by B. B. Hamel
He shakes his head and puts his hand on mine. “No,” he says. “It’s more than just that. I need you to understand, Maggie. It’s about more than just our little game. If we keep going, despite what your aunt said yesterday, I need you to get that.”
I stare into his gorgeous, handsome eyes. “What do you mean?” I ask, my heart beating fast in my chest.
“I mean, I want you, Maggie. I want to do what’s best for you, not just for our little merger. So if you want to walk away from this, I’ll understand. I won’t fight you on it. But just know that I want you as much as I want this merger to go through… maybe even more.”
I bite my lip, staring at him, and a million thoughts cross my mind. I look down at the necklace in the box and I can almost hear my cousin’s words coming back to me again. My aunt will do anything to further her own goals… and I should do the same.
“Let’s keep going,” I whisper.
He frowns. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure,” I say. I step closer to him, get up on my toes and kiss his lips. His hands move around me, palms against the small of my back. He pulls me tight against him and kisses me deeper. I fall into that kiss and let all the stress, the uncertainty, I let it all pass away.
“Okay,” he whispers as we break apart. “We can do that.”
“Good.” I smile a little. “So, uh. How much was the necklace?”
He smirks. “Don’t be gauche. I thought you were raised better than that?”
“Come on. I’m so curious. A hundred?”
“More.” He kisses me.
“Two?”
“More.”
“Josh!”
He laughs and kisses me again. “Stop asking. You don’t want to know.”
I kiss him, running my fingers through his hair. I’ve never been given a gift like this before, and especially not without some special occasion.
He’s thinking about me. I don’t know why that sends a thrill through my body, but it does. He’s thinking about me enough that he’s buying me presents on a whim. It feels good to be in someone’s thoughts, so good.
And I can’t let that go.
It hits me hard, right in the chest. I can’t let that go.
I want to keep moving forward, despite my aunt, because this all feels so good. And I’m afraid that if we stop, then there’s no reason to stay married.
And I’ll lose him forever.
Maybe it’s a bad reason, but I don’t care. It’s my reason. It’s what I have.
I kiss him one last time. “Go back to work. You have planning to do.”
“I will.” He tilts his head. “But I want you to do something for me.”
“Yeah? What?”
“Go put that necklace on,” he whispers. “And only that necklace.”
“Okay,” I say slowly.
“Then take a picture. Take a bunch. Send them to me.”
“You want me to send you pictures of me wearing nothing but that necklace?”
He nods and kisses my neck. “Do it,” he says.
I blush and just nod my head. He squeezes my hand then turns and leaves the kitchen. “Send them soon,” he says. “Don’t keep me waiting all day.”
I hear him pass through the living room and out the front door, out into the world.
I look at the necklace in its box. I pick it up, weighing it in my hands. It’s heavy, real, beautiful.
I grin to myself and go looking for a spot with good light to take some pictures.
18
Josh
The next afternoon, moments after I close the picture of Maggie wearing nothing but that necklace I bought her, Maeve comes into my office and sits down across from my desk. “We have to talk,” she says.
I sigh and lean back in my chair. “I’m guessing this isn’t going to be a fun conversation.”
She smiles a little. “Never is, hon.”
“What’s up?”
“You know Seb is spreading rumors about you,” she says. “He’s convincing the board to move against you.”
“I know all this,” I say.
She frowns a little, looking uncomfortable. “I heard a rumor today,” she says.
“Seb’s been spreading them. It’s probably not true.”
“No,” she says, shaking her head. “Not one of those. I’ve heard all those. This is something new.”
I hesitate. “Maeve. What’s going on?”
“The board is going to vote on the merger.”
I sit back and stare at her for a long moment before shaking my head. “How? There aren’t any official papers. There aren’t any terms to vote on.”
“I think they’re going to vote on the idea of a merger? I don’t know if they can even do that, but that’s the rumor.”
“When?”
“Two weeks. Seb wants to get it done, apparently.”
I rub my temple then shake my head. “I don’t understand it. If he has the votes, why doesn’t he just make it happen tonight? Or tomorrow? Two weeks makes no sense.”
“It could be another fake rumor,” she admits. “But I’m not so sure. I got it from his secretary direct.”
I give her an appraising look. “Really?”
“Really. We’re close.” She grins. “We exchange tips from time to time, keep each other in the loop.”
“You didn’t tip her off about me, did you?”
“Oh, Josh, I would never.” She grins and shrugs. “Well, maybe a little bit.”
I groan. “Maeve.”
“He would’ve found out sooner or later. I just tipped him off a little bit before you did it yourself anyway. Made no difference and won us some good will, which might be paying off here.”
I nod and glance out the window, mind racing. “If he thinks he needs two weeks, that means he doesn’t think he has the votes right now. Which means…”
“You could force a vote yourself.”
I look at her. “That’s dangerous. If I’m wrong then the whole game is up.”
“But if you’re right…”
I chew on my cheek. “Do me a favor. Go call Maggie, have her come in and meet me. I need to talk this out with her.”
“Got it.” Maeve stands. “For what it’s worth, I trust my info. I think this is the real deal.”
