I watched her pull her phone from her pocket before she sighed.
“No call?” I asked.
“I have no idea what’s taking them so long to get back to me,” she said.
“Well, there are two wonderful guest rooms if they don’t call tonight. And there’s my bed, if you don’t like sleeping alone.”
“See, if you would’ve chopped off that last part, I might’ve found you to be a decent person,” she said.
“Ah, but decent is boring. I prefer excitement.”
“At the expense of decency, I’m sure.”
“You sound like you could use a drink,” I said. “Care for a glass of wine?”
“Are you going to give me a choice?”
“Do you want one?” I asked.
“You really think you’re something, don’t you?” she asked.
I stopped in my tracks and turned to face her.
“I’m not sure I know what you mean,” I said.
“You think you’re the biggest hot commodity out there.”
“I do get compliments on how hot I am, yes.”
“Pompous and arrogant. And for what?” she asked. “You run luxury hotel chains that cater to all sorts of lecherous needs without any sort of regard for how it makes you look.”
“You make it seem as if I don’t enjoy my look.”
“So you like your image? You like being a womanizer, Mr. Aaron? Is that the kind of role model those children in there need?”
“You don’t get a say so in that,” I said lowly. “You don’t get to tell me what those kids do and do not need. You have no idea what they’ve been through. What my sister has put them through.”
“Then you can see why I’m waiting for CPS to confirm for me that they really want to pass them off to the likes of you.”
“What is your problem with me?” I asked as I walked back towards her. “Because I have a feeling this doesn’t have anything to do with my hotels.”
“Your kinky fetish rooms? I think it has something to do with it.”
“What? Didn’t have a good experience in one? Maybe you should’ve left it on the comment card.”
“I would never dream of visiting one of your hotels,” she said.
“Ah, so you’re upset that you can’t afford it.”
“I don’t hate you because you have money, Mr. Aaron.”
“Oh, so we hate now. What kind of role model is that for the kids in your classroom? Do you all sit around in circles singing kumbaya? Do you try to get them to understand that money isn’t everything? With their Louis Vuitton backpacks and their diamond-studded earrings and their hair being done by the best in the city for five hundred dollars plus a tip?”
I was standing so close to Emma I could feel her anger. See her rage behind her eyes. Her chest was heaving and her skin was flushed red.
She was very upset.
But it wasn’t at my money.
“You come here and you act like you aren’t intrigued when you’re really the most curious. You act like money doesn’t define you, but I saw the way you were gazing at the walls of my library. You know you want something like that but you can’t have it because you don’t have the funds for it but obtaining the funds compromises the integrity you try to feed those children. So tell me, Miss Emma, what is it you’re truly mad at?”
Her nostrils were flaring as my face slowly crept closer.
“Or maybe, you aren’t really angry at all,” I said.
I pressed my lips against hers and felt her body grow stiff. I watched her. With my eyes wide open as she glared at me. But she didn’t step back. Her eyes fell closed and her hands came down onto my shoulders and I felt my cock throbbing to life. I slipped one hand in my pocket and wrapped my free arm around her waist, ready to walk her straight back into my room and give her what she really wanted.
A taste of the forbidden fruit she never thought she would obtain.
I ran my tongue along her lips as I took a step towards her. I felt her back up, following my movements as my fingertips sank into her excess. She parted her lips for me as her hands threaded around my neck. I could feel her tits growing hard against my chest. There she was. The animal of a woman that was seated inside all of them. Every woman, no matter how willing or unwilling, always wanted a taste of me. She wasn’t angry at my hotels. Or at my money. Or at my reputation.
She was angry that she thought men like me didn’t notice women like her.
But it wasn’t true.
I had noticed her all right.
And I wanted her. All of her. To be buried inside of her and fuck her until I had to slap a pillow over her face to keep from waking the kids.
I pressed her against the wall beside my bedroom door as her hands gripped the collar of my shirt. She pulled me deeper into her as she stood on her tiptoes. I slid my hand from my pocket and dropped it to her hip, grabbing her and hoisting her into the air with ease. She gasped with shock as I suckled on her lower lip. I ground my thick cock up into her heated pussy as her legs wrapped around me.
So willing.
So wanting.
And my, how I enjoyed that dance we had executed.
I felt her side vibrating and she stiffened. My lips drew away from her skin and I watched the lust-filled haze of her eyes quickly drop. She scrambled down from the wall and pushed me away, causing me to stumble backwards.
Then she ripped her phone out of her pocket and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Miss Gentry speaking. Yes. Mhm. I called earlier to check on Benjamin, Hunter, and Zoey Aaron. Yes, they’re with their uncle, Ryan Aaron. Is that who I should release them to?”
Her eyes turned to me before they filled with worry and shock. Whoever the hell was on the other end of that line was telling her much more than she needed to know. I had half a mind to reach out for her damn phone and cut the fucking call. She had her answer.
She didn’t need to know any more of my family’s dark secrets.
