by Lena Skye
“So you’re trying to tell me that you think Orton could take Batista,” Desmond said in disbelief.
“Oh hells yeah, don’t let his small size fool you. He’s powerful and he’s cunning…and sexy,” I laughed.
“If I didn’t think you cared about me I would be jealous,” he said. “But seriously if Orton faces him in WrestleMania, he’s going to have his ass handed to him.”
“We will see about that,” I countered.
“I smell a wager coming up but we’ll discuss that after it’s confirmed that Orton is fighting him in the main event.”
“You’re on.”
I loved being able to talk trash to him, and I loved that he was a wrestling fan. I was a closeted fan before I met Desmond. Once we found out that we both loved it, we made it our business to be at odds at who we thought were going to win different matches. That was just another reason added to the list of why I cared about him so much.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” He asked.
“I was just thinking about how happy I am to have you in my life. Sorry if I came off like a creeper.”
“No I didn’t mind, I just wanted to know what was on your mind. I feel the same way about you, being with you has made my life so much better. I think we’re a good fit for each other,” he said.
“In what way?” I asked before I took a sip of my Merlot.
“I think that you’ve pushed me beyond what I ever saw for myself in my business, and I’ve made you loosen up,” he observed.
“I think that you would have gotten to where you are without my help, but thank you anyway,” I said.
“I doubt it, but I appreciate you for believing in me,” he said as he reached over the table and took my hands in his. His thumb brushed across my knuckles, and I felt it all over. It was such a simple and sweet gesture, but it held the promise of more.
I involuntarily bit my lip to keep from groaning. My senses were on overdrive because it felt as if it had been forever since I’d had sex. I still hadn’t gone all the way with Desmond because I wanted to wait until I felt completely sure about that decision. Once you go there with someone you can never go back, and I didn’t want my heart broken. I don’t know what it is, but things hurt a lot deeper when a man that you’ve slept with does you wrong. You feel the cut much deeper because they’ve seen you naked, and have been inside of your body.
“Of course I believe in you. The second thing that I noticed about you was your talent,” I shared.
“What was the first?”
“I noticed how perfect you were,” I said, “You looked as if you just stepped off the set of a GQ photo shoot. It was icing on the cake to figure out that you designed your own clothes. Aside from your looks, your talent speaks for itself and anyone with an eye for fashion knows that. I mean your sales are a clear indication, my boutiques can’t keep you in stock.”
“I just design what I like to wear,” he said.
“And that says a lot about your style. It is kind of weird to see men walking around dressing like you. They look good, but you look amazing.”
“Flattery will get you everywhere with me,” he said, “Are you just saying that to get in my pants?”
I laughed, “I don’t know about all that.”
“Well it’s working, if you want it come and get it.”
“I plead the 5th,” I said with a blush.
“But seriously, do you think that tonight may be the night for us?” He asked with a more hushed tone.
The euphoria that I was experiencing had quickly come crashing down. You can only play with fire so long before you get burned.
“I don’t know, I’ll have to think about it,” I answered hesitantly.
I really just wasn’t ready. I told him that I wanted to wait until we had sex because I knew how men can change as soon as they get it. I needed him to prove that he was the real deal first. He was very persuasive, but he always backed off when I made it clear that I wasn’t ready and so I hoped that he would stay consistent in his behavior. I hated feeling pressured because that only caused me to retreat and not give him. My father always said that I was a ‘stubborn lil’ thing,’ and I’ve prided myself on that.
“Whoa, no need for that face,” he said, “I see that you’re not ready, and that’s okay.”
I gave a visible sigh of relief, “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize because there’s nothing to apologize for. I will wait until our wedding night if I have to. But if you refuse me then I’ll think that you’re just using me for my good looks.”
He was still the same Desmond that I knew and liked. Not many men would have waited for the amount of time that he had. He was wonderful and perfect for me in that moment because I needed someone that could exhibit some patience while dealing with me. A lot of men would have lashed out in frustration, but he has always seemed to maintain his cool. He just kept solidifying my thoughts to move forward with him sexually in the future.
“Well if we ever got to that point, I would be all over you. I wouldn’t be able to wait until the evening, we would have to disappear during the reception,” I said.
“Don’t tempt me woman,” he laughed.
“I’m just being honest,” I said before I took another bite of my salmon.
“I really don’t want to change the subject, but I want to ask you now while it’s on my mind,” he said before he paused and looked at me.
“Okay,” I responded expectantly.
“You know that I have the new women’s line coming out soon, and we have to find a signature girl,” he said.
“Yes, did you have someone in mind?” I asked.
“Don’t freak out,” he said.
