The phone clicks and the line goes dead.
Fuck!
I’ve never been so shell-shocked in my entire life. It’s like the floor has just been pulled from under me and I’m staring at a great gaping cavern in the sidewalk. People around me are giving me curious stares.
There’s a huge aching hole in the pit of my stomach, and it’s gnawing at me, rapidly eating me up. I feel hollow and awful, and I would throw up, had I eaten anything in the last eight hours.
She’s not at her apartment.
And everything she said rings true.
I feel this way about her right now. But what’s to say I’ll feel the same way down the line? Can I give up a life of poly-amorous relationships, which I’ve been conditioned to crave, for one woman?
My fists are bunched so hard that I can feel the indent of my fingernails in my palms.
I’m going to find her.
And I think I know where she is.
BETH
“So what would you do now?” Lyla says.
We are lying on her bed in her apartment, which is a lot nicer than mine. Well, at least, it has two bedrooms and a real kitchen, and outside, there are no frequent police sirens wailing down the street.
She’s sprawled on her pillows while I’m on my belly. The weight of the world presses down upon me and I feel weary and old.
“I don’t know. Find another job, I guess.” I need to. I have a sister to support to TMU, and my Mom is going to need that knee replacement.
“Here in Chicago?”
“I guess. It’s as good a start as any.”
What’s back home for me anyway? A trail of unemployment and bills.
“I’ve got an idea,” Lyla says, turning over. “It can net you big money overnight if you play your cards right.”
“What?”
“You can sue him for sexual harassment. It is harassment, isn’t it, the way he was always coming on to you?”
“No! Of course not. It was consensual.”
Lyla rolls her eyes. “Yeah, but he’s loaded. You can make it out as if he’s really harassed you.”
“Lyla! You don’t sue someone just because they’re loaded. It isn’t right! I can’t believe you’re even contemplating it.”
“OK, OK, OK.” Lyla sighs. “God, I wish he’d go consensual on me. I’d consensual him all right. You haven’t told me about his penis. Does he have a huge penis?”
“Lyla!”
“You’re such a wet rag. Boy, if it were me in your shoes, I’d be playing with his penis all day, right under that big desk in that oval office on his. You sure you’re doing the right thing by walking out on him?”
I shake my head. Even though the mental images Lyla concocts are vivid and vulgar, melancholy is the current theme that permeates my side of the bed. “I don’t know. Maybe I’ll never know. But I do know I can’t go on with him like this. I need something more . . . normal.”
“I think you’re making too big a deal out of this. So what if he can’t commit? I’d use his body every day and ride him like a bull. So I’m crude. Kick me.”
I don’t think I even want to bother kicking her.
The doorbell chimes.
Lyla raises her eyebrows. “Who can that be in the middle of the night? Oh, I know who. Mr. Lafferty next door has been trying to get into my pants, like, forever. I’ll bet he’s taken his Viagra again and that old and fat Mrs. Lafferty who has a mole with a hair on her chin won’t let him do her.”
I’m amused despite myself. Not being with Chris hurts in my bones like a viral ache, but being with him hurts equally as much, so I’m better off where I am.
I’ve typed out my resignation letter, electronically signed it and sent it to him via email, cc-ing HR. It’s going to be a rude surprise for Mr. Sully in the morning. I’ll follow it up with an official dispatch.
It’s the right thing to do, I convince myself.
Lyla’s trite voice wafts into the bedroom. “I don’t think she wants to see you, Mr. Morton, but I’ll ask her anyway.”
I sit up in shock. Chris is here? How did he guess?
Oh, of course. During my interview, I told him about having a friend in Accounting, the only person I knew in the whole of Chicago. He’s smart, so he made the connection.
I’m wearing Lyla’s oversized T-shirt, and I don’t exactly look my best. I pat my hair down hastily and get up from the bed as Chris walks into the room in the clothes I last saw him in.
He’s disheveled, haggard and pale, but he’s still a glorious sight to behold. My heart immediately goes into stoppage mode. This is the exact reason why I didn’t want to break up with him in person. I knew I wouldn’t have the guts to do it to his face.
Just one look at his beautiful face, and I’ll melt again.
I feel myself already melting into a puddle. I’m weak, and I have to be stronger. I have to say ‘No’.
Lyla is behind him, curiously peeking in. I try to signal to her to leave us alone, but she’s persistently standing in the doorway of her bedroom. Well, I do suppose it’s her bedroom.
“Beth?” Chris says.
“Chris – ”
The first sentence out of Chris’s mouth is not what I expected to hear at all.
He says, “I accept your resignation.”
BETH
I’m stunned.
So is Lyla, by the frozen look on her face.
“You do?” I squeak.
“You do?” Lyla echoes.
Chris says, “Yes. If it’s one of the barriers in the way of us being together, then I don’t want to be your boss anymore.”
