by Autumn Sand
She laughs. I mean, a gut-wrenching laugh, as if I’m the main act of a comedy show. I stare at her and wonder if people carrying funny jackets are going to appear and take her away. “Dante, you’re really something. I told you, it doesn’t matter. She tried to stop me from seeing you the day you got shot. Obviously, it didn’t work.”
“Oh. Then I don’t understand.”
“Was it a good feeling to have your ex-fuck buddy waiting at the hospital to see you? No. But I know the commitment we have to each other. You took a bullet for my ex-husband so Lelia could have a chance to live. Do you really think your ex-whore would make my feelings for you waver?”
Shit, now I feel like an asshole for overreacting. I jumped to conclusions, as usual. “Fuck, I’m sorry.”
She bends to kiss me gently. “It’s okay. If I’ve seemed off, it’s because the reality of it all has hit me. I almost lost you and my daughter all in the same day. You risked your life for her, and I don’t know how to thank you or repay you for that.”
“But, Cyma—” She places her finger to my lips and shakes her head.
“I’m not done. The only way I can think of to repay you is to love you, Dante. Because I do and I always will. Thank you for loving me and my daughter. Thank you for making me feel beautiful. Thank you for picking me up when I’m down. Just thank you, Dante, for being you, the man that I love, the man I’m in love with.”
Well, shit, what can I say to follow that up? I can say the only thing that matters. “I love you too.”
“And by the way, I asked Tony to fire Tallie.” She gives me a wicked grin before planting one on me.
Chapter 39
Freek ‘N You ~ Jodeci
Cyma
Dante has been home from the hospital for a few weeks. He can be a very difficult patient at times because he refuses to listen to the doctor’s orders. Everything they tell him not to do, he takes it as a green light to proceed. Every day, I find myself nagging him about something. Secretly, I think he enjoys my nagging. To be honest, I do too. He’s such a big kid, and I love him for it. Anaya has been extremely patient and understanding since hiring me. She works around my schedule of taking care of Dante and seeing Lelia. I truly owe her a lot.
I rush home during my lunch break to check on Dante and make sure he’s doing what he is supposed to be doing. As soon as I step through the door, I see Dante pacing the floor. He’s in just his pajama bottoms. Instantly, my eyes go to the scar on his chest from the bullet wound. I try not to think of that day when I almost lost him. Closing my eyes briefly to get my emotions under control, I exhale a breath.
“You’re supposed to be in bed.” I stand in front of him with my arms folded.
“Tired of being cooped up in here every day. Got a lot of energy that I need to release.” He looks at me seductively and takes a step closer as I take a step back.
“Oh, no, big boy. Get back in that bed.”
“I’m trying to.” He takes another step closer.
“Alone.” I hold up my hand to his chest.
“Do you know how long it’s been since we had sex?”
God, I can probably tell him to the minute and the second. Me and my vibrator have gotten pretty well acquainted here lately. “It hasn’t been that long.”
“Three months.” Holding up his fingers, he counts out one, two, three.
It’s been three months, six hours, eighteen minutes, and five seconds, but who’s counting? “Really? It’s been that long?” My voice comes out a pitch higher than I meant.
“You’re telling me you don’t miss it?” His eyebrows furrow.
Miss it? I’m two seconds from pouncing on the man and riding him like a horse. “The doctor hasn’t given you the go-ahead yet.”
“Fuck. I know my body better than the doc. Trust me, this will help my recuperation.” He backs me up to the wall. I quickly sidestep him and go to the fridge.
“Want some lunch?”
He flops down on the couch in exasperation. “Yeah.”
“What would you like?” I ask as I start removing ingredients from the fridge.
“What I want, you won’t find in there.”
I turn around to face him. “Want me to order?”
“I want you. Wanna taste that pussy of yours. Wanna feel you come on my face. That’s what I want.”
I second that emotion. Why does he have to make this so difficult? And why does he have to be so damn sexy while he’s making this difficult? “How about a sandwich?”
