by Cynthia Dane
Okay!
The doorman coolly greeted them both. They took a hidden elevator away from the main lobby. When the gilded doors opened on some unknown floor, Alice was greeted with utter, peaceful silence… and a red carpeted hallway.
“This way.” Ms. Clayborn led, pulling out a keycard and flexing her fingers to input some security code in the nearest door. Alice felt like they were stealing through the servants’ entrance.
Far from the truth.
“Wow.” She entered an atrium. That’s what this was, right? No way was this a man’s humble abode. Ha! Humble! Alice had to crane her head back to look up three stories, where a myriad of steel beams crossed and distributed the sunlight streaming through the polished skylights. When she lowered and focused her eyes again, she realized she was standing in an open room full of sparse leather furniture and potted plants, each sweet in scent and texture. A fountain trickled in the center of the atrium, topped with a statue of a warrior-like mermaid carrying a trident.
“Please, Ms. Culver.” Ms. Clayborn gestured to the floating staircase leading up to the second floor. “I will take you to where you are to wait for Mr. Monroe. He’s in the middle of a conference call.”
Alice nodded. She was too busy making sure she didn’t trip up the stairs to say anything of substance.
Ms. Clayborn left her in a dark, medium-sized room that boasted a single window overlooking the downtown metropolis. At least it was a great view. Alice bypassed more leather furniture and antique standing lamps to take in the purple and pink clouds appearing on the far horizon. An airplane floated not too far away. The soft carpeting of the room made her heels slowly sink, her hand gripping the windowsill to steady herself.
She didn’t know how many minutes passed before she heard a familiar voice.
“So glad to see you again, Ms. Culver.”
At least Alice wasn’t startled this time. When she turned to face the man who got her fired – and took her virginity, one could not forget – she was prepared to see Damon Monroe dressed in another crisp suit. Oh, she got that. She also got the perfectly combed black hair and slightly less stubble than last time.
The cologne. It was back. Stronger than ever? Well, something had to herald his arrival.
“I hope you summoned me here to apologize.” No need to impress the man now. Not like he was her boss or anything.
Monroe stopped his slow advancement. His eyes glistened in curiosity before he spoke. “Now what do I have to apologize for?”
Alice snorted. “Let’s start with purposely seducing me so you could turn around and get me fired. I was let in on your game.”
“Ah.” He stuck his hands in his pockets before sauntering over to a coffee table along the edge of the mahogany paneled wall. One hand came out to flip open a first edition copy of Wuthering Heights. “To be fair, Ms. Culver, you were made aware of the rules. You chose to ignore them. For that you were justly let go from your position. I can’t have hostesses in my club who will do such things with guests.”
Heat flamed in Alice’s cheeks. “What makes you think I thought of you as a guest?”
“You’re not suggesting that I forced you… are you?” That careful gaze over his shoulder made Alice shudder where she stood. What a bastard.
“No!” Alice may have been willing to fuck her boss on the job, but she wasn’t a liar. She had wanted it, all right. Too much so. “You held a position of authority over me, though. What would have happened if I said no?”
“I would have left you alone.” Monroe carefully closed the book and turned to her again. I hate his eyes. Stop looking at me like that. Although he gazed right into her visage, it was still like he undressed her skirt and blouse from her body, peering at her nakedness with as much hunger as he possessed the other night. “Simple as that.”
Keep making it sound like it was my fault. Did he or did he not come on to her? Would’ve been another thing if she had instigated sex. Monroe had made it pretty clear, though, that he wanted her first and foremost.
“If I may, Ms. Culver, I don’t have much time for socializing. I’m a busy man, and I have other appointments to keep later this evening. If it’s all right with you, I’d like to cut right to the chase of why I have asked you here.”
Alice pulled her shoulders back and kept her mouth taut. “Go on. I admit that I am curious. If it’s not to get me into further trouble, I can’t imagine why you have gone out of your way to send your assistant to fetch me a week after the fact.”
