by JB Duvane
“What do you mean? What are we doing here? Are you a pilot?”
He smiled and raised an eyebrow, like he had a lot of secrets, this one being just the tip of the iceberg. “No, but it is my jet. Come on, let’s go.”
He got out of the car before I could respond. Just about everything that came out of his mouth now put me in a temporary state of shock. He walked around the car and opened my door, then held out his arm.
I pulled myself together and stepped out onto the airport blacktop. “Wait, you own a jet? Are you serious?”
“I own a lot of things.”
He turned and led me to the stairs that were attached to the jet, but stopped short when my feet refused to take another step.
“Wait a second,” I said, sounding angrier than I’d intended. “You’re going to need to explain this to me.”
Damon sighed. He turned to me as another plane took off in the distance.
“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, but I wasn’t interested in letting anyone at the reunion in on my private life. I have a lot of money, Amber.”
“Oh,” I said, trying to comprehend how much money he’d have to have to own his own jet.
“Come inside with me, please,” Damon said, taking my hand again. “We’ll be much more comfortable in there.”
“Speak for yourself,” I said under my breath. I wanted to ask more questions. Instead, I followed Damon up the stairs and stepped inside the first private jet I’d ever encountered. And when I did, I started to understand just how rich Damon was.
Everything was stark and perfect. White walls and carpet with plush furniture upholstered in black leather. The cabin of the jet was larger and more expensive than my entire apartment. There was a massive, flat-screen TV that took up an entire wall and a mirrored bar in the corner with top-shelf alcohol; bottles of aged scotch that cost triple my monthly income.
Dumbfounded, I ran my fingers across the soft leather seats. Then I wandered past them and into what looked like another room. I couldn’t speak. It was a master bedroom with a sunken Jacuzzi and a full bathroom.
This had to be a joke. This couldn’t possibly be his. They were breaking in, that was it. Or this was a company jet and he had arranged this all for a laugh.
I felt Damon’s hands on my shoulders and his breath on my neck.
“Are you messing with me? This really can’t be yours.”
Damon turned me around and looked into my eyes. “This is my private jet, Amber. I’m not lying. The people on this plane work for me. Come on, let’s take a seat in the main cabin so the pilot can take off. He walked me back to one of the leather couches and sat us both down, then stretched out and reclined his legs on an ottoman in front of him. A flight attendant came out and took our drink orders, then left to tell the pilot we were ready to take off.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about any of this earlier. I hope you understand. My life is very private. I don’t trust just anyone with the personal details.”
“I do understand, Damon. This has all taken me off guard. It’s just … it’s so hard to believe. I’ve never known anyone who owned a private jet before. And to think it belongs to you. To shy, quiet Damon Andrews.”
“I started my own tech company after I left college. We worked on a lot of applications for the mobile market in the very beginning so now we have a reputation for quality. And I make sure we keep everything up to those standards. It’s just a matter of having been in the right place at the right time. And not to mention having the right product. Now there are multiple branches that handle marketing and advertising—“
“Ah, so that’s where the small marketing business story came from.”
“Yeah, it wasn’t a total lie,” Damon said, flashing the sexiest smile I’d seen on him tonight. He seemed to be much more in his element here. Relaxed and even more confident. Which made him even more sexy. “I won’t bore you by going into the specifics,” he continued, “but right now I’m the head of one of the top tech firms in the world. My company has brought in billions for the last three years. But enough about business. This is my week off and that’s the last thing I want to talk about.”
“Okay,” I said, looking around the cabin. I wanted to run my fingers over everything. It all looked so soft and clean. I kicked my shoes off and pushed my toes through the thick pile. Even the carpet was luxurious.
After what Damon had just told me, I honestly didn’t know what to do or say. I felt even more inadequate than when I was comparing myself to, what I thought were, women in my financial bracket. Now that I knew everyone in Damon’s life must be not only attractive, but also incredibly wealthy, I felt like I didn’t belong anywhere near him.
“I feel silly now,” I said. “I know that’s not a very sexy thing to say but it’s true.”
He sighed, picking up a martini glass the flight attendant had set on the table in front of us. He handed it to me, then picked up his own. “Don’t get weird on me now. You’re the only one I feel like I can trust from my old life. I’m still the same person, Amber. I’m still the same guy who kissed you in the bowling alley parking lot. And I’ve thought about that kiss for years.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really,” Damon said with a soft smile. “I can’t tell you how much you’ve been on my mind. You never really left. Not in all these years.”
I couldn’t stop my head from swimming. I watched his perfect lips move as he formed those incredible words, but my mind kept going back to how far out of my league Damon was. I brought the martini glass to my lips and took a sip, letting the cool, comforting liquid fill my stomach.
“I haven’t stopped thinking about you either. I hoped you’d be at the reunion, but honestly I was pretty sure you wouldn’t show. I was dreading the thing so much.”