“Yeah, whatever.” He pouts as he flips on the television with the remote. “I can’t believe you’re not missing it.”
“I’m missing it. But we have to wait for the doctor to give you the okay first.”
He mumbles under his breath as I start to make his sandwich. He has a doctor’s appointment coming up soon. I pray they clear him for all activity, or at least the kind of activity that has me screaming out his name. I finish making his sandwich and place the plate in front of him. I’m pretty sure he’s going to ignore the sandwich as I kiss him good-bye and head back to work.
***
Days later, I’m in the office typing an e-mail when Anaya calls me into her office. Finishing the e-mail quickly, I walk into her domain with a notepad in hand.
“Cyma, I’m so sorry to do this to you, but I’ve a hectic schedule today and I forgot that I was supposed to drop off these sketches to a client. Can you do me a favor and drop them off?”
“Umm, sure, not a problem at all.”
She hands me the sketches and the address. Glancing at the address, I’m surprised that it’s a hotel with a room number.
“The client is at a hotel?” My brow furrows slightly from her odd request.
“Yes. He has restaurants throughout the states. He wants our firm to give his New York restaurant a new look.”
“Oh, okay.” I turn to leave, but then I remembered that Dante should be coming home from his doctor’s appointment and I wanted to go and check on him. “By the way, after I drop off the sketches, can I have some extra time to check on Dante?”
“Of course. He has a doctor’s appointment today, doesn’t he?”
“Yes. We’ll find out if he can get off bed rest. Poor thing has been very restless.”
“I can imagine. Take the rest of the day off. I can make sure things are handled around here.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.” She shoos me away.
I take a cab to the hotel and try to call Dante, but he doesn’t answer his cell phone. I guess he’s still at his doctor’s appointment. The hotel is luxurious, so I give myself a quick once over in the mirror to make sure I’m presentable for the client. I knock briefly on the door and wait. The door opens and I step in.
“Hi, I’m Cyma. Anaya sent me to give you the sketches for your restaurant.” The room is dimly lit and I can’t make out where the client is standing.
“Hey.” I spin around to see Dante leaning on the door and my skin tingles.
“What’s going on? Shouldn’t you be at the doctor’s office?”
He closes the door and flips the light switch on. “I did go to my appointment.” Standing closer to me, he pulls me into his hard chest. “Guess who got the all systems cleared?”
My heart races and I lose my breath. Today has just become my lucky day. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I stand on my tippy-toes to kiss him. A hunger ignites in both of us as we claw at each other’s clothes. He backs away too soon, leaving me wanting.
“What?” I ask with a pout of my lips. Grabbing a chair from the desk, he places it in the middle of the room and takes a seat. I take a step closer to him, but he shakes his head, stopping me in my tracks.
“You know, the first time I laid eyes on you, I knew I had to make you mine. But you slipped through my fingers. Then I got lucky one night, days later, and saw you, and I swore I would never let you go. That night you stripped in front of all of those men, but I always felt it was for me, you just
didn’t know it. Thinking I want a repeat performance, but for my eyes only.” He eyes are full of lust and want.
“No music?” I pant the words.
He gives me a wicked grin. “Not needed.”
If it’s a performance he wants, then it’s a performance of a lifetime he’ll get. Swaying my hips, I slowly unbutton my blouse. Turning around with my back facing him, I expose one shoulder and then the other. Removing the blouse, I turn around to face him, licking my lips seductively. Sashaying my way to him, I playfully dangle my blouse in front of him like a matador to a bull. He tries to reach for me, but I shake my head and tsk-tsk him. “Clients aren’t allowed to touch.” His mouth falls open. Seductively I saunter away and unzip my skirt, letting it fall to the ground, leaving me in just my bra, thong, and heels. He has taken Second Dante—or perhaps Second Tick—out to play.
“Which is it today? Second Dante or Tick?” I ask playfully as he watches me remove my bra.
He strokes himself slowly as precum covers the tip. “Second Tick the first few rounds. Not going to be able to hold back. Been without your sweet pussy for too long.”
