Uncorked

by Rebecca Rohman

  Chella let Greta know she wanted to surprise Mitch with lunch. Chella knocked on his office door, which was slightly ajar, and heard him on the phone. In true Mitch fashion, his chair was turned away from the door, toward the beautiful harbor view outside. He motioned with his hand to come in.

  She entered the office and locked the door behind her.

  His office was huge, decorated in the same color scheme as the outside. She sat on a couch in the lounge area and waited to see how long it would take him to realize she was there. Looking around, she understood why his staff recognized her. On the bookshelves were framed pictures of Emily, Liz and her. She caught a glimpse of another one of her on his desk and another with him and Chella together.

  She suddenly got the urge to come on her boyfriend. He sounded so in control as he spoke over the phone. A total turn on.

  “You and I both know,” he continued, his voice deep and commanding, “that property is worth at least half a million more than what you’re trying to settle for. The only reason I’m even entertaining this conversation when I have another offer on the table is because we’re friends. Tell your client he has until nine a.m. tomorrow to accept those terms. Otherwise, no deal.”

  She walked over to him and spun his chair around.

  His brows rose. A huge smile transformed his face. Holding out his hand, he pulled her toward him, and she sat on his lap.

  Mitch listened for a few more moments, trying to focus on the call instead of Chella planting kisses on his neck or Chella loosening his tie or Chella massaging his now-stiff shaft. He cleared his throat, struggling to find his business voice.

  “I understand everything you’re telling me Larry, but with all due respect, that’s not my problem,” he replied coolly, twiddling a lock of Chella’s hair around his thumb. “I’ve tried to be accommodating to both you and your client. Those are my terms. I have other options.”

  Fuck, Chella you smell good!

  His free hand roamed over her ass as he continued, “Look, I can’t talk about this anymore. Someone very important just walked into my office. Those are my terms, and if you can’t meet them, we don’t have a deal. You have until nine o’clock tomorrow morning. Got to go.”

  With that, he hung up the call then quickly made another. “Greta, please hold all my calls. Thanks.”

  Mitch disconnected the line, but the phone never made it to its cradle. He pulled Chella into a deep kiss, devouring her as he eagerly slid her dress over her head. She sat on his desk wearing stiletto heels, black lingerie and pantyhose.

  He stood between her thighs.

  “Well, this is a pleasant surprise,” he said, as she released his pants button and zipper and they fell to the floor. He kicked them away as she assisted him in getting rid of his jacket, shirt and cufflinks.

  “I’m glad you’re happy to see me. I’ve missed you.”

  “I’ve missed you too, Baby. God, you’re beautiful.”

  He kissed her again, pushing her panties aside as he glided his fingers across her clit. Her panties were quickly soaked, and he wanted her.

  Pushing away his underwear, he used the tip of his enlarged penis to massage her swollen clit. They both watched as he entered her repeatedly. Gliding in and out of her, he pulled her into his arms, consuming her mouth, then he plastered her body against the wall. He slipped her leg over his hip enabling him to reach deeper inside her as he pleasured her vertically.

  Moments later, they made it across to the couch. She straddled him, riding him and watching every time he penetrated her. Her moaning got louder.

  Mitch whispered, “Shhh.”

  She giggled when she remembered that they were in his office.

  “Oh God, Chella. I’m going to explode,” He said, occupying her mouth with his once more as he tried to remain silent himself. He held her close as she pounded her hips into him, the pressure started to escalate, and when he used his fingers over her, rubbing her clit, it set her off into convulsions of pure delight. Moments later, he circled his arms tightly around her, joining her in her sweet release. “God, you’re amazing,” Mitch said. “I’m so surprised to see you here.”

  “I just missed you. I’m sorry. When I came here it wasn’t my intention to distract you from your work.”

  “You are exactly the type of distraction I needed. What do you have in the basket?”

  “I was going to invite you to go to a picnic.”

  “I can wrap up here in ten minutes. Then we can do whatever you want, but I have to be back here by six for a meeting.”

  “Are you sure you can leave? From the sound of that conversation you had earlier you might need to stay here to wrap up that deal.”

  “Trust me, I could use the break, and if they’re serious, they’ll know exactly what to do to close this deal. I’ve made my position clear,” he replied, as he kissed her again.

  “We can have that picnic right here in your office. That way, I’m not likely to cause you to be late for your meeting.”

  “Fine by me if you don’t mind.”

  “Perfect. I just need to tidy up and get my clothes on first.”

  “You mean I don’t get to see you parading around my office in black lingerie and stilettos all afternoon?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Anytime I need to go to a happy place, I can picture having you on my desk, against the wall, on my sofa.”

  Giggling, she whispered in his ear, “Pervert.”

  She pulled her things together and said, “Please tell me one of those doors leads to a bathroom.”

  “Sorry, Sweetheart, you’ll have to go down the hall,” he replied, laughing.

  “Are you serious?”

  “No, I’m kidding. The door to the right will take you to the bathroom.”

  After tidying up, Chella opened the picnic basket and fixed Mitch a plate.

  “It was really great having you. Pun intended,” Mitch said flashing her a sly smile.

  “I wanted to treat you.”

