I turned on my TV and switched the channels until I saw a familiar building on the screen. I increased the volume, realizing this was a news story about the hotel. There was the reporter who interviewed the guy I’d overheard at the hotel saying it would be torn down.
“Can you tell us more about the future of this building?” the reporter asked him.
“There is actually no future for it. It will be demolished soon.”
“Why would it be demolished?”
“It was certain from the start that this project was a failure. Its value is nothing compared to the price of purchase. It was only a matter of time when the owner would officially announce their decision to tear it down.”
“Thank you for your time today,” the reporter thanked him and turned to face the camera. “That would be all. As soon as we have more information about this case, we will report about it.”
I stared at the screen, feeling my heart beating so fast that it was making me sick. I turned it off, the sudden silence making me feel even emptier.
If there was any doubt that I’d heard or understood anything wrong, this was my proof that it was real. I was convinced now that it was going to be torn down, and there was nothing I could do. Such a perfect place would definitely be destroyed, and nobody even cared.
Oliver didn’t care.
He’d lied to me from the start, and now I didn’t know what to do.
Suddenly, my phone rang and I yelped in surprise. I looked at the screen. I felt a pang in my chest when I saw it was Oliver.
No. I wouldn’t answer. He was an asshole and he didn’t deserve even a minute of my time.
I waited for the ringing to stop and exhaled when it finally did. I felt my tears welling up in my eyes again, and just as I was about to burst into crying again, my phone rang once more.
“I can’t believe him!” It was Oliver again, and this time it rang for too long. No. I couldn’t answer him. He was calling me to spread more lies. He didn’t respect me or care about me. “No. I won’t answer you, so you can give up.”
The ringing stopped, and I still stared at the screen, a little disappointed that this was it. Even after everything, I missed him and I wanted to hear his voice.
I closed my eyes. I was really screwed. I knew he was bad, yet I wanted to see him again.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
I looked at my phone in surprise. He was calling me again?
Sighing heavily, I grabbed the phone and finally answered the call. To hell with everything! “What do you want, Oliver?”
“Alexandra, finally,” he sounded so relieved that I felt guilt rising from deep within me. No, this wasn’t good. I wasn’t supposed to feel like this about him. “Please, I need to talk to you. Now I understand what the problem is here, and I want to explain some things to you. That place is not going to be torn down. Those are lies. Please, I beg you, meet me at the hotel.”
I gnawed at my lip. My heart accelerated in anticipation, a feeling of hope spreading through me. He’d just said it wouldn’t be demolished, and I was so conflicted. I didn’t know if I could trust him. What if this was just another one of his manipulations?
“I don’t know, Oliver—”
“Please, angel. Just listen to me. I want to explain everything to you. Nothing else. If you still think you won’t be able to trust me in the end... Then I will understand that, but please, just give me one chance. Meet me at the hotel and let’s talk about this.”
He sounded so desperate and for a few moments I didn’t know what was right or wrong anymore. I couldn’t be sure about anything. If what he’d just said was right, then why did that contractor say those things?
A part of me—the one that wanted me to believe Oliver—was urging me to give him a chance. It was telling me that there was a possibility he wasn’t a liar. It was reminding me that I loved him.
Oh my God, I loved him, and if there was even a tiny possibility that he was speaking the truth...
I took a deep breath. “Okay, Oliver. I will meet you at the hotel.”
19
Oliver
When she’d said she would meet me, I was beyond myself with relief and joy. She was giving me a chance to prove myself to her, and I wanted to do anything do make her believe me.
I’d seen the story on the news about the hotel being torn down and figured out what had made Alexandra so angry. She’d heard about the place being demolished and she thought I was lying to her from the start.
Shit. That was so fucked up. Not only I was pissed off because of that lie, but I was also mad that I could lose Alexandra just because of some misunderstanding.
I was so furious. I didn’t know who the contractors were or why they would want to spread lies about my project. It was absurd, and I shouldn’t be surprised that it had already reached media. These things happened from time to time when our competition tried to ruin our reputation. They would spurt nonsense and try to make us look like we were on the verge of bankruptcy.
I hated that side of our business. No matter how hard we tried to build our reputation and make more contracts with clients, there were the unscrupulous sharks that lied shamelessly about things that were far from truth.
How did they know about the project, though? Maybe someone at the bank leaked that the expense was higher than the value. Yes, that could be possible.
Shit. These things happened, but this time it was different. This time I could lose Alexandra, and I couldn’t allow that. I’d promised her she could make whichever design she wanted, giving my best to find the money she would need, and I had to show her all of that was real. I didn’t really care how this happened or why—I had to prove to her I was a good guy and didn’t mislead her about the project.
Now I understood why she was angry at me, probably thinking I just wanted to use her. She couldn’t be more wrong and I wanted to give my best to prove to her what she meant to me. I got so addicted to her in this short period of time that I couldn’t imagine spending another day without her. I needed to see her. I needed her to believe me.