“Don’t get on my nerves by drawing this out any longer.”
“We should use Loren,” he said quickly and then covered his eyes as if I was going to throw my fork at him.
Now that I think about it, throwing my fork at him wasn’t such a bad idea. He knew how I felt about that chick, and I didn’t want to be around her if I could help it.
“You know how much I hate Loren,” I said as I carefully placed my fork on my plate and placed my hands in my lap.
“I know but put on your business mind really quickly and then tell me what you think,” he pleaded.
I was resistant to what he asked, but I still did it. I could see the value in what he was asking because Loren has burst onto the scene and was taking Atlanta by storm. I knew that soon she would be in New York or LA, and it would be great to get her in the studio before her rates went through the roof.
“Alright,” I sighed heavily, “She is your best bet right now, and I think that I may be able to put business over my personal issues with her. I’m just not sure if I’ll be in the studio the entire time because I may get the urge to slip a pin in a shirt.”
“Great,” he said excitedly, “I already asked her, and she agreed. She’s promised that she won’t bring any drama to the set or to the brand. I really think that she’ll be able to maintain her professionalism.”
I found it odd that he asked for my advice over something that he had already made a decision about. It sounded as if he had a full conversation with Loren anyway, and I fought my annoyance. There was no need to fuss over it because it was his line, and I was just a consultant. He could do whatever he wanted with his brand, and so my opinion really didn’t matter.
“Alright, we’ll see. Either way it doesn’t matter because it’s all about what you want.”
“If that was true me and you would be in my bed right now,” he hinted.
“Very funny, you know what I mean,” I said before I threw my dinner napkin at him.
Once we got into his car after we left the restaurant, neither one of us was ready to go home, and we didn’t want to be amongst any crowds so we just drove around Atlanta. I always loved seeing it at night. Everyone walked around as if they didn’t have a care in the world, and I think that’s what makes it so special.
Desmond held my hand the entire time that he was driving.
“Nights like this just feel perfect,” he said.
“I know, sometimes feel like I never want them to end. Don’t get me wrong, I love what I do but I love being around you uninterrupted.”
“We really should take advantage of this time,” he said as he kissed the back of my hand suggestively. I was entranced as his tongue dipped between my pointer and ring finger suggestively, and I moistened as I envisioned him doing that to my nether region. His tongue was doing some amazing things to my fingers, and I wanted so much more.
“You better cut it out,” I gasped, “You’ve got skills.”
“I would love to be able to show you just how extensive my skills are,” he said in a low voice.
The temperature shot up ten degrees in my body because my interest was piqued. I took a deep breath and tried to calm the hormones that had begun raging in my body. I couldn’t allow my body to dictate what was going to happen and end up with regrets in the morning. Soon after we were parked in front of his place, and the anticipation was killing me.
He leaned over and unbuckled my seat-belt. I took my cue from him and kissed him as his body covered mines. We were on the same page because his response was immediate, his hand wrapped around the back of my neck so that our kiss could deepen. He tasted of the spearmint gum that he’d been chewing earlier, and his mouth was cool against my own. Our tongues entangled as our breathing became ragged. I lost myself in him as I pushed him back against his seat, and I was suddenly grateful that he drove a Range Rover. I broke myself from his kiss and pushed the button on the side of his seat until it pushed away from the steering wheel.
I slid from my seat and straddled him before I claimed his mouth again. My skater skirt easily hiked around my waist, and his hard cock was pressed against my center. I moaned as I moved back and forth against him, simulating the sex that I so badly wanted. His hands roamed under my shirt and slid against my back, and his fingertips caressed my spine. I cursed all of the barriers between us.
“Want to come upstairs?” He asked.
My gut response was to say yes and to follow him up the stairs, but my reservations were still in the back of my head. I knew that I still wasn’t ready even though my body was singing an entirely different tune. I leaned over and rested my head against his shoulder and adjusted pulled my skirt down.
“I’m so sorry,” I said against his ear feeling ashamed of myself.
How could I expect him to be a gentleman and to respect my wishes if I was sending him mixed signals? I pulled my body from his and returned to my seat as I adjusted my clothing. I cringed when I saw the look of disappointment on his face, especially since I was responsible for it. He had every right to be upset with me because I’d taken things to the next level, and I wasn’t going to make good on my unspoken promise.
He leaned his head against the headrest for a few moments and took deep breaths before he spoke, “Its’ okay, I meant everything that I told you at dinner. I will get over it.”
“Thank you,” I said weakly as he turned on his car, and we headed back towards my house.
