Shattered: A Billionaire Romance Series (Contemporary Romance Novels)

by Love, Michelle

  Pal relaxed. ‘Sounds like just bad luck. I can’t imagine it had anything to do with the apartment, the place is a palace.’

  Ken half-smiled. ‘As long as you like it. Say, changing the subject, what are you doing for Christmas? I thought we could get together, drink some beer, eat too much food.’

  Pal was surprised. ‘You’re Christian?’

  Ken grinned. ‘Nope, but any excuse to drink and eat.’

  Pal laughed. ‘In that case, how can I refuse?’

  Pal returned home that night happier than he had been for years. Or maybe even ever, he thought with a smile. He pushed open the door to his apartment, and his eyes went immediately to the painting. ‘Hi honey, I’m home,’ he said and laughed.

  He made his own supper from scratch with the fresh ingredients he found; steak and a green salad, followed by a bowl of the creamiest ice cream he’d ever tasted. Afterward, he sat on the couch, beer in hand and flicked through the channels on the television until he settled on an old re-run of a war movie. Eventually, barely able to keep his eyes open, he went to bed.

  He woke shivering. From the dim light outside his curtains, he could see that it was still night, and when he turned over to check the clock, the luminous numbers glowed three thirty three a.m. He closed his eyes but then he heard it. The same low humming he had heard the night before. It couldn’t be the apartment’s heating system – it was freezing. He lay there for a second, just listening, then pushed back the covers, cursing softly at the cold hitting his body. He went out into the living and checked the heating. It was off as he had expected. He prodded the ‘on’ button and started to shuffle back to bed then stopped. A glance outside the large windows and he almost gasped.

  It was snowing. Pal stumbled to the window and looked out. It was snowing in sub-tropical Hong Kong.

  ‘No way,’ he whispered, watching the sheets of snow falling. He’d never heard of it snowing here…maybe up in the mountains, perhaps at Tai Mo Shan but in the city? ‘I don’t believe it.’

  ‘It is rare.’

  Pal spun around at the sound of her voice. The woman from his painting stood in the center of the living room. Entirely naked.

  Pal’s chest suddenly seized up, from shock, from utter surprise and he choked, gasping for air.

  The woman stepped towards him, her hand out. ‘Do you need some help?’

  Pal stared at her and then did the only thing he could, the most embarrassing thing he could.

  He fainted.

  Pal drew in a deep breath as he came around, back in his bed. Had he imagined it? A beat later he knew the answer. No.

  Her hands slid across his chest, her nipples, hard and cold, pressed against his skin and her mouth, warm and wet, was around his cock, sucking hard. Pal grunted, half in alarm, half in pleasure as the woman worked on him, licking and teasing until he was shouting and coming hard, shooting into her ready mouth.

  She swallowed his seed then sat up with a smile. ‘What would you like me to do next, my love?’

  Pal, still shuddering from the release, managed to gasp out, ‘Who are you?’

  She smiled, enigmatic and confident, and straddled him, stroking his rapidly deflating cock until it became engorged again. ‘I am whoever you want me to be, Pal. Isn’t this what you wanted when you kissed my painting?’

  He could only nod. I’m either insane or dreaming, he thought, but he didn’t want it to stop as she grasped his cock and slid it up and down her wet slit. ‘What’s your name?’

  ‘My name is Jing-Mai,’ she said and sank onto him, taking his cock deep into her delicious, velvety cunt. Pal sighed at the feeling – so good, so good – and he reached for her large but firm breasts, thumbing her nipples until they were hard again.

  ‘That feels so good, my love,’ she whispered and bent her head to kiss him deeply. Pal’s mouth moved against her soft lips, their bodies entwining as if made for the other’s. He gave himself over to the unbelievable sensations that were racing through his entire being. ‘Jing-Mai,’ he whispered over and over again as they fucked.

  In person, she was even more beautiful; her long back hair straight down her back and feather soft, her eyes burned a dark dark gold, her skin a very pale olive. The moonlight from outside the window cast shadows on her skin. Pal ran his hands from her breasts down to her impossibly slim waist then over the full hips, her skin as soft as velvet.

