by Marian Tee
She colored at the thought.
Looking back at Leandro, she could see the wariness in his gaze and her heart softened as she realized one thing. “You’re embarrassed about your glasses, aren’t you?”
Leandro just shrugged. She knew she had guessed right…and that meant she had misjudged him in many ways. It touched her, the way Leandro was so sensitive to criticism like her that he had decided to hide behind a disguise. Sarcasm had been her defense while his had been arrogance. Someone this sensitive couldn’t have possibly seen her only as a challenge and meant to play with her just to while the time away. Right?
When Leandro adjusted his glasses the third time in the past five minutes, Bobby’s heart skipped a beat. That was a sign of unease, of nervousness – emotions that made one vulnerable, and which she would never have thought applicable to Leandro Christopoulos.
Bu apparently, she was wrong about him over a lot of things.
She said stiltedly, “I’m sorry. I just realized I misjudged you and never really let you explain.”
The words stunned Leandro. Never had he dreamt she would apologize to him so suddenly!
He said carefully, “I don’t blame you for thinking the same things others would have probably thought.”
“Don’t.” Bobby felt even more miserable at Leandro’s nice words. “I know when I’m the one who messed up, and this time I did mess up so I’m sorry. I was wrong to assume so many things – like how you only saw me as a challenge and that you didn’t really care about how I felt while you were gone. I thought you deliberately kept me in the dark because you were subconsciously teaching me who’s the boss between us.”
Had he? Leandro tried to think about it objectively. He had not wanted her to know because he did not want to risk her thinking she had enslaved him…and feel duty-bound to return his feelings, the way his parents might also feel the same towards their adopted son.
Slowly, heart beating madly, Bobby made herself offer her hand to him. “I know I don’t deserve this after acting like such a stuck-up bitch with you, but I want to be honest. I want you to know that I want to be your…friend. So…friends?”
Leandro was trying his best to hold his tongue. All of this – just because he wore a stupid pair of glasses?
He took her hand slowly. “Only on one condition.”
His touch was heat magnified a thousand times, and she did her best to keep herself from trembling. But it was no use. And by the way his grip tightened around hers, Bobby knew that Leandro was completely aware of how his touch affected her.
Friends? Ha! Who was she kidding? Friends didn’t tremble just because they were shaking hands.
When it took so long for him to answer, pride came to Bobby’s rescue. She started to tell him it was no biggie – that she could deal with him not wanting to be “friends” with her like a big girl – when he smiled.
The smile had her silently gasping, her eyes widening as that tiny sexy smile transformed his face into something mesmerizing and hypnotic, and those glasses of his only added to his appeal. “You must allow me to take you out.”
Chapter 9
The “date” was supposed to take place in a fancy restaurant with both of them dressed up, serenaded by great music as he wined and dined Bobby and, if possible, feast on her wonderfully curvy body as his dessert.
But instead, he found himself at the front door of a red-brick building asking for Bobby.
“Are you Leandro Chris-Cross?”
Leandro nearly choked at the way the older harried-looking woman butchered his family’s name, which was one of the oldest and most illustrious in Greece. “I am Leandro Christopoulos, yes.”
“Good. She’s expecting you. She’s in her office – just go straight down the hallway and it’s the last door on your left.”
He was about to thank her when the woman slammed the door on his face.
Leandro blinked.
The door opened again a second later. “Sorry. I forgot you were supposed to come in.”
She had forgotten he was supposed to come in? What else was he supposed to do when he was here to visit Bobby?
“Close the door for me, will you? I need to get back to the kids.” She hurried away and disappeared around the corner. There was a lot of wailing and Leandro winced at the sound, knowing that whatever had caused Bobby to take a rain check on their date, it was surely of critical proportions.
Walking down the hallway, he stopped on the last door to his left and knocked.
“Come in.”
Bobby also sounded distracted, and when he entered her office, she looked up with a frustrated face that Leandro found surprisingly…cute.
“I’m sorry again about our…”
“Date?” He kept his voice bland, but his eyes laughed at her.
She grimaced. “That.”
Sensing how nervous she was, he casually took out his fake glasses from his pocket and put it on, taking his time to adjust them on his nose. When he looked back at Bobby, Leandro knew that he had been right to put on his disguise.
She was smiling now, obviously more relaxed. “You look so different when you have glasses,” she told him.
“Different in what way?”
Bobby seriously mulled it over. “Well, I guess it makes you more…human? Imperfect?”
“And that’s a good thing?”
“It makes me less self-conscious around you,” she explained. “That’s all.” She gave him a sweet smile – something Leandro doubted Bobby would do if he didn’t have his glasses on. “I’m really sorry about this. We took in several new charges just yesterday and all of them fell sick within a few hours. The doctor told us it was chicken pox.” She let out a big sigh. “Unfortunately, we’re also understaffed right now, with one of the caregivers on leave and another down with the flu.”
“So you need to be here just in case they need an extra hand?”
She nodded, adding, “And to keep things calm and make them think they have a leader here.”
He told her bluntly, “You are their leader and from what I can see, you’re doing more than well, championing this foundation’s cause.”