“Me too. You’re the only reason I went. I haven’t taken a vacation since I started my company, and I owe this one to you,” he said, holding his glass up to me to propose a toast. “To horrible, small-town reunions.” I brought my glass up against his and we both laughed.
“And small-minded people that you never want to speak to again,” I said.
“Yes, only open minds from now on.” Damon looked into my eyes and I had that feeling again. The feeling that he wasn’t telling me everything.
Just then the jet lurched forward. I gripped the soft leather in one of my hands and gave Damon a panicked look. “What’s going on?”
“We’re taking off. It’s going to be a four-hour flight, then we’ll be at my place.”
“Wait, we’re flying there? Now?” I jumped up and ran to the window. The lines on the runway started to move by faster and faster and the airport disappeared behind us.
“Yes, we’re flying there. Why did you think we were on a plane?” Damon said as he came to my side. “You really should be seated during takeoff.”
“I don’t like flying, Damon. I don’t like flying at all.”
“You heard me tell the flight attendant we were ready to take off, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, I guess so, but you’ve told me so many crazy things in the last fifteen minutes that I could barely focus.” I turned around and looked up at him. “I guess I was so preoccupied with how out of my league you are that I forgot we were even on a plane.”
He held me firmly in his hands and his strong, dominating grasp seemed to help calm me. “I’m not out of your league, Amber. That’s ridiculous. Let’s go back to the couch.”
Damon kept his arm around me while we made our way back, then held my head on his shoulder as the jet continued to pick up speed. He pressed a button and called the flight attendant, then said something to her about a sedative. When she returned he handed me a little pill. “Take this, it will help you relax.”
“I don’t know, Damon. I’m not used to taking—“
“Look at me.” I did as I was told and Damon reached down with one hand and held my chin, then brought his lips to mine. His soft skin touched me gently a
t first, but eventually Damon wrapped his hands around my head and pressed his lips firmly into mine, sliding his tongue into my mouth and taking my breath away. The kiss seemed to go on for a long time, and when he pulled back I realized the plane was already off the ground.
Damon
Chapter 5
I ran my hands through Amber’s hair as she lay sleeping in my lap. I couldn’t believe this had all happened so quickly, us meeting up again after so many years and now heading across the country back to my house. I wanted to get her away from everything. I wanted to take her home and make her mine. I’d wasted too much time on other silly women and I knew now exactly what I wanted. And what I wanted was laying right in my lap.
But I had to be careful. I didn’t want to scare her with too much information too soon. I could see something in her eyes. Something that had always intrigued me. Back in high school I didn’t really understand anything. Especially about women. But now, I’d had enough experience to know. Or to at least hope. And I hoped more than anything that she’d be open to the person I was. The person virtually no one in my life knew anything about.
She stirred as the airplane started its descent and I gave her waist a little squeeze. “Hey, welcome back. You woke up just in time.”
“What’s going on?”
“We’re landing. You slept right through the flight.”
She sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Where are we?”
“Just outside New York City. We have another hour-long drive to get to my house.”
“Wow, sorry for falling asleep on you. Literally,” she said, laughing and looking around. “I can’t believe I did that. I didn’t even get the chance to take advantage of my first ever private jet excursion. I totally blew it.”
“I have a feeling you’ll have another chance to enjoy this jet.”
Amber gave me a quizzical look but didn’t say anything more.
After the plane landed and came to a stop, she let me guide her out of her seat and to the exit.
“Let me guess. That’s your limo,” Amber said as we descended the steps.
“Who else’s would it be,” I joked. My chauffeur, Jared, held the door open and Amber slid inside, looking like she was still recovering from the flight. “To the house please, Jared.”
“Yes, of course, Sir.”
When Jared got in the front seat, he slid up the window that separated them, giving us some privacy.
“Why don’t you rest on me again? I feel bad that I woke you up.”
“No, I’m fine.” She sat there on the seat next to me for a long time without saying a word. Then as we neared my house she looked over at me. “Damon, what am I doing here?”
I was a little puzzled by the question. “I thought you wanted to come home with me. If I misinterpreted I’m terribly sorry—“
“No, no. I do want to come home with you. I just … I want to know what you’re thinking. I need to understand what’s going on here. You just flew me across the country … and just for one night? That doesn’t make sense to me. What do you want from me, Damon?”
“I don’t know.” I paused for a moment. “Ever heard of soul mates?” I laughed out loud because I knew how cheesy it sounded, but it was exactly what I was thinking and feeling; that Amber and I were meant to be together. But she still didn’t know everything about me, and that would definitely make or break this night. I would know soon enough if she was really meant to be mine. “We’re here.”
Amber looked out the window of the limo. “Holy shit. You’ve got to be kidding. Are you sure we didn’t fly to England?”
“It’s just a house,” I said, smiling at her wide eyes and slack jaw. I had to admit, it was more of a castle than a house, standing tall on a hill surrounded by lush green mountains in the background. It wasn’t as massive as some of the others in the area, but it was one of the oldest structures on this side of the Atlantic.
