In the center of the bed, the man she couldn’t get out of her mind, lay sprawled, the bedding tangled over his torso, his sexy ass left uncovered for her viewing pleasure. She approached the bed and slipped back in, ignoring her protesting body, pushing back the wince she felt with each movement. Khristos mumbled unintelligible words, then his arm snaked out, bringing her flush with him as he rolled to cradle her body with his.
Facing him, she stared at the boyish peace on his face as he slept. The contrast between both sides of him intrigued her. She loved that he wrestled control from her and elicited her submission without manhandling her or forcing her, and he set the pace and let their attraction grow on its own. The use of restraints were new for her, and the inability to touch him drove her mad, but also gave her incomparable pleasure. And when he freed her and made love to her, nice and slow, his body undulating on top of hers, her hands trailing the contours of his lean physique, feeling those rippling muscles bunching under her fingertips, he gave her a whole new world of desire. How he knew what she craved when she didn’t even know herself, was beyond her. Settling against his body, she closed her eyes and drifted back off, thinking, it’d been way too long since she’d taken a day off and just slept.
The smell of coffee and food roused Zoey from the best dream she’d ever had. Voices drifted up the stairs, so obviously Khristos wasn’t alone. She slid from his bed, slipped on her bra, underwear, and his discarded T-shirt along with her yoga capris and hurried into his bathroom to splash water on her face and brush her teeth. When she came out, she ran into Khristos who swooped her into his arms and laid the mother of all good morning kisses on her.
“That was nice.”
“Been waiting all morning to do that.”
Zoey frowned. Morning? She looked at the clock and saw that it was ten in the morning. “I don’t understand. I woke up and it was the afternoon. You didn’t want to get up and kidnapped me into your arms, so I guess we fell asleep, but to sleep the rest of the day and all night?”
“You had a long hard ride.” He winked, clearly the man had lost his mind, trying to take all the credit for their overly indulgent sleep.
“I can’t believe you. Hey, is there someone else here? I heard voices.”
Khristos dropped a kiss on the top of her head. “Remember brunch? They decided to bring it to us. Lysandros let it slip that I’d slipped away.”
“Oh.”
“Don’t start overthinking again. Every time you overthink, we end up arguing. Although make-up sex after my mother and sister leave would be a fun way to spend the afternoon, I’d rather just not.”
“I mean, are you sure you want me to meet your mom? We’re just getting to know each other. Really, I can stay up here until they leave.”
“I want you with me. I’m starving, and you have to be starving. No reason we can’t have some food and I can’t flaunt my sexy woman, is there?”
“Uh, don’t go that far.” Zoey laughed. “I should call Marie and make sure she’s surviving.”
“Marie is fine. My brother is helping her out and having a blast. Said he’d have come up too but wanted to spend some quality time with Marie who’s shackled to the job, with you gone.”
“There you go again, making me feel bad.” Zoey sighed. “I’m really not dressed to be meeting your mom for the first time.”
“You’re beautiful the way you are. Now, quit stalling.” Khristos nudged her out of the bedroom with his sexy growl and a slap to her ass.
“Meanie.” She shrieked and jumped away from him, taking quick steps downstairs, following the smell of java goodness. Khristos stayed hot on her tail, a few steps behind her. When she stopped at the bottom of the stairs, he collided with her, his arms wrapping around her, his hands cupping her breasts. “You put a bra on,” he whispered in her ear. “I’m glad, but damn, I can’t play with your nipples now.”
“Good, I’d hate to freak your mom and sister out with my girls popping out.”
“Junior, bring that lovely woman in here. I know what ya was all about, up them stairs, I was young once, too, but you’ve got to let your lady eat so she can keep up.”
“Ma,” Dariea scolded.
“You’d think your generation invented sex, by the way ya’ll act,” Mrs. Trakis mumbled quite loudly, as they walked into the kitchen.
Zoey couldn’t take her eyes off the beautiful woman. “Good morning, Mrs. Trakis. Breakfast smells so good.”
“Uh-huh. You could stand to gain a few pounds. It’s all in the padding, you know, darling.”
