I felt that jolt of recognition again as we silently staring at each other as if neither of us wanted to break the spell. Finally I found my voice. "I…I saw you at that little airport in Mexico, after the storm forced our planes to land." She nodded, shaking out her hair from the scarf she had wrapped around it as she painted. The sun caught it and spun it pure as gold, just as it did when I saw her along the tarmac at that little airport.
"Yes," she said, "I saw you there." She smiled then, and I felt myself relax, feeling once again in control. Control is so very important to me after years of struggling in a class system that gave young actors so few options. I gestured towards the canvas she had been working on.
"Is this the new series you mentioned on the phone?" I moved closer to it, fascinated by this new bold direction she was taking. It was chancy, moving away from an approach she was known for and into a new adventurous path. I turned away from the painting and looked at her directly. Unlike most women, she didn't give in and look down, but rather returned my demanding gaze.
"It might be; that is for me to decide Yu-Tang. First I need to hear more about your ideas." I smiled back and nodded. Beyond that first jolt of something indefinable at the airport, there was definitely a woman here that I could come to like, maybe even admire. A woman beyond the artist I already admired, that is.
"Well," I ventured, "since our meeting was postponed, how about we talk over drinks? I have taken a room in this hotel and the bar downstairs seems well stocked." I knew she owned the hotel, had a suite just below the studio and so this should be an easy yes for her. But some women like to control the situation by keeping a man waiting, even in a business situation. I was testing to find out just what kind of woman she was and felt myself holding my breath as I waited for her answer.
She laughed and nodded. "Give me ten minutes to change and I will meet you in the bar," she answered. Then she looked at me from the side of her eyes as she gazed at the painting. "I would certainly love to know who you bribed to find my studio. I heard you were ruthless, I didn't know you were also devious." With a flip of her sun kissed hair she turned and opened the door, gesturing. "See you in ten." I heard a slight twang in her voice, one that hadn't been there before. I was looking forward to our talk more than ever now.
Marianne
I loved our little bar. I had helped design it and it reeked of old San Francisco without being over the top. It was exactly what it was meant to be, a local watering hole for guests and nearby residents to mingle and chat. No video screens, no loud music, and certainly no abundance of ferns and brass. It was finished in reclaimed old oak, much of it from a few of the older "painted ladies" of the district that had not survived the constant earthquakes well.
Those old houses tend to rise above everything but time and fault lines can leave their mark. I had found some local artisans to make the furniture and the bar, and some wonderful local landscape painters to add to the atmosphere and yet keep it authentic. I was justly proud of the place and felt very much at home meeting him here.
Discovering that Yu-Tang was my tiger man shifted this whole conversation in a new direction. It shouldn't have. What needed to happen with the business partnership was the same as ever. But something had passed between us at that airport, something that reminded me of old fairy tales of lost souls and a thing a friend of mine called "recognition." She wrote fantasy books and used it to explain the uncanny connection the couples had in her books. It fit here.
Wendy and I went to college together and often used to talk about what it would be like to actually experience this 'recognition of mates". Of course, it was just fantasy and young girls dreaming back then. Remember that, I chided myself as I walked into the bar. This is no fairy tale, this is real life. In fact, it is my life and I wanted this meeting to go well and without the complications that Mexican airport shift might bring.
He was waiting at the bar, and as he turned I could feel that tug of attraction once again. It was both exciting and irritating at the same time. I knew that if I didn't do something about it, and soon, the attraction would leave me open to manipulation. Everyone knew Yu-Tang was a man who always got what he went after. He was ruthless in business and I had heard a few rumors about his bedside manners being much along the same lines.
Of course, those were from women who had tried unsuccessfully to snare him, so you have to remember your sources. I had done my homework when he made the offer. I like to know who I am dealing with, and in his case it was a cold calculating businessman. It just happened it was a businessman who had once been a world famous martial artist and actor, and one whose body was the kind women worship at like it was an altar. I just wished I hadn't envisioned him naked back in Mexico at that airport. It was going to him the upper hand in the negotiations since my game could be off with that kind of distraction. Hmmm, but it is a kind of nice distraction, very nice.
