Tears began to well up inside her. Their lives together, little Suzy and Nadia, from grade school on, had been so intertwined, so close, so intense, so unshakeable; but then it had all disappeared like a dream in a matter of days. Could all of that really be coming back again?
"I can't believe it." She said quietly. "I need to see her."
"You need to trust me Suzy. I've already let you see her. I have demonstrated to you that she is in safe hands and I have told you her real name which nobody but you and her mother could possibly have known. Now will you please promise to trust me? At least just for tonight?"
"I want to trust you Mr. Mayweather, but you're not giving me much. I don't know what's really going on here. You say you don't want me scared but all of this is making me very, very nervous."
"That's okay. Nerves are not all bad. As long as you can trust." He watched closely, reading her, gauging every word upon what her body and her reactions were telling him.
"Believe me Suzy, Nadia is dying to see you again but she's been through a lot in these last two days and she needs time to rest before rebuilding her life again. You'll see her again but I just can't say exactly when."
"Where is she now?"
"It's better I don't tell you that, but what I can tell you is that she's with Clay, Clayton Hargrave, so no harm can come to her. None at all. Physically she's just fine but emotionally, she needs time to heal."
Suzy's heart pounded with happiness for her friend, with gratitude to Clayton Hargrave and to Ruben Mayweather; but still she feared what would happen to her tonight.
"We're here." He said as they came off of FDR Drive and pulled into the East 34th Street Heliport.
"What are we doing here? I thought you had an apartment in Manhattan?"
"I do. But that's not where we're going. Come on. The chopper is waiting for us."
First the Zenzo ST1 and now a helicopter ride. Another first for the increasingly dazzled Suzy Falstaff tonight.
"Are you showing off for me Mr. Mayweather?" She said as he took her hand to take her out of the super car.
"I don't know Ms. Falstaff? Are you feeling impressed by something?"
She had to admit that if it was his plan then it was kind of working. If she was being seduced into captivity then at least it would be a very, very gilded cage indeed.
Ruben got busy suiting himself up for the chopper ride while an attendant guided Suzy into the passenger seat. Ruben climbed in beside her.
"Where’s the pilot?" She said.
He tapped his chest and watched her face.
"Trust." He said. "I've flown this chopper hundreds of times more than I've driven that car. Now sit back and relax. Have you ever seen Manhattan by night from the air?"
"Only by passenger jet."
"Beautiful. Truly. But the effect from a low flying helicopter is quite different. I think you'll enjoy it. Here, take these." He handed her a pair of glasses and she pushed them on.
"Blink twice." he said. She followed his instructions and a screen came to life in front of her eyes.
"Just look to the video icon when you want to film something, blink once and it will record everything you look at.
She found the video, blinked and saw the screen mimic in miniature what she was looking at around her. Ruben started the engines and initiated take off protocols. Suzy's heart raced. One way or another this was going to be a night to remember.
Eventually the chopper lifted away and Suzy didn't know what to be more amazed by; the fabulous view of the towers of Manhattan or the incredible confidence and mastery of the man flying the craft beside her.
He looked at her with a knowing half smile and then took the chopper off to begin his flight around the island. The instantly recognizable UN building looked dangerously close as they flew by and Ruben brought them down low over the East River. Suzy was speechless as uptown came into view and they passed over bridges connecting Manhattan island to Queens and the Bronx. As fascinating as the view was, she couldn’t help herself but look continually, every other second, to Ruben Mayweather. His hands firmly guiding the aircraft controls, his gaze locked onto his flight path, his lips beautiful with a light smile never leaving them for a moment.
He was obviously enjoying himself thoroughly.
The chopper swung around the northern tip of the island and began to circle back down over the Hudson river. She slowly realized that the whole trip was an extravagant little flourish just for her.
Why the hell is he even blackmailing me? She thought. I'd do this out of free will anytime.
Maybe spending the night with him wouldn't be so hard after all. If she just let go, like Candy had said, this could be the night of her life.
She saw the Empire State building, still distant but rapidly coming into view. One World Trade Center looked magnificent, inspiring. The chopper continued on down the island, circled the southern tip to deliver a stunning view of downtown and lady liberty before heading on out over Queens.
Suzy was trembling as they swept further and further away from the city and out over Long Island.
"I have a home in the Hamptons." Ruben said over the noise of the chopper blades. "That's where we'll be spending the evening."
Suzy nodded in response and then continued to watch him as he focused on piloting the chopper again.
Had this man really rescued her friend from the Russian mob? Had he solved her problems with the government and was he really now piloting her to his home in the Hamptons in his personal helicopter?
She shook her head to make sure it was all real.
If only she could have talked to Nadia. She needed to share this with someone but there was no-one.
Except him of course.
She looked at him again and he looked back with his ridiculously sexy and reassuring smile. She darted her eyes away involuntarily. Holding his gaze was hard work, like looking at the sun, but her eyes kept drifting back to him, no matter how hard she tried to focus on the journey ahead.
She hadn't behaved like this with a guys since she was fourteen years old.
