At Your Service

by A. C. Arthur

  “My mother doesn’t cook, so dinners are always catered. The only time we get loads of food is on Thanksgiving and Christmas. My father says that’s the best time of the year.”

  He continued to laugh while they finished with the towels and dropped them into the hamper by the door.

  “You go on into the bedroom and find something to sleep in. I mean, I’m good with you staying just the way you are, but I’m guessing you’d like to be dressed to eat.”

  They were still naked. Yet they’d been standing there talking as if they showered and talked in the nude every day.

  “Oh, are you going to order something?”

  “No. I’m going to cook us something.”

  “You cook?”

  She knew she was frowning this time because she couldn’t believe that Major was good in the kitchen.

  As it turned out, twenty minutes later, when they were sitting on stools in his kitchen, he could bake a homemade pizza that tasted just as good as any pizzeria she’d ever been to, if not better.

  “What’s on this?” she asked as she took another bite.

  “Alfredo sauce, ricotta and mozzarella cheeses, plenty of black pepper and oregano.”

  “It’s delicious,” she said over the mouthful, and wasn’t lying. “Where’d you learn how to cook if your mother hires caterers?”

  “In college. I didn’t like going out much, so I figured it was best to not starve for four years.”

  “Why didn’t you like to go out?”

  He hesitated, took another bite of his pizza, chewed and then used a napkin to wipe his mouth.

  Nina hadn’t realized she was waiting for his response until he looked at her and shook his head.

  “It’s not such a big deal now since I’ve learned how to deal with it. But it was because of a girl.”

  Never in a million years would she have guessed he’d say that. “What? A girl had you holed up in your dorm for four years?”

  “Not exactly. It was during my sophomore year. I thought it was love. Stacia Hudgins poured it on real thick, was talking marriage, kids, the whole package. Come to find out she and her parents had it all set up. They knew who I was, who my family was, and they wanted in. A fake pregnancy scare, lots of tears and then a threat of scandal, and it was over by the time I came home for the summer. That’s when I knew relationships weren’t for me.”

  Nina chewed another bite all the while thinking she’d like to have been at school with Stacia Hudgins so she could serve the girl a good dose of “get a life.” Or, as Nina and her sisters would have called it, “whoop ass.”

  “Yeah, I’m not into the ‘happy-ever-after’ thing, either.” She was almost positive that was still true. “But not because of any guy in particular. My culprit was my mother. She left when I was twelve. Had enough of the family life and decided there was something better away from the home she’d built. Left my dad with three girls and a broken heart that he’s still nursing. Probably why he’s gotten so sick, but I guess that’s not medically possible.”

  “Broken heart” had likely never been listed on anybody’s death certificate.

  “Your father has COPD, right?”

  She nodded. “Yes. It wasn’t so bad at first, but seven years ago he had to stop working and go on disability because it had gotten to the severe point. He’s weak most of the time, has intermittent swelling in his legs and ankles, and gets confused easily. The confusion isn’t a symptom of COPD, I think it’s more from loneliness. Anyway, my sisters and I have been taking care of him up to this point, but the doctor suggested he might need more assistance to make sure he’s taking his medications and to help him do some of the daily getting around.”

  It had been a hard conversation to have as a family, but they’d had it. Her father didn’t want to be a burden to his children, insisting he could take care of his own arrangements when the time came.

  “That’s a tough situation,” Major said. “Do you have a facility in mind?”

  “We’ve visited a few and there’s one that he favors.” She drank from the glass of wine he’d poured for her. “This boost in business from partnering with RGF will be just what I need to get him into the care home.”

  She took another bite of pizza because she’d had enough of talking about herself.

  “Maybe I could help. I can make some calls, maybe find a place for your father here in New York.” When she only stared at him, he cleared his throat and continued, “I mean, that way you’ll be close to two of the biggest fashion houses in the States, stylists, models and plenty of other industry people that could talk up your app and provide endorsements.”

  “But I live in York. That’s where my family and everything I know is.” That was the truth, but there was suddenly something sad about the way it sounded.

  “Right,” he said with a curt nod and a quick smile. “If you’re done, we should clean this up and get to bed.”

  “Right. I can take care of the mess since you cooked.”

  “Nonsense, we’ll do it together.”

  Like a couple did things together. Nina didn’t say that but went along with his suggestion until the kitchen was clean and they headed off to bed...to Major’s bed where she would lie all night wondering if he was the man to make her think twice about happy-ever-after.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  THE WINE-COLORED tulle was even more beautiful as it swayed around them on the dance floor. With Major’s arms wrapped securely around her waist, Nina’s arms remained locked at his neck as they danced. The screens positioned around the banquet room, having earlier displayed a lovely video of their childhood years all the way up to their engagement party, now showed them dancing. Even the people at the back of the four-hundred-seat room could see them close-up.

  A slow song played, one that was a favorite of theirs. But she couldn’t hear the lyrics. She just swayed to the rhythm and stared up into his face, remembering the exact moment that she’d agreed to become Mrs. Major Gold.