I put that thought out of my mind and walked through the bar to sit beside him. He had already ordered a whisky straight and the bartender knew what I like to drink. It is a nice side affect to owning the bar and living upstairs. As he took our drinks and headed for a quiet table, I noticed again his prowling movement. He did indeed walk like a tiger on the hunt, even here in a bar in San Francisco. My thoughts strayed, wondering if our tiger bit. Stop it! I admonished myself with a bit of a giggle. I was surprised, I don't usually giggle around men. But then, Yu-Tang was not just any man.
Yu-Tang
She walked into the bar and I immediately felt that tug from before. It shook me so much that I had to cover my feelings by making a point of ordering my drink and carrying both of them to a table to talk. But even as simple a thing as walking was out of my control around the woman. The smell of her intoxicated me and I walked like a cat in heat, barely able to stop myself from licking her. What was wrong with me?
When we sat down across from each other she giggled and I felt a shockwave go through me. I don't like women who giggle; it is a sign of immaturity in them I have always said. But somehow coming from Marianne it wasn't a little girl giggle, it was the sound of a woman aroused. I knew I had to be wrong about that. After all, we were here to talk about business, important business. I needed to get myself under control. This was an important set of decisions we were considering tonight and I wasn't about to let a woman run the game.
She started talking about her recent shows, and what she wanted to accomplish over the next few years at the various galleries. I could see very quickly that she knew exactly what she wanted and how to get it. Like me, she was someone who much preferred to be the master of her own fate. Of course, the difference is she grew up with all the advantages you could name, while I had to fight for mine tooth and nail. I listened, watching for any signs of weakness, a chink in her golden armor I could exploit. It was a game I knew all too well and I usually won.
The bar was busy and every once in a while someone would stop by the table to greet her. This was her bar, her town, but it was somewhat annoying to have these constant interruptions. She always seemed happy to see whoever it was while at the same time managing to keep the interruptions short without being rude. It was a skill I could appreciate, this ability to make people feel welcome and yet manipulate them into moving on as quickly as possible as if it was their own idea. I could see the value of a skill like that, and my estimation of her went up as I watched her interact with a wide variety of people from fellow artists to fans and even local politicians.
Most beautiful women I have known are well versed in maneuvering men, but tend to alienate the women around them. But with Marianne there were as many women coming by with genuine affection in their greetings as there were men. True, I could tell when the men came by hoping for a bit more than just a smile, I even saw one man try to cop a feel on that gorgeous ass. I had to bite my lip to keep from rising up like a tiger defending his territory, or maybe actually more like a gorilla. But I need not have been concerned, for she knew just what to do.
Sh
e turned it into a joke, one that he took with good grace. Our conversation lasted far longer than I had anticipated and before I knew it several hours had flown by while we explored art, culture, Texas and the art scene in Hong Kong. I began to see the start of an amazing partnership. I thought I could handle the tug at my loins, the pull of my heart. I didn't realize just how wrong I could be.
Marianne
He sat across from me as we talked, as impossible to read as a block of stone. My whole body was tingling now, feeling an anticipation I knew was a fairy tale. How on earth could I feel this magnetic draw to him when he barely acknowledged my femininity? I had heard the stories of his famous calculating ways. I was told tales of how he took his training and acting skills to the boardroom and maneuvered everyone around him into going down his path. I would not be another of those, I swore.
I learned to read people from the master of it, my brother Buck. But Yu-Tang was a mystery to me, and one I wanted desperately to unravel. Hmmm, unravel as in taking each item of clothing off, one by one and slowly revealing that amazing body beneath the impeccable suit. It was hard to concentrate on the business at hand when my mind kept straying to these kinds of thoughts.