  “Why? There’s no occasion to celebrate.”

  “There is. Here, this is for you.” Chella handed him the beautifully wrapped box.

  “What is it?”

  “Open it and find out. It’s my way of saying I appreciate you being so great for the last few months. I know I’ve been spending crazy hours at work.”

  He smiled as he looked in the box. “Chell, this is beautiful. I love it, thank you.”

  He walked around his desk and pulled her into a warm embrace.

  “I’m glad you like it. I had a hard time choosing something for you.”

  “You didn’t have to do this, but thank you. You have exceptional taste. How did you know my middle name?”

  “Don’t you think that’s something your girlfriend should know?”

  “Sure, but I don’t remember telling you.”

  “I went snooping through your stuff.”

  He laughed at her response. “I guess that would do it.”

  “I’m kidding. Emily told me the first time we visited her.”

  “What else did she tell you?”

  “Everything. Maybe you should call her and ask. How is she doing anyway?”

  “She’s okay. She asks about you every time I talk to her. She wants to know when she can see us again.”

  “I’m not as busy now as I was a while back. What do you think?”

  “Weekend after next is a long one. Maybe we could go up on Friday evening and come back Monday morning. We can take the boat.”

  “Sounds like a plan. I’ll have enough time to organize anything else that I have pending at work.”

  “Great. I look forward to that,” Mitch replied.

  After spending the afternoon together in his office, Chella called a cab and pulled her things together to leave. She was about to walk out of his office door when Mitch came over to her and embraced her once more. His hands roamed over her ass.

  “Are you trying to steam up the windows again?” Chella ask
ed.

  Laughing, Mitch replied, “No. I just don’t want my staff to know what was going on in here.”

  “And how would they know that?”

  “My return address labels are plastered on your ass,” He pulled the sticky label off her dress and waved it in front of her face. “We don’t want the staff knowing that I had you on my desk now, do we?”

  She giggled, pulled the label from his hand and slipped it into her purse. “No we don’t. I’ll see you at home later,” she replied, then kissed him lovingly on his lips.

  Chella was due to meet Mitch at the marina in an hour. She was just about to call a cab to go pick up her stuff at the penthouse and head there when her phone rang. As she listened to the voice of Craig on the other end of the line, disappointment rained over her. Something urgent came up at the office, and they would have to work through the weekend to sort it out.

  She tried calling Mitch at home and on his cell to no avail. He had already left his office, so he was obviously already at the marina. She thought of going over to the marina to inform him, but a bad accident had caused a backlog of traffic. Realizing there was no way that she would get to him on time; she forgot about it and went to meet with Craig and the rest of the team. By then it was way past five and Jade had already left for the day. Chella needed to get in touch with Mitch, but the other staff members were waiting for her for this urgent meeting.

  Mitch had not tried getting in touch with her, either, and she thought that was strange. She sat in the meeting, but her mind was on Mitch and their trip. The meeting was interrupted by a knock on the door. A police officer entered the room.

  Chella knew something was terribly wrong. Her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach.

  The officer asked for Chella Noon.

  She identified herself, and he requested to speak with her privately.

  “Ms. Noon, I’m Officer Kevin White. Do you know or are you related to Mitch Mariani?”

  “Yes. He’s my boyfriend. What’s wrong?”

  He read from a slip of paper in his hand. “He has you listed as his next of kin. The other person, Ms. Elizabeth Mariani, is located in Santa Monica?”

  “Yes. She’s his mom.”

  “Mr. Mariani has been involved in a car accident. He’s at Sharp Memorial.”

  Chella almost fainted, losing her balance at the sound of the officer’s words. For a few seconds, he steadied her, bracing her by her shoulders. When she regained her composure, she asked, “Oh God. Is he going to be okay?”

  “I’m sorry, but I don’t have that information, Ma’am.”

  “Oh my goodness, I have to get over there now.”

  “If you like, I’ll be happy to take you.”

  “Thanks. Just give me a sec.”

  Without hesitation, she excused herself, whispered to Craig what was wrong and headed to the hospital with the officer. She fidgeted nervously, biting her thumb nail as they drove.

  “Were you able to reach his mother?”

  “I’ve tried her, a number of times but haven’t been able to reach her.”

  Moments later, the officer pulled up in front of the hospital. After quickly thanking him, she ran through the emergency department, looking for information.

  She was told he’d have to speak with Dr. Forrester. Within minutes, a tall fifty-something, silver-haired man appeared.

  “How is he, Doctor? Is he going to be okay?” Chella asked hysterically.

  “It’s hard to say right now. Mitch suffered a severe blow to the head, and he still hasn’t regained consciousness. We’re doing some tests now to make sure there isn’t swelling or bleeding on his brain. The next few hours are critical. If he doesn’t show signs of regaining consciousness soon, it could be an indication of more serious problems.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Let’s not speculate, yet, but this is very serious.”

  “No,” Chella cried. “There must be something that can be done.”

  “I’ve given him some medication to treat his symptoms that I’m hoping his body responds to. We’ll know if it helps within the next few hours.”

  “Can I see him?”

  “Sure.”