  They danced until the scene changed and she was once again walking through the doors of the RGF building, with a determined smile on her face as she approached the now familiar pretty receptionist with the coal-black hair.

  “Good morning, Mrs. Gold. Are you here to see your husband?”

  The question startled her and Nina looked down to see the huge emerald-cut diamond on her ring finger.

  “Uh, no. I’m actually here to work. I need to check in with a few vendors and make sure that products are being shipped on time.” She continued to talk even though the woman was frowning at her. “There were a couple complaints on the website and I need to get things ironed out.”

  “I don’t understand. Maybe you want to report some issues with the company site to your husband?”

  “No. I want to take care of the issues—they’re with my company, At Your Service.”

  The woman was shaking her head, her silky hair moving from side to side. “You’re welcome to go see your husband. But I’ve never heard of At Your Service...”

  Nina’s eyes opened wide into a room filled with slashes of moonlight coming through the partially closed blinds. She pressed a hand to her chest, her heart beating wildly. A few blinks later and she swallowed hard, her gaze falling on the nightstand beside the bed where a clock flashed bright white numbers: 3:54. Beside the clock was her phone, plugged into its charger. She’d put it there just before joining Major in the shower.

  She was at Major’s penthouse... He’d fixed her pizza...

  A sigh of relief rushed from her as she realized it had only been a dream. The wedding, going to RGF...it was all a dream. A strange and alarming dream that now had her sitting up in the bed.

  The sheet slid to her waist and she rubbed her hands over her face. That dream was strange and it left her feeling even stranger. Full of emotion and empty at the same time. But it wasn’t
real, nothing about being with Major was real, even this moment.

  She glanced over her shoulder to see him sleeping. One arm was thrown above his head while the other lay across his bare stomach. The sheet was riding dangerously close to revealing what she already knew was a delicious part of him.

  He seemed real.

  Leaning back and propping herself up on one elbow, she stared down at him. He had thick eyebrows that she wished she had. Hers were thin and most times she penciled them in. His nose was straight, wide and proportional with his face, his squared jaw and average ears. Her gaze fell on his lips and her own parted. They were usually warm when they met hers. And soft. Did men like being told they had soft lips?

  She was leaning over before she thought better of the action. But when her lips hovered just seconds away from his, Major’s eyes opened, and she froze.

  His response was to move the arm that had been resting over his abs, snake it around her waist and pull her on top of him. She licked his bottom lip as his hands splayed over her ass. Then her tongue stroked his top lip. Their gazes held.

  He parted his lips slightly, just enough so that his tongue inched out, and she pounced, sucking it deep into her mouth. He groaned and pressed her bare mound into his thickening erection. Only the thin sheet separated them, but she sucked on his tongue like it was his dick, and desire pierced through her, falling with clever accuracy in her center. She spread her legs so that she was now straddling him, rubbing her pussy over the sheet. He thrust his hips up to meet hers, his hands moving upward to bury themselves in her hair.

  He pulled her back then, her mouth reluctantly releasing him. For endless moments, they just stared at each other.

  She didn’t know what he was thinking. The only thing running through her mind right now was that this felt real. From the throbbing in her center to the tightening in her chest, as she continued to stare down at him, it felt very real.

  “I don’t know what this is,” he said, his voice cracking slightly.

  “Neither do I,” she admitted. “But I don’t want it to stop.”

  It was an admission she hadn’t planned to make. That made sense because she hadn’t planned for him.

  In response, he pulled her head down and took her mouth in a kiss that was as achingly slow and sweet as it was deliciously tempting and erotic.

  He rolled her over and kicked the sheets aside before reaching over her to the nightstand and pulling open the top drawer. He tossed the condom to her and she caught it, ripping the paper and retrieving the latex. Coming up on his knees, he whispered in a hungry voice, “Put it on.”

  She sat up, rubbing her hand along his thick length as her mouth watered. She couldn’t resist dipping her head and taking him in deep.

  “Dammit,” he cursed loudly. “You’re killing me.”

  And he had awakened an insatiable need in her.

  With deep suction, she slid her mouth from his base to his tip before easing down once more. This had never been a favorite of hers during sex. It was more intimate than she’d ever wanted to be with anyone else, but she loved the taste of him. Loved the feel of him in her mouth, pressing at the back of her throat, sliding over her tongue and easing past her lips.

  “Put it on. Now!”

  She let him slip from her mouth with a popping sound and inched the condom on until he was covered. He pushed her back onto the pillows before leaning his head down to drag his tongue along the first row of beads at her waist.

  “Yesssss.” She let her hands fall to his head. He captured the beads between his teeth and lifted his head slightly to watch her as she looked down at him.

  With a quick yank he ripped the beads free. At any other time, with someone different, this may have upset her. Tonight, coupled with the roller coaster of emotions she’d been feeling about him, the touch of the beads that empowered her sensuality rolling over her skin mixed with the passion swirling between them and the anticipation of more, caused her to come with a fierceness that left her breathless and trembling. Before she could recuperate, he’d moved up the length of her and was inside her, thrusting wildly.