During the ride home I had to fight my intense guilt. I wondered if he would stray if I didn’t have sex with him soon. He was being so patient, and I didn’t know many men who would have waited on me. I could only assume that his feelings ran deeper than just ‘like’ for me. He also mentioned our wedding night, and that was a huge indicator that he was thinking about our future. You bring up a wedding to the average man, and he’ll stutter, break out in hives, and then set himself on fire.
I reached across for his hand and brought it to my lips, “I wish you knew just how much I appreciate you.”
“Just being a part of your life and knowing that I’m your man makes me feel appreciated,” he said genuinely.
If I was a burst of light, then I would have shined brighter than the sun at that moment. He was everything that I wanted and needed in a man.
#Chapter9
“I’m from New York baby, we don’t take shit from anyone”
Amanda
A few days later I was walking to meet my girl’s at a restaurant.. I also had to update them about Kenneth showing up at my house randomly and our night out at the pool. I needed to know if they had any dirt on Amelia as well because she was out painting the town red with Loren. It was enough to make me sick. I know that I shouldn’t have cared, but the idea of them being happy upset me. Sure it was a character flaw on my own part but I wasn’t ready to work on it just yet.
I walked into the restaurant and spotted Jasmine, Patrice, and …Amanda. The three of them were obviously having a wonderful conversation because they were all laughing and joking. I stood in the doorway watching them in shock for a few moments. I had no clue what was going on and why she was there. My friends should have known better, but I figured that I would go to the table and give them the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they just randomly ran across her at the restaurant, and she was sitting at a table by herself because that was the only acceptable explanation. I didn’t have a monopoly on my friend’s time, but there are certain boundaries that your friends just aren’t supposed to cross and this was a huge damned boundary. Why didn’t one of them call and warn me?
To prevent myself from stewing in my own anger, I walked to the table and had a seat across from Amanda.
“Hey Ladies,” I said as I gave Patrice and Jasmine the ‘you’re in trouble’ look that we exchange in front of people.
“Hey love,” Jasmine said as she gave me a huge apologetic smile.
“Hey Skinny Minnie,” Patrice said boisterously.
“Hi!” Amanda greeted as she flashed me her million dollar smile.
“Hey, good to see you,” I said.
“You too! The girls already told me what you all enjoy. So I’m going to go and put our order in, everything is on me,” she said before she hopped up and went to the counter.
“What in the hell is going on?” I asked as soon as she was out of ear shot.
“Well Kenneth asked us to show Amanda a wonderful night out since she doesn’t know many people here and she has been a bit lonely,” Jasmine explained.
“Yeah, it can be lonely out here especially when you don’t know who to befriend or trust,” Patrice chimed in.
I felt a little betrayed because Kenneth had gone behind my back and asked my friends because he knew that I wasn’t going to do it. I didn’t feel like it was fair that he was forcing his fiancé down my throat. Damn, hadn’t I suffered enough? No one told him to bring his fiancé to Atlanta, especially since she didn’t know anyone. He could have at least introduced her to a different circle of friends, why did they have to impose on mine. Needless to say, I was feeling really grumpy regarding the situation and that sake couldn’t come fast enough.
“Also,” Jasmine went on to fill the awkward silence, “Cedric and Kenneth have been hanging out a lot lately. So I’ve been getting to know Amanda a lot better.”
I wanted to reach across the table and shake her. She was supposed to be loyal to me, she was my friend first dammit. But I was pleased to hear that Kenneth was hanging out with Cedric more because that meant that him and Joshua weren’t spending a lot of time together. He needed that weasel to be completely out of his life, but any progress was better than none. So while Kenneth was buttering me up to hang out with Amanda he was working on Jasmine too. Jasmine was always the weak link because she was too nice, and she lacked in her ability to say no. I always admired that quality in her but sometimes it was just terribly inconvenient. Our girls night wasn’t going to be like I envisioned it at all, and most of the things that I wanted to talk about were now off limits. Amazing how Kenneth can get his way with anyone eventually.
“Yeah, she’s really cool. It’s not as if she got with Kenneth in a trifling way either and aren’t you over him?” Patrice asked.
I calmed down the storm that was raging inside of me because there wasn’t any
reason to show my ass inside of my favorite place. My friend’s also made some very valid points. Amanda didn’t do anything wrong, and she was an innocent in the entire situation. I would have preferred that she wasn’t around at all but now that she was, I wasn’t going to be rude to her, and she didn’t deserve that. I’d moved on with my life, and it was time that I actually acted like it.
“Fine bitches, I’m going to strangle the both of you for springing this on me without any warning though. You know you two would chew me out if I did something like this to you.”
“I know, but we didn’t know how to bring it to you and so we figured that it would be better to ask for forgiveness than permission,” Jasmine said.