Another little event that kept us from truly exploring our thighs…um I mean plans…was the visits I was getting as we sat and talked. I have been a regular visitor to this part of San Fran for years, ever since I went to Berkeley to start my Fine Arts degree. The one I never finished because I had already launched my first international show before we got to that little piece of paper. But I had kept my connections and one of them was walking towards me right now. Unlike the others who found an excuse to come by and check out this gorgeous hunk of man sitting across from me Priscilla was a welcome distraction.
We had shared rooms, ideas and more than a few men in our days at Berkeley. She was now the youngest partner ever at her law firm that specialized in business law, and my personal attorney for every deal I made. I had wanted her at the meeting we had planned, and was glad to see she had tracked me down from my text earlier.
"Hey woman," she called as she crossed the room. I knew every man's eyes were on her, Priscilla is all long brown legs and an Afro straight outta the sixties. It is her one touch of rebellion in a world that allows few. "I hear you had a very brief Mexican holiday on your way here." She smiled at me, then turned and looked at Yu-Tang. Her eyebrow lifted in question as she gave me a sideways glance. We are gonna have to talk later about this one, is what it said.
"You must be Marianne's Hong Kong investor. I'm Priscilla Brown, her lawyer. It's great to meet you." She turned back to me, and smiled a cat eating shit grin. We were definitely going to have to get together and compare notes later. "I can open up some time to talk about this with both of you in about three days, once this merger deal is done. Does that work for you?" She included Yu-Tang in the question and he nodded along with me.
Then she left but not without an admonishment to me to call her. I got the message. This left me three whole days with Yu-Tang, days of trying to get to the bottom of not only who he was, but what he was to me. I decided to make the best of it starting right now. After all, life is full of risks and I like to take mine on my own terms.
As we got up to leave I let my arm slide ever so softly along his back. He shivered, so imperceptibly that I almost thought I imagined it. If I hadn't been watching for it, I might have even missed it. But even with his iron control, I now knew that the connection was not all on my side. Being the gentleman he is, he accompanied me on the elevator to my private suite. Just before the doors opened I leaned into him and kissed him. I had meant it to be a light kiss, one that asks a simple question. I got my answer.
To my surprise it quickly turned into so much more. He answered my exploratory kiss with a ferocity that excited me. His hands came up to the back of my neck, caressing me and pulling ever so slightly on my hair to tilt my head back. His tongue probed deeply, tasting sweetly of the whisky he had just drunk and I felt that kiss all the way to my toes. When the door opened I stepped back, somewhat shakily, into my suite and said goodnight. I saw the fierce longing in his eyes as the doors closed again. What had I started? Could I tame this tiger? Did I even want to?
Yu-Tang
She took me by surprise with that kiss in the elevator. I had been thinking I was safely away from this temptation when suddenly her lips were on mine, soft and oh so very alluring. My body reacted with a mind of its own, taking her up in my arms, my hands lost in her hair as my tongue swept through her open mouth. The heat between us was immediate and irrefutable. Before I knew it the doors opened, she stepped back into her suite and our moment was gone. As the door closed I looked deep into those stunning dark green eyes, the eyes of the forest, the jungle. I knew I would be back for more as the doors closed.
I walked back to my room, caught up in a tangle of emotions. How could this woman so bewitch me? It was more than simply her beauty, though she had enough of that to drown any man. But beyond it was something I couldn't put my finger on, not yet. She had a presence that drew me like a moth to a flame. As the fog rolled in I looked out at the darkened streets lost in my thoughts.
The next day was a busy one, catching up on the details of my far flung empire. The one day I had lost to Mexico and my time with Marianne had thrown my staff for a loop. They are a well-oiled machine, used to my long work hours and constant need for perfection. I may be a patient man, but it is only because in the end I know I will have the prize. But I couldn't get that kiss out of my mind.
