I pulled away, just a little, and looked in his eyes once more. I wanted to tell him that I loved him, but something was holding me back from saying the words. He had said things like that to me before, but I did not think that he was entirely sober when he did. Afraid of alarming him, I just kissed him again, with more passion than I had ever kissed anyone before. Sometimes actions say things that words never could.
One of Liam's hands traveled back up my spine, giving me goose bumps, and he tangle it in my thick, blonde hair. Deepening the kiss, I tightened my arms around his neck. I could feel his manhood throbbing against my thigh, and I was beginning to lose patience.
“Do you want to go to bedroom?” I murmured between kisses.
“No,” he replied, softly.
I frowned and loosened my embrace a little.
“Why not?”
He smirked and pulled me closer again, pressing his lips to my throat. He pulled his lips away, just slightly, breathing into the crook of my neck. My own breathing hitched. He was only making me want him more.
“Why do something in the bedroom that we can do right here?” he whispered.
I moaned as he began sucking on my neck with more intensity than ever before. His member prodded my thigh and I felt the warmth between my legs become wetter. Breathing heavily, I ran my hand down his body and stroked him, softly. A groan fell from his lips and I smirked.
“You missed me, didn't you?” I murmured.
Breathing heavily, he pulled away from my neck and looked me in the eye. He nodded and swallowed, lightly running his fingertips along my fleshy, full breasts. My nipples puckered beneath his soft touch and he smiled, lovingly pressing his lips to mine.
“I missed you like mad,” he replied, softly.
One of his hands ran down my body to caress my waist while he used the other to tuck my hair behind my ear. I blushed a little as his azure eyes danced around, reading each one of my facial features.
“You're staring,” I whispered.
“I'm sorry. You're just so beautiful,” he replied, quietly, lightly my cheekbone with his thumb.
My face flushed again and I attempted to hide it by pressing my lips to his shoulder. Judging by the groan that he emitted, my method had worked. I smirked against his skin and kissed my way down his chest and lower abdomen. His breathing hitched and I felt goosebumps on the skin beneath my mouth.
I kissed all the way to his happy trail, lingering there for a moment to tease him. I looked up at him and smiled, running my fingers along his member, lightly.
“Do you want it?” I asked, sensuously.
He bit his lip.
“It's been way too long,” he murmured.
“Is that a yes?”
“Please. I'm going crazy here, babe.”
I smirked, deciding to play with him a little bit longer.
“So you want this?” I asked, lightly flicking my tongue against his head and quickly pulling away again.
He swallowed and nodded.
“What about this?” I asked.
I then took all of him into my mouth and a loud gasp fell from his lips. Swirling my tongue around him, I hummed lightly. His stiff member became harder inside of my mouth. He groaned and I tightened my lips around him, urging him to express his pleasure even more.
“Oh God, Aaliyah,” he moaned. “That feels amazing.”
He tangled one of his hands in my hair and I bobbed my head, taking as much of him into my mouth as I could. His breathing started to become shallow and I loosened my lips a little, reminding him not to climax quite yet.
“I-I need to be in you,” he stammered. “I'm going to come too fast.”
I pulled away and kissed his head before standing back up and kissing his lips. He made a face, a little unimpressed that I had kissed him after exploring him, orally. Nevertheless, he seemed to forget about it rather quickly, considering he pressed his mouth against mine hardly a second later, pulling me closer towards him. He hoisted my up by my buttocks and I wrapped my legs around him as I tightened my arms around his neck for extra support. I felt his manhood brush between my legs and I shivered.
Suddenly, he penetrated me. I gasped, because I had not expected him to do it so quickly, but it still felt incredible.
“You okay?” he asked.
I nodded, pressing my hips towards his. He groaned and crashed his lips into mine. Growing a little more confident, I wove my fingers through his hair and tugged on it. He smirked against my mouth and lightly bit my lower lip, pumping his strong arms to explore my insides rapidly. I screamed out in pleasure and he grunted. Our animal instincts were in full bloom.
“Oh my God, Liam!” I cried, tossing my head back in long-awaited ecstasy.
“Oh, Aaliyah,” he panted, pushing me against a wall.
The strange sensation of matte paint against my skin was easy to ignore while I basked in the pleasure of feeling him explore my inner walls. My womanly muscles pulsed around him and my breathing hitched as our hips moved in sync.
One of my hands fell down his spine and I scratched the flesh on his back, encouraging him to keep moving. He groaned and sunk his teeth into my shoulder aggressively. With a moan, I tossed my head back. It made a loud thud as it hit the wall, but I could not even feel it when I was so caught in the moment. With each thrust, it hit it again, but it was entirely painless. All that I felt was the delicious friction between our sweaty bodies.
“I'm getting close,” he murmured into my neck.
“Me too,” I breathed, pushing my hips towards his.
He sped up his thrusts and my large breasts bounced violently with each movement. He groaned and stiffened inside of my walls. My muscles tightened around him and as I let out a scream, we climaxed together.