His teeth revealed themselves through his thin lips. He looked like a predator about to rip her jugular. Why the hell was that making her knees tremble? Shit, this is what got me in trouble last time. Already her body screamed at her to find a way to make this man hers again. “Remember how he did you, Alice? You always knew you were missing out on sex. You knew what potential lurked with a man who knew what he was doing. Your pussy had been ready for ten YEARS! Don’t you think it’s time you caught up with your peers on the sex front? I bet he’s ready to give it to you again. Play your cards right, girl!” Her body could go to hell.
“I apologize for any inconvenience I have wrought upon your life, Ms. Culver.” He was only a few feet away now, his aura threatening to swallow her whole again. “I don’t gain any pleasure out of you losing your job.” Monroe’s hand touched the tip of her ponytail. Alice took a careful step toward the window. “I do, however, derive much pleasure from your presence. Regardless of how events turned out the other night, I hope that you can agree with me that it was a good time for the both of us.”
Alice’s cheeks flushed with heat again. This time, however, it was not anger fueling her reactions. It’s all embarrassment now.
“I’ve asked you back here for one reason, Ms. Culver.”
His voice was right in her ear again. Such a dangerous place for it to be. It was liable to make Alice shake in her heels and close her eyes so she could imagine him taking her again like he took her the other night. Fine thing that would be. Alice couldn’t tell a soul if she was serious or not. Some things remained a mystery even to her.
“What is that reason, Mr. Monroe?”
His fingertips pushed her chin up, head back. Alice now looked directly into those strange amber eyes.
“For an encore.”
Unbelievable, and yet Alice wasn’t surprised at all. He had flippantly fucked her after only knowing her for half an hour and two conversations. Why wouldn’t he send his (female!) assistant to fetch her for another quickie in his downtown bachelor pad?
“I don’t know what kind of girl you take me for, Mr. Monroe,” she said, defying that burning thrill in his eyes, “but I don’t exist for you to stick it in me whenever you want.”
He continued to smile. “You could.”
Alice jerked away from his touch. “What?”
“Hm.” That smirk faded. “Never mind.” Monroe turned, acting as if he were going to leave the room. “I’m sorry to have wasted your time, Ms. Culver. I’m sure Ms. Clayborn told you that I value mine so much. I do not intend to waste anyone’s time, least of all yours.”
His figure joined the shadows of the far side of the room. “Who said you were wasting my time?” Alice said.
The air grew thick and warm. Alice sucked in her breath as she watched Monroe turn once more, still on the other side of the room.
“You summoned me here out of the blue. I had to get dressed all nice and pretty to meet with you. I’ve waited here for ten, fifteen minutes for you to deign me with your presence. Now you’re going to walk away? Excuse me, but I think I deserve something for my efforts. And time. I should be looking for a new job. Least you could do is give me a reference.” Shit. A reference from this guy would be great!
“You’re right. My apologies. But excuse me if I’m now wary of your sincerity, Ms. Culver.” He tapped his foot once, finger pointing to his polished shoe. “If you wish to take me up on my offer, you can come here and tell me yourself.”
Why you…
Alice hated him. That was the only word she could use to describe how she felt. Her blood heated. Her face twisted. Her heart demanded repayment. Her body… well, it was the biggest traitor in the room.
It wanted to go to him and see what happened.
I swear. Alice took one step forward, careful to not show her nerves. You get one hot taste of sex and you turn into a…
She was mere inches away from Monroe before she had the chance to finish her thought. “All right,” she whispered. Yet she already planned her next move. “Like you, my time is valuable. I need to go home soon.”
“I’m glad we’re on the same page.” Monroe hesitantly touched her shoulder before relaxing his grip and letting his hand wander down her back. I’m going to explode! Especially with him looking at her like this! “The question is, how much? Have you thought of me at all since a week ago?”
Alice closed her eyes and focused on her breathing as Monroe squeezed her ass through her pencil skirt. Remember how he spanked it? Fuck. “You’re a hard man to forget, Mr. Monroe.”
