“I-I came to get my charger. I left it,” I finally managed to say.
Simone looked nervous as she pulled on the belt of her robe. “What did you hear?”
“I didn’t hear anything,” I lied.
“Please, Vanessa; what did you hear?”
I shook my head and took a deep breath. “Are you sleeping with Enrique?”
Vanessa couldn’t answer, but he was walking over to us, putting on his shirt. I was both shocked and irritated.
“How long has this been going on?”
“Vanessa –”
“How long, Simone?! Since you first started at Suds? Why can you have a relationship with the owner, but no one else can have one with someone at the store? Can you please answer that, Enrique? Or is it because it’s your store, so you can do whatever you please?!”
“I think you need to calm down, Vanessa,” Enrique said.
“Wow, are you kidding me?! I need to speak with you, now!” I told Simone, grabbing her arm. I took her to my room and slammed the door.
I began pacing as Simone looked at the ceiling.
“Please, stop pacing,” she begged. “You’re making me dizzy.”
“Like I care! So that’s the reason you didn’t want me to date Mark, because you’ve been sleeping with his father!”
“It’s not what you think, Vanessa.”
“Well, explain it to me, then.”
She took a deep breath before starting. “Do you remember the customer service job I had a couple of years ago?”
“Yeah, before you started at Suds. Why?”
“That’s where I met Enrique. He used to come into the store to order supplies for the car wash. We always flirted with each other, but it never went too far. When I got laid off from there, I was talking to Enrique about it, and he offered me a job at Suds. With the policy that's in place, I didn’t want to continue talking to him, but he didn’t want us to stop. One thing led to another, and before I knew it, we were in a full-fledged relationship.”
“So he pursued you, being fully aware of the policy he set in his own company? I'm guessing you don’t know that he cheated on Mark’s mother with her best friend.”
“I know about that, and I know the entire story, not the bits and pieces that Mark probably told you.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You don't know the whole story, Vanessa.”
“So, you find nothing wrong with what you’re doing?”
“Every day, Vanessa. And the fact that I was keeping this from you was tearing me up inside. When you talked about Mark, I tried so hard to get you not to pursue him, because I knew it would only cause problems because of me and his dad.”
“So what’s the point of even having the policy if the owner isn't observing it?! None of this makes any sense.”
“Because how would it look if he was dating one of his employees? He has to have some type of order in his company.”
I rolled my eyes and sighed. “Well, his company is a damn mess. If he was more focused on Suds than being with you, it wouldn't be.”
Simone scoffed. “Looks who’s talking. Ever since you’ve been dating Mark, your head has been in the damn clouds. You don’t care about anything but being with him.”
“What’s wrong with that? You know how much Hamilton hurt me, so I’m happy to be with someone who actually treats me how I should be treated.”
“Then you should know how I feel. I love him, Vanessa, and I’ll do anything to make our relationship work. If I have to sneak around, so be it.”
“I can't believe you kept this from me.”
“Just like you would have with Mark.”
“How do you two see each other?”
"Before you moved in, it was mainly here, but now we’ve been meeting at hotels and occasionally at his place when he knows his kids aren’t stopping by.”
The doorbell rang, which made my heart stop. Mark couldn’t know his dad was here.
“That's Mark. He’s probably thinks something is wrong,” I said.
“Okay, but please promise me one thing.”
“No, Simone, I can’t do that. I can’t keep this from Mark.”
“Please, Vanessa,” she insisted.
“We just had a talk earlier about keeping secrets. He found out from Hamilton that he was my boss. If I keep one more secret from him, our relationship will be over before it even starts.”
“And if he finds out about this, it will crush him. He already feels some type of way about his dad because of the affair he had. Please, just keep it to yourself for a while, just until Enrique figures something out.”
The doorbell rang again, and I groaned. I couldn't believe I was about to do this, but if Mark did find out about this, I didn't know what he’d do because I didn't know what he was capable of. I saw the look on his face when he talked about his dad's affair, so I could only imagine what could happen if this came out.
“Okay, I’ll keep it to myself for now, but Enrique better do something. If not, I’ll have to tell Mark.”
“Are you going to use this to your advantage? I mean, you could so you and Mark can date freely.”
I looked at Simone. I knew that I could, but I didn’t know if I wanted to. Simone is my best friend, and she’s helped me so much recently. I really didn’t want to be in this position, because either way, I'd probably end up hurting someone.
“I said I'll keep your secret – for now. Just figure something out.”