She flushed with pleasure at his words. “Thank you for saying that. It’s…high praise, coming from you.” She bit her lip, wishing she could say all the other things she wanted to say to him but felt so stupidly shy to do so.
“Shall we, umm, have dinner then?” Bobby gestured towards the mini dining room in her office. It basically served as her studio apartment since the office also had a mini kitchen and a sofa bed.
“I’d love to.”
He followed her to the table, taking a seat at her request. He offered to help her prepare the food but she waved the suggestion away, telling him that guests were never to be made to serve.
She served them pasta and salad, Mediterranean style, she had told him proudly. When he took a bite, he grimaced and slowly reached for his glass of water. Someone had to tell Bobby that Mediterranean was more salty or spicy than sweet.
“So…how did this start?”
The question was something frequently asked of her, and Bobby was used to answering it. More than that, she actually enjoyed answering such questions, and so she happily took her time telling Leandro about Voiceless Haven, which operated as an orphanage for children with hearing impairment.
“I was sixteen when my parents made me a part of the committee, and believe me, the older ladies didn’t want me. They did everything they could to block my membership, thinking that I’m the poster child for New Jersey Shore.”
He said straight-faced, “I think its name is Jersey Shore.”
Bobby smacked her forehead. “Oh yeah. I keep forgetting that. But you get what I mean, right? Well, the first day I came here and I was dressed like this, one of the board members mistook me as one of the help and got me to help the milkman carry boxes of milk into the kitchen. They were horrified when they found out what happened, but I thought it was hilarious. Five months after t
hat, they gave me this office,” she said proudly. “I want to be really hands-on and stay as close to the kids as possible.”
“And the kids? How do you find them?” He was genuinely interested to hear what she had to say, but more than that, he wanted to watch Bobby’s expressive face as she talked about the foundation. She was so passionate about it, and she was only eighteen years old.
“The usual. The government sends them our way, but we’ve also put the word out of the street and because of that, we have a higher walk-in rate than usual.”
His eyebrow raised at that. “Do you mean the children come in here on their own?”
“The older ones, yes. And sometimes, the parents themselves bring them here. Other times, local parishes tell us about deaf children being mistreated or neglected in other orphanages and we negotiate for their release into our care.”
“So you bribe them.”
“Or blackmail them with bad publicity,” she said cheerfully.
His lips curved. “I approve.”
She laughed. “I thought you would.” She then realized she had been talking all the time and her cheeks turned red. Yikes! He must think she was such a self-centered chick. “I’m sorry for rambling,” she said, cringing.
Leandro was bemused by the apology. “You weren’t. I liked listening to you.” At her doubtful look, he rolled his eyes and said, “Do you have to doubt everything I say?”
“Only when you say something that’s too good to be true.”
“You’re too cynical.”
She quipped, “It’s because I want to be like you when I grow up.” His laugh made her stomach do somersaults, and Bobby knew she was blushing again. It was strange, the way Leandro didn’t seem to mind how snarky or outspoken she was…
Something might have shown on her face at the memories Bobby was suddenly trying not to remember because Leandro asked, “What is it?”
She shook her head quickly. “Nothing.”
“You became pale all of a sudden, mégaira. It must be something.”
“What does mégaira mean?”
He didn’t hesitate. “Shrew.”
A full second passed before she realized he wasn’t joking. “Jerk!” She laughingly crumpled a sheet of tissue into a ball and threw it at him.
He caught it handily with a smile…and threw it back at her. “But you are a shrew,” he said mildly.
She suddenly felt hot and tried not to think that it was because of the way Leandro was suddenly gazing at her. How did he do that? How could he just change the atmosphere from friendly bantering to one with sexual innuendo without anything being said? She wished she could cross her arms over her chest. She knew he was looking at her breasts, and she knew he knew she was getting excited over it. He had been the only one other than herself to see them bare, and his reaction that night had been, umm, gratifying. Like he was worshipping her because of it.
Bobby reached for her glass of wine. “If I’m such a shrew, why are you here?”
“Because you’re a hot shrew.”
She sputtered her wine. “Leandro!”
As she reached for her napkin and patted her lips dry, he said softly, “That’s the second time you’ve said my name.”
Bobby shrugged uncomfortably. “So?”
“You tell me.”
“It’s just a name.” She tried to sound snarky, but she ended up sounding so blasted feminine and weak. So not like the tough chick everyone thought she was.
His laugh was low, sexy, and mysterious. “You may deny it as much as you want, but I have a feeling I’m right in thinking you do not just call any man by his name.” When her eyes widened, Leandro knew he was spot on and he smiled in deep satisfaction. “That is good. You can only ever call me by my name, no one else.”
Bobby pursed her lips. She had learned her lesson. She was not going to get into an argument of that nature with him again. He’d only end up kissing her.
The pursed look on her face was beyond cute. It made Leandro want to kiss it off her lips and turn it into something else. His cock reacted at the thought and he shifted in his seat, trying to get comfortable. “Bobby,” he said huskily, leaning forward.
“Y-yes?” She couldn’t help leaning forward, too.