"I think I told you about that already Ms. Falstaff." Ruben said, referring to her continual coy glances that were making his rod stiffen painfully in his tight flight gear.
"You're not being very obedient, so I will have to think of ways to make you pay for that."
The words sliced through the noise of the chopper even though he gave the impression of speaking quietly. It was all totally new to her to have a man speak to her like that and the effect was electrifying. It was as exciting and scary as the first time she had ever been with someone, even more so because this man was nothing like the boy she had given herself to in college.
Am I going to give myself to him too? She caught herself thinking. He had never said anything about sex or sleeping together. Only spending the night and then one single kiss, but here he had her already imagining 'giving' herself to him, whatever that would mean. Maybe this was just how he worked. Maybe it was all subtle manipulation to get her to think she was obliged to sleep with him when in fact he had never asked for that at all.
The chopper landed, the house and property lighting up as it did so, all obviously wired to respond to the owner's arrival.
The blades came to a slow halt while Ruben unhooked himself, removed his helmet and then helped Suzy with her headset. His hands were so careful with her that it made her feel more delicate than she was.
He set the headset to one side and then reached over to her abdomen to pop the seatbelt. The slight pressure of his fingers to her stomach was enough to make her feel she wanted more; that his sure hand would continue going lower down.
She threw the belt to one side and began scrambling out of the chopper.
"Wait." He said firmly. "I don’t want any injuries." He jumped to the ground on his own side and hurried around to hers, putting his hand up to steady her descent
"Don't forget for one second that you are now mine until tomorrow morning Ms. Falstaff.
I don't want to spend our evening together nursing you for a sprained ankle."
She took his hand and began to stand up but he quickly put his hands to her waist, lifting her up so that her hips were directly in front of his face. She instinctively put her hands to his shoulders to steady herself as he slowly floated her down to the ground in front of him. He towered over her and she raised her eyes to his.
God, he was just amazing. She hoped the look would torture him. She might have nothing else to fight him with but she would use anything and everything she had.
"You're a naughty girl Ms. Falstaff, but don't worry, I will take full responsibility for teaching you how to behave. One night is more than enough."
Her breath went short. Somehow he seemed to say the right damn thing every time.
What this night would entail she couldn't imagine. She had only ever been with geeky guys, the nerds who Nadia and her had been surrounded by at school where girls had been a rarity in class. Ruben might have the intelligence and some of the tastes of an engineer but everything else about him was completely different.
"Come on." He took her hand again. "Let's eat."
She tagged along behind him in rag doll fashion again with the impression of being towed along helplessly in the wake of raw, unstoppable male energy. She had read about successful men and how they tend to have extraordinary sex drives. The long hours of work and driven personalities making less time for sex on a daily basis but the experience more extreme and intense when they have the opportunity to indulge.
And then there was everything Candy had hinted to her about her bosses proclivities.
They reached the house where a meal had been laid out for them on platters with domed lids.
"Would you like to shower or eat first?" Ruben said.
I'd like to fuck first. Suzy put her hand to her mouth. The thought had raced through her mind without any possibility of being repressed.
"Eat." She said hurriedly. "Let's eat."
"Good. I asked the chef to provide a wide variety so there should be something here you'll like. One condition though."
"What's that?" She said sitting down at the long table.
"I get to feed you."
Suzy froze. "Are you serious?" She said stiffly.
He began lifting lids from the platters, revealing the most delicious array of cooked and fresh foods imaginable. It looked like a five star buffet and Suzy realized just how hungry she was now.
"I'm very serious." He said. "Do you have a problem with that?"
She did.
The problem being mostly that the thought had sent her into a renewed state of arousal. Resentful arousal. Being turned on was great, but not having control over it was confusing, worrying and consequently, even more arousing.
"Is this something I have to do?"
"You don't have to do anything." He said, slipping the cover off a pair of elegantly painted chopsticks. "Do you like Sushi?"
She loved it, but as she looked around at the various dishes on display, all of them wonderful, the thought of being watched so closely while she became moist again down below was too much.
"I'd rather just help myself if that's okay."
"No. It's not okay. You're not exactly being obedient now, are you?"
Quicksand. That's what Candy had said. Don’t struggle or things will only get more complicated.
"Okay." She said, straightening herself up. "Go ahead. I'd like to be fed by you Mr. Mayweather. In fact, I think you owe it to me."
"Is that so?" He looked interested now.
"Yes. Thank you for bringing me all the way out here. You told me I could leave whenever I wanted."
"You can."
"And go where? We're in the middle of nowhere."
"I'll take you anywhere you want to go."
"Exactly. You've made my ability to leave here dependent upon you. So in return…" she faltered slightly as she heard her own voice making the bizarre demand, "I think you need to feed me. I like seafood. But not Sushi. Feed me some of that.. whatever that is over there.
"Sturgeon caviar."
"Good, whatever. I'm hungry and I like seafood, so bring it on."
Ruben raised an eyebrow.
"Not bad Ms. Falstaff." He said. "A good attempt."
