You too, Eugene. This is my Mallory.” Oz shakes the man’s hand, and then looks down at me.
I look up to see Oz beaming, as if he’s showing me off with pride. It makes me warm and tingly, and I know my cheeks are probably cherry red.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, young lady. Welcome to the New York Aquarium.” He holds out his hand to indicate the room, and I finally look around. There are tanks of tropical fish at the entrance, and I want to go over and look, but I’m still unsure if I can. “If you will both follow me, we’ve got your table set upstairs.”
Oz takes my hand and leads me through the entrance and down a hallway. The walls are lined with glass, and there are colorful fish on either side. It’s as if we’re underwater, and I’m smiling from ear to ear.
At the end of the hall there’s a large spiral staircase, and Oz grips my hand a little tighter as we make our way up. Once we get to the top, I look around and see gigantic cylindrical aquariums throughout a huge room. The only light in the room is coming from them, the softly lit water making a beautiful glow. Oz lets go of my hand as I walk forward in a trance. Once I get to the first aquarium, I see that inside are little pink jellyfish swimming in the water. They float and glide gracefully through the water, delicately dancing with each movement.
I sense Oz behind me, and I turn my head slightly, smiling up at him. “This is incredible. They’re so beautiful.”
“Not nearly as beautiful as you,” he says, and leans down, giving my neck a soft kiss.
He takes my hand again and leads me over to a table that’s set up in the middle of the room. It’s rectangular in shape, but the two chairs are both on the same side instead of across from each other. I look at the table, and then look back at him quizzically.
“Just wanted you close,” he says as he holds out a chair for me to sit on.
Once I’m seated, I look around the room at all the giant tubes of jellyfish that surround us. It looks magical and it’s like we are under the sea.
Oz takes the seat to my left, and I look over at him and smile. “This is wonderful. Thank you so much.”
“Anything you want. You need only ask.” Reaching out, he takes my hand in his, and it’s then that I see the advantage of sitting on the same side of the table.
Eugene appears at our table. “Enjoy your evening, Miles. Tell Vivien we said hello, and that Louise and I look forward to seeing her next weekend.”
“I’ll be sure and pass along the message.”
Once Eugene is gone, a waiter appears and pours us each a glass of red wine. After that he’s gone, and Oz and I are alone.
“No menus?” I ask, looking around the table.
“A special favor called in. It’s a set menu.”
“I see,” I say, and he gives me a wink. “Vivien?” Reach
ing for my wine, I figure I’ll put that out there. I don’t want to come across as jealous, but it was brought up while I was sitting here.
Oz drapes an arm along the back of my chair as his fingers lazily stroke my exposed neck. There are definitely some advantages to wearing my hair up.
“My mother. Eugene and his wife, Louise, are my godparents.”
“What about your dad?” I take a sip of the wine. It’s warm and rich.
“I don’t care to talk about my father. The day my mother left him he died to me.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry—” I try to apologize, but he holds his hand up to stop me. I can’t imagine what his father must have done to make him so angry, but I can tell by the tic in his jaw it isn’t something he cares to talk about.
“It’s fine—it’s not something I want to ruin the evening with. Another time.”
“How old are you?” I blurt out, thinking I should probably know this. It’s also a nice change of subject.
He laughs a little, letting go of my hand and taking a sip of his wine. “I’m twenty-six, but my birthday is next month. So almost twenty-seven.”
I nod, thinking that’s not too bad.
“Are you going to tell me your real name?”
“It’s Miles.” He doesn’t look at me when he answers, and it’s like he’s avoiding it.
“What’s the rest of it?”
“Henry.”
“Miles Henry. It sounds so posh. I think I like Oz better.”
He looks at me and gives me a wicked smile. I take another sip of my wine and look at him over the top of my glass.
“I think I like it better, too.”
His fingers caress the back of my neck, and the soft touch relaxes me. Maybe it’s the wine, too, but it’s nice to sit next to him, surrounded by his scent. The warm amber and honey clings to my dress. The scent is now becoming ingrained in my mind.
“What is it you do for fun, Oz? Are you always renting out whole buildings to entertain yourself? Sounds expensive.” I pick up my wine and take another sip, noticing that he pays attention to my every move.
He lets out a little laugh. “I’m afraid not. I keep to myself for the most part. I wasn’t lying when I said all I do is work. The closest thing to a friend I have is my head of security.”
“I really only have Paige. I seem to get lost in my work, too,” I admit. Seeing something else we both have in common.
“Not anymore. Now you have me, too.” He sounds so sure that he’ll always be around. That whatever this crazy thing is will last forever. The waiter appears again and this time brings us one small plate of antipasti. After he walks away, I look down at it. I guess we’re going to share.
There are olives and cheeses with a few dried meats and some tomatoes. Oz reaches out, picks up an olive and holds it out for me. I open my mouth slightly, and he places the salty olive on my lips. I bite it, loving the taste. He eats the other half while his eyes stay on my mouth, and the act is so erotic. Something about his feeding me is turning me on, and excitement rushes through my body.
He continues to feed me little bites of everything, always offering it to me first. When the plate is empty, I’m a little sad it’s over as the waiter comes and takes it away. But as fast as the empty plate is gone, a new one appears with a single plate of tortellini in a red sauce.