She got out before the chauffeur could walk around and open the door, her mouth still hanging open. “I swear to God, Damon, I still keep expecting you to yell out, ‘Gotcha!’ at any second.”
“And then the camera crews would come out, telling you that you’ve been punked?”
“Something like that?” she said as she made her way up the stone steps that led to a massive entryway.
“This …” I pushed the massive carved wood doors inward until they stood open. “… is my home.”
Amber tentatively stepped inside, the clicks of her high heels echoing through the long hallways.
She slipped by me to admire the open room. The walls were a light shade of stone, the spiral staircase a rare black marble, and the chandelier was an antique with crystal teardrops, chosen specifically to enhance the crimson and black accents that were scattered throughout the room.
The castle still had some of its old sensibilities, and the furniture reflected that, but everything else was up to date. Modern appliances and lighting fixtures as well as a hidden sound system that spanned the entire house.
“Damon, this is spectacular.”
I moved up behind her, towering over her again. I liked how small she seemed when she was next to me like this. I wanted to wrap my arms around her and keep her safe for the rest of her life. I wanted to treat her like a queen.
“Yeah, I think this one is my favorite.”
“What do you mean, your favorite? You mean you own more than one castle?” She turned around and looked up at me and I could see in her eyes how much being here thrilled her.
I had gotten so used to the women who had grown up with money. They didn’t bat an eyelash when they stepped inside this house, or any of my others. But seeing the look on Amber’s face made me feel like I was experiencing it for the first time again. I wanted to see that look, and feel this feeling, for the rest of my life. “Let me show you around.”
Amber followed me, stepping gingerly while she gripped my hand. “I’m afraid I’m going to knock something over.”
“Don’t worry about that. If you do I can just buy another. These are all just things. And things can easily be replaced. But you, on the other hand …”
“Master Damon, welcome back.”
I looked up to see my assistant, Victor, coming in from the kitchen. Amber stepped back, but I continued to keep my hand around her waist. “Thank you, Victor. This is Amber. Amber, this is Victor, my right-hand man. I would be lost without him.”
“That’s very kind of you, Sir.” He looked at Amber and gave her a nod. “It’s very nice to meet you, Amber.”
“Nice to meet you too, Victor.”
“Will you be needing anything other than dinner?”
I looked down at Amber. “I’ve ordered dinner to be served in about an hour. Would you like to take a shower or lie down?”
“Thank you, a shower would be nice. I feel a little funky after that flight.”
“Would you like a glass of wine or anything before dinner?”
“No, I’m fine for now. Thank you.” Amber’s eyes kept darting back and forth between Victor and myself. She didn’t seem to know who to address.
“We won’t be needing anything until dinner, Victor. Thank you.”
He nodded then promptly exited, leaving us alone again.
“Let’s go upstairs. How are you feeling? Still tired?”
“A little.”
“Do you want to sleep? I want you to make yourself at home here.”
She smiled and shook her head. “No, that’s fine.”
We made our way up the winding staircase and when I opened the door to the master bedroom, Amber gasped out loud.
“You’re funny,” I said, walking across the room and opening some French doors that led to a balcony, overlooking the forest. A cool breeze of fresh pine swept past the curtains and when I turned back, Amber was right behind me. The only source of light was from the moon, and it gave her skin a soft glow.
“Why am I funny?” she asked.
“Not funny ha ha … just funny … I d
on’t know … incredibly sweet. I’ve lived here so long that none of this is really very special to me anymore. I like seeing things through your eyes.”
I moved up to her and touched the luminescent skin on her face, then ran my fingers down her neck and wrapped them around so they were buried in her hair. “You’re so beautiful, Amber.”
She lowered her head and rested it against my shoulder, then looked up at me again. “Really?”
“Yes, really.” I lifted her lips to mine and traced the soft flesh with my tongue before sinking it in deeper so that it curled around hers.
“What do you want to do?” Amber asked.
“Are you nervous?” I asked, not taking my lips away from her skin. I wanted to devour her right then, but I had to be careful. I needed to take my time and let this happen at her pace. I didn’t know how much longer I’d be able to hold off, though. “I want to watch you first.” I knew it was risky, but I thought it would be a good place to start.
“Watch me what?” she asked in a breathy voice as my mouth moved down her neck to her collarbone.
“I want to watch you take a shower.”
“What?” she asked, pulling her head back and looking up at me.
I didn’t respond right away. I stared down at her, trying to gauge her reaction. Was she acting surprised because that’s what she thought was expected from her? Because from what I could feel coming off of her, from what I’d always seen when I looked into her eyes, was the soul of a submissive. “Will you do that for me? Let me watch you? This is the only time I will ask. If you are uncomfortable in any way, I’ll stop and I won’t bring it up again.”
She shifted on her feet for a moment, but her eyes didn’t leave mine. “You only want to watch?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t want to get in with me?”
“No. Not yet.”
She looked a bit puzzled, but also intrigued. “Okay.”