  When he came for the second time, it was an explosion of joy, a moment when every sadness from the last few years left his body along with his seed, sucked out of him by the sweet nectar of her pussy as it enveloped him. He had never felt such exhilaration.

  Jing-Mai smiled as he stroked her face afterward. ‘I don’t know where you came from, my love,’ he murmured, his lips against hers, ‘but I’m very glad you are here. Will you stay?’

  ‘Until dawn, my love, then I must leave.’

  ‘Will you come back tomorrow night?’

  ‘I will return for as long as is necessary, my handsome Pal. I want to taste you in every way.’

  Pal rolled her onto her back then and grinned down at her. ‘As I want to taste you…’

  He made his way down her body – really he’d never felt skin so soft – and then his tongue found her sex, lashing around the tight bud of her clitoris, sweeping into the dark cavern of her cunt. It was unreal, he thought, she actually does taste of honey, sweet and heady.

  His cock was straining, pulsing, and as he had his fill of her, making her come, he suddenly crawled up the bed and plunged deeper into her than he had thought possible. She spread her legs wider to accommodate his hips, her back arching as he fucked her hard.

  Pal came, his entire body vibrating and then collapsed at her side, spent but not wanting to stop. Jing-Mai rolled onto her side, facing him, smiling softly. ‘My love, you were wonderful.’

  ‘I don’t want to stop,’ he said but suddenly he felt a wave of sheer exhaustion come over him. Jing-Mai leaned over and kissed him.

  ‘Sleep, my love, sleep. I will return, do not fear…’

  The last thing he thought before he passed out was that she had the most divinely sweet little lisp.

  The doorbell to his apartment kept buzzing and eventually, with a groan, Pal opened his eyes. The clock said ten-thirty a.m. but he wasn’t de at work for another couple of hours. He pushed the bed covers aside, and tugged his robe on before going to the front door.

  Ken Woo grinned and waved a bottle of champagne at him. ‘Guess what? School’s out for Christmas.’

  Pal let him in, frowning slightly. ‘Because of the snow?’

  Ken stopped. ‘What snow? Buddy, there hasn’t been any snow in Hong Kong since 1975, and then it was only up on the peaks. You hungover or something?’ He chuckled to himself and went into the kitchen to find some glasses.

  Pal blinked then walked to the window. Ken was right – no snow. Considering the blanket that had covered the city only seven hours ago….maybe it had melted. Pal shrugged. Who cared? He’d just spent the most exciting night of his life and he was worried about snow?

  Ken came back in holding two over spilling champagne flutes. ‘Merry Christmas, Pal.’

  Pal took a swig of the cold liquid. ‘And the same to you. So, I guess, the party starts now?’

  Ken grinned. ‘You bet it does. Now, go grab a shower and get dressed. Have I got the day planned for us.’

  ‘So she just…turned up?’ Ken looked skeptical. Pal smiled. He hadn’t planned on telling Ken about Jing-Mai but the secret would not stay hidden. They’d trawled the best of Hong Kong’s bars and were now seated in one of the best sushi and sashimi restaurants.

  ‘I think she’s the apartment’s owner,’ Pal told his friend as he picked up his chopsticks, ‘the realtor told me she had a sexy way of speaking. He wasn’t wrong.’

  ‘And she just turned up?’

  ‘Yep. Entirely naked. She must live elsewhere in the building.’

  ‘Huh.’ Ken scooped up some stick rice and ch
ewed thoughtfully. ‘That begs the question – why wouldn’t she live in the penthouse? It’s not as if she’s charging you a high rent. She can barely make anything off it after tax.’

  Pal shrugged. ‘Who knows? We didn’t exactly get around to discussing her business matters.’

  Ken laughed. ‘Lucky dog.’

  Pal chose a particularly succulent piece of fish, eating it with relish. ‘Maybe it’s the universe’s way of making up for the past few years.’

  Ken tapped his sake cup to his friend’s. ‘Amen to that.’

  After dinner they walked through the crowded streets and Pal began to feel as if his whole life was about to get better from now on. Here he was in the stunning, progressive city with all the opportunities it held, with a good friend in Ken, at a time of global celebration. And, if he were lucky, a beautiful woman to share it all with. Yes, he thought, the new century is going to be a good one for Pal Magnessen, I can feel it.