I grabbed my charger and quickly went to the door, seeing Enrique sitting on the couch. I rolled my eyes and opened the door to see Mark standing in front of me with a concerned look.
“Is everything okay? You were taking a long time, and I got concerned.”
“I’m fine. I just got an unexpected phone call.”
“Your phone’s in my truck.”
“I meant the house phone. Simone still has a landline; that’s hard to believe, right?”
Mark slowly nodded. “Yeah, it is.”
“But I got my charger, so we can go.”
Mark still looked concerned as we walked to his truck. I looked back at the house, not sure what to do. How was I going to keep this from him? I took a deep breath and put on a happy face so he wouldn’t suspect anything.
All I know is that Simone and Enrique better get their shit together; if not, I’d have to come clean to Mark.
Vanessa
It had been four months since the night I’d confronted Simone and Enrique, and I still hadn’t told Mark. That night, I was so upset that I wasn’t even in the mood to have sex. I don't think Mark minded since he also had a lot on his mind. Instead, we just cuddled and fell asleep.
In these four months, we've slowly gotten to know each other, but I still felt guilty about keeping that dirty secret from him. I thought Enrique would have told Mark by now, but I guess that was just wishful thinking.
We never had the dinner that Mark had planned, either. The night of, he had an emergency meeting with Victor about the restaurant and pretty much stayed out the entire night. They had to start getting the building intact and put some of the equipment in.
Despite him getting the restaurant together, we’d been able to find time to spend with each other. We've been going on dates outside the city, out to dinner, or dancing. Mark had even showed me how to salsa, which was pretty cool. He also planned to show me how to bachata, which is a popular Latin dance. I’m really looking forward to it.
As for my job search, I've still been looking for work in my field. I’ve come across a few dead-end positions, but I was fortunate enough to land an interview with one. It was for a consultant position at a private PR firm near downtown. The interview was scheduled in four days, and I really had to prepare for, because there was one catch: The person hired has to be bilingual. I know a little Spanish, which I sort of picked up working at Suds, but I needed a lot of help. I told Mark about the position, and he was thrilled. He even agreed to give me a few private le
ssons, and I was definitely looking forward to them. I just hope that Hamilton doesn't try to ruin this interview.
And now that I think about it, I hadn’t heard from him since that night at The Soul Player. Hopefully, he finally got the hint and moved on; but knowing Hamilton, he probably had something up his sleeve. In fact, I’m sure he did.
Tonight was the night we were finally able to have our dinner, so I had my overnight bag in the car. Initially, I was going to wear the dress I saved for the occasion, but it probably would be a distraction, so I opted for a pair of muticolored sweat pants and a white tank. Since the seasons had changed, it had the tendency to be cold now; the weather was always a surprise in Houston.
When I pulled into Mark’s driveway, I saw his truck was there and smiled. He had the day off from Suds, so he was busy with the restaurant. Now, he and Victor were getting ready to hire the staff, which I’m sure would be grueling, especially since Victor’s wife recently gave birth to their son. Mark had been the one pulling the extra weight so everything came together by their opening date.
I’d given the two a bit of advice on management as well as some pointers on what to ask during the interview process. Victor even asked if I wanted to come on-board as an HR rep for the restaurant. I politely declined, only because I felt Mark and I needed to work separately. We’re already working together at Suds, so we didn’t need to work together somewhere else. Even if it was his own place.
I parked my car in the garage per Mark’s instructions and quickly got out to let it down. We’d been doing this for months in case someone stopped by and noticed my car. I used the key that was inside the coffee can to open the door. When I walked in, my mouth immediately started watering. I sniffed all the wonderful smells filling his home; I was happy that I wore sweats, because I think I’ll need them after this meal.
“Wow, it smells incredible in here,” I said, walking into the kitchen. Mark was busily chopping up some onions, but he looked up and smiled.
“Thanks. Come here.” He motioned, and I walked over to him. He kissed me sensually. My lower back was pressed against the counter before he lifted me and put me on top of it. I wrapped my legs around him as he looked into my eyes.
“I’m really glad we’re having this night together. I feel like we haven’t been spending a lot of time together,” he said.
“We haven’t, but I understand. You’re getting your restaurant together, so I have no problem with that.”
He shook his head. “What did I do to deserve someone like you?”
“I should be saying the same about you.”
“Well, I want us to make more time for each other. I missed you.”
“It’s not like we’ve been apart. We still see each other at Suds, and I’m at your house.”
“Yeah, housesitting while I’m at the restaurant. Which I appreciate, by the way.”