“I understand,” Emma said. “I’ll release them to him immediately. Thank you for getting back to me tonight.”
She hung up her phone and slid it back into her pocket as she cleared her throat.
“Looks like you’ve been granted temporary custody of them,” she said.
“As I told you earlier,” I said.
“Well, if tonight is any indication of how you treat them, then they’re in good hands.”
Her eyes weren’t reaching to meet mine anymore, and I wanted to crook my finger underneath her chin. Pull her beautiful gaze back up to mine. Finish what we had so desperately started.
But instead, she walked over to her purse and plucked it from the couch.
“Leaving so soon?” I asked.
“I got my answer,” Emma said. “Now, I go home.”
“You really don’t have to.”
“Yes, I really do.”
“What are you so afraid of?”
I planted my hand against the front door, closing it off to her before she tried to open it.
“I have a long day tomorrow, Mr. Aaron.”
“Then you won’t mind answering one question,” I said.
“I really need to go.”
“What. Are you. Afraid of?” I asked.
Her hand reached for the doorknob as she chewed on her lower lip. Her eyes rose to mine and I could see the conflict running behind them. Such a mystery, this woman. Such an enigma. I’d never been so captivated by a woman before. Never had I wanted to know so much about someone before I fucked them senseless against my mattress.
“Spiders sometimes,” Emma said. “Not a big fan of clowns, either.”
I shook my head as a deep sigh fell from my lips.
“Some could make a pretty good case for the dark as well.”
“Goodnight, Miss Emma.”
I opened the door for her and she grinned in her triumph.
“It was a pleasure meeting you,” I said.
“Wish I could say the same.”
Then she walked out of my penthouse apartment, leaving me there to shake my head and stare after her.
And I couldn't help my eyes as they fell to her ass.
Six
Emma
“So, rumor has it you really gave Ryan Aaron a run for his money yesterday.”
“How in the world do people know about that?” I asked.
“So it’s true!” Catherine exclaimed. “You have to tell me everything. The principal’s very impressed, by the way. How you stuck to your guns despite the play we all know that boy has.”
“Look, he wasn’t on their pick-up sheet as approved transportation and guardian, so I did what I needed to do.”
“Is it true you went home with him? What was it like?” she asked.
“It was exactly like you would think Ryan Aaron’s playboy mansion would look like,” I said.
“Did you enjoy your after-school extracurricular activity?”
“Are you serious? I didn’t sleep with the man. Come on. I’ve got standards,” I said.
“Trust me, there are many women in this world who would compromise their standards to be within three feet of that man.”
“So he’s a man now? He was a boy before.”
“Come on. What happened when you got there? What does his place look like?”
“It’s expensive and gaudy and not at all meant for children,” I said.
“What? Were they sleeping on the floor or something?” she asked.
“No. They had their own bedrooms. Zoey even has a canopy over her own bed.”
“Sounds like it’s made for children,” she said with a grin.
“You know what I meant.”
“Uh huh. So what happened? You just went there and sat on his couch and stalked him until CPS called?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but no,” I said. “I followed them to his place, we had pizza and watched a movie, then we tucked the kids in before CPS called.”
“Oh my gosh. You played house with the man.”
“Catherine, you’re blowing this way out of proportion.”
“Did he kiss you?”
“What?” I asked.
“If you were playing house, I’m sure he tried to find an opening to kiss you. I mean, that’s what my mother and father always did after my brother and I went to sleep. Lots of kissing. It was gross.”
“No, we didn’t kiss,” I said.
But my flushing cheeks gave away my lie.
“Oh. My. God. You’re standing here being the biggest hypocrite alive! What was it like? How did it feel? Talk me through it. Where were his hands?”
“Catherine, I don’t kiss and tell.”
“So you did kiss!”
“Sshh!! Could you have said that any louder?” I asked.
“Want me to try?”
“I hate you.”
“Must’ve been some kiss. That flush is creeping down your neck, Emma.”
“I really hate you,” I said.
“Don’t worry. I’ll get it out of you sooner or later. Maybe over wine when I come over to your place.”
“You know I don’t allow people at my place.”
“And I still don’t know why. Fine. You'll come to my place.”
“No, I won’t.”
“Then I’ll come to your place and hog-tie you to get you to come to my place,” she said.
“Have I told you I hate you today? Because if I haven’t…”
“Emma, you’re a beautiful woman. Admit it. You’ve got that long honey blonde hair and those deep blue eyes. The rosy red cheeks and curves in all the place I wish mine landed. You’d be the apple of every man’s eye if you allowed yourself to get into the dating scene around here. Why won’t you?”
“Because I don’t want to. I don’t want to date the men around here,” I said.
“But you want to kiss them.”
“That was a moment of weakness that should’ve never happened, and it won’t ever happen again,” I said.
“You’ve got that right. Ryan Aaron doesn’t do one woman twice. You had your chance and you blew it. But, that doesn't mean you can’t find another man to dust off the cobwebs between those legs.”