  Ken bade him farewell just after midnight. ‘Tomorrow’s Christmas eve – there’s a faculty party at a bar downtown if you want to go?’

  Pal agreed readily – he was ready to throw himself into the whole community here, make new friends, build a life. He chuckled, shaking his head as he entered his apartment. ‘You really made up your mind that quickly, Magnessen?’

  He went to bed, falling into an exhausted slumber until he woke, smiling, feeling her mouth on him. ‘Hello, beautiful Jing-Mai.’

  He heard her chuckle, felt the vibration in her throat against the tip of his penis and he sighed happily. Another blissful night of making love and indeed, his body felt ultra-sensitive to her every touch as if just by trailing her fingertips against his skin, she left a burning sensation.

  Her tongue flicked around his cockhead, her hands massaging his balls, feeling almost like they were vibrating against his skin. She drove him towards almost unbearable pleasure and when it was his turn, he licked and sucked and taste her until he could wait no longer, driving his engorged prick deep into her honey-soaked cunt.

  Before he fell asleep, he stroked her face, studying the dark gold of her eyes. ‘My beautiful Jing-Mai…where do you go when you leave me? Do you live here in this building?’

  ‘I am close,’ was all that she would tell him, before beginning to hum a strange melody that made his eyes heavy and his body relax into the deepest, dreamless sleep.

  The Christmas party was riotous. Ken introduced him to the rest of the faculty and some of the grad students that had joined them and they all welcomed him as an old friend. At midnight, they all cheered in Christmas Day and drank their fill in champagne. Pal watched in amusement as various people paired up and stumbled off into the night. He couldn’t but help feel a little smug; although the woman in the faculty were lovely, sweet, great looking and most importantly smart, they still didn’t hold a thing to Jing-Mai. She was otherworldly, unique, unsurpassable. He could barely wait to get back to her.

  He walked a very drunk Ken back to his building and saw he got to his apartment safely. Ken thanked him. ‘Come over in the afternoon and I’ll cook.’

  Pal thanked him. ‘Drink some water and get some sleep. I’ll see you later.’

  He almost flew back to his own home. Once there, he decided to wait up for her, making a nest on the couch with his blanket, another bottle of beer. Late night t.v. was nothing but trash so he flicked on the radio and listened to pop music until he felt his eyes closing. No, stay awake, it was nearly time. He wrenched his eyes open – in time to see Jing-Mai step out of the painting on the wall. His heart nearly stopped. Jing-Mai smiled. ‘Now you know. I am always close.’

  Pal shook his head. ‘How can this be? It is not possible!’

  Jing-Mai came to him, coiling her body around his. ‘Anything is possible, my love.’

  For once, he pushed her away and got up, pacing around the living room, his mind whirling. ‘No, I am a scientist, Jing-Mai. I do not believe in such…supernatural things.’

  She smiled that enigmatic smile. ‘I am no more supernatural than you, my love. Do I not feel real?’

  He sat down beside her, his eyes fixed on her. He touched her face. ‘I cannot conceive of how this is possible.’

  Jing-Mai kissed him gently. ‘My love, the important thing is that we are together.’ But Pal still felt troubled.

  ‘Jing-Mai…what happened to the man who rented this apartment before me?’

  She looked surprised. ‘I have no idea, my love, only that they came here and were gone just as quickly. Now, shall we make love?’

  He let her led him to this bedroom and there they made the most gentle and tender love yet.

  When he awoke in the morning, she was gone as he had expected. He walked out into the living room and faced the painting. ‘Are you really in there, my sweetest love?’

  Did he imagine it or did the corner of her mouth hitch up slightly in a mischievous smile. Did it matter? Pal touched the painting, her cheek and it felt as soft as her skin.

  ‘I cannot believe this,’ he whispered but then tried to smile. ‘But as you say, my only love, as long as we are together.’