I went to the hotel and headed for the old bridal suite. After Alexandra told me how much this place meant to her, I remembered this room, and I’d wanted to use it once to surprise her. I’d never thought I would have to use it in this way—trying to get her to forgive me, but what was done, was done.
If anyone had told me I would be so crazy about some woman, I would laugh at them and then laugh some more. Hell, until recently I joked about Grant being so in love with Madison, not really understanding that connection they shared.
Now I wanted nothing more than to be with Alexandra and never get separated from her.
I loved her.
Shit. I loved her. I loved that woman who was so serious, but at the same time so fiesty and seductive when she wanted to be. She was smart and talented, and she was so beautiful. There was no one else like her. She was truly special and I needed her. I had to make things right with her.
After an hour, I set up the old bridal suite with roses and candles. It had already been furnished with the double bed and floor mirror, and I brought blankets and pillows. I lit the candles and stepped aside to take a look of the work I’d done.
I shoved my hands into my pockets, feeling too nervous. My heart was racing and my palms actually started sweating. Seriously, what was wrong with me? I was acting ridiculous.
I was worried she wouldn’t forgive me. What if she wasn’t the “roses and candles” type of girl? What if she didn’t trust me in the end?
“Stop this, man. You will sort it out. Come on, you act like you’re a teenager on a first date.”
I took my phone out of my pocket and texted Alexandra to let her know where she could find me.
The more time passed, the more nervous I became, and by the time I heard the knocking on the door, I was already pacing around the room in circles and imagining the negative outcome.
Shit. Okay. Here we go. I opened the door and felt my heart skip a bea
t when I saw her. She was wearing one of her boring business suits, but she’d never looked prettier to me. Even though her face was pale and she had dark circles under her eyes, there was no one more beautiful than her.
“Alexandra.” I approached her, my hands itching to touch her, but I noticed the way she tensed and I halted mid-step. I smiled slightly at her, trying to ease the atmosphere, but she didn’t return it. Okay. I needed to take baby steps with her. “Come in.” I let her pass, stepping backward to give her some space.
She entered and stopped when she noticed how I’d decorated it.
“Oliver...,” she began, but her voice died off.
I closed the door, suddenly worried she would decide to bail from here. I got to the other part of the room, making sure to show her I didn’t want to pressure her or anything.
“I’m sorry if it was too much. Do you like it? I mean, I hope you like it. This doesn’t mean I wanted... I... Shit,” I was mumbling, terribly nervous, and I had to pull myself together. I moved my hand through my short hair and thought carefully about the right way to start our conversation. “Why don’t you take a seat?” I pointed at the chair that was placed opposite from the double bed.
“Okay.” She sat down on it and waited for me to take a seat somewhere. Strangely, I felt too restless to sit, so I just stood.
“Look, I saw the news about the hotel today, and now I understand why you were so angry yesterday.” She opened her mouth to say something, but I raised my hand to stop her and looked at her with my pleading eyes. “Please, let me just say this. That was a lie. We never planned to tear down that hotel. Shit, I want to do opposite from it.”
“Then why did that contractor say that?”
“To ruin the project.”
She looked at me like she couldn’t believe me. “What?”
“Yes. Someone lied to ruin our project.”
“I can’t believe you. That is not possible. That is horrible!”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Yes, it’s possible, and you’re right—it is horrible.” I sat on the bed and leaned my elbows on my knees. “Those things happen all the time in our line of business, Alexandra. There are people who would sell their own mother to beat their competition, and the market is too big. There are a lot of strong players, and each one of us wants to be the best.”
She paled and her eyes widened in shock and displeasure. “Do you want to say that your firm does those things too?”
My heartbeat accelerated again, realizing how my words sounded. “No! Of course not, Alexandra. Not all companies are like that. I assure you that LQT is not that kind of company. We’ve always worked hard to succeed on our own, without resorting to such things. We’re military, remember? We work together. We’re family.”
“How can I trust you, Oliver? I trusted you so far, but then I heard this...”
I wanted to take her into my arms badly, but I didn’t want to scare her away again. “No, Alexandra...” Shit. She had to believe me. “I’m not that kind of person. Everything I’ve told you until now is the truth. I do my job because I have passion for it. My partners and I are the same—we do things we love and we strive to be best on our own. We rely on our own strength and skills.”
“And how about the hotel?”
“I wanted this hotel for a long time. I had the vision for it from the start. I’ve always wanted to bring its old beauty back, and then you came—with your passion, vision, and talent—and I was hooked. You are perfect for the project and you are perfect for me. I’ve never wanted to demolish it, and assure you that hotel won’t ever be demolished as long as I’m involved.” I exhaled, deciding to be completely honest with her. “Look, the truth is that I worried a bit about not being able to give you all the funds you need for the project. I fully believe in you and I want you to redecorate it no matter how expensive it is, but according to my calculations, there was a possibility that finding all that money might not be possible.”
“What? But—”
“Look, that doesn’t mean I won’t find the money. I will find it because I want you to make your design come true, but in any case—the place won’t be torn down.”