I knew that Marianne was much more than just a prize to be won. I don't do dalliances; I have no use for them. For one thing, they distract a person from the real goals in life. I needed to know if this was real, and there was really only one way to find out. A seduction was in order and I decided to approach it like everything else in my life, with control, patience and precision.
The city had planned a special event for the following night that both Marianne and I had been asked to attend. Some sort of cultural hands across the Pacific kind of thing, but it would be a good opportunity to test the waters with her now. I kept busy, not difficult as my work is very demanding, and before I knew it I was pulling on my tux and letting my driver know I was ready to go.
When I arrived, the pre-dinner cocktails were in full swing. I worked my way through the crowd, drink in hand and stopping to talk to a few developers I had dealt with over the years. The event was packed with business acquaintances, not surprising considering the theme. I saw her from across the way, shining like a beacon amongst a collection of over-priced and drab outfits.
She wore a simple satin sheath, picked out with black pearls that matched the strands she had knotted in her hair and strung around her neck. It was artful without being showy, just her style. As I walked up to her, she turned. Those jungle green eyes were sparkling and a smile touched her lips when she saw me. I felt the same recognition between us I had known in Mexico, only this time there was an added heat. I could taste those lips in memory and I knew she could too.
She introduced me to the knot of artists she was talking with, many of them painters whose work adorned my office walls. We chatted for a few minutes and then I leaned down, inhaling the perfume of her being as I whispered to her, "I need to talk to you, alone." I wasn't sure what I would say, but I knew it could not be with these witnesses.
She nodded and we threaded our way through the crowd to a garden that backed onto the Flood Mansion where the event was taking place. No sooner had we stepped a few feet from the event then I found myself taking her in my arms and covering her with kisses. She tugged at my tux, pulling me into the shadow of a tree and returned my passion, twisting her fingers in my hair as I reached down to taste her neck and follow that down to her breasts.
Her dress barely covered them and it took only seconds to push down the thin satin fabric and uncover her nipples, dark with passion. I sucked at them, tasting the sweetness of her body, pulling her closer to me by c
upping her ass in my hands. Soon I was pushing the hem of her dress up as she reached down to unzip me. As I followed the sweet curve of her ass I found only more of her hot skin and was soon thrusting my fingers deep within her as my mouth covered first one nipple and then the other with my tongue.
"You were ready for me," I whispered accusingly with a smile looking up from her now fully engorged nipples. She nodded and reached inside to grasp what her unzipping had released. I had hardened under her expert touch and now that she had released me from the confines of my trousers I could not wait another moment. Lifting her ass and pushing her back against the trunk of the tree, I entered her with all the ferocity we were sharing. Voices tinkled behind us as the party continued only ten feet from our little tryst. But if anything, it made our lovemaking only sweeter.
Our thrusts shook the tree but we were silent; paused for a few brief moments as a couple walked by us on the other side of the tree. We grinned at each other and took up where we had left off as soon as they had continued down the pathway to the end of the garden. I could feel her silent trembling echo through my entire body as we climaxed in union.
With a shudder and a sigh we released our grip on each other, standing for a moment to catch our breath before we arranged clothing and walked back into the room. I watched her as she walked away, wondering what had taken hold of me. Then I turned, accepted a glass of champagne and held it aloft as I heard my name uttered in a toast. Timing, it appears is everything and ours was impeccable.
Marianne
I walked through the crowd, my heart beating so fast I was sure everyone could see. In the ladies room I walked into a cubicle, standing in the tiny sanctuary as I allowed the flush in my face to die down, my breath to lengthen and my pulse to stop racing. I have had sexual escapades before but nothing like this. I didn't even know how to think or feel about it. It was totally unexpected and made my brash kiss on the elevator feel like a walk in the park.
VAMPIRE:Vampire Guardian Series: Paranormal Mystery Vampire Alpha Male Romance (New Adult Contemporary Paranormal Royalty Fantasy Romance Collection)) Page 27