Zoey blinked. “I have a ton of padding, but thank you.” She accepted a cup of coffee from Khristos. “Junior, huh?”
“Shush, woman. Only my ma calls me that.” He dropped a kiss on his mom’s head and stole a pastry, only to get popped with a wooden spoon. Zoey didn’t know mothers still did that, and the shock on her face must’ve shone through.
“Hi,” Dariea smiled at her in such a sweet way that a glimmer of guilt passed through Zoey for her past behavior.
“I haven’t been welcoming, I hope you’ll forgive my bitchiness, and we can start over.”
“I understood, and it’s okay. Sit. We have bagels, cream cheese, fruit, bacon, and, of course, spanakopita for my spoiled brother.”
Khristos filled a plate for her and set it on the table, before he went back to the kitchen to get another plate and steal another pastry, with his mother chasing him out.
“My son has no manners, he’s always stealing food before it’s set on the table.” Khristos’s mom shook her head as he shoveled his favorite dish into his mouth, devouring it in a few bites.
Zoey laughed, but gave him a don’t fuck with me look as he eyed her fluffy pastry, like he hadn’t shoveled three into his mouth already. Taunting him was too good to pass up. With a wicked smirk on her face, she picked her spanakopita and bit into the flaky goodness. Mouthwatering flavors exploded in her mouth. When he leaned over to grab a bite, she slapped his hand away. “Mine. Go get your own.” Khristos didn’t play fair. He gave her his wounded, kicked puppy, sad eyes and she gave him a bite.
“You’re a goddess. They’re saving the rest for Lysandros. The cruelty of it all.”
“Junior, you could eat a dozen of these without batting an eye. Now, let your girlfriend enjoy her first Greek breakfast. You have an entire box of them on the counter, Dariea brought them with her.”
“You’re my favorite sister.”
“I’m your only sister.” Dariea rolled her eyes and picked up her coffee. “Zoey, don’t let him fool you. We have no idea where he puts it, but he can eat you out of house and home. I have to protect my shop when he visits, he wants one of everything.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” She didn’t mention he needed all the carbs and protein for extracurricular activates spent with her. She saw his need for sustenance in order to keep his crazy stamina fueled.
They ate in compatible silence, allowing her to enjoy her food and drink. She grabbed a few packets of sugar, and added cream to her coffee, the greek beans too robust for her.
“My son looks relaxed with you around. I tell him he works too hard, and he works even harder. I tell him to take a vacation, bring home a pretty girl, and he hides himself away and works harder.”
“Mrs. Trakis. I’m the same way, I’m afraid. He had to conspire with my best friend to steal me away.”
“You young people need to enjoy life. Take my Dariea, for instance. She works Monday through Friday and only a few hours on Saturday. Junior works long hours and takes work home and still works, always on the phone or computer. It’s good to see him home instead of in the city.” Mrs. Trakis smeared cream cheese on a bagel and waved it in the air.
“I’ve been thinking, Sunshine, about your loss in revenue.”
Zoey put her fork down and looked at him. “You have? Why?”
He shrugged. “It’s what I do, process ways to bring more business or decide to shut one down. Have you ever thought of selling
some of your favorite pieces in boxed sets? You can do a trial run with the holiday season coming up, and if the return on investment is good, you can expand by finding a factory or do special orders in the store and mail them personally.”
Zoey picked at her food. “I don’t know. I’m not a big risk taker. What if I spend too much and the product doesn’t sell?”
“Eat, Sunshine. If this is making you uncomfortable, we can talk about it later.” He pushed more fruit her way.
“I’m thick enough, without you pushing extra food on me.” She nudged him with her knee under the table.
He leaned over to whisper in her ear, “I love your body. I’m just trying to make sure you have enough to eat to sustain you after they leave.”
Dariea laughed while his ma gave him ‘the look’. Zoey broke out into peals of laughter. “I’m so embarrassed.” She pinched him. “Stop, before your ma thinks I’m some sort of tramp.”
“She knows I’d never bring a tramp here. Hell, I’ve never brought another woman here, period.”