“Didn’t I tell you to call me Monroe?” His fingers wrapped around the tie in her hair. There. He pulled it. Pulled her head back. Made her look at the ceiling as he nipped her throat and licked the tip of her chin. “I’ve thought of you every single day, Ms. Culver. You may regret losing your job, but I’m glad you let me fuck you. I haven’t been able to think about anything else since.”
He was probably a big liar. Men like this always lied and only had sincere bones for business. Personal relationships? There had to be a reason he was single. “So I guess you want to do it again, huh?”
“Feel for yourself, Ms. Culver.”
He really needed to stop saying her name like that!
And she really needed to stop volunteering to grab his cock and marvel at its hardness. Because that was the fast track to hell.
Sure enough, the devil himself growled like a beast and pulled her straight into his dark embrace. Alice never stood a chance, assuming she even cared to.
This isn’t real. This can’t be true. I’m dreaming. Alice refused to join reality out of sheer disbelief that such a reality existed outside of some cornered fantasies stashed away for the rest of her life. A life that was doomed to spinsterhood or settling for a man who made her laugh but not much else. Damon Monroe was not the man of her reality. He certainly wasn’t kissing her, hands already halfway up her skirt and groping every inch of flesh they could find. Why would he want her again? He had her once. Not like I did anything special. I was just there. He did everything. All she did was take it. Again. And again.
Her body certainly thought it was going to take it again, right now.
“Why, Ms. Culver,” came that aphrodisiac from his throat. “You have yet to fail to impress me with how ready you seem to always be.”
She gasped against his stubbly chin. “Didn’t think you were a man who liked to wait, even for sex.”
“Especially for sex.” Monroe squeezed her, teeth grazing the white of her throat. Oh my God, suck all my blood out now, Dracula. “I’m glad we’re on the same page.”
She clutched his shoulders. The fabric of Monroe’s suit was so soft and elastic that it moved like butter within her grasp. “Do whatever you want to me.” The words went straight from her subconscious to her lips without any vetting from her brain.
She could feel him grin against her skin. How was such a thing possible? For such a closed-off man, he sure advertised his desires.
“You don’t take a lot of persuading, hm?” Monroe eased them back, slowly, but not slowly enough to keep Alice from tripping in her shoes. Monroe caught her every time until she was bumped against the back of a couch. This seems familiar. Yup. She was definitely dreaming. Reliving her amazing first time with a new outfit and some slightly different scenery.
Well, fantasies should be allowed to play out, yes?
“Only with you, sir.”
She got as much of a thrill calling him that as he did. Or at least she was pretty sure that was a thrill pushing her deeper into the back of the couch. Thrill was synonymous with bulging erection, right?
What was he going to do with it? With her? Alice caught a sly look from him, before he pulled open the front of her blouse and nearly tore her bra from her body. Gasp after gasp made their escape as Monroe did more than fondle her. He pinched her. Kissed her. Sucked her as hard as he had the other night. Giving the man free reign to do whatever he wanted was the right idea. What did Alice know? She was inexperienced, yes, but was old enough to know what she wanted to try. She knew what it was like for a man – this man – to fuck her, to use her body and make her come on his cock. Not once, but twice! How many women got to say that happened their first time, regardless of age?
She was ready for anything. Long overdue. Her time had come, and she was ready.
So when Monroe suffocated her with his mouth, she threw herself into it. Touching him. Grabbing him. There would be no mistaking her for anything but an experienced women who knew what she was about and what she liked. Monroe would never guess he had plucked her virginity, so help her.
Him knowing that would’ve changed everything.
He smells so good. Tastes so good. Feels so good. Alice was determined to commit every kiss and touch to memory. The way his silk tie slid through her fingers. The way his hips thrust against her thighs. The way his breath shot hot and hard against her skin, her nipples, the depths of her navel. That damn cologne was headier than her own sexual scent emerging when Monroe ripped her tights at the seam and shoved his fingers into her with only a possessive grunt to warn her. Alice cried out, pulling his tie and bracing herself against the couch as he went from 0 to 60 fucking her with his fingers. Her hips did not hesitate to meet his movements.