He turns around to Lyla and says in a low but firm tone, “Can we have a little privacy, please?”
Lyla gulps. “Uh, yes, Mr. Morton. Right away, Mr. Morton.”
She scoots off.
I’m rooted to the spot. Chris comes in and shuts the door behind him. His expression is bruised but hopeful. His beautiful hazel eyes are pained.
“I’m not going to make promises I won’t keep, and I totally understand if you don’t want to see me ever again. But we have something between us – something far more than just friendship or a purely sexual relationship. And we owe each to ourselves to try. That’s all I’m asking, Beth. Let me try to have a normal relationship for once, and I want to try it for the first time with you.”
I’m listening. My insides are churning inside, and there are butterflies in my stomach and everywhere else, but I’m still listening.
He goes on, “I don’t know what the future will bring us, but that’s probably the case between two people in most relationships. Doesn’t stop them from putting a foot in the hot water though, no matter what prejudices and preconceived ideas they came with. Because you are prejudiced against me, Beth. You think I can’t change because of my past, but I’m already changing even as we’re talking. We’re all changing every day in our lives as new events and new experiences force their way upon us.
“So give us a try, that’s all I’m asking. I know I’m saying it for the second time this week, but I mean it and I don’t know of any other hearts-and-flowers way to say it.”
He pauses.
My eyes begin to fill with tears.
“I’ll help you get a job and back up on your feet, but you don’t have to take anything you don’t want to from me,” he adds.
I’m still frozen.
Again, the war rages fiercely between my stubborn head and my heart.
He’s right about my prejudices. I’m judging him for his past, and for something he hasn’t yet done. He has been nothing but brutally honest with me from the start. And he’s being brutally honest with me now.
I can’t ask for more than that from a man. I really can’t.
I find myself saying, “Yes.”
And this time, the tears that threaten finally spill down my cheeks in a deluge. It’s a watershed, but suddenly, I’m in his arms, and he’s in my arms, and we are pressed together in a world where there are
no certainties – but only trials, effort, hope and a lot of blossoming love.
BETH
It is our seventh day together, and we are lying in each other’s arms in a boat down Chicago River, watching the architectural wonders on either side stream by. It’s almost like a Venetian gondola, and our boatman is steady as he steers us downriver.
We have both taken the day off to celebrate this occasion. Of course, I’m now gainfully unemployed.
My bags have been packed and I’m moving in with Chris temporarily until I can earn enough to find a better apartment. That is one concession I won’t make. I don’t want his money, and I won’t yet move in with a man I’ve only intimately known for a week.
I’m aware that might be yet another threshold I may soon cross. Another life ideal I have to put a sledgehammer to.
Maybe the future will bring us up the river, and maybe we may just trail lazily down it.
But right now, everything feels right.
Dear Reader, thank you so much for reading this story.
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Her Wish, His Command
Dominating BDSM Billionaires Book 3
Malia Mallory
Doctor Anna Foster may just get what she wants: sexy fellow researcher Jonah Granger. She's been in love with him for years, but Jonah has always been more interested in work at his family's business, Granger Pharma, than romance. Now that they've admitted their attraction, Anna may even be able to tell him what she really wants: to submit to him.
But Granger Pharma faces a hostile takeover. Sensitive data and samples are missing from Anna and Jonah's lab; it may be corporate espionage. Everyone is under suspicion and, and they're even beginning to question each other. Anna must discover the truth if she's going to save both her job and her relationship with the man she dreams of serving.
Chapter 1
"Anna, don't be so dismayed. It's only for a few weeks, a month at most." Frank's eyes widened behind the thick lenses of his glasses as he pleaded for understanding. Sweat gleamed on his scalp under the frizzy strands of his combed-over hair. "Someone has to double up with Jonah and, honestly, I thought you were the best choice. You can get along with anyone." He delivered his compliment with a forced smile and leaned over his messy desk toward her.
Anna took a deep breath and fidgeted in her chair, causing it to squeak. Her easy-going reputation was well established around the labs. She'd expected that she'd have to move during renovations, but sharing with Jonah? Jonah Granger? Sharing a lab with him would be difficult. First, his interpersonal skills, or rather his lack thereof, were notorious. Second, he was obsessive-compulsive. Everything had to be just so in his space. Lastly, and, most importantly, Anna loved Jonah — had loved him for years. His gruff exterior challenged her to find the warm core she'd glimpsed inside him.
When Anna snagged an internship at Granger Pharma as a graduate student, she'd worked a rotation with Jonah, and unbeknownst to him, given her heart. He'd never indicated that he returned her interest, and over the years, she'd packed her emotions away like treasured possessions in a trunk. She'd held off accepting a job offer from Granger Pharma for two years, afraid that working in close proximity to Jonah would be too painful. Eventually, the lure of her own lab and abundant resources changed her mind. It hadn't been as hard as she'd thought. She didn't have constant contact with Jonah, especially since he'd hired Frank to manage the labs. Bringing in Frank removed responsibilities from Jonah so he could focus solely on his research.