  The rush of sensations swirled through Nina like a tornado, twisting and hitting every part of her, even the part she’d never wanted to be touched. When he leaned forward, flattening his hands on either side of her to brace himself, her hands pressed against his chest. Her mouth opened as if she were going to say something. Tell him to stop because she felt overwhelmed with sensation and emotion? Or beg him to continue because it all felt so damn good?

  It felt real. Too real.

  She raised her legs and wrapped them around him, locking them in place.

  “You,” he whispered before dropping his head to take her mouth. She slid her arms from his chest to cup his face and hold him to her, dragging her tongue over his, tilting her head to take the kiss deeper.

  You. The one word echoed in her mind. You. Him. It was him. This warm feeling spreading throughout her chest was all because of him.

  On a ragged moan, he pulled his mouth from hers as he moved in and out of her at a slower pace. The change was fast and intense, pleasure now building with his strokes in a slow, methodical rhythm that had her biting her bottom lip and dropping her arms to the bed and gripping the sheets. He eased over her again, this time scooping his arms beneath her to hold her firmly to him. His lips were right next to her ear as he thrust into her repeatedly. She wrapped her arms around him, holding him just as tightly as he was holding her, as if they were each afraid to let go.

  “I want you, Nina.” He whispered those words over and over again.

  She closed her eyes tight, savoring every syllable. “I want you, too.” It was a quiet admission, but an admission nonetheless. And it was real—his comment, her response, it was all real.

  They came together in a storm of moans and sighs, bodies trembling and pressing together as if being any other way was not an option.

  * * *

  By Wednesday afternoon the following week Major was in a pretty foul mood.

  In a month, Brand Integrated would go public and he still hadn’t told the rest of his family that he was significantly cutting his time at RGF and branching out on his own. The fake fiancée proposal would also be over. Desta had just sent an updated itinerary for the last activities he and Nina would complete together.

  He sat back in his desk chair, moving his feet so the chair would spin slowly while he stared out the wall of windows in his office. With his hands clasped and resting on his lap, his mind whirled with the most pressing issues in his life at the moment. The fact that there should only be one pressing issue didn’t escape his notice.

  But Nina Fuller was intertwined in his every thought in a way that he hadn’t anticipated. She’d been at his place, in his bed, since attending her first Gold family dinner. At night they fell asleep, cuddled in his bed, and in the morning, they awoke and moved around his bedroom and bathroom like a couple getting ready for work.

  Each day had become a repeat of wake up, sex somewhere between the bedroom and bathroom, traveling to work together, then home again in the evening.

  Home.

  That’s what it’d felt like for the past week and a half, until now, it seemed permanent.

  He spun the chair until he was once again facing his desk and could see the dual monitors with the business plan for Brand Integrated on one and the services offered by At Your Service on the other. Nina had pointed out what he’d already known and what had been floating in the back of his mind since before their first meeting.

  The accessory hub Brand Integrated would offer was very similar to what her app provided. The only difference—and the one thing Major had repeatedly reminded himself of—was that his company did not retain vendors, nor did it plan to sell anything directly to the consumer. Their product—software and consultation services—was exclusively designed to benefit f
ashion houses.

  But the similarity was still there, and it had been nagging at him for days. Their businesses were poised to clash big-time. His brow furrowed with the thought and he let out a little huff as he once again searched for a viable solution. There had to be one. There had to be a way for his business to coexist with hers without compromise or confusion, and he needed to find it before their planned breakup.

  Or it could be the reason for the breakup. That thought came with a sharp sting to the center of his chest as he stopped moving in the chair and his frown deepened. Desta still hadn’t outlined what the final argument would be. The end of their engagement was coming quickly and he had no idea what it would be like. So what if it was the realization that their businesses would clash? Did that make sense? Was it believable? He sighed at the irony. It was the one thing that had come of their time together that was actually the truth.

  A knock at the door jolted him out of his thoughts just as that pain in his chest started to spread.

  “Hey, what’s up? Got a minute?” RJ opened the door without consent and walked in talking. He hiked up his slacks and took a seat in one of the chairs across from Major’s desk. “I need you to do something for me. You and Nina.”

  His brother had his full attention the moment he mentioned her name.

  “What?”

  “Riley wants to meet with Dad and me in an hour at a proposed location for this expansion idea she’s got,” RJ said.

  Deciding it was probably best for the moment to wrap his mind around something else, Major sat forward, resting his elbows on his desk. “Yeah, she copied me and Maurice on an email she sent earlier this week outlining her proposal. Her research and data pan out. An RGF-exclusive storefront in the city is a good idea. Lots of other fashion houses have one, especially overseas.”

  “Look, I’m not totally opposed to the idea. So, Riley doesn’t need you to be her cheerleader,” RJ said with a sigh.

  “That may be the one thing our sister has never needed. She’s always been capable of being her own biggest supporter, which is probably why she was able to fall in love with the family enemy and not bat an eye when we approached her about it.” Why his thoughts always returned to Riley and her relationship with Chaz, Major didn’t know. Perhaps he admired the fact that she’d found love, even though he didn’t believe in the concept himself.