I clench my legs tighter and shiver at his response. He let me in on the secret of how he named his dick a while ago. At first I thought, ‘what a cocky bastard,’ but I’ve since come to enjoy the playful names. And I’m particularly thrilled about Second Tick coming out to play.
“Come here.” His voice is raspy.
I seductively saunter over to him and he reaches for my thong. “No touching, sir, or else I will have to report you to management.” He growls at me as I throw my head back in laughter. Removing my thong, I hold it near his face as he tries to grab it with his mouth. I tsk-tsk him again and toss it to the floor. Straddling him, I place a nipple in his mouth and he greedily sucks. God, it feels so good. I’ve missed this. Lifting up, I take Second Tick in my hand and guide him to my entrance as I take him in inch by delicious inch. Fully seated, staring into Dante’s eyes, I know I’m home. My heart swells with love for this man. As he grabs me around the waist, I know he’s taking over the show.
“Take what you want from your man.” He bucks his hips, giving me the friction I need. I place my hands on his shoulders and move up and down his length. If I were a cat, I might purr with delight. His hands massage my ass as he helps me move on top of him. Lifting slightly so he can suck on my nipple, I feel the warmth of an orgasm about to carry me away. As it hits me, I rake my nails down his back.
“Ahh!” He slaps me on my ass gently in response to my scratch and nibbles on my chin. My breathing becomes shallow as I feel myself coming back to Earth. “Not done with you yet. That was just to take the edge off.” He stands, carrying me as I straddle him.
My legs wrap around his waist as he prowls toward the bed. Placing me gently on the soft linen, he stands and admires my body—the body that is his to play with. He twirls his hand, indicating for me to turn on my stomach. This is going to be fun, I think to myself. Straddling me from behind, he pushes into my more-than-wet pussy.
“Fuck, when I’m inside you, I feel like a fucking king.” He pulls out slightly and pushes back in. “Every time you walk, I want you to know that I’ve been here. Me, and only me, because this pussy is mine.”
As he grinds his hips into me, I feel his dick hit places that I never felt touched before. His movements become faster and faster as he tries to mark his territory. He is stretching me, and it feels like I’ve been deliciously claimed by him. My fingers clutch the bedsheets as he fucks me with passion, anger, fear, and love, I feel every emotion that he has been through in the past few months and it makes me love him more. Lifting my leg, he uses his arm to give me support as he fucks me from a different angle. Pushing into me harder and faster, his breath quickens at the relentless pace.
Another orgasm builds inside of me, and my hungry pussy tightens around his dick. “Fuck, I love it when your pussy clenches me like that.”
My arms begin to tremble and I can no longer hold myself up as my orgasm hits with the force of a freight train. Holding me up, he keeps fucking me, chasing his own release. I scream out his name until I can’t scream any more. My voice is hoarse, my throat is raw, and my fingers are cramping from clutching the bedsheets too tightly, but I don’t care. I don’t want this feeling to ever go away. His warm liquid pours into me as his fingers tighten on my hips.
We both collapse on the bed, too spent to do anything else. I think I might have seen stars from that orgasm. I try to catch my breath as he does the same, while stroking my ass and then moving further down to my pussy. He begins tracing something on my inner thigh. “What are you doing?”
“Writing ‘Property of Dante.’” He smiles into my back.
My heart flutters a bit, and I smile at his words. “You’re a caveman.”
“I’m your caveman. This pussy may belong to me, but” —he grabs my hand, moves it behind me, and places it on his dick— “this belongs to you too. No one else but you.”
“Should I mark my territory also?” I ask, half-joking.
Turning, he lays on his back. “Mark away. It’s yours to do with as you please.”
My first thought is ‘I couldn’t,’ but then another thought hits me. Turning around, I playfully trace the tips of my fingers down his chest then further, further still, until I reach pubic hair. As I twirl my fingers around them, his breath catches in excitement. I follow the trail of my fingers with my lips, to his dick, I playfully lick until I work my way to his inner thigh. Then I suck gently. I lift up and see my handiwork. “I haven’t done that since high school, but it seems I still got the touch.”