She was just looking at me for several moments, twisting her hands on her lap as she thought about my words.
“I thought you were lying to me, you know. I thought you just wanted to use me and dump me when you got bored.”
Screw baby steps. I got up and crossed the room in two strides. I knelt in front of her and took her by the hands. I frowned when I felt how cold they were. “Angel, I never wanted to use you.” I kissed her hands, holding them tight. “I admit that I was a complete jerk in the beginning, and nothing justifies my awful behavior then, but it would be a lie if I told you I wasn’t attracted to you from the start. Then you showed me your worth during the interview and got me completely crazy for you these last few days.”
She was still frowning, like she couldn’t still believe my words completely. “Because of sex.”
“No, angel.” I kissed her hands again and looked her sincerely. “It was never just about sex. While I enjoy our sex more than anything I’ve enjoyed in my life, you’re more important to me—you, as a person. Alexandra...” I sighed. “I can’t be without you. I want you to believe me. I need you. I need you more than anything, and if you can’t believe me, than I don’t know what I’m going to do...”
She didn’t even move as she examined my face carefully. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. “Okay,” she finally said.
“Okay?”
She nodded and offered me a slight smile. “Okay. I believe you.” She shook her head and bit her lip. “This is really difficult for me, because I was really hurt, Oliver. I thought you were lying to me about everything... And this project means a lot to me. And not only this project.”
“Not only this project?”
“You also mean a lot to me.” She brought my hand to her lips and kissed it tenderly. For a moment I thought I didn’t hear her well. My heart threatened to jump out of my throat.
“Can you repeat that, angel?”
She bit her lip again, and of course, my cock immediately twitched. “You... You mean a lot to me.”
Alexandra. She was an angel. My angel. I actually wanted to jump from happiness. She believed me. She felt something for me.
That was it. I needed to have her right now.
20
Oliver
I brought her face to mine and met her lips in a hurry that took us both breathless and hot for each other. “I need you, Alexandra. I need to fuck you senseless until the only thing you remember is that you are mine.”
She grabbed my face and thrust her tongue into my mouth, stroking mine with urgency that made my cock harder than ever. I needed to bury myself into her. I had to feel her soft, warm pussy.
“I am yours,” she said. “Boss.”
I smirked. “Boss?”
“Yes. Boss. It really turns me on when you order me every time we have sex. I love the way you control me.”
Shit, she had no idea what she was doing to me now. She was fucking perfect.
I stood up and pulled her to her feet. “Come here.” I guided her to the mirror. I made her face it and stopped directly behind her. “I want to take my time with you, but I’m not really sure if I would be able to do that since I’m desperate to fuck you now.”
I placed a kiss on her neck, and she shivered, goosebumps appearing all over her skin. I enjoyed the way she reacted to me. She was so sensitive. So fresh, so new.
“Oliver,” she breathed out, staring in daze at me in the mirror. She didn’t take eyes off me as I undressed her slowly, taking my time as I unbuttoned her jacket and her shirt. “What are you doing?”
“Making one of my fantasies come true.”
I took off her clothes, leaving her in her high heels only. I looked at her body in the mirror, mesmerized with every single inch of her body. She was so hot. I kissed her neck, grabbing her breasts an
d playing with her sensitive nipples.
They reacted immediately, becoming two hard buds as I rubbed them, and she was already panting and writhing.
“This is so good.” She brought her eyes to mine in the mirror, staring at me through her daze, and suddenly my pants and boxers became too tight for my cock. It begged me to release it as I slid my hands down and covered her hot, shaved pussy.
“You’re already wet for me, angel.” I groaned and grinded myself against her.
“Yes.”
“Tell me how much you want this?”
“So much, boss. Please.”
“Please, what?”
“Please, fuck me.”
Shit. I was going crazy for her.
I chuckled. “I will.” I moved my hands over her body again, caressing her smooth skin as we looked at each other in the mirror. I held onto her waist as I brought my hand back to her pussy that was now dripping wet. I pushed my fingers through her soft folds and reached her entrance. “Your pussy is so soft, Alexandra. And only mine.”
She shuddered, her pussy swallowing my fingers when I pushed them inside. My cock throbbed painfully, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to take this torture much longer. I thrust three fingers in and out of her fast, her pussy making the sloshing sounds as her juices gushed out of her.
“Yes! Yes! Yes! Please, don’t stop! I will come.”
“And what if I stop?”
“No!”
Just as I felt her tense, as if she was really near her orgasm, I took out my fingers and gave her a hard look. “You didn’t say ‘please’. I won’t let you come until you behave like a good girl.”
She flushed, panting faster. Her tits rising and falling were too sexy.
“Please. Please, please, please, boss. I will be a good girl. I will listen to everything you say. Just... please...”
“Please, what?”
“Please, make me come.”
I grinned and thrust four digits inside of her, fucking her roughly. She screamed, losing herself once more on my fingers. I moved my other hand up and covered her breast, squeezing it. She closed her eyes as she was close to her orgasm, but I pinched her nipple hard, forcing her to open her eyes.
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