Attempt? At what? She thought.
Ignoring her request for caviar he picked up a tiny shrimp between the long chopsticks and held it close to her lips. She opened them in readiness.
"Now hold still. These shrimp have been lightly sautéed in butter with a squeeze of lemon, so if any of the sauce spills then we'll have to take care of that and I don’t want to waste any time."
Ruben watched and then swallowed hard.
"You have a very, very beautiful mouth Ms. Falstaff. Did anyone ever tell you that?"
"I'm hungry." She said hoarsely. He brought the shrimp closer and then dropped it into her mouth. The citrus flavor together with the fresh shrimp and butter was simple but wonderful. She began to chew slowly while Ruben observed. He readied another shrimp and watched transfixed as she swallowed.
"I should mention that you have a very beautiful neck as well Ms. Falstaff."
She was beginning to feel uncomfortably warm. The ritual of being fed like a hungry cat and then watched was another first for her and although she could never, ever have predicted it, the game was turning her on wildly. The second shrimp dropped between her slightly parted lips and it was utterly, thrillingly sexual. The warmth of desire began to spread out between her thighs.
And this was just the beginning... she would be there until 6am the following morning…
She shifted uncomfortably on her seat and allowed her host to continue but after just a couple more shrimp and a morsel of avocado she couldn't take it anymore.
"Okay. I need to shower now."
She so badly needed to shower.
"You've barely eaten a thing Ms. Falstaff. No human being can subsist on what you've consumed in the last twelve hours." He said disapprovingly.
"I haven't seen you eat anything either. Except for one lick of my smoothie."
Jesus, how she remembered that alright.
"I prefer to keep an edge on my appetite sometimes. A little hunger adds bite to a new experience."
Bite. New experience. His words echoed in her mind.
"Can I take a shower? I mean, am I allowed? Or is keeping me dirty part of your perverted little game?"
"You can call it what you like Ms. Falstaff, but you've chosen to be here. I'm not asking you to do anything you've strongly objected to. Remember, you can always walk out of here."
"And into a prison cell."
"That was your choice, not mine. Now of course you can have a shower, but not until I've been fed. I think that's only fair, don’t you?"
Suzy took a deep breath. Was it all going to be like this? This was going to be one long night.
"I thought you said you liked an edge?" She said.
"I do. But fair is fair. And I don't want to be weak from hunger either. The stir fried beef looks nice. People say Kobe beef is the best but I prefer to source mine here in the USA. I know the rancher in Texas who raises this cattle and I guarantee you won’t find better anywhere, worldwide."
He handed her the chopsticks he had used to feed her with.
"Do you know how to use these?"
"Of course I do." She took them from his hand and fished for a piece of beef from the bowl. It was cut into thin strips and lightly covered with a dark but delicately flavored sauce. She raised a sliver and then brought it closer to his lips but before she could find them her fingers slipped and the meat fell down into his lap.
"Shit." The expletive escaped her.
He looked down at his lap where the piece of meat lay, the stain of the sauce already spreading into the fabric of his trousers.
"That's not good." He said. "You told me you knew how to use those and now look what's happened."
"I'm so sorry."
"Don’t be
sorry. Make it better. It's a mess and it needs to be cleaned up."
"But how…"
He looked at her sternly.
"First get rid of the meat."
She reached in carefully to slowly pinch the sliver of beef firmly between the slim ends of the ornate chopsticks without catching hold of anything else down there.
She placed it onto the plate in front of him.
"Is that better?" She asked.
He shook his head.
"What about these pants Ms. Falstaff? This mini-disaster requires water or that mark will never come out. Surely I'm not the only person left in the world who understands fabric stains." He said, toying with her.
Quicksand. She thought. Just do it. Think later.
She took a linen napkin, dipped it into a crystal glass filled with water and then held it over his lap.
"The longer you leave it, the worse it gets." He said.
She pressed the napkin to his pants and began to slowly move it down the length of the stain.
"You'll need to be a little more decisive than that." He said.
"Decisive. Okay."
She began to rub harder, obscene images flooding through her mind.
She wanted him.
She wanted to see what was under there, trapped inside.
She wanted take him in hand, make him as hot and filled with desire for her as she was for him and then watch him spill it all over himself like a little bitch, under her control, playing the game by her rules only.
He might be manipulating the situation now, but every little game he played, every nuance and request was telling her more about him and revealing to her the power she had over him that he would never admit she had.
This was a new game for her but she was good with games and the rules were slowly becoming clear to her. No guy had ever taken her down at video gaming, she was a master of that world, and real life games, it seemed, weren't that different. Find your opponent's weakness and then milk it until he drops.
You're just a guy Mayweather. Underneath it all you're just like all those nerds at MIT and I've yet to be outgunned by one of you yet.
She moved the napkin a shade higher, a little more in to center and sure enough, there it was. Rock hard. Her hand stopped, surprised at the change in texture and she lifted her eyes up to his.
His Secret Request: Billionaire Secrets - Book Three Page 6