“No problem. Glad I can help.”
“But seriously, I want to be able to be with you, not just in passing. I've missed having you in my arms, kissing you, pleasuring you.”
I smiled. “Maybe tonight is the night.”
Mark smiled. “Maybe so. Let’s see where it takes us, okay?”
I nodded and kissed him again. “Did you need me to help you with anything?”
“No, I’m almost done,” he answered. He went over to the fridge and took out a bottle of Zinfandel. He grabbed a glass from the cupboard and popped the cork. I watched him pour it into the glass then hand it me.
“All I want you to do is relax. But clothing is definitely optional.”
“Oh really. Does that apply to you as well?”
“Definitely later,” he teased then kissed me again.
“But remember, you have to help me practice my Spanish.”
“Por supuesto, mi mujer bonita.”
I giggled as he kissed my neck. I loved it when he spoke Spanish. I just hope I’d be able to concentrate later.
“There’s something I need to ask you.”
“What is it?”
“Is everything okay between you and Simone? I’ve noticed that you two haven’t really been speaking to each other lately, and you've been hanging around here a lot. I’m not complaining though, but I figured that since I haven’t been here, you’re probably a bit lonely.”
I stared at him, knowing I should tell him about Simone and Enrique. I hadn’t been around her because of that, and I know it’s tearing our friendship apart.
“Everything’s fine, Mark. We’re just doing our own thing now; it's no big deal.”
“Is she dating someone?”
“You can say that,” I replied with a straight face.
“Okay, I have something to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“You’ve been so helpful with the restaurant, so I wanted to do something in return for you.”
“You already are, just by being you.”
He smiled. “I appreciate that, but that’s not what I mean. V, since you’ve been such a big asset to me, I went to your old condo and paid off your balance. So, if you want, you can move into another place of your own.”
I just looked at him, not believing he'd done that for me. I was actually in the process of doing it myself since I had some money saved from my bonuses.
“Mark, you didn't have to do that. I was in the process of doing it. Besides, you shouldn’t be spending all that money on me; you have the restaurant to think about.”
He gently grabbed my hands. “V, I have plenty of money saved. I wanted to do this for you. You deserve it.”
My eyes were tearing up; I didn't know what to think. He’d been so good to me, but I hadn't been good to him, since I’d been keeping Simone’s secret. I've been feeling guilty ever since that night, but now, I feel even worse.
“But I was hoping you wouldn’t find another place to live,” he continued, “because I want you to move in with me.”
I raised my eyebrow, and he held my hands tighter.
“You’re always here, so I thought it would be good if you stayed here permanently. That way, if Simone is seeing someone, she can have her place to herself again. And not only that, but I love seeing you sleeping in my bed and seeing your beautiful face first thing in the morning. I want to be able to hold you through the night, touch you when I want to, and kiss those lips of yours any time I want.”
“What if someone from Suds comes by?”
“No one really comes by; you've seen that yourself the times you were here. And if they do, so what? Once my siblings and I take over the business, that company policy will be gone. Besides, you probably won’t be there much longer anyway, because I know you’ll get that consultant position.”
I smiled. “When will you all have the meeting with your dad?”
“On Sunday. He wanted to sit down with us, along with Avery, to discuss who should take over the business. It’s kind of strange that he delayed everything since he was so eager to sell at first. But I guess since Carmen and Sebastian finally came on board, he's having second thoughts about turning it over to Avery.”
I smirked, realizing he probably did it because of Simone. I’d talked to her about it, and she convinced Enrique to give Mark more time. I’d have to thank her for that.
“Sebastian and Carmen are coming by here after the meeting. I was hoping you could join us.”
“I don’t know, Mark. What if they tell your dad we’re dating?”
“They won’t. And anyway, I can always say you stopped by to give suggestions on improving the company.”
“Okay, but if anything gets out of hand –”
“It won’t. They couldn't care less about who I'm dating, so it won’t get back to our dad.”
I nodded. “Okay, not a problem.”
“Now, since we got off of the subject about you moving in, what’s your answer?”
I took a deep breath; this wasn’t a decision I should take lightly. I’d have to give it some serious thought.
“Can
you give me some time to think about it?”
“Sure, take all the time you need. I’m not going anywhere,” he said then kissed me again. “I'd better finish our dinner, or it’ll be ruined.”
“That’s cool. I’m going to take a shower,” I announced and hopped off the counter. Mark gave me a sexy smile, which made my pussy wet.
“Damn, let me join you. The food can wait.”
Into You Page 15