“Could you get any cruder with these kids running around? We’re at recess, Catherine.”
“And they’re all on the other side of the playground playing freeze tag. Come on. I want an honest answer from you for once,” she said.
“Fine. You want honest? I don’t date in San Francisco because I think the men in this city are trash. All they care about are how shiny their shoes are, how expensive their watches are, and how big-breasted their women are.”
“Well you’ve got that department down,” she said with a grin.
“I’m serious. I dated. I had that life once. But I got my heart broken in high school and I don’t want to go through that again.”
“What happened?” she asked. “Did he cheat on you or something?”
“No,” I said. “I just… made a mistake.”
“What kind of mistake?”
“Catherine-”
“Come on, Emma. Have a real, human moment for once.”
“Fine. I gave my virginity away to this boy in high school because I thought I was going to be with him forever. We had plans to go to the same college and we were going to request to live in the same co-ed dorm. I was in love with that stupid boy. And then my parents divorced.”
“What does that have to do with you and this boy?” she asked.
“The divorce was messy. And loud. The entire community knew that my mother had cheated on my father. Wanted to leave my father and take me with her to be with this other guy. A richer guy.”
“Oh shit.”
“And when my boyfriend found out, he broke up with me. Told me he didn’t want ‘that kind of influence’ in his life. Like I was my mother or something.”
“Oh Emma, I’m so sorry.”
“So excuse me for not wanting to throw myself at the rich kid who circulates through women faster than he does his damn underwear,” I said.
“What happened with your mom?” she asked.
“I didn’t want to go with her. I threw down in some of those arguments. Called her all sorts of names I wish I could take back. But I didn’t want to leave my school. I blamed her for the breakup between my boyfriend and I, then I called her a homewrecker. That was the last time I saw her.”
“Emma,” she said.
“I stormed into my room and she stormed out of my life. I stayed with my father until I graduated, then I lived full-time at college. Dug myself into more debt than I could imagine so I could live on campus during all of the breaks. I never went back home and my mother never attempted to reach out to me. And I promised myself my freshman year that my life would be all about me. Not some boy that wanted to break my heart or get between my legs or anything like that. I promised I would never let myself get as heartbroken as I was as a sixteen-year old girl whose life was falling apart.”
“So you avoid men,” Catherine said.
“I do. And I don’t regret it one bit. I’ve got a job that’s helping me pay down that debt I racked up in order to save my sanity and I’ve got wonderful kids in my classroom I’m trying to turn into decent human beings before their parents can corrupt them with money and fame and a lack of social etiquette.”
“Then it’s a good thing you don’t want to gun for Ryan, then. Because his reputation for being a womanizer is off the damn charts.”
“Trust me, I’ve got no intention of sharing a second kiss with Ryan, or even seeing him again. If I see him at all, it will be for those three kids he’s looking after. And that’s it.”
“Speaking of, did CPS tell you why he was granted temporary custody of the kids?” she asked.
“I don’t want to go into the details they told me because that’s his private life, but his sister’s struggling again.”
“And we all know what that means,” she said.
<
br /> “Yeah. It’s pretty bad this time. The hospital’s holding her, but that’s all I’m comfortable saying.”
“I get it, and it’s probably good at this point. Any other home would be better for those kids than that one.”
“You’ve got that right,” I said.
“Miss Gentry! Miss Gentry!”
I looked over and saw Zoey running up to me, her hair blowing in the wind. She was holding out something in her hand and I scooped her up before she tripped on a tree root. She wrapped her arms around me and I smiled, taking in her comforting warmth as her legs wiggled to be put down.
“What is it, sweetheart?” I asked.
“I made this for you.”
“What is it?”
“Look!”
She held out a card for me made out of construction paper and glitter. I plucked the car from her hand and saw a picture on the front with the people on it labeled. Me, Ryan, her, and her brothers. All standing around holding hands.
“That is beautiful, thank you so much,” I said.
“Open it up,” she said.
“Oh there’s more? Lucky me,” I said with a smile.
And what I saw made my heart soar.
“It says, ‘thank you, Miss Gentry, for loving me lots to take me home.’,” Zoey said. “And there’s a big heart on the back.”
I blinked back tears as I held the card against my chest. I crouched down and wrapped my arm around the little girl and felt her drop into me. Her head was nuzzled underneath my chin as I stroked my fingers through her hair and I could feel her need to be close to someone. She scrambled up my body and wrapped her legs around my waist, so I tightened my grasp and stood with her on my hip.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you so much,” I said.
“Did you read the other side?” Zoey asked.
“What other side?” I asked.
“Where the heart is. On the back. Did you read it?”
I furrowed my brow as I turned the card over. Zoey was right. There was another message written on the back. But it wasn’t in Zoey’s messy handwriting. It was in crayon. A bright yellow against the dark green construction paper. But it wasn’t messy at all.
In fact, it was written in a very beautiful cursive.
“What does it say?” Zoey asked.
“Yeah. What does it say?” Catherine asked.
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