But before either of them could speak again, there was a knock on the door. “We need an extra pair of hands here! Two kids vomiting, green stuff all over the floor, and another has diarrhea, so there’s poop, too.”
The mood abruptly changed, and Leandro and Bobby immediately broke apart. Bobby jumped to her feet, unable to meet Leandro’s gaze. “I’m really sorry about this. But I need to go and---” Hands settled on her shoulders, turning her around.
And then he kissed her.
She didn’t even think of struggling this time.
What was the point? It was obvious to anyone that she was crazy about Leandro Christopoulos. Her hands climbed up and twined themselves around his neck as she returned his kiss, her head dizzy with the scorching-hot feelings of passion that assaulted her senses. Her body was on fire as Leandro’s hands roamed while he was kissing her, and she inadvertently let out a gasp when she felt his hands moving up to cup her breasts.
His hands were large, but her breasts were just the tiniest bit larger, and the fact that he couldn’t completely cover them had Leandro so hard and aroused. He knew if he didn’t put a stop to this he would be fucking her then and there, and to hell with everyone waiting for her to take command.
Leandro knew he had to let her go this very moment. It was the only way to keep himself from getting her naked and horizontal. But before he did that, he had to do one last thing, just one more taste---
“L-Leandro?” she whispered when their kiss broke off. But not a second passed before she realized that he was making quick work of her blouse. The next thing she knew, her blouse was completely unbuttoned, parting to the sides, and he was unclipping her bra.
“Le-aaaandroooooo…” His name turned into a moan as he plumped one breast reverently, taking the time to stare at it before he took her nipple into his mouth and started to suck. Hungrily. Like he was starving, and it was only her nipple in his mouth that was keeping him alive.
Her head rolled back and her nails dug deep into his back. It was so good. It was too good. She wished it wouldn’t stop, and she had to bite her lip hard when he moved to her other breast and did the same, sucking and sucking until her breasts felt so heavy and swollen, her body shaking in his arms.
Knock, knock, KNOCK!
“I’m getting desperate here, Bobby!”
But Leandro didn’t stop sucking on her nipple.
Oh God.
She had to swallow several times before she found her voice. “Umm, yes, I…I’m c-coming.” Leandro did not stop sucking, but she could feel his lips stretching…into a smirk. Jerk!
“You sure you’re coming?”
Leandro was laughing now. She dug her nails deeper into his back, but that only caused his shoulders to rock in silent laughter.
“Umm, yes. Five minutes.”
A pause.
“Well, he sure is good if he can get you to come in five---”
“Elvira!”
“Okay, okay, I’m coming---”
“ELVIRA!”
“I mean, I’m going.”
At the sound of receding footsteps, Leandro asked wickedly, “Are you, mégaira? Are you about to come?”
“Shut up.”
He kissed her hard and after, he bent down to squeeze her breasts and kiss her nipples tenderly, one by one, before getting her clothes in order. Bobby tried not to let her disappointment show as she found herself fully covered in a matter of seconds.
Leandro tipped her chin up. “Next time, we do this at my place.”
The finality of his words terrified her, and Bobby felt like he was asking – no, commanding – her to jump off a cliff and trust him to catch her. “I’m, umm…”
He kissed her again, more passionately this time, his tong
ue boldly pushing in, reminding her of the taste that she could not get enough of.
When he lifted his head to gaze down at her, a hard expression had settled on his gorgeous Greek face. “You can try to escape me, but it won’t work. I want you and I know you want me.” He murmured something in Greek, and seeing her frown, Leandro said simply, “You belong in my bed. It is your fate.”
Chapter 10
Two days later, Bobby stood outside her dorm, trying not to be anxious as she waited for Leandro. She had many reasons to be nervous, but she was doing her best to ignore all of them. A small nagging part of Bobby still doubted Leandro, thinking he was too good to be true. She had already been a victim of a guy’s cruel play with her feelings once. Was she setting herself up for the same pain again?
And then there was her clothes. When Leandro had said he’d be taking her out to meet the other members of his biker club, she had impulsively gone shopping. She was wearing a leather bolero, tight-fitting top, and a new pair of jeans. She had drawn the line on wearing killer heels – that one would just have Bobby end up crippled – but she did buy new flats, too. Everything else in her closet looked like they had been around since ancient times.
An expensive-looking car slowed down in front of her. Bobby held her breath when the window rolled down – and expelled it again as she schooled her face into a blank expression. It was not Leandro. It was Blaine and Valerie.
“Off to a hot date?” Valerie jeered. “Maybe you managed to book a dirty old man for tonight’s gig?”
She said evenly, “Good evening to you, too, Valerie. There’s a new 7-11 straight ahead by the way.”
“What the hell am I going to do at 7-11?”
“Buy soap to wash your mouth? Your mother wouldn’t be happy if she learned how dirty it is.”
Bobby counted three full seconds before the insult registered.
“Babe, this bitch is saying you’ve got a dirty mouth.” Blaine rolled his eyes. “Just shows what a fucking bore she is. I love your dirty mouth.”
“Shut up, Blaine,” Valerie snapped without looking at her boyfriend. She was too busy glaring at Bobby with undisguised loathing.