Reaching over, Oz takes his fork and scoops one up, offering it to me. It makes me smile, and I open up and take a bite. The combination of the spicy flavor of sausage and the sweetness of tomato is perfect, and I moan at the taste. Oz’s eyes narrow on me, and for a second he looks like he wants to come at me. I take another sip of wine, and after a moment he takes a bite of the pasta, too.
“Are you close with your mother?” I ask between bites. I normally don’t like to talk about family because it can be a little awkward for me but I want to share these things with him. To know what makes Oz, Oz.
“I am, yes. We have lunch together every Wednesday. Would you like to come with me tomorrow? I think you’d like her.”
My eyes must show some kind of alarm because he smiles gently at me.
“Or not. Another time perhaps,” he says, feeding me another bite.
All of this is happening so fast, but meeting the mother might be a bit too hasty. Even if a little part of me wants to jump at it.
“Speaking of this week.” There’s aggravation clear in his voice, and I see his brows furrow. “I have to go out of town on Thursday, and I won’t be back until Saturday. I’ve tried my best to avoid it, but our London office requires that I physically be there, and I can’t put it off another day.”
“Oh.” I’m suddenly disappointed, but I shake it off, trying to find the positive. “That’s okay. It’s only for a couple of days. I’ll be here when you get back.”
He doesn’t seem happy with my answer, so I try another tactic.
“I’ll miss you while you’re gone. Maybe we can talk on the phone while you’re away.”
This seems to be better, because his smile returns. “You’ll miss me?” he asks, leaning forward a little.
“Yes.” My answer is a whisper as his lips are a breath away from mine.
When our mouths connect, his tongue sweeps in, and I give him what he wants. The flavor of the wine and his warm scent turn me into a puddle in his arms. His hands wrap around me as I slide mine along the back of his neck. My fingers grip his hair as his teeth bite down on my bottom lip, and suddenly I have this overwhelming urge for him to take me to the floor.
Potent desire runs through my body, and need pulses between my legs. My nipples ache, and my panties are drenched as his kiss consumes my whole being.
Just as quickly as he begins the kiss, he stops it, placing one final soft peck on my mouth before putting one hand on the back of my chair and wrapping the other around my fingers.
I look around, a little dazed, and see the waiter approach us. Oz must have been more aware of our surroundings than I was. I had completely forgotten we weren’t alone.
The waiter takes our empty plate of pasta and leaves a large slice of chocolate cake. With only one fork. I smile at Oz, but he shrugs and picks it up, offering me a bite.
“Do you get to go any other fun places?” I ask before I take a bite of the delicious cake.
“I’ve been all over but lately I’ve been trying to keep it stateside. The traveling gets wearing and New York has never been so appealing now with you in it.” He reaches out his thumb, wiping some cake from the side of my mouth. He brings it to his own mouth, sucking it clean.
“What is it you want to do at Osbourne Corporation? You said you had an internship.”
“It’s an internship in their accounting department. I’d like to one day run a department like that. I went to Yale, and my major was in statistics, which basically means I’m good with numbers. I’d like to put that to good use.”
He puts his hand on me again and runs his thumb along the back of my neck as I explain what I did in college and how I ended up working for Osbourne Corp. It’s like he always has to be touching me. Every now and then he asks me a question about something specific, but otherwise he lets me talk. I tell him about my time at Yale, and Paige, and what I thought my career path might be. I tell him about my past, about growing up in foster care, but he listens and nods through all of it.
After a while, I realize I’ve been talking about myself nonstop for probably over an hour.
“I’m sorry,” I say, looking away. “I’ve never done that before.”
“What? Why are you sorry?” Oz leans in and wraps his arms around me again. “Don’t ever be sorry. For anything. I love hearing you talk. Don’t ever apologize for that.” He gives me a quick kiss on the lips, but doesn’t deepen it. Instead, he stands, holding his hand out to me. “I think they’d like to close this
place up.”
I take his hand, and he leads me away from the beautiful jellyfish room and out of the aquarium. Once we’re outside, the limo is there, waiting on us. He reaches out, opening the door and helping me in before sliding in after me. As soon as the door is closed behind him, he’s pulling me onto his lap.
He rests his hands on either side of my neck and looks into my eyes. Something flashes there, but again, I don’t know what it is. Longing? There’s a need there, but I can’t place it.
“Come home with me,” he whispers so softly I almost don’t catch it.
I hesitate, wanting to give him what he wants, but unsure if this is what I’m ready for.
“I—”
“When I get back,” he interrupts, giving me a sweet smile that shows one of his dimples. “Maybe then. We don’t have to do anything, Mallory. I want you in my bed.”
Before I can answer, he leans up, kissing me softly, but it’s not enough. This time, I’m the one sweeping my tongue into his mouth and deepening the kiss. I want more, but it’s so fast. Maybe these couple of days apart will give me some time to clear the lust-filled fog from my brain.
Oz runs his hands down my back to my ass, pulling me closer to him. I rub my breasts against his chest, wishing there was nothing between us. Breaking the kiss, I’m about to tell him to take me to his house, when the limo stops. It’s then I realize I never felt it start. I was so lost in our kiss that I didn’t realize the car was moving, let alone that we’d traveled so far as to reach a destination.
“Can I take you for breakfast in the morning?” he asks, kissing down my neck.
“If it’s anything like breakfast this morning, yes.” My words are breathy. I love the heat of his lips on me.
He pulls back, smiling, both dimples out in full force. “You need only ask, my sweet Mallory.”
With one final kiss, he helps me out of the limo and watches me enter the lobby of my apartment on wobbly legs.