  He could not stop thinking about her, even later when he was at Ken’s apartment and they were eating a delicious meal of beef and noodles. Ken noticed his friend was distracted but said nothing, just smiled to himself. He wasn’t so old that he didn’t remember what falling in love was like. They watched some old movies after dinner, a comedy and a horror. Pal thanked his friend for his generosity. ‘I had imagined a very solitary Christmas,’ he admitted, ‘and you have made it one of my best in years, so thank you. Also for thinking of me for the job. Hong Kong appears to suit me.’

  Boxing Day. He awoke shivering, desperate to pee. He stumbled into the bathroom and relieved himself. He felt feverish, his whole body trembling. He glanced in the mirror. His eyes were bloodshot, his skin a nasty yellow. ‘Jesus,’ he muttered. What a time to get sick! He climbed back into bed and pulled the covers over him. He fell into a deep, troubled sleep, haunted by nightmares and when he woke, hours later, the room was dark and his bladder was again full to bursting.

  When Jing-Mai came that night, he told her, regretfully, that he was sick and that he could not make love. Jing-Mai tended to him tenderly until dawn. As she got up to leave, he clutched her hand. ‘Can you not stay, my love?’

  She bent down and kissed him. ‘I’m sorry, dearest one, I have to go. I hope you will better soon.’

  Pal was disappointed but not surprised. Perhaps she could not risk being seen in sunlight, or….he didn’t know what else it could be. All bets were off now that he knew she was something different, something other.

  His fever worsened but on the second day after Boxing Day, there was a faculty meeting scheduled and so he showered and dressed and called a cab to take him to the campus.

  Ken greeted him as he entered the meeting room. ‘Jesus, you look terrible. What happened?’

  ‘A virus, I think.’ Pal groped for a chair and sat down. His side was hurting badly and he bent double now, sucking in oxygen.

  Ken looked alarmed. ‘Maybe you shouldn’t be here, man.’

  ‘No, no, I’m okay, just took the stairs too quickly,’ Pal insisted and even as he spoke, the pain abated and he relaxed.

  The meeting was one of procedures for the next semester and the faculty head; a dreary grey man called Dennis, droned on and on for what seemed like hours. Luckily, Dennis didn’t appear to require any input from his audience and so Pal’s mind wandered. Jing-Mai had been loving and caring for the few hours that she stayed with him both nights and he regretted the moment that she left. This morning before he’d left the apartment, he studied the painting, taking from the wall and checking the back of it. It appeared just an ordinary painting.

  On the cab ride in to the university, the idea had come to him. He would call the realtor; see if he would tell him the names of some of the previous tenants – the ones that were still alive. He reasoned he could ask of that much – a
retroactive reference, so to speak. Pal would ask them about the apartment, the painting, if anything unusual happened; see what other people’s experiences had been.

  His stomach gave an ominous lurch, dragging him back to the present. He tasted bile and gagged.

  ‘Pal, are you okay?’ Ken looked at him as Pal shoved his chair backwards and dashed to the door. Luckily, the bathrooms were close and as Pal stumbled into a booth and threw up, his whole body shook and trembled. He heard the door open and Ken was there, patting him on the back.

  ‘Okay, we’re going to the emergency room.’

  Pal shook his head. ‘No need, really, it’s just a virus. I probably brought it with me from overseas. Honestly,’ He paused, nausea threatening again, and then swallowed hard. ‘I’ll just go home, take the few days between now and the semester to get better. Really, thanks Ken, but I’m okay.’

  Ken wasn’t convinced. ‘Promise me you’ll call a doctor if it gets worse.’

  ‘I promise.’

  But he didn’t call a doctor and by the nest morning, the pain in his abdomen was so bad he was unable to move. Jing-Mai had again tended to him, but even she could not help the pain. ‘I think you will have to just get through this,’ she said and for the first time, he felt irritated with her.

  He toyed with the idea of calling an ambulance but, after sleeping for the day, he woke feeling a lot better. He got out of bed and drank two full pints of water, his mouth almost desiccated. He sat on the couch in the living room, staring at the painting. Tomorrow was an ordinary working day. He would call the realtor to start his investigation and try to find out about his enigmatic lover.

  He dressed in the morning, noting his pants were much looser than before and that he had to hitch his belt along a couple of notches. He called the realtor and with much persuasion, got hold of a few numbers.