“Thanks for bringing this to me.”
She nods and leaves my office. I sit there, staring out at the sky, trying to decide what to do moving forward.
I’ve already taken some risks, but this would be the biggest one yet. This could potentially win the game or lose it all. It’s not a decision I can make lightly or on my own. I need Maggie to weigh in here. I need her to give me her support.
Just like her aunt said, Maggie’s smart. She sees things others don’t, grasps details that slip past other people. I look down at my phone and pull up the pictures she sent me yesterday.
Goddamn, she’s beautiful. I could look at her for hours. That beautiful body, my necklace around her neck. I feel my heart pound, my cock stir. I have to put my phone away before I get too riled up. I need to have a clear head right now.
I get a text from her a few minutes later, saying she’s on her way. I text back and tell her to come right to my office. I sit back again, eyes shut, and I keep running through scenarios. I’m almost too distracted to hear it when Maeve lets Maggie in.
“Hey,” she says, sitting down in a chair as Maeve shuts the door.
I blink at her. “Hey,” I say. “Thanks for coming.”
“What’s up? Maeve sounded a little stressed on the phone. And you normally call yourself.”
“I know, sorry about that. I should’ve. I just…” I trail off.
“Josh. What’s going on?”
“Seb called for a vote in the board in two weeks,” I say, keeping my voice level.
Maggie looks surprised. “He did? Can he do that?”
“Any member can propose a vote on any issue,” I say. “So long as they give the board twenty-four hours to delib
erate, there’s no problem.”
“Huh.” She leans back and crosses her legs. “Why two weeks, though?”
“That’s what Maeve said.” I smile a little.
“Might mean he doesn’t think he has the votes right now.”
I laugh. I can’t help it. She got there faster than I did. “That’s my thinking too.”
She chews on her lip for a second. “But if we’re wrong, it could be bad.”
“We’d be rolling the dice for sure.”
“Didn’t work so great when we went after Seb’s vote.”
“True. But this time…” I stop myself. “I’m not sure how much time we have left. Elizabeth is leaving soon. Your aunt is breathing down our necks. And Seb is pushing to wrap this all up as soon as possible. There are too many people with too many competing interests.”
“What are you thinking then?”
I get up from behind my desk, walk to the windows facing the rest of the office, and close the blinds. I turn back to Maggie.
She looks at me, head cocked, as I move closer. I come around her and put a hand on her knee then push her legs open, uncrossing them roughly. She stares at me, mouth hanging open.
“I think we go for it,” I say. She’s wearing these tight jeans that drive me wild.
“Go for it, how?”
I lean down and kiss her gently. I bite her lip and kiss her neck. She lets out a soft moan.
“Set up a meeting with the board,” I say. “I show up, tell them we’re voting on the merger in twenty-four hours. That way, Seb won’t have enough time to gather new votes, and we’re left with what we have.”
“That could go wrong.” She lets out a gasp as I push her legs open more and drop down to my knees in front of her. “If he has more votes than we realize…”
“Then we’re done.” I kiss her neck again before I unbutton her jeans. She lets out a gasp as I tug them down then slide my hand up between her legs. Her pussy is warm and wet already as my fingers tease her over top of her panties. I kiss her slow and deep, tasting her delicious tongue against mine. “But we might get lucky.”
“Or we might not.” She closes her eyes and moans as I slide my hand down the front of her panties, moving my fingers up her wet pussy, spreading her lips until I find her wet little clit.
“We know a few are on our side,” I say. “Elizabeth will likely abstain. If we end up with a tie, the CEO breaks it, and that’s me.”
“Oh,” she groans. “That’s… ah… useful.”
I slide her jeans off then her panties. I push her legs open wide and stare at her gorgeous, dripping wet pussy before I push my mouth between her legs. I lick her top to bottom, tasting her nice and slow, before nibbling her clit and rolling my tongue around it.
“That means he has to get two more votes than me to win.” I slide two fingers deep between her legs and reach up, grabbing her hair, pulling her down to kiss me. I want her to taste her dripping wet pussy on my lips. “Two votes beats us. I don’t think he can do it.”
She moans as I drop back down and lick her. Maybe this isn’t fair, maybe I’m being a little too mean, but I don’t care. I’ve been looking at those pictures she sent me all day and I need another taste. Hell, I need it all, every inch of her.
I lick and suck her fast, making her moans get louder until I move up again, kissing her lips hard. I pull her to her feet and kiss her hair, pulling her against me until I push her back to my desk. I turn her around, bending her over, and drop down again between her legs.
I spread her wide and lick her from behind. My fingers glide in and out of her tight pussy, fucking her deep, before I lick her again. I stand and pull off my belt, dropping my slacks down around my ankles. I slap her ass and grab her hair before kissing her hard as my cock presses against her gaping wet pussy.
“We can do this,” I whisper in her ear. “We can make this happen.”
“Oh, fuck, yes,” she whispers. “I want it. God, I want it.”
I slide my thick cock deep inside her. She moans, back arching, as I fill her deep.
“And I want you,” I purr. “Every slick inch. Every delicious bit of skin. I want it all, my little Maggie.”