“Why me?”
Khristos shrugged. “Felt perfect. Driving here with you. We’re so absorbed by work when we have coffee, we couldn’t truly unwind. Nice to have a chance to play.”
“I get why I’m attracted to you. You’re funny, smart, hot as hell, and well, I’d say I lust for your body, but after eating a Greek breakfast, I’m hooked on the food for life. Why me, though? I don’t have poor self-esteem, it just seems in the grand scheme of things, I’d imagine you with a homemaker or someone as driven, who’s on the Fortune 500 list like you, not a small-town, small bakery owner.”
“Hey Ma, let’s go clean the kitchen and give these two lovebirds some privacy.” Dariea cleared the table and nudged her mom out of the room. As soon as they disappeared from sight, Khristos spun Zoey’s chair around to face him.
“I told you how I became enamored with you. You have a smile that lights up a room. I’m jealous of that group of older men who’ve staked a claim, and if I know their breed, I bet they’ve had the notion to give me a verbal smackdown, or promise a reckoning if you get hurt.”
“Yeah, I told them no, I can handle you myself.” She crossed her arms to feel secure, since the way he regarded her, stripped her layers away, leaving her feeling naked.
He snorted. “It feels like we’ve had this conversation before, where you doubted my intentions. I’m not a shallow man, as you’re not a shallow woman. Nor am I one-dimensional. I enjoy my work, I enjoy the company of a good woman, who doesn’t have to have an emaciated appearance to think she’s beautiful. Money is nice, but in the end, I can’t take it with me, so what’s the use of obtaining my dreams or goals, if there’s not a beacon of light to share the experiences, the ups and downs with? You are that perfect ray shining in a hellacious storm filled with nothing but blackness. Your level of success or failure has nothing to do with why I want you, and want you I do, and have you I will, my way for life.”
Well, she’d asked, and he’d delivered an eloquent response that knocked her off-kilter.
“And your idea about my business? Why bring that up in front of the others, like I’m a failure? It was embarrassing to have your mom and your sister, who’s competition, hear about my business.”
“I should spank your ass a pretty shade of red for those words. You keep trying to make Dariea into some kind of villainess. It’s childish and silly. Quit creating problems to push people away, or the next time we fuck, I will put you over my knee and with the spanking I’ll dish out, there will be no orgasm.”
Zoey swallowed hard. His dark promise bespoke retribution. She edged back from his tumultuous glare. “I’m sorry, you’re right, and I just apologized to her for the same thoughts. Change doesn’t occur right away. I’m used to everyone wanting a piece of me, pieces of me I don’t want anyone to have, in my business or personal life.”
“Well, you should work on that, or suffer the consequences.” He stroked her thigh with his fingers. “Now, why don’t we kick my mother and sister out, and have some more quality time before returning to the real world.”
“You can’t do that. She’s your mother.”
“A man can wish. Instead, we’ll hear about her need to be a grandmother this year. Let’s get outta here.”
Khristos grabbed her hand and led her out of the back of the house. He picked her up, tossed her over his shoulder, and made for the dock. Dropping her on the plush seating, he untied the mooring and revved up the engine.
“Kidnapping is a crime, you know.”
“Yeah, imagine being away from prying eyes and ears, all the dirty things you want to do to me. But really, it’s a beautiful day, and I’m with a sexy woman, why not make the most of it? Plus my ma made us a basket of goodies for later.”
“Oh, you’re a sneak, this was planned?”
A gentleman never tells. “Come here.”
Zoey stood and walked over to him. “Aye-aye, Captain.” He slid her in front of his body and set her hands on the wheel. You can steer for us.” He dropped a kiss on her neck in a comforting way.
“Thank you for this, for bringing me to your home. I don’t want to go back to the city.” She felt sadness well in her.
“We’ll be back, I promise. I meant it when I said I’d keep you. That’s my dream.”
“You may take them words back when I get a bit irrational.”
“Nah, Sunshine, there’s always another way to deal with the crazy part of you.” He nipped her neck as she steered them around.