“Did you just give me a hickey?” He laughs.
“Just marking my territory.” I smile as I climb back up to face him. He grabs me, pulling me in for a deep kiss. I feel Second Tick growing and asking for attention again. “Again already?”
“Fuck yeah. I plan on fucking every hole you got before we leave.”
My pulse quickens as a smile spreads across my face.
As usual, he is a man of his word.
Chapter 40
Ascension (Don’t Ever Wonder) ~ Maxwell
Cyma
Dante has been acting strange over the past few weeks. Between him being mysterious and leaving earlier than usual, I feel like something is going on. I try not to worry about it too much and go about my normal day-to-day activities of work and visiting Lelia at the hospital. Since the operation, she has made a remarkable recovery, and the doctors see no reason why she shouldn’t be out of the hospital in the next few months. This news has been a great relief for both me and Dante. Ryan has disappeared again. He took the money Tony and Dante paid him and left town. It bothers me in some way that he doesn’t at least want to be a part of Lelia’s life. But I know she has Dante now, and it puts my heart at ease knowing she will have a father to depend on. I’m so happy at how he has integrated himself into our lives to the point that I just couldn’t imagine life without him.
Anaya has become a close friend and mentor to me. I look up to her in so many ways. With everything that has happened to her, she has learned from it and it has made her stronger. She is a force to be reckoned with. We’ve taken to having lunch together every day in her office or sometimes we may go out. Occasionally, if Brenda can get away, she joins us. Even though I’m Anaya’s assistant, she has decided to take me under her wing and show me the ropes of the business, so one day I can be promoted to interior designer as well. I’ve started going to school on weekends to study interior design, and I love it. Dante is so supportive and has been helping me study and quizzes me when he knows I have an upcoming test. I can honestly say my life is full of people I love and care for and I’m at peace.
My self-esteem is starting to grow little by little. What I used to see as imperfections, I now see as the beauty of what makes me, me. Every now and then, I go with Dante to the gym to work out. He goes so he can get in his time at the gym, while I go to ogle him more so than work out. I l
ove to watch him and to see how other people envy him. It’s even better when Manny, Magnum, and Tony join him at the gym. They each enjoy challenging the other, and it almost always ends with hilarious results. Looking at them together, you can see how close they are, almost like brothers. They have become part of my extended family as well. They each have a different quality that works as a group; Tony the leader, Dante the protector, Manny the jokester, and Magnum the quiet storm. They make it work somehow.
I’m in the kitchen area, finishing my cup of coffee so I can get ready to visit Lelia in the hospital. Today is Saturday and Dante is usually off, but today he disappeared early in the morning with some “last minute errands.” I offered to tag along so we could both go see Lelia together, but he insisted he’d be quick and he’d meet me at the hospital later. Since I didn’t have class today, I called Anaya to ask her if she would like to join me for lunch later, but she said she was busy doing stuff with Xavier and asked for a raincheck.
Arriving at the hospital, I bring coffee and donuts for the doctors and nurses on Lelia’s floor. I stand around chitchatting with them for a short while before going to Lelia’s room. As I open the door, I see all the people I love standing in Lelia’s room, screaming, “Happy Birthday!”
I stand there with my mouth agape, and then I remember it is my birthday. When I was married to Ryan, he never remembered my birthday, and after Lelia became ill, I’d taken to not celebrating it at all. It has become just another day to me. After they finish singing the birthday song to me, Dante sweeps me up in his arms for a kiss.
“So this is the reason why you’ve been mysterious and leaving early?” My heart is fluttering at his surprise.
He smiles from ear to ear. “Yep. Anaya helped me plan it. You like it?” He turns his head slightly to glance at the flowers and decorations.
“I love it.” And I do. I never mentioned my birthday to him.
“I thought it would be better to have it here so Lelia can be a part of the celebration.”
My eyes fill with tears because, once again, he was so thoughtful. I give my daughter a hug and kiss. “Did you know about this?”