I slide my cock in and out of her, feeling pleasure rip through me. I let out a growl as I grab her hair and slowly begin to fuck her faster, deeper, taking her the way I need it.
I fuck her faster, feeling her body. I can’t help myself. I know this is dangerous. If someone walks in right now, this whole game is over. The rumors will spread and we’ll be truly wrecked. I won’t have any excuses, and it’ll be all my fault, but fucking hell. I can’t help myself. I need this girl, need her deep, need her right now. She feels so fucking good wrapped around my cock. I slide deeper and deeper, fucking her faster.
I grab her hair and lean over her. “Take the risk with me,” I whisper. “Take it all with me.”
“I’m in,” she moans. “I’m all in, Josh. I’m all in.”
I take her rough, my cock slamming inside. I reach around and work her clit with my fingers as I grab her hair in my other fist. I take her, control her, dominate her, and give her everything she needs.
We fuck, sweating, moaning, trying not to be too loud. At one point, I have to cover her mouth with my hand, and she bites my fingers. I growl in pain and pleasure as I fuck her harder, thrusting my cock deep inside her, making her body shake with the rough way I handle her.
I can’t help myself. Fucking hell, I can’t hold back. Pleasure rips through me, blossoms all through me. It’s driving me wild, driving me absolutely wild. I growl, the bitter groaning in my throat pushing me forward. Her skin is perfect, her perky ass begging for more, her slick and tight cunt wrapped around my cock is pure pleasure.
I rip into her. I take her like a man. I make her my own and as I work her clit, I know she’s close. She wiggles her hips and pushes back against me, riding down my shaft, moaning, groaning, begging me to keep going. I don’t stop, don’t hold back.
And when she comes in a burst of moaning, her back arching, a scream at her lips that I have to cover up with my hand again, I know I can’t hold back anymore.
I come deep inside of her. I groan, soft and low. I fill her up, burst deep between her legs, make her take every inch of my seed.
She kisses me over her shoulder. I slide back out, turn her around, and hold her. I kiss her lips and feel her heart beating against my chest.
“You’re sure about this?” I ask.
“I’m sure,” she says. “If you are.”
“I’m sure.”
I kiss her one more time before we get dressed.
I sit down on the chair facing my desk and pull her into my lap. I hold her there, feeling her body against mine.
“What do we do if this goes wrong?” she asks.
“I don’t know,” I admit. “We’ll figure something out though.”
“Will we have to walk away?” She frowns. “I mean, we don’t have to be married anymore… right?”
“We don’t need to go there if you don’t want to.”
“I just…” She clears her throat. “I just want to know what you’re thinking.”
“I’m thinking that I can’t really think clearly with you in my lap.”
She laughs but I can tell it’s hollow.
Truth is, I have no answers. I won’t to tell her that everything will work out no matter what, but I’m not so sure. I don’t know if we can pull this off. I don’t know if we can keep going if things don’t pan out our way.
If we lose this vote, if we underestimated Seb, it might just be game over.
I keep that to myself though. I don’t want to dash any hopes she might have. I don’t want to add to her worries.
I want her happy right now. That’ll make me content, at least for a little while.
19
Maggie
It’s early when I walk down the sidewalk toward an upscale boutique hotel that I’ve never even heard of. It’s only a few blocks away fr
om Josh’s house, which makes sense. Aunt Sylvia was never one for wasting time.
I step into the small waiting room and smile at the pretty girl behind the small, simple desk. “Can I help you?” she asks.
“I’m looking for Sylvia Lofthouse. Room thirty-three.”
“Oh, sure. Go on up, she sent word that you’d be stopping by. Take those stairs, get in the elevator to the third floor, and it’s the fifth room on the left.”
“Thank you.” I give her a smile then follow her directions. I ride the small, slow elevator up, then find my aunt’s door. I linger there for a long moment, my heart beating fast.
I don’t know why I’m so nervous. Well, I guess I do. It’s pretty obvious. I’ve always been afraid of my aunt, of that entire half of my family. It’s like they exist in a world totally separate from my own, a world entirely apart from the one I live in. Lora is nice and down to earth, and my other cousins are cool too, but they still seem to float by like nothing can touch them.
It scares me, at least a little bit. I know it shouldn’t. They’re just people, just my cousins. But the way they act, like they own the world, intimidates me.
But I have to put that aside. Or maybe I can embrace it and try to exude that same sort of confidence myself. Either way, I reach out and knock on the door.
There’s silence for a moment then my aunt appears. She’s wearing a simple pair of black slacks and a white button-down shirt that’s tucked in. She tilts her head and smiles at me.
“I’m glad you came,” she says.
“I’m glad you were willing to talk.”
“Please, come in.”
I step into her room. It’s a spacious living area, with a couple of couches, some chairs, a large new TV, and another hallway that likely leads back to the bedroom and bathroom. She offers me a cup of tea, which I accept. She pours two cups and sits down in a chair.
I take the chair opposite her and sip my tea.
“To what do I owe the pleasure?” she asks.
I smile. “Well, I suppose it’s the same reason you’re in town right now.”