“You’re my future.” She admitted the words to herself for the first time, that she wanted to have more with her charming man than a brief affair. If she hadn’t wanted him on a deeper level, her reactions wouldn’t be all over the place.
Words weren’t needed to carry the conversation. He got her, and she got him. They’d figure the rest out on their long, crazy ride together, and if she failed, she’d bare her ass for the strike of his palm, knowing he’d take the sting away and make her feel priceless, cherished, adored. Yeah, for once, she’d indulge in the unknown with a man who promised her the world and knew how to deliver.
*The End*
Against All Odds
Chapter One
Sweat dripped down Derek’s face, though he didn’t stop his stride. Not when the incline on the treadmill urged him to run faster, to pound on the rubber mat, albeit with light feet. Icy cold loomed outside his condo. The kind of frigid weather that froze his balls the moment he opened the door. Running outside tempted him, though the thought of slipping on ice covered pavement deterred him.
Deja plagued his mind. Four months of dating the skittish woman and he was no closer to gaining her trust than he’d anticipated. Extreme measures called for a drastic solution. First, he needed a way past her wall of sheer stubbornness. The chirp of his Bluetooth interrupted his thoughts.
“Tresvant.”
Derek punched the cool down button and slowed his jog to a brisk walk. News of a new venture piqued his interest. Phil, his accountant rambled off his latest find. “It’s for sale now?” Raising his hands over his head, he took a breath as his heart rate decelerated. Numbers spun in his head and he took them apart with systematic strategy. “Put an offer on the table, pending a thorough look at the books for the last five years. I want those documents to me within twenty-four hours. The brewery? It’s tripled the amount of capital I put in two years ago. Let’s give it another year and then I’ll sell.” He swiped the towel off the hand rest as he stepped off the workout machine. Hell, if he sold the brewery Deja could point out he no longer had a reason to put down roots in her hometown.
“Where are we at with the real estate? Hmmm. Go ahead and sell the place. I have no desire to hold onto the property. All the changes I implemented were made. The complex is rehabbed. Let’s find a corporation interested in buying. No…I want top dollar. Yeah, don’t back down. If they press for a lower price, say you’ll think about their offer. Remind them there are other prospective
buyers who’ve taken an interest at the set price.” Derek grinned. “You’re doing a damn fine job Phil. How’s the weather?”
Derek stepped into his master bedroom and sat on the edge of his bed. “Damn, I miss the heat. There are no buildings to protect a person from the cold here. I swear the wind chills you to the bone. I’m tired of freezing my ass off.” Phil chuckled on the other end. Nice to be so amusing to others. Derek thought before replying. “Nah, there are perks to being here, plus business opportunities not available elsewhere. Look, I gotta go. I’ll check in with you later this week to see how things are going.” He clicked off his Bluetooth, pressed the button to open his closet, and grabbed dark blue worn washed jeans and a flannel shirt. Tossing the hangers on his bed, he was moving to the shower when his Bluetooth chimed again. “Tresvant.”
“Hey beautiful.” Derek tossed his socks and boxers on the bed. Her tone worried him. “What? Where are you?” He listened to Deja give her location and grimaced. “You should’ve known better than to leave your place. Are you hurt? What, you don’t think so? Call 9-1-1. Deja. A bump on the head can be dangerous.” The more he listened, the more she aggravated him. “Fine. Stay on the phone with me until I reach you. If I think you’re falling asleep I’ll call 9-1-1 myself.”
Anger surged through him as he hurriedly shrugged into his clothing and found his boots. “Calm down. No, I’m not yelling at you. I’m concerned. Deja—listen. Get in your car and lock the doors. Can you crank the engine on?” While waiting for her answer, he grabbed his coat, gloves, hat and keys. “Good. Are there any odd odors coming from the car?” Questioning her would keep her lucid enough until he reached her side. Derek let himself out of the condo and paused before giving her more instruction. “Now turn on your heater. Can you tell me if warm air comes out of your vents?” After a few moments she reported her heat worked. “Good, that’s one less thing to worry about. Did you put the blanket kit in your trunk?”
Indulgence Page 7