Anna hadn't held her breath waiting for Jonah. She hadn't expected he would ever notice her. She recognized she was pretty in a way, but her features often faded into the background given her fair complexion. Between that and her light blonde hair, she didn't stand out, or so she thought. She never noticed the lingering male stares as her pale hair swayed across her back or even the not so subtle glances at her slender but feminine figure.
With determination, Anna hid her feelings for Jonah. She'd dated frequently. She'd explored relationships. But she hadn't found anyone to make her heart give up its grip on Jonah. What was it that drew her? Sure, he was brilliant, unbelievably so. His work and research were impressive and lucrative to the company his family had founded. Jonah's brother, Marcus, garnered the handsome label in their family, but Jonah was attractive in a more rugged way, rough where Marcus was polished. Despite being incredibly focused on his work, Jonah managed to find time for regular physical pursuits to keep in shape. He claimed it kept his mind sharp and enabled him to withstand his workload. Jonah possessed a sense of humor, but he only dragged it out occasionally. He encompassed an unusual mix — attractive, sexy, smart — but also absent-minded, aloof, and at times, abrupt. On the surface, he seemed similar to any other man, but Anna knew there was more, and it was that core that pulled her like a magnet.
Her imagination worked overtime with regard to Jonah. She dreamt of him taking her into his arms and holding her. She fantasized about him — fantasized that he clasped her wrists in one hand and bore her down to the ground, crushing her beneath him. His lips, hot against her skin, traveled every soft curve as his free hand roamed unchecked over her body. Reflecting on it now brought it back in a rush that made her wish she were at home alone. Jonah had figured prominently in her solo sex life for years. On occasion, he'd even invaded her thoughts when she was with other men. She'd discovered her desires and needs in other relationships, all the time wishing it were Jonah taking charge instead.
Over the years, she'd watched women walk in and out of Jonah's life. When he deigned to make an effort, his manners and charm, coupled with his brains and money, generated a potent combination that attracted women with little trouble. It never lasted, though. No woman had ever captured his full attention. Relationship after relationship eventually withered due to his neglect. Sometimes he lived in his lab for days at a time, his research consuming his thoughts. Most women tired of that behavior eventually.
Perhaps sharing a lab with Jonah would be a good thing and close proximity would show her things had changed, that her love had faded. She couldn't help putting a positive spin on the situation no matter how negative it seemed.
Anna gathered her thoughts together. "It's okay, Frank. I'm sure we can make it work for the time necessary." Her lips curled into a grin that was genuine.
Frank's relief was palpable. "I'll do everything I can to move things along. The schedule calls for completion of your area first. Barring anything unforeseen, you should be back in your own space before the end of summer." Frank fumbled with the papers on his desk.
Anna tipped her head and her smile turned sly. "Frank, you know you owe me for this, right?" Her voice teased but contained a hint of truth.
Frank grimaced. "I'll keep that in mind." He ran his hand over the top of his
balding head, smoothing his unruly comb-over.
Anna winked as she rose from her seat. With concerted effort over the years, she'd managed to come out of her shell. Her shyness reasserted itself now and again, but usually she interacted naturally with her co-workers and friends. No one knew the struggle she'd fought to overcome her fears. As a child, she'd cultivated invisibility as a defense. In her house, it had been better to be neither seen nor heard.
Anna exited Frank's office and made her way back to her lab. She composed a checklist in her mind of the tasks necessary to complete the transportation of her research and equipment. As she stepped inside, Anna saw that Carrie, her tech, was back from lunch. They'd need to get started right away to prepare for the move, however temporary the displacement.
Anna dropped the renovation file on her desk. "Did you have a good lunch?"
Carrie looked up from her task, auburn curls bobbing. "Just a salad."
"I spoke with Frank. We have a couple of days to move everything out. They're starting the lab renovations."
Carrie pouted a moment before shrugging. "Well, we knew this was coming. We've prepared a few things."
Anna leaned against the counter. "That's true."
"Where are we relocating to?"
Anna paused for a beat. "Jonah's lab."
"What? Are you kidding?" Carrie exclaimed.
"I am so not kidding," she added with a hint of humor.
Carrie didn't bother to hide her dismay. "Does Jonah know?"
"I'm sure he must."
Carrie shook her head. "I can't imagine him agreeing."
Anna shrugged. "He must have. Frank wouldn't make the assignment otherwise."
Carrie stood and paced in front of her desk as color rose in her face. "Jonah doesn't even like people to come into his lab. Toni went in there to deliver a box, and Gordon, that assistant of Jonah's, practically bit her head off."
Shades of Submission: Fifty by Fifty #1: Billionaire Romance Boxed Set Page 10