  She cried as she saw Mitch’s lifeless body on the bed. Memories of the accident with her parents flashed in her mind. They hadn’t been lucky enough to make it to the hospital. They were pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. One moment they were driving down West Point Loma Boulevard talking about the therapy session she just had, and the next second a dump truck crushed their vehicle because the driver ran a red light. Chella remembered the way her mom’s body was curled around the airbag in the front seat. She knew her mother was dead. By the time the fire department cut Chella out of the car, they would not allow her to see her dad. The blood dripping from his side of the car told her why. She never got to see her dad’s face. His body had been so badly injured, he had been cremated. She prayed to God that Mitch’s outcome would not be the same.

  She wasn’t sure she wanted to call Liz, but deep down she knew it was the right thing to do. She’d need to let Charlotte know, as well. She and Emily were expecting him the following morning.

  At the sound of Liz’s voice at the other end of the line, Chella tried with all her might to pull herself together. She clenched the cell phone. For a few seconds, she was unable to say a word.

  “Hi Liz, its Chella.”

  “To what do I owe this displeasure?”

  “Liz, for five minutes can we put aside our differences? This is about Mitch.”

  “What is it?”

  “He was in a car accident this afternoon.”

  “Is he going to be okay?”

  “I hope so. They’re running tests right now.”

  “I’ll be on the next flight out.”

  “I’ll see you then.”

  After calling Charlotte, Chella sat beside Mitch and held his hand while she prayed aloud. She wasn’t ready to lose Mitch, not now.

  “Mitch, you have to be strong. You have to make it through this. You have to fight, for your Mom and for Emily and for me. Mitch, please don’t go. I love you so much. I don’t know what I’d do without you. I just found you, and I’m not about to lose you now. God, please, I beg you to see him through this.”

  Chella fell asleep holding Mitch’s hand.

  She awoke to a door shutting. Dr. Forrester was in the room as well as Liz. Chella was unsure of how to respond to her presence.

  “Hello, Liz,” Chella said politely.

  “Doctor, I’m Liz Mariani, Mitch’s mom. Is my son going to be okay?”

  “He seems to be responding to the medication. His vitals have improved, and his heart rate has stabilized. I think it’s just a matter of time before he becomes conscious.”

  “Thank God,” Chella responded with relief.

  “Chella, you know you really shouldn’t be here. At a time like this, Mitch needs to be surrounded by his family.”

  “He wants me here,” Chella replied quietly.

  “Doctor, I’d like you to insist she leave.”

  “Your son has Chella Noon listed as his next of kin. She has as much right to be here as you do.”

  “Liz, please.”

  “I don’t want to be in the same room as you.”

  “You two had better come to some sort of compromise. Otherwise, I’ll have security throw both of you out.”

  “Liz, why don’t we take turns with him every half hour?”

  “Ms. Mariani, I think that’s a fair compromise,” Dr. Forrester said, glaring at Liz over the rims of his glasses.

  “Fine,” Liz replied, pouting like a five-year-old child.

  “It’s nine o’clock. I’ll leave so you can be with him. Can I get you anything to drink or eat?” Chella asked her.

  “No,” she replied coldly.

  Chella looked at Dr. Forrester, smiled then left the room. A few moments later, he followed her.

  “Ms. Noon, is there anyone we can call t
o stay with you? You shouldn’t be alone right now.”

  “I’ll be fine, thank you.”

  “If you like, you can speak to one of our counselors.”

  “I appreciate it Dr. Forrester, but I’ll be all right.”

  He smiled at her then left. She sat on a bench outside Mitch’s room. The flashing light on her phone grabbed her attention. She had many missed calls, several of them from Detective Carter. She wasn’t sure why he was calling. Aaron had been arrested. She was about to call him but her phone rang. Detective Carter’s name appeared on the screen.

  “Hi, Detective. I’m sorry I didn’t pick up any of your calls. Mitch was involved in a car accident this afternoon.”

  “I know. That’s why I’m calling. Ms. Noon, I need you to be careful. This accident was no accident. The lug nuts on his car were loosened.”

  “Oh my God. Who would do that?”

  “We still haven’t found Mr. Stewart’s accomplice.”

  “Why would this person continue to do this? Aaron has been arrested.”

  “It’s possible he might have paid them, or this person might have a vested interest in Mr. Stewart’s cause.”

  “So now someone’s on the loose, just as dangerous as Aaron, but we have no clue who it is?”

  “I’m afraid so, Ms. Noon.”

  “Can we make arrangements to have Mitch’s room on guard at the hospital? I’ll pay for it if I have to.”

  “Sure. I can arrange for that.”

  “Mitch’s mother is here and Mitch doesn’t want her to know what’s going on. Under no circumstances can she know why the room is under guard.

  “I’ll ask them to be discrete. I know this may be of less importance now, but your parent’s case has been reopened.”

  “I really appreciate that, Detective. I’ll see you when you get here.”

  As she ended the call, she looked up and saw Craig standing over her.

  “Hey,” she said, smiling at him. She stood.

  Craig pulled her into his arms. “How’s Mitch?”

  “He’s still unconscious, but the doctors say he’s responding well to the medication, and it’s just a matter of time before he wakes up.”