“You’re the tightest woman I’ve felt in a while.” Alice was too drunk on the moment to roll her eyes at such a “compliment.” Even privileged billionaires were too dumb to know how biology worked. Whatever. It was hot! “How badly do you want my cock, Ms. Culver?”
Her mission to undo his shirt buttons so she could finally get a glimpse of his skin went unaccomplished. The man wasn’t even touching her clit and she was already preparing to come. You want to talk about tight, buddy? Alice had touched herself enough times to know how she felt in there when she started to come. I’ll give you tight.
“Yes,” she whimpered, clenching him with every muscle she possessed. “Give it to me.”
“Where are your manners?” Monroe’s fingers stilled inside of her.
“Please…”
“Please?”
He toyed with her. His favorite game. Their minimal amount of encounters made sure Alice knew that if nothing else. “Please, Monroe.” Alice couldn’t believe it. She was begging like she didn’t know how to live without his touch. “Please fuck me.” He was fingering her to open the way for his cock, right? It had been big, right? I’m not misremembering. Please don’t tell me I made that up. The man had rivaled her favorite sex toy. What a grand honor!
Monroe held her crumbling gaze as he unzipped his trousers and pulled out his cock. I did not make that up. Both relief and anticipation claimed her.
“If you want me so badly, Ms. Culver…” He flicked her cheek with one hand while steadfastly grabbing himself with the other. “Then I’m sure you won’t object to demonstrating how much you love it.”
Maybe it was her inexperience. Maybe it was her sex-addled brain. Either way, it took her a few seconds to catch his meeting. Once it hit her? Really? Right now? Talk about another first!
The farthest she had ever gone giving oral before resulted in her lightly licking an old boyfriend’s tip and shirking away at the taste. To be fair, I wasn’t really into that guy. He didn’t make her tremble in lust the way Monroe did. Glancing down at what he possessed made her consider such a thing a high honor.
Do it, girl. It can’t be that difficult. Come on!
She looked between his face and his co
ck. Both were quite beautiful, but only one was offering her any pleasure at the moment.
“Ms. Culver.” He snatched her chin in his hand and gazed so deep into her eyes that she worried he would drown. As if he’s that weak. “You have no idea how much I want to see this beautiful mouth all over my cock.”
He had such a grand way with words. He could tell her that using the vocab of a five-year-old and she would still be smitten.
Fact of the matter was, she could smell herself on his fingers, and it served as a grim reminder that she hadn’t come yet – even though she was starved to do so. Give him what he wants, and I get what I want. Who knew? Maybe she’d be good at it. Only one way to find out.
Monroe leaned against the couch as Alice knelt on the soft carpet. The closer her mouth came to him, the more her heart fluttered in… excitement? Was that what was happening to her? You’re kidding me, right? Guess it really is different when you’re doing it. The woman never had much of an oral fixation, so she never felt a huge drive to swallow a guy’s cock. Yet when Damon Monroe told her to get on her knees and pleasure him, she was hard pressed to walk away and not obey.
She liked obeying his commands. First, she wasn’t allowed to say anything but Yes or No. Then she was guided into whatever position struck his fancy. She had to beg. She had to tell him how much she loved it without using any words.
Now? She would take him or leave him as is. He didn’t have time for her to dither. They would do what he wanted, or she could go home without her torn tights.
Most of all, however, Alice refused to betray the veneer she crafted around this man. He would not be disappointed. She would rely on instinct, and probably his hand… because she didn’t doubt that he would have a lot of opinions on what she should do.
Pretend you know what you’re doing, girl. Cock. Mouth. Suck it.
Anyone else, and she may have taken it slowly. Ease into it. Test the waters under the guise of teasing him. Monroe, however, was not a man who wanted to be teased. Fuck. That. He wanted it now. He wanted it quickly. He wanted to stew in the power he commanded whenever he had sex. This was a man who didn’t bother taking off his clothes. He summoned women to his place and told them, “Fuck me or leave. It’s your choice, but those are your options.”