Tired from our sexual endeavor, he set me back down and hobbled towards the sofa. His entire body was covered in droplets of sweat and both of our manes were damp and tangled. My lipstick had stained his frame red in spots; I chuckled at the sight.
“What's funny?” he breathed.
I walked towards the sofa and collapsed next to him on the sofa.
“My lipstick is all over you,” I replied.
I licked my thumb and tried to scrub off one of the marks on his shoulder.
“Don't worry about it,” he murmured, closing his eyes. “I'm probably just going to shower anyway.”
“Do you want me to join you?” I asked.
“If you want,” he replied in a careless tone.
I frowned. It was strange that he was being so aloof after we had just had intercourse.
“It's not about what I want. It's about what you want,” I said.
“I just don't have enough energy for round two so I didn't want you to expect it and be disappointed,” he admitted with a nervous laugh.
“That's called being human,” I replied. “Of course I wouldn't be disappointed. I just wanted to spend as much time with you as possible.”
“I understand,” he murmured. “I'm too tired right now.”
“Me too,” I agreed, resting my head on his shoulder.
He kissed the side of my head and ran his fingers through my hair.
“You taste like sweat,” he noted, amused.
“Sorry about that,” I replied in a light voice. “I didn't think that would take so much of my energy out.”
“Me either,” he said.
We sat together, quietly, for several minutes. I finally broke the silence.
“I love you,” I murmured.
He did not reply and I frowned. I pulled away and looked him in the eyes, furrowing my brow.
“I said I love you,” I repeated.
“I'm going to go hop in the shower,” he muttered, getting to his feet and walking towards his pile of clothes.
Confused and angry, I stood up and folded my arms across my chest. I wanted to know why he could not say the words back to me.
“That's how you react to me saying that I love you?” I asked.
“Can't I just want to get clean after I got all sweaty?” he snapped, pulling on his boxers and continuing to walk away from me.
I quickly stepped in his way and sucked on my teeth, expressing my distaste for his behavior.
“You've said things like that to me before but you can't admit it now? What the hell is the point of us doing this if you can't even be honest with me?” I interrogated.
“Can't you let me go take a shower and we can talk about it after?” he asked, annoyed, trying to push past me.
“I just don't see why we can't talk about this,” I replied. “Don't you see how it could hurt me that you can't even tell me you love me?”
“Don't you see that I just really want a shower?” he snapped.
I glared at him, but I knew that the argument was not going to go anywhere if I kept pressing it. Not to mention, I was angry enough that I did not want to talk about it anymore, either.
“Fine,” I retorted, moving out of his way and slipping back into my dress. “I'm going home.”
“Oh, come on. Don't be like that,” he pleaded, with a sigh.
“Can't you just let me go home and we can talk about it after?” I snapped.
“Come on, now you're just being petty,” he said.
I pulled on my panties and slipped into my shoes.
“Are you going to talk to me?” he pressed.
“I have nothing to say to you.”
With that, I walked out the door and slammed it behind me.
*****
Chapter 15
I was preoccupied with all of the emotional turmoil that Liam was causing me. It was beginning to affect my work and it became quite clear to me when I was at the press release. Since I had neglected the necessary preparation, I was dreading my speech. Although I had written it, it was not the best work that I could have put forth. I felt incredibly stupid for choosing a forbidden relationship with a clearly disturbed man over my career. I had to come to terms with the fact that it was possible that I had blown my only chance to sell Foodonate as a feasible stock option to the business world.
I took a deep breath and frantically skimmed over my notes as I waited for my cue. It had been a week since my argument with Liam and we had not spoken, but I had been dwelling on it for so long that I was not as focused as I should have been. Nausea started to overwhelm me.
The only thing that I was thankful for at that moment in time was that Carmen Nestor had demanded that Liam spent more time at HealeRx. Considering our argument, I needed space from him to heal our business relationship before I could work closely with him again. Convincing myself that a romantic relationship with him was not right was a difficult thing to do, but I was slowly coming to terms with it. There was no point in caring so deeply for somebody that did not have the same strong feelings for me. It was as simple as that. That is what I tried to tell myself, anyway.
Before Liam had come into my life, Patrick would have been helping me prepare, making up for any of my shortcomings as much as he possibly could. I frowned. I had ruined a friendship for a man that could not even display his affection for me. With a sigh, I swam in my regrets, leading me to lose focus on practicing my speech once more.
“Ready?” a voice asked.
I looked up to see Mr. Hoffman. My nausea became a little bit worse. I had no idea that he was actually going to attend the event. Rarely did he attend anything for his investments that were not already raking in millions of dollars.
“As ready as I could be,” I lied, forcing a smile.
He frowned and sat on the bench beside me.
“Something bothering you, Barr?” he asked, his tone laced with concern.
I scratched the back of my neck, anxiously.
“Just nervous,” I fibbed.
He squinted and nodded.
“You know, Barr, sometimes things in life affect your work,” he said, carefully. “Sometimes you just have to roll with the punches. But I'll bet that whatever it is that has you so anxious is probably not as terrible as it seems. Sometimes life throws us a curve ball. It might take you a minute to line up the bat, but when you do, everything seems to work out.”
His words took me by surprise. They were moving, but something told me that I was not just radiating my emotional discomfort. Mr. Hoffman was not the most emotionally involved man that I knew, which led me to believe that he had more information that I would have liked for him to have had. I chewed on my lip for a moment, pondering whether or not I was just being paranoid.
I rubbed my temples for a moment and looked back up at him. He was staring at me, rather intently.
“What do you think it is that I'm going through that isn't so terrible?” I asked, skeptically. I chose my words as carefully as possible.
“A little birdie stopped by my office today and asked me if I'd have a word with you,” he admitted. “I'm glad I did. Looks like you needed it.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“Carmen Nestor,” I scowled. “Listen, Mr. Hoffman—”
He shook his head and interjected, “Carmen Nestor didn't say anything at all to me. In fact, I haven't even talked to that harpy of a woman in two months.”
“Patrick?” I guessed.
He shook his head again.
“Phoebe?”
Judging by his expression, I was wrong for the third time. I frowned. I had no idea who else would talk to my boss. Suddenly, it dawned on me.
“Goddammit, Liam,” I growled.
Mr. Hoffman waved a finger and shook his head.
“Sometimes love makes you do strange things,” he said, softly. “Sometimes you talk about something to someone you weren't supposed to and put your career on the line just to get the attention of the person you want the most.
Sometimes you make rash decisions because it's all you have left. I had that with my first wife. I'd do anything just to see her one last time.”
He sighed and looked wistfully into the distance. I chewed on my lip, unsure whether to be angry or relieved.
“Don't throw away something that's worth more than all the money in the world,” he advised. He chuckled and added, “I have just about all the money in the world and I'd give it all away just to see my Nancy for five more minutes. Just to remind her how much I love her and she was always my number one. No matter how much time I spent writing checks and going on business trips, it was all for her. My biggest regret in life is not treasuring my time with her as much as I treasured throwing money at her. Learn from my mistakes.”
He had a pained expression and a tear fell down his face. I had never seen him like that before, but I was so glad that I did. I chewed on my lip and met his gaze.
“Do you know if he will be here?” I asked.
He smiled and replied, “I think you know the answer to that.”
I frowned.
“I actually don't,” I responded.
Suddenly, a young man with a clipboard and an earpiece walked out of the backstage door of the large auditorium. He looked from me to Mr. Hoffman and then back to me.
“You're on in one minute,” he said, and then retreated back into the room.
I nodded and got to my feet.
“Looks like it's your time to shine,” Mr. Hoffman quipped, standing up with me and patting my arm, encouragingly. “If I had any advice for you, it would be to look towards the back of the audience. It might give you a little more courage. Break a leg, Barr.”
“Is that where—”
The man with the clipboard emerged from the room again.
“Thirty seconds!”
I sighed and followed him into the room, looking back at Mr. Hoffman to try to get an answer. He smiled and gave me an approving nod, but he did not confirm anything. My stomach was still in knots, but I had to do what I went there to do.
I took a deep breath and walked to the podium to wait until the curtains opened, clutching my note-cards in my hand.
The auditorium was full. The sea of business suits was one of the most i
nebriating things that I had ever seen. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the young man with the clipboard giving me thumbs up. My eyes frantically searched for Liam in the back of the audience like Mr. Hoffman had hinted, but I could not see him anywhere. I took a deep breath and looked down at my note-cards, preparing myself for the most embarrassing moment of my life and the end of my career. Without Liam's support, I had no faith in myself.
I tapped the microphone and it made a loud, ear-piercing sound. The entire audience cringed and I swallowed, nervously. I was not off to a good start.
I cleared my throat and spoke into the microphone.
“Can everyone hear me? You guys in the back? You can hear me?”
“We hear you!” a woman yelled.
“We already did sound check!” the man with the clipboard hissed.
Sweat was pouring from my brow, but I had to continue.
“Great. Hello everyone, I'm Aaliyah Barr. I am one of the executives at Hoffman and the company that I am working with is called Foodonate.” I started.
The entire audience was staring at me, blankly. I cleared my throat and scratched the back of my head, referring to my note-cards again. It was not going well.
“F-first, I think that I sh-should mention that Foodonate was one called TrashCanDo. Y-you may have heard of it,” I continued.
Nobody responded and I assumed they had not heard of it. My eyes searched in the audience once more. Mr. Hoffman was there, but there was still no sign of Liam. I gulped and leaned closer to the microphone.
“Looks like you aren't familiar. A-anyway, at Foodonate, we take all of that extra food that r-restaurants, gr-grocery stores, delis, and—uh—” I referred to my note-cards again, shuffling them, earning some isolated chuckles at my expense. “—convenience stores, and b-bakeries, and we make sure it is donated to a good cause. M-missions and charities sign up to pick up the f-food and businesses sign up t-to have it taken away.”
BILLIONAIRE: Protected (A Dark Billionaire Romance) Page 9
